Accelerating IoT Setup – Thuong Nguyen

Client:

AWS IoT - GreenGrass

Link:

Project Impact

Streamlined device-to-cloud integrations by removing the need for manual Lambda authoring, cutting setup time from hours to minutes.

Replaced hours of custom coding with a few quick setup steps directly in the console

Improved deployment efficiency by reducing manual configuration steps and minimizing setup errors during edge application rollout.

Featured at AWS re:Invent 2018, showcased as part of the Greengrass v1.7 launch

Overview

I designed the console experience for AWS IoT Greengrass Connectors — a feature that allows developers to extend edge devices with pre-built integrations to AWS and third-party services without writing custom code.

Before this release, developers had to manually build and maintain Lambda functions to handle common actions like sending messages to SNS, storing data in S3, or connecting to devices over industrial protocols. The new experience made these integrations accessible directly from the AWS Management Console, reducing setup time and development effort.

Role
Product Designer
Feature Launch
July 2018 (AWS IoT Greengrass v1.7)
Team
1 PM · 1 Engineer · 1 Tech Writer
Impact
Simplified edge application deployments by introducing low-code configuration from the console

Context & Challenges

AWS IoT Greengrass Connectors are pre-packaged bundles of Lambda functions, MQTT topics, and secrets that help developers extend the functionality of their edge devices without writing repetitive code.

They were designed to solve a recurring problem in IoT development: the need to repeatedly build and maintain custom logic for common tasks — such as processing device data, sending it to cloud services, or connecting to other devices using industrial protocols.

The key benefit of Connectors is simplified deployments. Instead of authoring and debugging custom integrations, developers can now configure these actions directly in the AWS Management Console by filling out a few parameters.

As the product designer, I focused on how this capability would be surfaced and configured within the console — ensuring that complex integrations could be created and deployed quickly, with minimal friction for developers building at the edge.

Design Approach

Embedding into the Console

The design needed to feel native to existing AWS IoT workflows. I worked with engineers to map where Connectors fit within the broader device configuration flow — ensuring users could discover and deploy them without leaving the console.

Functional Flow

Each connector followed a three-step setup pattern:

Select a connector from the available list
Configure parameters such as credentials, resource ARNs, or message topics
Deploy the connector to an edge device or fleet

This structure aligned with how developers already thought about deploying Greengrass components but abstracted the complexity of writing Lambda code.

Designed the console interface for selecting and configuring pre-built Connectors — making it easy for developers to extend devices with AWS and third-party integrations in just a few steps.

Usability Improvements

Added inline field validation to reduce configuration errors
Provided contextual help for parameters (linked to documentation)
Surfaced status feedback post-deployment for better clarity

Together, these details helped make configuration less error-prone and more approachable — especially for developers new to Greengrass.

Collaboration & Execution

I partnered closely with PM and engineering to align on the functional scope and technical constraints for how connectors would be listed, configured, and deployed.

Worked through the IA and layout for connector configuration panels
Conducted quick internal reviews with AWS engineers to validate workflow clarity
Collaborated with technical writers to ensure field labels and help text matched documentation

Featured at AWS re:Invent 2018

AWS IoT Greengrass Connectors were officially launched and demonstrated at AWS re:Invent 2018, highlighting how developers could quickly extend edge devices with pre-built integrations directly from the console.