LenelS2 / OnGuard Credentials
One of the largest enterprise access platforms in the world — a facility guide to OnGuard's credential-agnostic model, where standard open prox (26-bit and Lenel 36-bit) is supply-able and the secured smart tiers are not.
Can you buy third-party LenelS2 / OnGuard Credentials cards?
LenelS2's OnGuard platform is credential-agnostic: most installations run open 125 kHz proximity — standard 26-bit H10301 and the Lenel 36-bit L11601 format — which is standard open Wiegand that American Key Cards supplies directly. OnGuard also supports AES-secured 13.56 MHz smart credentials and government PIV, which come through their own channels.
- 125 kHz / 13.56 MHz
- Frequency
- Enterprise access control (OnGuard / NetBox) — spans open 125 kHz Wiegand prox and AES-secured 13.56 MHz smart credentials
- Technology
- 4
- Bit formats
- 2+
- OEM part nos.
- Brand channel
- Order from
LenelS2's OnGuard is one of the most widely deployed enterprise access platforms in the world, and its defining trait is that it's credential-agnostic — it reads whatever format your readers were commissioned for. This page maps that credential landscape so you know what's supply-able and what isn't: the open 125 kHz prox (our lane, including the Lenel 36-bit format) versus the secured smart and government tiers (their channels).
OnGuard is credential-agnostic — which is the key insight
Unlike a platform that ships one proprietary credential, LenelS2 OnGuard (and the S2 NetBox line) is built to read whatever credential technology your readers present. Across the vast OnGuard installed base, that spans open 125 kHz proximity, AES-secured 13.56 MHz smart cards, and government PIV/PIV-I — often several within one organization, door by door.
That agnosticism is the whole sourcing story. There is no single 'Lenel card' — there's whatever format each reader was set up for, and each format is sourced according to what it is. The open ones are supply-able; the secured ones aren't.
The open prox side — standard 26-bit and Lenel 36-bit
Most OnGuard installations in the field run open 125 kHz proximity, in one of two flavors: the industry-standard 26-bit H10301, or the Lenel 36-bit L11601 format that many large sites adopted for its bigger number space. Both are open Wiegand structures — the 36-bit format is Lenel's layout but it's not cryptographically locked — which means an independent manufacturer can supply compatible credentials in either, programmed to your facility code and card-number range.
This is squarely our lane, and it's a big one given how much of the OnGuard base runs prox. Whether you need standard 26-bit or Lenel 36-bit L11601 stock, we program and verify it to your system's values — specify the format on the order, or send a working card and we'll confirm which you run.
The secured tiers — their channels, not ours
Where an OnGuard site runs AES-secured 13.56 MHz smart credentials, those are provisioned through their respective platforms and come from that channel — not a card vendor. And government PIV/PIV-I credentials are federally issued identity documents no commercial supplier produces. We name these to complete the picture, not to imply availability.
So the clean division on a LenelS2 site: open 26-bit and Lenel 36-bit prox are ours to supply directly; secured 13.56 MHz smart credentials and PIV go through their own channels. If you're auditing a mixed OnGuard estate, send photos of the credentials and readers and we'll sort which doors are which — then supply the open-prox stock.
LenelS2 / OnGuard Credentials specifications
- System brand
- LenelS2 (a Honeywell company)
- Technology
- Enterprise access control (OnGuard / NetBox) — spans open 125 kHz Wiegand prox and AES-secured 13.56 MHz smart credentials
- Frequency
- 125 kHz / 13.56 MHz
- Credential platform
- LenelS2 OnGuard is credential-agnostic: it runs open 125 kHz proximity (standard 26-bit and the Lenel 36-bit L11601 format) and AES-secured 13.56 MHz smart credentials, plus government PIV/PIV-I. The secured smart credentials and PIV come through their own channels; the open prox is standard-format stock.
- Bit formats
- Standard open 26-bit Wiegand H10301 (125 kHz), Lenel 36-bit L11601 open prox format (facility code 0–1023), AES-secured 13.56 MHz smart credentials (provisioned through their platforms), PIV / PIV-I (government, federally issued)
- OEM part numbers
- L11601-series (36-bit Lenel open prox), standard 26-bit prox bodies
Specifications reviewed August 2026
How to order LenelS2 / OnGuard Credentials credentials
OnGuard is credential-agnostic. The open 125 kHz proximity formats it runs — standard 26-bit and the Lenel 36-bit L11601 — are standard open Wiegand, which American Key Cards supplies directly, programmed to your facility code. The AES-secured 13.56 MHz smart credentials and government PIV come through their respective secured channels.
The open 125 kHz proximity that most OnGuard systems run — standard 26-bit H10301 and the Lenel 36-bit L11601 format — is standard open Wiegand, and we supply compatible credentials directly, programmed to your facility code and card-number range. Only the AES-secured 13.56 MHz smart credentials and government PIV go through their own channels.
Editorial reference page. American Key Cards is an independent credential supplier and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by LenelS2. We do not sell LenelS2's secured credentials (we supply only the open, standard-format proximity credentials described above); brand and product names appear only to identify the technology discussed, and all trademarks remain the property of their respective owners.
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View compatible cardsLenelS2 / OnGuard Credentials — FAQ
What card formats work with LenelS2 OnGuard?
OnGuard is credential-agnostic — it runs open 125 kHz proximity (standard 26-bit H10301 and the Lenel 36-bit L11601 format), AES-secured 13.56 MHz smart credentials, and government PIV. The open prox we supply directly; the secured and PIV tiers come through their own channels.
Can American Key Cards supply the Lenel 36-bit L11601 format?
Yes — the 36-bit L11601 is Lenel's layout but an open, non-encrypted Wiegand format, so we supply compatible credentials programmed to your facility code and card-number range, just as we do for standard 26-bit. Specify the format on your order or send a working card and we'll confirm it.
Which credential format is my OnGuard system using?
It depends how your readers were commissioned — many OnGuard sites run open prox (26-bit or 36-bit), some run secured smart credentials or PIV, and large ones mix them. Your OnGuard administrator or a photo of a working card lets us identify it before you order.
Are the secured LenelS2 credentials available from a third party?
No — AES-secured 13.56 MHz smart credentials are provisioned through their platforms, and government PIV is federally issued. We supply the open 125 kHz prox (26-bit and Lenel 36-bit); the secured tiers come through their own channels.