---
title: "Set up the Edge Device MQTT broker"
slug: "set-up-the-edge-device-mqtt-broker"
updated: 2024-12-04T11:03:13Z
published: 2024-12-04T11:03:13Z
canonical: "support.tulip.co/set-up-the-edge-device-mqtt-broker"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://support.tulip.co/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Set up the Edge Device MQTT broker

## Purpose

*Learn how to set up an external MQTT broker on Tulip Edge Devices*

Beginning with OS 50.1, Tulip Edge Devices have an external MQTT broker to which client devices can connect.

## Instructions

1. Log into the Edge Device Portal.
2. At the bottom of the "Network configuration" section, select the "MQTT Broker" option.

![](https://cdn.document360.io/7c6ff534-cad3-4fc8-9583-912c4016362f/Images/Documentation/How%20to%20Enable%20and%20Set%20Up%20the%20Edge%20Device%20MQTT%20Broker_566761938.png)

1. Click "Enable", enter in a desired username and password, and hit "Save".

![](https://cdn.document360.io/7c6ff534-cad3-4fc8-9583-912c4016362f/Images/Documentation/How%20to%20Enable%20and%20Set%20Up%20the%20Edge%20Device%20MQTT%20Broker_566762340.png)

## Using the MQTT Broker with Node-RED

To confirm the broker is available, we can use a Node-RED MQTT IN node.

1. If Node-RED is off, turn it on and log in to the Node-RED editor.
2. Add an MQTT node to your flow and edit the node.

![](https://cdn.document360.io/7c6ff534-cad3-4fc8-9583-912c4016362f/Images/Documentation/How%20to%20Enable%20and%20Set%20Up%20the%20Edge%20Device%20MQTT%20Broker_566761693.png)

1. Click the pencil button to open the broker configuration and set "Server" to `localhost`.

![](https://cdn.document360.io/7c6ff534-cad3-4fc8-9583-912c4016362f/Images/Documentation/How%20to%20Enable%20and%20Set%20Up%20the%20Edge%20Device%20MQTT%20Broker_566761625.png)

1. Click on the "Security" tab and enter the username and password configured for the broker.

![](https://cdn.document360.io/7c6ff534-cad3-4fc8-9583-912c4016362f/Images/Documentation/How%20to%20Enable%20and%20Set%20Up%20the%20Edge%20Device%20MQTT%20Broker_566761499.png)

1. Click "Update" to save the settings.
2. Click "Deploy" to check if the node can connect to the broker.

![](https://cdn.document360.io/7c6ff534-cad3-4fc8-9583-912c4016362f/Images/Documentation/How%20to%20Enable%20and%20Set%20Up%20the%20Edge%20Device%20MQTT%20Broker_566762121.png)

### Example Node-RED Flow

The example below can be saved as a JSON file and imported to Node-RED to send a "world" message to the "hello" topic.

![](https://cdn.document360.io/7c6ff534-cad3-4fc8-9583-912c4016362f/Images/Documentation/How%20to%20Enable%20and%20Set%20Up%20the%20Edge%20Device%20MQTT%20Broker_566761230.png)

```
[  
   {  
      "id":"c8829f45.d66fd",  
      "type":"tab",  
      "label":"Flow 1",  
      "disabled":false,  
      "info":""  
   },  
   {  
      "id":"983032d6.f2f378",  
      "type":"debug",  
      "z":"c8829f45.d66fd",  
      "name":"",  
      "active":true,  
      "tosidebar":true,  
      "console":false,  
      "tostatus":false,  
      "complete":"topic",  
      "targetType":"msg",  
      "statusVal":"",  
      "statusType":"auto",  
      "x":800,  
      "y":180,  
      "wires":[  
           
      ]  
   },  
   {  
      "id":"39d4c518.6948ba",  
      "type":"inject",  
      "z":"c8829f45.d66fd",  
      "name":"",  
      "props":[  
         {  
            "p":"payload"  
         },  
         {  
            "p":"topic",  
            "vt":"str"  
         }  
      ],  
      "repeat":"",  
      "crontab":"",  
      "once":false,  
      "onceDelay":0.1,  
      "topic":"hello",  
      "payload":"world",  
      "payloadType":"str",  
      "x":480,  
      "y":120,  
      "wires":[  
         [  
            "33035adc.d4eae6"  
         ]  
      ]  
   },  
   {  
      "id":"f7839332.ea3a98",  
      "type":"mqtt in",  
      "z":"c8829f45.d66fd",  
      "name":"MQTT Receive All",  
      "topic":"##",  
      "qos":"2",  
      "datatype":"auto",  
      "broker":"6f327e4f.0a172",  
      "nl":false,  
      "rap":true,  
      "rh":0,  
      "x":450,  
      "y":200,  
      "wires":[  
         [  
            "983032d6.f2f378",  
            "97df7c35.a8d228"  
         ]  
      ]  
   },  
   {  
      "id":"33035adc.d4eae6",  
      "type":"mqtt out",  
      "z":"c8829f45.d66fd",  
      "name":"MQTT Send Hello",  
      "topic":"",  
      "qos":"",  
      "retain":"",  
      "respTopic":"",  
      "contentType":"",  
      "userProps":"",  
      "correl":"",  
      "expiry":"",  
      "broker":"6f327e4f.0a172",  
      "x":830,  
      "y":120,  
      "wires":[  
           
      ]  
   },  
   {  
      "id":"97df7c35.a8d228",  
      "type":"debug",  
      "z":"c8829f45.d66fd",  
      "name":"",  
      "active":true,  
      "tosidebar":true,  
      "console":false,  
      "tostatus":false,  
      "complete":"payload",  
      "targetType":"msg",  
      "statusVal":"",  
      "statusType":"auto",  
      "x":810,  
      "y":240,  
      "wires":[  
           
      ]  
   },  
   {  
      "id":"6f327e4f.0a172",  
      "type":"mqtt-broker",  
      "name":"",  
      "broker":"localhost",  
      "port":"1883",  
      "clientid":"",  
      "usetls":false,  
      "protocolVersion":"5",  
      "keepalive":"60",  
      "cleansession":true,  
      "birthTopic":"",  
      "birthQos":"0",  
      "birthPayload":"",  
      "birthMsg":{  
           
      },  
      "closeTopic":"",  
      "closeQos":"0",  
      "closePayload":"",  
      "closeMsg":{  
           
      },  
      "willTopic":"",  
      "willQos":"0",  
      "willPayload":"",  
      "willMsg":{  
           
      },  
      "sessionExpiry":""  
   }  
]
```

---

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**Edge Devices**

**Edge Devices** are any hardware intended to connect physical things to the cloud. This can include entirely mechanical devices, older machines without network functionality, PLCs, and more.

Tulip sells the **Edge IO** and **Edge MC** that interface directly into **Triggers** in a breeze, but Tulip can also support other Edge Devices.

**Device Portal**

The **Device Portal** is the home where you can configure **Light Kits** and Edge Drivers, see **Edge Device** network status, and more.