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Infomation for IT Departments

Introduction​

If you're on this page, you were probably sent here by someone on the shop floor. They're trying to get Chatter set up on a machine, and they need your help to get it connected to the network. Refer to the below documentation for some more technical and security-related information to get things set up.

General Considerations​

The Chatterbox must be a peer on the same network as the machine. This means that the Chatterbox and the machine must be on the same network, and the Chatterbox must be able to communicate with the machine over the local network, and will access the Chatter API via the internet. There is no need for the machine itself to have internet access.

Network Wiring​

We strongly prefer machines to be connected via ethernet cable. This is the most reliable way to ensure that Chatter can communicate with the machine. If you're having trouble getting the machine connected, please refer to the machine's documentation, or contact us for help.

Static IPs​

Every machine must have a static IP address, so that the Chatterbox can communicate with it. Our primary documentation instructs the user to set a static IP address on the machine, but if you have a DHCP server that can assign static IPs based on MAC address, please instruct them to enable DHCP on the machine and assign a static IP yourself.

Be sure to communicate the IP list to the user, so they can configure the machine settings accordingly at the machine, as well as in Chatter.

Security & VLANs​

We recommend that you place the machine, the Chatterbox, and any computers that need to access the machine's files on one dedicated VLAN. This will help to ensure that the machine is secure and that only authorized personnel can access it. Most machines have essentially zero built-in security for data collection and control, and use FTP (insecure) for file transfer, so it's important to ensure that the machine is not accessible by unauthorized devices.

Configuring Firewalls / Intrusion Detection Systems​

If you have a firewall or intrusion detection system in place, you will need to ensure that the proper ports are open for communication. Configure your system as strictly as you would like, but ensure that the ports below are open for communication.

Chatterbox​

The Chatterbox will communicate on the local network with the machine on the ports specified below, depending on the machine control type.

The Chatterbox will also communicate externally, so if you are using a domain whitelist, you will need to whitelist the following domains:

  • https://apiv2.chatter.dev/ - Port 80, 443
  • https://api.chatter.dev/ - Port 80, 443
  • *.debian.pool.ntp.org - Port 123 (NTP)

Local Network Ports by Machine Control Type​

Haas NGC​

You will see traffic between the Chatterbox and the Haas NGC on ports 5051, 9998 (data collection) and 445 (file transfer).

Fanuc (Doosan, Tsugami, Matsuura, etc.)​

You will see traffic between the Chatterbox and Fanuc controls on port 8193 (data collection) and 21 (file transfer).

Brother​

You will see traffic between the Chatterbox and Brother machines on port 10000 (data collection) and 21 (file transfer).

Heidenhain​

You will see traffic between the Chatterbox and Heidenhain machines on port 19000 (data collection) and 22 (file transfer). If SSH tunneling is enabled, you will only see traffic on port 22.

Siemens​

You will see traffic between the Chatterbox and Siemens machines on port 4840 (data collection) and 21 (file transfer).

Mazak, Okuma, Hurco, and other MTConnect-compatible machines​

You will see traffic between the Chatterbox and Mazak machines on port 7878 (data collection) and 21 (file transfer).