Reusing data in scripts and automations

Configuration
,
1

Hi, I am trying to figure out how to define a structure in one place, and then use it in multiple places.

For example, I have a working script that I use to assign z-wave door codes using the last 6 digits of a person’s phone number.
It just iterates through a data structure and calls another script to do the actual work.
(At the time I wrote it, the “name” was just a comment for me)

alias: Set all door codes
sequence:
  - repeat:
      for_each: 
        - phone: 123 123 1234
          name: Foo
        - phone: 234 234 2345
          name: Bar
        - phone: 345 345 3456
          name: Baz
          garage_side: false
      sequence:
        - service: script.set_slot_for_all_door_locks
          data:
            slot: "{{ repeat.index }}"
            code: "{{ (repeat.item.phone | replace(' ', ''))[-6:]}}"
            doors: "{{ repeat.item }}"
mode: single
icon: mdi:chevron-triple-right

Now, I am working on making an automation which will send me a notification when someone uses a door code to unlock a door.

I am able to catch the event to trigger the automation, and identify the slot number that unlocked the door, (e.g. slot 2 would correspond to Bar). But I would like the notification to contain the name of the person, not just the slot number. So I will need the data from the script in some form in the automation as well. I would prefer not to have two copies of the same data.

My first try was to use secrets.yaml with something like:

door_codes:
  - phone: 123 123 1234
    name: Foo
  - phone: 234 234 2345
    name: Bar
  - phone: 345 345 3456
    name: Baz
    garage_side: false

And then in the script, use:

      for_each: !secret door_codes

But it seems that secrets.yaml can only hold strings? I couldn’t make it work. The script didn’t like the !, iirc.

Next try was to use custom_templates with a doorcodes.jinja containing:

{%- macro door_codes() -%}
[{"phone":"123 123 1234","name":"Foo"}, {"phone":"234 234 2345","name":"Bar"}, {"phone":"345 345 345","name":"Baz","garage_side":false}]
{%- endmacro -%}

I can get the content of the macro to show up in the Developer Tools Template thingy using

{% from 'doorcodes.jinja' import door_codes -%} {{ door_codes() }}

So the template itself is being loaded and interpreted correctly.

And then in the script, I use this:

  for_each: {% from 'doorcodes.jinja' import door_codes -%} {{ door_codes() }}

But it just gives me this error:

Message malformed: template value is None for dictionary value @ data['sequence'][0]['repeat']['for_each']

Is there a better way to go about this? Someplace I can store some structured data like this and then access it in scripts, automations, etc?

2

Use to_json to format your macro output so that the string it returns can be converted back to a list:

{%- macro door_codes() -%}
{{ [{"phone":"123 123 1234","name":"Foo"}, {"phone":"234 234 2345","name":"Bar"}, {"phone":"345 345 345","name":"Baz","garage_side":false}] | to_json }}
{%- endmacro -%}

Then use from_json in the repeat so you get an actual list, not a list-shaped string:

for_each: "{% from 'doorcodes.jinja' import door_codes -%} {{ door_codes()|from_json }}"
3

I tested the following method of YAML substitution and can confirm it works.

Create a new file (in the same directory as your configuration.yaml file) named door_codes.yaml containing the following:

- phone: 123 123 1234
  name: Foo
- phone: 234 234 2345
  name: Bar
- phone: 345 345 3456
  name: Baz
  garage_side: false

Modify your existing script to reference the file with an !include statement like this:

alias: Set all door codes
sequence:
  - repeat:
      for_each: !include door_codes.yaml
      sequence:

The example assumes your scripts are in the same directory as your configuration.yaml file. If your scripts are in a sub-directory, then the inclusion statement should be changed to this:

for_each: !include ../door_codes.yaml
4

Thanks! This worked perfectly. It even let me reformat the data a bit so it wasn’t one long line. So bonus!

I also tried the !include approach, but was unable to make that work.

5

Then you did something wrong because, as mentioned, it was tested and confirmed to work.

Advantages over the macro suggestion:

  • Allows you to compose a list/dictionary in YAML which is simpler than in JSON.
  • Referencing it in the script is more concise than referencing a macro.
  • It’s a straightforward YAML substitution performed when the script is loaded by the YAML processor. It doesn’t require the extra JSON processing performed by the Jinja2 interpreter.
6

@123 @Didgeridrew @rossc719 sorry for the tag, but I want all you to see

With static objects, you don’t need to use a macro. You can use set and import the set variable.

inside doorcodes.jinja

{% set door_codes = [{"phone":"123 123 1234","name":"Foo"}, {"phone":"234 234 2345","name":"Bar"}, {"phone":"345 345 345","name":"Baz","garage_side":false}] %}

Then in your macro, just use it. No to_json from_json crap

{% from 'doorcodes.jinja' import door_codes -%}
{{ door_codes[0] }}

TLDR: You can import variables or macros.

EDIT:
Also, if you name your variable _<whatever> it’s not importable, same goes for macros.

3 Likes
7

Ah, even better, thanks! This works very well.

I appreciate that the !include version works for you, but when I try it, it simply gives me the same error.
My script is just in the normal scripts.yaml since I created it with the UI, so I shouldn’t even need the ../ to find the file to include. I don’t know what might be wrong, but I just can’t seem to make that approach work.

8

I like your suggestion, effectively defining a “global constant” without the need for JSON processing, but I still think a simple YAML inclusion is ideal. Everything about it is more concise, from defining the data to referencing it in the script.

It’s interesting that a macro is limited to returning a string but a variable can return any type.

9

Yes I agree. The only place I use the jinja alternative is for alternatives to !secret for template sensors. Otherwise I exclusively set up all variables in the automation or script.