I have been using ntfy for quite a while now to stay informed about my home automation events. While it’s easy to trigger via HTTP, I grew tired of manually constructing complex API requests using sendHttpPostRequest or executeCommandLine curls in my rules. It felt cluttered and was a pain to maintain across different scripts. So, I decided to build a native binding to make the integration as clean and “openHAB-native” as possible.
Hosting & Privacy
One of the best things about ntfy is its flexibility regarding hosting. You can choose what fits your setup best:
Public Service: Use it out-of-the-box with ntfy.sh (no account required for public topics).
Self-Hosted: For maximum privacy, you can easily host your own instance. It’s available as a lightweight Docker image, a Go binary, or can be installed via Linux packages. This makes it a perfect companion for those already running openHABian or a home server.
Why use ntfy?
Privacy first: It’s open-source and can be easily self-hosted (e.g., via Docker).
No “Cloud” needed: While it works with the public ntfy.sh server, you have full control if you host it yourself.
Instant: Notifications are delivered in near real-time.
Simple: No heavy APIs—just simple HTTP calls under the hood.
Features
Rule Actions: Send notifications from any rule (DSL, JS, Blockly).
Customization: Support for titles, priorities (1-5), tags (emojis), and click-URLs.
Authentication: Supports public topics as well as private instances requiring credentials.
Bridge/Thing Architecture: Configure your ntfy server as a Bridge and create “Topics” as Things.
Installation & Testing
I’m looking forward to your feedback! Please let me know if you encounter any issues or have ideas for additional features.
If you post this to the marketplace, following the template provided when you create the post, users can install and use your new binding from the add-on store just like official add-ons.
