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Data visualization

Data stored in the Data Services can be visualized via Grafana, an open source web application which provides charts, graphs and alerts for data visualization. An instance of Grafana is available on each node and in the Management System to visualize data stored in the TimescaleDB on the node or in the Management System respectively. This chapter describes only how Grafana is configured and how it can be accessed. Refer to the Grafana documentation for general information on how to use Grafana.

Note

To use Grafana, the user must be logged in to the Local UI or the Management System respectively. When logged out, Grafana is no longer able to perform its internal operations and reports random errors. To continue working with Grafana, close the Grafana tab, log in again at either the Local UI or the Management System, depending on which Grafana instance is being accessed, and re-open Grafana.

Central Data Visualization in the Management System

In the Management System, each registered node is represented as a separate data source in Grafana. The data source is created during the registration of a node. A data source is named after the node it represents, formatted as <nodename> (<serialnumber>). When creating a new panel, select the node which sent the data to be displayed as the data source. The name of the table must match the name provided in the Gateway configuration file.

  1. Log in to the Management System.

  2. Select Data in the navigation on the left.

    Note

    If the menu item Data is not available, make sure the logged in user has the permission to access the Data Services. Refer to Assigning a role to a user for more information.

  3. Select VISUALIZATION.

    Central Data Visualization

Note

The visualization element can also be reached from the Data Services UI. When in the Data Services UI, select Visualization in the navigation on the left and select Open to reach the Grafana UI.

Alternative visualization access

A new tab opens that shows the home screen of Grafana. Here dashboards can be created as described below.

Local Data Visualization on the node

On the node, only a single data source exists in Grafana, formatted as <serialnumber>. Use this data source in all panels to visualize data received by the Data Services.

  1. Access the Local UI on the node. This is Nerve Device specific. Refer to the table below for device specific links to the Local UI. The login credentials to the Local UI can be found in the customer profile.

    Nerve Device Physical port Local UI
    MFN 100 P1 http://172.20.2.1:3333
    Kontron KBox A-150-APL LAN 1 <wanip>:3333

    To figure out the IP address of the WAN interface, refer to Finding out the IP address of the device in the Kontron KBox A-150-APL chapter of the device guide.
    Kontron KBox A-250 ETH 2 <wanip>:3333

    To figure out the IP address of the WAN interface, refer to Finding out the IP address of the device in the Kontron KBox A-250 chapter of the device guide.
    Siemens SIMATIC IPC127E X1 P1 http://172.20.2.1:3333
    Siemens SIMATIC IPC427E X1 P1 http://172.20.2.1:3333
    Vecow SPC-5600-i5-8500 LAN 1 http://172.20.2.1:3333

  2. Select Data in the navigation on the left.

  3. Select VISUALIZATION.

    Local Data Visualization

Note

The visualization element can also be reached from the Data Services UI. When in the Data Services UI, select Visualization in the navigation on the left and select Open to reach the Grafana UI.

Alternative visualization access

A new tab opens that shows the home screen of Grafana. Here dashboards can be created as described below.

Creating a dashboard

Dashboards need to be configured per data source. The instructions below cover the general workflow. Refer to Examples for specific use cases.

  1. Access the visualization element on either the node or in the Management System.

  2. Select + > Dashboard in the navigation on the left. A box will appear.

    Create dashboard

  3. Select Add Query in the New Panel box.

    Add query

  4. Select the data source from the drop-down menu. The name of the data source is the serial number of the node.

    Select data source

  5. Fill in the query information below that appears below. This information depends on the use case and the Gateway configuration.

    Query information

    Note

    Customize general settings and visualization settings by selecting General and Visualization in the navigation on the left. Refer to the Grafana documentation for more information.

    Optional settings

  6. Select the save icon in the upper-right corner to save the dashboard.

    Save dashboard

Access the dashboard from the home menu.

Home menu access

For specific examples on how to use Grafana with Nerve Data Services, refer to Examples.