Will this work the way i think it should?

[v6turbo]

@ogiewon

Yes, this trigger will run every 20 minutes. It will then check the Required Expression and will stop all processing if the condition is not met.

would it be better to put the off in the trigger ? does it matter in the end ?

[v6turbo]

@ogiewon

This is a very efficient way of handling this rule, IMHO.

so should most have this then ? example - no need for if nobody home

the other option would a MODE restriction on the trigger - then it doesn't even fire... err execute ?

example

effectively the same ? or is one better from effecny perspective?

(if using the conditional trigger would delete the required expression)

[hydro311]

I think of it like this... A Required Expression (RE) acts as the rule's overall gatekeeper... When the RE is false, it's as if the rule doesn't even exist -- the hub isn't even watching for the Trigger event. When RE is true, the the rule is "live", and the hub is watching for the Trigger.

With no RE, the rule is always live, so every Trigger event is in play -- then a Conditional Trigger is a real-time gatekeeper... When the trigger event happens, it's then evaluated against its CT -- if CT is true, the trigger fires. If CT is false, the trigger does not fire.

In the end, both ultimately achieve the same thing -- both gatekeep the trigger.

But everything's a compromise -- REs can be considered more efficient since they limit the amount of trigger evaluations; however, since they are states, they can potentially get gummed up by something like a hub restart.

CTs can be considered more reliable since they're a real-time evaulation, but that also means the trigger cocks the rule everytime it occurs. In cases where the trigger shouldn't fire more often than not, that's not an efficient way to do it.

So when deciding whether to use a RE or a CT, I look at it in terms of how often the trigger wil get called versus how often I want it to actually fire... In some cases, using an RE makes more sense, and sometimes using a CT is the better choice.

I have some rules where I even use both (not for the same thing, of course).

My goal is always to narrow down as best I can exactly when & how often that rule gets triggered and fires.

[v6turbo]

@hydro311

I think of it like this... A Required Expression (RE) acts as the rule's overall gatekeeper... When the RE is false, it's as if the rule doesn't even exist -- the hub isn't even watching for the Trigger event. When RE is true, the the rule is "live", and the hub is watching for the Trigger.

With no RE, the rule is always live, so every Trigger event is in play -- then a Conditional Trigger is a real-time gatekeeper... When the trigger event happens, it's then evaluated against its CT -- if CT is true, the trigger fires. If CT is false, the trigger does not fire.

In the end, both ultimately achieve the same thing -- both gatekeep the trigger.

But everything's a compromise -- REs can be considered more efficient since they limit the amount of trigger evaluations; however, since they are states, they can potentially get gummed up by something like a hub restart.

CTs can be considered more reliable since they're a real-time evaluation, but that also means the trigger cocks the rule every time it occurs. In cases where the trigger shouldn't fire more often than not, that's not an efficient way to do it.

So when deciding whether to use a RE or a CT, I look at it in terms of how often the trigger wil get called versus how often I want it to actually fire... In some cases, using an RE makes more sense, and sometimes using a CT is the better choice.

I have some rules where I even use both (not for the same thing, of course).

My goal is always to narrow down as best I can exactly when & how often that rule gets triggered and fires.

okay that makes it clear then

use RE when the rule should NOT be sitting there cycling - long periods where it would not trigger anyway,

If you expect all the time - like a motion trigger - just use that for CT only

in that case of this Ping there is no need for it when the house is empty so an RE makes more sense

[Sebastien]

Exactly!