CSMS vendor lock-in: how to avoid it and keep your network portable

Choosing a CSMS is a long-term decision. The software holds your charger connections, your integrations and your operating history. If any of these cannot leave with you, switching becomes a rescue operation rather than a planned project. This article lists where lock-in comes from, what open standards give you, and what to ask before you sign.

Where lock-in comes from

Lock-in is rarely one clause. It builds up in four places.

Protocol extensions. A vendor adds private behaviour on top of OCPP. Chargers then work well with that CSMS and poorly with any other.

Closed data. Sessions, faults and configuration history sit in a format you cannot export. You keep the chargers but lose the memory of how they behaved.

Tightly coupled modules. Charging control, billing and roaming cannot be replaced one at a time.

Commercial terms. Exit conditions, data return and notice periods are vague or missing.

What open standards give you

Standards are your first protection, but they have limits you should know.

OCPP is published by the Open Charge Alliance and was standardised internationally as IEC 63584 in October 2024, based on OCPP 2.0.1 (history of OCPP). A charger speaking standard OCPP can in principle connect to another compliant CSMS.

Version matters. The Alliance states that OCPP 1.6 and OCPP 2.0.1 are not compatible (OCPP protocol page). OCPP 2.1 is an extension of 2.0.1, and application logic written for 2.0.1 continues to work in 2.1 (OCPP 2.1 announcement). A migration plan therefore depends on which version your chargers speak today, and whether your next CSMS handles it.

The regulation does not do this work for you. The text of the AFIR requires public points to be digitally connected and remotely controllable, but the words OCPP and OCPI do not appear in it (AFIR, Regulation (EU) 2023/1804). For the charging points that Article 14 of the EPBD requires in buildings, the directive asks for non-proprietary and non-discriminatory communication protocols (EPBD, Directive (EU) 2024/1275). Portability is a contractual and technical choice, not something you get by default.

On roaming, OCPI is the open protocol between operators and mobility service providers (OCPI repository). Ask whether your CSMS supports it rather than a closed alternative only.

Questions to ask a CSMS vendor

Put these in your request for proposal.

Which OCPP versions are supported, and are any proprietary extensions needed for the features you are shown?

Do the chargers need a vendor-specific configuration that would have to be redone elsewhere?

Can you export sessions, faults, tariffs and charger configuration, in a documented format, at any time and not only at the end of the contract?

Are the APIs documented, and are they available to you without an extra fee?

Can billing, roaming or analytics be replaced separately from the core charging control?

What does the contract say about exit: notice period, assistance with migration, deletion of your data?

Can you test a connection with a charger of your own, before committing the whole network?

A vendor confident in its product answers these in writing.

Keep an exit path in your architecture

Three habits reduce dependence without adding complexity.

Keep your own copy of the data. Regular exports of sessions and faults mean that history is never held hostage.

Control the charger endpoint. If chargers connect to an address you control, for example through a gateway or a domain name you own, redirecting them to a new CSMS does not require visiting each site. Check with your charger manufacturer what is possible on your hardware.

Rehearse the exit. Move a small group of chargers to a test CSMS once. You will discover the real obstacles while the stakes are low.

What to do this week

List the OCPP version of every charger model in your fleet. Check whether your current contract lets you export your data and in what format. Request one full export and open it. If it is unusable, you have measured your lock-in today, before it is tested by a real migration.

GFO Omni is a CSMS that supervises charging points over OCPP 1.6, 2.0.1 and 2.1.