I have a C8 running v 2.3.6.146.
After having to get a replacement hub I got it up and running and added 7 Kasa devices. I got a dashboard set up and everything seemed ok.
The next day my router rebooted and reassigned the devices different IP addresses. Now none of the devices in Hubitat run the correct switches. In other words when I trigger switch 1 it will operate switch 3, etc. If I go into Kasa or SmartThings everything is fine.
I have looked at my devices in Hubitat and the MAC address all correspond to the correct device, only the IP addresses have changed.
I rebooted my router and hub and this just changed the IP's again, now switch 1 operates switch 6.
What am I missing so that Hubitat associates a device with its MAC address no matter which IP address the router assigns in DHCP? Do I have to go into my router and reserve the IP's for all my devices?
I have to be missing something!!
Thanks.
What you need to do is go into your router configuration and reserve the DHCP addresses for each device. That will ensure that it maintains the same IP address when the router reboots. I don't know which model of router you have. In mine (Netgear Nighthawk), I go into the Advanced/Setup/Lan Setup. From there, I have a table of reserved addresses. To add a device, I select the Add button and it brings up a list of devices with MAC addresses. I can select one or more and when I add them, the router reboots and then the addresses will stick and not change. Your router should be similar. I hope you get it fixed. Static/Reserved IP addresses are the way to go.
Thanks for the reply, I had a feeling that is what was going to be required. I just don't understand how SmartThings, Kasa, and Shelly have no issues without having to reserve every IP that is used. I always assumed that they were using the MAC as the primary address for control. It is kind of like the US Postal sending you mail to the grocery store you visited last week instead of sending it to your home. Between this issue and the fact that every time my router reboots (nearly daily) the Hub does not reconnect wirelessly, it requires me to connect the Hub directly to the router with ethernet. Hubitat has not gotten this hub ready for release with all these issues.
Time to submit a refund request if I cannot get some of this resolved.
Running wirelessly was the #1 reason I purchased, next was the customizability of the dashboard.
I can deal with reserving the IP's on my router, just disappointed that I have to.
I'll preface this by saying networking is not my area of expertise...
But, something I feel quite confident about is that the reserving of IP addresses via a router versus configuration on the device and how this plays out is not something specific to how it works for HE or any other device. My understanding is that configuring an IP on the device is only a "request" that the device makes to the router to use the IP address, but if another device assumes that IP before the configured device can make that equest, say after a router restart, then it's bad luck, e.g. the router is restarted, a device that takes whatever address is allocated dynamically assumes the address in question, then the configured device attempts to get it's preferred address but it is already allocated by the router.
I believe this could happen just as much for a pvr as it could for HE. So I guess the point being, this is not a failing of HE and it is likely just good luck rather than good design for why you have had no issues with other devices.
I agree that the reserving of IP's works the way you state, from what I understand. My issue with HE is that when the IP's change, they do not keep track of the devices any other way. Yet the apps of every manufacture of the devices I use can keep track of the IP address that should be used, even when it changes. Every time my network reboots the IP's of my devices change, SmartThings, Kasa and Shelly all work with no intervention from me. Plus I do not have to go thru the process of reconnecting their devices back onto my network.
I still feel that I am missing some step in the setup of the hub.
The difference is that Hubitat is local, so needs to know the IP Addresses. Kasa and Smart Things are cloud based, and thus don't need to know the IP Address as they work differently. I'm not familiar with Shelly. Local is good, but it means you need to reserve the address in your router.
It is an issue with WiFi devices. I have some WiFi devices. My Hubitat uses a combination of Zigbee and a few Z-Wave devices, but none that are WiFi except the Google Home Mini which I use as a wireless speaker with the Chromecast Integration (beta). For that, I have an IP address reserved. Other WiFi devices that are not a part of my Hubitat environment such as cameras also get fixed/reserved IP address.
It is more like you ordered a package to your original address, and moved without telling the post office. Where would the mailman deliver your package, to the original address or the new one?
Why disappointed? Anytime you want to consistency, you want the IP address to be the same. If DHCP was perfect, then no device would have settings like Static IP, nor would you have the IP Reservation section on your router.
Your other hub is "reading" the cloud instead of direct. The cloud is the IP address reservation system, so to speak. The cloud server is always at the same location, so Smartthings just has to connect to that server.
Why is your router rebooting that often? That doesn't seem normal? Most routers I have used can go literally forever without a reboot. For decades I have used the absolute trashiest networking stuff (TP-Link) and it never needs rebooting, unless I do a firmware update or something like that.
This is the biggest point. For any cloud-based integration, the devices themselves on your local network dial out to the cloud server for that company - either via a known IP address or by hostname (resolving via DNS). That network socket is kept open, and when the cloud server gets a request from the app on your phone, or another service connected to it, it uses that open socket to send the command to the device.
Contrary to that, the kasa devices (or any other LAN device) do not know or care about Hubitat, or how to contact it. Therefore Hubitat must maintain a record of how to contact the device. From that assumption it is simply a question of what network layer is used to define that record.
Hubitat (and most consumer electronics) chose to utilize L3/IP as that reference layer, for better or worse. This is what most of the general public will best recognize, outside of a domain name.
Could Hubitat choose L2/Ethernet, and use the device MAC address (which is already a unique identifier)? Sure - it's discovered already, but I believe only used as (part of) the unique device id. But the bottom line is that most of this protocol is handled by your network interface drivers, not in an application layer.
OK, the local thing makes sense. I'm not a network kind of person.
I have no problems with reserving the IP's needed. I was looking at how the other apps use the MAC to define the address and was expecting Hubitat to do the same. There is not much documentation from Hubitat on this that I saw. Maybe I missed it somewhere.
Unfortunately non of this solves the hub not reconnecting to my router when it reboots.
I am using a battery powered 5G hotspot (Inseego M2000), this is the best solution for me right now. They are not the most stable routers, it reboots on average once a day. Whether it is due to cellular connection drops or heat from charging the battery I do not know. This is a common issue with this device, and not an issue with any of my other devices. The Hubitat is the only device that requires an ethernet connection to reconnect to Wifi.
I understand this is a different type of architecture from a phone or PC, but again, I guess I was expecting more then the Hubitat can deliver at this time. I hope this is just a firmware update away from this issue being fixed.
I really think the Hubitat is the best solution to what I am trying to do. I just need it to do it wirelessly.
Apps don't use the mac address to define the the ip. DHCP is the application layer. It reads the broadcast mac address on the network and assigns the ip. Then some local stuff uses mdns or similar to find a device. In some cases Hubitat actually does this. (lifx for example) When you have an app (lets say tuya life). It DOES NOT read the ip locally. If first looks to their server at what the device connected to their server is using then tells the app that the ip they're looking for is over here... or there. Hubitat also does this when it connects to their cloud server and you use find.hubitat.com. Now that said, as has been repeated here, setting a DHCP reservation for all wifi devices that hubitat uses as well as for hubitat itself is the best way to go about things. This way when you do get an expiration of leases from your DHCP server on your router (or whatever is doing your DHCP leases) you can be confident that those devices will always have the same IP. Now where this can be a little tricky is if you lose your DHCP server and a device reboots or a lease has expired, it will come back up and not have an address. If that is the case, a lot of devices you can set a static ip directly on the device. (These ip's should be set outside of your DHCP scope). That way you can communicate with them regardless. Unfortunately a lot of devices don't allow you to set static ip's (Homepod's for example).
That is not normal, and not good for the reliable performance of any router/network. IMHO, it would be best if you spend a little time/money on this issue before the other downstream problems w/HA gear that you are focusing on. Especially if you're overheating your battery/device repeatedly every day, which they definitely do not like, can result in fires (in the case of the battery). The most important part of your network is not reliable...not good.
I'm out, after trying to get this to work for the past 3 weeks and having had the first Hubitat replaced because of an issue with the Wifi not working, I am going to request a refund.
Hubitat has stated that an Ethernet connection is not required for the operation of the C8, and I have found that in my situation this is not the case.
I have set this up with 2 different routers, one with internet and one without. And on both networks, if the router reboots the C8 will not regain connectivity thru Wifi without first being connected thru an Ethernet connection.
I have been using my current cellular router for over 1.5 years and have had on average 10 - 12 devices connected at any given moment, While it may not be the most stable I have never had anything so hard to get reconnected as the Hubitat C8, even devices that have not connected to the network for over 6 months, still connect the moment I boot them up. I have a few Kasa outlets that are not used during the summer months, so I unplug them until they are needed during the winter. These reconnect instantly, no issues. The Hubitat requires at least one reboot, sometimes multiple to get it running thru Wifi again. Not what I am willing to deal with.
My (minor to me) network issue of rebooting once daily have no bearing on the fact that the Hubitat requires an Ethernet connection to reconnect to a network over Wifi.
Flame On if you feel the need. This is my experience YMMV.
