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Overview

ThingsBoard Edge supports several options for connecting devices. The diagram below provides a visual overview of available options to help you choose the right one for your use case.

Decision tree showing how to connect devices to ThingsBoard Edge. If the device is IP-enabled with custom firmware, use MQTT, HTTP, CoAP, LwM2M, or SNMP depending on the protocol. Non-IP devices or those using industrial protocols such as OPC-UA, Modbus, BLE, CAN, or SNMP can be connected via IoT Gateway.

These protocols apply to devices that communicate over standard IP transports and can connect directly to ThingsBoard Edge.

Most protocols support JSON, Protobuf, or a custom data format. This is the best option for new devices when you control the firmware.

ThingsBoard IoT Gateway connects devices in local networks without direct internet access, or using non-IP protocols — including MQTT, OPC-UA, Modbus, BLE, HTTP, CAN, BACnet, ODBC, and SNMP. The gateway converts device data to the ThingsBoard format and forwards it over MQTT to the platform.

ThingsBoard Edge PE supports ChirpStack and many other LoRaWAN network servers via Integrations, including TheThingsStack, TheThingsIndustries, LORIOT, Actility ThingPark, and any server that supports webhooks or MQTT. Custom data converters let you transform incoming payloads to suit your data model.ThingsBoard Edge PE supports Sigfox via the built-in Sigfox integration.

NB-IoT and other protocols

Section titled NB-IoT and other protocols
ThingsBoard Edge PE supports a wide range of integrations covering most devices on the market. Contact us if you need help connecting your device.