Where to start
- A server: Home Assistant Green, a Raspberry Pi 4/5 or a mini PC. Install Home Assistant OS: it has add-ons (Zigbee2MQTT, Mosquitto, ESPHome) and backups built in.
- A radio for sensors: a Zigbee stick, see the coordinator picker.
- DIY sensors on an ESP32: ESPHome generator.
- Access from outside: remote access. Put sensors and cameras in their own Wi-Fi/VLAN: MikroTik generator.
What to buy to start
| What | Why | Where to look |
|---|---|---|
| Home Assistant Green | Ready-made hub from the HA developers: plug in and go. | AliExpress |
| Mini PC (Intel N100) | More power for cameras, Frigate and many add-ons; HA OS installs on it. | AliExpress |
| Zigbee stick | The radio for Zigbee sensors and plugs. See the coordinator picker. | AliExpress |
| USB extension cable | Keeps the Zigbee stick away from USB 3 and the PC: fewer dropouts. | AliExpress |
| Temperature and humidity sensor | The first sensor most people add. | AliExpress |
| Smart plug with power metering | Also extends the Zigbee mesh: mains devices are routers. | AliExpress |
| Door / window sensor | Doors, windows, the fridge. | AliExpress |
| Water leak sensor | Under the boiler, washing machine and sink. | AliExpress |
| Motion sensor | Lights in the hall and the bathroom. | AliExpress |
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Common errors
A request from a reverse proxy was received from 172.30.33.0, but your HTTP integration isReceived X-Forwarded-For header from an untrusted proxy 172.18.0.2Login attempt or request with invalid authentication from 192.168.1.50 (192.168.1.50). ReqInvalid config for 'automation' at automations.yaml, line 3: required key 'triggers' not pTemplate variable warning: 'dict object' has no attribute 'to_state' when rendering '{{ trSetup failed for 'hacs': Integration not found.ERROR Error resolving IP address of kitchen-sensor.local. Is it connected to WiFi?Can't connect to ESPHome API for kitchen-sensor @ 192.168.1.50: Error connecting to [AddrIInvalid encryption key: received a message that could not be decryptedError while starting zigbee-herdsmanMQTT error: connect ECONNREFUSED 127.0.0.1:1883Connection Refused: not authorised.