I opened up the Hubitat UI today, to continue setting up my new system (just recently got the hubitat) to find a new option for "Subscriptions." This wasn't there a couple days again, so I'm guessing a system update occurred at some point.. but the bigger question here is, What is up with the "Remote Access" subscription?
I bought this Hubitat thing because it didn't have any subscription cost. I absolutely hate subscriptions; If I buy something, I shouldn't have to pay more to continue to use it. Or randomly have to start paying for a function/feature that was once a basic part of the product when it was bought.
Before ordering, I read that I could use a mobile app to access the dashboards, to control my devices from wherever I might be in the world.. I haven't downloaded the app yet, been trying to get things sorted on the local side first; pair devices, setup dashboards, create automations, etc. But I hope when I do, the ability to access the dashboards is present, and I'm not redirected to buy some BS subscription.
Am I confusing this "remote admin" subscription with the ability to access the dashboards from anywhere via the app or via weblinks? The hubitat homepage calls this "remote access" - but since it seems, from a few requests for help on this forum, buttons are no longer "buttons" when it comes to hubitat, so trying to understand if "remote admin" and "remote access" are mixed terms or provide the same function/features..
Did I just lose the ability to open the app, and shut off a light that I might have realized I left on as I'm heading into work?
In short remote admin is for people that don't have a VPN and want access to everything on the hub for programming when outside their own network. This is valuable for those that have multiple properties or a hubitat they maintain for someone (ie older family). Your dashboard cloud access is unaffected. The hub protection plan backs up everything on the hub in case of disaster or if you upgrade to a new hub. Everything can be dumped back on there without the need to re pair all your devices. (This doesn't prevent you from making manual backups or auto backup with a cron job. Though restoring those backups will not restore the devices to a new hub. Nothing has changed, simply they created some value add on's
Take a deep breath . As others have pointed out, no one is being forced to subscribe to anything, and the new subscriptions purely add optional features, nothing has moved behind a paywall that worked previously.
Have you had a chance to read the announcements about the new subscription services here in the forum? That might help demystify some of your confusion.
I’m curious about this though. Hubs do not update themselves automatically, and updates can’t be pushed from an external source. All firmware updates get applied manually, by the user (that’s you and me).
In this case, the “subscriptions” tab in the UI was added with platform version 2.2.6, just released at the beginning of the week. Did you update your hub this week? Or did you first activate it since Monday?
It was delivered on March 15th, which I then promptly started playing with it as I'm impatient when it comes to not opening new toys..
I haven't updated anything, I was waiting for a few recommended devices to show up from amazon (Sonoff Plugs, to extend Zigbee) to hopefully resolve an issue with bulbs randomly turning off (which the new devices haven't resolved).. so I stopped playing around with the Hubitat. I knew the subscription feature wasn't there the last time I accessed the webUI as I had taken a few screenshots.. And then it was just there when I opened the webUI a couple days later..
When you say "manually" do you mean, having to download a file to local system, then upload it to the hub via local connection... As there is a "check for updates" button on the main page of the WebUI, would assume that its checking for updates from an "External Source."
Hub updates are not pushed. If your hub is running the latest firmware, then at some point of time, someone clicked on that button, and then accepted Hubitat’s terms and conditions. This process is required for every single platform update.
I mean the user has to browse to the update hub page and click on the update hub button. No other way that I’m aware of. Sounds like others can confirm the same.
I’m sure there are plenty of people here that would be willing to help you figure out what’s going on with your Hubitat mobile app.
It’s hard to tell from what you’ve just posted.
Expletive-laden rants (even when the expletives are replaced with symbols) in which you baselessly label people you’ve never met as liars, are less likely to accomplish much.
Nothing changed, before and still you can only get to this page when you are connected locally on your wifi and to your device. Remotely you could not and still can’t get to this page.
The subscription adds new ways to do that if you wish (I use a VPN instead).
You seriously need to calm down. You are simply wrong. And your attitude will not get you the help that this fine community always gives to reasonable questions.
If you calmly state exactly what you think you have lost someone will be able to reassure you that you haven't
You never had remote access to apps/devices through the mobile app. You could access them when you were connected to your local LAN. This access has not been removed.
The Remote Admin subscription is an optional add-on that adds access to apps/devices even when you're not connected to your local LAN.
And, as indicated by @SoundersDude, you can do the same using your own VPN.
You are all correct.... I was an a..... Sorry.
Its no excuse to act in that manner...
I cannot get to that page that I could before....
Unfortunately I was in the middle of updating to a mesh router and couldnt get several IoT devices to work so I went back to an old Netgear router
but no excuses for my behavior....
After several reboots ..it was able to find the hub and as promised the
screen that I had been looking for IS available via the new redesign
So I am 1000% wrong... even if that had been removed, I didn't approach it properly.
All I can say is sorry, it won't happen again.
Tim