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I have a PI and RAZberry ZWave interface can I build my own Z-NET

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    #31
    Thank you Pete, I'll give it a try.

    HS support suggested buying Z-Net, but I think why? I've got spare RasPi already...

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      #32
      [ATTACH]62091[/ATTACH]

      Digitemp writes a text file which HS3 reads and converts to variables. OWFS is doing its own thing right now.

      I am still adding sensors to the 1-wire network.

      [ATTACH]62090[/ATTACH]

      It is doing well so far.

      I moved the original HS3 lite over to a Pine64 2Gb machine running Ubuntu 64bit and a Xi5a running Ubuntu 64 bit. Alternate which machine HS3 lite runs on. Both are similar machines except one is using an ARM CPU and the other is using an AMD CPU. Both have 2 Gb of ram, both are running Ubuntu 64bit. AMD computer though is using an SSD drive where as the Pine64 2Gb machine is using a microsd card.

      HS3 Pro here is running on an iSeries / 16Gb machine Ubuntu 64 bit with Oracle VB's doing MS SAPI.

      I also utilize 3 Z-Wave controllers talking to the same Z-Wave network but not to each other (Leviton serial VRCOP and Samsung Smarthings and HS3 ZWave-ZWave dot me card). Utilize UPB, X10, Z-Wave and Zigbee on my home network.

      Relative the above stuff.....and recommendations....for a plug n play/easy peasey solution I would purchase the ZNet device as HS does not sell the Znet image by itself today.

      That or DIYing your solution. There are many posts relating to methodologies doing it with Linux. It is relatively simple.
      Last edited by Pete; July 6, 2017, 03:03 PM.
      - Pete

      Auto mator
      Homeseer 3 Pro - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e 64 bit Intel Haswell CPU 16Gb
      Homeseer Zee2 (Lite) - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e - CherryTrail x5-Z8350 BeeLink 4Gb BT3 Pro
      HS4 Lite - Ubuntu 22.04 / Lenovo Tiny M900 / 32Gb Ram

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      X10, UPB, Zigbee, ZWave and Wifi MQTT automation-Tasmota-Espurna. OmniPro 2, Russound zoned audio, Alexa, Cheaper RFID, W800 and Home Assistant

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        #33
        That's impressive set-up Pete

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          #34
          @alex...start with baby steps...easiest is just to run the Z-Wave plugin on the current remote GPIO Z-Wave RPi.

          Leave the main Homeseer server on but with the Z-Wave plugin disabled.

          Run the mono zwave plugin on the GPIO RPi and watch the plugin remotely connect to the server.

          Initially thinking I ran the remote automatically on boot up. Then later ran an event on the main Homeseer box to remotely start the plugin using SSH.

          It worked fine in this manner for over a year. (well until I updated the RPi2 from Wheezy to Jessie).

          As I started to add more functionality to the GPIO'd RPi2 I have been trying to thin it out. One of the features of Homeseer 3 was remote plugin capabilities which did not exist in Homeseer 2.

          On RPi2 ....ssh and...

          rm -rf /boot/cmdline.txt
          echo 'dwc_otg.lpm_enable=0 console=tty1 root=/dev/mmcblk0p2 rootfstype=ext4 elevator=deadline rootwait Reboot' >> /boot/cmdline.txt
          chmod 777 /boot/cmdline.txt
          sed -i '/ttyAMA0 115200 vt100/d' /etc/inittab

          reboot and ssh and

          ssh and install mono...reboot and ssh again...

          mono HSPI_ZWave.exe server=192.168.244.164
          Connecting to server at 192.168.244.164...
          Connected, waiting to be initialized..

          on main HS3 box

          [ATTACH]62101[/ATTACH]

          ZWave dot me GPIO controller on main box

          [ATTACH]62102[/ATTACH]

          You cannot break anything as the Z-Wave dot me Z-Wave database of nodes remains on the GPIO card.

          RPi2-ZWaveMe GPIO card with ZWave DB in firmware ===> remote to main HSBox reads ZWave DB in firmware and ZWave configuration on HS3 box
          Last edited by Pete; July 7, 2017, 10:29 AM.
          - Pete

          Auto mator
          Homeseer 3 Pro - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e 64 bit Intel Haswell CPU 16Gb
          Homeseer Zee2 (Lite) - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e - CherryTrail x5-Z8350 BeeLink 4Gb BT3 Pro
          HS4 Lite - Ubuntu 22.04 / Lenovo Tiny M900 / 32Gb Ram

          HS4 Pro - V4.1.18.1 - Ubuntu 22.04 / Lenova Tiny M900 / 32Gb Ram
          HSTouch on Intel tabletop tablets (Jogglers) - Asus AIO - Windows 11

          X10, UPB, Zigbee, ZWave and Wifi MQTT automation-Tasmota-Espurna. OmniPro 2, Russound zoned audio, Alexa, Cheaper RFID, W800 and Home Assistant

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            #35
            Originally posted by Pete View Post
            Here have repurposed my original Zee-2 to a ZNet like device plus other stuff...
            Pete, I am doing something similar with an RPi3. I have my HS3 running on windows at my main house with a UZB1 stick for ZWave. I have recently set up a second small ZWave network at a remote location using an RPi3 and another UZB1 stick. This uses a VPN back to my main system. I use the free version of 'VirtualHere' (server on RPi3, client on HS3 Windows PC) so that the USB port on the RPi3 is mirrored on the PC and HS3 can therefore access the 2nd UZB stick as if it was on the local machine. In HS3 I have 2 primary ZWave networks. The RPi monitors the VPN and re-establishes it and the 'VirtualHere' server if it drops for any reason.

            This works well at the RPi end, even though the internet connection at that location does drop occasionally. The RPi re-establishes everything quite quickly.

            There is an issue in that when the virtual USB port (and therefore the com port) drops for even a short period, the ZWave PI doesn't recover the connection. I therefore have events that watch for the COM error and restart the ZWave PI. Events also make sure both interfaces start up ok when HS3 is booted.

            This works fine although it would be much better if the ZWave PI could automatically recover an interface from a COM port error. It would be be smoother if I could restart just the one interface rather than the ZWave pi itself but that doesn't seem to be possible. The only issue from this is that there is a short break in ZWave at my primary location as the ZWave PI restarts. I've been running for a few weeks like this and it happens every couple of days but usually in the middle of the night so it hasn't been a problem.

            Anyway your mention of ser2net has got me thinking and I might give that a try as an alternative to VirtualHere. It might be that if the ZWave plugin is communicating with an IP interface rather than a COM port it might be more tolerant of a short interruption. It's certainly worth a try.

            With your setup how do you configure the ZWave interface in HS3? Do you select 'Ethernet Interface' as the Interface Model?

            Steve

            Comment


              #36
              Very nice Steve. The Z-Wave plugin is very versatile.

              Anyway your mention of ser2net has got me thinking and I might give that a try as an alternative to VirtualHere. It might be that if the ZWave plugin is communicating with an IP interface rather than a COM port it might be more tolerant of a short interruption. It's certainly worth a try..

              First time testing ser2net here with Z-Wave. It is lighter and I have tested the disconnect and reconnect and it appears seamless versus running the Z-Wave remote plugin. The mono zwave in linux only works in linux while the ser2net works for linux to Windows.

              I have seen ser2net mentioned many many times. Initially tinkered with the Quatech serial server and a Digi USB Anywhere for serial/usb ethernet devices. (will not work with the RPi though) My setup was working (except until I went to Jessie Lite)

              I am trying to make the RPi2 lighter as I keep adding 1-Wire sensors to the 9097.

              With your setup how do you configure the ZWave interface in HS3? Do you select 'Ethernet Interface' as the Interface Model?

              Yes. It connects faster than running remote zwave and very light.

              2294 root 20 0 2164 1744 1604 S 0.0 0.2 0:13.96 ser2net

              Note the port number was ghosted out then enabled when I picked the ethernet connection.

              [ATTACH]62106[/ATTACH]

              That said it is only being utilized on the local network.
              Last edited by Pete; July 7, 2017, 01:41 PM.
              - Pete

              Auto mator
              Homeseer 3 Pro - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e 64 bit Intel Haswell CPU 16Gb
              Homeseer Zee2 (Lite) - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e - CherryTrail x5-Z8350 BeeLink 4Gb BT3 Pro
              HS4 Lite - Ubuntu 22.04 / Lenovo Tiny M900 / 32Gb Ram

              HS4 Pro - V4.1.18.1 - Ubuntu 22.04 / Lenova Tiny M900 / 32Gb Ram
              HSTouch on Intel tabletop tablets (Jogglers) - Asus AIO - Windows 11

              X10, UPB, Zigbee, ZWave and Wifi MQTT automation-Tasmota-Espurna. OmniPro 2, Russound zoned audio, Alexa, Cheaper RFID, W800 and Home Assistant

              Comment


                #37
                Hi all, I'm pretty new to Homeseer and find it a bit... frustrating for pretty expensive piece of software. All this marking around would be ok for free stuff like openhub or homeassistant...

                Guys, can you please provide step-by-step instructions. I have HS3 pro on Windows 10, and I have Z-Wave setup on RasPi3 Jessie (RaZberry gpio card).

                1. I.e. what do I install on RasPi?
                2. I downloaded ser2net, but it's source, do I need to build it, or there are prebuilt installers available? Obviously I need ser2net on both Windows and Jessie?
                3. Is ser2net really necessary? Or remote Z-Wave plugin (Linux) can communicate with HS3 (Windows) directly?
                4. How do I configure HS3? How do I configure RasPi?
                5. Since I have ZWay setup on RasPi (http://razberry.z-wave.me/z-way-server/razberry.img.zip) - do I need to disable anything for HS to work with RasPi?

                Thank you guys!

                Comment


                  #38
                  Originally posted by alexbk66 View Post
                  Hi all, I'm pretty new to Homeseer and find it a bit... frustrating for pretty expensive piece of software. All this marking around would be ok for free stuff like openhub or homeassistant...
                  Whilst Homeseer may have their faults I think you are being a little unreasonable to criticise them for this. After all they sell a ZNet to do what we are doing in this thread and that is pretty much plug and play. What we are talking about here is a DIY way of achieving what a ZNet does.

                  As for a step by step guide, Pete might provide this as he is very generous with his time. I am achieving it by a different route than ser2net ( VirtualHere to mirror the COM port over a VPN from a remote location ) so I can't give you step by step until I have tried the ser2net method myself. When I have I will let you know which method I find works best.

                  You will have to expect any DIY method to involve plenty of tweaking to cope with varying setups. For me that's the fun of it

                  Steve

                  Comment


                    #39
                    Originally posted by SteveMSJ View Post
                    Whilst Homeseer may have their faults I think you are being a little unreasonable to criticise them for this. After all they sell a ZNet to do what we are doing in this thread and that is pretty much plug and play
                    @SteveMSJ, I'm not criticizing HS for this particular problem, I mean general feeling I get after trying to set-up HS - it feels pretty 'old' and not reliable. I'm software engineer myself with 30 years experience, so I know what I'm talking about. And I'm not afraid of 'tweaking', believe me. Just lack of support makes me feel uncomfortable a bit.

                    Comment


                      #40
                      The original question posted here was:

                      I have a PI and RAZberry ZWave interface can I build my own Z-NET

                      No.

                      The ZNet device is proprietary firmware and RPi being sold by Homeseer which works with Homeseer running on Windows or Linux.

                      Personally here shifted over from Homeseer 2 running on Windows Server to Homeseer 3 Pro running on Ubuntu Linux V14.04 64 bit. That and I am still using Windows on the main Linux box running Oracle Virtual box(es). Like many Homeseer users here what I did works for me. I have attempted to document some of this stuff in the Homeseer help me section.

                      I would recommend baby steps in getting familiar with Homeseer 3 pro and the understanding of Homeseer's methodologies of Z-Wave transport connectivity before anything else.

                      1. I.E. what do I install on RasPi?

                      Wheezy or Jessie Lite.

                      2. I downloaded ser2net, but it's source, do I need to build it, or there are prebuilt installers available?

                      You do not need to build it.

                      Obviously I need ser2net on both Windows and Jessie?

                      Dunno. I used to use a Quatech serial server for Windows and couldn't figure out a way to communicate to it in Linux - writing the company indicated that they no longer supported the device in Linux. ser2net is a very old piece of Linux software.

                      3. Is ser2net really necessary?

                      No. I used the Z-Wave plugin remotely (BUT only between Linux machines). Way back I called it a ZNet like device. It was far from ZNet though. It was just running the plugin remotely.

                      Or remote Z-Wave plugin (Linux) can communicate with HS3 (Windows) directly?

                      Yes it can.

                      The Z-Wave plugin used to be unique for Windows versus Linux. Try it as today it may be the same.

                      4. How do I configure HS3?

                      It is just a drop down box in the Z-Wave configuration menu to talk to a variety of Z-Wave controllers (serial, USB and ethernet).

                      When running remote Z-Wave it just connects to the mothership and seen as a remote connection.

                      How do I configure RasPi?

                      As mentioned above.

                      5. Since I have ZWay setup on RasPi (hxxp://razberry.z-wave.me/z-way-server/razberry.img.zip) - do I need to disable anything for HS to work with RasPi?

                      The ZWay RPi build is proprietary and I would not utilize it today for Homeseer.
                      - Pete

                      Auto mator
                      Homeseer 3 Pro - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e 64 bit Intel Haswell CPU 16Gb
                      Homeseer Zee2 (Lite) - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e - CherryTrail x5-Z8350 BeeLink 4Gb BT3 Pro
                      HS4 Lite - Ubuntu 22.04 / Lenovo Tiny M900 / 32Gb Ram

                      HS4 Pro - V4.1.18.1 - Ubuntu 22.04 / Lenova Tiny M900 / 32Gb Ram
                      HSTouch on Intel tabletop tablets (Jogglers) - Asus AIO - Windows 11

                      X10, UPB, Zigbee, ZWave and Wifi MQTT automation-Tasmota-Espurna. OmniPro 2, Russound zoned audio, Alexa, Cheaper RFID, W800 and Home Assistant

                      Comment


                        #41
                        Originally posted by alexbk66 View Post
                        Hi all, I'm pretty new to Homeseer and find it a bit... frustrating for pretty expensive piece of software. All this marking around would be ok for free stuff like openhub or homeassistant...

                        Guys, can you please provide step-by-step instructions. I have HS3 pro on Windows 10, and I have Z-Wave setup on RasPi3 Jessie (RaZberry gpio card).

                        1. I.e. what do I install on RasPi?
                        2. I downloaded ser2net, but it's source, do I need to build it, or there are prebuilt installers available? Obviously I need ser2net on both Windows and Jessie?
                        3. Is ser2net really necessary? Or remote Z-Wave plugin (Linux) can communicate with HS3 (Windows) directly?
                        4. How do I configure HS3? How do I configure RasPi?
                        5. Since I have ZWay setup on RasPi (http://razberry.z-wave.me/z-way-server/razberry.img.zip) - do I need to disable anything for HS to work with RasPi?

                        Thank you guys!
                        The znet uses ser2net for the bridge between the network and the serial channel of the zwave controller chip. Its only needed at that end as the zwave plugin handles the connection to the net at the HS3 end.

                        The latest build of ser2net is 3.4 and can be built on the rpi from source quite easily, or you can get the prebuilt version 2.9.1 via

                        apt-get install ser2net

                        Then you need to set up the configuration file /etc/ser2net.conf. Mine looks like this:

                        2001:raw:60:/dev/ttyAMA0:115200

                        The last field is the baud rate of the zwave controller serial channel.

                        Then when setting up at the zwave plugin, you'd specify interface model 'Ethernet Interface' and enter the IP address of the rpi and port 2001.

                        WRT your question (5), I'm not familiar with ZWay, but a zwave controller chip can service only one connection at at time so I'm reasonably certain that would need to be shut off if you want to use ser2net or the remote zwave plugin.

                        Comment


                          #42
                          Originally posted by Pete View Post
                          [ATTACH]62090[/ATTACH]
                          Just wondering - where this image from? Homeseer?

                          Comment


                            #43
                            Originally posted by zwolfpack View Post
                            The znet uses ser2net for the bridge between the network and the serial channel of the zwave controller chip. Its only needed at that end as the zwave plugin handles the connection to the net at the HS3 end.
                            Thank you @zwolfpack for the explanation. Since ser2net talks to z-wave chip directly (which I didn't understand before your post) - definitely I need to get rid of ZWay...

                            [EDIT] So you mean HS talks to RaZberry gpio card directly via ser2net? Which means RasPi is not doing anything, just holding RaZberry card? And all zwave comms is done in HS?
                            And I don't need to install ZWave plugin on RasPI?
                            Isn't there another (better) option to install ZWave plugin on RasPI so it will be doing all the work and talk to HS server remotely?
                            Last edited by alexbk66; July 10, 2017, 01:22 AM.

                            Comment


                              #44
                              Originally posted by alexbk66 View Post
                              Isn't there another (better) option to install ZWave plugin on RasPI so it will be doing all the work and talk to HS server remotely?
                              You can run the ZWave plugin on the RasPi, under mono, to connect remotely to HS3 on a different computer. However, the linux version of the ZWave plugin will not connect to HS3 running on a windows PC. It will work if HS3 is running on a linux PC. So currently you can't connect ZWave on a RasPi to HS3 on windows.

                              I did submit a bugzilla report on this a while back but haven't had a response from HS.

                              Steve

                              Comment


                                #45
                                Just wondering - where this image from? Homeseer?

                                No it is Domoticz.

                                I am using it to test my lightning sensors which are using an RPi2.

                                1 - 1-wire 9097
                                2 - GPIO pin

                                as I was testing this in Python. The software is providing and quickie graphical interface.

                                So you mean HS talks to RaZberry gpio card directly via ser2net? Which means RasPi is not doing anything, just holding RaZberry card? And all zwave comms is done in HS?

                                Yes and yes.

                                And I don't need to install ZWave plugin on RasPI?

                                If you are not running the Z-Wave plugin remotely on the RasPI you only need ser2net to connect to the RasPI GPIO Z-Wave card.

                                Isn't there another (better) option to install ZWave plugin on RasPI so it will be doing all the work and talk to HS server remotely?

                                It is the easiest option to just run:

                                mono zwaveplugin server=ipofhomeseer server.

                                I do this for Windows only plugins today. IE: Kinect plugin works this way. Many plugin authors have adjusted their plugins to work with Linux and Windows.

                                BTW

                                Using ser2net is lighter than running the plugin.

                                As Steve mentions above the Z-Wave plugin should be the same in Linux and Windows but it is not.

                                Running the plugin in Linux and talking to the Homeseer server in Windows though works except that the nomenclature is different.

                                Relating to building a slave Z-Wave device just:

                                1 - write a new Wheezy image (I prefer this over Jessie lite)
                                2 - change the boot text file to load the serial GPIO stuff as described above
                                3 - if using ser2net you do not need to install mono on the device
                                4 - do apt get install ser2net
                                5 - adjust configuration as specificed
                                6 - test run ser2net via ssh.
                                7 - validate the connectivity on your HS box
                                8 - configure ser2net to automatically start when rebooting your RPi.
                                9 - Personally only done this in Linux but guessing that in Windows it is the same...nothing really special that needs to be done on a Windows computer.

                                With the above you really just need to do the basics and understand a bit about Linux.

                                I am skipping some granular steps here relating to standard building of a Wheezy RPi, installation of software, auto starting of software as it has been documented over on the RPi site and here many many times now.

                                Noticed that this thread has over 5000 views.
                                Last edited by Pete; July 10, 2017, 11:53 AM.
                                - Pete

                                Auto mator
                                Homeseer 3 Pro - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e 64 bit Intel Haswell CPU 16Gb
                                Homeseer Zee2 (Lite) - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e - CherryTrail x5-Z8350 BeeLink 4Gb BT3 Pro
                                HS4 Lite - Ubuntu 22.04 / Lenovo Tiny M900 / 32Gb Ram

                                HS4 Pro - V4.1.18.1 - Ubuntu 22.04 / Lenova Tiny M900 / 32Gb Ram
                                HSTouch on Intel tabletop tablets (Jogglers) - Asus AIO - Windows 11

                                X10, UPB, Zigbee, ZWave and Wifi MQTT automation-Tasmota-Espurna. OmniPro 2, Russound zoned audio, Alexa, Cheaper RFID, W800 and Home Assistant

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