I am setting up a new house and trying to keep everything in HA. Previously, I ran all Insteon on isy. I do not have an Insteon Hub, just a USB modem. With isy, any links you create still work even if the isy is offline. Is that the case with HA? If I create a link between 2 switches using HA, will they still function if HA goes offline? Or, is the connection being run through HA?
If the switches are with Shelly, yes… what hardware models are you talking about (I can’t help with the insteon)… Is the Insteon cluod based or not, that is a pretty good indicator -
They are regular Insteon dimmer switches. It is not cloud based. I am using a HA Green build with an Insteon USB modem connected to the HA.
when insteon modules are controlled locally (e.g., by physically activating the toggle on a switchlinc device), a command is sent (broadcast) over the shared insteon communication channel to the power-line modem (PLM) as well as to any other linked modules.
in addition to talking to the PLM, insteon modules can also be configured to talk to “peer” modules, a process sometimes referred to as linking. links can be created through home automation control software and also “manually” by pushing buttons on the modules. side note: all communication in Insteon is broadcast to all devices on the network and devices acting as repeaters for insteon traffic is intrinsic to how insteon protocol works. so “linking” devices really just means configuring them to act when they receive commands from certain peers. the PLM is essentially always listening to all devices.
so it is possible to use insteon with linking between modules. it is also possible to use insteon in HA using only links between the modules and the PLM. both approaches are viable and there are nuanced pros and cons to both.
insteon is pretty old. if you were a long-time owner and user of insteon gear before switching to HA like it sounds like you were with isy, then it is likely that you used at least some of the added functionality that comes with using some direct module-to-module links. example cases where this is common and useful are where you have multi-way switches, or where you may have an insteon sensor (such as motion sensor or door sensor) controlling an insteon lamp or switch module.
if you have your insteon gear set up to use linking, then the answer to your specific question is “yes”. links that are setup directly between insteon devices will still function whether HA is online or not. for example, if you cross-linked two insteon switches at either end of your hallway so that they behave as a virtual 3-way switch, then they will work that way when HA is running and they will still work that way when HA is not running.
if you have your insteon gear set up so that modules are linked only with the PLM and not with other modules, then you will be dependent on HA and triggers for any cross-device functions to work.
Thanks for the thorough reply.
Yes, I am a longtime user of Insteon and ISY. (I also run HA to bring more things together on a dashboard.) Both have been very reliable. I considered other switches for our new house, but I found Insteon to have more capability for my purposes than any of the alternatives.
You did confirm what I was suspecting - building links in HA makes them dependent on HA. I don’t have enough experience to know how well (fast, reliable) this will work compared to building the links in ISY.
For my purposes and competency, I think adding an eISY will be better for me.
Thanks again