Matter

What is Matter?

Matter is an open-source, royalty-free connectivity standard developed by the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) (formerly Zigbee Alliance). It aims to unify smart home device communication across ecosystems, ensuring interoperability, reliability, and security.

Why is Matter useful?

  • Enables interoperability between smart home devices from different brands (e.g., Apple, Google, Amazon).

  • Provides secure, reliable, and low-latency local communication.

  • Simplifies development by offering a common standard.

  • Reduces fragmentation in the smart home ecosystem.

  • Supports multi-admin control, allowing devices to work with multiple ecosystems simultaneously.

How it works?

  • Matter uses IPv6-based networking protocols for communication.

  • Devices communicate over Thread, Wi-Fi, or Ethernet, using UDP and TLS for secure transport.

  • A commissioning process securely onboards devices using QR codes or NFC.

  • The Application Layer defines standardized device types (lights, thermostats, sensors, etc.).

  • It supports local communication without requiring a cloud connection.

Where is Matter used?

  • Smart homes (lights, locks, thermostats, sensors, appliances).

  • Smart buildings and offices.

  • Consumer IoT devices that need cross-platform compatibility.

  • Anywhere multiple smart ecosystems need to operate together seamlessly.

Which OSI layer does this protocol belong to?

  • Matter operates at the Application Layer (Layer 7) of the OSI model.

  • It uses IPv6 and relies on lower layers (e.g., TCP/IP, UDP, Thread) for transport and network connectivity.

IS Matter Windows specific?

  • No, Matter is not Windows-specific.

  • It is designed for cross-platform deployment and can run on embedded systems, Linux, macOS, Android, iOS, and Windows (mainly for control apps or hub interfaces).

IS Matter Linux Specific?

  • No, Matter is not Linux-specific.

  • However, Linux is widely used in Matter-based hubs, smart speakers, and gateways due to its open-source nature and flexibility.

Which Transport Protocol is used by Matter?

  • Matter primarily uses UDP with DTLS for secure communication.

  • TCP with TLS may be used in certain cases.

  • It runs over IPv6 and supports transports like: * Wi-Fi * Thread (IEEE 802.15.4) * Ethernet

Which Port is used by Matter?

  • Matter uses UDP port 5540 for unicast secure communication.

  • It also uses UDP port 5353 for mDNS (Multicast DNS) during device discovery.

  • These ports can be implementation-specific but are standard in Matter reference implementations.

Is Matter using Client server model?

  • Yes, partially.

  • Matter uses a request-response model where devices can act as clients, servers, or both.

  • For example, a light bulb acts as a server providing resources, while a smart switch acts as a client issuing control commands.

Topics in this section,

  • In this section, you are going to learn

  • Terminology

  • Version Info

  • rfc details

  • setup

  • setup

  • packet details

  • usecases

  • features

  • Reference links