Fixing Z-Wave for once and for all!

[dmtcaz]

This is what helped solve my problem - and hopefully future ones as well though it's more a kinda workaround:
I modified options.xml (/domoticz/Config) by setting

<Option name="ReloadAfterUpdate" value="NEVER" />

which prevents a new z-wave devices config file to automatically modify existing nodes. You could also prevent the new file from downloading by setting

<Option name="AutoUpdateConfigFile" value="false" />

However you might miss device info in the future when you install new devices with this last setting.

Although manual says not to, after that I modified the ozwcache_[id].xml file (/domoticz/Config) specifically for the recalcitrate device. Under Commandclass id="49" name="COMMAND_CLASS_SENSOR_MULTILEVEL" I simply deleted some lines that contained bs imho (yep, first made a backup ). Depending on your situation you may have to experiment a little. My temperature readings were restored. After that I had to manually delete the duplicate and false devices from the devices panel in Domoticz. Domoticz keeps these stored in a separate db I presume.

[DosN]

I have also Z-wave problems

I have 3 multi fibaro sensors . 2 are working fine for some years now. I bought a 3e one and that has strange readings. So i did buy a new one , but that has also strang readings

The reading which are strange are:
the temperature is around 90degrees to high.. reading are now 108degrees .. at domoticz and CP
Also what i see is that the motion sensor is at a different adress ( where normal tamper alarm should be on

is there a fix . does any wone have these issues . or do i have a second defect mulit fibaro sensor

im running nnow teh latest Domoticz version : 2020.2 (build 12750)

[DosN]

At CP the sensor is not set to ON , when the sensor is made.
that is coursed by the wrong ID is used
When i check at Domoticz (tab Devices)The motion signal is adressed to ID 0000D35, which is normally used for tamper alarm
The senaor alarm should be adressed to ID 0000D00

[kiddigital]

Please try a recent Beta, build 12745 or higher as a fix has been applied on how Domoticz looks at incoming Z-Wave sensor data.

You might have to exclude the devices, remove devices created by Domoticz and than re-include them. They should appear in Domoticz as new devices based on the latest manifest (xml) files and all values should get populated and updated.

Remember that it can take some time for Z-Wave devices to report all its ‘sensors’ so make sure that Domoticz accepts new hardware longer than just for 5 minutes! Otherwise some sensors might not get created in Domoticz.

[DosN]

Did update to the lastes domoticz 2020.2 build 12750
removed node which was uncorrect
The added the sensor again, and yes it has a new node
now the temperature is OK
But still the tamper and motion sensors are not correct
motion sensor is addressed to 0000E35 and should be 0000E00
Also the sensor is continu ON at CP and then one looks it is adressed to 0000E28

[ArnoutZ]

The problems in this topic all sound so familiair.
I moved from a RPi to running Domoticz on a Qnap NAS. Domoticz Version 10.717 runs stable and after a reboot all z-wave devices are recognized within minutes.
Running 2020.2.1195 is terrible. Just can’t get the z-wave devices stable. Switched back to the old Domoticz version but it’s a shame I just can’t get it to work.
I am using the Aeonlabs stick. Can there be a relation to the issues or are others having the same problems with another a-wave stick?

[jake]

Yesterday I updated to 12750, but had my first non responding Fibaro wall plug already this afternoon. 1 manual click on the button (i just can reach is where it's at) and it springs back to live. It is connected to multiple close neighbors, so plenty of chance to pass on the command. Very weird that the node is declared dead so quickly.

[sieth]

After years with Z-wave I totally abandoned it.
Problems I've encountered:

• Dead nodes

• When stick was dead reconfiguring the new stick was a pain

• Slow downs in the total Domoticz system (Other non Z-wave devices were impacted)

• Every reboot of the computer was like trowing a dice, what Z-wave part wont work this time...

So I removed all the Z-wave devices (around 1000€ of devices)
Now I use:

• Shelly: Wifi based, cheap, European, works perfect

• Xiaomi sensors: Zigbee, cheap, very small, nice design

• 433: cheap, simple (1 plug for the christmas tree, nothing more)

I'm glad i dumped the z-wave part of my domoticz system.

[jake]

Well, I came from a pre 2020 beta version (one of the last ones where the temp. sql database was allowed to run in RAM) and had only occasionally issues with zwave. Ever since updating to 12.740 / 12.750 the amount of issues increased to around 1 a day. Today I would not buy another zwave product anymore, zigbee is a lot cheaper and possibly more stable.

[rrozema]

To anyone reading this thread: update to the latest beta and most z-wave problems will be gone. Catfriend1 did extensive research and found and fixed the bug causing openzwave messages to be dropped. After updating Domoticz you may have to refresh node info for some nodes that have misbehaved in the past. Doing that refresh node info updates Domoticz' device information for that node so that it will be in sync again with the actual node's definitions. If you don't update the node info some sub-devices may still behave erratically even though the code is fixed. An exclude and subsequent include of the node will also fix the problem, but that also removes all domoticz' sub devices for your z-wave node and creates new ones for the new z-wave ID. So it's better to simply refresh the node info. One (1) exception: when a node is showing node and type id = 0x0000, refresh node info won't work. In this case, do a re-include of the node, WITHOUT first excluding it. That way the node will be re-included with the original z-wave id and all of your domoticz subdevices will remain intact.

I tested this with build 12754 and I no longer have the problem where some of the sub-devices get assigned a value only once after including the node, never to receive another update again (and thus show up as 'dead' with a red title bar). I experienced this problem with multiple makes of z-wave nodes, but some seemed to be more prone to show it. On the other hand, the problem could hit one node and another of exactly the same brand and type could be not affected at all.

(edit: made a clear distinction between the z-wave hardware "node" and Domoticz' "devices")

[wkossen]

Is there a way to implement the fix in the current stable version? I dont like running beta software for things important to me.

[kimhav]

Recognise the issues described in this thread to well with the dead nodes coming up once and a while which is just slowing killing the pleasure of using zwave and in my case the Qubinos. Having said that, after I upgraded to 2020.2 (currently running with b12709) I have noticed that the following:

- Domoticz seems much more stable and so far after couple of month haven't had any crashed
- OZW seems also much more stable since in the past just trying to use OZW CP killed the system and I had to reboot the Rpi3.

Looking back I started of and ran for a year or two with 5-6 Qubino devices which worked out fine; but my issues really started when running with +20 devices. So an open question, as work-around, what is the optimal configuration for OZW and the zwave units in general to have a little problem as possible? Among other I see loads of error messages when checking the OZW log but don't know what to do with it and never really found any valuable posting here in the forum on how to tweak OZW to minimize the errors and the log entries.

[DosN]

updated to Version: 2020.2 (build 12760)

I did a refresh and wake-up the node. i also removed it and add it again (new node was made)
But sensor at CP is still always ON, still linked to adress 00000F28 and that should be 00000F00
00000F28 should be the tamper sensor

@rrozema , am i missing something or is my fibaro motion sesnsor defect. ?

[commentator]

it isn't solved. Still nodes not reporting their 3600 minutes power reports

[rrozema]

@commentator:
I won't argue there are no more other issues left; I too still see weird/unexplained behaviour of some of my nodes. For example the thermostat mode device created for an eurotronic spirit node is completely worthless because it shows incorrect values, doesn't update the node consistently and the device just behaves erratically, and totally different from any other selector devices. But this is mostl likely something specific for how this particular device was implemented in Domoticz. Still it is definitely worth installing that fix by catfriend1 because it fixes issues in a much more generic part: in my installation multiple devices that previously never got updated after the initial value set upon inclusion, now all of a sudden do receive new values. More values sent by the nodes result in values updated in Domoticz. i.e. less devices showing the red title bar for a 'dead' device'.

@DosN:
My experience is that hardly anyone uses z-wave notifications in Domoticz. I personally don't even know how to use them properly: for example, once a notification is set, when is it reset? And how do I detect in Domoticz that a notification was reset? Can I attach some script to a notification? As notifications are an area rarely touched by anyone, it is very well possible that problems exist in the code involved. If you can identify any addresses that are incorrect, plus have references stating what the proper address should be, then create a bug report in github. Do specify in that bug report as much details as you can to make it easy for the developers to understand what's wrong, plus what should have been the result. And most important: describe how the developers can reproduce your problem situation: if they can replay some chain of events and see what's wrong in their own setup, that is a tremendous help in getting the problem fixed. No guarantees your bug report will be picked up soon, but the better you describe the issue, the better your chances are of getting the problem eventually fixed. All source code is available in github for you too. Even when you're not be able to make any changes in it yourself, you could still have a look at what's in there to see if you can find a reason why your device isn't behaving as you'd expect.

Plus, I tried to explain what steps you need to do to get the device information refreshed. Removing and re-adding the device wasn't one of the options I suggested. Did you try to refresh node info like I suggested? When you do, have a look at the log window to see what node information was received by domoticz, maybe that has some clues on why the devices you see created in Domoticz doesn't match your expectations.

@wkossen:
Not unless you build it yourself. Hopefully a new stable release is going to be released soon.

[Ittiz]

I'm very surprised anyone with more than a few z-wave devices is able to use any Domoticz version past 4.10717. I've had so many issues with Z-Wave devices (crashes and freezes mostly), which I have probably more than 100 devices, that I switched back to Domoticz version 4.10717 shortly after they implemented Open-Z-Wave 1.6 in Domoticz. That is where all the issues seem to be and no one over there (working on Open-Z-Wave) is fixing the fundamental issues. The only issue with version 4.10717 of Domoticz is notifications don't work since Google's standard has since moved on too. But they can be made to work if you follow my instructions from this thread. Every six months or so I spend a day of my time trying to do a test upgrade of my system to the latest Domoticz version. As of Nov all the issues still remain, usually with z-wave hanging on startup or crashing a short time later if it does manage to start up. Maybe someday I'll have the time to go through the Open-Z-Wave code and figure out what the issue is but I doubt it. I have a feeling it'll just be easier to switch to something else that doesn't have the issue with large Z-wave networks.

[lost]

I've had so many issues with Z-Wave devices (crashes and freezes mostly), which I have probably more than 100 devices, that I switched back to Domoticz version 4.10717 shortly after they implemented Open-Z-Wave 1.6 in Domoticz.

Never upgraded on my side with such a change in the pipe... v4.10717 is the most stable version I ever had for now, only had to correct a few bugs in the web interface (log graphs/switch icon selection).

Really hope this is finally OK to give a new stable a try... but probably after winter: I'm almost 100% z-wave (and happy with it, compared to others on this thread) including heaters management!

Zigbee is cheaper but not interoperable: Independent gateways exists to make them cope together and cloud free, but in the end this'll be the new RFXCOM as they'll need FW upgrades to support new devices over time (possibly breaking others doing so).

For now, only z-wave provides this and can be tightly included in domoticz core (not a plugin).

[Bliepie]

Dear all,

Lately I follow the different discussions on the forum about the problems with zwave and Domoticz, I do not recognize the problems with dead nodes, crashes, freezes etc.at all, but I can imagine how frustrating this can be.

For 4 years I've been running Domoticz on a windows pc and have now 30 zwave nodes and 56 devices in use, furthermore I use the following plugins, AirconWhiteMe for the control of 4 airco's, Youless for electricity and gas consumption, Philips Hue for 5 ledstrips and 1 lamp and an Ecodevice for water consumption.

This configuration has been running almost without any problems for years, when I read all the problems users have about using Zwave equipment and Domoticz I don't understand it, maybe I'm lucky that I don't have these problems or maybe because I run Domoticz under windows, I have no idea.
But it is possible to have a reliable installation with open zwave 1.6 and the latest Domoticz.

[DosN]

i did a seconde "refresh node info" at CP
and that changed something now

now the sensor is continue OFF, i think it is now liked to 00000F00(which is at Domoticz also continues OFF)

Motion sensor is still liked to the wrong adress 00000F35 and that should be 00000F00
Tamper is now linked to 00000F28, which is correct

i now can read all values signals

[ArnoutZ]

@sieth: I also thought about abandoning Z-wave an move to Xiaomi sensors. Are you still using Domoticz? What Zigbee gateway do you use?