Edge question: how will transition work?

When we finally transition over to this ( edge ) ( which by the way have no clue on how to do it ) does that mean we have to set up new automations, scenes etc?
Also does that mean certain devices won’t work anymore that use custom DH? For example I have some xiaomi sensors and a few Zigbee Tuya buttons.

Thanks

Edge is the branding for the new device handlers. It’s a change of programming language from Groovy to Lua, but it’s also a change to more local processing.

Edge is currently in developer beta, so end users aren’t the target audience at the moment. Converting a device to Edge right now requires removing and rejoining the device, and then also rebuild automations. ST has not provided details yet on how end users will migrate to Edge, but I would expect a pretty seamless transition for anyone using stock DTHs.

If you’re using custom DTHs then it’s probably a mixed bag. ST is doing a great job of putting together code for default behavior for z-wave and zigbee devices that make writing customer drivers a lot easier. I would expect some support for most of those devices, and then it’s a question of whether a member of the community takes the extra step to tailor the code to the device. Where I’d be more concerned would be any community created LAN or cloud integrations that don’t have official ST support and/or there’s no one actively maintaining the code.

2 Likes

That remains unclear at the moment. If it is possible to change to Edge drivers without deleting the original device in SmartThings then there shouldn’t be a problem as the device ID will not change.

There has been a lot of interest in the Xiaomi stuff lately so I think your problem there could be deciding which integration to use. I’m not so sure about the Tuya stuff but I’d tend to be optimistic about that too.

I can’t imagine stock handlers not being adequately replaced, but yes there certainly could be problems with custom handlers that no one wants to rewrite. That has always been the risk though.

1 Like

Thanks folks. Makes a little more sense now.
I would imagine when it’s to be officially done there will be a process for ‘normal’ everyday users?

Cheers

1 Like

That’s the official answer so far. I assume it’ll be similar to the new app transition - at some point you’ll get a pop up in the app telling you it’s time to move to Edge. You’ll probably be able to defer action for a month or so before they force it through. At that point something will happen on the back end to map your devices (zigbee and z-wave at least) to a best-fit Edge driver. If you have nothing but “normal” zigbee/z-wave devices then I would bet that you’ll be just fine, though maybe something won’t be quite as full-featured or work quite the same way as it used to.

The other piece of this is the overall Groovy shutdown. If you’ve installed smartapps from custom code, then that’s another thing to look at that will require rebuilding. The stock Smart Lighting smartapp is also part of that, though there’s more likely to be a solution from ST for anything built in that. If you’re using scenes and routines for your automations, you’re already future-proofed.

Because of the limitations cap of ( I think ) 200 automations then I’ve had to keep smartlighting for some things annoyingly. I’d rather just use automations ( routines ) but I’ve had the limit thing pop up so that’s limited.

1 Like

Is there a list of what DHs are being re-worked? Or perhaps more importantly, which ones aren’t? At some point it seems, users will need to make decisions about either re-programming the DHs or just replacing orphaned devices.

The Quick Browse List has a section with links to topics that discuss drivers that have been posted by their authors.

ST continues to release drivers for a wide range of z-wave/ZigBee devices. Zooz and Inovelli have both stated that they’re working on drivers. But there isn’t a list of what’s being worked on and what isn’t.

1 Like

@homeagain @philh30

Most standard zigbee and zwave devices should be covered by Edge Drivers eventually. If you are running custom drivers from the community or had installed a custom driver from the developers website, then you should consult with that developer about their plans for Edge.

2 Likes

@jody.albritton
As a third-party developer, it is very difficult to have any plans for Edge until ST has specified its plans for Edge. As long as Edge is in beta (with a lot of issues), I do not think it is meaningful to try to use it for driver development. When will a stable release be available?

Edge Drivers will replace the groovy DTH model. The beta period is the time for external developers to learn Edge Drivers and provide feedback. If you have specific issues that have not been addressed then please provide that feedback in the issues thread for edge development. All of our internal resources are focused on porting drivers to Edge and we have multiple support resources for edge developers.

Is there an estimate as to when this is happening?

1 Like