I would like to be able to retire devices in HA.
Right now I am forced to delete devices that are no longer available (e.g. the TV breaks or fridge is
replaced).
But when you delete a device you also lose the ability to access the associated database data.
If there were a retire feature, then the device would still be available for database access whilst at the same time not showing as unavailable everywhere else.
Ideally this would also work for re-appropriated devices such as smart sockets. When the socket gets a new name (because the consumer changes), the old name should be retired and now deleted/replaced. Otherwise again all data access is lost.
Thank you for your consideration.
Alex