Hi,
I'm new to HE, migrating over from ST. I went through and reset all my Z-Wave switches and plugs and was pretty much done adding them to HE. Then, through my own stupidity, using my ST hub, I excluded a bunch of my switches. They still show up in HE devices, but they don't work. If I re-add them, then I have two instances, one that works, and one that doesn't. If I go to delete the non-working one, the hub goes into exclusion mode and I end up removing both instances.
I'm a little fuzzy-brained over this one. You mean is there a way to somehow re-include the zwave device while leaving the original z-wave device on HE intact and somehow re-matching them?
You MIGHT be able to do this with the z-wave replace function if the excluded device still shows up in the zwave details page. But I'd make sure as you go you aren't creating a lot of zwave ghost devices. Those will come back to haunt you.
How many are we talking, and what's the advantage? Have you already used those devices in a bunch of automation and you're trying to save yourself the hassle of updating them all?
Well... if the devices still show up in zwave details and a replace button is available (you might have to hit refresh or repair a couple times) that might work. But yeah I think so. Hopefully it's not too many devices.
This would be my choice, though the "if available" thing can be tricky, and hitting "Refresh" one or twice as you note may be necessary for the hub to see it's failed (which is the only time it will show up).
But ...
This shouldn't be a concern. The hub only knows devices by their node ID, so if you include it as a "new" device (which will have a different node ID), it won't affect the new one when you remove the old one. You also won't really be able to do a Z-Wave exclusion in this case at all, since the "old" node is no longer available; your only option will be to "Force Remove." (As mentioned above, I'd suggest checking Z-Wave Details afterwards and doing a "Remove" on the "ghost" this will likely leave behind. The hex node ID is the Device Network ID if you need a way to match them up, though you'd have to check that on the "old" device detail page before removal.)
Do note that the device will need to be "politely" excluded from ST or have a general exclusion done with Hubitat or any controller before being able to pair again, whether like normal or via Replace. (Hubitat still won't be a problem to use for this exclusion because the device on ST would have an entirely different "home ID," which identifies the Z-Wave network it's on.)
But, yeah, "Replace" would probably be easier than all the rest if you can manage to make that work.
@majorheadache Can you post a screenshot of your z-wave details page in it's entirety? Also take a look at this link. It can help you avoid some gotchas as a new user.
What is the preferred method for posting images? I tried using the upload button, but the response was media isn't allowed.
The screen shows 40 items, 30 are my existing Z-Wave units, and the other 10 are mysteries. Maybe the ghosts you mentioned?
Refresh the line until the remove button comes up, click remove. If it won't remove you need to figure out what device caused the ghost and remove power to that device and try again. If in the end you can't remove it you will need a z-wave stick and the free silabs software to remove
One last thing. Shut down the hub from the settings menu. Unplug power to the hub (at the wall not the hub) for 5 mins and power back up and try the remove again. Also check this link... It helps prevent gotchas like this..
Any z-wave stick will do... Also don't confuse hex with dec when doing it.
Fortunately it's a cheap toy. But I haven't had to use mine in ages - since the newer SLI stack was released it's been a lot better about dealing with ghosts. Check to make sure your hub has the most recent zwave stack - if there's an "update firmware" button at the top of your zwave details page try that. (Apologies if someone has already mentioned this.)
Using the shut down method, I was able to remove one more ghost, now I have 6 left. Only one has a route. I ordered a Z-Wave stick. I'm pasting the ghosts below, in case it's of interest.
I want to say that this is an amazing community, reminiscent of the old days on the internet when people went out of their way to really help their fellow hobbyists. Thanks for that!
I haven't seen this many ghosts fail to remove in a long time. Have you tried "remove" lots of times? My concern is if the "real" device represented by the ghost is still powered on, the stick method won't help because the remove process (both hub and stick) will fail to mark the device as failed if they can reach it.
It really is. Folks here have saved my butt many, many times.
Before you call your realtor, I'm wondering if it's possible there is still power to those devices, whatever they are. They're all AC powered - can you cut AC power to them and still leave the hub, network, and laptop working? Or can you somehow air gap all your line-powered z-wave devices to make sure these are covered? Or (seriously) take your hub a few houses away and try it there?
Is there anything in your zwave logs when you try to do the repair/remove? Sometimes just waiting a while helps.
The stick is a pretty cheap item so no harm if you wait for it and see.
