All the stuff I'm controlling are line-powered, so the backup consideration isn't a factor (yet). The Aeotec unit is on the way now, so I don't have the latitude to change. I hope it will work for me; if not, I'll try to return it and get the Ring. Thanks!
Make sure you have your hub and preferably also your network equipment on a UPS.
Hey if they work... you know the old saying!
Indeed I do!
I'm not that worried about power issues. What I really do with home control is control lights the great majority of the time. If we happen to be away, or at night, I'd like to be able to to light our outside security lights. Without power, none of this is possible even if the hub and network are active. We have underground utilities here, too, and we've probably had less than five power fails that were anything other than momentary.
Having the hub on a UPS helps protect from the possible consequences of an uncontrolled shutdown - mostly database corruption. A momentary disruption can be just as harmful.
I generally put anything sensitive on a UPS even though I don't have power failures often, and I have a generator... but of course everyone is different.
Oh, you will when (not if) your hub's database becomes corrupted by an unexpected (and abrupt) power fail shutdown. If you get the Ring Extender v2 (as you indicate you will), put in rules that cleanly shut the hub down when the Ring Extender sends a power fail event. If you want, I posted my voting rules for shutdown with Ring a couple of months ago. Here is that post:
I made a comment in that post that perhaps I should always shut down if the Ring Extender on the same circuit as the Hubitat hub indicates power fail, but, on reflection, I have left it the way it is because that Ring Extender might accidentally get knocked out of the receptacle, and I wouldn't want the Hub to shut down if it wasn't a true power fail. Leaving it as a vote between all the Ring Extenders seems the better way to do it.
You could have Echo Speaks announce a pending shutdown and give yourself 60 seconds to cancel If the power really is out echo speaks won't be speaking.
Well, it will if the Echo is on battery backup and if your network is on battery backup. Mine is, but I have the shutdown rules send notification to our phones.
@OldGuy Just a thought. If you have a large house with multiple stories you "may" want to consider a second hub upstairs. Of course that will require network connectivity at that location. Hubitat has a builtin feature called Hub Mesh that allows hubs to share device information across the network. It is solid and seamless and devices that are "meshed" can appear on both hubs. It could make device management easier and ZWave and Zigbee range much better. I have 5 hubs that split my devices up for various reasons. I have one in my storage shed in the back yard for range purposes. I have one main hub that all devices show up on and I manage most rules from there. Something to explore....
Speaking of which, when might we anticipate that release? Any inside information you can share?
As soon as it’s ready
To all who offered comments on the UPS side, thanks! One thing I'm a bit confused about is whether a corrupt HE database would be repaired by restoring a backup. If that's the case, then the UPS is important primarily if the problem occurs while we're away and can't restore the backup. However, I have had very rare situations where a power issue caused the router/WiFi hub to hang, requiring me to restore it manually, even with surge protectors. So I'm looking into the UPS approach.
It can be. When the backups are made they're cleaned. I usually make a manual download though and use that for my restore if I can get to the page.
If your power failures are brief even a really inexpensive, low-capacity UPS will do what you want. You can also get creative and use a Ring extender 2 to detect whether you've lost power, and initiate a clean shutdown of the hub, I have a small UPS that provides protection for a PoE switch, and the PoE switch powers 5 hubs (using PoE splitters in most cases). I probably have an hour of runtime or so. All I really need is about 30 seconds to cover small blips or, in the case of a longer outage, to allow the transfer switch to transfer to standby power.
![](https://community.hubitat.com/user_avatar/community.hubitat.com/rlithgow1/48/183913_2.png)
It can be. When the backups are made they're cleaned. I usually make a manual download though and use that for my restore if I can get to the page.
OK, I'll get a modest UPS and hook it up. I'll also set the Internet router on it, and I already download a local backup every time I make any changes. Thanks for all the advice!
I've found these really useful for a hub ups. They have a long runtime too.
TalentCell Mini UPS Uninterrupted Power Supply 27000mAh 98Wh Lithium ion Backup Battery with DC 12V/9V/5V Output for Wireless Router, Modem, LED Light, CCTV Camera, Smartphone and More
Thanks!
OK, my two Aeotec Repeater 7s came. I put them in with no issues, other than they show up as "generic repeater" and there's no specific Aeotec Repeater 7 option. In any event, I did a repair of the Z-Wave mesh and everything worked. It improved a lot of the routes and it connected the garage plug that I was previously unable to reach. Thanks to everyone for their suggestions and comments!
That's great to hear. Let things settle a bit then start checking your z-wave details page for high amounts of route changes. If there aren't any, I would think you have the problem in hand solved.