This respository packages the OpenThread Border Router Docker container from DockerHub into an AWS IoT Greengrass component for deployment to Greengrass core edge devices. This helps to illustrate how Greengrass can be used to compose, deploy and manage mains-powered Matter smart home devices that include a Thread Border Router.

An overview of the system architecture is presented below.

The aws.greengrass.labs.OpenThreadBorderRouter component is a thin wrapper around a conventional OpenThread Border Router container deployment.

OpenThread Border Router is published as a Docker image on Docker Hub. This Greengrass component downloads the selected Docker image from Docker Hub with the help of the Docker application manager managed component.

OpenThread Border Router expects a Thread Radio Co-Processor (RCP) to be connected to the host system by USB-serial or Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI). There are numerous vendor RCP options.

Using the RCP, OpenThread Border Router is able to route traffic between the WiFi and Thread parts of a Matter network.

This component requires that the Greengrass device be running a Linux operating system. It supports all architectures supported by Greengrass itself.

Your core device must meet the requirements to run a Docker container using Docker Hub.

The component can be published to your account using either the AWS CLI or the Greengrass Development Kit (GDK) - Command Line Interface (CLI). The GDK CLI can be installed as follows:

pip3 install git+https://github.com/aws-greengrass/aws-greengrass-gdk-cli.git

Please ensure that all Requirements and Prerequisites have been met before deploying the component.

The recipe.yaml can be modified to change the selected Docker image. At the time of writing, the OpenThread Border Router images were not tagged with versions, so the latest tag is used in the recipe. The recipe deletes dangling images to prevent a build up of images as the latest tag is updated. For production deployments a version tag should be used.

As an alternative, Silicon Labs publish version-tagged OpenThread Border Router images to Docker Hub. However these images are only available for armv7l architecture and not amd64 nor aarch64. Please also take note of the Silicon Labs' Master Software License Agreement (MSLA). Should you use this image, please also update the REPO environment variable in the recipe.

The component supports the following component configuration options.

These correlate with the OpenThread Border Router Docker container options.

Using the AWS CLI:

aws greengrassv2 create-component-version --inline-recipe fileb://./recipe.yaml

Using the GDK CLI:

gdk component build
gdk component publish

You can access the OTBR Web GUI by browsing to the IP address of the Greengrass core device, and using the TCP port defined in the component configuration.

The OpenThread CLI can be accessed on the Greengrass core device using the following command.

docker exec -ti otbr sh -c "sudo ot-ctl"

The Greengrass component logs can be found accessed as follows:

sudo tail -f /greengrass/v2/logs/aws.greengrass.labs.OpenThreadBorderRouter.log

Or by going direct to the Docker container:

docker logs otbr -f 

This component has been tested on a Raspberry Pi4 with the linux/arm/v7 OpenThread Border Router image. And with the following Radio Co-Processor (RCP) devices:

• Silicon Labs xG24 Explorer Board (BRD2703A) with pre-compiled RCP binary 1.1.0-1.1.
• Silicon Labs Thunderboard Sense 2 (BRD4166A) with pre-compiled RCP binary 1.1.0-1.1.