Moving to Multi-Hub Setup - Zwave Mesh too Slow - HubConnect

[tuffcalc]

Started another thread about my 225 zwave device mesh being super slow/unresponsive. I'm thinking I'm going to buy two more hubs and have a hub on each floor connected via HubConnect - see if that helps things.

Question - instead of excluding and reincluding each device floor by floor, can I restore a backup to each hub (with all devices) and delete the items it will not be controlling? That will save a boatload of work.

[aaiyar]

@tuffcalc

can I restore a backup to each hub (with all devices) and delete the items it will not be controlling?

Unfortunately, not for z-wave. That would've worked for zigbee devices.

[csteele]

There's four major components to your SmartHome:

1. The Platform OS firmware
2. The 'personalization' you've done to your Hub, including naming it, ip address, Apps installed, Devices added, Rules and other logic.
3. The Zigbee data stored in the chip of the Zigbee Radio.
4. The ZWave data stored in the chip of the ZWave Radio.

not to be missed but not really a part of this discussion:
The Hub(s)
The Mesh(es)

The Platform OS Firmware is downloaded from the Internet and your Hub saves a copy or three, allowing you to roll back.

The 'personalization' is backed up on reboots and on demand by you, to be saved locally on your PC.

The Z-Radios have no form of backup available at this time.

If you take your New Hubs and get them through the registration and setup then Restore a backup from your working Hub, you'd have a copy of all the Apps and Automations. It would be a task of deleting the not-needed. What's left is a Hub in need of devices... you would then begin the Exclude Include cycle and re-integrating the new device names to the old automations.

I'm almost convinced that this would take longer AND at various points in time in the months that follow, you'd wonder if today's 'thing' is a result of the shortcut. It would nag on me. But believe me, I've done the shortcuts. All the work is the Exclude/Include -- and pasting in another copy of some apps, and some drivers, clicking in some Rules, using two tabs of a browser seem like it wouldn't be a huge savings overall. Especially since, Exclude/Include will need some 'rest time', and that time can be used to click in the Automations.

It's hard to say one is a clear winner over the other.

[erktrek]

If you are feeling frisky and are in the US before setting up a new hub consider using a Y cable and a separate Aeotec Z stick... then if your C5 ever died you could move to a new one without having to exclude/include. Might be worth the extra cost - Z stick is good to have anyway.

Restoring a backup to a new hub

The C-4 used an external Zigbee + ZWave USB stick. We'll ignore the C-4 because you don't have one, and swapping is trivial. However, the C-4 taught us that adding a 2nd ZStick would allow that 2nd stick to become the ONLY ZWave radio. This is still how Hubitat ships Hubs to non-USA frequency locations. Yes, buy both. While you're waiting for delivery, build a computer to run either ZenTools or OZWCP. ZenTools is a windows program and I have successfully built a…

The only reason I am even mentioning this is you have a large # of devices so managing them can be a pain. Splitting them between hubs does make it easier though.. I have 3 - controller hub (no ZW/ZB), Main Floor Hub, and a 2nd Floor Hub.

[jtmpush18]

A quick point.
May I suggest that you go through the "soft reset" procedure before going with HubConnect and "spreading your load". Perhaps that (along with perhaps a zwave repair and reboot), may make your system "snappy" again.
Also, if you really want to push it, you may also wish to use any of the Zwave Sniffing/Mapping software to see if you have any "phantom" devices which are slowing down your network.
Please do not misunderstand me. HubConnect is great - I use it myself, and it really works. But, perhaps there may be other approaches that should be looked at first.