Consider re-instituting the STCP port (a la 8088)

[guitarpicva]

The simple connect to the STCP port which streams most TAK data like in the original server is a very valuable commodity for those of us who use the data to do "different" things, such as back-haul over disparate radio mediums.

Currently, it appears that to use the FTS in this way requires some level of "client connection".

If there is another way, I am all ears! Federation?

[naman108]

I'm not familiar with this function could you elaborate?

[guitarpicva]

Configuration of a std TAK server (CoreConfig.xml) includes a default TCP socket of 8088 with "protocol" STCP. This port is (default) in the clear, and simply sends any relevant frames to connected clients. Relevant, thus far seems to be typical CoT and "All Chat Rooms" chats, among other things. Private (p2p) chats between clients are NOT included for obvious reasons.

When a client connects to this port, he is rewarded with the last sent CoT information as a method of verifying connectivity (it would seem). From then on, the socket simply spews data whenever anything new happens. Data is aggregated (in my case) by an external process for whatever needs demand it's existence.

Truthfully, I have never thought to try to SEND anything to this socket to see what the TAK server does with it.

My inquiry is an open one. If there is a more structured way to accomplish the same, I am happy to adjust. In fact, I am finding the requirement to participate in the TAK server in small ways now, so another solution may be in the wings anyway. That is why I mentioned Federation, but I can find no quality documentation on that subject either thus far.

[guitarpicva]

To elaborate further: When one connects to the 8087 port of FTS, one is rewarded with nothing whatsoever. I am finding that unless I send a CoT, no data flows. That "registration" is actually sort of "in the way" for my use cases, and causes end user clutter of a "pin" with a name that they don't understand or know.

I am now finding, as noted above, that I do require bi-directional activity, so I may need to re-think the agnst about the "in the way" registration. If that's Federation, great, and hopefully I can get some details from somewhere. Having to do TLS for a locally hosted process (127.0.0.1) is sort of a waste of effort, but it is what it is.

[naman108]

thank you for your description based on the requirement for bi-direction communication either federation or a simulated client appears to be the best option however we can certainly look into implementing such a streaming functionality in future.

[guitarpicva]

There may be other simple data gatherers out there who find that feature very useful.

Simulating a client isn't so hard; agreed. (Heck I even simulate a server for that matter!)

I am trying to wade into Federation, but the requirement for TLS is a real turn off. It's all on the same computer (in my case). It's not like I haven't done TLS before. It just slows my testing down, because of the PITA of the certs and keys. Is there ANY documentation whatsoever on Federated connectivity in FTS? The only thing I have run across is the screen shot stuff, which assumes you already know how to use it. I have no idea what to expect. I suppose it must have configurations for what portions of the TAK server are shared, etc. Sort of like bridging MQTT brokers. If anyone has any advice, do chime in please. (direct so as not to wear out the devs)

[brothercorvo]

is this part of 2.0 @naman108 ?

[naman108]

I believe this is covered under the repeater component

[brothercorvo]

I believe this is covered under the repeater component

after further investigation it seems that this is a different feature.

hat is Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP)? Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP) is a connection-oriented network protocol for transmitting multiple streams of data simultaneously between two endpoints that have established a connection in a computer network.

Sometimes known as next-generation Transmission Control Protocol or TCPng, SCTP makes it easy to support a telephone connection over the internet.

SCTP is an Internet Protocol (IP) transport layer protocol. It ensures reliable and in-sequence data transmission so that data units sent over the network arrive completely, and in the right sequence, to the application or user at the endpoint. For some transmissions, such as a file or record, this sequence preservation is essential.

so that would requires a new Service in FTS

[brothercorvo]

this framework could help https://github.com/P1sec/pysctp

[brothercorvo]

@naman108 this could be a good exercise for the new service support in DigitalPy

[naman108]

I agree, seems like a great chance to get a blank slate for service design, and could become our new default for tcp if all goes well.