Comparison

An alternative to Realsoft, for the Realtime machines you keep

Realtime makes good terminals — we support them natively and say so on our integration page. This page is about the software layer: the free Realsoft desktop tool most Realtime machines run with, the company's own cloud HRMS, and where a vendor-neutral platform differs. Every claim about their products below comes from their own published sites, August 2026.

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Realsoft is Realtime's free Windows desktop software; by its own description it "connects with Realtime biometric devices" — one brand, one PC. Realtime also offers a cloud HRMS (onlinerealsoft.com) with attendance, leave and payroll modules, priced by user count. AionHRMS differs on four published axes: it runs Realtime terminals natively alongside eSSL and ZKTeco in one register, so the software choice stops dictating the hardware brand; it is a flat annual subscription by headcount band rather than per user per month; its payroll is computed from the punches with India-shaped shift rules — double shifts, grace periods, late-penalty thresholds, advances; and its security posture is published, with data residency in India stated outright. On Realtime's sites (August 2026), security is described in general terms and no certifications are itemised or residency stated.

Native

Realtime's own protocol implemented directly — keep the machines

3 brands

Realtime, eSSL and ZKTeco terminals in one register

Flat annual

by headcount band, unlimited terminals — versus user-count subscription tiers

Published

security posture and India data residency, stated and checkable

The Realtime software family, fairly

Two distinct products carry the brand. Realsoft is the free desktop companion — attendance, shifts, reports and door control for Realtime devices on a Windows PC. The cloud side is a full HRMS (onlinerealsoft.com) with recruitment, leave and payroll modules and material scale claims. Both are legitimate products with a natural audience.

Realsoft: free with the hardware, familiar to dealers, adequate for one site and one brand — if that is you and the PC is backed up, it works
The cloud HRMS: a broad HR suite priced by user count; the right shape if you want recruitment-to-payroll HR software from one vendor
Both are built around Realtime's own devices — their site describes Realsoft as connecting "with Realtime biometric devices (fingerprint, face, RFID)"
That single-brand design is the pivot of this comparison, because hardware estates in India do not stay single-brand

The desktop problem, in one paragraph

Every failure mode we documented across this site applies to any desktop attendance tool, Realsoft included: the PC holds the installation, often the only reachable copy of history, and the operational knowledge of whoever set it up. When the disk, the PC or the person goes, the system goes.

AionHRMS has no desktop component — the terminal pushes to the cloud and you read it in a browser
Templates and history live centrally; no computer at your site holds the only copy of anything
A replaced or reset terminal receives the employee list again; biometric reuse depends on device family and template format
Any authorised person reads the register from anywhere, which is what "the accountant left" stops mattering

Hardware freedom is the structural difference

Choosing a manufacturer's software makes the next hardware purchase a foregone conclusion. Choosing vendor-neutral software makes it a price negotiation. Over a multi-site, multi-year estate, that difference compounds.

AionHRMS implements Realtime's native push protocol directly — plus iClock/ADMS for eSSL and ZKTeco
A mixed estate — Realtime at the plant, eSSL at the office — is one register, not two systems
Buy the next terminal from whichever dealer quotes best; the software does not care
A dead unit may be replaced by another confirmed model, but cross-brand biometric re-enrolment may be required

Payroll: suite breadth versus punch depth

Realtime's cloud HRMS includes payroll among its modules, alongside recruitment and leave workflows — suite breadth we do not claim; AionHRMS has no recruitment module and no leave-approval workflow, and says so. Our payroll bet is depth at the punch: the Indian shift floor, computed exactly.

Duty times per employee; single or double shift, each shift carrying its own salary
Punches bucketed to the right shift automatically, night shifts landing on the right date
Grace periods, late thresholds, penalties as flat fine or fraction of a shift — your rules
Paid leave capped at working days; advances recorded and settled against future payments
If suite breadth (recruitment, leave workflows) outweighs punch-to-salary depth for you, their HRMS is the honest recommendation

Security: published versus general

As of August 2026, Realtime's sites describe security in general terms — "multi-layered security with encrypted data flows and role-based access" and references to "Global Certificates" — without itemising certifications or stating where customer data resides. Our posture is published specifically, because a buyer should not have to ask.

Data on infrastructure in India — stated, not implied
Raw device-enrolment payloads are excluded from ordinary exports and the partner API; face-photo workflows are disclosed separately
Role-scoped human access; scoped hashed API keys with rate limits and full request logs
Built by AIONDATA: ISO 9001:2015 certified, CMMI Level 3 appraised, SOC 2 Type II / GDPR / HIPAA ready — qualifiers exact
Ask both vendors the same questions in writing; this page holds either way

Realtime's software versus AionHRMS

Competitor rows are from realtimebiometrics.com and onlinerealsoft.com as published in August 2026.

	AionHRMS	Realsoft / Realtime cloud (published, Aug 2026)
Device brands	Realtime native, plus eSSL and ZKTeco — one register.	Built around Realtime devices; Realsoft "connects with Realtime biometric devices".
Deployment	Cloud only — nothing installed at your site.	Realsoft: Windows desktop. Separate cloud HRMS offering.
Pricing model	Flat annual by headcount band; unlimited terminals and sites.	Realsoft free with hardware; cloud HRMS in user-count subscription tiers.
Payroll	Shift-unit salary from punches: doubles, grace, penalties, advances.	Payroll module within the HRMS suite; suite includes recruitment and leave.
Security posture	Certifications and India residency published, with exact qualifiers.	General statements; certifications not itemised, residency not stated.
Right choice when	Mixed or growing hardware estate; wage bill rides on the punch.	Single-brand Realtime estate; want a broad HR suite from the device vendor.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an alternative to Realsoft for Realtime biometric machines?

Yes — for confirmed models, AionHRMS implements Realtime's native protocol so the same terminals can report to the cloud instead of a Windows PC. You gain browser access, a shared employee register, multi-brand attendance and punch-computed payroll. Realtime biometric enrolment remains at the terminal.

Realsoft is free. Why pay for an alternative?

For one site, one brand and a well-backed-up PC, free is a fair answer and we say so. The paid difference shows up when the PC dies with the history on it, when a second site or second brand arrives, when the owner wants today's attendance from another city, or when month-end payroll is still a spreadsheet. Those are the four expensive days the subscription buys.

How is this different from Realtime's own cloud HRMS?

Three published differences: theirs is built around Realtime devices while AionHRMS runs Realtime, eSSL and ZKTeco in one register; theirs prices by user count while we charge a flat annual subscription by headcount band with unlimited terminals and sites; and our security posture — certifications with exact qualifiers, data residency in India — is published outright. Theirs is the better fit if you want a broad HR suite, recruitment included, from the device vendor.

Do we lose enrolled fingerprints if we leave Realsoft?

Changing only the server address normally does not clear templates already stored on a Realtime terminal, but the exact procedure should be confirmed for the model and firmware before cutover. AionHRMS does not claim to push Realtime biometric templates; replacement terminals require device-side biometric enrolment.

Can we run Realsoft and AionHRMS in parallel while deciding?

The terminal pushes to one server at a time, so a true parallel run is not how these devices work. The practical path: move one site or one terminal first, compare a week of registers, then cut the rest over. The move is reversible — the server address can be pointed back the same way it was pointed at us.

Keep the Realtime machines. Retire the attendance PC.

Send a model and serial and we will confirm native protocol support before you change anything.