August Lock Integration

Devices & Integrations
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Hello,

I’ve been wanting to add a smart lock for quite some time. I had the original Okidokeys smart lock some years ago and it was about as good as any 1st Gen smart lock but when we moved this summer, I didn’t even bother reinstalling it. I’ve been waiting for something new and watching for awhile - especially August. Thought since we’re primarily Android users for our smartphones, it’s not been the most compelling option. However, when their 3rd Gen was released with the Connect unit included with the BT and Z-Wave lock, as well as the option of the number pad, I went ahead and decided to try it during the Black Friday sale ($30 off lock/Connect and another $20 off the pad). The fact that it has direct Google Home integration as well as ST/Z-Wave integration means that there are now multiple other options for auto unlock than just the August app.

The install was so easy and beautiful, I almost cried. One of the few times that the described “10 min install” was actually an exaggeration…it was closer to 5 or 6 min. Account setup, pairing the lock with the app, then the Connect, then the number pad were all painless. Adding my spouse and a friend were also super easy, with only one small glitch in the process that was soon overcome.

Next, I finally decided to try to add it to ST. I went to the ST app and clicked Things>+ and it instantly started looking devices. I used a second phone to set my lock into the Z-Wave pairing mode. It showed up quite quickly on the August app that it was found (though it still wasn’t showing up in the ST app at this point). Then I got an odd warning in the August app. It said that the lock was paired using the S0 protocol rather than the newer and much more secure S2. It recommended I pair using the S2 protocol and had me accept that I understand the risks.

I tried to remove and re-add but got worried I wouldn’t be able to exclude it properly. Later, it couldn’t find that it was connected to any Z-Wave hub (in the August app) so I paired it again and got the same error warning about S0 vs S2. ST correctly associated the lock with the existing found device so nothing weird happened from there.

I’m just curious as to how I can make the August lock pair via S2. It’s my understanding that August/ST integrations are completely official on both sides. Is there a reason it didn’t auto pair in S2? What can I do to change this? My understanding is that ST has the S2 capabilities, correct?

Lastly, the one other thing I cannot understand is that the August Lock isn’t showing up in my ST>Google Home integrations. In the GH app, all my ST things and additions are there including the recent re-names of smart outlets for making it easier to turn the Christmas tree & wreath on/off but the August lock simply isn’t there. I don’t understand why all the other additions/changes are showing but not the lock. Any ideas about this?

If anyone could please, please help me figure out how to connect ST to August (or vice versa :wink: ) via the S2 (Z-Wave) protocol as well as get the August Lock to show up in the ST/GH integrations in the GH app so I can lock/unlock via voice, that would be brilliant. Thank you, thank you in advance. So grateful for this community!

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The August/SmartThings integration isn’t “official”, but the August lock uses standard z-wave protocols, so it works with the standard z-wave lock device handler in SmartThings. SmartThings doesn’t support S2. Not sure if they plan to in the future or not.

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Oh, interesting. When I spoke with August customer support, the (actually surprisingly helpful & knowledgeable rep) specifically went and asked his supervisor if August supports ST directly and the answer was a definite “yes” to ST by name. I didn’t realize it was considered “unofficial”.

Will s0 work just fine in the meantime, I assume?

Any idea why this wouldn’t be showing up in GH?

Thanks so much!

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S0 works just fine. Have had mine paired for several months now. Not sure about GH since I don’t own one. Only think I would check is the GH app inside of the SmartThings app.

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If the device has “Works With SmartThings” it’s officially supported. Although it does work with ST, it’s not supported.

https://www.smartthings.com/products/-/filter/categories/door-locks

And the August website only mentions SmartThings as to how to add or remove a lock.

You can find August in the Services part of the Google Home app.

Open the Google Home app on iOS or Android.
Tap the hamburger button in the top left corner of the app to expand the left menu and select More settings.
Tap Services.
Scroll down and select August.
Tap Link Account.
Enter your August account credentials and tap Sign In.
Enter the six-digit code sent to your phone and tap Verify.
Tap Agree to allow Google Assistant to operate and view the status of your locks.

I believe you can also use the Assistant to link your accounts.

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I’ve installed a ton of locks and although there’s been tears, they weren’t joy. I know that new car feeling though.

I thought the v2 ST hub used the latest protocol, hmm. the hub reports using zwave protocol 3.83 in the IDE.

here is where the guessing starts :wink:
just guessing but make sure you have the latest hub firmware. Also could be an older zwave device repeating the signal :signal_strength:, either way it should be fine.

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SmartThings staff has said multiple times they don’t yet support S2. Maybe @Brad_ST can clarify?

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I certainly see ongoing discussion and work regarding it but don’t have any specifics.

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Thanks everyone, for you informative and thoughtful replies. I really appreciate it.

Still can’t get August lock to show up under the ST “things” in the Google Home app - and I can’t understand why that would be. Other things that I’ve added more recently (from newly paired devices to scenes) show up instantly. Really weird. As it is, we’re OK with it for the moment, though I’m looking for additional creative options. We continue to be extremely impressed with the lock, however, and although I realize it’s extremely early, would definitely recommend it - at least in the configuration that we have. We have the “Pro” version (which has Z-Wave) and includes the Connect internet bridge to allow connection to the door even when away. I also like that it’s easy to choose whether to connect directly via BT or via the internet. The other thing that we added that is just fantastic is the number pad. Easy to install and get working, it has been great! We used it a couple of weeks in primarily manual mode (though often using the number pad to lock & unlock the door as we come and go) and it’s been flawless. Now, we’ve enabled “auto-lock” with a 30 second delay and the great thing is that it has the door close sensor so the 30 second delay doesn’t start till the door is actually closed. It’s been superb thus far and with the number pad, we never risk getting locked out if we forget a phone, or key, etc. We’re gonna try out the auto-unlock but I have very low expectations of this since we primarily use Android and it’s notoriously flaky. This is why I’m also looking forward to a GH type voice integration as it’s still easy to unlock with hands full. I’m also looking into IFTTT & Stringify integrations as ST, GH, August and more are all integrated into these and there may be another option for auto-unlocking or voice unlock.

Anyway, we have no connection with August at all and honestly, I’m surprised we’ve enjoyed it this much. The motor is strong, the install was ridiculously simple, and it’s rock solid with the added number pad. Just wanted to share for other community members who may be wondering how it works. The $30 off during the holidays was a nice addition. In fact, I don’t understand why people are knocking the Pro version at this price, quite as much as they are. The Gen2 lock was around $230-$250 for ages and the Connect device was an extra $70. So, the whole kit at $249 isn’t horrible, in comparison. It’s definitely not budget or cheap but it’s similar to smart thermostats which are mostly in the same price range. Granted, we have a more unusual situation than most in that we have to deal with oxygen deliveries every week and this means I can either give a unique code for the number pad and specify a time window that it can be used (this also means that if the code is ever attempted to be used at another time, I know who gave out the code or tried to use it themselves so it’s fully trackable) or I can open the door for them myself - even if I’m in the hospital here locally, 300 or 3k miles away. This is particularly helpful since I have to have surgery halfway across the country 4x a year and can’t fly. So maybe this is more useful for us than other might find it. But the number pad is also nice for kiddos who may not be great with keys.

Anyway, thanks again so much. I hope maybe others find this thread helpful too. If I do find out why it’s not showing up in Google Home app (under SmartThings Things) I’ll try to post here to share the solution.

:smiley:

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I want to second the request for how to connect the 3rd Gen August Smart Lock Pro with Google Home. We don’t have the connect device, but it’s easily configured with SmartThings. When I import the SmartThings into Google Home the August lock doesn’t come along. I was able to add August to Google Home manually (OK Google, talk with August, then it showed up in my GH app) and I logged in, but August tells me that I don’t have any locks. Probably because it needs the Connect device but I should be able to do this through Smartthings. If anyone figures this out, please let us know. Thanks!

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it will not show in google assistant home control unless you have connect. The alternative to use google assistant to function the 3rd generation lock is through IFTTT (google assistant trigger and ST service. I have been using this for 6 months now and it works great

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A have had a similarly deep and ultimately satisfying experience with August Home Lock Pro and Doorbell Camera. And now I can say that I like their products. In case others may benefit let me share my details. I have no affiliation with the company other than as a customer.

I purchased the August Lock Pro and doorbell camera a month ago (May 2018), direct from the August website with a discounted price (about $30 off). I learned that the August Connect WiFi - Bluetooth bridge, (a wall wart) is not necessarily required because the Doorbell Camera includes an integrated bridge as well. But after a week of dropped WiFi connections to the camera and the lock, while away from home, I did some intense troubleshooting with the help of August Support. The symptom was that I was not able to view live video or actuate the lock, while away from home. Video download tests showed an intermittently very slow connection.

In my experience, August offered next-day replies to all my email inquiries, with technical help that included sending them log files from the camera, having August support remotely test the signal strength and provide instructions to perform a firmware upgrade.

It’s interesting to note that they could access and monitor the doorbell camera’s signal strength from afar. But I suppose that since the videos are stored on their servers, its not too odd to think they can access the camera’s diagnostics via the internet as well.

Anyway, I learned that the doorbell camera was intermittently dropping it’s connection to my WiFi network. During the troubleshooting I added a second WiFi access point to see if it would strengthen and stabilize the connection. But house wiring would not permit me to lace it adjacent to the doorbell so it did’t help.

What eventually DID solve the connection drop-outs was joining the camera to a guest WiFi network rather than my main WiFi network. I can’t be sure, but I suspect that the 2.4 GHz WiFi spectrum in my home is saturated. I can see 17 other, local WiFi networks from my computer. And maybe there was some interference when the August devices were on my main, home network. But for what ever reason, switching to the guest network solved part of the problem.

The other problem was the Lock’s connection to WiFi, when paired with the doorbell camera. The doorbell is not far from the lock, but there’s a corner of walls separating them. On the outside the wall is stuccoed. I suspect that the wire mesh behind the stucco was blocking the signal between lock and doorbell. When I plugged the August Connect into a wall socket on the same plane as the lock, the connectivity problem went away entirely. So my lesson is, you may actually require the Connect device even if you purchase the doorbell camera.

I came to this thread by searching for answers to the S2 security issue. I have a new SmartThings hub and I connected August Lock Pro to is using Z-Wave. And the message from the August app warning me about the hub’s lack of support for S2 gave me pause. But for now I’ll live with it I guess.

Is it true that to be Z-Wave Plus certified, the device must support S2?
EDIT: Just found this answer to my own question: After Apr 2, 2017, z-wave certification requires S2 support by all certified devices.

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Thanks very much. I was struggling to get the August Pro 3 working with Google Assistant and using IFTTT worked for me.