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Clients

Clients are the credentials that devices use to authenticate with the broker. This page lists, creates, edits, and deletes them. Existing clients show in a table with these columns:

  • Client Name (sortable)
  • Authentication
  • Actions (a per-row menu)

Use the search box to filter by client name. The table pages through results with the count and page controls at the bottom.

What are clients?​

A client is the set of credentials a device uses to connect to the MQTT broker, a username and a password. Clients are the first layer of access control: they verify that a device is who it claims to be, give each device an identity, and work with Groups and Group Rules to decide what the device can do.

How clients work​

When a device connects to the MQTT broker:

  1. Connection request: the device presents its username and password.
  2. Authentication: the broker checks them against the registered clients.
  3. Group assignment: the broker uses Group Rules to find which groups the client belongs to.
  4. Permissions: the client inherits the ACL permissions of its assigned groups.

Authentication​

A client authenticates with one of two methods, shown in the Authentication column as either Credentials or Certificate.

Credentials​

Username and password authentication. The device connects using:

  • Username: a unique identifier for the client
  • Password: a secret that validates the client's identity

Credentials can be paired with a certificate for an extra layer of trust.

Certificate​

Authentication backed by a client certificate, verified by the broker when custom certificates and MTLS are enabled on the Certificates page.

Managing clients​

Creating a new client​

Click New Client to open the dialog. Set:

  • Name: a descriptive name to identify the client
  • Authentication: choose Credentials and fill in the Username and Password

Click Create client to add it.

Editing a client​

Open the client's row menu and select Edit to change its name and authentication.

Deleting a client​

Open the client's row menu and select Delete.

When changes apply​

Editing or deleting a client does not affect devices that are already connected. The change applies the next time a device disconnects and reconnects.