IIoT 路 Free

Industrial DataOps: OPC UA, MQTT and Unified Namespace

Plant data architecture for IT/OT engineers: the ISA-95 pyramid and why it is being replaced by an event-driven Unified Namespace, OPC UA information models, subscriptions and security, OPC UA servers on S7-1500 and CODESYS, MQTT QoS, retained messages and last will, a Mosquitto broker, Sparkplug B, edge gateways, UNS topic and payload design, industrial DataOps and OEE, a Telegraf, InfluxDB and Grafana historian, and TLS, ACLs and IEC 62443 zones.

14 modules 12h 46m of video English 路 self-paced

Inside the course

Industrial DataOps: OPC UA, MQTT and Unified Namespace: Syllabus at a glanceIndustrial DataOps: OPC UA, MQTT and Unified Namespace: What you will be able to doIndustrial DataOps: OPC UA, MQTT and Unified Namespace: Tools and credits

From the lessons

  • Automation Pyramid and the Unified Namespace | Unified Namespace (UNS) Basics 1

    From the automation pyramid to a Unified Namespace

    UMH

  • How OPC UA Client Server Communication Works [5 of 11]

    OPC UA communication: services, subscriptions, security and PubSub

    Industry40tv

  • What is MQTT | MQTT Essentials Part 1

    MQTT fundamentals: brokers, clients and topics

    HiveMQ

  • Mosquitto MQTT Broker - Explanation and Setup

    Running a broker: Mosquitto, authentication and MQTT Explorer

    Jim's Garage

  • Sending data to a message broker | Unified Namespace (UNS) Basics 4

    Edge gateways: getting PLC data into the namespace

    UMH

  • Data Contextualisation / Stream Processing | Unified Namespace (UNS) Basics 5

    Industrial DataOps: models, contextualisation and governance

    UMH

Lesson frames belong to the creators named in the Credits below and are shown from YouTube.

What you will learn

Explain why plants move from point-to-point integration to a Unified Namespace; read and build OPC UA information models; configure OPC UA subscriptions and security and enable the server on an S7-1500 or CODESYS controller; use MQTT QoS, retained messages, persistent sessions and last will correctly; run and secure a Mosquitto broker; read and write Sparkplug B topics and explain its state management; design an edge gateway and scale raw PLC values; design an ISA-95 topic hierarchy and payload convention; build reusable data models and derived KPIs such as OEE; historise UNS data with Telegraf, InfluxDB and Grafana; and secure the data path with TLS, ACLs and IEC 62443 zones and conduits.

  • Explain why a Unified Namespace beats point-to-point integration, using the ISA-95 levels
  • Browse and model OPC UA address spaces, and configure subscriptions, deadbands and SignAndEncrypt security
  • Enable and test the OPC UA server on an S7-1500 in TIA Portal and on a CODESYS controller with UaExpert
  • Choose MQTT QoS, retained messages, persistent sessions, keep alive and last will for each kind of message
  • Run Eclipse Mosquitto with users, ACLs and TLS, and size its offline queue
  • Read and write Sparkplug B topics and explain births, deaths, bdSeq and seq
  • Design an edge gateway, an ISA-95 topic tree and a payload convention, and compute OEE once from the namespace
  • Historise UNS data with Telegraf, InfluxDB and Grafana, and draw IEC 62443 zones and conduits for the data path

For you

Taking Industrial DataOps: OPC UA, MQTT and Unified Namespace from the United States

The course project 路 about 14 hours

Building a Unified Namespace for a bottling line: design specification, topic map, ACLs, zones and conduits, and acceptance tests

Design and prove a Unified Namespace for one packaging line: get data out of an S7-1500 filler and a CODESYS capper over OPC UA, publish it through an edge gateway to an MQTT broker in an ISA-95 topic tree, historise it, compute OEE once, and secure every connection. The sample pack shows each document for line 2 of a soft-drinks plant near Manchester, UK.

Sample document pack, 5 documents, filled in for the scenario

  • FDSUnified Namespace design specification: packaging line 2
  • Tag listSource-to-topic map: line 2 (extract)
  • RegisterBroker client and ACL register: plant broker
  • Zones & conduitsZone and conduit register: line 2 data path
  • SATAcceptance test record: line 2 namespace on the test bench

Read inside the course and download as a workbook. The project is optional practice, marked when you submit it; the certificate needs only the modules and the final assessment.

Course content

14 modules 路 59 lessons 路 12h 46m

In order, at whatever pace suits you. Each module ends with a practice task that builds on the last.

  1. 01From the automation pyramid to a Unified Namespace38m
  2. 02OPC UA fundamentals: the address space and information models34m
  3. 03OPC UA communication: services, subscriptions, security and PubSub1h 29m
  4. 04OPC UA servers on real controllers: S7-1500 and CODESYS49m
  5. 05MQTT fundamentals: brokers, clients and topics36m
  6. 06MQTT reliability: QoS, sessions, retained messages and last will34m
  7. 07Running a broker: Mosquitto, authentication and MQTT Explorer35m
  8. 08Sparkplug B: state-aware MQTT for operational technology1h 16m

Requirements

Who it is for
Intermediate. For automation, controls, SCADA and MES engineers and for IT engineers moving into OT data. You should know what a PLC tag is and be comfortable installing software; basic networking (IP addresses and ports) helps. If fieldbuses and Modbus are new to you, Industrial Communication on EDWartens is the course to take first.
Software
All free: Eclipse Mosquitto, MQTT Explorer, UaExpert (free OPC UA client, registration needed), Node-RED, the CODESYS Development System with CODESYS Control Win (demo mode), Telegraf, InfluxDB 3 Core and Grafana. Optional: TIA Portal with PLCSIM Advanced for the S7-1500 server, Kepware Server (2 hour demo mode, restartable) and Ignition Maker Edition (free for personal, non-commercial use). What to download, and how
Hardware
None. A laptop with 8 GB of RAM runs every exercise; a Raspberry Pi or a real S7-1500 or CODESYS controller is optional.

Software you need

What to download, where from, what it costs and how to install it. Every link goes to the maker's own site, never a mirror.

Also free: UaExpert, the OPC UA test client (unified-automation.com, registration needed), MQTT Explorer (mqtt-explorer.com) and Telegraf (influxdata.com). CODESYS Control Win runs in demo mode; PLCSIM Advanced or a real S7-1500 is only needed for the S7-1500 OPC UA server exercise.

Required

  1. 01

    Eclipse Mosquitto

    Eclipse Foundation

    Free
    Runs on
    Windows (64-bit and 32-bit installers), macOS (Homebrew), Linux (Ubuntu PPA, Debian, Raspberry Pi, Snap)
    Account
    None needed

    Free, open source under the Eclipse Public License and Eclipse Distribution License.

Optional

Useful, not needed to finish the course.

  1. 02

    Node.js

    OpenJS Foundation

    Free
    Runs on
    Windows, macOS and Linux
    Account
    None needed

    Free, open source runtime. npm, the package manager, is installed with it.

  2. 03

    Node-RED

    OpenJS Foundation (Node-RED project)

    Free
    Runs on
    Windows, macOS and Linux (needs Node.js 22 or later; Node.js 24 recommended), or Docker
    Account
    None needed

    Free, open source under the Apache 2.0 licence.

  3. 04

    CODESYS Development System V3

    CODESYS GmbH

    Free
    Runs on
    Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit (8 GB RAM and 12 GB free disk recommended)
    Account
    A free CODESYS Store account (one-time registration)

    The Development System is free in the CODESYS Store. The setup also installs a demo of the CODESYS Control Win SL SoftPLC, which runs for two hours without a licence and then needs a manual restart.

    Official download pagestore.codesys.com
  4. 05

    SIMATIC S7-PLCSIM Advanced V8.0 Trial

    Siemens

    Free trial: 21 days
    Runs on
    Same Windows versions as TIA Portal STEP 7 Basic V21 (64-bit). Windows Home editions are not supported.
    Account
    A free Siemens account registered for Industry Online Support (SiePortal)
    Size
    about 1.0 GB (ISO)

    Registered users can download S7-PLCSIM Advanced V8.0 and test it for 21 days. Siemens says the trial package is identical to the supplied product; for a longer test you must ask a Siemens sales contact.

    Official download pagesupport.industry.siemens.com
  5. 06

    SIMATIC STEP 7 Professional and WinCC (TIA Portal) V21 Trial

    Siemens

    Free trial: 21 days
    Runs on
    Windows 11 Pro or Enterprise 64-bit (24H2), Windows 10 Enterprise 2021 LTSC, or Windows Server 2022/2025. Windows 11 Home is supported only for the Basic editions.
    Account
    A free Siemens account registered for Industry Online Support (SiePortal)
    Size
    about 8.1 GB for the main ISO, plus an optional 3.1 GB DVD 2 with hardware support packages

    Siemens lets registered users download the V21 trial of STEP 7 (Basic and Professional), STEP 7 Safety and WinCC and test it for 21 days. The same package is used for the full product; after 21 days you need a purchased licence to keep working.

    Official download pagesupport.industry.siemens.com

    Alternatives

    • TIA Portal Cloud trial: 21 days free in a cloud virtual machine, no install. Sessions are limited to one hour and it is not available in every country.
  6. 07

    Kepware Server (formerly KEPServerEX)

    Velotic (Kepware, formerly part of PTC)

    Free demo, restarts every 2 hours
    Runs on
    Windows (check the vendor system requirements)
    Account
    Registration on the trial download form

    The free trial runs for 2 hours at a time and can be restarted as often as you like by stopping and starting the application. There are no other limits: channel, device and tag counts are unlimited.

  7. 08

    Ignition

    Inductive Automation

    Free trial mode, resets every 2 hours
    Runs on
    Windows 10 or 11, Windows Server 2016 to 2025, macOS 13 or newer, Linux (tested on Ubuntu 22.04 and 24.04)
    Account
    None needed
    Size
    needs 4 GB RAM and 10 GB free disk space

    The full version runs free in trial mode for as long as you want; the only limit is that the Gateway times out every two hours and you restart the trial. Ignition Maker Edition is a free licence for personal, non-commercial use only, with up to 10,000 tags and 10 concurrent sessions.

    Official download pageinductiveautomation.com

    Alternatives

    • Ignition Maker Edition: Free for personal, non-commercial projects, with no 2-hour limit; not for use at a business or non-profit.
  8. 09

    InfluxDB (open source)

    InfluxData

    Free
    Runs on
    InfluxDB 3 Core: Linux, macOS, Docker. InfluxDB OSS 2.x: Windows, macOS, Linux, Docker, Raspberry Pi (64-bit).
    Account
    None needed

    The open source editions are free. InfluxDB 3 Core is under the MIT and Apache 2 licences and is what InfluxData recommends for new users. InfluxDB OSS 2.x is still offered and includes a web UI.

  9. 10

    Grafana

    Grafana Labs

    Free
    Runs on
    Windows, macOS, Linux (Debian/Ubuntu, RHEL/Fedora, SUSE, ARM64) and Docker
    Account
    None needed

    Grafana OSS is free and open source under AGPLv3. The Grafana Enterprise download is also free to use without a licence key and is functionally identical until you buy an Enterprise licence.

  10. 11

    Docker Desktop

    Docker, Inc.

    Free for personal use, education and small businesses
    Runs on
    Windows 10 64-bit version 22H2 (build 19045) or Windows 11 64-bit version 23H2 (build 22631) or later, with WSL 2 and hardware virtualisation on, 8 GB RAM. Also macOS and Linux.
    Account
    None needed

    Free for personal use, education, non-commercial open source projects, and businesses with fewer than 250 employees and less than 10 million US dollars in annual revenue. Larger businesses need a paid subscription. Docker Engine on Linux is open source and is not covered by these terms.

    Alternatives

    • Docker Engine (Linux): Free, open source engine for Linux. Not covered by the Docker Desktop subscription terms.

Checked against each maker's own page on 27 September 2026. Trial lengths and editions change; the maker's page is the final word.

Industrial DataOps: OPC UA, MQTT and Unified Namespace at a glance

Industrial DataOps: OPC UA, MQTT and Unified Namespace is a free, self-paced online course from EDWartens for automation, controls, SCADA and MES engineers, and IT engineers moving into OT data, who connect plant systems to MES, historians and analytics. It has 14 modules and 12h 46m of video lessons by HiveMQ, Industry40tv, UMH and others, with written notes and worked problems, a practical project with a document pack and a 15-question final assessment (pass mark 60%). Learning is free with an account; an optional certificate with a public verification code is issued when you pass. Last updated 27 September 2026.

All course facts
Price
Free, for good. No trial, no card. The only paid item is the optional certificate, a small one-off fee.
Who it is for
Automation, controls, SCADA and MES engineers, and IT engineers moving into OT data, who connect plant systems to MES, historians and analytics
Format
14 self-paced modules, 12h 46m of video, written notes, a practice task per module and one final assessment.
Level
Intermediate. Intermediate. For automation, controls, SCADA and MES engineers and for IT engineers moving into OT data. You should know what a PLC tag is and be comfortable installing software; basic networking (IP addresses and ports) helps. If fieldbuses and Modbus are new to you, Industrial Communication on EDWartens is the course to take first.
Brand
Vendor-neutral
Software
All free: Eclipse Mosquitto, MQTT Explorer, UaExpert (free OPC UA client, registration needed), Node-RED, the CODESYS Development System with CODESYS Control Win (demo mode), Telegraf, InfluxDB 3 Core and Grafana. Optional: TIA Portal with PLCSIM Advanced for the S7-1500 server, Kepware Server (2 hour demo mode, restartable) and Ignition Maker Edition (free for personal, non-commercial use).
Hardware
None. A laptop with 8 GB of RAM runs every exercise; a Raspberry Pi or a real S7-1500 or CODESYS controller is optional.
Certificate
Optional EDWartens Certificate of Completion, verifiable by code. Not a vendor credential.
Video lessons by
HiveMQ, Industry40tv, UMH, 4.0 Solutions, HighByte, InfluxData, AutomationStation, System-Restored, WAGO Germany, Jim's Garage, BINARYUPDATES, Steve Cope, Fusion Automate, Edge Signal, RealPars, Thetips4you, Shawn Hymel, SolutionsPT (independent creators, credited below)
Language
English
Last updated
27 September 2026

A shareable EDWartens certificate

Finish every module and pass the final assessment, and the optional EDWartens certificate is yours. It carries a unique verification code on a public page anyone can check, so it stands up when a recruiter looks it up. See it below.

The course itself stays free whether or not you ever buy one.

Stuck? Ask a practising engineer

A free course usually means a comment section and hope. This one does not. Every module has an Ask-your-trainer panel that reaches the same engineers who teach our paid programme: people who commission panels for a living, not moderators.

Pairs well with

More free courses: Free Industry 4.0 and IIoT courses

Learner reviews

No reviews yet

Reviews here are written only by learners who have finished every module of Industrial DataOps: OPC UA, MQTT and Unified Namespace, and they are published exactly as written. Finish the course and yours will be the first.

Common questions

What is a Unified Namespace (UNS)?

A Unified Namespace is a single, organised place, usually an MQTT broker with an ISA-95 topic tree, where every system publishes and reads the current state of the plant. Instead of wiring each system to every other, each connects once, and historians, MES and analytics subscribe to what they need. This course teaches how to design, build and secure one.

Who is this industrial DataOps course for?

It is for automation, controls, SCADA and MES engineers, and for IT engineers moving into operational technology, who are asked to get plant data to SCADA, MES, historians and analytics. It suits anyone aiming at IIoT engineer, IT/OT integration or industrial data architect roles.

OPC UA or MQTT: which one should I learn?

Both, because they do different jobs: OPC UA gives structured, secure access to controllers and machines, and MQTT distributes that data to many consumers through a broker. Most Unified Namespace designs read PLCs over OPC UA at the edge and publish to MQTT, which is exactly the path this course follows.

Does the course cover MQTT Sparkplug B?

Yes. A full module covers the Sparkplug B topic namespace, the Protobuf payload, birth and death certificates, bdSeq and seq numbering and rebirth requests, and the design module compares a Sparkplug-based namespace with a plain MQTT and JSON namespace so you can choose, or bridge the two.

What software do I need, and is it free?

Everything needed is free: Eclipse Mosquitto, MQTT Explorer, UaExpert, Node-RED, CODESYS with its Windows soft PLC in demo mode, Telegraf, InfluxDB 3 Core and Grafana. TIA Portal with PLCSIM Advanced, Kepware Server and Ignition Maker Edition are optional. A laptop with 8 GB of RAM is enough, and no hardware is required.

Is the course free to learn, and how long does it take?

Yes, every module, the notes, worked problems, practice tasks, project and final assessment are free to learn. It takes about 18 hours at your own pace, of which about 12.7 hours is video; the optional project takes about 14 hours more.

What certificate do I get, and how is it verified?

You get a verifiable certificate of completion from EDWartens when you finish every module and pass the 15-question final at 60 percent. It carries a unique certificate number and a QR code that open a public verification page showing the course, the modules covered and your final score. It is not an OPC Foundation, Eclipse Sparkplug, ISA/IEC 62443 or vendor credential.

Which standards does the course follow, and where are these skills used?

It is built on IEC 62541 (OPC UA), ISO/IEC 20922 and OASIS MQTT 5.0, ISO/IEC 20237 (Sparkplug 3.0), IEC 62264 (ISA-95) and IEC 62443 for zones and conduits, explained in our own words. The same architecture is being adopted by manufacturers, food and beverage, pharmaceutical and utility plants in Europe, the Americas, Asia and the Gulf.

What you walk away with

Your certificate for Industrial DataOps: OPC UA, MQTT and Unified Namespace

Finish the course, pass the final, and this is the document with your name on it.

Sample EDWartens Certificate of Completion for Industrial DataOps: OPC UA, MQTT and Unified Namespace
Sample. The issued certificate carries your name, admission number, a unique certificate number and its own QR code.
  • Verifiable by anyone

  • Adds to LinkedIn in one click

  • QR code on the certificate

  • Names what you can do

  • A permanent link

  • Earned, not attended

Learning is free. The certificate is optional.

Add it now and pay only when you have finished the course, or come back for it later. One-off, US$28.99, with a receipt.

Issued by EDWartens, the training division of Wartens, as a Certificate of Completion for this self-paced course. Sold by Wartens Ltd (England and Wales). It is not a vendor certification, a university award or a CPD-accredited activity, and it does not certify competence on live equipment. Delivered electronically; see the refund policy.

Credits

Who made the video lessons

The video lessons in this course were created by the people below, not by EDWartens. Every lesson streams from its creator's own YouTube channel; EDWartens neither hosts nor sells that footage, and the creators are not affiliated with EDWartens and do not endorse this course. What EDWartens wrote is the study plan, the notes, the practice tasks and the assessments.

  • HiveMQthe MQTT Essentials series (publish/subscribe, topics, QoS, persistent sessions, retained messages, last will, keep alive), the Sparkplug Essentials series and its Node-RED demo, the UNS Essentials lessons, the Architecting a Unified Namespace webinar, the MQTT security Q&A and the smart-factory UNS demo in the final
  • Industry40tvthe Fundamentals of OPC UA series: how OPC UA works, information models and companion specifications, client/server communication, technology mapping and security, and PubSub over MQTT
  • UMHthe Unified Namespace Basics series: the automation pyramid, event-driven architecture, the ISA-95 topic hierarchy, sending data to a broker, contextualisation and protocol converters
  • 4.0 SolutionsWalker Reynolds on what the Unified Namespace is, an enterprise UNS example and the software categories used to build one
  • HighBytethe webinars on industrial DataOps and data contextualisation and on how OPC UA accelerates a UNS
  • InfluxDatathe introduction to Telegraf, monitoring MQTT devices with Telegraf, and running Telegraf, InfluxDB 3 and Grafana in Docker
  • AutomationStationsetting up the S7-1500 OPC UA server with UaExpert diagnostics, and configuring a Mosquitto 2 broker with user authentication
  • System-Restoredthe S7-1500 OPC UA standard server tutorial in TIA Portal
  • WAGO Germanyconfiguring an OPC UA server and an OPC UA client in CODESYS 3.5
  • Jim's Garagethe Mosquitto broker explanation and setup
  • BINARYUPDATESthe MQTT Explorer tutorial
  • Steve Copethe beginners guide to MQTT Sparkplug
  • Fusion Automatethe Kepware IoT Gateway MQTT agent lesson
  • Edge Signalthe OPC UA server to cloud MQTT gateway demo
  • RealParsusing Node-RED and MQTT on a PLCnext controller as an edge gateway
  • Thetips4youthe full InfluxDB, Telegraf and Grafana setup for beginners
  • Shawn Hymelgetting started with the Mosquitto broker with SSL/TLS certificates
  • SolutionsPTthe webinar on network security zones and conduits

If you are one of these creators and would like a lesson removed or credited differently, write to info@wartens.com.