Do I need WiFi (client mode/access point) on a BT/BLE Proxy node (ESP32)?

ESPHome
1

Hello!

I have a conceptual question about the Bluetooth (or rather BLE) Proxy. Also after reading ESP32 Bluetooth Low Energy Tracker Hub, I am not yet sure, hence my question below.

Is my understanding correct that adding WiFi connectivity to the (ESP32) node with the BT/BLE Proxy is not necessary (neither client mode, nor access point), because the ESP32 should only transport bluetooth (LE) signals?

But why does the generic ESP32 code at GibHub for BT proxies contain WiFi (both client mode and access point)?

Currently, I have the below WiFi-related code included in my proxy yaml and wonder if I should better remove it (to keep it lean), or if/why I should reduce it to the generic code at GibHub:

wifi:
  ssid: !secret router_ssid
  password: !secret router_password
  manual_ip:
    static_ip: 192.168.11.11
    gateway: 192.168.11.1
    subnet: 255.255.255.0
    dns1: 192.168.11.1
    dns2: 192.168.11.1
  ap:
    ap_timeout:
    ssid: ${friendly_name}
    password: !secret esp32-ap_password
    manual_ip:
      static_ip: 192.168.11.11
      gateway: 192.168.11.1
      subnet: 255.255.255.0
      dns1: 192.168.11.1
      dns2: 192.168.11.1

This ESP32 is adopted in HA that runs on a Raspberry Pi 4 that is connected (via ethernet) with the router.

Furthermore, I also included 2 buttons as shown below, so the proxy node could be restarted or restarted in safe mode. If this could ever be necessary at all, I don’t know. Nor do I understand, whether this makes sense if WiFi was removed:

button:
  - platform: restart
    name: "${friendly_name} restart"
    icon: "mdi:restart"
  - platform: safe_mode
    name: "${friendly_name} restart in safe mode"
    icon: "mdi:restart-alert"

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and for your help! :+1:

Kind regards
7wells

PS:
Could somebody please also provide a hint how to check if the proxy works correctly? Thank you! :blush:

2

Definitely incorrect, unless you ESP device is using Ethernet to connect to HA. BT Proxy just means the device is forwarding what BT data it sees, it still talks to HA over WiFi (or Ethernet).

And look at the logs for the BT Proxy to see if it’s working, but there shouldn’t be any reason it isn’t.

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