I recently bought an apartment which has a bticino myhome system in it. I have been playing around with the system and seem to have figured out more or less how it works. My goal is to upgrade this system so it can be used with openhab and integrate Alexa (or something similar)
What I am not completely able to figure out is what hardware / additional modules I need to make it all happen. Since the hardware is very expensive I would like to get some thoughts on what exactly I need to make the system ready for the future.
What I seem to have
2 x F420 (both without any ID)
9 x F411/2 (all without any ID)
3 x F411/4 (all with ID)
1 x F411U2 (with ID)
4 x HD4680 (with ID)
5 x H4562/2 (with ID)
1 x H4562/3 (with ID)
1 x H 4890 (without ID)
I was able to connect to the system using the myhome suite software (through the Ethernet port on the touch screen) and figure out what all the components are and what they do
I have some preprogrammed scenarios on the F420’s but cant read them out or program them (I probably need the MH200N or MH 202 for that, not sure which one in the larger scheme of things)
I did figure out that there are probably 8 scenarios on each F420, this was a bit of trial and error to figure out if anything else was assigned.
So now, I would like to rebuild the system with components that make me able to use Alexa (or something similar), smart devices and be able to control stuff from my phone(android) / ipad. All this together integrated using openhab
Which components am I missing and what do I need to buy?
To me it seems:
I would need a Myhome Server (but which one / type?)
I would need a MH 202 OR MH200N (not sure about this but it seems I need that to program new scenarios)
What else would I need?
My whole system is currently working with physical jumpers instead of virtual configuration, when I switch to virtual (removing the jumpers), the system seems to go haywire.
Since you already have the H 4890 which is a OpenWebNet gateway, you should be able to connect your system to openHAB already.
Once you connect it to openHAB with some patience, learning and configuration you would be able to connect to assistants like Alexa, Google, etc. and to have a mobile interface for smartphone and tablets.
Regarding discovering your IDs and configuration: the openHAB binding should be able to discover all your devices automatically, which you then can add and further configure to connect with assistants.
You will find real experts on BTicino systems here, I suggest you consult this other threads:
The My Home Server does not support devices without ID, so you‘d have to replace same of your devices to use the My Home Server for mobile app or Alexa integration via the My Home Server. You could still use it as a gateway for the My Home Suite and openHAB, but your existing display or a MH202 can do that as well.
In my case there‘d be too many devices to replace, so I opted for openHAB, which also opens up your system for expansion with smart home components from other vendors.
The F420 can only be programmed by the controls, basically you record the scenarios you want to programme. With the MH 202 you can program scenarios from your PC using the My Home Suite. If you integrate the system with openHAB you can also programme scenarios in openHAB. The MH 202 might be more reliable than the average openHAB installation, but in most cases openHAB is sufficiently reliable for scenarios. This is not really about the reliability of the software but more the hardware you run it on.
You need to first get the device into the My Home Suite, configure it there, then remove the jumpers and send the device its configuration from the My Home Suite. The blog article linked above describes this in detail.
So, bottom line is, you have what you need from Bticino, you only need a piece of hardware to run openHAB on, such as a NAS or a Raspberry Pi.
Feel free to ask if you have any further questions!
Thanks for the answers. I have indeed already been reading Roberts’s blog on the migration so that gave me a bit of a head start with what to do.
If I understand correctly, for me to be able to program the F420’s with scenarios I could simply use openhab? Or am I misreading that completely? Or is it a matter of not using the F420’s anymore and just use openhab to control scenarios?
Question:
Since I already was reading the blog of Robert and hence gave it a try with virtual configuration instead of jumpers. I had to build an entire plant in myhome_suite first and figure out what connected where and which jumpers were set, but got the whole plant rebuild. What I did after building the whole plant was removing jumpers from SOME actuators and controls and set them up virtually instead of physical configuration. Initially it worked well but somehow sometimes it went crazy and the controls started turning on different lights than I assigned. Is it necessary for virtual controls to work properly to remove ALL jumpers from the WHOLE system? Or can it partially work on virtual and partially physical?
The reason I would like to do it step by step instead of ripping out all jumpers at the same time, is mainly my wife who has been complaining for a week when I was exploring the system and some stuff (lights) didn’t work anymore.
As for the NAS or raspberry Pi, any advice there on which one?
Last question. When I run all on openhab (with NAS or Raspberry Pi) and I turn off the main power and boots up afterwards, would everything still work correctly after turning power back on? In other words, since many work to be done in the apartment, main will be turned of and back on many times, but I don’t want to lose configuration
The latter, you would use openHAB instead of the F420. You can also combine it and trigger scenarios in the F420 or MH202 from openHAB and vice versa. I use the MH202 for most scenarios and it calls up openHAB only where non-Bticino devices are involved. This way, even if openHAB is down, the BTicino part of the scenarios still works.
It can work partially virtual and partially physical, I also did it step-by-step. „Virtual“ is used for the devices without ID, where you send them the configuration by button press. For the devices with ID use the „advanced“ configuration.
What can help with troubleshooting is the OpenWebNet client, it shows the commands sent on the bus:
Yes, you can set it up that way and normally it should work fine. Still, this is one reason why I‘d consider the MH202 more reliable, it is more geared towards ungraceful shutdowns than IT platforms such as a NAS or Raspberry Pi.
I am running openHAB on a Synology NAS in a Docker container and that setup works well for me. If you already have a NAS, or want one, that is probably the way to go, otherwise the Raspberry Pi ist likely cheaper. My NAS is connected to an UPS, to avoid ungraceful shutdowns and data loss.
If you opt for the Raspberry, have a look at openHABian:
I have another question which you perhaps have an anwser for. Currently I have installed openhab on a laptop (win 10). following the tutorial there seems to be no way to get the openhab console for version 3.4.2 running through http://localhost:8080
If I setup openhab version 2.5.12 it seems to work BUT the tutorial is written for version 3.4.2 so slight differences.
Obviously I would like to work with version 3 instead of 2, but what am I doing wrong? Version 2 I get up and running, version 3 just wont connect
when I do this with version it all works fine end I end up in the screens (similar) as descibed here
When I do the actual setup for version 3, the web browser will not connect at all
Perhaps I am not explaining this correctly, but since I am completely new I do not know how to describe it better
C:\Users\Rey>java -version
openjdk version “11.0.18” 2023-01-17 LTS
OpenJDK Runtime Environment Zulu11.62+17-CA (build 11.0.18+10-LTS)
OpenJDK 64-Bit Server VM Zulu11.62+17-CA (build 11.0.18+10-LTS, mixed mode)
Under the environment variables I have set
I have set JAVA_HOME to C:\Program Files\Zulu\zulu-11
path = C:\Program Files\Zulu\zulu-11\bin\
It is pointing to the correct install folder btw.
Strange part here is that 2.5.12 runs (although I had to copy the addons.kar in to the addons folder, becuase it kept throwing exceptions)
3.4.2 when I run that and in the browser type http://localhost:8080 keeps saying
Unable to connect
Firefox can’t establish a connection to the server at localhost:8080.
The site could be temporarily unavailable or too busy. Try again in a few moments.
If you are unable to load any pages, check your computer’s network connection.
If your computer or network is protected by a firewall or proxy, make sure that Firefox is permitted to access the web.
I am not really sure what I did wrong or how to fix it
MH202 performing core functions. (Blind , lighting, control, with alarm gating) Reliable, very stable >>> Very high WAF… no unexpected logical situations >> its logic is simpler but very useable with some tricks eg Boolean, using spare actuators to hold states and modes.
99zone BUS heating control
RaspberryPi with openHABian for more complex, experimental, non critical functions. Monitoring via Grafana charts, limit setting, override functions. Integration with with other home automation devices eg Garage door, Gardena irrigation, MQTT devices, environmental sensors(Atmos pressure, room temperatures, outside temperatures, wind speed, wind limit, rainfall rate, humidity, water detector, air quality >> CO2, PM2.5, VOC) , vacuum cleaner, presence detection etc etc etc >>> all shown on the openHAB app and with rules for push notifications and email alerts.
The RPi is also useful for web page scrapping data (via Selenuim and chromium browser) from web pages eg Heat pump with no app. Sensors with no API but with webpage interface eg My managed air circulation sensors. ie smart devices with no openHAB binding but with a webpage interface
Multiroom Alexa for Alexa commands and for Alexa announcements and warnings eg garage door left open, water leak detected, alarm is active, good morning routine >>> voice commands(Alexa skill) and text to speech announcements (EchoControl binding) >> works surprising well, mildly entertaining, announces useful info eg full moon tonight, outside freezing risk. It has a good WAF in my house and is preferred to wall switches.
openHAB can remember the last state (I have my RPi3,4b on a UPS) and on boot reset their states to avoid a null after startup. Something similar can be done on thje MH202 too. I use spare BUS actuators to hold states/active mode and these can be set at boot of the MH202 e.g. power cut. End result is that after a major power cut the automation falls back to a safe mode of operation until sates and sensors have been updated. Main risks are house overheating from the sun, or my roof drain pipes freezing in the winter (they have heating cables in them!)
If Massi gets the Master clock feature added ti the binding then the occasional time errors should also be a thing of the past eg winter/summer time change over
I would start your project on a RaspberryPi (if you can find one). It is simple to get started with openHABian, is low power enough to be always ON, and can be run off a UPS.
I use text config files which I find very easy to modify and experiment with , albeit after some learning. It is also easy to back them up and safely upgrade openHABian when needed. I have a second RPi with a mirrored SD card too.
