Overriding philips hue light sync with home assistant?

Configuration Zigbee
1

Hi all.

I’m trying to find a way to turn off several hue play lights attached to my computer that are synced to the display. When light sync is enabled, no commands from HA seem to work. I’m exposing the lights to HA via the hue hub, to use dynamic scenes for other rooms.

Is there a way to override a light sync with a HA command?

2

Yes you can! You can create a button or automation to turn of the " Hue Sync " mode directly on the bridge using the Hue Bridge Api. Down below is the information i used from chatgpt to configure this.

:key: Step 1: Find your Hue Bridge IP

  1. Open the Hue app on your phone.
  2. Go to: Settings → Bridge Information.
  3. Note the IP address (something like 192.168.1.50).

:key: Step 2: Use the Hue Debug Tool

  1. In a browser, go to:
    http://<BRIDGE_IP>/debug/clip.html
    (replace <BRIDGE_IP> with your bridge IP).
  2. You’ll see the Philips Hue CLIP API Debugger page.

:key: Step 3: Create a New API Key

  1. In the debugger:
  • URL field: /api
  • Method: POST
  • Message Body:
    {“devicetype”:“homeassistant#mybutton”}
  1. Press the physical button on top of your Hue Bridge (the round link button).
  2. Immediately click POST in the debugger.
  3. If successful, you’ll get a response like:

[
{
“success”: {
“username”: “xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx”
}
}
]

:white_check_mark: Copy that long string (the "username") — this is your API key.
On bridges with the newer API (v2), it may be called "hue-application-key".

:key: Step 4: Test the Key

  1. In the Debug Tool:
  • URL field: /clip/v2/resource/bridge
  • Method: GET
  • Headers:
hue-application-key: <YOUR_API_KEY>
  1. Click GET. If it responds with JSON about your bridge, the key works. :tada:

:key: Step 5: Add to configuration.yaml

rest_command:
hue_sync_off:
url: “http://<BRIDGE_IP>/clip/v2/resource/entertainment_configuration/<ENTERTAINMENT_ID>”
method: put
headers:
hue-application-key: “<YOUR_HUE_API_KEY>”
Content-Type: “application/json”
payload: ‘{“action”: “deactivate”}’

Replace:

  • <BRIDGE_IP> → your bridge’s local IP (e.g. 192.168.1.50)
  • <YOUR_HUE_API_KEY> → your Hue developer key
  • <ENTERTAINMENT_ID> → I

Get your Entertainment Area ID

We need this because the command to “turn off Hue Sync” must target the entertainment area your TV uses.

  1. Open your browser and go to:
https://<BRIDGE_IP>/clip/v2/resource/entertainment_configuratio

:key: Step 6: Create a button. ( or just automate is with the res service commands)

type: button
tap_action:
  action: call-service
  service: rest_command.hue_sync_off
name: Turn Off Hue Sync
icon: mdi:television-off