How it connects

Two pictures explain the whole system: what happens on the boat, and how the boat reaches the world.

Aboard and away

DockNeighbor runs two independent paths at once. Aboard, the app talks to your hardware directly over the boat's own Wi-Fi — readings and taps are instant, and none of it needs the internet. Away, each sensor reports to the DockNeighbor cloud on its own, and the cloud does the watching: alerts to everyone on the boat, and — on city water with a paid plan — closing the valve by itself.

How DockNeighbor worksSensors and the water valve on the boat talk to the app directly over the local network, and report to the DockNeighbor Cloud over the internet. The cloud pushes alerts to you and the neighbors you choose, anywhere, and closes the valve automatically on a flood alarm.⛵ On boardOff-the-shelf sensors on the boat's Wi-Fi📍 GPS · anchor & security🔋 Battery monitor⚡ Shore power🌊 Flood sensors💧 Water valve (city water)📱 Your app, aboardLive readings and control on theboat's own network — no internet needed☁️ DockNeighbor CloudAlerts, remote view, history —no hub hardware required📲 You, anywherePush alerts on every plan ·remote view · shared with your crewLocal Wi-Fi — instant, works offshore & off-gridreports in secondspushFlood alarm? The valve closes automatically — city water · paid plans
Two independent paths: aboard, the app talks to your hardware directly; away, the cloud watches, alerts, and acts. Lose the internet and the local alarms keep running.
The two paths fail independently, and that's the point: lose the internet and the aboard alarms keep working; leave the boat and the cloud keeps watching. The only thing that needs both dead is silence — and the cloud notices quiet boats too.

Everything above assumes the boat can reach the internet somehow — and there are more ways to do that than most people expect. All of them end at the same cloud; they differ in cost, reach, and whether they keep working after you walk away.

Ways your boat can reach the DockNeighbor cloud⛵ Your boatsensors, valve, cameras —all on its own Wi-FiPick ONE uplink →(they all end at the same cloud)📶 Marina Wi-Fifree where it reaches — sensors sip data📡 Cellular router (recommended)always-on for ~$1–15/mo of data —and its built-in GPS powers the anchor watch📱 Your phone's hotspotfine while you're aboard — nothing reports after you leave📦 DockNeighbor hubCOMINGa Pi, Docker box, or the desktop app collects everything🛜 DockNeighbor routerCOMINGreports for every sensor, GPS, and a locked-down network🏢 Shared hub at the marinaCOMINGlong-range sensors reach the office hub — no Wi-Fi aboard at all☁️ DockNeighbor Cloudone destination, whatever the path📲 You & your peoplealerts anywhere, on every plan
Every path ends at the same place: the DockNeighbor cloud, and then your phone. Solid paths work today; dashed ones are on the roadmap.
  • Marina Wi-Fi is free where it reaches — DockNeighbor's sensors use so little data that even weak shared Wi-Fi usually carries them. See theconnectivity guide for cheap ways to extend its reach.
  • A small cellular router is the recommended always-on answer: ~$1–15 a month of data, works in the mooring field, and its built-in GPS is what powers theanchor alarm andsecurity zone with no extra hardware.
  • Your phone's hotspot works while you're aboard — good for a weekend afloat, but nothing reports after you and the phone leave.
  • Coming: the DockNeighbor hub (a Pi, a Docker box, or the desktop app collecting everything and forwarding it), a DockNeighbor-managed cellular router with the same job built in, and shared hubs at marinas where long-range sensors reach the office and no Wi-Fi is needed aboard at all.
Routers, SIMs & coverage →Quick start →