Before installing any connector it is recommended that you read the Connectors Overview page. All connectors follow common instructions for installation and require prerequisites be installed. The following information is specific to this connector.
The MQTT connector is a software component that enables communication between systems using the MQTT protocol—a lightweight, publish-subscribe messaging protocol designed for low-bandwidth, high-latency, or unreliable networks. It typically acts as a bridge between an MQTT broker and another system, such as a database, a cloud platform or an analytic engine.
The key features of the connector allow it to:
- Subscribe to MQTT topics and receive messages in real time
- Publish messages to the MQTT topics from external systems
- Transform and filter data before forwarding it
- Provide secure communication using TLS/SSL
- Authenticate via username/password certificates.
The ThinkIQ MQTT connector allows collecting telemetry data from sensors and sending it to our cloud platform, bridging MQTT with OPC UA systems, and feeding MQTT data into real time dashboards and other visualizations. MQTT is a loosely typed connector and relies on proper type mapping to be successful. Read more about connector typing.
Local Installation
- The MQTT connector must be installed locally, that is, on the machine the data source resides on.
Installing MQTT Connector
- Broker Host: The installed MQTT broker on the source machine, eg. Mosquitto, EMQX, HiveMQ. This is the central hub for MQTT messages.
- Broker Port: Usually 8883 - this is a secure, encrypted port.
- Use TLS: This is true, by default.
- Username: Username of the authenticated user.
- Password: Password of the authenticated user.
- Allow Untrusted Certs: Usually left unchecked.
- Root topic: Root topic for tag collection.
- Keep Alive (s):
- Use Sparkplug B
- Session Expiry Interval: 3600 (seconds) default.
- Last Will Topic (LWT): This is a message that can configured to be sent by the broker if the client disconnects unexpectedly (i.e., without sending a proper DISCONNECT message). It helps the system know that a device or service has gone offline abruptly, and improves reliability and status awareness.
- Last Will QoS: Refers to the Quality of Service (QoS) level assigned to the Last Will and Testament (LWT) message. QoS determines how reliably the message is delivered by the broker to subscribers.
- Last Will Message: The actual content of the message that the broker will publish to a specified topic if a client disconnects unexpectedly.
- Last Will Retain: A setting that tells the broker whether to store the last message sent to a topic so that new subscribers immediately receive it when they subscribe.
An example of the last four settings might be:
- The Last Will Topic: devices/devices123/status
- The Last Will Message: "offline"
- QoS level: 1 (at least once)
- Retain flag: True (so new subscribers see the message)
Click OK and continue with the common steps to complete the installation.
Mapping Tags
To receive time series data from a new connector, its tags must be properly linked to attributes in ThinkIQ system.
Learn how to Map Tags to Data Sources.