Developing Home Assistant on Windows using the Subsystem for Linux

I love Home Assistant and use it to control my house. I run it on a Pine64 board and it handles everything. However for developing and modifying it I want to have a slightly better environment than nano and a console screen :) So using the Subsystem for Linux I have a Linux based setup to run the hass instance in and can use Visual Studio code to develop the modules as I go, best of both worlds. Continue reading

Using Microsoft Flow with Home Assistant

Now that Microsoft Flow is out of Beta I thought I would play with it and integrate it with Home Assistant running my house. The Microsoft Flow is fairly flexible and has more flow options than IFTTT to make choices. To use this with Home Assistant I am going to use the REST API to make and set a sensor value, you can then take this and make it as complicated as you want. Continue reading

Running Home Assistant on Pine64

This is a dump of me setting up Home Assistant on a Pine64 board I have. I am used to OpenHAB and have created bindings for it so this should be a new challenge and a way to see how well it works. The reason I am heading towards Home Assistant is the components it support fit some of my needs better. Also time to get to know python better :) Continue reading

Enabling MQTT abilities in OpenHab

Using your favorite editor in Linux or something like WinSCP we need to edit some OpenHAB configuration files. If you followed the guides on this site the configuration is located in /etc/openhab. Open up /etc/openhab/configurations/openhab.cfg to edit. If it does not exist you need to copy openhab_defaults.cfg in the same directory to openhab.cfg sudo nano /etc/openhab/configurations/openhab.cfg You need to navigate to the MQTT Transport section for transport settings. Ignore the MQTT Persistence section. Continue reading

Installing OpenHAB

To install and run OpenHab on your Pi I am recommending you use the apt-get approach, these instructions are taken from the OpenHAB Wiki, so it may be more up to date and have additional options. I also contribute to changes in the wiki every now and then so this may get out of date but in general be correct. This page does highlight the addons needed for the guides on my site. Continue reading

Setting up Mosquitto on your Pi as part of the home hub

To enable all your nodes to communicate we are using a protocol called MQTT, on the pi we are using Mosquitto as the broker to support this. The broker allows nodes to publish information or subscribe to get information when it is published. MQTT uses simple channels to dictate where messages go, here are some examples: HOME/Garage/DoorOne/State HOME/Garage/DoorTwo/State HOME/Garage/Temperature The structure of the channel is up to you, just keep it short and logical! Continue reading

Setting up a Pi with a NRF24L01+ Radio

I’m using my PI as the central hub running OpenHAB, a MQTT broker and other services for home automation. On the Pi I am using a NRF24L01+pa+lna SMA Antenna Wireless Transceiver, this provide more range (1000m) from my main unit. All the nodes in the network will be running on Arduino chips and using a Mesh network so the house should have good coverage. First, wiring in the NRF24L01 to the Pi. Continue reading