Forge - Cloud Infrastructure
Forge provides managed cloud infrastructure specifically designed for OT applications. Deploy SCADA systems, IoT platforms, and industrial applications in secure, pre-configured virtual machines that auto-connect to your on-site Gateway through encrypted tunnels.
Available Applications
Ignition SCADA
- Purpose: Industrial automation and SCADA development platform
- Features: Web-based designer, real-time dashboards, alarm management
- Connectivity: OPC UA client/server, MQTT, database connectivity
- Use Cases: HMI development, data historian, reporting platform
Node-RED
- Purpose: Flow-based programming for IoT and industrial automation
- Features: Visual programming, protocol translation, data processing
- Connectivity: Modbus, OPC UA, MQTT, REST APIs
- Use Cases: Protocol bridging, data transformation, edge computing
Mosquitto MQTT
- Purpose: Lightweight MQTT broker for IoT messaging
- Features: SSL/TLS encryption, authentication, message persistence
- Connectivity: MQTT clients, bridge connections, WebSocket support
- Use Cases: IoT data collection, device communication, message routing
Grafana + InfluxDB
- Purpose: Time-series data visualization and analytics platform
- Features: Real-time dashboards, alerting, data correlation
- Connectivity: REST APIs, SQL databases, industrial protocols
- Use Cases: Performance monitoring, trend analysis, KPI dashboards
Breakwater AI (DGX Spark)
- Purpose: GPU-accelerated machine learning for industrial applications
- Features: TensorFlow, PyTorch, scikit-learn, Jupyter notebooks
- Connectivity: Data ingestion APIs, model deployment endpoints
- Use Cases: Predictive maintenance, anomaly detection, computer vision
Instance Sizes and Pricing
| Size | vCPU | Memory | Storage | Monthly Cost | Annual Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small | 2 | 4GB | 50GB SSD | $49 | $499 (15% discount) |
| Medium | 4 | 8GB | 100GB SSD | $89 | $905 (15% discount) |
| Large | 8 | 16GB | 200GB SSD | $149 | $1,515 (15% discount) |
| Extra Large | 16 | 32GB | 500GB SSD | $249 | $2,535 (15% discount) |
| Dedicated | 8 | 16GB | 1TB NVMe | $199 | $2,025 (15% discount) |
7-Day Free Trial
All instance sizes include a 7-day free trial. No credit card required for trial activation.
Geographic Regions
| Region | Location | Data Center | Latency Zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| US East | Ashburn, Virginia | AWS us-east-1 | North America |
| US West | Hillsboro, Oregon | AWS us-west-2 | North America |
| EU Central | Falkenstein, Germany | Hetzner fsn1 | Europe |
| EU North | Helsinki, Finland | Hetzner hel1 | Europe |
| APAC | Singapore | AWS ap-southeast-1 | Asia Pacific |
Connectivity and Networking
Encrypted Tunnel Auto-Connect
- Protocol: Encrypted tunnels (managed by Gateway)
- Setup: Automatic connection to on-site Gateway
- Security: End-to-end encryption, certificate-based authentication
- Performance: Optimized for industrial protocols and low latency
DNS Auto-Provisioning
Each Forge instance receives automatic DNS configuration:
- Format:
{instance-name}.forge.techgonecoastal.com - SSL Certificates: Automatic Let's Encrypt certificate provisioning
- Load Balancing: Built-in high availability and failover
Gateway Auto-Connect Toggle
- Enable/Disable: Control Gateway connectivity per instance
- Use Cases: Isolated development, public-facing applications
- Security: Maintain network isolation when needed
Instance Management
Lifecycle States
| State | Description | Available Actions |
|---|---|---|
| Provisioning | Instance being created | View progress |
| Running | Fully operational | Start, stop, snapshot, backup |
| Stopped | Powered down, data preserved | Start, destroy, snapshot |
| Destroying | Being permanently deleted | View progress |
| Destroyed | Permanently deleted | None |
Snapshots and Backups
Snapshots
- Purpose: Point-in-time recovery, configuration rollback
- Frequency: Manual or scheduled (daily, weekly, monthly)
- Retention: Up to 30 snapshots per instance
- Restore Time: 5-15 minutes depending on instance size
Backups
- Purpose: Long-term data protection, disaster recovery
- Frequency: Automatic daily backups, manual on-demand
- Retention: 30-day rolling retention, custom retention available
- Location: Geographically distributed backup storage
Connection Panel
SSH Access
- Key-Based: Secure SSH key authentication
- Web Terminal: Browser-based SSH client available
- Port Forwarding: Secure tunneling for application access
Console URL
- Web Console: Direct browser access to applications
- SSL/TLS: Encrypted HTTPS connections
- Authentication: Integrated with Breakwater user accounts
Encrypted Tunnel Configuration
- Gateway Integration: Automatic configuration download
- Manual Setup: Configuration files for custom deployments
- Status Monitoring: Real-time tunnel health and performance
API Endpoints
- REST APIs: Application-specific endpoints
- Authentication: API key and OAuth 2.0 support
- Rate Limiting: Configurable request throttling
OPC UA/MQTT Endpoints
- OPC UA Server: Direct industrial protocol access
- MQTT Broker: Publish/subscribe messaging endpoints
- Security: Certificate-based client authentication
Event Logging and Monitoring
System Events
- Instance Lifecycle: Start, stop, snapshot, backup events
- Performance Metrics: CPU, memory, disk, network utilization
- Security Events: Login attempts, configuration changes
- Error Conditions: Application failures, resource exhaustion
Application Logs
- Centralized Logging: All application logs in one interface
- Log Search: Full-text search and filtering capabilities
- Alert Integration: Automatic notifications for error conditions
- Retention: 90-day log retention, longer retention available
Integration with Other Modules
Gateway Integration
- Auto-Connect: Seamless encrypted tunnel establishment
- Network Discovery: Forge instances appear in Helm network maps
- Monitoring: Performance metrics integrated with Gateway dashboards
Manifest Integration
- Asset Tracking: Forge instances included in asset inventory
- Configuration Management: Track instance configurations and changes
- Lifecycle Management: Monitor instance deployment to decommissioning
Channel Integration
- Secure Access: Remote access to Forge instances via Channel
- User Management: Integrated user authentication and authorization
- Session Recording: Audit trails for remote access sessions
Getting Started with Forge
-
Select Application
- Choose from available applications (Ignition, Node-RED, etc.)
- Select appropriate instance size for your workload
- Choose geographic region closest to your facilities
-
Configure Instance
- Set instance name and description
- Configure automated backups and snapshots
- Enable Gateway auto-connect if desired
-
Deploy and Connect
- Instance provisions automatically (5-10 minutes)
- Gateway tunnel establishes automatically
- Access via SSH, web console, or application endpoints
-
Configure Applications
- Use application-specific setup wizards
- Configure data sources and connectivity
- Set up user accounts and permissions
-
Monitor and Maintain
- Review performance metrics and logs
- Schedule regular snapshots and backups
- Update applications and configurations as needed
-
Scale and Optimize
- Resize instances based on usage patterns
- Add additional instances for high availability
- Optimize costs with annual billing discounts