My Comcast internet connection is pretty flaky. Resetting the router and modem usually fixes it. But I hate having to crawl around and unplug them, and I’d like to be able to trigger it automatically (say, if pinging google.com failed twice in 60 seconds). I used to be able to reset the modem over the network, but Comcast pushed a firmware update that eliminated that functionality.
So now I have them plugged into a Peanut Zigbee outlet. It is trivial to turn the outlet off. However, turning it back on is more difficult, because there is no longer any internet connection.
Is there a SmartApp with local processing that will turn it off, wait 30 seconds, and then turn it back on automatically?
Is there a stand-alone push button or switch that has local processing? I have some Xaiomi Aqara buttons, but they require cloud processing, so they won’t work.
Is there another way of handling this that I’m not thinking of?
Many people have the same question, in fact I think it was just asked last week again.
The short answer is that there isn’t anything you can do just with smartthings to handle this. But there are standalone Wi-Fi devices which can detect when they themselves have lost contact with the Internet and then reboot on a schedule that you set. Or just reboot once a day or something like that.
You can look on the quick browse list in the community – created wiki look down towards the bottom of that page for the project report section, and then look on the list for power projects to see how other people have approached it.
I am not sure if this is still the case, however back when the v2 Hub was first released, I was able to use my Aeon Minimote (stock DTH), along with the Smart Lighting SmartApp, to control a Zigbee outlet with the network cable disconnected from the ST Hub. I even removed the power cord and let the batteries keep the hub powered. It worked very well, actually.
I know the Aeon Minimote is no longer in production, but you might be able to find one if you really want ST to handle this task for you. You also need an outlet that is supported to run locally on the hub. This means no custom DTHs. And you have to use Smart Lighting, as it is basically the only app that is allowed to run locally.
You could also grab some very inexpensive RF outlets, like the following. These at least would keep you from crawling under the desk.
@ogiewon makes a good point: if you are just trying to avoid having to crawl under the desk, then any switch/button which operates locally would work. But you would have to be there to do it.
If you get one of the devices I mentioned, you can set them up to do it automatically when they detect that the Internet connection has been lost. So those work even if you yourself are not at home.
Not sure if it would help this situation, but Smart lighting will also run local to turn a device off or on at specific time of day if the device is supported for local processing.
My networking gear is in an inner closet under my stairs and hard to get into and this allows me to cycle power on any outlet very easily. It also has features to ping a site and if no response within threshold it can cycle outlets. That is not something I have setup though since my fiber is very reliable.
I realize it is expensive but worth it in my opinion. You can purchase from Amazon too. Before buying it I almost built an Arduino/Rpi based solution with relays. There are YouTube videos on how to do this. But I went this route because it easily mounts to the wall and takes up less space.
There is a custom DTH in the community for this device too.
