Who this is for: Administrators setting up QR code scanning at a checkpoint
Applies to: Orah Checkpoint - Day app
What you are seeing
A student or staff member scans their QR code at a checkpoint and the app returns "student not recognised". The same result happens every time, for the same people, no matter how many times they scan.
Why this happens
By default, the Checkpoint Day app verifies people by their SIS ID. It looks up the scanned value against the SIS ID on the profile.
Students and faculty who were created manually in Orah — rather than synced from your SIS — have no SIS ID at all. There is nothing for the scan to match against, so they will never be recognised. Anyone synced from your SIS scans fine, which is why the problem usually affects only some people.
How to fix it
Step 1 — Change the checkpoint's identification method
Open the checkpoint's Authentication settings and change the identification method from SIS ID to Orah Reference ID. The app will then match on a value you control rather than one that only exists for synced profiles.
Step 2 — Give every profile a Student Reference value
Orah Reference ID matching only works if each profile actually has a reference value stored. Check the affected students and faculty and populate the Student Reference field on any profile where it is blank.
Step 3 — Populate the values in bulk
If you have more than a handful of profiles to update, do it as an import rather than one at a time:
Export your student list from Orah.
Add the reference values in the Student Reference column of the exported file.
Re-import the file with Update existing enabled, so the import updates the existing profiles instead of creating duplicates.
Once the references are in place, scan again at the checkpoint to confirm the profiles are recognised.
If you cannot see Scanner as an option
The Scanner / QR option must be enabled on your account by the Orah Support team before it appears under a checkpoint's Authentication settings. If Scanner is not listed there at all, that is why — it has not been enabled for your account yet.
Start a conversation with the Orah team using the blue chat icon at the bottom right of this page and ask for scanner verification to be enabled, naming the checkpoint you want to use it at.
Still not recognised?
If the checkpoint is set to Orah Reference ID, the profile has a Student Reference value, and the scan still fails, contact support with:
The checkpoint name
The name of a student or staff member who cannot be recognised
The reference value stored on their profile