Flex connector
Link a strategy's flexibility to the Reduxi Flex platform or another flexibility provider, so an aggregator can activate it.
→ Overview
The Flex connector connects an Energy manager strategy to a flexibility provider — the Reduxi Flex platform or a provider of your own. The controller reports the strategy's available flexibility to the provider and accepts activation requests from it. What the provider may do is set in the strategy's Flexibility optimization mode; this page only sets up the connection.
Each row on the page is one connection: one strategy to one provider. You can have several rows, for example one per strategy.
While a connection is enabled and the strategy's Flexibility mode is on, the provider can activate flexibility: the controller then charges or discharges the battery and shifts other controllable loads within the limits of the Flexibility mode, regardless of the strategy's normal goal. Check those limits before you enable the connection.
1 Connect a strategy to a provider
2 Parameters
Connection list
| Parameter | What it does | Unit / default |
|---|---|---|
| Enable | Switches the connection on or off. Changing the switch in the list saves at once, without Save. | Yes / No |
| Strategy | The strategy whose flexibility is offered. | — |
| Provider | The provider the connection goes to. | — |
| Connected | Green tick = connected to the provider; red cross = not connected. Updated when you click the refresh icon. | — |
| Options → pencil icon | Opens the Flex connection dialog for this row. | — |
| Options → trash icon | Deletes the connection after a Confirm Delete dialog. The controller stops reporting to that provider at once. | — |
| Refresh icon | Reloads the list and the connection states. | — |
| Add | Opens an empty Flex connection dialog. | — |
Flex connection dialog
| Parameter | What it does | Unit / default |
|---|---|---|
| Unit ID, Connected | Shown only when you edit an existing connection: the controller's unit ID used towards the provider, and the connection state with a refresh icon. Read-only. | — |
| Enable | Connection on or off. | Yes / No · default Yes |
| Strategy | The strategy to connect. Required. | — |
| Provider | Flex = Reduxi Flex platform. Flex - staging = the Reduxi Flex test platform; use it only when Reduxi asks you to. Custom = a provider of your own. Required. | — |
| Host | Address of the provider's MQTT broker. Shown and required only for Custom. | text |
| Port | Port of the provider's broker. Shown and required only for Custom. | number |
| Use SSL | TLS encryption. Shown only for Custom. | Yes / No · default No |
| Verify server cert | Checks the broker certificate. No accepts any certificate. Shown only for Custom. | Yes / No · default No |
| Server CA chain (PEM format), Client public certificate (PEM format), Client private key (PEM format) | Certificate files for the TLS connection and for certificate login. Shown only for Custom with Use SSL = Yes. A stored file can be downloaded with Download. | PEM file |
| Username | User name at the provider. | text |
| Password | Password at the provider. | text (hidden) |
| Readout interval | How often the controller publishes the strategy's flexibility state to the provider. | s · default 2 s · minimum 0.25 s |
| Compression | Compresses the published messages to save mobile data. Leave on unless the provider asks otherwise. | Yes / No · default Yes |
| Cancel / × | Closes the dialog without saving. | — |
| Save | Saves the connection and restarts all Flex connections. Recorded in the Audit log as CONNECTOR_EDIT. |
— |
For Flex and Flex - staging the controller uses the fixed broker of the Reduxi Flex platform over TLS on port 8883, with the platform's certificate built in. You only enter the login.
The provider login and the client private key let anyone act as this site towards the provider. Keep them out of email and shared folders, and delete the connection if the site leaves the flexibility programme.
3 How a connection works
A connection exchanges data only when all of these are true:
- the row is enabled and has a Strategy and a Provider;
- the strategy is active;
- the strategy's Flexibility mode is enabled.
The controller then publishes the strategy's flexibility state every Readout interval and a heartbeat, and it acts on activation requests from the provider within the limits of the Flexibility mode. You can watch the result on the strategy's Last measurements tab, on the Flexibility card: Enable shows whether the Flexibility mode is on, Activation whether the provider has activated it, and Requested active power, Realized active power, Active power positive potential and Active power negative potential show what was asked for, what was delivered and what is available.
The site network must allow outgoing connections to mqtt.reduxi.energy on port 8883 (or
mqtt.staging.reduxi.energy for Flex - staging). Check it with Settings → System → Tools →
TCP port test.
4 Checklist
- The strategy has an enabled Flexibility optimization mode with the agreed limits.
- The connection row is enabled and has the right Strategy and Provider.
- Connected shows a green tick after a refresh.
- The strategy's Flexibility card shows the expected values.
- Provider login and certificate files are stored safely.