MQTT Protocol Explained
MQTT stands for Message Queuing Telemetry Transport. It is a lightweight, open-source
messaging protocol designed primarily for the Internet of Things (IoT). Its main job is to enable
efficient, real-time communication between devices where bandwidth may be limited and
network reliability may vary.
Core Features of MQTT
Publish/Subscribe Model: Devices (called clients) either publish messages to topics or
subscribe to topics to receive messages. This is different from the traditional
request/response model, making MQTT scalable and efficient.
Broker-based Architecture: A central broker receives all messages and distributes them to
subscribed clients. Clients never communicate directly but through this broker, which
handles authentication, message filtering, and message routing.
Lightweight Messages: Each MQTT message has three parts: a fixed header (type of
message and QoS level), a variable header (message-specific information), and a payload
(actual data). The payload can be up to 256 MB, but MQTT messages usually stay small to
save bandwidth.
Quality of Service Levels (QoS): MQTT provides three QoS levels — 0 (at most once), 1 (at
least once), and 2 (exactly once) — balancing between data transmission efficiency and
message delivery reliability.
How MQTT Works
1. Connection Establishment: The client initiates a connection to the broker using a
CONNECT message with client ID and optional credentials.
2. Publishing: A client sends a PUBLISH message specifying the topic and data payload.
3. Subscription: A client sends a SUBSCRIBE message listing topics it wants to receive.
4. Message Distribution: The broker forwards published messages to all clients subscribed to
the relevant topic.
5. Disconnection: Clients end communication with a DISCONNECT message.
Additional Features
Persistent Sessions: The broker can remember a client’s subscriptions and queued
messages between connections, useful in unstable network conditions.
Retained Messages: The broker stores the latest message on each topic and delivers it
immediately to new subscribers.
Last Will and Testament: Clients can specify a message the broker sends if they
disconnect unexpectedly, notifying others about abnormal disconnection.
Use Cases
MQTT is widely used in smart homes, industrial monitoring, remote sensors, and any IoT systems
needing low power, low bandwidth, reliable messaging.
If you tell me your course or grade level or specific use cases, I can tailor this explanation or
provide examples to fit your needs better. Would you like a quiz or flashcards to practice MQTT
concepts?
⁂
1. https://www.cavliwireless.com/blog/nerdiest-of-things/what-is-the-mqtt-protocol
2. https://randomnerdtutorials.com/what-is-mqtt-and-how-it-works/
3. https://www.paessler.com/it-explained/mqtt
4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MQTT
5. https://aws.amazon.com/what-is/mqtt/
6. https://cedalo.com/blog/complete-mqtt-protocol-guide/
7. https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/computer-networks/introduction-of-message-queue-telemetry-transpo
rt-protocol-mqtt/
8. https://mqtt.org
9. https://www.opc-router.com/what-is-mqtt/
10. https://www.hivemq.com/mqtt/
