TAK to TAK Pipeline

This guide walks operators through creating an SDL pipeline that consumes CoT messages from one TAK Server connection and publishes them to a TAK Server destination.

The completed flow is:

TAK Consumer → TAK CoT Messages dataset → TAK Publisher sink

Table of Contents

Prerequisites
Step 1: Create a pipeline
Step 2: Add TAK Consumer
Step 3: Create and connect the TAK CoT Messages dataset
Step 4: Add TAK Publisher sink
Step 5: Save and start the pipeline
Validate TAK to TAK forwarding
Troubleshooting

Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:

Access to SDL
Permission to create and run pipelines
Source TAK Server endpoint and connection material
Destination TAK Server endpoint and connection material
Certificate, key, or PKCS#12 values required by the TAK environment

Step 1: Create a pipeline

In SDL, open Pipelines.
Select Create in the upper-right corner.
After the pipeline canvas opens, select the + icon in the bottom-right corner.

Step 2: Add TAK Consumer

Open Sources.
Find the TAK Consumer data source.
Drag TAK Consumer onto the pipeline canvas.
Select the edit icon under the TAK Consumer card.
Enter the TAK Consumer configuration.

Field What to enter

Field	What to enter
Display Name	Optional readable name for the TAK Consumer.
Description	Optional description for the source.
`TAK_ENDPOINT`	TAK Server endpoint in `host:port` format.
`TAK_PROTOCOL`	Wire protocol: `auto`, `xml` (v0), or `proto` (v1).
`TAK_TLS_ENABLED`	Whether TLS is enabled for the TAK connection.
`TAK_P12_B64`	Base64-encoded PKCS#12 client certificate, if used.
`TAK_P12_PASSWORD`	Password for the PKCS#12 file or content, if used.
`TAK_CA_B64`	Base64-encoded CA certificate in PEM format, if used.
`TAK_CERT_B64`	Base64-encoded client certificate in PEM format, if used.
`TAK_KEY_B64`	Base64-encoded client private key in PEM format, if used.
`TAK_INSECURE_SKIP_VERIFY`	Whether to skip TLS certificate verification. Use only when directed by the environment owner.
`TAK_CLIENT_UID`	Client UID for protocol negotiation. Leave empty to auto-generate if appropriate for the environment.
`TAK_CONNECT_TIMEOUT_MS`	Connection timeout in milliseconds.
`TAK_READ_TIMEOUT_MS`	Read timeout in milliseconds. Use `0` for no timeout.
`TAK_RECONNECT_BACKOFF_MS`	Initial reconnection backoff in milliseconds.
`TAK_RECONNECT_MAX_BACKOFF_MS`	Maximum reconnection backoff in milliseconds.
`TAK_RECONNECT_MAX_RETRIES`	Maximum reconnection attempts. Use `0` for infinite retries.
`TAK_WRITE_TIMEOUT_MS`	Write timeout in milliseconds.
`SHUTDOWN_TIMEOUT`	Maximum time to wait for in-flight writes during shutdown, such as `30s` or `1m`.
`CLASSIFICATION_LEVEL`	Classification level the transformer operates under. This is used as the default when unmarked data is encountered.
`SECURITY_MARKING`	Security marking mode: `add`, `remove`, `overwrite`, or `ignore`.
`LOG_LEVEL`	Log level: `trace`, `debug`, `info`, `warn`, `error`, `fatal`, `panic`, or `disabled`.
Replicas	Number of replicas for this pipeline stage.

Display Name

Optional readable name for the TAK Consumer.

Description

Optional description for the source.

TAK_ENDPOINT

TAK Server endpoint in host:port format.

TAK_PROTOCOL

Wire protocol: auto, xml (v0), or proto (v1).

TAK_TLS_ENABLED

Whether TLS is enabled for the TAK connection.

TAK_P12_B64

Base64-encoded PKCS#12 client certificate, if used.

TAK_P12_PASSWORD

Password for the PKCS#12 file or content, if used.

TAK_CA_B64

Base64-encoded CA certificate in PEM format, if used.

TAK_CERT_B64

Base64-encoded client certificate in PEM format, if used.

TAK_KEY_B64

Base64-encoded client private key in PEM format, if used.

TAK_INSECURE_SKIP_VERIFY

Whether to skip TLS certificate verification. Use only when directed by the environment owner.

TAK_CLIENT_UID

Client UID for protocol negotiation. Leave empty to auto-generate if appropriate for the environment.

TAK_CONNECT_TIMEOUT_MS

Connection timeout in milliseconds.

TAK_READ_TIMEOUT_MS

Read timeout in milliseconds. Use 0 for no timeout.

TAK_RECONNECT_BACKOFF_MS

Initial reconnection backoff in milliseconds.

TAK_RECONNECT_MAX_BACKOFF_MS

Maximum reconnection backoff in milliseconds.

TAK_RECONNECT_MAX_RETRIES

Maximum reconnection attempts. Use 0 for infinite retries.

TAK_WRITE_TIMEOUT_MS

Write timeout in milliseconds.

SHUTDOWN_TIMEOUT

Maximum time to wait for in-flight writes during shutdown, such as 30s or 1m.

CLASSIFICATION_LEVEL

Classification level the transformer operates under. This is used as the default when unmarked data is encountered.

SECURITY_MARKING

Security marking mode: add, remove, overwrite, or ignore.

LOG_LEVEL

Log level: trace, debug, info, warn, error, fatal, panic, or disabled.

Replicas

Number of replicas for this pipeline stage.

Save the TAK Consumer configuration.

Step 3: Create and connect the TAK CoT Messages dataset

Select Create New Dataset.
Drag the new dataset onto the pipeline canvas.
Connect the output from TAK Consumer to the new dataset.
Select the edit icon for the dataset.
Enter a Kafka-safe resource name, such as tak-cot-messages.

Use lowercase letters, numbers, hyphens, underscores, or dots. Avoid spaces and uppercase letters.
Select Done.

Step 4: Add TAK Publisher sink

Open Sinks.
Find the TAK Publisher sink.
Drag TAK Publisher onto the pipeline canvas.
Connect the TAK CoT Messages dataset to the TAK Publisher sink.
Select the edit icon under TAK Publisher.
Enter the destination TAK Server configuration.

Use the destination TAK Server endpoint and certificate or credential values provided for the environment. The publisher-side configuration should match the destination server’s required protocol, TLS, and authentication settings.

Save the TAK Publisher configuration.

Step 5: Save and start the pipeline

Confirm the pipeline has this shape:

TAK Consumer → TAK CoT Messages dataset → TAK Publisher
Confirm no required configuration warnings remain on the TAK Consumer, dataset, or TAK Publisher.
Select Save.
Start the pipeline.

Validate TAK to TAK forwarding

After the pipeline starts, verify:

Check	Expected result
TAK Consumer	The source TAK Server connection is active and consuming CoT messages.
TAK CoT Messages dataset	The dataset receives messages from the TAK Consumer.
TAK Publisher	The destination TAK Server connection is configured and running.
Destination TAK Server	CoT messages forwarded by the pipeline appear on the destination TAK Server.

Check

Expected result

TAK Consumer

The source TAK Server connection is active and consuming CoT messages.

TAK CoT Messages dataset

The dataset receives messages from the TAK Consumer.

TAK Publisher

The destination TAK Server connection is configured and running.

Destination TAK Server

CoT messages forwarded by the pipeline appear on the destination TAK Server.

Troubleshooting

Symptom	What to check
TAK Consumer warning remains	Confirm the source endpoint, protocol, TLS settings, credentials, output dataset connection, and required fields.
Dataset does not receive messages	Confirm the source TAK Server is reachable and sending CoT messages for the configured account.
TAK Publisher warning remains	Confirm the destination endpoint, protocol, TLS settings, credentials, and input dataset connection.
Destination TAK Server receives no messages	Confirm the pipeline is running, source messages are reaching the dataset, and the publisher can connect to the destination TAK Server.

Symptom

What to check

TAK Consumer warning remains

Confirm the source endpoint, protocol, TLS settings, credentials, output dataset connection, and required fields.

Dataset does not receive messages

Confirm the source TAK Server is reachable and sending CoT messages for the configured account.

TAK Publisher warning remains

Confirm the destination endpoint, protocol, TLS settings, credentials, and input dataset connection.

Destination TAK Server receives no messages

Confirm the pipeline is running, source messages are reaching the dataset, and the publisher can connect to the destination TAK Server.