HouseBot

[quote="Steve Horn" post_id=455215 time=1718209928 user_id=6]
Well, clearly, I'm missing a step. I installed the stick, identified the COM port, added the hardware interface to HB, but cannot enable the thing. Restarted HB until the system log did not have a ZWave error. No help. I did notice that there are 2 ZWave USB HW interfaces, tried both, with no different results. What am I missing?
[/quote]

Hi Steve
Did you get your gen 7 z-stick to work?
I have about 120 z-devices in my network and a gen 5 stick from Aeotec. Currently a restart of HouseBot takes about 4 minutes, because of the initial communication with all z-devices on the network. I don't know if it would be faster with a gen 7 stick??? But I don't want to give it a try when it will not work with Housebot. Anyhow I assume it will be a hassle to move all devices over to the new stick. I don't assume there's a tool to migrate a whole network.

BR -Alex-

I have not had a chance to get back to that work. It’s summer and a lot of outdoor stuff - both work and play - take precedence. Scott suggested checking for drivers and i still have to do that.

An update to this: I just discovered that Insteon is NOT no more after all. See https://Insteon.com. New company, separated from former Smarthome (RIP), Hardware (switches, hub, etc.) available, as well as Android and Apple apps. All this discovered because my HB server is dead - see separate post. As a result, I was looking for a way to control my embedded Insteon stuff “outside” of HB. Upside of Insteon’s resurrection: hardware (hubs, etc) are readily available on the new or used market. Down side: the use of the app to control devices via the hub requires a subscription ($40/yr), but somehow bridges functionality/voice control to Alexa and Google Assistant. So, this appears to extend the usable life of my Insteon stuff until I migrate to something else.

Back to my Z-Wave experiment. One Z-Wave switch (enbrighten smart switch), and an Aeotec Z stick 7 (zwa010). Found and installed drivers from Sillabs.com and created a HB hardware interface (USB) and the stick is enabled using the virtual com port silicon labs CP210x port. The HB help is not clear what else needs to be done, although it mentions "Transfer the Z-Wave system configuration from a wireless controller to the Z-Wave controller. " . Is a third piece of hardware required to get the Zwave dongle to recognize/find the switch? The switch instructions say only to push the up or down (on/off) button.
(discosure: this is only a test for a fallback for lighting control. My Insteon hardware is working well and Insteon Inc. is still alive, so their switches etc. are still available. Dunno for how long. And I really would like to find a less expensive option for HB lighting control. Amazon Alexa stuff (switches, smart plugs...) is cheap and works well but, to my knowledge, cannot be controlled by HB.

Steve Horn wrote: ↑Wed Feb 12, 2025 5:02 pm ... it mentions "Transfer the Z-Wave system configuration from a wireless controller to the Z-Wave controller. " . Is a third piece of hardware required to get the Zwave dongle to recognize/find the switch?

Z-wave controllers can usually be setup as a primary or secondary controllers. The instructions are assuming that you have a separate primary controller (usually a hand-held remote type) that you can walk around to the various devices and add/remove/manage them in the network. That hand-held controller manages the network. But since HouseBot can only communicate with the controller that is attached to it, you have to send/transfer the primary controller configuration to the secondary controller.

ahhh. So, a handheld controller IS necessary.
Thanks!

I'm not sure if it's 100% necessary, but it's the easiest way to manage the system. The alternative is having to take the controller that is attached to the HB computer to each device to include/exclude it. I know the Z-Stick has a battery that will allow you to remove it from the USB port to include/exclude devices during setup. I've never done that, but don't see why it wouldn't work. As long as it ends up with the final configuration, it shouldn't matter that it's a primary controller.

I ordered a cheap handheld off eBay. Crap shoot. Will know next week. (The z-wave dongle i got looks to be too small for a battery, or much of anything.)

Z-Wave update: I was able to get it working, once i purchased (a cheap) Z-Wave remote controller. The process to integrate the switch device into HB from its stored node info in the hand held controller is a bit fiddly. One has to have the remote controller’s user/instructions (which it didnt come with) to know the code to put the remote into a ”pairing” mode, which apparently initiates the data dump to the HB Z-Wave dongle. The code, in my case, was/is 9661, FWIW.

Wow, pretty secure. But they probably don't need the code, since the range for that transfer is only a few feet.

I was just following what instructions I could find for this particular remote controller, a GE JASCO 45600. https://usermanual.wiki/Universal-Elec ... 757609.pdf Maybe I misunderstood how the cloning process should work. And I'm not ruling out being unencumbered by the thought process.