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  1. Home
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  3. N00b + MQTT gw + openHAB2

N00b + MQTT gw + openHAB2

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  • pansenP pansen

    I do not fully understand why you are using MQTT. Can you quickly sketch your setup in a block diagram?

    If you want a quick setup for starters, go for

    Laptop <-> Serial Gateway Arduino <-> nrf24 ******** nrf24<->Arduino<->Relay

    then get OH2 up and running. If you use pure MQTT you don't need the MySensors binding because everything is going through the MQTT broker (mosquitto). I recently started playing with MQTT and it is way more complex than above suggested setup because you need to manually play with configs etc.

    I remember I had problems with OH2 because some java stuff was missing/not functioning. See the threads on this forum and the OH2 forums.

    Laptop is suitable, just think about the power consumption. If you let it running 24/7 I'd consider getting a (even older) Raspberry Pi. The costs will be amortized quickly. (Let's say 30W * 24h * 365d * 0.25ct/kWh = 66EUR meaning RPi will be amortized in 6 months).

    gohanG Offline
    gohanG Offline
    gohan
    Mod
    wrote on last edited by
    #6

    @pansen he is using mysensors mqtt gateway.

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    • pansenP Offline
      pansenP Offline
      pansen
      wrote on last edited by
      #7

      @gohan: I understand but what's the incentive? It's more easy to plug the Arduino via USB and do serial gateway than fiddling with MQTT and network stuff.

      Orange Pi Plus 2e connected to nrf24 PA via SPI running git-development MySensors gateway, OpenHAB2, mosquitto and MySQL persistence.

      gohanG 1 Reply Last reply
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      • pansenP pansen

        @gohan: I understand but what's the incentive? It's more easy to plug the Arduino via USB and do serial gateway than fiddling with MQTT and network stuff.

        gohanG Offline
        gohanG Offline
        gohan
        Mod
        wrote on last edited by
        #8

        @pansen ethernet has better advantages IMHO

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        • MasMatM Offline
          MasMatM Offline
          MasMat
          wrote on last edited by MasMat
          #9

          I ran into NodeRed and thought it would be easy to do mqtt-functions (button press somewhere => do something elsewhere) using that and skipping coding.

          I thought the serial gateway would be a hassle in terms of testing. Thought NodeRed would ease the early testing part. Plus I want to be able to access the system from the net to check/control everything (I have DNS already). That's prob all the same.

          Upon @gohan recommendation, I wrote/tuned the ethernet sketch (see couple questions above) and "installed" Domoticz but as the compiling took SO LONG, I didn't have time to test it (weekend getaway house:grinning: ).

          I had an extra minilaptop lying around, installed Lubuntu on it. Thought it'd have a better life upcycled than thrown out. I have a diy UPS-system (+wind power coming) that powers the whole thing so I didnt want to buy new stuff.
          Plus, I've built the gateway, so I'd rather get it working.

          ++ if the controller breaks or locks up, I'd have a way to access & control the system with MQTT.... <= further thought: wont work right?

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          • gohanG Offline
            gohanG Offline
            gohan
            Mod
            wrote on last edited by
            #10

            If you want to play with node red, at the moment it is not supporting mysensors over mqtt but only serial and ethernet. Then depending on the level of integration and automation you want to have, there are different solutions: if you want some basic control of Arduino IO ports over Internet with a nice app, you could use cayenne, but if you want to have multiple wireless sensors and automation you'd better stay with mysensors and domoticz and start getting some experience; later on you can start looking at more complex scenarios.

            MasMatM 1 Reply Last reply
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            • gohanG gohan

              If you want to play with node red, at the moment it is not supporting mysensors over mqtt but only serial and ethernet. Then depending on the level of integration and automation you want to have, there are different solutions: if you want some basic control of Arduino IO ports over Internet with a nice app, you could use cayenne, but if you want to have multiple wireless sensors and automation you'd better stay with mysensors and domoticz and start getting some experience; later on you can start looking at more complex scenarios.

              MasMatM Offline
              MasMatM Offline
              MasMat
              wrote on last edited by
              #11

              @gohan Totally agree.
              I'll push forward with your recommendations: ethernet+domoticz. After looking into Domo, I think it could serve me well for my purposes as a whole.
              Any ideas about the code for the gateway: udp? controller ip? relays?
              I will build one more Mysensors relay so I can verify radio working etc.

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              • gohanG Offline
                gohanG Offline
                gohan
                Mod
                wrote on last edited by
                #12

                Your sketch seems ok, just make it ethernet gateway instead of mqtt.
                UDP and controller IP are nor necessary.

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                • Q Offline
                  Q Offline
                  Qu3Uk
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #13

                  I use MQTT and Openhab2 - I find it more flexible then the Ethernet GW but yes you need to have a good understanding on all systems I suppose.

                  Somethings to note

                  • MySensors binding doesn't support MQTT gateway as far as I know, you need to use the MQTT binding and configure your OH items accordingly.
                  • MySensors binding is in the IOT market place and not openhab-addons
                  • You'll need to assign node ID to your nodes manually.

                  Not entirely sure what your problem is here but don't think you've got all the right pieces for the puzzle yet.

                  gohanG 1 Reply Last reply
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                  • Q Qu3Uk

                    I use MQTT and Openhab2 - I find it more flexible then the Ethernet GW but yes you need to have a good understanding on all systems I suppose.

                    Somethings to note

                    • MySensors binding doesn't support MQTT gateway as far as I know, you need to use the MQTT binding and configure your OH items accordingly.
                    • MySensors binding is in the IOT market place and not openhab-addons
                    • You'll need to assign node ID to your nodes manually.

                    Not entirely sure what your problem is here but don't think you've got all the right pieces for the puzzle yet.

                    gohanG Offline
                    gohanG Offline
                    gohan
                    Mod
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #14

                    @Qu3Uk I remember that Mysensors binding works both ethernet and MQTT, but anyway ethernet is the best solution for beginners because you can use myscontroller to debug messages while connected to controller.

                    Q E 2 Replies Last reply
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                    • gohanG gohan

                      @Qu3Uk I remember that Mysensors binding works both ethernet and MQTT, but anyway ethernet is the best solution for beginners because you can use myscontroller to debug messages while connected to controller.

                      Q Offline
                      Q Offline
                      Qu3Uk
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #15

                      @gohan Ah really? I've loosely been following last i saw there was a proof of concept mentioned.

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                      • gohanG gohan

                        @Qu3Uk I remember that Mysensors binding works both ethernet and MQTT, but anyway ethernet is the best solution for beginners because you can use myscontroller to debug messages while connected to controller.

                        E Offline
                        E Offline
                        ericvdb
                        wrote on last edited by ericvdb
                        #16

                        @gohan said in N00b + MQTT gw + openHAB2:

                        but anyway ethernet is the best solution for beginners because you can use myscontroller to debug messages while connected to controller.

                        With MQTT you can also debug using MQTT-Spy or MQTTLens or various other MQTT apps.

                        MQTT is easy in interconnecting various systems without they have to know about each-other.

                        As long as you have a MQTT broker (RabbitMQ, Mosquitto, ActiveMQ, ...) you're all set.

                        In OpenHab in conf/services create a file called mqtt.cfg, and past the following:

                        mqtt:broker.url=tcp://ip-address-of-mqttbroker:1883
                        mqtt:broker.clientId=openhab
                        mqtt:broker.retain=true
                        mqtt:broker.async=false
                        

                        Then in your items file you can do:

                        Switch Light_GV_Hall    			"Ceiling"       	(GV_Hall, Lights) {mqtt=">[broker:myhome/room/switch1:command:ON:1],>[broker:myhome/room/switch1:command:OFF:0],<[broker:myhome/room/switch1:state:ON:1],<[broker:myhome/room/switch1:state:OFF:0"}
                        

                        And now you can turn on/off the light from OpenHab as wel as from any other device that publishes to the same toppic (yes, even from MQTT-Spy and MQTTLens)

                        gohanG 1 Reply Last reply
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                        • E ericvdb

                          @gohan said in N00b + MQTT gw + openHAB2:

                          but anyway ethernet is the best solution for beginners because you can use myscontroller to debug messages while connected to controller.

                          With MQTT you can also debug using MQTT-Spy or MQTTLens or various other MQTT apps.

                          MQTT is easy in interconnecting various systems without they have to know about each-other.

                          As long as you have a MQTT broker (RabbitMQ, Mosquitto, ActiveMQ, ...) you're all set.

                          In OpenHab in conf/services create a file called mqtt.cfg, and past the following:

                          mqtt:broker.url=tcp://ip-address-of-mqttbroker:1883
                          mqtt:broker.clientId=openhab
                          mqtt:broker.retain=true
                          mqtt:broker.async=false
                          

                          Then in your items file you can do:

                          Switch Light_GV_Hall    			"Ceiling"       	(GV_Hall, Lights) {mqtt=">[broker:myhome/room/switch1:command:ON:1],>[broker:myhome/room/switch1:command:OFF:0],<[broker:myhome/room/switch1:state:ON:1],<[broker:myhome/room/switch1:state:OFF:0"}
                          

                          And now you can turn on/off the light from OpenHab as wel as from any other device that publishes to the same toppic (yes, even from MQTT-Spy and MQTTLens)

                          gohanG Offline
                          gohanG Offline
                          gohan
                          Mod
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #17

                          @ericvdb I know, I am talking for a beginner perspective. The more advanced users know how to debug over mqtt and stuff

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                          • MasMatM Offline
                            MasMatM Offline
                            MasMat
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #18

                            Update.
                            After much trying the Ethernet gw would not connect to Domoticz.
                            Then, tried my mqtt sketch again and presto! I have connection AND I can control the two relays on board the mqtt-gw.
                            Had a cold one...or four!
                            Thanks for the recommendations and help. I'm sure I will need more later on. Now I'm going to explore the Domoticz forum for answers.
                            Unless someone with the same setup can tell me why the lights are crossed (on = off in reality and off=light on)?

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                            • gohanG Offline
                              gohanG Offline
                              gohan
                              Mod
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #19

                              Depends on relay board

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                              • MasMatM Offline
                                MasMatM Offline
                                MasMat
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #20

                                I just have the modules. low=relay on.
                                I think it would be easier to change it in Domoticz or do I have to change it in the sketches (I think this will be more work when I add new sensors and relays)?

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                                • gohanG Offline
                                  gohanG Offline
                                  gohan
                                  Mod
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #21

                                  Just do everything in code so you present relay status not pin status

                                  MasMatM 1 Reply Last reply
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                                  • gohanG gohan

                                    Just do everything in code so you present relay status not pin status

                                    MasMatM Offline
                                    MasMatM Offline
                                    MasMat
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #22

                                    @gohan How do I do that? I tried reversing the:
                                    #define RELAY_ON 0 // GPIO value to write to turn on attached relay
                                    #define RELAY_OFF 1 // GPIO value to write to turn off attached relay

                                    I switched around the 0 and 1 but no real change...

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                                    • gohanG Offline
                                      gohanG Offline
                                      gohan
                                      Mod
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #23

                                      Did you get a debug log where you actually see the node receiving the message to change the relay status? Because setting the defines as you said should be correct

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                                      • MasMatM Offline
                                        MasMatM Offline
                                        MasMat
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #24

                                        I see the mqtt message going out. I have to double check the 0 vs 1 in the messages.

                                        I'm about to build another sensor that has only relays. So I will troubleshoot this code & mqtt to make it match.

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                                        • gohanG Offline
                                          gohanG Offline
                                          gohan
                                          Mod
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #25

                                          Actually I mean the serial debug of the node, not the mqtt log

                                          MasMatM 1 Reply Last reply
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