Need help with SMTP repairs

Configuration
1

Recently got repair issues with SMTP notifications I am using in automations so now I’m editing all my automations to correct the syntax but not having much luck.

Repair notification-

Screenshot 2026-08-17 at 1.33.15 PM
Screenshot 2026-08-17 at 1.33.15 PM1224×1416 110 KB

Here is an example of one of the automations-

alias: A/C failure notification
description: ''
triggers:
  - trigger: numeric_state
    entity_id:
      - sensor.toad_song_farm_space_temperature
    above: 85
conditions: []
actions:
  - action: notify.send_email
    metadata: {}
    data:
      message: The A/C appears to have failed. High temp.
      title: Heatpump fault
      target: [email protected]
mode: single

Here is the same automation after making required changes-

description: 'Send email notification when room temperature is above 85F.'
mode: single
triggers:
  - trigger: numeric_state
    entity_id:
      - sensor.toad_song_farm_space_temperature
    above: 85
conditions: []
actions:
  - action: notify.send_message
    target:
      entity_id: send_email
    metadata: {}
    data:
      message: The A/C appears to have failed. High temp.
      title: Heatpump fault
alias: A/C failure notification

With the new edit I get this error when trying to save it-

Message malformed: not a valid value for dictionary value @ data['actions'][0]['target']['entity_id']

I am using the entity ID shown in the SMTP integration. Not sure what I’m missing???

2

You should probably remove your email address from this post.

3

send_email is not an entity id, go into developer tools / states and find the correct name.

4

Thanks. Just discovered that I was using the friendly name instead of the ID. I had been using the friendly name in the past to avoid posting my email as @fleskefjes noted. Is that no longer possible without maintaining all my automations in a automations.yaml file?

5

Found the solution. Edit the entity ID. DUH :laughing:

6

I don’t really understand what the two have to do with each other…

Just like any other action that expects a target, you can target the action at Entities, Devices, Areas, and/or Labels. Based on the screenshot of the Entities list you posted it looks like you have 3 separate devices, so that is likely going to be the best target type for you to use.

If you prefer to stick with Entities as targets, another option would be to simply edit the entity IDs so they don’t contain the actual email addresses.