Getting Started

Already familiar with the new connectors, use the Connector Factory to get started.

What are they?

Connectors are Octoblu Things that run as a background service on a computer. They are typically used as a gateway to in-network devices and sensors. Connectors can be installed on macOS, Linux, and Windows; even on Raspberry Pi's and other Microcomputers.

How does it work?

Each connector is a pre-compiled node library that connects to the device. It listens for jobs that are performed on the device. The configuration of the connector is stored on the Meshblu Device and can be changed in Octoblu and Connector Factory. Since the connector is just a library, it requires a few components to run.

Connectors need an installer to run properly on a machine. We've built an Installer to handle downloading dependencies, the connector, and setting up the service files on each platform. Even the installer is broken into small components that can re-used depending on your needs.

When you create a Connector in the Connector Factory, it will generate a One Time Password (OTP), with all of the installation information and credentials. A pre-configured Installer can be downloaded for each platform.

See the architecture documentation for more details.

What about Gateblu?

In the past we have used Gateblu to manage our connectors, which led to unnecessary complexity and instability. The new Connectors replace the need for running a Gateblu and provide a more flexible and easier to use solution.

One of the main problems with Gateblu is that it runs the compilation step on the computer, which in many cases required development dependencies such as Python. In many cases this caused problems, and frustration. Which is why we decided to create pre-compiled connectors for each platform.

We attempted to "fix" Gateblu several times, until we discovered it was fundamentally flawed. Having a separate service and UI application was a mistake. Adding, starting, stopping, and removing connectors from a Gateblu was hard to test and unstable. After we understood the full problem, we realized that connectors, should be independent and run as just a Thing.

How do I create one?

You can get started by viewing the Create and Install a Connector tutorial.

How do I build my own?

You can get started by viewing the Build a Connector documentation.