The C-OPS instrument is a culmination of several new technologies, each focused on different aspects of resolving the optical complexity of the near-shore water column. Although C-OPS represents a significant improvement over legacy profilers, it was designed from inception specifically to operate in shallow coastal waters and from a wide variety of platforms ranging from offshore towers, small boats, and ocean-class research vessels. Electronically, the system is self-organizing; when initially powered, the aggregator queries each instrument to determine the optimal power required for operation over the existing length of the cables and the population of detectors available to the configuration.