Home Assistant automatic device discovery over MQTT

[gadget-monk]

Is there a way to get automatic device discovery to work with MQTT and Home Assistant? Currently I have to edit the configuration.yaml and manually add each switch and sensor. However, Home Assistant can read a specifically formatted device discovery message sent to the "homeassistant" topic. I tried to edit the MQTTAlt.json in njspc to get it to send auto discovery messages, but it was a challenge to set it up - the message payload needs to be a JSON payload and I can't seem to get it to work.

[rstrouse]

The best way to do this is simply ask njsPC for its current configuration. Simply send http://ipaddress/state/all and it will give you everything. MQTT is endpoint driven so you have to get every leaf one at a time. This is what the Vera integration does then simply opens a socket to update its data. The performance difference is dramatic and no brokers are involved in the comms.

[gadget-monk]

Unfortunately home assistant is picky in the format it needs for the discovery messages. As an example, discovering a new senor (like air temp sensor) requires the following:

Topic: homeassistant/sensor/easytouch2-8//config
message payload:
"{
"name": "Air Temp",
"state_topic": "easytouch2-8/state/temps/air",
"value_template": "{{ value_json.temp }}",
"device_class": "temperature"
}"

I was hoping to use the built in MQTT functionality in njspc to emit these discovery messages on a different topic (in addition to the actual state related messages).

[rstrouse]

I am sure that this could be crafted. You do know that you can subscribe to any topic you like in njsPC and publish to any topic from there. So if HASS were to ask for up to date info by publishing to a topic of your choice, njsPC could publish those topics to a topic of your choice. It would require some scripting in the json bindings but you can see an example of subscriptions in the aqualinkD.json file.

[gadget-monk]

Thanks! I am going through the aqualinkD.json file - question, why are some blocks with a topic and processor, while others are topic and message?
Any tips to help me get started using the example message above?

[rstrouse]

If you pull njsPC and dashPanel I improved the ability to add custom interfaces to njsPC. This should allow you to do what you want.

After you pull the repos do these following steps.
Step 1:
Copy the the following json to a file named homeAssistant.json

{
  "context": {
    "name": "Home Assistant",
    "type":  "mqtt",
    "options": {
      "formatter": [
        {
          "transform": ".toLowerCase()"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\s",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove whitespace"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\/",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove /"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\+",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove +"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\$",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove $"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\#",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove #"
        }
      ],
      "rootTopic-DIRECTIONS": "You can override the root topic by renaming _rootTopic to rootTopic",
      "_rootTopic": "@bind=(state.equipment.alias).replace(' ','-').replace('/','').toLowerCase();",
      "clientId": "@bind='hass_njsPC_'+ Math.random().toString(16).substr(2, 8);"
    }
  },
  "subscriptions": [
    {
      "topic": "getSensorConfig",
      "description": "Tells njsPC to return the configuration for all the configured sensors",
      "processor": [
        "console.log(`Sensor Configuration Requested`);",
        "if(value) {",
          "for(let i = 0; i < sys.equipment.tempSensors.length; i++) {",
            "let sensor = sys.equipment.tempSensors.getItemByIndex(i);",
              "ctx.publish('config/sensor', { name: sensor.name, stateTopic: '{{ value_json.temp }}', device_class: 'temperature' });",
          "}",
        "}"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "events": [
  ]
}

Step 2:
Open dashPanel and navigate to the interfaces tab. Then select the Add Interface button.

Step 3:
Click on the Upload Bindings button and upload the homeAssistant.json file to the njsPC server. It will place this file in the web/bindings/custom directory.

Step 4:
Select the options as you see in the screenshot. Then press the Add Interface button.

Step 5:
The previous step will add an interface into the configuration for an MQTT client. Open the newly created interface and enter the server information for your broker. Don't forget to check the enabled checkbox to start the interface.

Once you do this the sample I provided will subscribe to a topic named getSensorConfig. If you publish a value to that topic the interface will then write the sensor data back to config/sensor. I don't know any of the mechanics of HASS so I just provided an example that might get you going. The key to all this is the ability to easily publish to any topic you choose using the ctx.publish method. You can publish to as many topics as you like and the entirety of the njsPC configuration is available.

[rstrouse]

Here is the result with these settings.

[gadget-monk]

thank you so much!!!! This should get me going, next step is to fix the command payload and add feature circuits... but i think i get how this works!

[rstrouse]

Try this. Btw with the subcriptions, the payload and topic can be anything you like.

{
  "context": {
    "name": "Home Assistant",
    "type":  "mqtt",
    "options": {
      "formatter": [
        {
          "transform": ".toLowerCase()"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\s",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove whitespace"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\/",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove /"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\+",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove +"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\$",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove $"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\#",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove #"
        }
      ],
      "rootTopic-DIRECTIONS": "You can override the root topic by renaming _rootTopic to rootTopic",
      "_rootTopic": "@bind=(state.equipment.alias).replace(' ','-').replace('/','').toLowerCase();",
      "clientId": "@bind='hass_njsPC_'+ Math.random().toString(16).substr(2, 8);"
    },
    "vars": {
      "hassTopic": "homeassistant",
      "nodeid": "poolController"
    }
  },
  "subscriptions": [
    {
      "topic": "getSensorConfig",
      "description": "Tells njsPC to return the configuration for all the configured sensors",
      "processor": [
        "console.log(`Sensor Configuration Requested`);",
        "if(value) {",
          "for(let i = 0; i < sys.equipment.tempSensors.length; i++) {",
            "let sensor = sys.equipment.tempSensors.getItemByIndex(i);",
              "ctx.publish(`config/sensor/${sensor.name}`, { name: sensor.name, stateTopic: '{{ value_json.temp }}', device_class: 'temperature' });",
          "}",
        "}"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "events": [
    {
      "name": "circuit",
      "description": "Populate the circuits topics",
      "topics": [
        {
          "topic": "@bind=vars.hassTopic;/switch/@bind=vars.nodeid;-@bind=data.id;-@bind=data.name;/config",
          "useRootTopic": false,
          "processor": [
            "return JSON.stringify({ name: data.name,",
            "unique_id: `poolController-${data.id}-${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}`,",
            "state_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/circuits/${data.id}`,",
            "command_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/circuits/setState`,",
            "payload_on: `{id: ${data.id}, isOn: true}`,",
            "payload_off: `{id: ${data.id}, isOn: false}`,",
            "state_on: `on`,",
            "state_off: `off`,",
            "value_template:'{{value_json.isOn}}'});"
          ]
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "feature",
      "description": "Populate the feature topics",
      "topics": [
        {
          "topic": "@bind=vars.hassTopic;/switch/@bind=vars.nodeid;-@bind=data.id;-@bind=data.name;/config",
          "useRootTopic": false,
          "processor": [
            "return JSON.stringify({ name: data.name,",
            "unique_id: `poolController-${data.id}-${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}`,",
            "state_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/features/${data.id}`,",
            "command_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/features/setState`,",
            "payload_on: `{id: ${data.id}, isOn: true}`,",
            "payload_off: `{id: ${data.id}, isOn: false}`,",
            "state_on: `on`,",
            "state_off: `off`,",
            "value_template:'{{value_json.isOn}}'});"
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

[gadget-monk]

makes sense, can i use any javascript code in the processor section? i was thinking of adding some logic to exclude circuits that are showInFeatures=false and also some special handling for lights

[rstrouse]

Here you go this should fix your command json and filter out circuits/features with the special handling for lights. If you want a different type for the lights simply filter where the data.type.isLight = true/false. Yes you can use any javascript in that processor.

{
  "context": {
    "name": "Home Assistant",
    "type":  "mqtt",
    "options": {
      "formatter": [
        {
          "transform": ".toLowerCase()"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\s",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove whitespace"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\/",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove /"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\+",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove +"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\$",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove $"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\#",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove #"
        }
      ],
      "rootTopic-DIRECTIONS": "You can override the root topic by renaming _rootTopic to rootTopic",
      "_rootTopic": "@bind=(state.equipment.alias).replace(' ','-').replace('/','').toLowerCase();",
      "clientId": "@bind='hass_njsPC_'+ Math.random().toString(16).substr(2, 8);"
    },
    "vars": {
      "hassTopic": "homeassistant",
      "nodeid": "poolController"
    }
  },
  "subscriptions": [
    {
      "topic": "getSensorConfig",
      "description": "Tells njsPC to return the configuration for all the configured sensors",
      "processor": [
        "console.log(`Sensor Configuration Requested`);",
        "if(value) {",
          "for(let i = 0; i < sys.equipment.tempSensors.length; i++) {",
            "let sensor = sys.equipment.tempSensors.getItemByIndex(i);",
              "ctx.publish(`config/sensor/${sensor.name}`, { name: sensor.name, stateTopic: '{{ value_json.temp }}', device_class: 'temperature' });",
          "}",
        "}"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "events": [
    {
      "name": "circuit",
      "description": "Populate the circuits topics",
      "topics": [
        {
          "topic": "@bind=vars.hassTopic;/switch/@bind=vars.nodeid;-@bind=data.id;-@bind=data.name;/config",
          "useRootTopic": false,
          "processor": [
            "return JSON.stringify({ name: data.name,",
            "unique_id: `poolController-${data.id}-${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}`,",
            "state_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/circuits/${data.id}`,",
            "command_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/circuits/setState`,",
            "payload_on: `{\"id\": ${data.id}, \"isOn\": true}`,",
            "payload_off: `{\"id\": ${data.id}, \"isOn\": false}`,",
            "state_on: `on`,",
            "state_off: `off`,",
            "value_template:'{{value_json.isOn}}'});"
          ],
          "filter": "@bind=data.showInFeatures; === true || @bind=data.type.isLight; === true"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "feature",
      "description": "Populate the feature topics",
      "topics": [
        {
          "topic": "@bind=vars.hassTopic;/switch/@bind=vars.nodeid;-@bind=data.id;-@bind=data.name;/config",
          "useRootTopic": false,
          "processor": [
            "return JSON.stringify({ name: data.name,",
            "unique_id: `poolController-${data.id}-${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}`,",
            "state_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/features/${data.id}`,",
            "command_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/features/setState`,",
            "payload_on: `{\"id\": ${data.id}, \"isOn\": true}`,",
            "payload_off: `{\"id\": ${data.id}, \"isOn\": false}`,",
            "state_on: `on`,",
            "state_off: `off`,",
            "value_template:'{{value_json.isOn}}'});"
          ],
          "filter": "@bind=data.showInFeatures; === true"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

[Crewski]

This is great work on this so far. I was looking into making an integration via HACS but I've had some issues fiddling my way through python.

[gadget-monk]

In case anyone else is interested, here is the current version of homeassistant.json. I added a few things like icons and pump stats. I am still working on connecting pool/spa heater as a HVAC object and temp sensors.

{
  "context": {
    "name": "Home Assistant",
    "type":  "mqtt",
    "options": {
      "formatter": [
        {
          "transform": ".toLowerCase()"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\s",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove whitespace"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\/",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove /"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\+",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove +"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\$",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove $"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "\\#",
          "replace": "",
          "description": "Remove #"
        }
      ],
      "rootTopic-DIRECTIONS": "You can override the root topic by renaming _rootTopic to rootTopic",
      "_rootTopic": "@bind=(state.equipment.alias).replace(' ','-').replace('/','').toLowerCase();",
      "clientId": "@bind='hass_njsPC_'+ Math.random().toString(16).substr(2, 8);"
    },
    "vars": {
      "hassTopic": "homeassistant",
      "mqtttopic": "easytouch2-8"
    }
  },
  "events": [
    {
      "name": "circuit",
      "description": "Populate the circuits topics",
      "topics": [
        {
          "topic": "@bind=vars.hassTopic;/switch/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;-@bind=data.id;-@bind=data.name;/config",
          "useRootTopic": false,
          "processor": [
            "let device_id = {",
            " name: 'Pool Controller - njsPC',",
            " ids: [`${ctx.rootTopic}`],",
            " suggested_area : 'Pool'};",
            "let icontype='mdi:toggle-switch-variant';",
            "if (data.type.val==1) {icontype='mdi:hot-tub'};",
            "if (data.type.val==2) {icontype='mdi:pool'};",
            "return JSON.stringify({ name: data.name,",
            "unique_id: `poolController-${data.id}-${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}`,",
            "state_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/circuits/${data.id}/${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}`,",
            "command_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/circuits/setState`,",
            "payload_on: `{\"id\": ${data.id}, \"isOn\": true}`,",
            "payload_off: `{\"id\": ${data.id}, \"isOn\": false}`,",
            "state_on: `on`,",
            "state_off: `off`,",
            "device: device_id,",
            "icon: icontype,",
            "value_template:'{{value_json.isOn}}'});"
          ],
          "filter": "@bind=data.showInFeatures; === true && @bind=data.type.isLight; !== true"
        },
        {
            "topic": "@bind=vars.hassTopic;/light/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;-@bind=data.id;-@bind=data.name;/config",
            "useRootTopic": false,
            "processor": [
              "let device_id = {",
              " name : 'Pool Controller - njsPC',",
              " ids: [`${ctx.rootTopic}`],",
              " suggested_area : 'Pool'};",
              "return JSON.stringify({ name: data.name,",
              "unique_id: `poolController-${data.id}-${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}`,",
              "state_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/circuits/${data.id}/${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}`,",
              "command_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/circuits/setState`,",
              "payload_on: `{\"id\": ${data.id}, \"isOn\": true}`,",
              "payload_off: `{\"id\": ${data.id}, \"isOn\": false}`,",
              "state_on: `on`,",
              "state_off: `off`,",
              "device: device_id,",
              "value_template:'{{value_json.isOn}}'});"
            ],
            "filter": "@bind=data.showInFeatures; === true && @bind=data.type.isLight; === true"
          }
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "pump",
      "description": "Populate the pumps topics",
      "topics": [
        {
          "topic": "@bind=vars.hassTopic;/sensor/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;-@bind=data.id;-@bind=data.name;-rpm/config",
          "useRootTopic": false,
          "processor": [
            "let device_id = {",
            " name : 'Pool Controller - njsPC',",
            " ids: [`${ctx.rootTopic}`],",
            " suggested_area : 'Pool'};",
            "return JSON.stringify({ name: `${data.name} RPM`,",
            "unique_id: `poolController-${data.id}-${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}-rpm`,",
            "state_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/pumps/${data.id}/${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}/rpm`,",
            "device: device_id,",
            "icon: 'mdi:pump',",
            "unit_of_measurement: 'rpm',",
            "value_template:'{{value_json.rpm}}'});"
          ]
        },
        {
          "topic": "@bind=vars.hassTopic;/sensor/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;-@bind=data.id;-@bind=data.name;-watts/config",
          "useRootTopic": false,
          "processor": [
            "let device_id = {",
            " name : 'Pool Controller - njsPC',",
            " ids: [`${ctx.rootTopic}`],",
            " suggested_area : 'Pool'};",
            "return JSON.stringify({ name: `${data.name} watts`,",
            "unique_id: `poolController-${data.id}-${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}-watts`,",
            "state_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/pumps/${data.id}/${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}/watts`,",
            "device: device_id,",
            "icon: 'mdi:lightning-bolt',",
            "unit_of_measurement: 'W',",
            "state_class: 'measurement',",
            "device_class: 'power',",
            "value_template:'{{value_json.watts}}'});"
          ]
        },
        {
          "topic": "@bind=vars.hassTopic;/sensor/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;-@bind=data.id;-@bind=data.name;-flow/config",
          "useRootTopic": false,
          "processor": [
            "let device_id = {",
            " name : 'Pool Controller - njsPC',",
            " ids: [`${ctx.rootTopic}`],",
            " suggested_area : 'Pool'};",
            "return JSON.stringify({ name: `${data.name} flow`,",
            "unique_id: `poolController-${data.id}-${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}-flow`,",
            "state_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/pumps/${data.id}/${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}/flow`,",
            "device: device_id,",
            "icon: 'mdi:waves-arrow-right',",
            "unit_of_measurement: 'gpm',",
            "value_template:'{{value_json.flow}}'});"
          ]
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "feature",
      "description": "Populate the feature topics",
      "topics": [
        {
          "topic": "@bind=vars.hassTopic;/switch/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;-@bind=data.id;-@bind=data.name;/config",
          "useRootTopic": false,
          "processor": [
            "let device_id = {",
            " name : 'Pool Controller - njsPC',",
            " ids: [`${ctx.rootTopic}`],",
            " suggested_area : 'Pool'};",
            "return JSON.stringify({ name: data.name,",
            "unique_id: `poolController-${data.id}-${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}`,",
            "state_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/features/${data.id}/${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}`,",
            "command_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/features/setState`,",
            "payload_on: `{\"id\": ${data.id}, \"isOn\": true}`,",
            "payload_off: `{\"id\": ${data.id}, \"isOn\": false}`,",
            "state_on: `on`,",
            "state_off: `off`,",
            "device: device_id,",
            "value_template:'{{value_json.isOn}}'});"
          ],
          "filter": "@bind=data.showInFeatures; === true"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "body",
      "description": "Populate the pool body/heater topics",
      "topics": [
        {
          "topic": "@bind=vars.hassTopic;/climate/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;/@bind=vars.mqtttopic;-@bind=data.id;-@bind=data.name;/config",
          "useRootTopic": false,
          "processor": [
            "let device_id = {",
            " name : 'Pool Controller - njsPC',",
            " ids: [`${ctx.rootTopic}`],",
            " suggested_area : 'Pool'};",
            "return JSON.stringify({ name: `${data.name} Heater`,",
            "unique_id: `poolController-body-${data.id}-${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}`,",
            "current_temperature_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/temps/bodies/${data.id}/${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}/temp`,",
            "action_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/temps/bodies/${data.id}/${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}/heatStatus`,",
            "action_template: '{{value_json.heatStatus.desc}}',",
            "temperature_high_state_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/temps/bodies/${data.id}/${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}/setPoint`,",
            "temperature_high_state_template: '{{value_json.setPoint}}',",
            "device: device_id,",
            "modes: ['auto', 'off', 'heat'],",
            "preset_modes: ['off', 'heater', 'solar', 'heatPump', 'solarPref', 'heatPumpPref'],",
            "preset_mode_state_topic: `${ctx.rootTopic}/state/temps/bodies/${data.id}/${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}/heatStatus`,",
            "preset_mode_value_template: '{{value_json.heatStatus.name}}',",
            "current_temperature_template: '{{value_json.temp}}'});"
          ]
        }
      ]
    }

  ]
}

[rstrouse]

Let us know if there is anything you need. The sys and state objects are available as well in your scripts so you can get any information from any of the equipment items that you may need.

[gadget-monk]

sounds good! one more q - using @Bind in the root topic doesn't seem to work. I tried it in config.json (similar to how the main MQTT section was setup) and by changing _rootTopic to rootTopic in the homeassistant.json file. As a workaround, I created a var mqtttopic and set it to "easytouch2-8". Note the root topic for messages in this integration is still "homeassistant" but I need to be able to reference the rootTopic of the original MQTT integration to build the json payloads. The workaround seems to get the job done, but I was curious as to why the @Bind statements do not work.

[rstrouse]

I'll have a look. Part of it may be that the tokenizer doesn't have the data at the time it is called.

[rstrouse]

Pull njsPC. I did some cleanup on the tokenizer. However, I would not override the rootTopic as this can be unique per install of njsPC. If the user changes the config.json file they will not need to ever modify your interface file. The formatter for the topic should take care of all the rest of the data. So if your context section looks like the following I think I got the gist of what you are trying to accomplish.

NOTE: I also made the clientId for mqtt to reuse the id for the specific instance of njsPC. Notice the use of the mac address and the port.

  "context": {
    "name": "Home Assistant",
    "type":  "mqtt",
    "options": {
      "formatter": [
        {
          "transform": ".toLowerCase()"
        },
        {
          "regexkey": "[\\s+\\/\\+\\$\\#]",
          "replace": "-",
          "description": "Remove [whitespace,/,+,$,#]"
        }
      ],
      "rootTopic-DIRECTIONS": "You can override the root topic by renaming _rootTopic to rootTopic",
      "_rootTopic": "@bind=state.equipment.model;",
      "clientId": "@bind=`hass_njsPC_${webApp.mac().replace(/:/g, '_'}-${webApp.httpPort()}`;"
    },
    "vars": {
      "hassTopic": "homeassistant",
      "mqtttopic": "@bind=state.equipment.model.replace(/\\//, '');"
    }

[gadget-monk]

Almost there!! I have all the switches, heater and sensors configured and showing up in Home Assistant automatically. No need to manually edit home assistant files anymore... one more thing: At times i see an extra Spa body with the same ID (1) as pool. I never came across this issue on the websocket API so wondering if this is due to some bad code in my file - see screenshot below for how the message comes across in MQTT

[rstrouse]

Hmmm... If you delete the node and restart njsPC does it come back?

[gadget-monk]

Not immediately and not always, but it come back a few times.

[rstrouse]

Pull njsPC I believe I found and fixed the issue. There was an id mismatch that first set the pool circuit to spa then changed it to pool.

[Exit2Studios]

Keep in mind there are some big breaking changes coming for MQTT in upcoming HA release.

[vj950]

@gadget-monk
I copy pasted your homeassistant.json. There is some trouble in my setup. I think I know what the issue is, but I have zero knowledge of how coding works. It seems an easy fix, but I am unable to figure it out.

Issue:
for example: When I used MQTT my state_topic: intellitouch-i93s/state/circuits/1/pool
when I use your homeAssistant.json, my state_topic: pool/intellitouch-i93s/state/circuits/1/pool
This is true everywhere.

I tested this by manually changing
"state_topic: ${ctx.rootTopic}/state/pumps/${data.id}/${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}/rpm,", (where values came back "unknown")
to
"state_topic: intellitouch-i93s/state/pumps/${data.id}/${data.name.replace(/\\s+/g, '').toLowerCase()}/rpm,", the rpm values work.

so if ${ctx.rootTopic} returns only my unique name ie. intellitouch-i93s and not pool/intellitouch-i93s, then everything should work in my case.

Please guide me how to fix this.

[rstrouse]

Close njsPC and edit your config.json. Scroll down to the Home assistant interface configuration and change the rootTopic line to remove the pool portion at the beginning of the root topic. This is there so that no changes should need to be made to the interface configuration in order to adjust to your configuration.

For instance here is my configuration... notice how the MQTT topic is prefixed with pool.

      "HASS": {
        "options": {
          "protocol": "mqtt://",
          "host": "pi4",
          "port": 1883,
          "username": "",
          "password": "",
          "selfSignedCertificate": false,
          "rootTopic": "pool/@bind=(state.equipment.model).replace(' ','-').replace(' / ','').toLowerCase();",
          "retain": true,
          "qos": 0,
          "changesOnly": true
        },
        "uuid": "7255b11b-c3bb-4d54-9c83-15b8b6693d53",
        "isCustom": true,
        "name": "HASS",
        "type": "mqtt",
        "fileName": "custom/homeAssistant.json",
        "enabled": true
      }

[DrJeff]

I had to make sure my HASS(Home Assistant) and MQTT rootTopics matched or it wouldn't work properly because I changed my rooTopic in MQTT.

[gadget-monk]

Here is the latest version of the json. Still need to fix a few other issues (simplify the way root topics work and incorporate the MAC ID unique key generation method from rstrouse)

homeassistant.json.zip

[DrJeff]

I had to change a few things for my setup but awesomeness!!
Heaters showing up but Not working yet for me. Need to look at how they are working.

  "rootTopic-DIRECTIONS": "You can override the root topic by renaming _rootTopic to rootTopic",
      "_rootTopic": "pool",
      "clientId": "@bind='hass_njsPC_'+ Math.random().toString(16).substr(2, 8);"
    },
    "vars": {
      "hassTopic": "homeassistant",
      "mqtttopic": "pool"
      ```

[DrJeff]

[rstrouse]

If you only make changes in the config.json you can simply pull and use the most recent copy of the HASS interface file. I suspect you only needed to change rootTopic in the config.json and leave the rest of the interface alone.

[vj950]

I am able to see the Heaters as climate entities in Home Assistant (and other circuits). I am able to turn the heater on/off and set temperature. But the status does not get updated in Home Assistant. DashPanel shows correct status. (for example, if the heater is turned on through HA, it still shows as off and vice versa). The current water temperature also does not update.

This actually is true in general for all the switches as well. I can control, but in HomeAssistant, the status is not updated, so no way to know if worked unless you go in DashPanel.

The Pump sensor seems to update RPM sporadically.

If I delete the "Device" and re-add, correct status shows up. From my lay-person logic, it seems that HA needs to check the status more frequently.

[DrJeff]

I would check your topics I had similar my topics were off so control worked but status didn't show look up a few threads and apply to your setup

[rstrouse]

I think you need to enable the MQTT interface as well. The events are not included in the device discovery bindings.

[gadget-monk]

I noticed the topic setup for lights was incorrect. I will likely upload a new version tonight

[gadget-monk]

here is an updated version of the interface file. hopefully this fixes all the bugs. This version ignores the rootTopic in config.json but the two topic variables in the vars section must be correctly set.
homeassistant.json.zip

[seaverd]

@gadget-monk and @rstrouse
Here are the discovery subtopics, the space is there also

.

[gadget-monk]

Got it, must be something wrong in the formula. Try putting in the value directly for mqtttopic

[seaverd]

I put the value in directly and its mostly working. For some reason the switch for Pool and Spa are not showing up. That would be circuits 6 and 1 respectively. Attached is a screenshot in the homeassistant discovery area. There are no topics for these two circuits. I have toggled them on and off several times to see if a new discovery topic gets created, but none have been created. See screenshot

.

[gadget-monk]

Is showinfeatures enabled for the two circuits? Try going to http://:4200/state/circuits and check the output for the two circuits. I also notice that you have a light circuit showing up as a switch instead of light. Maybe you need to set it up as a light in njsPC.

[seaverd]

Show in features was not enabled, I did so and the switches appeared. I also fixed that generic and made it a light.

Thanks!

[Exit2Studios]

Have there been any updates to the Home Assistant integration? Is this working with the current MQTT changes in HA?

[Exit2Studios]

For those who have this working, any suggestions? Can I get the latest/greatest json file and any pointers on setting this up painlessly in Home Assistant?

[gadget-monk]

I am still using the same version that I uploaded a few weeks ago and it works with the latest HA version. For installation steps, see @rstrouse post on May 29 but intead of the homeassistant.json from his post, use the one I uploaded on Jun 10.

[Exit2Studios]

Sounds good. Did I read correctly that the best practice is to use an MQTT broker on the njsPC machine that then communicates to HA vs going directly to my mosquito broker on my HA box?

[tagyoureit]

Hey everyone,
There seems to be enough interest that I added the HASS bindings as a built-in interface. I setup HASS and I was able to auto-load most (but not all) of the equipment in the pool. I was also able to control some things from HASS (didn't test everything). Some things like air temp I couldn't get to update and I didn't see water temp, for example. I'm all of 90 minutes into my HASS experience at this point.

I'll continue to play around but appreciate all the hard work everyone has already put into this...

[nicksardo]

When I saw

nodejs-poolController/defaultConfig.json

Line 222 in ab79505

"mqttTopic": "@bind=(state.equipment.model).replace(' ','-').replace('/','').toLowerCase();Alt"

with 'Alt', I assumed MQTTAlt was supposed to be used. Of course, this caused the wrong topics to be referenced. Sensors are correctly populating when I switched to non-Alt.

[Exit2Studios]

What is the best way to get the temps (air/pool) into HA?

[tagyoureit]

@nicksardo Good catch, I probably just cut and pasted wrong. I also added a note.

@Exit2Studios These will sync automatically to MQTT and then HASS when njsPC reads/is sent a valid value. You can experiment by sending in this curl statement:

curl --location --request PUT 'http://localhost:4200/state/temps/' \
--header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
--data-raw '{
    "waterSensor1": 80,
    "airSensor1": 85
}'

[lockeandev]

Is there anymore movement on this? MQTT auto discovery seemed to work great, I just enabled the Home Assistant bindings and entities started showing up, but some items are missing. All of my lights (pentair microbrites), the lights on my magicstream laminars, and there seems to be no way to set the pentair ultratemp heatpump cool set point. Any thing I can do to help?

[Crewski]

@lockeandev if you want to try out a custom component I think I have all of your issues covered. https://github.com/Crewski/njsPC-HA

[Crewski]

I made a new discussion for it, but I know there are home assistant user lurking in this one. I made a home assistant integration installable through HACS that uses the same communication as dash panel. It’s still a work in progress, but most things should be working. Here is the discussion for it, take a look:

#559

Here is the repository:
https://github.com/Crewski/njsPC-HA

[seaverd]

Yes I put it in nodejs-PoolController/web/bindings/custom Pic from phone…so hard to arrange to see everything, but this is where it hangs.

…

On Wed, Jun 15, 2022 at 2:49 PM rstrouse ***@***.***> wrote: It is likely a permissions or ownership issue. When you manually added it where did you put it. It should be in the web/bindings/custom folder. — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#465 (reply in thread)>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AAU53BPQJ6JHFA7BTGNJQGDVPIQSVANCNFSM5XFYNYYA> . You are receiving this because you commented.Message ID: <tagyoureit/nodejs-poolController/repo-discussions/465/comments/2958487@ github.com>

[tagyoureit]

No image was included in your post.