In Call of Duty, players can access restricted areas by finding or crafting an Encodable Blank Keycard and programming it at an X01 Keycard Encoder Station. This process allows you to generate specific access keys needed to unlock the Executive, Maintenance, or Audit rooms located throughout the map.
In Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, these DMZ cards let you target restricted rooms without waiting for their specific keycards to drop. Your main choices include the Executive Room, Maintenance Room, and Audit Room. Each needs its own authorization, and the encoder you visit determines which permissions you can select. Pick your destination first so you do not spend a blank on the wrong room.
Where to get Encodable Blank Keycards
Search X01 and complete Orders
Check tables, racks, shelves, and searchable containers throughout X01. The large table in the Control Room is worth checking when your route takes you nearby. Treat it as a possible pickup location, not a guaranteed spawn.
Completing the first page of X01 Orders awards two blank keycards. This gives you a way to obtain them through objectives without spending printer components.
Craft a blank at the 3D Printer
The 3D Printer in Production Assembly can manufacture an Encodable Blank Keycard using the following recipe:
| Material | Required for one blank keycard |
|---|---|
| Printed Circuit Boards | 6 |
| Control Units | 8 |
Bring the components to the printer, interact with it, select the Encodable Blank Keycard recipe, and manufacture the item. The printer makes the blank, not a finished room keycard. You still need an encoder to assign its permission.
Blank keycard crafting costs
Use the printer when you already have the components and want a specific room. If you are still collecting supplies, search nearby surfaces and containers along your route before committing those materials.
How to encode a blank keycard
Find the right encoder station
Open the Tac Map and check for Keycard Encoder Station symbols on X01's lower, Data Center floor. Look in Supply Depot and along the eastern edge of Data Center. The Supply Depot station is on its eastern side, around grid F2.
Do not assume every station offers the same authorizations. Use the following pairings for these three room keycards:
| Authorization to select | Encoder area | Finished keycard |
|---|---|---|
| Executive Access | Supply Depot | Executive Room Keycard |
| Maintenance Access | Supply Depot | Maintenance Room Keycard |
| Audit Officer Access | Data Center | Audit Room Keycard |
Choose the matching authorization
Complete the encoding process
Once you reach the appropriate station:
- Keep an Encodable Blank Keycard in your backpack.
- Interact with the device and open the Encode Keycard menu.
- Select the authorization that matches your destination.
- Wait for the progress bar to reach 100%.
- Pick up the finished keycard ejected by the station.
Allow about 30 seconds for Executive encoding or about 15 seconds for Maintenance encoding. Use the progress bar to judge completion. You do not need to remain directly at the machine while it works, but return to collect the output before moving on.
The finished card grants its selected access permission. It is not a universal pass for X01's secured doors, so check the item name before leaving the station.
Which room should you open?
Executive Room for weapons, valuables, and another keycard route
Executive Access is a good use of a blank when you want weapons and valuables. The room contains two weapons lockers, a rifle case, other searchable containers, and loose items on desks, cabinets, and shelves.
Possible valuables include the Weapons Grade Isotope and Gilded Medal of Absolute Loyalty. Loot varies, so neither should be treated as a guaranteed reward. Also check the large desk for a Deep Vault 406 Keycard, which opens the Deep Vault gate and Room 406 inside.
To reach the Executive Room:
- Head to the Admin Offices, in the west wing of X01's Main Warehouse floor, around grid C5.
- Find the large statue atrium and take the stairs on its west side to the second floor.
- At the top, turn back into the small office with the water cooler and shelves.
- Find the green double door on the office's west wall. Use the card reader to its right.
The Executive Room Keycard is consumed when the door unlocks. Search the containers and loose-loot surfaces during that visit; another opening requires a newly encoded card.
Maintenance Room for a Production Assembly stop
Choose Maintenance when your route already takes you through Production Assembly and you want to search equipment containers. The room has 14 containers, including four server blades and five military lockers. Possible finds include Control Units, a Comms Module, and Alloyed Plating.
The door is at the top of Production Assembly, around grid E5 on the Data Center floor. Its keycard describes the location as the third-floor Maintenance Room beside fenced pipework.
Follow this route through the hall:
- Find the metal staircase in the southwest part of Production Assembly and climb to the catwalk.
- Follow the catwalk to the yellow ladder on the corrugated wall, then climb it.
- Cross the open floor and take the concrete stairs to the top level.
- Enter the room with the large insulated pipe behind a red fence.
- Look for the Maintenance Room door at the far end, marked by a red no-entry sign. Its card reader is on the right.
The Maintenance Room Keycard is also consumed when you unlock its door. Inside, check the shelves as well as the containers, since valuables can appear as loose loot.
Audit Room for the eastern Main Warehouse route
The Audit Room is southeast of the Main Warehouse, around grid G5 on X01's upper floor. Use this route after collecting your Audit Room Keycard:
- Approach the building on the eastern side of the Main Warehouse area near G5.
- Enter and keep right until you reach the staircase.
- Take the stairs to the floor above the entrance.
- Continue straight, take the first left, and then turn sharply right.
- Find the secured Audit Room entrance in the darker section ahead and use your card.
Use the staircase and corridor turns as your landmarks. They provide a clearer route than relying on a floor number alone when moving between X01's main levels and the floors inside individual buildings.
What if you find a finished room keycard?
Maintenance Room Keycards and Audit Room Keycards can also appear in searchable objects around X01. If you find the card for your intended destination, skip printing and encoding and head to its door.
These drops are random. A corpse, jacket, or container that held a card previously is not a fixed pickup point. Before spending printer components, check your backpack for a completed keycard that already covers the room you want to visit.
