For quick solutions, the apps like Basic Rules, Motion Lighting, Thermotat Schduler etc. are ok (and much, much better than the functionality of Vera). I've checked them, but my "old" system logics are grown over 7 years and intensively adapted to our needs and comforts. Based on these special apps, I would have to dispense some special functionality. Or in some other cases, the realization of these specialities in the basic apps would have been more laborious than an RM app.
Some functionality anyway needs the Rule Machine (in- and outgoing GET-communication with other systems and web services or complex warning and alarming logics or sub-rule structures to make the logic simpler and clearer, ...).
So I decided to do everything with Rule Machine. I expect, this will facilitate the clarity and documentation of the whole system on the long term.
To understand the basic principles of RM wasn't the problem. But to understand the interaction between the different variable types and connection devices with RM, Maker Api, Dashboard etc. was hard. I couldn't find an entry in the docu. So I had to test and search in the forum.
Also time-consuming for me was name concept for the devices (and partly the apps): Device label, device name, sub-device label, room, variable name, conection device name/label,..
Hubitat offers many possibilities (much more than Vera). But what type of info in which name part? How to beware clarity in a hundred objects? What are the results in the listings, selection boxes, dashboard, ...? I also couldn't find an entry point in the documentation. So I had to test and test.
But on the other side: After some time and effort, I started to understand the relatively clear and powerful structure of the system.
Yeah, the UI has always been a weak point in a lot of people's eyes despite RM being incredibly powerful. Some people prefer offloading rules to an RPI using Node Red as that works better in their head than RM does (I mean the format structure not the actual performance)
I learned to appreciate the possibility to modify the names of devices etc. without breaking the rules. This is a great advantage of the RM. It takes a bit more time to create the rules, but they work, and they stay working.
I actually moved everything to NR based on a demonstrable improvement in performance. I understand that EVERYTHING about this setup allegedly improving performance screams "does-not-compute." That said, it was perceptibly faster as well as backed up by data.
It was over a year ago and I probably won't re-enable RM to test again. Things may have improved. The ease of replacing devices in the flows is enough benefit for me.
I agree @harold.min.. Although not completely sure it's faster for my setup, rather it's fast enough not to make a noticeable difference. Being less taxing on the hub(s) resource-wise is a plus. Also am definitely one of those people who finds the NR's "flow based" ui to be extremely intuitive.
For folks new to home automation and/or others coming from a different platform, starting out with the base apps on HE is probably the way to go and will likely be the easiest/most rewarding route to a workable system.
If you are into things tech and want to integrate and control a bunch of different systems using a powerful, flexible, opensource controller maintainable all the way down to the hardware then Node-RED is definitely something to consider.
I am in the same situation as the OP – moving from VeraPlus to something, in this case HE. My installation is nowhere as sophisticated as the OP’s, but it works for me. I have yet to move any physical (Z-wave) devices to HE, but have installed and configured a few apps, written some code, and integrated other devices such as Arduinos. Everything I have done works per my expectations and the HE is mostly a portal to other devices on my network. I could (and somewhat did) accomplish the same with my VeraPlus, which has not failed me. It has annoyed me, but not failed me.
HE documentation is lacking, and while this forum somewhat mitigates that, it’s still lacking.
Most importantly I have made two support requests this year for my HE seemingly randomly locking-up, and from what I can determine, no action was taken. Because I don’t rely on my HE at this point and mostly work on in-house technology during the winter months, I’ll deal with it in the future. The situation is, however, concerning.
And as a side note, I recently had an issue with geofencing on my VeraPlus. Because of its extensive logging capabilities, I was able to resolve the issue quickly.
Thanks for your feedback. Would you care to elaborate on what specific logging details were you able to gather that helped you troubleshoot the issue quickly?
As for your hub randomly locking-up, be sure to leverage our active community, as both staff and other members are quickly to jump in to help, faster and more thoroughly than any lone agent would, via email.
@kunpet Nicely done and comprehensive - thanks for your contribution and welcome aboard! I've been absent from here for a couple of months, but I am also a VeraPlus transplant. My experiences back in March, in terms of getting my bearings and figuring out how to 'translate' from Vera to HE, were similar. Likewise w.r.t the documentation and the "many searches" in the forum, though both are improving and they've come a long way since the new HE was released 3 years ago. My interactions here have been helpful, the developers are very responsive, and the HE staff takes all feedback seriously (like how Vera was early on).
I wonder how many of us have come here from Vera? IDK but I wish I had documented my experience in detail, including some practical things like how to translate a scene to RM, etc. That would likely have made it easier for you. and any others migrating from Vera. Have you made a dashboard yet? I haven't had time (trying to finish my CS PhD by December), but that's a topic I think would be helpful because it has potential display/manage the system in a more familar way - more like the Vera app. Food for thought...
Going through the same process. One thing I was trying to find is an equivalent to the 'disconnected' devices list from UI-7. I couldn't find something out of the box, and was wondering would this be a good case for a dashboard ?. If so how would I get the dashboard to show the devices that are 'disconnected'
My experience with HE staff and with the reaction of the forum also was very positive.
The start with RM was promising. In special points, the behavior was first not as expected. So many tests were necessary to understand the processes in detail and to find the right solutions. But HE is a much, much faster tool than VERA.
With the growing understanding of RM everything now goes easier and faster.
Till now I've made 3 simple dashboards with switches and variables and WeatherUnderground data. They are not beautiful, but functional and pretty easy to build, to develop and to maintain.
For the monitoring and check of my devices, I use the "Battery level notifications" app. For details the "Z-wave Details" function.
