First of all I want to provide a little context for my approach.
I wanted to test the install/create path for many plugins that I support.
I wanted to share much of the experience of a User setting up a large project on UI7.
My Approach -
Start with the standard migration step (Copy Z-Wave configuration from Vera3 to Vera Plus)
Now my Vera Plus knows about all of the Z-Wave devices in my house.
I really did not want to do the exclude/include z-wave devices. Many are hard to get to … and I have a lot > 100.
I have mostly Leviton devices … and they save the name in the device … So most of my devices had the correct (although shorter) name.
I Installed all of my Plugins from scratch. This includes:
DSC Alarm Panel
PLEG, PLTS, PLC
Day Or Night
Weather Underground
Garage Door
Web Power Switch
Vera Alerts
Global Cache 100
MultiSwitch
I recreated all of my Rooms (19)
I ran the following LUA on the UI5 in the Test LUA window (Apps → Develop Apps → Test LUA Code) … and captured the results from the log file.
LUA Script:
devs = luup.devices;
for id,obj in pairs(devs) do
luup.log("ID:" .. tostring(id) .. " ALTID:" .. tostring(obj['id']) .. " Name:" .. tostring(obj['description']))
end
I copied the configuration from my Vera 3 DSC Plugin to my Vera Plus DSC Plugin
Now for a lot of Editing …
I renamed all of the devices and placed in the correct room using the info from STEP 4.
How ? Well the ALTID fields NOT the Device ID fields are used.
I would open a device on Vera Plus, find it’s ALTID on the Advanced Tab, Lookup the Device on Vera 3 that had the same AltID (From Step 4 above) … then I know what device/room it beloged to.
I recreated all of my PLEG/PLC/PLTS logic
Lot of cutting from the Vera 3 - UI5 PLEG/PLTS status reports and pasting or re-entering the information into the UI7 user interface.
The only annoyance I had was using the “Graphical” action editor. When I wanted to turn a device OFF … I would add the Device to the actions. Since the device shows up off … I saved the actions, but they were not saved … why ?? because the “Control” view action editor only saves the change when you interact with the device. So I had to turn the switch on then off in the Action editor. I will fix this.
Recreated all of my Alerts/Notifications and Profiles (I have 10 profiles to test Vera Alerts to all kinds of targets)
[hr]
I have spend about 8 HOURS moving my system from Vera 3 to Vera Plus!
THINGS I LIKE:
I AM VERY HAPPY with the memory utilization. I went from a Vera 3 with almost NO free memory and regular restarts to having almost 50% memory free. The Vera Plus has twice the memory as the Vera 3, but only the same overhead … so you get much more than twice the memory for your plugins and devices. WELL DONE!!!
I hope this translates into some stability.
I have a number of Z-Wave sensors that are at some distance from the controller. I added an external antenna to my Vera 3 to improve performance (Speed without retries and multiple hops).
The Vera PLUS deals with these devices quite nicely without the external antenna. I will still crack open the case and investigate the possibility of an external antenna.
BUGS:
1) The GC-100 Plugin does not show up on the dashboard except as an alert to indicate I have the wrong IP address.
I will look into fixing this.
2) A minor error I detected in Vera Alerts using push bullet … I will fix.
LEFT TO FIGURE OUT:
1) I have a scene controller on the dashboard that was there when I fired up Vera Plus.
Since I did not add this … I am reluctant to remove it … I do not know if this was there from testing … or is required to be there.
2) None of my battery devices have configured them selves yet … I guess I will have to manually do something … But only have a few.
THINGS I HATE:
THE UI7 User Interface is extremely inefficient. I may have to go to the doctor for carpal tunnel check-up.
There is so much wasted space and I have a LOT of stuff that I was constantly scrolling … And a LOT of OK boxes to click … Very annoying.
Thank goodness I am into automation and I only use the Interface for configuration ... UI7 is terrible for LARGE installations.
THINGS I DO NOT USE:
1) I do not use the House Modes - They are to restrictive … and are really there to match the ALARM market place that MCV is planning grow into.
For Real Automation you do have an Occupancy Mode (Home, Away, Vacation) … But (Day or Night) is an orthogonal mode. And I have many other orthogonal modes for my house (i.e. VISITORS, PARTY, FREEZEWARNING)
2) I do not set ANY motion sensors to ARMED … My alarm system handles alarms … I do not need Vera filling up my events because of motion sensors and doors opening and closing.
NOTE: Vera expects you to set the House Mode (ALARM MODE) to turn these events on and off … but modes do not work for me.
3) I do not use the MCV mobile apps.
I use Vera Alerts, Vera Proximity for Geofencing, H@l and AutomationHD for the occasional time I need manual device access (to override automation).
So I am on UI7 now .and will be turning my Vera 3 off … I will comment in a week or so based on my additional experiences.
Richard,
Thanks for sharing!
Question… Any reason you didn’t use the migration path that would allow you to just use a backup, bringing everything over (theoretically) in it’s correct state, including all your plugins, rooms, etch?
My guess is that you wanted to start “mostly from scratch”, and just bring over the devices out of convenience… but wanted to confirm.
Richard, thanks for sharing this. I’m always keen to hear your insights.
I would like to reiterate for others that may not properly understand your intro. Richard’s migration technique is very lengthy, cumbersome and prone to error. For just about all users, the proper and MUCH faster/easier upgrade path is explained by Vera in these upgrade instructions.
@RTS I am holding off on migrating to UI7 due to the GC100 plug in (and thermostat set points) problem. If you are able to get the GC100 plugin working I would really appreciate if you could share the fix? Thanks !
Thanks for posting Richard! I’ve been dreading the thought of a totally fresh install, but didn’t just want to copy over the entirety of my Vera3, since I know I have a bunch of old files on the Vera3 from legacy plugins/devices I no longer use. I didn’t realize I could just copy the z-wave configuration over, so this is hugely helpful to me.
Just to clarify, you did NOT upgrade your UI5 Vera3 to UI7 before copying configuration, correct?
@tb001 - There are two ways to transfer the node information of your Z-Wave network from your existing Vera to a new Vera or other Z-Wave controller. Note that this transfers the Z-Wave network information alone(houseID and nodeIDs) and does not include names. See Richard’s comments about his Leviton devices storing names in the device itself, which is unique to Leviton. All your devices will show up as _Dimmer, _Scene Controller, etc…
a. Copy Z-Wave Network: This method copies the Z-Wave network information from your existing Vera to the new Vera Plus. From UI5 you’ll want to click Devices → Add devices → Advanced Z-Wave Devices (Add) → Add One
Then on the Vera Plus you’ll need to click Settings → Z-wave Settings → Advanced → Copy Z-Wave network from a master controller.
When done, your Vera Plus will be a secondary controller on the Z-Wave network and your Vera 3 will still be the master controller. You will not be able to include Z-Wave devices using the Vera plus(secondary). You will need to include new devices with the Vera 3 and then recopy the Z-Wave network to the Vera Plus.
b. Controller Shift: This method transfers the Z-Wave network information and the role of Master Controller from your existing Vera to the new Vera Plus. From UI5 you’ll want to click Setup → Z-Wave Settings → Advanced → Controller Shift → Go
Then on the Vera Plus you’ll need to click Settings → Z-wave Settings → Advanced → Copy Z-Wave network from a master controller.
When done, your Vera Plus will be the master controller on the Z-Wave network and your Vera 3 will be a secondary controller, no longer capable of including devices into the network.
I did NOT upgrade my UI5 to UI7 … I have it has a hot backup if I need to go back!
I just copied the Z-Wave configuration from Vera 3 - UI5 to Vera Plus - UI7.
So it’s almost like starting over, just not having to do the exclude/include step.
I do have the GC100 working.
To add to @ Z-Waver’s comments … Using my step 4 helps to identify and rename all the Generic Devices after you move just the Z-Wave network.
Interesting, thanks for the additional color Z-waver/RTS. My original plan was to start from scratch and have a ‘clean’ system, so it’s nice to know there are some intermediate steps which should save some time.
Dim question–if I use Richard’s method, will I still be able to control devices from the original Vera as well? And use the UI5 interface as a way to double check settings, etc… for my plugins and scenes?
I’ve finally gotten DH pretty enthusiatically on board with vera, after a few, ahem, user introduced programming glitches, and want things to transition as smoothly as possible. If it ends up being spread over >1 day, or doesn’t transition smoothly, want to be sure the basics we use all the time are available as a backup.
[quote=“tb001, post:10, topic:191114”]Dim question–if I use Richard’s method, will I still be able to control devices from the original Vera as well? And use the UI5 interface as a way to double check settings, etc… for my plugins and scenes?[/quote]Yes. The old Vera, with UI5 in your case, remains fully functional.
The old Vera with UI5 is completely unchanged if you follow the Copy Z-Wave Network method. Save for a new Z-Wave controller device(Vera Plus) is added.
The old Vera with UI5 becomes a secondary controller if you follow the Controller Shift method. As a secondary, it is still fully functional, but is unable to include new devices as inclusion is only possible by the network’s Master Z-Wave controller.
Regardless of which method from above that you use, the Vera Plus will have all of your Z-Wave devices with their generic names(e.g. _Appliance Module).
[quote=“Z-Waver, post:11, topic:191114”][quote=“tb001, post:10, topic:191114”]Dim question–if I use Richard’s method, will I still be able to control devices from the original Vera as well? And use the UI5 interface as a way to double check settings, etc… for my plugins and scenes?[/quote]Yes. The old Vera, with UI5 in your case, remains fully functional.
The old Vera with UI5 is completely unchanged if you follow the Copy Z-Wave Network method. Save for a new Z-Wave controller device(Vera Plus) is added.
The old Vera with UI5 becomes a secondary controller if you follow the Controller Shift method. As a secondary, it is still fully functional, but is unable to include new devices as inclusion is only possible by the network’s Master Z-Wave controller.
Regardless of which method from above that you use, the Vera Plus will have all of your Z-Wave devices with their generic names(e.g. _Appliance Module).[/quote]
Fantastic, thanks for the clarification. Going to get started this afternoon and see how it goes!
[quote=“Z-Waver, post:8, topic:191114”]@tb001 - There are two ways to transfer the node information of your Z-Wave network from your existing Vera to a new Vera or other Z-Wave controller. Note that this transfers the Z-Wave network information alone(houseID and nodeIDs) and does not include names. See Richard’s comments about his Leviton devices storing names in the device itself, which is unique to Leviton. All your devices will show up as _Dimmer, _Scene Controller, etc…
a. Copy Z-Wave Network: This method copies the Z-Wave network information from your existing Vera to the new Vera Plus. From UI5 you’ll want to click Devices → Add devices → Advanced Z-Wave Devices (Add) → Add One
Then on the Vera Plus you’ll need to click Settings → Z-wave Settings → Advanced → Copy Z-Wave network from a master controller.
When done, your Vera Plus will be a secondary controller on the Z-Wave network and your Vera 3 will still be the master controller. You will not be able to include Z-Wave devices using the Vera plus(secondary). You will need to include new devices with the Vera 3 and then recopy the Z-Wave network to the Vera Plus.
b. Controller Shift: This method transfers the Z-Wave network information and the role of Master Controller from your existing Vera to the new Vera Plus. From UI5 you’ll want to click Setup → Z-Wave Settings → Advanced → Controller Shift → Go
Then on the Vera Plus you’ll need to click Settings → Z-wave Settings → Advanced → Copy Z-Wave network from a master controller.
When done, your Vera Plus will be the master controller on the Z-Wave network and your Vera 3 will be a secondary controller, no longer capable of including devices into the network.[/quote]
After doing a controller shift what is the right way to remove the old vera as a secondary controller?
[quote=“br636, post:17, topic:191114”]I tried to exclude the edge but I was not able to. If I reset the zwave network on the edge (Slave) will it reset the network on the Plus (master)?[/quote]No, resetting the secondary controller(Edge) will not impact the primary controller(Plus).
Using this method I would backup the secondary(Edge). Always backup before you do something. I’d then do a factory reset on the Edge and, finally delete the Edge from the primary(Plus) interface.
Besides RAM headroom, do you find that there is less lag when running scenes with lua code? Does VeraPlus feel significantly more responsive than older Vera model?
