What are your 5 plug-ins?

[CountryPlace]

I am new here. (not even 24 hours yet!) I am moving from a Wink system to a HS4 Zee/Pi. Since we have to be pretty conservative with our Plug-in choices, I was wondering what you all consider to be mission critical plug-ins? I'm trying to get the most out of this little card deck. What are your 5 top plug-ins?

[goldriver]

If I had to chose: Envisalink, Z-wave, EasyTrigger, Pushover, mcsMQTT

I'd probably be playing on the side with Node-Red to palliate the other plugins. mcsMQTT could probably be replaced by NodeRed but it means a lot of manual entries

[windracer]

I'm relatively new to HS as well. In HS4, Z-Wave and Z-Wave UI take up two slots on the Pi. My others are BLOccupied and SDJ-Health. I'm also using Jon00 Links but that's not really considered a plug-in (more of a UI customization).

[CountryPlace]

I'm relatively new to HS as well. In HS4, Z-Wave and Z-Wave UI take up two slots on the Pi. My others are BLOccupied and SDJ-Health. I'm also using Jon00 Links but that's not really considered a plug-in (more of a UI customization).

What is Zwave UI? I can't find it.

[windracer]

It was pre-installed for me on my HomeTroller Pi:

[Black Cat]

^^^ I don't see it in the Plug In Manager? Search doesn't find it either......
My additional PI is TUYA- everyone needs are different so it will be hard to get consensus of what is needed.

[windracer]

Well, like I said, it was there when I initially set up my Pi. If I try to disable it, it stays enabled but then Z-wave stuff starts acting weird and I see errors in the log so I have to restart the Pi to get things functional again.

[CountryPlace]

everyone needs are different so it will be hard to get consensus of what is needed.

Truth. Since we only have 5 (and I am new to this) I am trying to figure out how to get the most bang for the buck. ZWave, Tuya, MSQTT would cover a LOT of ground and leave me with spares. Since I am basically starting from scratch, I will need to look for devices that work with these plug-ins.

[Bert]

Any chance HomeSeer might unlock the 5 plug-in limit for the S2? I love the energy efficiency of the Pi and just need a couple more plug-ins.

[SteveW]

Any chance HomeSeer might unlock the 5 plug-in limit for the S2? I love the energy efficiency of the Pi and just need a couple more plug-ins.

The way to "unlock the 5 plug-in limit for the S2" is to buy a HS4 Standard or Professional license. For example, HS4 Standard can be installed on a Pi.

[ksum]

I am on a Windows version and run 6 plugins:

• AK GoogleCalendar
• BLRoombaWifi
• Chromecast
• Ecobee
• mcsMQTT
• Z-Wave

With Node Red recently added to HomeSeer I could drop AKGoogleCalendar and possibly Chromecast, which is not used very much anyway. The Ecobee plugin is only because the local utility gave me an Ecobee thermostat, otherwise I probably would have bought a z-wave unit, so that is another one down.

MQTT would be a top of the list item for me as a recommendation to anyone. If only because with that you can connect to so many other things. But maybe I have done too many DIY sensors and other items using Arduinos and MQTT. Some require no programming, such as simple light, temperature, and humidity sensors connected to an Arduino running Tasmota. Others I know add motion sensors to this, but I am not fond of motion sensors. But still, look at it and see if it is a fit for you. In this case you are looking at MQTT and not the plugin. Could you use device which communicate via MQTT?

I would say look into Node Red as it offers many connections via "contribs" which allow it to connect with many different devices and can take the place of some plugins. Determine what you need to connect to, and only add a plugin when you need one. There are many out there and they all have their place. What works for me may not work for you, and that is expected. Take your time and remember that you can always remove a plugin if it doesn't suit your needs.

[CountryPlace]

Any chance HomeSeer might unlock the 5 plug-in limit for the S2? I love the energy efficiency of the Pi and just need a couple more plug-ins.

It looks like the NEW one has unlimited plug-ins...... Just my luck.

[SteveW]

It looks like the NEW one has unlimited plug-ins...... Just my luck.

I looked at the announcement for the "new" version of HS Pi. There is nothing "new" about it at all, other than removing the plug-in limit and including a 32GB SD card instead of a 16GB card. Heck, even the HS Pi downloadable image is the same, outdated one from mid last year. Given that, I'd ask for them to extend the no-limit change to your license.

[CountryPlace]

.... Given that, I'd ask for them to extend the no-limit change to your license.

Great idea. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Thanks for the info.

[homeseerandy]

All Free - mcsMQTT, rbmWeather, Tuya, and Z-Wave + Z-Wave UI (pre-installed on HomeTroller Pi G2 V1 Smart Home Hub) 😀