As Hubitat is promote its offline capability, it would just complete the circle to allow firmware update with a bin file. A little bit like the 3d printers, or surveillance video system. This will allow to update firmware just by carrying the file.
But the most important thing is to allow the user to decide and choose the firmware version he or she prefer. On every update, there will be unhappy clients and happy ones. For instance, I bought a garmin gps for cycling. I was able to paired my speed, cadence and heart sensor. But then, after an update, they were no longer working. Garmin wanted to force me to buy garmin sensors. They said that they do not longer support non garmin sensors anymore. I did not expect to buy three sensors to match the garmin. I beg them to return my garmin to the old version. No way, they apparently had no way to do it.
This is exactly why We want to use file update instead of on line update. I really think it is up to the owner to choose what he likes.
My Prusa 3d printer does this beautifully. We can choose the file we want, and they even have most of the old versions still available on their website. Please use this same way.
The ability to upload firmware directly/offline has been discussed in a few threads in the past and doesn't seem something they are interested in doing at this time. However, rolling back to a previous version is possible by two methods:
three recent versions (either the last three or, what I've noticed lately, the last two on the current x.y.z release plus the latest from z-1)
semi-documented endpoints you can use to download the latest version of some x.y.z release, even if it is no longer available on your hub; example: Download Firmware Updates - #34 by aaiyar
The firmware change, either way, is then be done via the diagnostic tool, Settings > Diagnostic Tool if your hub is working fine or port 8081 if it isn't.
That is a shame that they wouldn’t consider offline updates. Cause as far as the update of old version using the diagnostic tool doesn’t seems to be any garantie that the version you want will still be there when you need it. For instance, right now I am on 2.1.9.117. I dont seems to be able to verify if that version will be available if I update now.
That reminds me when I had an iPhone and then decided to try updating the ios. After the update, the keypad was getting so slow it was no longer operational. But this took me some time before I realised that there was no way to fix it by changing options. When I wanted to revert back to the old version, Apple decided to remove the « signed » version of the old ios. I.e. they did not allow returning back. So I was stuck with an phone that I could not use anymore. I had to buy a new phone. Guess what brand I bought?
I have written a pretty large software (L-POS and L-BOSS) for years and the updates were done locally only. Then people were asking online updates. So we did created online updates but, you could always choose to update from a file, from our servers, or even from your own servers for larger clients who wanted to control their destiny.
I wouldn’t mind having to replace the hub to get local updates. I would like to understand why they wouldn’t allow local updating since it is so much easier to do. And they could really claim to be fully local is needed.
Hope my english is good enough to be understood. But if you can put pressure on them....
If you look at the other threads you’ll find that the reasoning behind the thank you for your suggestion, but “no” response is fairly solid. If, however, you need to revert to a firmware version that is not listed in the Diagnostics Menu a simple PM request to Support is generally all it takes to have it made available to your hub.
This is not the type of garantie I was looking for.
I could keep listing reasons of local updates, but your answers seems to tell me that there will be no way that they’ll do it. I’ll stay on the version I have for ever I guess. But I keep in mind that they shouldn’t claimed that they can be offline... not totally anyway.
But thanks guys...
A lot of it too is they don't want to give people a way to peel back their code which doing a file like that would do. You could tether it to your cell phone if you need to update it. Or if it's on the same network but isolated give it temporary internet access then restrict it again when done. (Obviously I don't know the situation where you're at)
It’s actually a valid claim as there is really no need to ever upgrade to the next release of software if you’re happy with the way the current is working. The hub can run its entire life without connecting to the outside world if you like.
Ha.... voilà ... seems to me this is the « old » way no? That reminds me whan I started programming... looooong time ago... I was not allow to show a line of code to anybody. But when I started my company I changed this. Allowing more people Interested in my code was just the thing to « attach » them to our product. It seems to have worked. And today... looking at the github and how many people sharing their code, like Prusa 3d printer, it is working. If Prusa is not the number one 3d printer, they are certainly not far.
Open groovy is one thing, but the platform itself is proprietary. Hubitat also has it's own github at GitHub - hubitat/HubitatPublic But as said, the platform isn't public and probably never will be unless they decide to give it up and just leave the biz (which I hope to hell never happens)
I can certainly understand why someone might want offline updates in general. You can install a hub somewhere where there is no internet connection and you can pair zigbee devices with it, write rules, automate stuff - all without any internet at all. But you can't update it. It seems like the one limitation in an otherwise perfect offline experience.
Well to be fair if the destination hub is in a different location without internet, that might be ok to bring a thumb drive into the mix (but then you still need a LAN to load it up from)
No cos you will almost certainly have internet access somewhere (for instance maybe the hub in question is not in your home) and you can of course download onto a laptop and take it to your non-connected destination hub. And yeah, it's easy enough to have a LAN without paying for internet access somewhere you don't need it (well not for anything other than downloading your hub updates)
At that point fire up a hotspot on your phone and let the hub connect. The places that this or some other method to connect the hub can’t be used fall into the 1%-2% category and everyone knows you that you aim for the 98% solution because chasing down the other 2% leads to never delivering the product.
Time to close this thread and move on, because
It doesn’t matter what you or I say about this
This thread is not going to change anyone with the power to make this decision’s mind
I think that might not be quite fair. They often will listen to us if we can make a good usage case. Though I admit in this case your idea of a hotspot might work in a lot of cases - what if it's a place with no wired internet and no mobile signal?
