I did some searching, but it’s quite hard to search for “document” and not mean HA documentation 
I was wondering whether anyone has any guidelines/templates/tips on how they document their smart home setups? I’m only just getting started, and I think working on a good documentation from the start will help me in the long run. I’m thinking that the following things would be important to document:
Etc.
If the information exists in HA then I try not to document it. I have some post-it notes that contains templates for writing automations and sensors that I have collected off the forum. I attach the URL to the template if I want to go back to the discussion. I also keep a document with all the important API keys, z-wave keys, watchman etc so I can rebuild if necessary. I write automations as files (not through UI) and when I have a “dead” automation, I always save the automation so I can go backwards if desired. I store electronic copies of any manuals on devices I own. All of this takes up about 600mb.
Below is my post-it-notes.
trigger:
- platform: state
entity_id: switch.half_bath_light
from: 'off'
to: 'on'
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- condition: state
entity_id: light.study_cans_current_value
state: 'off'
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
action:
- service: switch.turn_off
target:
entity_id:
- switch.s_outside_lights
- switch.outside_back_patio_light
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
alias: Estufa - 20h On, 4 off
description: ''
trigger:
- id: 'off'
platform: time
at:
- '12:00:00'
- '20:00:00'
- '04:00:00'
- id: 'on'
platform: time
at:
- '16:00:00'
- '00:00:00'
- '08:00:00'
condition: []
action:
- service: 'switch.turn_{{ trigger.id }}'
target:
entity_id: switch.0x847127fffeae874f
mode: single
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So if you have a light, and it’s entity_id is light.living_room, access any of the properties outside the attributes (or state), would be:
{{ states.light.living_room.entity_id }} # for the entity_id 'light.living_room'
{{ states.light.living_room.domain }} # for the domain 'light'
{{ states.light.living_room.object_id }} # for the object_id 'living_room'
{{ states.light.living_room.name }} # for the friendly_name 'Living Room'
{{ states.light.living_room.last_updated }} # for the datetime object in UTC when it was last updated
{{ states.light.living_room.last_changed }} # for the datetime object in UTC when the state last changed
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
alias: Example Sunrise Sunset Light
description: ''
trigger:
- id: '100'
platform: sun
event: sunset
offset: '-01:00:00'
- id: '30'
platform: time
at: '23:30:00'
- id: '0'
platform: sun
event: sunrise
offset: '-02:00:00'
condition: []
action:
- service: light.turn_on
target:
entity_id: light.outdoor_front
data:
brightness_pct: '{{ trigger.id }}'
mode: single
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
alias: activate light for 930pm till 10pm
description: ''
trigger:
- id: 'on'
platform: time
at: '21:30:00'
- id: 'off'
platform: time
at: '22:00:00'
condition: []
action:
- choose:
- conditions:
- "{{ trigger.id == 'on' }}"
- "{{ is_state('input_boolean.garage_light', 'on') }}"
sequence:
- service: switch.turn_on
target:
entity_id: switch.m_garage_light
- conditions: "{{ trigger.id == 'off' }}"
sequence:
- service: switch.turn_off
target:
entity_id: switch.m_garage_light
default: []
mode: single
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
trigger:
platform: template
value_template: "{{ states('input_datetime.test_last_timestamp')|as_datetime + timedelta(days = 10) > now() }}"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
# chopping off first and last character
{% set ev = "'66.5'" %}
{{ ev | int }} # will = 0
{{ ev')[1:-1] | int }} # will = 66
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- id: '1586455192037'
alias: School - Robin Wake Music
description: ''
trigger:
- platform: time
at: '05:55:00'
condition:
- "{{ is_state('calendar.noschool', 'off') }}"
- "{{ is_state('binary_sensor.workday_sensor', 'on') }}"
- "{{ 1 <= now().isoweekday() <= 5 }}"
action:
- variables:
entities:
- switch.echo_spare_room
- switch.robin_tree_1
- light.robin
- light.robin_closet
- light.robin_chandelier
songs:
- 'Cover me in Sunshine'
- 'See it, say it, sign it by Jack Hartman'
- 'overweight hedgehog'
- 'where are you Christmas'
- '90 days'
- 'hurt by johnny cash'
- 'Fishy on Me'
- 'someone you loved'
- 'frantic by Metallica'
- 'Enter sandman'
- 'We built this city'
- 'Welcome to the Jungle'
- service: homeassistant.turn_on
target:
entity_id: '{{ entities }}'
- repeat:
until: "{{ now().hour == 6 and now().minute == 30 }}"
sequence:
- service: notify.alexa_media
data:
data:
type: announce
message: "It is {{ now().strftime('%H:%M')}}, time To Wake up"
target:
- media_player.robin_echo
- service: media_player.play_media
target:
entity_id: media_player.robin_echo
data:
media_content_type: AMAZON_MUSIC
media_content_id: '{{ songs | random }}'
- wait_for_trigger:
- platform: state
entity_id: media_player.robin_echo
from: 'playing'
mode: single
https://community.home-assistant.io/t/how-to-trigger-automation-if-another-automations-actions-ran-to-many-times-in-a-given-time-frame/384689/9
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
{% set month = now().month + 6 %}
{{ month }}
{{ month in [1,12] }} FALSE
{{ (now() + timedelta(days=150)).month }}
{{ (now() + timedelta(days=150)).month in [5,6,7,8,9] }} TRUE (in january)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
{% set date_string = "[“Jan 23 2022”]" %}
{{ date_string }}
{{ as_timestamp(strptime(date_string[2:-2], "%b %d %Y")) | timestamp_local}}
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alternative to calculating duration
Up {{ states("sensor.ha_uptime") | as_datetime | relative_time }}
vs this
{% set boot = as_timestamp(states('sensor.ha_uptime'))|int %}
{% set duration = as_timestamp(utcnow())|int - boot %}
{{ timedelta(seconds=duration) }}
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
https://community.home-assistant.io/t/updating-templates-with-the-new-default-values-in-2021-10-x/346198#2-arguments
Using them as a function.
2 arguments
breakdown
{{ function(value_for_argument1, value_for_argument2) }}
examples
# returns acos of 1, if fails returns 0
{{ acos(1, 0) }}
# returns as_timestamp of 1, if fails returns 0
{{ as_timestamp(1, 0) }}
# returns asin of 1, if fails returns 0
{{ asin(1, 0) }}
# returns atan of 1, if fails returns 0
{{ atan(1, 0) }}
# returns cos of 1, if fails returns 0
{{ cos(1, 0) }}
# returns 1.0, if fails returns 0
{{ float('1', 0) }}
# returns sin of 1, if fails returns 0
{{ sin(1, 0) }}
# returns sqrt of 1, if fails returns 0
{{ sqrt(1, 0) }}
# returns tan of 1, if fails returns 0
{{ tan(1, 0) }}
===========================================================
3 arguments
breakdown
{{ function(value_for_argument1, value_for_argument2, value_for_argument3) }}
examples
# returns time @ 10 am, if fails returns 0
{{ strptime("10:00", "%H:%M", 0) }}
# returns log of 1 with base 10, if fails returns 0
{{ log(1, 10, 0) }}
# returns atan2 of 1 at 2, if fails returns 0
{{ atan2(1, 2, 0) }}
# returns rounds 1.23 down precision of 0, if fails returns 0
{{ round(1.43, "floor", 0) }}
===========================================================
3 arguments but omitting the 2nd argument
breakdown
{{ function(value_for_argument1, argument3 = value_for_argument3) }}
examples
# returns log of 1 with base e because base (2nd argument) defaults to e, if fails returns 0
{{ log(1, default = 0) }}
# returns rounds 1.43 to even with a precision of 0
# because function (2nd argument) defaults to round-to-even, if fails returns 0
{{ round(1.43, default = 0) }}
===========================================================
Using them as filters
2 arguments
breakdown
{{ value_for_argument1 | function(value_for_argument2) }}
examples
# returns as_timestamp of 1, if fails returns 0
{{ 1 | as_timestamp(0) }}
# returns 1.0, if fails returns 0
{{ '1' | float(0) }}
# returns fully formatted time string 1 second past
# midnight January 1st 1970, if fails returns 0
{{ 1 | timestamp_local(0) }}
# returns fully formatted time string 1 second past
# midnight January 1st 1970, if fails returns 0
{{ 1 | timestamp_utc(0) }}
===========================================================
3 arguments
breakdown
{{ value_for_argument1 | function(value_for_argument2, value_for_argument3) }}
examples
# returns time @ 10 am, if fails returns 0
{{ "10:00" | strptime("%H:%M", 0) }}
# returns rounds 1.23 down precision of 0, if fails returns 0
{{ 1.43 | round("floor", 0) }}
===========================================================
3 arguments but omitting the 2nd argument
breakdown
{{ value_for_argument1 | function(argument3 = value_for_argument3) }}
examples
# returns rounds 1.23 down precision of 0, if fails returns 0
{{ 1.43 | round(default=0) }}
===========================================================
4 arguments
breakdown
{{ value_for_argument1 | function(value_for_argument2, value_for_argument3, value_for_argument4) }}
examples
# returns "00:00:01", which is 1 second past
# midnight January 1st 1970 in local time, if fails returns 0
{{ 1 | timestamp_custom("%H:%M:%S", True, 0) }}
===========================================================
4 arguments omitting the 3rd argument
breakdown
{{ value_for_argument1 | function(value_for_argument2, value_for_argument3, value_for_argument4) }}
examples
# returns "00:00:01", which is 1 second past
# midnight January 1st 1970 in local time (local_time defaults to True), if fails returns 0
{{ 1 | timestamp_custom("%H:%M:%S", default = 0) }}
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Virtual Power Sensors based on on-off/% brightness
https://community.home-assistant.io/t/powercalc-virtual-power-sensors/318515
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
https://community.home-assistant.io/t/only-allow-automation-to-trigger-once-a-day/390097
- condition: template
# Only run if more than 6 hours (21,600 sec) since it last ran
value_template: '{{(as_timestamp(now()) - as_timestamp(state_attr("automation.<automation ID>", "last_triggered") | default(0)) | int > 21600 )}}'
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
{% set directions = [ 'N', 'NNE', 'NE', 'ENE', 'E', 'ESE', 'SE', 'SSE', 'S', 'SSW', 'SW', 'WSW', 'W', 'WNW', 'NW', 'NNW', 'N'] -%}
{{ directions[(states('sensor.dwd_wind_bearing') | int(0) / 22.5) | round(0) | int] }}
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Could somebody help me trying to understand how could I extract information from curl query bellow.
Im intrested only the price value
curl -X GET “https://dashboard.elering.ee/api/nps/price/EE/current 3” -H “accept: /”
sensor:
- platform: rest
resource: https://dashboard.elering.ee/api/nps/price/EE/current
name: Elering
value_template: "{{ value_json['data'][0]['price'] }}"
unit_of_measurement: '€'
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
id: '1643570261869'
alias: play tv in the kitchen in the morning when sensor sees me
description: ''
trigger:
- type: motion
platform: device
device_id: 7a19b2c869a28edaf40ba6c0d0d1a925
entity_id: binary_sensor.kitchen_sensor_motion
domain: binary_sensor
condition:
- condition: time
after: '05:00:00'
before: '09:30:00'
action:
- service: remote.send_command
data:
device: kitchen tv
command: power
target:
device_id: 1276592bc45474738b30066b2516c4f0
- service: androidtv.adb_command
data:
command: am force-stop de.cyberdream.iptv.tv.player
target:
device_id: 1276592bc45474738b30066b2516c4f0
- delay:
hours: 0
minutes: 0
seconds: 0
milliseconds: 500
- service: media_player.select_source
data:
source: de.cyberdream.iptv.tv.player
target:
entity_id: media_player.kitchen_gtv
mode: restart
Basically, you want it to execute its actions only if the value of the automation’s last_triggered is before 05:00 today. If the value is after 05:00 that means it has already triggered once today.
The condition to achieve this is simple:
condition:
- condition: time
after: '05:00:00'
before: '09:30:00'
- "{{ state_attr(this.entity_id, 'last_triggered') | default(today_at(), true) < today_at('05:00') }}"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TIME
https://community.home-assistant.io/t/the-epic-time-conversion-and-manipulation-thread/85786/3
as_timestamp() - converts a properly formatted date/time string to a Unix Epoch representation.
timestamp_custom() - converts a UNIX Epoch timestamp into a custom date/time string = unix_epoch_timestamp|timestamp_custom(format)
Directive Meaning Example Notes
%a Weekday as locale’s abbreviated name.
Sun, Mon, …, Sat (en_US);
So, Mo, …, Sa (de_DE)(1)
%A Weekday as locale’s full name.
Sunday, Monday, …, Saturday (en_US);
Sonntag, Montag, …, Samstag (de_DE)
%w Weekday as a decimal number, where 0 is Sunday and 6 is Saturday. 0, 1, …, 6
%d Day of the month as a zero-padded decimal number. 01, 02, …, 31
%-d Day of the month as a decimal number. 1, 2, ... 31
%b Month as locale’s abbreviated name.
Jan, Feb, …, Dec (en_US);
Jan, Feb, …, Dez (de_DE)
%B Month as locale’s full name.
January, February, …, December (en_US);
Januar, Februar, …, Dezember (de_DE)
%m Month as a zero-padded decimal number. 01, 02, …, 12
%-m Month as a decimal number. 1, 2, ... 12
%y Year without century as a zero-padded decimal number. 00, 01, …, 99
%Y Year with century as a decimal number. 0001, 0002, …, 2013, 2014, …, 9998, 9999
%H Hour (24-hour clock) as a zero-padded decimal number. 00, 01, …, 23
%-H Hour (24-hour clock) as a decimal number. 0, 1, 2, ... 23
%I Hour (12-hour clock) as a zero-padded decimal number. 01, 02, …, 12
%-I Hour (12-hour clock) as a decimal number. 1, 2, ... 12
%p Locale’s equivalent of either AM or PM.
AM, PM (en_US);
am, pm (de_DE)
%M Minute as a zero-padded decimal number. 00, 01, …, 59
%-M Minute as a decimal number. 0, 1, 2, .. 59 (can go to 61 to account for leap seconds)
%S Second as a zero-padded decimal number. 00, 01, …, 59 (can go to 61 to account for leap seconds)
%-S Second as a decimal number. 0, 1, 2, .. 59
%f Microsecond as a decimal number, zero-padded on the left. 000000, 000001, …, 999999
%z UTC offset in the form +HHMM or -HHMM (empty string if the the object is naive). (empty), +0000, -0400, +1030
%Z Time zone name (empty string if the object is naive). (empty), UTC, EST, CST
%j Day of the year as a zero-padded decimal number. 001, 002, …, 366
%-j Day of the year as a decimal number. 1, 2, ... 366
%U Week number of the year (Sunday as the first day of the week) as a zero padded decimal number. All days in a new year preceding the first Sunday are considered to be in week 0. 00, 01, …, 53
%W Week number of the year (Monday as the first day of the week) as a decimal number. All days in a new year preceding the first Monday are considered to be in week 0. 00, 01, …, 53
%c Locale’s appropriate date and time representation.
Tue Aug 16 21:30:00 1988 (en_US);
Di 16 Aug 21:30:00 1988 (de_DE)
%x Locale’s appropriate date representation.
08/16/88 (None);
08/16/1988 (en_US);
16.08.1988 (de_DE)
%X Locale’s appropriate time representation.
21:30:00 (en_US);
21:30:00 (de_DE)
%% A literal '%' character. %
The following work also but they aren't listed in the official python documentation:
%D date in month/day/year (ex Jan 1st, 2008 = 01/01/08) ?
%s date & time as a UNIX Epoch timestamp ?
%C century ??
%e same as %d??
%F date in year-month-day
%g year in what format? same as %y?
%G same as %Y?
%h abbreviated month. same as %b?
%k same as %-H or %-I?
%l " " "
%P Locale’s equivalent of either am or pm like %p above but lowercase ?
%r time as hour:minute:second AM/PM
%R time as hour:minute
%T time as hour:minute:second
%u UTC hour
%V week number of the year. same as %U or %W ??
For the items marked with a ? without further testing I can't figure out which value it is.
--
The following flag characters are permitted between the '%' character and the conversion specifier character:
_ (underscore) Pad a numeric result string with spaces.
- (dash) Do not pad a numeric result string.
0 Pad a numeric result string with zeros even if the conversion specifier character uses space-padding by default.
^ Convert alphabetic characters in result string to uppercase.
# Swap the case of the result string. (This flag works only with certain conversion specifier characters, and of these, it is only really useful with %Z.)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trigger on a counter. https://community.home-assistant.io/t/how-to-create-a-trigger-with-every-counter-increment/395059
- alias: Google TV Counter
trigger:
- platform: state
entity_id: counter.google_tv_counter
to:
condition: "{{ trigger.from_state.state | int < trigger.to_state.state | int }}"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
{{ states.light.study_cans_current_value.last_changed }}
{{ states.light.study_cans_current_value.last_changed | as_timestamp }}
{{ ((utcnow() | as_timestamp - (states.light.study_cans_current_value.last_changed | as_timestamp)) / 60) | round(0) }}
{{ as_timestamp(20220415, 0) }}
{{ as_local(now() | as_timestamp | as_datetime) }}
{{ states('input_number.zone1') | int }}
{{ as_local( (now() | as_timestamp + states('input_number.zone1') | float * 3600 )| as_datetime ) }}
{{ states('sensor.sunrise') }}
{{ as_local((states('sensor.sunrise') | as_timestamp + 3600|int ) | as_datetime)}}
{{ as_local((states('sensor.sunrise') | as_timestamp + 5400|int ) | as_datetime)}}
{{ as_local((states('sensor.sunrise') | as_timestamp + 9000|int ) | as_datetime)}}
{{ as_local((states('sensor.sunrise') | as_timestamp + 10800|int ) | as_datetime)}}
{{ as_local((states('sensor.sunrise') | as_timestamp + 14400|int ) | as_datetime)}}
{{ as_local((states('sensor.sunrise') | as_timestamp + 16200|int ) | as_datetime)}}
{{ as_local((states('sensor.sunrise') | as_timestamp + 19800|int ) | as_datetime)}}
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.- Create a sensor which accounts for the time some binary sensor is 'on’
sensor:
- platform: history_stats
name: Time Boiler On
entity_id: binary_sensor.led_boiler
state: 'on'
type: time
start: '{{ now().replace(hour=0).replace(minute=0).replace(second=0) }}'
end: '{{ now() }}'
2.- Create a utility meter to reset the values daily, weekly, monthly,…
utility_meter:
boiler_daily_usage:
source: sensor.time_boiler_on
cycle: daily
3.- Customize the utility so that you can benefit from the long-term statistics
homeassistant:
[...]
customize:
# Add an entry for each entity that you want to overwrite.
sensor.boiler_daily_usage:
state_class: measurement
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
https://community.home-assistant.io/t/statistics-fix-issue-large-amount-of-data/419728
For displaying data, I used the SQLite Web Add-on (GitHub - hassio-addons/addon-sqlite-web: SQLite Web - Home Assistant Community Add-ons) :
SELECT
CASE WHEN entity_id IS NULL
THEN 'Orphaned'
ELSE 'OK'
END Issue,
entity_id,
statistic_id
FROM (
SELECT
b.entity_id,
a.statistic_id
FROM
statistics_meta a
LEFT JOIN 'states' b
ON a.statistic_id = b.entity_id
GROUP BY
a.statistic_id
)
WHERE
entity_id IS NULL
DELETE FROM "statistics_meta"
WHERE id IN (
SELECT
id
FROM (
SELECT
a.id,
b.entity_id,
a.statistic_id
FROM
statistics_meta a
LEFT JOIN 'states' b
ON a.statistic_id = b.entity_id
GROUP BY
a.statistic_id
)
WHERE
entity_id IS NULL
);
/* NULL means the statistic_id is orphaned */
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
now() inside a template will cause the template to update on the minute, no rate_limit.
entities inside a template will cause to update when the entity changes state, no rate_limit.
using states without a domain will cause the template to update on all state changes, however it’s rate limited to 1 update a minute.
using states.<domain> will cause the template to update on all state changes, however it’s rate limited to 1 update a second
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
https://community.home-assistant.io/t/dew-point-temperature-sensor-my-configuration-yaml/432445
Dew from temperature/humidity sensor.
sensor:
- platform: template
sensors:
temp_dew_XY:
value_template: >-
{% set T, RH = states('sensor.temperature_X'), states('sensor.humidity_Y') %}
{% if not T or RH == 'unknown' -%}
'unknown'
{%- else %}
{% set T = T | float %}
{% set RH = RH | float %}
{% set a = 6.1121 | float %}
{% set b = 18.678 | float %}
{% set c = 257.14 | float %}
{% set d = 234.5 | float %}
{% set e = 2.718281828 | float %}
{% set P = a*e**((b-T/d)*(T/(c+T))) | float %}
{% set gamma = log((RH / 100)*e**((b-T/d)*(T/(c+T)))) | float %}
{% set dew_temp = ((c * gamma) / (b - gamma))|round(3) %}
{{ dew_temp}}
{% endif %}
unit_of_measurement: "°C"
friendly_name: "Dew Temperature"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
entities:
battery:
consumption: sensor.daily_kwh_from_battery
production: sensor.daily_kwh_to_battery
battery_charge: sensor.powerwall_charge
grid:
consumption: sensor.daily_kwh_from_grid
production: sensor.daily_kwh_to_grid
solar: sensor.daily_kwh_produced
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Regarding documentation or structuring HA, here is what I did (I am writing/updating all the files in yaml directly using the file editor of HA as I started to use HA a long time ago and all gui interfaces where not existing at that time):
#=Done================================================================================================
#
# Calcul température de fonctionnement de l'electrolyseur et de la pompe de la piscine:
# - en été: de mars à octobre
# - suivant le mode de fonctionnement de refroidissement automatique et température piscine
# quand:
# - à l'heure d'extinction de la pompe pour calculer planning du lendemain
# - si changement de mode de refroidissement automatique
# conditions:
# - si le refroidissement automatique de la piscine est activé
# - et si la température de la piscine à l'entrée de la pompe à chaleur est inférieure ou égale à la température target pour le refroidissement
# - et si la température de la piscine (pour le calcul: voir sensors) est connue (comprise entre 5 et 50°C, la valeur doit être au moins 6°C pour faire tourner la piscine minimum 3 heures par jour)
# - ou si le refroidissement automatique de la piscine est désactivé
# - et on est en été (de mars à octobre)
# - et si la température de la piscine (pour le calcul: voir sensors) est connue (comprise entre 5 et 50°C, la valeur doit être au moins 6°C pour faire tourner la piscine minimum 3 heures par jour)
#
# les limites de fonctionnement sont calculées en partant de l'heure de milieu de plage et en retirant/ajoutant une nombre d'heures égal à la température de la piscine divisée par 4.
# Donc si la température de la piscine est de 6°C, la plage se situe donc entre la plage du milieu - 1,5 heure et la plage du milieu + 1,5 h...
#
- alias: calculate_time_montreal_ete
initial_state: true
trigger:
- platform: time
at: input_datetime.h_ext_pompe_m
- platform: state
entity_id: input_boolean.poolstage_refroidissement_auto
condition:
condition: or
conditions:
- condition: and
... etc etc ...
For each automation, I am writing some comments linked with steps into a message file (that I am closing everyday at midnight, keeping 7 version/days of those files)… So I can track easily by reading this file what steps where executed during a specific day and when… example:
2022-07-19 05:58:00 **** DM-014.1 Allumage Pompe Piscine
2022-07-19 05:58:00 **** DM-016.1 Allumage Electrolyseur Piscine Montréal
2022-07-19 06:00:00 **** DM-019.1 Extinction chauffe-eau Salle de Bain (haut) Montréal
2022-07-19 06:15:02 **** EV-001.1 Chargeur Voiture: demande extinction...
2022-07-19 06:15:11 **** AG-015.1 Theme set to light (day)
2022-07-19 06:18:11 **** MQ-015.1 Ecriture Heures Lever et Coucher du Soleil à Montréal (remote via mqtt)
2022-07-19 07:00:00 **** EM-001.1 Change Energy Tariff to the next one
2022-07-19 09:03:51 **** EV-003.1 Chargeur Voiture éteint...
As you can see, every record in the file contains the time the step of the automation was executed, a reference to the file where the automation was executed (EV for the last one, so related to EV_electrical_vehicule.yaml) a number+step to find the automation/step having generated the message and a comment about the step(s) executed…
#==============================================================================================
#**********************************************************************************************
#** **
#** Tableau de bord **
#** **
#**********************************************************************************************
#==============================================================================================
- title: Tableau de bord Montréal
path: montreal
icon: mdi:billboard
cards:
#
# Left Stack
#
- type: vertical-stack
cards:
#
# Cards for Alarm Off Display Status - MONTREAL
#
- !include /config/tiles/Alarme-Montreal-Titre.yaml
- !include /config/tiles/Alarme-Montreal-Status.yaml
- !include /config/tiles/Alarme-Montreal-Timer.yaml
- !include /config/tiles/Alarme-Montreal-Code.yaml
#
disadvantage: less flexibility in creating the layout of your different tabs.
advantage: If I change one file in the tiles directory, automatically all the tabs/path of lovelace using it are updated (instead of updating each file in the lovelace directory). I didn’t do this at the beginning but I decided to change the approach when the lovelace files where very long/difficult to maintain… This is a consequence of my decision to split my dashboard into multiple tabs…
I am using a lot of button-cards (installed using HACS) in lovelace, therefore I am using a lot of template cards to simplify the creation of repetitive cards (like lights cards, switches cards, alarms, heaters, airconditioning, etc…). This is simplifying the writing of those cards.
documenting sensors (in fact everywhere you use templates) is also a good idea as some templates could be very complex and difficult to understand when you come back a few months later and have to change it… for that one I have some home work to do to develop a good documentation…
This is the way I have organized my HA files, this is just of course examples and a feedback… I have two sites managed the same way with a dashboard with 27 tabs/paths in one location (the other one has only 15 tabs/paths). I have 335 automations on one site and 131 on the other one… Pretty big configurations, where a good documentation helps to maintain it.
if you want to save and look backwards, why not use github for that? It is an integral part of HA’s file editor…
As well as VisualStudioCode:
That is the whole point of a versioning system 
I have used git but not recently and it is just easier to back up.
Lots of comments in yaml files.
I also maintain a notebook (MediaWiki) for everyhing. My PC, my Home Assistant, my Ubuntu, really anything want to recall later.
Packages look interesting, but I haven’t been able to grok.
As others have said, the “how” is contained in the current configuration files, and should be backed up.
What I have tried to focus on is the “why?”. HA has meant one learning curve after another after another … too many things to even try to fully understand any one thing … which makes it too easy to forget how and why i got to the current point. I buy another device, and its “how the heck did I end up configuring the last device in Localtuya ?”
I have a word document (currently 52 pages with index) reminding me of the basics (with links to the tutorials or web documents I actually used) and the "gotcha"s i worked around, the naming convention I adopted, etc.
OK, I tend to get verbose and write like it’s a tutorial, but that’s mostly me getting my thoughts straight 
Thanks for all the good ideas here. I’m surprised they are all “coding documentation” advice, but happy for it, as it’s a clever way to do so.
I was myself referring more to things like:
And then the same for routines/automations, etc.
This last one seems to be something everyone logs in the code/config files, so that’s an interesting way to go.
I use Mediawiki. Because it’s database driven indexing is very convenient. I don’t know how many pages it represents, but the database is currently 557 mb.
A very interesting topic close to my heart.
After testing our various solutions like Bookstack, GitBook and Notion I decided to use a private GitHub repo. I wanted something that would look after itself and be somewhat detached from my self-hosting while also being simple to work with and allow me to unwind by writing some Markdown.
I use issues to document anything from an appliance, Docker container config through to where the shut off valves are for the gas and water. Think of this as our family and home Wiki. The contents that some people print in those lovely bound books. The repo is shared with my SO and she knows to head there to try to answer her own questions first.
For me it was about having that one place where something was documented and over time it has become more of a discipline and more detailed. With issue comments I capture additional information for that given “thing”. The GitHub mobile app works great, issues can be created and edited on the go as well as uploading pictures straight from the phone.
I have taken it a little beyond the basics by creating some Actions that create index pages with links to the issues. This leaves me with a Markdown file of all Appliances for example and another with all my Docker config. I have a number of these Markdown files. Another great benefit is GitHub has a great rest API which you can integrate with Home Assistant to create issues or even add comments.
Staying tuned to learn from others.
Currently I maintain a separate spreadsheet for my automation documentation. For each automation I list a category (eg “alert”), the trigger, the name,. the basic functionality (description) and a status flag (prod vs test).
Now this is very time consuming, and for some automations the documentation takes longer to write than the automation did, it’s also painful when I make minor changes to an automation (it seems that we “tweak” automations for quite some time to get them just right) and forget to update the documentation.
I hate duplicating effort, and a lot of the documentation effort is cut and pasting from the actual automation. It seems to me that the effort could be dramatically reduced by some enhancements to the automation page. Currently the automation page gives the automation name and when it was last triggered (and a disabled / active flag). If the following fields were added to that screen, then this page could be my documentation summary:
As it is now, I try to cram the triggers and actions all into the name field
Personal I’m running nextcloud for all my data.
In here, I maintain 2 files:
Several times, I remind my family about these files and that they’ll be important one day. My family isn’t really IT-minded, so not very interested in how it works. As long as it works.
The spreadsheet is really an inventory, and only intended for me. It helps me keep track of the IP’s, ID’s, hostnames, rules (functions/ideas)…
For the moment, I’m migrating to HA (in the past, I came from linuxMCE, openHAB). And this sheet helps me keep track of what I’ve done, and still have to do.
The document is really some poetry regarding the setup.
Why certain addons, where to find the backups, how to restart… This document is 80% focused on my family. If one day something happens to me, they won’t be completely lost. I’ve got so many sensors, and the house really runs on them, that I’m really afraid it would be a huge cost for them to ‘rebuild’ the house to a working solution.
Beside, on my website I try to explain the most fun or useful ideas for home automation.
I’m certainly going to follow this topic further. For years, I’ve been looking for THE way to document. Maybe, a little maybe, after my migration to HA it becomes time to really put the effort into it…
@jcallaghan do you connect your Github Pages solution to the HASS site in any way? Or are they two completely independent systems?
But you´re not using it in the same instance as HA, or?
I would like to set something up similar to mediawiki within HA directly (equal to bookstack), but also without changing the required DB to e.g. MariaDB…
Does anybody by chance have a good idea how to achieve that - hosting a Wiki from HA directly?
Bookstack - Home Assistant Community Add-on??
Nothing else is running in my Home Assistant installation. My HA is running the X-86 Generic binary of HAOS on an Intel I3 NUC. Rock solid.
My MediaWiki server is on a separate Intel I7 NUC along with a couple of others, like Plex. (My first MediaWiki was on a Raspberry Pi 3). I am not sure I would want MediaWiki connected to Home Assistant in any way. It is a living document and too dynamic. If I learn something new about a particular subject I go to that page and edit it.
@aceindy Bookstack requires MariaDB which slows down backup creation tremendously… i don´t want that.
@stevemann Ah okay, got it. But right now running HA solely on my NUC is just a waste of capacities as well… so i´d like to be able to run MediaWiki server in the same instance or at last aside from HA.
With the mention of documentation by using yaml files what exactly should be done for stuff where they’ve initially been set up using the UI? I don’t exactly know how to through Studio Code Server to view any hidden yamls that may be created by the integrations and add-ons.
