System Overview
Introduction
This section introduces AosCore, the software stack that runs on each AosEdge Unit at the edge. It covers what AosEdge is, the key concepts and terminology you need to navigate the rest of the documentation, and the fundamental Unit and Node model that underpins the system architecture.
If you are new to AosEdge, start here before moving into the detailed Architecture or operational sections.
What AosCore Does
AosCore is the on-Unit runtime that:
- Manages containerized services — downloads OCI images from the cloud, launches service instances in isolated runtimes, and monitors their health.
- Handles over-the-air deployments — receives desired-state updates from AosCloud, orchestrates software (SOTA) and firmware (FOTA) deployments, and performs rollback on failure.
- Secures the Unit — manages certificates, enforces access control through a dedicated Identity and Access Manager, and integrates with hardware security modules via PKCS#11.
- Monitors and reports — collects resource usage metrics, generates alerts when thresholds are exceeded, and forwards telemetry to the cloud.
AosCore communicates with AosCloud over a WebSocket-based JSON protocol. All inter-component communication within the Unit uses gRPC.
Core Components
AosCore consists of four main components, each running as a separate process on the Unit:
| Component | Abbreviation | Responsibility |
|---|---|---|
| Communication Manager | CM | Cloud connectivity, update orchestration, desired-state processing, network management |
| Service Manager | SM | Service image lifecycle, container launching, resource management, monitoring |
| Identity and Access Manager | IAM | Certificates, provisioning, node identity, access control |
| Message Proxy | MP | Inter-node message routing, file distribution, log forwarding |
These components coordinate through gRPC interfaces defined in the AosCore API.
In This Section
- What is AosEdge — product overview and positioning for OEM integrators
- Key Concepts and Terminology — definitions of Unit, Node, Service, Deployable Item, and other core terms
- Unit and Node Model — the hierarchical relationship between Units and Nodes
Related Pages
- Architecture — detailed component structure and interactions
- Service Lifecycle — how services are deployed and managed
- Deployment Flows — SOTA/FOTA update processes