Using VeraLite without creating an account on Mios (local access only)

Community Playground Getting Started & Initial Setup
1

Hello,

I am brand new to Vera. My device is on it’s way. Prior to jumping in, I emailed support about Using it inside my network, exclusively.

Reading through the docs online and wiki, I dont see if it is possible. Does vera use upnp to open ports automatically? If my router has upnp turned off, will it prevent vera from phoning home?

Is the dashboard available bia LAN, and can it be protected with a login?

I have VPN access to the network, so remote access isnt a concern. So as long as internal machines can see the vera (without wifi)

2

Vera uses UPnP but only to advertise its presence to the LAN. Your router’s UPnP setting is something entirely different and doesn’t have any effect on Vera’s operation.

Vera phones home through an SSH tunnel to Micasaverde’s servers. It’s possible to disable, or at least hobble, this tunnel. Or you can just ignore it and use Vera on your LAN directly.

Is the dashboard available bia LAN, and can it be protected with a login?

It’s available via the LAN but there is no real authentication. Anyone that can reach Vera on your LAN has full control.

I have VPN access to the network

This works. You’ll probably want to give your Vera a persistent IP address within your LAN.

3

Vera uses UPnP but only to advertise its presence to the LAN. Your router’s UPnP setting is something entirely different and doesn’t have any effect on Vera’s operation.

Vera phones home through an SSH tunnel to Micasaverde’s servers. It’s possible to disable, or at least hobble, this tunnel. Or you can just ignore it and use Vera on your LAN directly.

Is the dashboard available bia LAN, and can it be protected with a login?

It’s available via the LAN but there is no real authentication. Anyone that can reach Vera on your LAN has full control.

I have VPN access to the network

This works. You’ll probably want to give your Vera a persistent IP address within your LAN.[/quote]

Thanks - I got my device today. The Ui seems pretty slow. I see the system is busy message every so often. No harm in letting Vera connect to pull down any updates before disabling access via the FW, right?

4

I recommend that you upgrade only as far as 1.5.622 for the moment. The 1.6.xxx updates are … troubling some users.

5

I recommend that you upgrade only as far as 1.5.622 for the moment. The 1.6.xxx updates are … troubling some users.[/quote]

i’m still on 1.5.622, which is good.

Also instead of blocking total internet access, i am going to follow the steps outlined to hobble the tunnel. While I do have VPN access working very well ( I have tasker configured to fire up the VPN, and issue a commands to AutHomationHD)…i still need Vera to get information from the internet at large so i can get notifications etc. Unless I can figure out how to do that via Tasker.

Thanks for your help

6

For security reasons (and because I already have a perfectly good VPN set up), I disabled access to my vera from mios. It’s not able to connect in from the outside. It was actually quite simple. I’m running a router with dd-wrt installed, but may other routers will have functionality to do this as well.

I added an access restriction (a firewall rule) to block port 232 to the static IP that I set my vera.

You’re still able to log on to download new plugins and that kind of thing, but you are unable to get in through mios.

Things work perfectly fine like this with the exception that some iPhone apps don’t do a great job (and often crash) when going through the VPN when they expect mios access. iVera is a big culprit here. But I use the new GreenHome app and it’s awesome for this.