The End of Groovy Has Arrived

Announcements
725

Just as Smartapps are different from Device Type Handlers, Automations are different from edge drivers.

Edge drivers are the replacement for device type handlers (DTHs).

Some smartapps will be replaced by automations written in Lua and running on your own hub. Those automations could be routines, the new smartlighting, or “recipes“ written through the Rules API. None of those are “edge drivers” even though they are also written in Lua.

The new platform will also still support custom automations called “smartapps“ but those will be hosted elsewhere. Not run in a Samsung-provided cloud and not run on your own hub. Just as one example, Ifttt has said that they are rewriting their current groovy smart app integration to be a new integration using the SmartThings API.

Note that there are two different APIs in the new architecture. The REST API is a public API, also called the “Smartthings API,” which allows external programs to make requests of a smartthings account. It’s not written in Lua.

Then there is the “rules API.“ This is something like a scripting language which allows you to write rules for your own account. Some of these will run on your own hub, so presumably they do end up being written in Lua, although you wouldn’t know that directly. It’s intended for power users who want to create more complicated rules than the basic automations available in the smartthings app. You can read more about that one in the following section of this forum:

Here’s the official schematic for the new platform

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726

So the email I just got from SmartThings is the first I’m hearing about this. Lovely. >.<

Now I’m a ball of anxiety trying to figure all this out. Looks like I have 9 custom device handlers, and 6 SmartApps, not to mention a bunch of stuff in WebCore that provides essential functionality I couldn’t do elsewhere. I’m certainly glad they “slowed things down” because I’d be very likely to ditch SmartThings completely based on the original timeline. If enough things break I might do it anyway. People like me are the biggest reason SmartThings needs to be careful about stuff like this, because I’m not a developer, and have just patched my system together over time to meet individual needs. Stuff like this is overwhelming.

So from what I can gather, I need to contact the people who made all my custom device handlers and see if they have ones for the new system? And any SmartApp stuff will just need to be replaced via SmartThings new automation options (or not at all)?

And then I need to see if I can do what I’m doing in WebCore in the new Rules API? (Whatever that is; I know nothing at present.)

I saw some folks talking about migrating to Hubitat? How does that work? Is it seamless and easy to do? At this point in my life I just want things to work and minimize difficulty

I feel pretty lost, and don’t have time to deal with any of this stuff. Super frustrating this is even happening.

My device handlers that I’m still actively using and are:

Enhanced SmartPower Outlet (ady624)
Inovelli Switch NXZW30 w/Scene (erocm123)
Universal Z-Wave Lock with Alarms (rboy)
Zooz 4 in 1 Motion, Humidity, Illuminance and Temperature Sensor (Enhanced) (rboy)
3 Button Remote (ZBWS3) (thegilbertchan)
cast-web-api / device (vervallsweg) – nbd if this breaks

SmartApps that matter are:

Webcore obv.
Garage Door Manager (rboy)
LUM (rbot)
Advanced Button Controller (stephack)
Smartweather Station (rboy) – nbd if this breaks
Cast web service manager (vervallsweg) – nbd if this breaks

Anyone have any clues on any of this stuff let me know.

Also, I have about 18 virtual switches… did anyone figure out what the deal is with those? Many of them I could live without, but some are quite important.

Oh, and ActionTiles… will this impact that at all? I haven’t touched that in a long time. It just works for me.

Sorry for the long post, I just feel like I’ve been dropped in the deep end of the pool while I was having a pleasant dream. Feels like that’s a thing SmartThings does every few years for fun.

727

The following thread might help a little:

What do I need to do to get ready for Sept 30?

But mostly it’s just going to be a lot of individual research to figure out what you want to do for each aspect of what you have. Nothing is exactly “seamless and easy,“ unfortunately. One option is just to sit and wait and see what breaks, because some things will be automatically migrated for you. And then one by one fix whatever got broken. i’m not saying that’s a good option, I’m just saying that’s what some people are choosing to do.

If you want to be more proactive, again see the link I just gave you.

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728

Thanks! Will take a look.

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729

Also, if there isn’t already an existing thread in the forum, feel free to start one for any specific device handler/smartapp that you aren’t sure how to replace in the new architecture. Make the topic title as specific as you can. That way it will be of the most value to other people and you should get the quickest responses. And hopefully we’ll avoid too many duplicates. Keep it to one item per thread, again, just to keep the forum of the most value to the most people and make it easy for people with the same question to find the answers. :sunglasses:

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730

I don’t see the delineation between the hub and the cloud in the attached diagram; I think that would help.

Where can I find documentation on writing SmartApps using lua?

My one and only groovy SmartApp simply hits an HTTP endpoint periodically and controls a selected switch based on the response. Seems the JSON rules don’t support polling HTTP endpoints so the JSON Rules are ruled out sort-of-speak. I think polling a public REST endpoint from the Hub makes a lot more sense than hosting in an AWS Lambda.

731

We as customers are not given the option to write smartapps that will run on the hub. And there will no longer be a publicly available Samsung smartthings cloud where they can run either.

So you can write a smartapp in any language you want, JavaScript, python, LUA, even groovy: but you are going to have to host it yourself. Either through a hosting service or on a local server device. That smartapp will then call the rest API to send requests or get information from smartthings.

(Lua is really only significant if you want to write a custom edge driver, which would be the replacement for a custom DTH. Those need to be written in Lua. )

Here’s the original getting started tutorial: I don’t know if there’s something newer or better. Hopefully someone else will be able to comment on that.

And here’s an example that sounds like it might be somewhat similar to your use case. But again, I don’t know if there’s any newer or better documentation now, hopefully someone else will know.

732

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733

Hey folks, I personally have over 50 smart apps and custom device handlers helping power my smart home. Are all of these going to stop working in a month? If so, I might as well chuck my SmartThings hub in the trash.

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734

In the midst of celebrations your house goes into meltdown… Happy New Year !

Yup… im one… kind of annoying !!

Reinstalled SL recently just in case it becomes unavailable if you did not have it installed at switch over… it happened before so no chances taken

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735

Simple answer - yes, all gone

Luckily Smartthings are making things easier… you can now do some of those smart app automations using the Smartthings routines, some you cannot and you will need to contact the developer for advice, some will never be available unless some form of edge smart app becomes available and some is just unknown

See… much easier !

736

This announcement says that Groovy-based apps and drivers are going to die.

Today’s email says: “All other SmartThings and third-party SmartApps will be shut down on December 21, 2022”.

I don’t understand it. I have a custom cloud app that sends events to a Lambda function. I also have an app for HomeKit automation. These aren’t Groovy apps. Would they also shut down by the end of the year?

737

Dates do not match. FAQ says "starting "9.30.22 and Notice inside Android app says “starting” 10.15.22.

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738

Can’t keep up with this. Will Philips hue devices be ok with this transition and still run locally?
I have both the ST hub and hue bridge.

739

It is the same problem they’ve had all along, lazy and ambiguous wording, though that does seem somewhat fundamental. It is also easy to get right as the first we heard of it all was the CEO saying it starts on 30th September. Just agree with him, and if he was wrong think of a way of making him sound right.

The latest timescales are pretty consistent with the first ones if you try to work out what they meant rather than what they said.

September 15th: Announcement.
September 30th: Things start migrating.
October 15th: Stop fiddling with the legacy stuff.
December 31st: Hoping to have things done and dusted.
Sometime in 2023: Turn something off.
Sometime in 2023+1: Start fielding complaints from users that things have stopped working and no one had told them anything.

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740

Not sure this has happened to anyone: some Routines I created containing only Edge driven devices are not showing as local (no Home symbol) on my app.

Is this normal, and is there any reason why this is (or should be) happening?

741

Sorry if this has been asked already but I can’t find it in this topic…according to the platform transition FAQ, the Fibaro Dimmer 1 device will no longer be supported and I have a few of them in my house. I’m hoping there is an Edge driver this device can be migrated to? Is that known now and can I move it and test or do I need to wait for Samsung to try?

My other devices are Fibaro Dimmer 2s, newer IKEA zigbee bulbs and a couple of Fibaro Single Switch 2s - as none of these are listed in the affected devices table of the FAQ, I’m presuming they will be no issue with them?

Finally, I have a bunch of Webcore pistons so what is the best way to plan ahead for those? Do I try and create routines via the ST app to replicate the pistons? What if the routines don’t provide as much configurability as Webcore?

742

I would suggest you test it anyway, with existing Edge drivers. A quick search on this forum appears to show no Dimmer-1 Edge driver - though there is a Dimmer-2 driver available.

Don’t be too sure about that. Test - you may be surprised to find others that are actually affected. That said, some people have opted not to test and to see what happens after the “Great Changeover”.

I guess the primary fallback is Routines from the app. It’s what I have done so far. If you have complex pistons, you may expect a very complex piston to translate into 10, 20 or more Routines. And you might be faced with an insurmountable problem because you hit the routine limit (200). E.g. in my case, my heating was controlled by only 3 pistons in WebCoRE. It’s a very complex system that raises the demand on the boiler depending on the time of the year and on outdoor ambient conditions. I have calculated that to replicate all of these complexities into Routines - I would need to use a minimum of 72 Routines. 72 - from 3 pistons!! That means more than one-third of my routine allocation would be gone, and I don’t have enough space left for that.

As an alternative to app Routines, I intend to transfer some functionality to SharpTools - where I understand there is a paid account and a premium paid account (or similar). Not sure yet what can be done with it, but I am hoping that I will be able to transfer anything that does not require instant activation (e.g. anything related to pumps or solenoids, such as hot water circulation pump, pool pump, irrigation, etc.) to SharpTools, and see how it works. Yes, it runs in the cloud, but so did WebCoRE, and the devices in question are pretty much “background” devices where some degree of latency is sort of acceptable. This would give me back some “space” so I can use Routines for other stuff, given that I have seen no intention by ST to raise the silly and arbitrary 200-routine limit.

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743

I think you will find that in the vast majority of cases, with a lot of brainstorming, a lot of routines, some creativity, and occasionally additional virtual devices, you will do most of what you can do on WebCoRE using Routines. It’s just that it continues eating away at your Routine and Device allocation (200 of each), besides the fact that it’s chaotically organised… You cannot even group Routines together, and I have had to adopt a naming convention to try and keep things organised. So - no, it will not give you everything you lost with WebCoRE, unfortunately.

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744

Why would SmartThings send out an announcement like that without assigning extra staff to this forum to help individual customers get answers to questions and make plans for the transition? :thinking:

I understand employees might not be able to make all the same candidate suggestions, But still…are they really just leaving it up to a community of peer volunteers with limited information to try to help?

I know it’s better than what Insteon did, but SmartThings didn’t go bankrupt.

This has been a fantastically creative and supportive forum of volunteers but it’s never been intended as frontline customer support for basic issues, and “we’re shutting down existing features” does seem like a basic issue.

Maybe I’m overreacting, and there won’t be that many questions to answer. Or SmartThings will offer a better official transition guide soon. Or there will be more employees assigned to this forum next week.

It could happen, right? :hatching_chick:

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