Any compelling reason for Mosquitto vs mcsMQTT plugin for broker?

[klafollette]

Starting to get ready to build some stuff with ESP8266/sensors/switches integrated with HS3 and going down the MQTT rabbit hole. I haven't installed anything yet, still in research/reading phase. I know I'll need a MQTT broker. I'm running HS3 Pro on a dedicated Windows 10 Pro PC. Whatever I go with for the broker, I would install on the same Win10 PC as HS3 is running. Eclipse Mosquitto seems to be popular one. If I go that route, I would set Mosquitto up to run as a service. Reading through the mcsMQTT documentation, I do read that the plugin itself can also serve as the broker.

So my question, is there any pros/cons to either going with Mosquitto vs just using the mcsMQTT plugin broker function? I have a baseless assumption that if the mcsMQTT is broker, it would be simpler since everything MQTT related I could config in one place vs doing some stuff in Mosquitto and some stuff in mcsMQTT broker, though maybe less features?

I've seen a forum post in December that people seemed excited to ditch separate broker and just use mcsMQTT for broker. Has anyone who switched from stand-alone broker regretted it?

Any insights/direction would be appreciated so I don't go down the wrong rabbit hole.

[kriz83]

I think it is a matter of personal preference.

I try to separate critical services: I have mosquitto running on a RPi because I am doing MQTT control without HS too. My telephone directly controls the lights when I am in bed, by publishing a MQTT message. That will keep on working in case of a HS failure.

[drhtmal]

Agreed that it is a personal preference.

I run mosquitto on my HomeSeer Linux box. I like the flexibility of having a dedicated broker.

Michael's makes a great plugin. Having the broker built in makes it simple for users to get things setup. No need to install a separate broker. I have not used the built in broker since I already have one installed. I am not sure if the builtin broker can be used for devices other than those in mcsMQTT.

[Michael McSharry]

You and think of the MQTT broker much like a VLAN in a router. You can run multiple VLANs to segregate traffic on your network. I do run Mosquitto on a little Odroid C2 that is tucked away and powered through a UPS. I have a few other things on this C2 that never need any maintenance but are part of my HA environment. I also use the MQTT Broker in mcsMQTT when I am testing MQTT-related development. This keeps nuisance stuff off my my MQTT traffic.

The prior feedback captures the essence of the MQTT Broker location. Primary downside for depending upon the one built into mcsMQTT is that if you have other automation that uses MQTT then when HS is down the other automation goes deaf. The primary upside is that it is simple. For anybody new to MQTT I would go the simple route and not get involved with another Broker. You can always change your mind later when you have a need.

[ksum]

One less thing to maintain. Or two if you load a different broker on a different system not used for other things.

[klafollette]

Thanks all for the feedback. Think I'll go simple with built-in broker for now, as don't currently have anything that won't be going through HS3 events. Good to know I can always make it more complicated later .

[Timon]

It’s how you want to run your network. I tend to run one or two processes per computer.

Example, I have a UniFi network which requires a UniFi Controller module to manage all of the networking devices. You can run the controller on just about any processor in your network or even from the cloud so when I first put my network in I ran it on my Mac. My HS3 ran on Zee S2.

When I added my Intel NUC8i3 and put HS3 on it and I moved the UniFi controller to it as well and turned my ZeeS2 into a Z-Net.

When I added MQTT I put the Broker on the NUC as well. I also added a second Z-Net.

When I started adding UniFi cameras I removed the controller from the NUC and added a UniFi Cloud Key 2 Plus which runs both the UniFi Controller and UniFi Protect which is the NVR.

So my NUC runs two major services, my CK+ runs two and four RPi’s running one services each. I’ll be adding Pi-Hole on to another RPi and on the NUC.

So it’s all personal preference.

[klafollette]

What, you haven't gotten a UniFi UDM Pro yet?? Seems like everyone is getting one, like it's the holy grail or something.

[Timon]

One more point, If your new to MQTT then running the mscMQTT Broker is a good way to start. Once you're into it then setup a broker on a RPi and let it run there.If the macBroker was available when I started I would have gone that way.

[Timon]

What, you haven't gotten a UniFi UDM Pro yet?? Seems like everyone is getting one, like it's the holy grail or something.

I've had my UniFi system for almost two years so I have a USG and a new CK2Plus. If I was doing it now I'd likely go with a UDM Pro.

HOWEVER, some of the ways to get motion events out of a CK 2Plus may not work with the UDM Pro at least not yet.