First-Time Login

Summary

When a new GC Surge account is created, the account owner goes through a short registration and setup process before reaching the dashboard. This applies to the Super Admin setting up the account. GC Surge accounts use email verification for identity confirmation after registration — SSO and Google login are not supported. After registration, all logins use email and password.

Why It Matters

GC Surge is designed for speed from the start. Registration takes only a few minutes — fill in your details, verify your email, complete a quick site setup step, and you are in the platform. The sidebar shows only the modules that match your role — no additional configuration needed

How It Works

Signing Up

To open the sign-up form, click Start Free 7-Day Trial on the GC Surge landing page, or Register on the sign-in screen. This creates the Super Admin account for your organization. Complete the following fields:

• Email — becomes your primary login. Use a role-based address (e.g., security-admin@company.com) rather than a personal address.
• Phone number — use the flag on the left to select your country code, then enter your number.
• Company name — your organization’s name in GC Surge.
• Password — minimum 8 characters. The strength indicator shows 5 requirements: 8+ characters, uppercase, lowercase, symbol, and number.
• Retype password — confirm your password.
• Terms of Use — check “I have read and agree to the Terms of Use” before submitting.

The form shows: “After creating your account, we will send you a verification email. Please check your inbox and verify your account. If you do not see the email, check your junk or spam folder as well.” Click Create account to submit — the button shows “We are creating your tenant” while your account is set up. GC Surge sends two emails to your inbox — a verification email and a trial welcome email — and takes you to a Check your email screen. You must verify your email address before the account setup wizard opens.

On the Check your email screen, GC Surge shows: “We sent you an email to verify your address. Check your inbox and verify your email. If you don’t see the email in your inbox, kindly check your junk or spam folders.” Click Open your inbox to continue to open your mailbox. If the email has not arrived, use Resend once the countdown completes, or click Back to welcome to return to the start.

Account Setup Wizard

The wizard runs once, immediately after you verify your email. It cannot be skipped in full, but the last step (Site & Device) has a Skip for now option.

1. Welcome — Choose your platform language. The screen shows HOW IT WORKS with three steps: Your profile (add your name and photo so teammates recognize you), Site & device (add your first site and connect a device to unlock monitoring, alarms, and Surge onboarding), and Go live (open the alarm center and start monitoring your sites). Click Get started to continue.

2. Your profile — Set your display name and optionally upload a profile photo. This is how teammates will identify you in the platform. Click Continue.

3. Site & Device — Choose how to add your first site and device: Add a site and device (set up a new location and connect its first device), Add a device to an existing site (pick one of your sites and add a device to it), Add multiple sites and devices (import several sites and devices at once with flash bulk import), or Add demo cameras (load sample cameras instantly so you can explore GC Surge without setting up hardware). If you are not ready, click Skip for now — you can add sites later from Configuration. After you add a site and device, a confirmation screen appears with a Go to Alarm center button and an Add another site button; a “Trouble getting an alarm? Get support” link is also shown. Adding demo cameras takes you straight into the platform at the Sites & devices (Configuration) view, and skipping this step takes you directly to the Home Dashboard.

What to Expect After Registration

• Email Verification: Your email address is confirmed during sign-up, before the account setup wizard opens — you cannot reach the Home Dashboard until it is verified. The Verify your email item in the Getting Started Checklist reflects this confirmed status.
• Getting Started Checklist: The Home Dashboard shows a GETTING STARTED CHECKLIST widget with 8 tasks to complete during onboarding. Items are checked off automatically as you complete them. The badge shows how many remain. The 8 tasks are: Setup your first site, Verify your email, Add a device, Receive an alarm, Invite an operator, Assign your operator to a shift, Setup your alarm closure tags, and Close an alarm. Clicking any checklist item launches a Spotlight Tour for that task — tooltip-based steps guide you through the relevant platform area. Each step has a Skip button.

• The sidebar displays only the modules accessible to your assigned role. If a module you expect is not visible, your Super Admin needs to review your role assignment.
• On a new account, Analytics and Video Search will show empty states until cameras are onboarded and events start flowing. This is expected.

Emails After Registration

GC Surge sends the following emails automatically after you create your account. No action is required to trigger them — they arrive in the order below.

• Verify your email address — arrives immediately after account creation. The email greets you by name and says: “You’re almost set. Confirm your email address to activate your account and start connecting sites.” Click the Verify Email Address button to confirm. If the button does not work, copy and paste the link from the email directly into your browser. The verification link expires in 24 hours. Your email must be confirmed before you can receive shift reports and scheduled notifications.

• Your GC Surge Trial Is Live — Start Measuring Capacity Gain — arrives immediately after registration alongside the verification email. Confirms your trial environment is live. The email states: “This is not a demo. This is your proof environment.” It lists what your trial includes: up to 10 cameras, unlimited NOVA99x with no per-camera alarm cap, NOVA99x filtering up to 99% of false alarms before they reach any operator, and access to Alarm Workflow, ZenMode, Analytics, and Flash BulkImport. Includes an Access My Dashboard button. The email also includes: a 3 Steps to get started section prompting you to add your first site; a Pro Tip listing what to have ready before setup (site name, IP address, HTTP port, camera brand, camera count, credentials, and onsite contact); and a note that Genie, the built-in AI assistant, is available 24/7 inside the platform.

• Your GC Surge Operations Summary — a recurring report on alarm activity across your organization: total alarms processed, alarms passed to operators, and average alarm processing time. Use this to track how GC Surge is performing against your operation over time. A Super Admin sets how often it arrives — hourly, daily, weekly or monthly — under Settings → Report schedule; new accounts start on the weekly schedule.

Logging In

After your account is created and your email is verified, all subsequent logins use your email address and password. If your email is registered across multiple tenant accounts, specify which account to log into at sign-in. If only one account exists for that email, the system selects it automatically.

1. Open the GC Surge login page.
2. Enter your registered email address and password.
3. Click Sign In and wait for the redirect to the Home Dashboard.

What to Validate During Your Trial

Your 7-day free trial is the time to confirm GC Surge works against your real operational environment. Use this checklist to structure your evaluation — test each area explicitly before your Day 7 decision.

• Onboarding: Site creation completes without errors. Cameras are added via Public IP, Private/VPN, or Edge without errors. Cameras appear in Configuration and events start flowing after activation.
• Operations: Operators can locate a specific event type within 60 seconds using Video Search filters. ZenMode reduces context-switching during active monitoring. The alarm detail view provides enough context for triage decisions.
• Administration: User invitation and role assignment work as expected. Role-based access controls restrict the correct modules per role. My Subscription & Billing View accurately reflects the cameras onboarded during the trial.
• Repeatability: Your team could follow the same onboarding process for a second site without support. Naming conventions used during the trial are consistent and readable across all platform views.

If Something Goes Wrong

• Credentials rejected — verify you are using the email from sign-up. Use password reset if needed. During sign-up, "Email already exists" appears when the email is already registered — use a different email address or contact support to recover the existing account.
• Verification email not received — check your spam or junk folder. The link expires in 24 hours — if it has expired, contact support to resend the verification.
• Module missing from sidebar — your role does not include that module. Contact your Super Admin.
• Login succeeds but tenant does not load — confirm the account has an active role and a valid tenant assignment.
• Login succeeds but redirects to a blank page — clear browser cache and try a private/incognito window.

Logging Out

Click the logout icon at the bottom of the left sidebar. A confirmation modal appears — click Yes to complete the logout. Any open forms or unsaved changes in modals will be lost, so close or save any active work before logging out.

The logout icon at the bottom of the left sidebar.

The logout confirmation modal.