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InfluxDB Output Transport

The InfluxDB output transport allows you to send data from your devices directly to an InfluxDB v1 server for time-series data storage and visualization.

Features

  • Batch Writing: Efficiently batches data points to reduce network overhead
  • Automatic Database Creation: Creates the database if it doesn't exist
  • Device Information Tags: Includes device metadata as InfluxDB tags for easy querying
  • Flexible Data Types: Automatically converts data to appropriate InfluxDB field types
  • Configurable Timeouts: Adjustable batch size and timeout settings
  • Connection Monitoring: Automatic connection health checks and reconnection logic
  • Robust Error Handling: Retries failed writes after reconnection attempts

Configuration

Basic Configuration

[influxdb_output]
type = influxdb_out
host = localhost
port = 8086
database = solar
measurement = device_data

Advanced Configuration

[influxdb_output]
type = influxdb_out
host = localhost
port = 8086
database = solar
username = admin
password = your_password
measurement = device_data
include_timestamp = true
include_device_info = true
batch_size = 100
batch_timeout = 10.0
log_level = INFO

# Connection monitoring settings
reconnect_attempts = 5
reconnect_delay = 5.0
connection_timeout = 10

Configuration Options

Option Default Description
host localhost InfluxDB server hostname or IP address
port 8086 InfluxDB server port
database solar Database name (will be created if it doesn't exist)
username `` Username for authentication (optional)
password `` Password for authentication (optional)
measurement device_data InfluxDB measurement name
include_timestamp true Include timestamp in data points
include_device_info true Include device information as tags
batch_size 100 Number of points to batch before writing
batch_timeout 10.0 Maximum time (seconds) to wait before flushing batch
reconnect_attempts 5 Number of reconnection attempts before giving up
reconnect_delay 5.0 Delay between reconnection attempts (seconds)
connection_timeout 10 Connection timeout for InfluxDB client (seconds)

Connection Monitoring

The InfluxDB transport includes robust connection monitoring to handle network issues and server restarts:

Automatic Health Checks

  • Performs connection health checks every 30 seconds
  • Uses InfluxDB ping command to verify connectivity
  • Automatically attempts reconnection if connection is lost

Reconnection Logic

  • Attempts reconnection up to reconnect_attempts times
  • Waits reconnect_delay seconds between attempts
  • Preserves buffered data during reconnection attempts
  • Retries failed writes after successful reconnection

Error Recovery

  • Gracefully handles network timeouts and connection drops
  • Maintains data integrity by not losing buffered points
  • Provides detailed logging for troubleshooting

Data Structure

The InfluxDB output creates data points with the following structure:

Tags (if include_device_info = true)

  • device_identifier: Device serial number (lowercase)
  • device_name: Device name
  • device_manufacturer: Device manufacturer
  • device_model: Device model
  • device_serial_number: Device serial number
  • transport: Source transport name

Fields

All device data values are stored as fields. The transport automatically converts:

  • Numeric strings to integers or floats
  • Non-numeric strings remain as strings

Time

  • Uses current timestamp in nanoseconds (if include_timestamp = true)
  • Can be disabled for custom timestamp handling

Example Bridge Configuration

# Source device (e.g., Modbus RTU)
[growatt_inverter]
type = modbus_rtu
port = /dev/ttyUSB0
baudrate = 9600
protocol_version = growatt_2020_v1.24
device_serial_number = 123456789
device_manufacturer = Growatt
device_model = SPH3000
bridge = influxdb_output

# InfluxDB output
[influxdb_output]
type = influxdb_out
host = localhost
port = 8086
database = solar
measurement = inverter_data

Installation

  1. Install the required dependency:

    pip install influxdb

  2. Or add to your requirements.txt:

    influxdb

InfluxDB Setup

  1. Install InfluxDB v1:

    # Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt install influxdb influxdb-client
sudo systemctl enable influxdb
sudo systemctl start influxdb

# Or download from https://portal.influxdata.com/downloads/

  2. Create a database (optional - will be created automatically):

    echo "CREATE DATABASE solar" | influx

Querying Data

Once data is flowing, you can query it using InfluxDB's SQL-like query language:

-- Show all measurements
SHOW MEASUREMENTS

-- Query recent data
SELECT * FROM device_data WHERE time > now() - 1h

-- Query specific device
SELECT * FROM device_data WHERE device_identifier = '123456789'

-- Aggregate data
SELECT mean(value) FROM device_data WHERE field_name = 'battery_voltage' GROUP BY time(5m)

Integration with Grafana

InfluxDB data can be easily visualized in Grafana:

  1. Add InfluxDB as a data source in Grafana
  2. Use the same connection details as your configuration
  3. Create dashboards using InfluxDB queries

Troubleshooting

Connection Issues

  • Verify InfluxDB is running: systemctl status influxdb
  • Check firewall settings for port 8086
  • Verify host and port configuration
  • Check connection timeout settings if using slow networks

Authentication Issues

  • Ensure username/password are correct
  • Check InfluxDB user permissions

Data Not Appearing

  • Check log levels for detailed error messages
  • Verify database exists and is accessible
  • Check batch settings - data may be buffered
  • Look for reconnection messages in logs

Data Stops After Some Time

  • Most Common Issue: Network connectivity problems or InfluxDB server restarts
  • Check logs for reconnection attempts and failures
  • Verify InfluxDB server is stable and not restarting
  • Consider increasing reconnect_attempts and reconnect_delay for unstable networks
  • Monitor network connectivity between gateway and InfluxDB server

Performance

  • Adjust batch_size and batch_timeout for your use case
  • Larger batches reduce network overhead but increase memory usage
  • Shorter timeouts provide more real-time data but increase network traffic
  • Increase connection_timeout for slow networks