"log_topic: null" in ESPHome MQTT Configuration Leading to Python TypeError

ESPHome
1

Hello, Home Assistant Community,

I’m encountering an issue with my ESPHome configuration specifically related to the MQTT log_topic setting.

Problem Description

In my ESPHome configuration, I attempted to disable MQTT logging by setting log_topic to null within the MQTT section, following the ESPHome documentation which suggests this method to disable sending logs over MQTT.

mqtt:
  broker: !secret mqtt_broker
  username: !secret mqtt_user
  password: !secret mqtt_pass
  log_topic: null
  discovery: true
  discovery_prefix: homeassistant
  discovery_unique_id_generator: mac

However, after compiling and uploading the firmware, I encounter the following error in the ESPHome log:

INFO Successfully compiled program.
INFO Resolving IP address of esphome03.local
INFO  -> 192.168.33.146
INFO Uploading /data/build/esphome03/.pioenvs/esphome03/firmware.bin (441472 bytes)
INFO Compressed to 307937 bytes
Uploading: [============================================================] 100% Done...

INFO Upload took 5.58 seconds, waiting for result...
INFO OTA successful
INFO Successfully uploaded program.
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "/usr/local/bin/esphome", line 33, in <module>
    sys.exit(load_entry_point('esphome', 'console_scripts', 'esphome')())
             ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
  File "/esphome/esphome/__main__.py", line 1041, in main
    return run_esphome(sys.argv)
           ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
  File "/esphome/esphome/__main__.py", line 1028, in run_esphome
    rc = POST_CONFIG_ACTIONS[args.command](args, config)
         ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
  File "/esphome/esphome/__main__.py", line 487, in command_run
    return show_logs(config, args, port)
           ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
  File "/esphome/esphome/__main__.py", line 362, in show_logs
    return mqtt.show_logs(
           ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
  File "/esphome/esphome/mqtt.py", line 213, in show_logs
    topic = config[CONF_MQTT][CONF_LOG_TOPIC][CONF_TOPIC]
            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~^^^^^^^^^^^^
TypeError: 'NoneType' object is not subscriptable

This error suggests a Python TypeError occurs when the script tries to access a log_topic that is set to null. The error disappears, and the logs function as expected when I remove log_topic: null from the configuration.

Questions

  1. Is this behavior a bug in ESPHome, or am I misunderstanding the correct way to disable MQTT logging?
  2. Given that I am new to Home Assistant and ESPHome, could there be a more appropriate method to disable MQTT logs that I am not aware of?

I would be grateful for any advice on how to resolve this issue or where to look next.

Thank you in advance for your help and patience.