Vera Vs hubitat

Hi,
Im thinking about changing Vera to hubitat but I have got one question.
In Vera I can change some variables setting of zwave devices , is that possibility in hubitat ?

Hi,

You can yes, by using this driver.

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As mentioned above, the basic zwave tool can do that. Now... How convenient or workable that is for you depends 100% on how often you will be doing it - as it is a little bit of a pain. Switch device to basic zwave tool, hit save, change parameter, change driver back to the normal driver, hit save.

So it is manual only, can't do it programmatically.

If you need regular/programmatic control of zwave parameters, it needs to be supported in the driver - typically via a user driver of your or someone else's creation. I have quite a number of user drivers I use to get continuous access to parameters that Hubitat chose not to expose in the in-box driver.

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Most of the built-in drivers for Fibaro, Aeotec, Zooz, Dome, Strips, NEO, Qubino, and some others, have settings that allow you to change many of the configuration parameters so for those devices there's usually no need to use that Z-Wave parameter tool or a user created driver.

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I'm guessing this isn't a usual occurrence? If a Vera hub owner can do the needed adjustments, and the tool is easier to use, wouldn't it be simple to join the device to the Vera hub, make the change, exclude from Vera, and then include to HE? Or does that wreak havoc to remove the device, make the change on Vera, and put it back on the HE mesh?

Some devices reset the configuration parameters on exclusion so for those devices, the changes made with the Vera hub would get lost.

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Excellent point!

and some "require" a factory reset to get them to pair again.

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Thanks for replies. I think it very similar to Vera so I will handle it.
Does anyone has got step by step instructions for VPN?
Its only way to connect remotely to hubitat,as far as I know ?

There are also cloud dashboards for device control. VPN is only necessary if you want to get to the web interface remotely. Are you planning on setting up a VPN through your home router? A Raspberry PI?

Search VPN, you'll find it here. However, you can also use something like TeamViewer to access the browser of an always on PC. I use an old MacBook Pro that also host several node.js applications, so it's always running on the local network anyway. This is of course only needed for admin.

If you need or want control of devices and status, you can access and control via dashboard from anywhere.

I would like to for example turn on or change thermostat temperature remotely when I will be on vacation.
As I understand the only way Is to set up VPN?

The Web interface for Hubitat includes everything from Dashboards where you can control all your devices to other pages where you join, setup and configure devices and hub stuff.

With the iOS or Android mobile app only the dashboards will be available and there is no settings needed inside Hubitat to make it work, you only need to ensure that the hub is connected to internet (I'm guessing here that you dont block any traffic in the out direction in your firewall).

So with the above it's safe to say that you will be able to control your home and set thermostat temperature when your not at home via the mobile app. No need for VPN or other configurations besides actually creating and designing your dashboards!

So without VPN I will be not able to do what ? :grin:

For example be able to join new devices and configure them you need to use a web browser (mobile or on your computer) AND you need local access to the hub either through your local network or by using VPN.

By using the mobile app the feature set is restricted to dashboards only which mean you are able to read values from sensors and control devices like switches, lamps, thermostats etc.

So to summarize:
Mobile app = read and set state of EXISTING devices - this is what I'm referring to when i say control
Local/VPN web = the above and all all other stuff you can do with the hub

Actually there are more ways to get remote control without using VPN or the mobile app. You can install the builtin Google Home app and use Google home on your iOS or Android device to control your devices regardless of your location!

Do you have any issues with push notifications on our phone?