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Program Structure

The OPC Router consists of two components that run side by side: The OPC Router 5 Management module handles engineering, the ability to put the system into production, and the runtime status display. The Router service, as a runtime component, handles data transfers.

Schema: The Web Management module operates on the Git-versioned configuration store (YAML files); publishing saves the current state to the project database (MongoDB), from which the Router Service executes the flows and to which it writes status data; the plug-in connections link to sources and destinations such as OPC UA, databases, and MQTT.

The router service accesses the sources and destinations of data transfers via the plug-in connections.

You launch the management interface via a web browser.
(Default address http://localhost:5000).

The management interface in the browser consolidates all processes required for commissioning the router, including licensing:

  1. Configuration of the required plug-ins, for example, specifying the accessible OPC and database servers with connection details, defining variables (select from the left side of the snap-in directory under “Plug-ins”, edit on the corresponding tab) – see Plug-ins.
  2. Flow configuration: Which data should be transferred, when, from where, and to where? (Select and create flows via the snap-in directory at “Flows”, select transfer objects on the right, edit flows in the main window) – see Building Flows.
  3. Putting the entire project or individual flows into production – see Publishing.
  4. Starting the Runtime: The Router service starts automatically every time the computer boots up. Only after the initial engineering and after each version update do you need to start it manually once using the button in the Router configuration—see Windows Installation. Once it is running, the restart required for production deployment occurs automatically.
  5. Monitoring and error diagnosis can be found on the left in the snap-in directory under “Status”—see Status Display.

Please note that only the licensed plug-ins are available to you. The glossary explains the terms used in these steps.

The router service is the runtime component that processes data transfers in the background as a Windows service. Custom configuration is generally only necessary when deploying in distributed systems with Windows authentication.

See Architecture Recommendations for information on where engineering and status data are stored and how the architecture can be distributed across multiple instances.