Out of the blue in the last 3-5 days nothing is responding as it should with absolutely no change to the network. I have 5 zwave devices 4 inovelli switches and 1 kwikset lock, as has been from the beginning the lock sees all 4 switches and the hub, 2 switches see each other and the hub and 2 see only the hub (none of this makes sense physically but whatever it's been working-ish.)
So I have a bunch of routines setup that switch on/off various lights, alexa still has no issue controlling anything over wifi but the zwave stuff is rarely working now (I'd say it works 5% of the time now where before it was ~80%) and if I hop on the hubitat app from my phone the stuff doesn't work there either (I will close out the app and reopen it a half dozen times before the command works.) I've repaired the mesh and double checked the topology and I get the same feedback every time that everything should be working.
The only "technical" info I can give is what zwave mesh details gives back which is that the lock has a 15ms connection speed and zero errors while the switches have unknown connection speed and dozens of errors each.
Although Alexa can host Zigbee devices directly, no Echo devices has a Z-wave radio. Alexa can control Z-wave devices using the Alexa Skill to connect to Hubitat.
Have you checked your Z-wave settings? Connect to Hubitat and then open the "Settings" menu. If you do not see Z-wave settings, you will have to turn on the "Show Advanced Options" slider to reveal other options. Then open the Z-wave details.
The Z-wave details provide information on each of your Z-wave devices. Although there is a lot of helpful information, the one I usually look at first is the far right hand column showing the route each device is taking to connect to the hub. Device 01 is the hub itself. If you see something like 01-> 06, that means that the device identified as 06 is communicating directly with the hub. It will also show a data rate. Ideally, the connection will be at 100 kbps indicating a strong connection. A rate of 40kbps is generally acceptable. If you see only 9.6 kpbs the device is struggling to send signals to the hub. If you see something like 01->06->12 it means that device 12 is connecting to the hub through device 06 which is acting as a signal repeater.
Another useful thing to look at is the Topology map at the top of the details page. Ideally, you will have lots of blue squares indicating that the indicated device can connect with multiple other devices. If you see lots of red boxes, it means that your Z-wave mesh is not as strong as it might be. Typically, mains powered Z-wave devices like light switches/dimmers should have repeater capability, so you should have a strong mesh if you have a lot of switches.
If you can provide information on what your Z-wave details page shows, community member might be able to help diagnose the issue.
Generally if a device doesn't work from the Device tab, settings page, it won't work anywhere like dashboards, Alexa, or whatever.
It will probably help if you can post screenshots of your Zwave details. Maybe we can spot something in there?
Because you are new to the forums, you may have to view some threads and respond to a couple threads like this one to get your status bumped high enough to attach screenshots. So if you don't have permission, hang tight, it will change with a little forum activity on your part.
All that said, with only 5 devices, and one of them being a device that doesn't repeat (lock), you are very likely simply lacking enough devices to create a good mesh. Typically, you need closer to a dozen line powered devices to even begin to have minimal mesh.
At the very least, I would use at least one dedicated repeater like the Ring Range Extender gen 2 and see if things improve. They are inexpensive, and seem to perform fairly well for most people.
Another very simple thing you can try is to go into the Hubitat Settings menu, and click Shutdown Hub. Wait for the LED on the hub to become RED. Then, unplug the power supply from the wall outlet (not the hub, as some folks have reported the microUSB power connector has failed after repeated insertions/removals.) Wait about 30 seconds, as this makes sure that the Z-Wave radio gets a full reboot. Then plug the power supply back into the wall and see if things behave any better.
Assuming that image goes through I can post any details, although I might need someone to tell me where to find something
I have another ~4 switches to install but I'll take your advice into consideration. I wasn't getting flawless performance before so you are likely right that a dedicated repeater is necessary for my small network but I'd like to at least get things back where they were first (~80% of the time working) before introducing something new.
The Hubitat official Zwave Details page will be more helpful here. Settings tab, Zwave details. (no topology map needed)
I am just concerned you may have ghost nodes, and they are usually easier to spot on that other page. Unless you know how to spot the ghosts, and can verify you don't have any.
I would think that the other 4 switches cannot do anything but help. If you don't have ghosts, I would add these switches and see what happens. It could be everything was just borderline working, and after a couple days lost their route home. Having more repeating devices certainly won't hurt.
The good thing about a dedicated repeater is you can move it or place it in an optimal spot. Switches often are in metal boxes (bad) or have metal faceplates (bad) or are just in a poor spot in general.
The details show that your rear door lock is the only device connected to the hub. Although you other devices say they are trying to connect directly with the hub, they are not successful. There are lot of errors. You might try adding one or more repeaters (other than your switches).
I've had similar problems with 6-7 switches not responding, or responding very slowly. What ultimately worked for me was "z-wave excluding" the problem switches and then re-"discovering" them. I used a laptop computer and a long RJ45 extension so I could position the Hubitat Hub near the switches during the exclusion and discovery processes. I have several z-wave switches (20+, most of which are GE/Jasco and Honeywell hard-wired repeaters) so it took several hours for my z-wave mesh network to stabilize.
Remember that switches are typically installed in metal outlet boxes with wiring and perhaps conduit in the walls. That means the RF signal has only a few ways it can get to the Z-wave radio inside the switch. The stronger your signal, the better things will be.
According to your Z-wave details and mesh diagram, the lock is getting better connections with the switches than the hub is able to do. That says, your hub is not in the best spot. Sometimes moving a hub even a couple of feet can improve the signal path. Moving the hub closer to the center of the floor plan would be ideal, but I realize that might not be possible. If the hub cannot be relocated, then try to install a range extender/signal repeater close to the center of the house. Even plugging a repeater into an outlet along the 50 ft wall of the main room might be helpful.
I meant a hard reset like what ogiewon recc. shutdown/unplug and then restart. Did that this morning and everything is back to working like it was before which is 80% of the time it works all the time
I will take your advice, and everyone else's, into consideration though I'll get the rest of the switches installed this week and then see about getting a repeater. Thank you very much for your help.
I just want to say thanks to everyone who helped, the reset is what worked for now but I will start looking at repeaters and potentially more zwave devices to flesh out the mesh.
