Proxy & CloudAccess

This page describes the two distinct ways Mervis provides a secure connection to your controllers: the Mervis Proxy Service, which is the preferred solution for most cases, and the modern Mervis CloudAccess method.

The Mervis Proxy Service is the traditional and still the preferred method for most installations. It is used to create a secure, dedicated pathway, or tunnel, to your controllers. This facilitates tasks like configuration and monitoring, though it requires the use of specific protocols.

• Simple Connection: The controller (PLC) starts the conversation by reaching out to the Mervis cloud. This means you do not need a public internet address or special network configuration (like opening firewall ports or 'port forwarding') to connect.
• Top-Level Security: The connection is fully encrypted (scrambled and secured) from the controller to the cloud, ensuring data safety.

These are the specific protocols used for communication through the Proxy service, listed in order of preferred use.

• SSCP: Reference for the SSCP (Simple Supervisory Control Protocol).
• SoftPLC Link: Guide for setting up the SoftPLC Link for connectivity.
• AMIT DB-NET: Documentation for the AMIT DB-NET connection setup and requirements.
• ComAp AirGate: Setup for using the AirGate tunnel protocol.

Mervis CloudAccess is a modern technology designed to simplify and speed up remote communication with your controllers, acting as an easy alternative to using a traditional VPN. For more detailed information, please refer to the Mervis CloudAccess Overview.

• Simple Connection: The controller (PLC) starts the conversation by reaching out to the Mervis cloud. No public IP or firewall changes required.
• Top-Level Security: Fully encrypted connection from Controller to Cloud.
• Maximum Flexibility: CloudAccess acts as a clean, secure pipeline that can transmit data using any standard internet communication method (TCP protocol).
• AMiT Websocket: The specialized AMiT websocket protocol works directly with CloudAccess for optimized communication.

The CloudAccess Adapter is a standalone Windows application that allows you to tunnel arbitrary TCP connections (such as SSH, HTTP, or Modbus) to your PLC.

• How to: Access Remote TCP Servers (SSH/Web): A step-by-step guide on configuring the adapter to access an SSH server on a remote PLC.

• Mervis IDE: CloudAccess communication settings are not available on all platforms.
• AMiT PLCs: Requires DetStudio version 3.2.12 and newer.
  • Certificate Setup: In the MervisCloud profile, you must set the certificate slot to point to the location where the `isrgrootx1.pem` certificate is uploaded. Link to the certificate: https://letsencrypt.org/certs/isrgrootx1.pem
• Teltonika: Requires the CloudAccess package to be installed (contact technical support).