This guide explains how to migrate from AssistNow Online/Offline to AssistNow Live Orbits/Predictive Orbits. It assumes prior experience with, or existing designs based on, AssistNow Online/Offline. If you are not familiar with the service, it is recommended that you first consult the AssistNow User guide.
Prerequisites
To migrate to the new AssistNow Live Orbits / Predictive Orbits service, the following prerequisites must be met:
- Your new design must include a u-blox series 9 or series 10 GNSS receiver. Previous generations are not supported.
- If you plan to use Predictive Orbits, ensure that the selected GNSS receiver supports this feature.
- If you are considering using a series 8 u-blox GNSS receiver for a new design, we strongly recommend exploring the latest products on the u-blox website to benefit from the most advanced technology.
- If you already have an existing design using a series 8 GNSS receiver, please contact u-blox services support at services-support@u-blox.com for further guidance.
The following table summarizes the available options, assuming you already have an active design with AssistNow Online/Offline and are looking to migrate to the new service.
| From | To | Live Orbits supported | Predictive Orbits supported |
|---|---|---|---|
| u-blox series 9 / series 10 | u-blox series 9 / series 10 | Yes | Yes, verify HW support |
| u-blox series 8 | u-blox series 9 / series 10 | Yes | Yes, verify HW support |
| u-blox series 8 | u-blox series 8 | No | No |
Note: For AssistNow Predictive Orbits, first consult the GNSS hardware product datasheet. As a general rule, if AssistNow Offline is supported, then AssistNow Predictive Orbits is typically supported as well.
Benefits
At the time of writing, you should not expect any performance differences between the new and the legacy service. As explained in the next section, the A-GNSS data and messages delivered by the services are currently the same in both versions. Therefore, you can easily associate:
- Predictive Orbits with the Offline service
- Live Orbits with the Online service
However, switching to the new system provides several advantages:
- Commercial benefit for Predictive Orbits: now included at no additional cost in all u-blox GNSS Series 9 and Series 10 receivers.
- Commercial benefit for the premium Live Orbits variant: selected GNSS receivers now come with lifetime service access through a one-time hardware purchase.
- Enhanced security: access is now based on per-device authentication.
- Controlled usage: improved service control helps prevent unexpected cost increases in the event of anomalies or unforeseen usage patterns. The enforced usage limits (detailed in the next section) are designed to mitigate such risks.
u-blox remains committed to innovation and will keep you informed of any performance improvements as they become available.
Pricing
The new AssistNow service also introduces benefits in terms of pricing. While access to the Predictive Orbits service is included with all supported series 9 / series 10 GNSS receivers, the Live Orbits premium variant is available through two payment options:
- Bundled option: For selected GNSS receivers, lifetime service access is included in the hardware price. For hardware pricing, please refer to your usual u-blox sales contact. This option is especially attractive for u-blox customers who sell hardware as a standalone product, without bundling it with additional services.
- Pay-as-you-go option: With this model, you pay only for actual service usage, with no upfront payment required. This option is generally preferred by u-blox customers operating service-based business models. Pricing details are available on this page.
Migration impact
Consider the following information when planning the migration to the new service
- There is no change in the AssistNow GNSS interface. All the UBX-MGA-*** messages available in the previous release are also part of the new service. The way to store and inject A-GNSS data in the receiver is not affected and therefore you can keep the existing implementation for messages storage and feeding into the receiver.
- Service authentication has changed to a more secure authentication method based on single device. Each device shall obtain it's own chipcode to access to the service through a one-time device registration procedure. The token authentication (per fleet authentication) is not available in the new service.
The device registration procedure is explained in the AssistNow device registration guide.
- Service interface is different from previous release. Like in the the previous service generation the A-GNSS data are retrieved using an HTTPS POST, but the syntax of the service query is different. You can find detailed information in the AssistNow service Integration guide or in the API specification. The Service integration guides contains additional information about the error/status code management.
- The new AssistNow SDK will be available during Q3 2025, but it's not backward compatible with Online/Offline. The libMGA library is not compatible AssistNow Live Orbits and Predictive Orbits
- HW migration from Series 8 to Series 9/series 10 u-blox GNSS receiver is not handled this guide. Please verify the Hardware documentation.
Service authentication
AssistNow Online and Offline services use token-based authentication to grant access. The token is an alphanumeric string generated by the customer through the Thingstream portal user interface. This token serves as the authentication credential and must be included in every HTTPS request made by the device. All devices belonging to the same customer share the same token.
The AssistNow Live Orbits and Predictive Orbits service use per-device authentication. Each device needs a unique secret, called a chipcode, to be included in the HTTPS service requests. This chipcode is unique to each device and is generated through the ZTP (Zero-Touch Provisioning) registration procedure, which must be implemented in the device firmware. It's a one-time procedure and the output is the chipcode, which serves as the authentication secret for all subsequent HTTPS requests to the AssistNow services.
The device registration procedure is explained in AssistNow device registration guide.
Service Interface
The service interface of the new system is an HTTPS REST API, similar to AssistNow Online/Offline, but with some key differences:
- Authentication Secret: The chipcode must be used in place of the token for authentication.
- Data Types: Attribute and parameter names differ from those used in the previous version.
- Error Management: The service now includes a comprehensive set of error and status codes to improve transparency and debugging.
- Usage Limits: The new service enforces a maximum daily usage per device, designed to accommodate all standard use cases. With an appropriate subscription, each device may perform up to 10 Live Orbit requests and 2 Predictive Orbit requests per day. For evaluation purposes, this limit is increased to 300 requests per day per device.
Further details on these topics can be found in the AssistNow service Integration guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
A comprehensive list of frequently asked question is available at this link: AssistNow FAQ
If you need additional support, please contact services-support@u-blox.com.
AssistNow guide
If you have limited experience with u-blox AssistNow service you can find in Knowledge Center a comprehensive set of guides.