I have subscribed to Hub Protect for over a year now. I do it primarly for the extended warranty and also for the fact it includes radio backups. I have been a happy customer.
Recently, on the forum, I have come across the argument that Hub Protect should just exist for those who want a cloud backup and that both local and cloud backups should contain radio backups. It was suggested that the value should all be placed in simply having a backup of your HE data in the cloud.
To me, this argument makes no sense. Here is why: Along with subscribing to Hub Protect, my HE automatically does local backups to my Synology NAS (thanks to the users that helped me set this up). My Synology NAS then does automatic backups to the Cloud using Backblaze services. Backblaze charges me a rate of $0.005 per GB each month. My HE local backup is currently 2 MB in size. If it included radio backups I imagine at most it would double in size to 4 MB. If I wanted to keep 25 of these backups on Backblaze that would be 100MB and would cost me $0.0005 per month or just over half of one penny per year.
This is the cost of cloud storage today. The argument that Hubitat Protect should just be a service for people who want to store an HE backup in the cloud makes no sense.
Everyone has to decide for themselves, of course..
I wouldn't subscribe to hub protect if radios were included the local backups. Which I assume is precisely why they won't include radios in the local backups.
(disclaimer - I'm not currently a subscriber, but have been in the past and will be again if I move more zwave devices over to my C-8)
(EDIT: Correction - Now I am a subscriber again... )
Its not about the cloud storage at all. Its about the extended warranty and the piece of mind that it will be very easy to drop in a replacement hub should yours die. If you have a large number of z-wave (or Zigbee on the C-8) devices, hub replacement without Hub Protect could be a pretty major chore.
Full Disclosure: I'm not a Hub Protect subscriber, but I've been considering it for a while simply as a way to support the Hubitat team because I love what they've built and the community that they've built around it.
Edit: I included a note about how HP will now restore zigbee networks on the C-8 hub.
I also subscribe for the warranty, but would love to know how you did the automatic backups to your synology nas. I also have one as well and haven't been able to figure out a way to do it.
If you have hub protect on your old hub. Cancel the subscription. Then go to Subscriptions – Hubitat Support and open a case. They can put the balance of the subscription on your new hub.
This exactly. My reasons are: Cloud backup - 0% (I have more than enough already through other services); support the platform that I want to continue to exist and which I know doesn't have significant recurring revenue streams - 80%; Backup of ZW Radio - 10% (maybe if I had had any of my 3 hubs exhibit any sort of problems at all, I'd bump this up, but I haven't); extended warranty - 10% (same parenthetical as previous). While I agree with the OP that there is no inherent technical reason that the radio backup shouldn't be included in the local backup, Hubitat isn't exactly an expensive proposition in the first place, so I view it more as a voluntary contribution to the platform - the same way one might do for a Hub app developer who makes a very useful app and then, out of benevolence, publishes it for everyone and just asks in return that if you like it, throw a few bucks in the plate.
Same for me. I like the online backup, their ability to include Zdevices and the warranty. I also really appreciate remote access which makes it easier to provide support to my father.
Finally, and most importantly, I like supporting causes or organisations that I believe in.
IMO if there is no technical reason radio backups can't be done locally, we should have the ability to do them locally. I'm not a fan of the idea of adding value to the subscription by withholding features that don't have to be server dependent
The alternative is to raise the price on the hub to all users, including users who don't value the service. It's the same idea as optional add-on charges for airline tickets. People complain about add-ons, but when the prices goes up to build in the features people keep on complaining.
ok question... if i already have hub protect on the new hub and cancel the old is there any way to extend the new one with the remainder of the old so it is more than a year?
Well I don't think that Hubitat is going to screw everyone that way. They made it an option. You can either A: get the hub protect subscription. B: Not get the Hub Protect sub. C: Go to ST to get your radio backed up..... Oh wait...
i also appreiate the way they unbundled the admin .. as i have vpns and dont really need to pay for the admin as i prefer to use my own vpn for access (openvpn with certs) rather that have a cloud port opened that could be hacked.
In my mind this is a valid position, but it can go both ways. I'm specifically thinking of the numerous platform updates and new integrations that I've gotten (for free) since I've purchased my HE. These updates incur real costs to the company, but they've chosen to give them to users for free rather than charge us for them. It seems likely that these free updates and new integrations are funded at least in part by Hub Protect subscription fees, and I'm ok with that.
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