The MQTT protocol is an easy way to connect different data sources to applications. This makes it very popular for IoT (Internet of Things) applications. Some MQTT brokers can store messages for a while, even when the MQTT client is offline. However, sometimes you need to keep this data for a longer period of time. In these cases it's a good idea to use a time series database.

There are many time series databases available, but if you need to store a history of images, vibration sensor data or protobuf messages, you might want to use ReductStore. This database is designed to store a lot of blob data and works well with IoT and edge computing.

ReductStore has client SDKs (software development kits) for many programming languages. This means you can easily use it in your existing system. For this example, we'll use the Rust SDK from ReductStore.

Let's build a simple MQTT application to see how it all works.

We are pleased to announce the release of the latest minor version of ReductStore, 1.10.0. ReductStore is a time series database designed for storing and managing large amounts of blob data.

To download the latest released version, please visit our Download Page.

What's new in 1.10.0?​

ReductStore v1.10.0 introduces new query and replication parameters that can downsample data when querying or replicating to another database. In addition, we have optimized the operation of the storage and replication engines, which should improve the overall performance of the database.

Since joining ReductStore's project, I've been exploring alternative solutions to get a better understanding about how the project fits into current echosystem.

To give you some context, we will look at solutions to store data from IoT devices (e.g. sensors, cameras, etc.) that commonly use MQTT to communicate with each other.

MQTT stands for Message Queuing Telemetry Transport and is a lightweight messaging protocol designed to be efficient, reliable, and scalable, making it ideal for collecting and transmitting data from sensors in real time.

Why is this important when choosing a database?

Well, MQTT is format-agnostic, but it works in a specific way. We should therefore be aware of its architecture, how it works, and its limitations to make the right choice. This is what this article is about, we will try to cut through the fog and explore some key factors to consider when selecting the right option.

Let's get started!