Command_line sensor setup fails, command line working

Configuration
1

Good morning

Have a command_line sensor configured in configuration.yaml to check an IMAP server certificate expiry:

command_line:
  - sensor:
      name: Mail Server Zertifikat
      unique_id: imap_server_cert_expiry
      command: "echo | openssl s_client -4 -connect imap.example.com:993 -servername imap.example.com 2>/dev/null | openssl x509 -noout -enddate | cut -d= -f2"
      scan_interval: 43200
      unit_of_measurement: days
      value_template: >-
        {{ (( as_timestamp(strptime(value, '%b %d %H:%M:%S %Y %Z')) - as_timestamp(now()) ) / 86400 ) | round(0) }}

Running this command from the web shell is fine:

âžś  ~ echo | openssl s_client -4 -connect imap.example.com:993 -servername imap.example.com 2>/dev/null | openssl x509 -noout -enddate | cut -d= -f2
Oct  8 12:23:31 2026 GMT

But when reloading YAML or do a complete restart protocol tells me that no value was returned.

Any hints?

2

Maybe like all bash scripting the pipeing goes wrong, so you may try to invoke the shell first.
Something like this:

      command: "/bin/sh -c 'echo | openssl s_client -4 -connect imap.example.com:993 -servername imap.example.com 2>/dev/null | openssl x509 -noout -enddate | cut -d= -f2'"
3

No luck…

Command failed (with return code 127): "/bin/sh -c 'echo | openssl s_client -4 -connect imap.example.com:993 -servername imap.example.com 2>/dev/null | openssl x509 -noout -enddate | cut -d= -f2'"

Seems I need just to put up an apache2 webservice for this to use cert_expiry…

4

You are probably running the two commands from two different environments.

HA will run the command in the HA container.
Your SSH will likely run in a totally different container.

5

Beats me (o;

Even ChatGPT and Jean Claude Van Damme were clueless today (o;

Going with the Apache2 approach then…should then certbot also automatically the certificate…

6

Can I ask why you do not use the cert_expire in HA?

No idea if it works on IMAP too though.

7

When you run the command what does the logs say?

8

cert_expiry fails sadly on IMAPS…

9

Or add openssl into the homeassistent (core) container

      command: "apk add --quiet --no-cache openssl && echo | openssl s_client -4 -connect imap.example.com:993 -servername imap.example.com 2>/dev/null | openssl x509 -noout -enddate | cut -d= -f2"