UI: Feature requests, Forum: Solutions & Versioning & Moderating

wazzie · July 11, 2022, 3:41pm

Hi there, Im new to homeassistant but not new in general.
I really think that HA is cool and has a lot of potential.
This post adresses some of my ideas/frustrations and has feature requests with them.
Please correct me if i’m wrong or adress something that should be done differently

This post applies to version (2022.7.3)

Home Assistant UI Feature Requests.

Remember me login is not functioning like expected
If you login with your username and password and dont select the remember me button you will login.
When opening a new tab or (CTRL+CLICK ITEM) you must relogin, if you do that the previous tab is logged out. If you dont login on the new tab, the other tabs are also logged out.

Userlogout in sidebar
At this moment you only can logout via the user page. It is nice to also have this in the sidebar.
logout

User Settings are stored locally
If a user sets darkmode (possible that this also effects other user options) and logs in in another browser/system, the user must reselect darkmode. This should be saved in the userspace on the server. Not in a cookie.
I think this is connected to the first request Remember me login is not functioning like expected

Check Configuration beween a restart call
You will find multiple restart server buttons everywhere. But there is 1 button for checking configuration. If a configuration is not OK! you can restart HA and it will break. Please add this check between a restart button everywhere. This should be simple to do. Restart HA Call → Check config → is it wrong → redirect to the fileeditor config file.

Selectboxes not updated
When creating a new device that have more than 2 entities. Add entity 1 to a new created room.
entity 2 dont sees that newly created room. You must cancel the add process (it stil gets added).
Then remove the device, then recreate the device and then you wil see the previously created room.

Escape (ESC) a opened box in the UI
When a box is opened in the ui. Please allow it to close when not clicked inside or via ESC.

Add shortcut/page to menubar
When you are at, lets say file editor. And you use it alot. Is it possible to favorite that destination?
That in this case you can add file-editor to the menu?

Limit height of inline boxes
sometimes the box with entities is larger than the window height.
You cannot select an entity anymore, you have to reopen the box.

When you zoomout you wil get the same problem on the otherside

Forum Features and Moderating

Add a ‘solution’ like stack overflow.
If a OP finds a solution, that solution should be marked as a solution and goes to the top of the topic.
This feature with a ‘solved’ filter is awesome for HA. HA changes a lot and solutions can be for a previous version.

Add ‘versioning’ for a solution
Add a HA version number to the solution. You can and will break HA if a solution is not for a specific version.

Moderate new topics
If a user did not give enough information. Close that topic with a message like “Sorry, this is not solvable, try again.”.
At this moment everybody starts asking questions on a question. This bloats the original question. Also dont go offtopic.

Thanks for reading.

mobile.andrew.jones · July 11, 2022, 4:26pm

This is the preferred option, because you don’t necessarily want all your devices to be showing the same theme. For example my Computer uses Auto, my Chromebook uses light mode (because I am on that during the day), my phone uses Auto.

It actually DOES check configuration before restarting, you will in fact find countless posts from people complaining that they can’t restart because an automation or something now doesn’t pass the config check, it probably can’t redirect to the file editor though, because that is not actually a core part of homeassistant, that is an add-on that not everyone has installed.

That’s in the add-on screen for the file editor (and most addons) - “show in sidebar” toggle.

That exists - if the topic is solved it will tell you in the first post with a link to the post that it was solved in.
eg:

The top post says it was solved in post 3.

wazzie · July 11, 2022, 4:43pm

Thanks for this reply @mobile.andrew.jones

I understand the tought about darkmode/useroptions now.
I had a instance of home assistant that restarted even with a not valid configuration, without a notice. When i have a dev env started i will try to reproduce this.
Thanks for the show in sidebar posibillity. I really did not saw this.
Thanks for the solution information. I was blind because of some frustrations.

mobile.andrew.jones · July 11, 2022, 4:49pm

Also note that when a topic is solved - it will have a tick in the thread title too - so you know it has been solved, at a glance.

wazzie · July 11, 2022, 4:51pm

Its there. I see, thanks

Even the fileupload feature is cool!

mobile.andrew.jones · July 11, 2022, 5:03pm

Managed to find the information that states that it does do a check configuration before restarting:

However you should note, that it only checks that the configuration is valid in terms of indentation etc - it is a NOT a syntax check (neither is the button in the UI), if you want to be sure that you aren’t going to break anything in a major way, then you should use the command line tool (in for example the SSH & Web Terminal addon) and issue the command

core check

it will take about 20 times longer than the UI check to return a result, but it will actually tell you if there is anything wrong syntax wise with your configuration.

paddy0174 · July 11, 2022, 5:21pm

This is not the intended behaviour. In my installation I’m logged in in all tabs I’ve open. Maybe some cookie settings on your side? I was always logged out, before I allowed HA to save cookies for longer than the active session.

I’m quite sure, this is someting you experience in the beginning of your HA career. As you will move on, tere is no need to log a user out or in. It’s just running In my case, I’ve logged out of HA the last time more than one and a half years ago. It is simlply not needed, if everything works as it should. Just my personal experience, other will see that different, but in my case, nope, won’t need it, sorry.

That shouldn’t happen either! If there is something totally wrong in your config, the restart will be denied and a log message is set. If it is something, that doesn’t affect the whole system, like a wrongly set automation, it will restart but will as well set a log message.

The part where HA restarts without giving notice about errors is not happening, despite you break it by restarting the host. But that is something that should always be avoided.

That doesn’t seem necessary. Most of the threads that are way off, will get closed or just left alone by the “support” people, so they will just vanish after a few days. On the other hand is this “feature” something I and others really like here in this forum. As the saying goes, “there are no dump questions, only dump answers!”.

Everybody, knowledgeable or not, should be at least allowed to ask. If someone feels the need to answer, why not? And in most cases it takes not very long and one of the “support” people is on the way to help - and that’s kind of nice. Everybody gets help here, it is friendly (most of the time), and you don’t have to hesitate to ask - HA is a platform for everybody.

Sorry, here I don’t see the need as well, I’d vote for leaving it as-is. I like that touch that even the dumpest questions can be asked! And after all it won’t disturb anyone.

wazzie · July 11, 2022, 5:42pm

Thanks @paddy0174

Blockquote
This is not the intended behaviour. In my installation I’m l…

Reproducable: New fresh browser whatever: login as X → new tab → login as X → previous tab is logged out.
The next thing i just noticed:
Login as X and set darkmode ->logout X → login as Y → logout Y → login as X again → X is not dark anymore. Darkmode only applies when have your system in dark mode.

Blockquote
I’m quite sure, this is someting you experience…

Now i know its invented that way i understand. I like to logout. Always exept on my own systems

Blockquote
That shouldn’t happen either! If there…

I started a new VM. Installed it. It was inmediatly @ 7.3 and indeed. You cannot restart with a invalid config. Thanks

Blockquote
That doesn’t seem necessary…

The moderate topics question seems to be ridiculous now. Sorry for that one. I get a chance. Everybody does.

Thanks for your reply.

wazzie · July 12, 2022, 4:11pm

with HACS i really start to like this application. Thanks all.

paddy0174 · July 12, 2022, 4:37pm

This is because you set things by device, and not by user. You should at least see the dark mode with user Y when you log in.

And I can’t reproduce this behaviour. Opened a new tab, needed to log in again (what in my understanding shouldn’t happen), but after logging out tab2, I was still logged in in tab1.

And no need to apologize, change only comes from people who like to take an interest! That’s always a better solution than saying nothing.

And trust me, you’ll see a lot more things behind HACS, you wouldn’t even think of right now. HA is something for people from the loony bin Welcome to the Club, you’re now one of us!

wazzie · July 12, 2022, 5:04pm

Thanks for that motivational comment. I will stop saying thanks.
The cookie/localstorage issues are solved by clearing chrome cache. So thats on my side.
That does not solve some GUI troubles offcourse.

Have a nice day.

// Offtopic
_{Over the years i ductaped more than 20 node.js instances to create what is possible with ha in a few days. No SQL struggles. No script updates anymore. No multiple MB logfile searches anymore. Just a few existing VM’s icm with HA that are maintainable in a next level way. It works. I still like json better than YAML tough.}

_{The awesome feature for me now is that my netgate6100 tells HA that im home so all the doors unlocks. Without going trough the psSense hassle agian. I hate locks}

_{Still have some troubles with my ELSTER watermeter.}
_{Sometimes it reads thousands of liters extra on the counter. But that is because of the Sensor.}
_{I created a script in my previous ductape home assistant for when that happens. I can select a timestamp and everything from that point gets deleted in the database. I will create another post for this if i cant solve it myself and when i know more.}