skyconnect – zigbeee + spiffynasty

/ puters / 28 minutes of reading
– virtual box – stop home ass
– then while stopped open settings and enable usb
— search for devices and add them — restart entire nas

back on – renable home ass ++++
configure zigbee

logo@2x

 

https://www.home-assistant.io/integrations/zha

Zigbee Home Automation

The ZHA (Zigbee Home Automation) integration allows you to connect many off-the-shelf Zigbee based devices directly to Home Assistant, using one of the many available Zigbee coordinators.

ZHA uses an open-source Python library implementing a hardware-independent Zigbee stack called zigpy. All coordinators compatible with zigpy can be used with ZHA.

There is currently support for the following device types within Home Assistant:

  • Alarm Control Panel
  • Binary Sensor
  • Button
  • Climate (beta)
  • Cover
  • Fan
  • Light
  • Lock
  • Number (i.e. analog output)
  • Select
  • Sensor
  • Siren
  • Switch

There is also support for grouping of lights, switches, and fans (i.e. support for commanding device groups as entities). At least two entities must be added to a group before the group entity is created. As well as support for binding/unbinding (i.e. bind a remote to a lightbulb or group).

Introduction

ZHA integration is a Zigbee gateway implementation that follows the standard Zigbee 3.0 specification (and earlier revisions). In Zigbee, there are three different device types: Zigbee Coordinator (ZC), Zigbee Router (ZR), and Zigbee End Device (ZED). A Zigbee network always has one (and no more) Zigbee Coordinator, however, a Zigbee network can have multiple Zigbee Routers and multiple Zigbee End Devices.

A Zigbee Coordinator is the central device in a Zigbee network that manages and controls the network. It acts as a physical interface for the Zigbee wireless protocol, as well as being responsible for maintaining the Zigbee network topology and ensuring secure and efficient communication between Zigbee devices. Zigbee Router devices are mains-powered and will act as Zigbee signal repeaters within the Zigbee network mesh to extend its range and improve coverage, while Zigbee End Device devices are usually battery-operated sensors that will not act as Zigbee signal repeaters.

In the case of ZHA, the Zigbee Coordinator is a radio adapter or hardware module, that contains a microcontroller that runs the Zigbee protocol stack which the ZHA integration uses to manage and communicate with a Zigbee network and its devices.

Before installing the ZHA integration, you will need to buy and connect a Zigbee Coordinator radio adapter or hardware module, those usually come in the form of a USB dongle that plugs directly into the computer that is running the Home Assistant installation. The ZHA integration can work with many different “Zigbee Coordinator” adapters, however, be sure to read the respective sections below about compatible Zigbee radio adapters and hardware modules.

Once ZHA has been set up and the Zigbee Coordinator radio adapter or module is configured, you will be able to directly join/pair any Zigbee device to the Zigbee network; regardless of the manufacturer and brand of that Zigbee-based product. Note, that while it is generally recommended to buy Zigbee 3.0 compliant devices as those should, in theory, offer greater interoperability, be sure of the sections about which devices are supported and exception handling.

Compatible hardware

ZHA integration uses a hardware independent Zigbee stack implementation with modular design, which means that it can support any one of the many Zigbee coordinator radio modules/adapters available from different manufacturers, as long as that module/adapter is compatible with zigpy.

Note! Zigbee 3.0 support or not in zigpy, depends primarily on your Zigbee coordinator hardware and its firmware. Some Zigbee coordinator hardware supports Zigbee 3.0 but might be shipped with an older firmware which does not. In such a case you may want to upgrade the firmware manually yourself.

Some other Zigbee coordinator hardware may not support a firmware that is capable of Zigbee 3.0 at all but can still be fully functional and feature-complete for your needs. This is very common as many, if not most, Zigbee devices do not yet Zigbee 3.0. As a general rule, newer Zigbee coordinator hardware generally supports Zigbee 3.0 firmware and it is up to its manufacturer to make such firmware available for them.

KNOWN WORKING ZIGBEE RADIO MODULES

Warning about Wi-Fi-based Zigbee-to-Serial bridges/gateways

The EZSP protocol requires a stable connection to the serial port. With ITEAD Sonoff ZBBridge connecting over the WiFi network it is expected to see NCP entered failed state. Requesting APP controller restart in the logs. This is a normal part of the operation and indicates there was a drop in communication between ZHA and Sonoff bridge.

Configuration – GUI

Connect your radio module and restart Home Assistant.

From the Home Assistant front page go to Configuration and then select Integrations from the list.

Use the plus button in the bottom right to add a new integration called ZHA.

In the popup:

  • Serial Device Path – List of detected serial ports on the system. You need to pick one to which your radio is connected
  • Submit

Press Submit and the integration will try to detect radio type automatically. If unsuccessful, you will get a new pop-up asking for a radio type. In the pop-up:

  • Radio Type
Radio TypeZigbee Radio Hardware
ezspSilicon Labs EmberZNet protocol (e.g., Home Assistant SkyConnect, Elelabs, HUSBZB-1, Telegesis)
deconzdresden elektronik deCONZ protocol (e.g., ConBee I/II, RaspBee I/II)
znpTexas Instruments (e.g., CC253x, CC26x2, CC13x2)
zigateZiGate Serial protocol (e.g., ZiGate USB-TTL, PiZiGate, ZiGate WiFi)
xbeeDigi XBee ZB Coordinator Firmware protocol (e.g., Digi XBee Series 2, 2C, 3)
  • Submit

Press Submit to save radio type and you will get a new form asking for port settings specific for this radio type. In the pop-up:

  • Serial device path
  • port speed (not applicable for all radios)
  • data flow control (not applicable for all radios)

Most devices need at the very least the serial device path, like /dev/ttyUSB0, but it is recommended to use device path from /dev/serial/by-id folder, e.g., /dev/serial/by-id/usb-Silicon_Labs_HubZ_Smart_Home_Controller_C0F003D3-if01-port0 A list of available device paths can be found in Settings > System > Hardware > dot menu > All Hardware.

Press Submit. The success dialog will appear or an error will be displayed in the popup. An error is likely if Home Assistant can’t access the USB device or your device is not up to date. Refer to Troubleshooting below for more information.

ZIGATE OR SONOFF ZBBRIDGE DEVICES

If you are use ZiGate or Sonoff ZBBridge you have to use some special usb_path configuration:

  • ZiGate USB TTL or DIN: /dev/ttyUSB0 or auto to auto discover the zigate
  • PiZigate : pizigate:/dev/ttyS0
  • Wifi Zigate : socket://[IP]:[PORT] for example socket://192.168.1.10:9999
  • Sonoff ZBBridge : socket://[IP]:[PORT] for example socket://192.168.1.11:8888

DISCOVERY VIA USB OR ZEROCONF

Some devices can be auto-discovered, which can simplify the ZHA setup process. The following devices have been tested with discovery and offer a quick setup experience:

DeviceDiscovery MethodIdentifier
ITead SONOFF Zigbee 3.0 USB Dongle Plus V2 Model “ZBDongle-E” (EFR32MG21 variant)USB1A86:55D4
ITead SONOFF Zigbee 3.0 USB Dongle Plus Model “ZBDongle-P” (CC2652P variant)USB10C4:EA60
Bitron Video/SMaBiT BV AV2010/10USB10C4:8B34
ConBee IIUSB1CF1:0030
Nortek HUSBZB-1USB10C4:8A2A
slae.sh CC2652RB development stickUSB10C4:EA60
ZigStar Stick (CC2652 + CH340B variant)USB1A86:7523
Tube’s EFR32 Pro Ethernet/Serial CoordinatorUSB10C4:EA60
ZigStar CoordinatorsUSB1A86:7523
SMLIGHT SLZB-06 POE Zigbee LAN WiFi USB AdapterZeroconfslzb-06.local.
ZigStar LAN/POE CoordinatorsZeroconfzigstargw.local.
Tube’s CC2652P2 USB-powered Zigbee to Ethernet Serial Coordinator)Zeroconftube_zb_gw_cc2652p2.local.
Tube’s CC2652P2 PoE-powered Zigbee to Ethernet Serial Coordinator)Zeroconftube_zb_gw_cc2652p2_poe.local.
Tube’s EFR32 Based Zigbee to Ethernet Serial Coordinator)Zeroconftube_zb_gw_efr32.local.

Additional devices in the Known working Zigbee radio modules list may be discoverable, however, only devices that have been confirmed discoverable are listed above.

Configuration – YAML

For more advanced configuration, you can modify configuration.yaml and restart Home Assistant

CONFIGURATION VARIABLES

Looking for your configuration file?

database_path string REQUIRED

Full path to the database which will keep persistent network data.

enable_quirks boolean (optional, default: true)

Enable quirks mode for devices where manufacturers didn’t follow specs.

custom_quirks_path string (optional)

Full path to a directory containing custom quirk modules that will take precedence over any built-in quirks matching a device.

OTA FIRMWARE UPDATES

ZHA component has the ability to automatically download and perform OTA (Over-The-Air) firmware updates of Zigbee devices if the OTA firmware provider source URL for updates is available. OTA firmware updating is set to disabled (false) in the configuration by default.

Online OTA providers for firmware updates are currently only available for IKEA, LEDVANCE/OSRAM, SALUS/Computime, and INOVELLI devices. Support for OTA updates from other manufacturers could be supported in the future if they publish their firmware images publicly.

To enable OTA firmware updates for the ZHA integration you need to add the following configuration to your configuration.yaml and restart Home Assistant:

zha:
  zigpy_config:
    ota:
      ikea_provider: true                        # Auto update Trådfri devices
      ledvance_provider: true                    # Auto update LEDVANCE/OSRAM devices
      salus_provider: true                       # Auto update SALUS/Computime devices
      inovelli_provider: true                    # Auto update INOVELLI devices
      thirdreality_provider: true                # Auto update 3REALITY devices
      #otau_directory: /path/to/your/ota/folder  # Utilize .ota files to update everything else

YAML

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You can choose if the IKEA, LEDVANCE, SALUS, INOVELLI or THIRDREALITY provider should be set to enabled (true) or disabled (false) individually. After the OTA firmware upgrades are finished, you can set these to false again if you do not want ZHA to automatically download and perform OTA firmware upgrades in the future.

Note that the otau_directory setting is optional and can be used for any firmware files you have downloaded yourself, for any device type and manufacturer. For example, Philips Hue firmwares manually downloaded from here and/or here added to the otau_directory can be flashed, although a manual zha.issue_zigbee_cluster_command command currently (as of 2021.3.3) must be issued against the IEEE of the Philips Hue device under Developer Tools->Services, e.g.:

service: zha.issue_zigbee_cluster_command
data:
  ieee: "xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx"
  endpoint_id: 1
  cluster_id: 25
  cluster_type: out
  command: 0
  command_type: client
  args:
    - 0
    - 100

YAML

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Note: cluster_id: 25 may also be cluster_id: 0x0019. The two are synonymous.

DEFINING ZIGBEE CHANNEL TO USE

ZHA prefers to use Zigbee channel 15 by default. You can change this using YAML configuration, but this only works if there’s no existing network. To change the channel for an existing network, radio has to be factory reset and a new network to be formed. This requires re-pairing of all the devices.

zha:
  zigpy_config:
    network:
      channel: 15             # What channel the radio should try to use.
      channels: [15, 20, 25]  # Channel mask

YAML

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This is a good reference for channel selection for Zigbee and WiFi coexistance.

The Zigbee specification standards divide the 2.4Ghz ISM radio band into 16 Zigbee channels (i.e. distinct radio frequencies for Zigbee). For all Zigbee devices to be able to communicate, they must support the same Zigbee channel (i.e. Zigbee radio frequency) that is set on the Zigbee Coordinator as the channel to use for its Zigbee network. Not all Zigbee devices support all Zigbee channels, it will usually depend on the hardware and firmware age as well as devices power ratings.

The general recommendation is to only use channels 15, 20, or 25 in order to avoid interoperability problems with Zigbee devices that are limited to only being compatible with the ZLL (Zigbee Light Link) channels as well as lessen the chance of Wi-Fi networks interfering too much with the Zigbee network. Note that especially using Zigbee channels 11, 24, 25, or 26 on your Zigbee Coordinator could mean it will probably not be accessible to older devices as those Zigbee channels are commonly only supported by relatively modern Zigbee hardware devices with newer Zigbee firmware.

Regardless, note that the best practice recommendation is, however, not to change the Zigbee channel from default as not all Zigbee devices support all channels. If you have issues with overlapping frequencies, then it will generally be a better idea to just change Wi-Fi channels on your Wi-Fi Router or all your Wi-Fi Access Points instead.

MODIFYING THE DEVICE TYPE

As not all device manufacturers follow the Zigbee standard, at times a device can be incorrectly classified. For example, a switch could be classified as a light.

To correct the device type, also called domain, add the following to your configuration.yaml and restart Home Assistant:

zha:
  device_config:
    84:71:27:ff:fe:93:17:24-1:    # format: {ieee}-{endpoint_id}
      type: "switch"              # corrected device type

YAML

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{ieee} is the device hardware address which can be read from the Home Assistant UI when looking at Device info. From device info, you can find the {endpoint_id} by viewing the Zigbee device signature.

Services

SERVICE ZHA.PERMIT

To add new devices to the network, call the permit service on the zha domain. Do this by clicking the Service icon in Developer tools and typing zha.permit in the Service dropdown box. Next, follow the device instructions for adding, scanning or factory reset.

This service opens network for joining new devices.

DataOptionalDescription
durationyesFor how long to allow new devices to join, default 60s
ieeeyesallow new devices to join via an existing device

To join a new device using an install code (ZB3 devices) use the following data attributes (must use parameters only from the same group:

DataParameter GroupDescription
src_ieeeinstall_codeThe IEEE address of the joining ZB3 device. Use with install_code
install_codeinstall_codeInstall Code of the joining device. Use with src_ieee
qr_codeqr_codeQR code containing IEEE and Install Code of the joining ZB3 device

Currently qr_code supports QR Install Codes from:

  • Aqara
  • Consciot
  • Embrighten

SERVICE ZHA.REMOVE

This service removes an existing device from the network. You can find the IEEE address of the device on the device card of Zigbee devices. An example of an IEEE address data parameter format is 00:0d::6f:00:05:7d:2d:34.

DataOptionalDescription
ieeenoIEEE address of the device to remove

SERVICE ZHA.SET_LOCK_USER_CODE

This service sets a lock code on a Zigbee lock.

DataOptionalDescription
code_slotnoWhich lock code slot to store the code. Ex. 1-32 will work for Kwikset 954
user_codenoCode to set on the lock. Ex. Kwikset accepts numbers 4-8 digits in length

SERVICE ZHA.CLEAR_LOCK_USER_CODE

This service clears a lock code from a Zigbee lock.

DataOptionalDescription
code_slotnoWhich lock code slot to clear

SERVICE ZHA.ENABLE_LOCK_USER_CODE

This service enables a lock code on a Zigbee lock.

DataOptionalDescription
code_slotnoWhich lock code slot to enable

SERVICE ZHA.DISABLE_LOCK_USER_CODE

This service disables a lock code on a Zigbee lock.

DataOptionalDescription
code_slotnoWhich lock code slot to disable

Adding devices

To add a new device:

  1. Go to the Integrations panel, find the Zigbee Home Automation integration that was added by the configuration steps above, and select Configure.
  2. Click on the plus button at the bottom right corner to start a scan for new devices.
  3. Reset your Zigbee devices according to the device instructions provided by the manufacturer (e.g., turn on/off lights up to 10 times, switches usually have a reset button/pin). It might take a few seconds for the devices to appear. You can click on Show logs for more verbose output.
  4. Once the device is found, it will appear on that page and will be automatically added to your devices. You can optionally change its name and add it to an area (you can change this later). You can search again to add another device, or you can go back to the list of added devices.

BEST PRACTICES TO AVOID PAIRING/CONNECTION DIFFICULTIES

Verify that you try to follow recommended best practices to avoid pairing and/or connection issues:

  • If possible try to pair your Zigbee devices in their intended final location, (and not pair it next to the Zigbee coordinator and then need to move it after).

    • Pairing a Zigbee device next to the Zigbee coordinator and then moving it later can result in dropped/lost connections or other issues.

      • If the device you want to add is not brand new and as such never paired before then you always have to make sure to first manually reset the device to its factory default settings before you will be able to add/pair it.

  • Some battery-operated Zigbee devices are known to have problems with pairing if they have Low battery voltage.

    • Some people have reported replacing the battery on their newly received Xiaomi/Aqara devices solved pairing issues.

  • Check that you have enough Zigbee router devices (also known as Zigbee signal repeaters or range extenders) and if you do not have any, invest and add some mains-powered devices that will work as Zigbee routers.

    • Aim to start out with mains-powered devices before adding battery-operated devices as a “weak” Zigbee network mesh (e.g., the device is too far from the Zigbee coordinator or a Zigbee router) may prevent some devices from being paired. Zigbee router devices are also needed to increase the maximum of devices that can be connected to your Zigbee mesh network.
    • Note that some Zigbee devices are not fully compatible with all brands of Zigbee router devices. Xiaomi/Aqara devices are for example known not to work with Zigbee router devices from Centralite, General Electrics, Iris, Ledvance/OSRAM, LIGHTIFY/Sylvania, Orvibo, PEQ, Securifi, and SmartThings/Samsung. Better results can usually be achieved by using mains-powered devices IKEA and Nue/3A Home or dedicated DIY routing devices based on Texas Instruments CC253x/CC26x2 and XBee Series 2/3 Zigbee radios.

  • Be patient as the pairing of some Zigbee devices may require multiple attempts and you may sometimes need to try again and again.

    • Some devices, like example those from Xiaomi/Aqara, are known to not be 100% compliant with the standard Zigbee specifications and may therefore require many paring attempts over 10-20 minutes or longer.

USING ROUTER DEVICES

You use routers to increase the number of Zigbee devices that can be used in a network. The total number of Zigbee devices that you have on a Zigbee network depends on a few things, but you should know that Zigbee coordinator hardware and firmware only plays a larger role in Zigbee networks with a lot of devices. More important is how many directly connected devices (“direct children”) versus how many routers are connected to your Zigbee coordinator. Zigpy library which ZHA uses has an upper limit. This is 32 direct children, but if your Zigbee coordinator hardware is powerful enough then you can still have hundreds of Zigbee devices connected through routers.

Even the least powerful Zigbee coordinator hardware supported by Zigpy is CC2530/2531 and its default firmware, only supports 20 devices connected directly to the coordinator. However, by having routers in your Zigbee network, the mesh network size can be extended. You can assume that most, if not all mains/AC-powered devices, e.g., wall-plugs and always powered-on lightbulbs in your Zigbee network can serve as a router. You can even use CC2530/CC2531 with router firmware, as additional routers (which in their turn have a limit of 21 devices).

An example using the default CC2531 coordinator firmware + two CC2531 routers; Your device limit will be:

  • Coordinator: 15 devices – 2 routers = 13
  • Router one: + 21 devices
  • Router two: + 21 devices
  • Total device limit = 55 devices

BINDING AND UNBINDING

ZHA support for binding and unbinding. Binding is an action in Zigbee which defines relations between two Zigbee devices, specific endpoints, and cluster id. It provides a mechanism for attaching an endpoint on one Zigbee node to one or more endpoints on another Zigbee node or Zigbee group (a group of Zigbee devices).

Binding is a “target destination” in form of a device address or group ID, endpoint, and cluster. For example, binding a Zigbee device like a remote to a Zigbee lightbulb, switch or group of lightbulbs allows direct control of the “target” device (light, switch, shade) from the “remote” Zigbee device, bypassing ZHA. This means that the remote can control the lightbulb/group of lightbulbs even when the Zigbee coordinator is not available. Binding is only supported between the same cluster, for example, “output cluster id 6” (on/off cluster) of a remote, can be only bound to an “input cluster id 6” on the target device – light, switch.

Note that not all devices support binding as it depends on the Zigbee implementation of the device itself. Also, by default ZHA bind remotes to the coordinator, so the coordinator could receive ZCL commands from the remotes and originate zha_events. However, some remotes, for example, the Philips RWL021 can only be bound to a single destination and it is not possible to make this switch to bind to other destinations like a device or groups unless you first unbind the remote from the coordinator. After you unbind the remote from the ZHA coordinator you can then bind it directly to any other Zigbee device or a group.

Binding a remote directly to a bulb or group has the benefit of faster response time and smoother control. This greatly improves user feedback experience functions like dimming as the remote then directly dims the lightbulb and thus does not have to make the software roundtrip via the ZHA coordinator.

Zigbee backup and restore in ZHA

Zigbee Home Automation (ZHA) integration now features Zigbee network backup, restore/recovery, and migrating between Zigbee coordinators. Backups are taken automatically however, a single backup to a file for easy download can also be manually created from the configuration page under Network Settings.

After restoring a Home Assistant backup, you can re-configure ZHA and migrate to a new Zigbee Coordinator adapter without any loss of your settings or devices that were connected. This is helpful if your current radio fails or a new radio adapter type and model comes out that you may want to migrate to.

Within ZHA is possible to use this backup and restore feature to migrate between some different radio types, if the respective radio library supports it. Currently, ZHA supports migrating the Zigbee network between different Zigbee Coordinator adapters based on chips from Silicon Labs, Texas Instruments, or ConBee/RaspBee if the backup was made from inside ZHA.

Troubleshooting

To help resolve any kinks or compatibility problems, report bugs as issues with debug logs. Please note the current limitations and follow the instructions in this troubleshooting section.

LIMITATIONS

Note that ZHA only supports connecting a single dedicated Zigbee Coordinator radio adapter or module with a single Zigbee network and that the Zigbee Coordinator cannot already be connected or used by any other application. Any devices that are or have previously been connected to another Zigbee implementation will also need to first be reset to their factory default settings before they can be paired/joined to ZHA, please see each device manufacturer’s documentation.

ZHA does currently not support devices that can only use the ZGP (“Zigbee Green Power”) profile which is used in a few batteryless self-powered or energy harvesting devices, (such as for example; Philips Hue Click, Philips Hue Tap, and some “Friends of Hue” partnership switches).

ZHA does not currently support devices that can only use the ZSE (“Zigbee Smart Energy”) profile, that is however due to the “Zigbee SE” specification not being part of the standard Zigbee 3.0 specification and thus not implemented in most of the Zigbee protocol stacks that are commonly available Zigbee Coordinator radio adapters and modules.

KNOWING WHICH DEVICES ARE SUPPORTED

There is no official compatibility list of supported devices for the simple reason that practically all devices Zigbee Home Automation that are fully compliant with the standards and specifications as set by the Zigbee Alliance should technically be compatible with this ZHA integration. The fact remains, however, that some hardware manufacturers do not always fully comply with each set specification, which can cause a few devices to only partially work or not work at all with ZHA, but developers can create workarounds for such issues via a solution for ‘ZHA exception and deviation handling’ that this implementation features. See that section for more information.

Tip to new users is that, while there is no official list of supported devices, some ZHA users take comfort that blakadder maintains an unofficial Zigbee Device Compatibility Repository which anyone can submit compatibility reports to, it can be found at zigbee.blakadder.com and currently contains independent compatibility lists and device pairing tips for several home automation gateway/bridge/hub software, including but not limited to open source Zigbee implementations such as; ZHA, Tasmota, Zigbee2MQTT, and ZiGate.

ZHA EXCEPTION AND DEVIATION HANDLING

Home Assistant’s ZHA integration already supports most standard device types out-of-the-box as long as they follow the official Zigbee specifications, but for devices that manufacturers have not properly not fully Zigbee compatible, the ZHA integration has implemented a library called “ZHA Device Handlers (also known as “zha-quirk”)” that handle and resolve compliance issues via custom conversion/translation of Zigbee parameters (clusters and attributes) for specific devices which do not conform with the Zigbee standards.

The few devices that will, for example, not join/pair properly or, while joined/paired, do not present all attributes in the ZHA integration likely deviate from the Zigbee specifications set by the CSA (Connectivity Standards Alliance). These devices may therefore require the creation of a bug report by a device owner, supplying debug logs. The device owner may need to actively assist in troubleshooting by providing the information developers need to create custom ZHA Device Handlers.

ZIGBEE INTERFERENCE AVOIDANCE AND NETWORK RANGE/COVERAGE OPTIMIZATION

Sources of interference for radios can lead to transmission/reception loss or connection problems and show symptoms such as errors/failures when sending and receiving Zigbee messages/signals that can cause significant degradation in performance or even prevent devices from communicating at all. Below are some basic but essential tips for getting a good setup starting point to achieve better signal quality, improved coverage, and extended range.

Following all these optimization tips below should significantly improve the reception of your Zigbee radio adapter. The below insights describe working around the well-known limitations of low-power/low-bandwidth 2.4 GHz digital radios. It can that way resolve or avoid many known issues caused by interference or poor placement of your Zigbee radio adapter or devices.

All electric devices/appliances, especially computers and computer peripherals, generate EMI/EMF/RMI (electromagnetic fields that cause electromagnetic interference (often called radio-frequency interference, also commonly called signal noise in layman’s terms), which can interfere with signals transmissions on the 2.4 GHz radio band frequency, and in practice partially degrade or even fully jam the wireless communication messages between your Zigbee adapter/devices.

For example, interference from USB 3.x ports, unshielded USB 3.x devices, and non-shielded USB 3.x peripheral cables are especially infamously known to affect 2.4 GHz radio reception for low-power/low-bandwidth devices. Therefore you should always place your Zigbee adapter far away as possible from any potential sources of EMI/EMI/RMI, preferably by using an adequately long shielded USB extension cable connected to a USB 2.0 port.

Zigbee also uses mesh networking topology, which means that most mains-powered devices are a “Zigbee Router” that can act as a signal repeater and range extended by transmitting data over long distances by passing data messages through the Zigbee network mesh of intermediate devices to reach more distant Zigbee devices. Thus to have a healthy Zigbee network, you need many Zigbee Router devices relatively close to each other in order to achieve good coverage and range.

Actions to optimize Zigbee Coordinator radio hardware

Common root causes of unreliable performance are often seen with outdated Zigbee Coordinator radio adapter hardware, limited by obsolete chips, bad antenna designs, or old/buggy firmware. You can improve most Zigbee setups by using a good Zigbee Coordinator radio adapter and maintaining it.

  • Buy and use a supported Zigbee Coordinator USB adapter based on newer/modern chip hardware.

    • Consider a Zigbee Coordinator USB adapter with an external antenna for more flexibility.

  • Update to a later version of Zigbee Coordinator firmware on the existing radio adapter.

    • Most manufacturers usually provide straightforward guides for updating the firmware.

  • Try different physical placement and orientations of the Zigbee Coordinator and its antenna.

    • Optimal placement of the Zigbee adapter is close to the middle of the house as possible.
    • Try placing Zigbee Coordinator at some distance away from walls, ceilings, and floors.
    • Try different orientations of the Zigbee Coordinator adapter or its antenna.

While using an older Zigbee Coordinator radio adapter hardware might work, using obsolete hardware and/or old firmware can prevent reliable operation. It is also generally a good idea to upgrade Zigbee Coordinator firmware before troubleshooting any further if and when run into problems with devices.

Actions to avoid or workaround EMI/EMF/RMI interference

Since all Zigbee Coordinator radio adapters are very sensitive/susceptible to all types of EMI/EMF/RMI you should always try to optimize the placement of the Zigbee Coordinator and avoid known sources of interference.

  • Use a long USB extension cable and place Zigbee Coordinator away from interference and obstacles.

    • Ensure the USB extension cable is adequately shielded (thicker cables usually have better shielding).
    • Place Zigbee Coordinator away from electrical wires/cables, power supplies, and household appliances.
    • Extension cables also makes it easier to try different orientations of the adapter/antenna.

  • Avoid USB 3.0 ports/computers/peripherals as they are known culprits of RFI/EMI/EMF disruption. (See Ref. 1 and 2).

    • Make sure to only connect the Zigbee USB adapter to a USB 2.0 port (and not to a USB 3.x port).
    • If a computer only has USB 3.x ports then buy and connect Zigbee Coordinator via a powered USB 2.0 hub.

  • Shield any unshielded computers/peripherals/devices by adding all-metal enclosures/chassis/casings.

    • Use shielded USB cables for all external peripherals/devices, especially USB 3.x peripherals.
    • Be aware that metal casings can decrease the performance of an internal/built-in Zigbee Coordinator.

  • Avoid Wi-Fi Routers and Wi-Fi Access Points, alternatively change the Wi-Fi channel or Zigbee channel.

    • Place your Zigbee Coordinator away from any Wi-Fi access points and all other sources of WiFi.
    • Wi-Fi frequency ranges can overlap with Zigbee, see the section above on defining Zigbee channel use.

REPORTING ISSUES

When reporting issues, please provide the following information in addition to information requested by issue template:

  1. Debug logs for the issue, see debug logging
  2. Model of Zigbee radio being used
  3. If issue is related to a specific Zigbee device, provide both “Zigbee Device Signature” and “Diagnostics” information.
  • Both the “Zigbee Device Signature” and “Diagnostics” information can be found by clicking Settings -> Devices & Services -> Zigbee Home Automation (click Configure) -> Devices (pick your device) -> Click “Zigbee Device Signature” and “Download Diagnostics” respectively.

DEBUG LOGGING

To enable debug logging for ZHA component and radio libraries, add the following logger configuration to configuration.yaml:

logger:
  default: info
  logs:
    homeassistant.core: debug
    homeassistant.components.zha: debug
    bellows.zigbee.application: debug
    bellows.ezsp: debug
    zigpy: debug
    zigpy_deconz.zigbee.application: debug
    zigpy_deconz.api: debug
    zigpy_xbee.zigbee.application: debug
    zigpy_xbee.api: debug
    zigpy_zigate: debug
    zigpy_znp: debug
    zhaquirks: debug

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ADD PHILIPS HUE BULBS THAT HAVE PREVIOUSLY BEEN ADDED TO ANOTHER BRIDGE

Philips Hue bulbs/lights that have previously been paired/added to another bridge/gateway will not show up during search in ZHA to pair/add a Zigbee device. That is because you have to first manually restore your bulbs/lights back to their factory default settings first, and just removing them from your old bridge/gateway is not enough to do so. Instead to achieve a proper device factory reset you can use one of these methods below.

Using a Philips Hue Dimmer Switch or Lutron Connected Bulb Remote is probably the easiest way to factory-reset your bulbs. For this to work, the remote does not have to be paired with your previous bridge. Also, make sure there are no other Hue bulbs nearby that have just been turned on when using this method as you otherwise risk resetting them too.

Philips Hue Dimmer Switch

  1. Turn on your Hue bulb/light you want to reset. (It is important that the bulb has just been turned).
  2. Hold the Philips Hue Dimmer Switch near your bulb (closer than 10 centimeters / 4 inches).
  3. Press and hold the (I)/(ON) and (O)/(OFF) buttons on the Philips Hue Dimmer Switch. The bulb should start blinking in 10-20 seconds. The bulb will blink, then turn off, then turn on. You can now release the dimmer buttons.
  4. Your bulb is now factor reset and ready for pairing. A green light on the top left of the dimmer remote indicates that your bulb has been successfully reset to factory default settings.

Note: If you are unable to reset the bulb, remove it from the Hue Bridge and retry the procedure.

Lutron Connected Bulb Remote

  1. Turn on your Hue bulb/light you want to reset. (It is important that the bulb has just been turned).
  2. Hold the Dimmer Switch near your bulb (closer than 10 centimeters / 4 inches)
  3. Press and hold the 2nd (up arrow) and 4th (light off) buttons on the Lutron Connected Bulb Remote simultaneously for about 10 seconds continuously until your bulb starts to blink and the green LED on the remote should also start blink slowly.
  4. Continue to hold both buttons on the remote until the green LED on it stops blinking. Your bulb should also have stopped blinking and eventually turn on again indicating that your bulb has been successfully reset to factory default settings.

hue-thief

Follow the instructions on https://github.com/vanviegen/hue-thief/ (EZSP-based Zigbee USB stick required)

ZHA START UP ISSUE WITH HOME ASSISTANT OR HOME ASSISTANT CONTAINER

On Linux hosts ZHA can fail to start during HA startup or restarts because the Zigbee USB device is being claimed by the host’s modemmanager service. To fix this disable the modemmanager on the host system.

To remove modemmanager from a Debian/Ubuntu host run this command:

sudo apt-get purge modemmanager

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CAN’T CONNECT TO USB DEVICE AND USING DOCKER

If you are using Docker and can’t connect, you most likely need to forward your device from the host machine to the Docker instance. This can be achieved by adding the device mapping to the end of the startup string or ideally using Docker compose.

Docker Compose

Install Docker-Compose for your platform (Linux – sudo apt-get install docker-compose).

Create a docker-compose.yml with the following data:

version: '2'
services:
  homeassistant:
    # customizable name
    container_name: home-assistant

    # must be image for your platform, this is the rpi3 variant
    image: homeassistant/raspberrypi3-homeassistant
    volumes:
      - <DIRECTORY HOLDING HOME ASSISTANT CONFIG FILES>:/config
      - /etc/localtime:/etc/localtime:ro
    devices:
      # your usb device forwarding to the docker image
      - /dev/ttyUSB0:/dev/ttyUSB0
    restart: always
    network_mode: host

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