Matter over Thread: Configuring Border Router and controller on one device

If you only have one device, be it a PC with Linux or a Raspberry Pi, you can set up and test the Matter over Thread development environment with both the Thread Border Router and the Matter controller running on this one device.

In this setup, a PC or a Raspberry Pi runs the Thread Border Router and the CHIP Tool for Linux or macOS simultaneously. To simplify enabling the Thread communication with the Matter accessory device, use a Docker container with the OpenThread Border Router image instead of installing the OpenThread Border Router natively.

Setup with OpenThread Border Router and Matter controller on the same device

Setup with OpenThread Border Router and Matter controller on the same device

You can use this setup with the CHIP Tool controller.

Requirements

To use this setup, you need the following hardware:

  • One of the following:

    • 1x PC with Ubuntu (20.04 or newer)

    • 1x Raspberry Pi Model 3B+ or newer with Ubuntu (20.04 or newer) instead of Raspbian OS

  • 1x Bluetooth LE dongle (can be embedded inside the PC, like it is on Raspberry Pi)

  • 1x nRF52840 DK or nRF52840 Dongle - For the Radio Co-Processor (RCP) device

  • 1x nRF52840 DK or nRF5340 DK - For the Matter accessory device (programmed with one of Matter samples)

Configuring the environment

To configure and use Thread Border Router and Matter controller on the same device, complete the following steps.

Program the sample

Program the development kit for the Matter accessory device with one of available Matter samples. We recommend using Matter light bulb.

Configure the Thread Border Router

Configure the Thread Border Router on a PC or on a Raspberry Pi, depending on what hardware you are using. For detailed steps, see the Running OTBR using Docker section on the Thread Border Router page in the nRF Connect SDK documentation.

Configure the CHIP Tool

CHIP Tool for Linux or macOS is the default implementation of the Matter controller role, recommended for the nRF Connect platform. For this Matter over Thread, you will configure the controller on the same device as Thread Border Router.

Complete the following steps:

  1. Choose one of the following options:

    • Use the prebuilt tool package from the Matter nRF Connect releases GitHub page. Make sure that the package is compatible with your nRF Connect SDK version.

    • Build manually from the source files available in the modules/lib/matter/examples/chip-tool directory. Use the building instructions from the Working with the CHIP Tool page in the Matter documentation.

  2. Configure the CHIP Tool controller. Complete the following actions by following the steps in the Working with the CHIP Tool user guide in the Matter documentation:

    • Build and run the CHIP Tool by completing the steps listed in “Building and running CHIP Tool”.

    • Prepare the environment for testing by completing the steps listed in “Using CHIP Tool for Matter device testing”.

Continue to testing the sample

Depending on which Matter sample you programmed onto the development kit, go to this sample’s documentation page and complete the steps from the Testing section.