Good morning,
I'm trying to figure out if there is a way to evaluate if a command was completed and retry if it did not complete.
I have 14 iBlinds 3.1 z-wave controllers in my home. 95% of the time, they work just fine. Occasionally, I'll get a blind that does not open on the first attempt. When I go into Home Assistant, and manually open or close the blind, it works.
I have 3 reactions set up for each room. One to open, one to close, and one partial open for sun glare. Each of them is set up as below.
5afc9924-4300-4718-9e23-8855c4a3a9fd-image.png
The reactions are set up to wait for 5 seconds before going onto the next blind, so the z-wave network doesn't get overwhelmed.
In addition, the set command to run the reactions has "Wait for completion" checked.
3919fc06-c1f1-4c49-bf95-716028d18a27-image.png
I also have a routine set up whenever a z-wave device reports as non-functional (dead), it'll get pinged to wake it up. This usually works to wake them up.
16df4bff-c733-4ec2-a55c-c964238ada3b-image.png
Appreciate any ideas to make this more reliable.
I'm running:
Reactor latest-24190-bd310acc, Bare-metal on Fedora WaveJSController [0.1.23326] Home Assistant: 2024.7.0I think this feature request could be accomplished with the use of two or more rules, but it would be great if there was a way to wait for an event or trigger to occur before continuing on in the reactions.
For example, I have a rule that will turn on some exterior lights if you arrive home after the porch lights have been turned off. Right now this rule randomly will turn off between 5-10 minutes after the person has entered the geofence. On some occasions this 5-10 minutes isn't long enough, say if you are unloading the car or something. I would like to kick off the reaction, but pause it part way through and wait for the door to close and lock, then continue it on. Hubitat Rule Machine has a "Wait for event" option, but I really want to keep all my logic within MSR.
Good morning,
I'm going through my ruleset this morning, trying to get away from haas>blahblablah entries and completely migrate them all to zwavejs>xx-0 entries where possible.
I have 3 Aeon MultiSensor 6 devices in my home, all USB powered.
When using Haas entries, I see an entry for hass>binary_sensor_guest_bedroom_multisensor_home_security_motion_detection, and motion_sensor.state (primary)
Screenshot 2024-07-25 at 8.25.53 AM.png
Under ZwaveJS, this entry appears to be missing.
Screenshot 2024-07-25 at 8.26.51 AM.png
From the Entities page:
battery_power.level=1
battery_power.since=1721910337433
binary_sensor.state=false
humidity_sensor.units="%"
humidity_sensor.value=46
light_sensor.units="Lux"
light_sensor.value=5
tamper.state=false
temperature_sensor.units="°F"
temperature_sensor.value=73.8
x_debug.dt={}
x_zwave_values.Basic_currentValue=0
x_zwave_values.Battery_isLow=false
x_zwave_values.Battery_level=100
x_zwave_values.Binary_Sensor_Any=false
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_1_Battery_1=1
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_1_Humidity_64=1
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_1_Luminance_128=1
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_1_Temperature_32=1
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_1_Ultraviolet_16=1
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_2_Battery_1=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_2_Humidity_64=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_2_Luminance_128=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_2_Temperature_32=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_2_Ultraviolet_16=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_3_Battery_1=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_3_Humidity_64=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_3_Luminance_128=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_3_Temperature_32=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Report_Group_3_Ultraviolet_16=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Reporting_Interval_Group_1=3600
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Reporting_Interval_Group_2=3600
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Reporting_Interval_Group_3=3600
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Automatic_Temperature_Reporting_Unit=2
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Battery_Level_Threshold=10
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Current_Power_Mode_65280=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Humidity_Above_Lower_Limit_32=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Humidity_Below_Lower_Limit_2=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Humidity_Change_Threshold=10
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Humidity_Recover_Limit=5
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Humidity_Sensor_Calibration=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_LED_Blinking=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Lighting_Recover_Limit=10
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Lock_Configuration=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Low_Battery_Threshold=20
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Low_Temperature_Alarm_15_C=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Lower_Humidity_Limit=50
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Lower_Lighting_Limit=100
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Lower_Temperature_Limit_4294901760=320
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Lower_Temperature_Limit_Unit_3840=2
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Lower_Ultraviolet_Limit=4
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Luminance_Above_Lower_Limit_64=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Luminance_Below_Lower_Limit_4=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Luminance_Change_Threshold=100
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Luminance_Sensor_Calibration=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Motion_Sensor_Report_Type_to_Send=2
x_zwave_values.Configuration_PIR_Sensitivity=3
x_zwave_values.Configuration_PIR_Sensor_Timeout=20
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Recover_Limit_Temperature_Unit_255=2
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Report_Above_Humidity_Threshold_32=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Report_Above_Luminance_Threshold_64=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Report_Above_Temperature_Threshold_16=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Report_Above_Ultraviolet_Threshold_128=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Report_Below_Humidity_Threshold_2=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Report_Below_Luminance_Threshold_4=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Report_Below_Temperature_Threshold_1=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Report_Below_Ultraviolet_Threshold_8=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Reset_Parameters_101_103_to_Default_Values=null
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Reset_Parameters_111_113_to_Default_Values=null
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Reset_to_Factory_Default_Setting=null
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Selective_Reporting=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Sleep_State_255=2
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Temperature_Above_Lower_Limit_16=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Temperature_Below_Lower_Limit_1=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Temperature_Calibration_Offset_65280=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Temperature_Calibration_Unit_255=2
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Temperature_Change_Threshold_4294901760=20
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Temperature_Recover_Limit_65280=20
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Temperature_Threshold_Unit_3840=2
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Ultraviolet_Above_Lower_Limit_128=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Ultraviolet_Below_Lower_Limit_8=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Ultraviolet_Change_Threshold=2
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Ultraviolet_Recover_Limit=2
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Ultraviolet_Sensor_Calibration=0
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Upper_Humidity_Limit=60
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Upper_Lighting_Limit=1000
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Upper_Temperature_Limit_4294901760=824
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Upper_Temperature_Limit_Unit_3840=2
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Upper_Ultraviolet_Limit=8
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Wake_Device_for_10_minutes_After_Power_On=1
x_zwave_values.Configuration_Wake_Up_Timeout=15
x_zwave_values.Manufacturer_Specific_manufacturerId=134
x_zwave_values.Manufacturer_Specific_productId=100
x_zwave_values.Manufacturer_Specific_productType=258
x_zwave_values.Multilevel_Sensor_Air_temperature=73.8
x_zwave_values.Multilevel_Sensor_Humidity=46
x_zwave_values.Multilevel_Sensor_Illuminance=5
x_zwave_values.Multilevel_Sensor_Ultraviolet=0
x_zwave_values.Notification_Home_Security_Cover_status=0
x_zwave_values.Notification_Home_Security_Motion_sensor_status=0
x_zwave_values.Notification_alarmLevel=0
x_zwave_values.Notification_alarmType=0
x_zwave_values.Version_firmwareVersions=["1.17"]
x_zwave_values.Version_hardwareVersion=100
x_zwave_values.Version_libraryType=3
x_zwave_values.Version_protocolVersion="4.54"
x_zwave_values.Wake_Up_controllerNodeId=1
x_zwave_values.Wake_Up_wakeUpInterval=3600
zwave_device.capabilities=[32,48,49,112,113,114,128,132,134]
zwave_device.endpoint=0
zwave_device.failed=false
zwave_device.generic_class="Multilevel Sensor"
zwave_device.impl_sig="23326:1:22315:1"
zwave_device.is_beaming=false
zwave_device.is_listening=true
zwave_device.is_routing=true
zwave_device.is_secure=false
zwave_device.manufacturer_info=[134,258,100]
zwave_device.max_data_rate=null
zwave_device.node_id=53
zwave_device.specific_class="Routing Multilevel Sensor"
zwave_device.status=4
zwave_device.status_text="alive"
zwave_device.version_info=[null,"1.17"]
zwave_device.wakeup_interval=3600
I'm running:
Reactor latest-24190-bd310acc, Bare-metal on Fedora
WaveJSController [0.1.23326]
Home Assistant: 2024.7.0
I'm fetching certain data five past every hour, but I would like to do it closer to the hour, e.g. 1 or 2 past (but not at the hour).
I experimented with the following rule that almost works (triggers also at the hour which is not the intention). Any advice for a solution?
It would be nice to have an ability to bookmark a direct link to a dashboard item. In my case I would use this feature to access a virtual switch directly.
Hi @toggledbits
Would you please consider adding an extra sublevel in the rulesets?
I have grouped my rules in rooms/ areas. This works great for me, but I would also like to group rules for the same functionality (in a room). This would make the rules easier to find and name.
Please let me know if this is an option. Thanks!
@togglebits I am curious as to why the tilt_sensor.state (primary) = NULL. I believe it should show true or false. I have to use binary_sensor.state instead in my rules.
Again, not sure if this is related to Reactor/ZwaveJSController implementation or the actual Z-Wave JS UI docker version. I have copied, below, the attributes of the tilt sensor in hopes it can help.
Thanks in advance.
Reactor version 23302
ZWaveJSController version 23254
Z-Wave JS UI version 9.3.0.724519f
zwave-js version 12.2.3
@toggledbits,
I have this device attached to my system, but use a DSC panel. If you need testers to move forward, I'm happy to help.
I'm curious what your thinking the use case is for this. I currently have it integrated into HomeAssistant, and it works fine for the most part. The one thing I can't do is bypass zones, which I would like to have the ability to do.
Are you looking at more direct control for the panel, as opposed to having to jump through HA (or another system) first?
Build 21228 has been released. Docker images available from DockerHub as usual, and bare-metal packages here.
Home Assistant up to version 2021.8.6 supported; the online version of the manual will now state the current supported versions; Fix an error in OWMWeatherController that could cause it to stop updating; Unify the approach to entity filtering on all hub interface classes (controllers); this works for device entities only; it may be extended to other entities later; Improve error detail in messages for EzloController during auth phase; Add isRuleSet() and isRuleEnabled() functions to expressions extensions; Implement set action for lock and passage capabilities (makes them more easily scriptable in some cases); Fix a place in the UI where 24-hour time was not being displayed.I have the following ruleset which I though had been working well until this morning when I noticed it's not.
I've put four weather conditions in an in array and one of them is the current weather condition - but the rule is not true. Now the cloud cover percentage is not yet met but this is an or rule so as long as the "Current Conditions" are met then it should go true.
What's the obvious thing I'm missing here? (I've tried spaces/no spaces in the in and no difference.)
Hi,
Running the latest MSR latest-24152-3455578a with the latest HA 2024.6.1. When trying to call a service I get the following in the MSR logs. Is this a version mismatch? I am not seeing anything in the HA logs.
[latest-24152]2024-06-11T10:29:56.162Z <Rule:INFO> rule-Monitor-DHW (rule-lsvq5k3x in Central Heating) started [latest-24152]2024-06-11T10:29:58.625Z <HassController:WARN> HassController#hass unknown service opentherm_gw.set_hot_water_setpoint in x_hass.call_service action on Thermostat#hass>climate_living_room_otgw [latest-24152]2024-06-11T10:29:58.626Z <HassController:INFO> HassController#hass: sending payload for x_hass.call_service on Thermostat#hass>climate_living_room_otgw action: [Object]{ "type": "call_service", "service_data": { "gateway_id": "living_room_otgw", "temperature": 65 }, "domain": "opentherm_gw", "service": "set_hot_water_setpoint", "target": { "entity_id": "climate.living_room_otgw" } } [latest-24152]2024-06-11T10:29:58.627Z <HassController:ERR> HassController#hass request 1718101798626<6/11/2024, 12:29:58 PM> (call_service) failed: [Object]{ "id": 1718101798626, "type": "result", "success": false, "error": { "code": "invalid_format", "message": "extra keys not allowed @ data['entity_id']" } } [latest-24152]2024-06-11T10:29:58.627Z <HassController:WARN> HassController#hass action x_hass.call_service([Object]{ "service": "opentherm_gw.set_hot_water_setpoint", "data": "{ \"gateway_id\": \"living_room_otgw\", \"temperature\": 65 }" }) on Thermostat#hass>climate_living_room_otgw failed!Cheers Rene
Some background
I'm trying to integrate a Zigbee device into the MSR using zigbee2mqtt bridge and MQTTController. The device in question is a cheap mood light that has following properties that I'd like to control:
I'v already managed to get the switch part working and can toggle the light on/off. Also the brightness value is mapped back to MSR. In zigbee2mqtt it has a value range from 0 to 254, so this the reason for the expression:
expr: 'payload.brightness / 254'Here's the entity definition (don't know whether the type should be something else than the Switch)
zigbee-lidl-mood-light: name: 'Lidl Mood Light' friendly_name: 'Mood Light' type: Switch uses_template: lidl-moodlightAnd the corresponding template (NOTE: rgb_color has not been defined in this example):
lidl-moodlight: init: "zigbee2mqtt/%friendly_name%/get/state" query: "zigbee2mqtt/%friendly_name%/get/state" capabilities: - power_switch - toggle - dimming primary_attribute: power_switch.state events: "zigbee2mqtt/%friendly_name%": "power_switch.state": json_payload: true expr: 'upper(payload.state) == "ON"' "dimming.level": json_payload: true expr: 'payload.brightness / 254' actions: power_switch: "on": topic: "zigbee2mqtt/%friendly_name%/set/state" payload: 'ON' "off": topic: "zigbee2mqtt/%friendly_name%/set/state" payload: 'OFF' set: topic: "zigbee2mqtt/%friendly_name%/set/state" payload: expr: "parameters.state ? 'ON' : 'OFF'" type: raw toggle: topic: "zigbee2mqtt/%friendly_name%/set/state" payload: 'TOGGLE'The problem
In order to control the brightness or the RGB color values, I would have send a JSON payload in corresponding actions. But I have no idea how to define it in the template. The reason why the switch part is working is that the zigbee2mqtt accepts also plain ON / OFF / TOGGLE string payloads in that case.
But the brightness should be controlled with the following payload:
{"brightness": 196}And the RGB color like:
{"color":{"rgb":"46,102,150"}}Here's the link for the documentation (the Exposes part defines the messages).
So how should I define the JSON payload for example for the dimming action? It definitely should be some sort of expressions since I have to map the MSR real value (0...1) to (0...254) for the zigbee2mqtt.
actions: dimming: set: topic: "zigbee2mqtt/%friendly_name%/set" payload: expr: ????? type: jsonAnother problem is the RGB value. I could use the rgb_color capability for the setting but the problem is that the zigbee2mqtt only reports the current color in hue/saturation or xy coordinates.
Here's an example of published message after setting the color:
Topic: zigbee2mqtt/Mood Light QoS: 0 { "brightness":254, "color":{ "hue":240, "saturation":100, "x":0.1355, "y":0.0399 }, "color_mode":"xy", "color_temp":574, "linkquality":96, "state":"ON" }I would have to map those values back to RGB, but is it even possible with existing constructs in MQTTController's templates?
Help would be appreciated @toggledbits
br,
mgvra
That's probably more appropriate to post on Mantis for @toggledbits, but since I know there's at least @Crille publishing templates, my intent with this post is to open a broader discussion.
Long story short: I'm starting to slowly add new template for Shelly Plus and I noticed I'll end up with a dozen more templates, all similar but simply different in trivial details, all sharing a large amount of code and all needing special cares when fixing bugs/adding features (as the latest wifi_status addition).
So, I'm wondering if it's time to start thinking of some sort of inheritance in templates, where I could just create a generic shelly_gen1 and use it as a base for shelly_relay, and this be used as the base for shelly_relay_power and so on.
I could probably achieve this with some sort of scripting on my side to generate templates via code, but maybe there's a better way of doing this, or it's already on the radar.
I need a handful of victims volunteers to help test previews of the next build of Reactor. A long-standing request was for "a simple login mechanism," but in practice, adding user authentication and competent access control turned out to be a pretty big project with a lot of big changes on both server and client sides. It's a bit more than I'm comfortable testing myself and springing out to everyone at once, so I'd like to work with a small group to put it through "sea trials."
Major changes/features include:
User authentication with hashed password storage; User group configuration with application restriction (admin, dashboard, API); Detailed control over API access, with user- and token-based authentication/authorization; Improvements to the HTTPS service; Improvements to UI coordination with the core for Rules and Reactions.If this sounds like something you'd like to help with, drop me a reply here in this thread or privately.
[Solution: Reactor 24115 is not compatible with MQTTController > 24120]
Reactor latest-24115 bare metal.
All MQTT entities stop working after updating MQTTController to 24142, downgrade to 24120 and they are back. Templates and configured entities has not been changed between versions.
I'm not sure if uses_template should be replaced by ìnclude in entity configuration in reactor.yaml but I guess not, I've tried it and it did not do any difference.
I have not tried to update Reactor to userauth version.
Example entity in reactor.yaml that uses MQTTController included template:
entities: "takflakt_kallare": name: "Takfläkt källare" topic: "Källartemp" unit: "" uses_template: tasmota_generic_relay init: "cmnd/%topic%/POWER%unit%"Any hints? Do you need more info, please let me know.
Log from startup:
I'm slowly migrating all my stuff to MQTT under MSR, so I have a central place to integrate everything (and, in a not-so-distant future, to remove virtual devices from my Vera and leave it running zwave only).
Anyway, here's my reactor-mqtt-contrib package:
![](https://github.com/fluidicon.png)
Contrib MQTT templates for Reactor. Contribute to dbochicchio/reactor-mqtt-contrib development by creating an account on GitHub.
Simply download yaml files (everything or just the ones you need) and you're good to go.
I have mapped my most useful devices, but I'll add others soon. Feel free to ask for specific templates, since I've worked a lot in the last weeks to understand and operate them.
The templates are supporting both init and query, so you have always up-to-date devices at startup, and the ability to poll them. Online status is supported as well, so you can get disconnected devices with a simple expression.
Many-many thanks to @toggledbits for its dedication, support, and patience with me and my requests 🙂
Is the following config correct?
- id: time_series name: "Out temp" capabilities: temperature_sensor: attributes: value: model: time series entity: "hass>sensor_outdoor_temperature" attribute: "temperature_sensor.value" interval: 5 # minutes retention: 20 # minutes aggregate: wma primary_attribute: temperature_sensor.value type: ValueSensorSpecifically, is "depth" directive needed/mandatory here? Reason I'm asking is that I'm not getting a "final" value in MSR, only debug values are shown:
temperature_sensor.units=null temperature_sensor.value=null x_virtualentity.last_request_time=null x_virtualentity.request_failures=null x_virtualentity.template=null x_virtualentity.timeseries_debug=[{"time":1716537360000,"value":22.1},{"time":1716537660000,"value":22},{"time":1716537960000,"value":22},{"time":1716538260000,"value":21.9},{"time":1716538560000,"value":22}]Good morning,
I apologize if this subject has been covered. I did try the search, but I'm not coming up with any topics on my issue.
I'm running userauth-24137-57b41335, bare metal installation on Fedora 39 Server.
I have a rule set up to turn the Eco mode off on my Nest Thermostat when the thermostat is set to Away (Rule State: Away Mode), the user (Driver) presence in my car changes to true, and the destination is set to home.
93804f7c-62d6-42c0-ae04-ff602011a6fd-image.png
This works fine for most days, where I'm headed home from work (commute is about 45 minutes). What I don't want it to do is set change it to Eco mode if my ETA is more than an hour.
There is a sensor/entity for Time to Arrival when the Destination is set. What it appears to provide is the Time OF arrival/ETA, not time until arrival. If it was Time until Arrival, and it was a numeric value, I could simply test if the value is less than 60 and be done with it.
I pulled up the history through Home Assistant for my morning commute and this appears to be what it is providing.
c2a32739-c84f-4a05-95d9-73793ed818f5-image.png
So what I need to do is to do a calculation of the the ETA from the sensor value and subtract the current time, and get a value in minutes that I can determine if it's less than 60.
I believe I can do this with the local expression, but I don't see anything for the system time, or local time. Also, do the local expressions update themselves if the sensors do?
Good morning,
I'm running userauth-24137-57b41335 on Fedora 39, bare metal installation.
ZWaveJSController 0.1.23254
Home Assistant:
Core, 2024.5.3 Supervisor, 2024.05.1 Operating System, 12.3 Frontend, 20240501.1I'm trying to troubleshoot a Dynamic Group Controller and notification alert that I've set up for low battery level.
In my Reactor.config, I have the following lines:
name: "Dynamic Group Controller" implementation: DynamicGroupController config: groups: "zwavejs_dead": select: - include_group: "zwavejs" filter_expression: "entity?.attributes?.zwave_device?.status == 3" group_actions: true "low_battery": select: - include_capability: battery_power filter_expression: > entity.attributes.battery_power.level < 0.35The idea here is that I should only have members of this group that have a battery level below 35%. When I go into Entities, I show a whole slew of devices, none of which have a battery level below the threshold.
a77e445b-ab78-4752-a624-3c4117f34f90-image.png
I also tried setting up a rule to generate a push notification once a day, but with all of the group members, I've had to disable the rule. I believe I have it set up correctly, but I'm not 100% sure. I want the notification to tell me the battery level for that device as well.
289b4f68-03ba-49c0-8275-f0f197d13a3a-image.png
ce24a76e-6865-40bd-bd85-632e54d315a8-image.png dc837424-deb5-4ef7-8f0d-3676f1769535-image.png
Can anyone point to me what I may have misconfigured to get these results?
I should also note I'm only interested in ZWaveJS devices. It's showing me battery status for my iPad and car as well, which I don't need it to send me.
[SOLVED] Random ghosting of lights when Away
-
When using Vera I made use of Deus Ex Machina II after Patrick took it over. Worked brilliantly for ghosting lights on and off when I was away.
Now that my devices are migrated to Hubitat I can't make use of DEMII.
Any thoughts on how to replicate this randomness with two or three lights in MSR?
Solved here: https://smarthome.community/post/8204
-
Pretty easy to do with lights to be controlled in an array and a couple of rules to figure out (a) when to be enabled, (b) toggle a randomly-selected light from the array and delay a random time; (c) figure out when transitioning from enabled to disabled and turn off all the lights in the array. That's basically the guts of DEMII.
-
@toggledbits Here's a prototype for "Reactor Ex Machina"...
Lights to be cycled are placed in a global expression like this:
This is the "Cycler". It triggers when a variable it owns called
cycler_stim
changes (and is non-zero, which is the resting/deactivated state value).When the cycler is "stimulated", it picks a random device from
REM_lights
and toggles it. Then it goes into a random delay between 10 and 30 minutes, after which it incrementscycler_stim
, effectively stimulating itself (for lack of a better description) and the cycle begins again.This is the "activate" rule. It determines when light cycling should start. It just sets
cycler_stim
to 1, and the Cycler will automatically start going.This is the "deactivate" rule; it determines when cycling should stop. Depending on the complexity of your activate/deactivate rules, you could also do this in the reset reaction of Activate. It sets
cycler_stim
to 0 and turns off all the controlled lights. -
@librasun This is good to know - I tend to try and keep as much as possible within MSR. Yes, it makes it a SPOF, but it's also better than chasing down troubleshooting in multiple places.
That being said... I do have some things like TV on/off, Night mode on, that are convenience things that ultimately drive back to the root HA system running from within Alexa devices.
-
@toggledbits Going to ask a really dumb question: how do I create a variable to use in
Set Variable
? -
@gwp1 said in Random ghosting of lights when Away:
@toggledbits Going to ask a really dumb question: how do I create a variable to use in
Set Variable
?In MSR, you have two choices. #1 - Create a new Global Expression under (you guessed it) "Global Expressions" on the left-hand menu. #2 - Within any Rule, scroll down to the bottom and click to expand the Expressions pane; there, you can click
[+Add Expression]
. Just type its name (variable names are case-sensitive!), then tab or click into its definition window to begin creating an expression. -
@toggledbits some quick questions about the new
performAction ( )
construct you've just presented:- Will there be a "Builder" button to help create these expressions in the same way
getEntity
currently does? - Is the semicolon
;
a one-for-one alternative to comma,
as a separator in multi-part expressions? or only when used as a terminator foreach
blocks? - Why did you elect to place that
[Set Variable]
sequence inside a separate rule's Set Reaction, rather than have it inside the Reset Reaction of "Active Period". - Any documentation available at this stage for
performAction ( )
showing what the optional{ }
parameters can do?
This is clearly powerful mojo you've just unleashed. And your implementation example takes us into
while
/do
territory without explicitly introducing alabel
/loop
orrepeat
element.(But your example does have me wondering whether "Condition Options" for Triggers and Group Constraints should offer "Randomize" drop-downs in "Pulse" for Output Control?)
e.g. output goes true for [fixed/random] __ (to __) seconds [once/repeat] after [fixed/random] __ (to __) seconds, up to __ times
Thoughts?
- Will there be a "Builder" button to help create these expressions in the same way
-
- This is a tough one; which is to say, I'm developing a tough stance around the expressions in general. I'm more likely to remove the existing builder for 1.0. Expressions are an advanced user feature, and putting training wheels around what is really two simple core concepts that are foundational for an MSR user to understand in the system (i.e. how to identify a device and how to pick an attribute from it) isn't helpful in my view. In fact, your earlier suggestion of a full point-and-click expression builder actually set off alarm bells in my head and has pretty much cemented for me where expressions live in this ecosystem. As/if MSR is used by more people, I will be looking at how expressions are used and why, and trying to find ways to address those needs with conditions and actions instead, so that the need for expressions is reduced to the minimum (i.e. make more powerful tools available in the simpler interface, rather than growing the power of the most complex interface). I'm also not afraid to decide that not every automation problem needs an MSR solution. At least for version 1.0, I'm feeling just at or slightly over the limit of what I'm willing to do with expressions until I get more users and more perspective.
- Semicolon and comma are treated the same in lexpjs.
- Which one?
- Yes. Start at the "Manual" link in the left nav, go to Creating Automations, then Expressions.
-
@toggledbits said in Random ghosting of lights when Away:
Which one?
I was referring to the placement of the "Reset to 0" action inside of a "Deactivate" rule (see https://smarthome.community/post/7946) rather than just resetting the variable in the Reset reaction of "Active Period" (since I believe, perhaps wrongly?, that the same thing would be accomplished either way).
As for the "Builder", it was just my natural response to an inner dialogue I had upon first seeing
performAction ()
... namely, "How will I ever remember the function 'performAction'?" and "How am I going to keep its syntax straight between uses?" and "What are the myriad valid actions it can perform on a given device?"Such a powerful tool! But chances are, without a Builder, I just would avoid it entirely because I can't keep all that in my mind. Just like I currently use the "Expression Builder" of Reactor for Luup and its counterpart in MSR every single time.
-
@librasun As I said, it depends on the complexity of your activation and deactivation. I made them separate because I think that's a more general approach -- not all "not activate" means "deactivate". But for sure, it can be done just in Activate if that is implied.
@librasun said in Random ghosting of lights when Away:
As for the "Builder", it was just my natural response to an inner dialogue I had upon first seeing performAction ()... namely, "How will I ever remember the function 'performAction'?" and "How am I going to keep its syntax straight between uses?" and "What are the myriad valid actions it can perform on a given device?"
Such a powerful tool! But chances are, without a Builder, I just would avoid it entirely because I can't keep all that in my mind. Just like I currently use the "Expression Builder" of Reactor for Luup and its counterpart in MSR every single time.If everybody thought like this, none of us would be here because nobody would use any API and none of these tools or systems would exist. I do not expect users to get through using expressions at all without referring to the documentation from time to time. The R4V "getstate" tool is not an expression builder, it just handles that one function, as does the analogous tool in MSR. But expanding on that seems folly to me, and the more expansive, the more folly. It's anathema to the complexity of the feature (expressions), IMO.
-
@toggledbits Agreed. I accept my limitations here, too, just as I have for the past 40 years when attempting to write computer programs. (Ironic, since I taught Applesoft BASIC and LOGO to hundreds of kids in the 1980s.)
For me, composing things like Regex matches, Javascript/Google Apps Script macros, PUT requests, and more generally API calls with code -- even rudimentary Linux commands at the prompt -- means hours of Googling, reading docs, and/or hunting up examples.
So long as we teamwork those MSR docs into something brimming with Pro Tips and Working Examples, I (and 99.9% of users) will be fine. But coming up with Expressions from scratch, on-the-fly with weeks/months between visits to the UI will remain challenging, by design, as you rightly point out.
-
That's another reason I really want to see how they get used and what opportunities are possible to add rule or reaction features to alleviate the need. Those interfaces more or less put the options in front of you -- they are Reactor/MSR's expression builders.
On a related note, anecdote: in the late 90s/early 2Ks, I was a Perl power user, big time. Maybe half of my projects and output were Perl at that time. Then tides shifted and until just a few days ago, I had not touched Perl. But I had a file-handling task that was tailor-made for Perl, so I dove in. What a mess. What would have taken me a half hour 20 years ago took me hours that day, much of it Google-searching. C'est la vie.
-
@toggledbits Given your affinity for logic charts and equivalences, I think it bears asking at this juncture: What can
performAction()
do that a carefully-iterated Set/Reset Action cannot?After all, if a user can already set up a device array, use Expressions to advance its index step-wise, and loop (or call) a Rule (or Reaction) repeatedly based on Conditions... is there a particular use-case where
performAction()
simplifies things or enables something otherwise impossible?Please show me to the door if I've overstayed my welcome on this topic.
-
I'll answer a question with a question: what would the Cycler rule look like without
performAction()
? -
Here's a naive stab at one solution. It uses a single expression to decide which of N "channels" will get toggled on the next cycle.
The rule itself runs so long as the Trigger condition remains
TRUE
. For testing purposes, I have it set to Pulse true for 5 seconds and repeat every 10 seconds, but the 'Repeat' interval would normally be much longer as in your example, above.Since the 'Reset' reaction would normally engage after each Pulse, I included a Group Constraint to check whether my Trigger condition (in this case, the Fireplace light being ON) has gone
FALSE
. Only then will the ghost lights all be turned OFF.The fun part in between happens in the 'Set' reaction, comprising 3 groups (one for each "channel"):
As should be clear here, I was forced to "hard wire" my selection of ghost lights by naming them explicitly within each Reaction. This illustrates just how convenient the new
performAction()
function is, allowing enumeration of an arbitrary (and easily editable) set of ghost lights listed within a single array as with your example.Unquestionably,
performAction()
brings much value to the table for users who strive for compactness, readability and ease of maintenance in their Rules. -
To answer my own question about, "How do you find which Actions a particular device can do using
performAction()
?"The answer is: ENTITIES
Go to the left menu, click Entities, scroll down or filter to find the specific device or class of devices, pick a device and then scroll down to its list of "Actions". There, you will find all possible arguments for
performAction()
, such aspower_switch.off
. Enjoy! -
@toggledbits I know you made a conscious decision that
performAction()
should returnnull
, but would you consider having it return an object of the form:{device: "vera>device_138", action: "power_switch.off", parameters: {<parameters>}, time: 1620912239172}
instead? I'd find this useful in troubleshooting Rules, especially those using enumeration as in the above examples, without having to resort to Log inspection every time.
- Libra