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[TUTORIAL] How to add Philips HUE plugin in less than a minute


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[TUTORIAL] How to add Philips HUE plugin in less than a minute

It works on HC2 FW4.100 to FW4.120 and Philips HUE bridge 1 and Philips HUE bridge 2 Model BSB002 on FW01036659

 

I write this tutorial because of some disinformation that lately show up here on forum and it seems that source is Fibaro support team? So, for all of you that don't want to mess with 

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 here is complete tutorial on what needs to be done or checked to successfully add Philips HUE plugin:

 

Proper procedure to add Philips HUE plugin:

 

  •  Open your preferred browser and open your router settings and check DHCP server settings. If you don't know how, then go to the big brother Google and ask him to show you how to setup DHCP server on your model of router. If that doesn't help then ask your IP provider to do that for you. You need to check DHCP server what IP range is set that will give to devices connected to your home network. I suggest to set range from 100 to 254 (192.168.1.100 - 192.168.1.254) That is more than enough even for larger home networks! See example:

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  • There is anther way to bind specific IP address to device MAC address but then again you need to open settings of your router and find DHCP server and then there you may or you may not find it because not all routers support this feature. Anyway, if you want to have some serious HA (home automation) you will need to make space in IP address range for devices that can be setup with static IP address like HUE bridge, Philips TV, iTach IP2IR, NAS disk, cameras, etc.) but also you will need IP address binding for some other devices like Smarter coffee machine, iKittle, Sonos multi-room speakers etc. This IP binding looks like this:

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  • After you did first step then download some network scanning application or program and scan your network to make sure that all devices with DHCP turned on are moved to the IP range set for DHCP server. Also you will then see what IP addresses are free in lower range that can be used for devices that you will set to STATIC IP address. See example from Fing scanner on iOS:

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  • Now open new HUE application that supports HomeKit on your mobile device and go to Settings --> Hue bridges and tap on i to open Info/Setup screen. There you will see Network settings so tap on it to open it. You will see this screen:

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  • Remember or write down address of the Gateway. Netmask is in most cases set to 255.255.255.0 for private home networks and if yours is different then you know all about this anyway :). Also note current IP address of the HUE bridge especially first three numbers in address!
  • Turn off DHCP and then enter IP address, first three numbers as before and then one that didn't show on network scanner, like 192.168.1.20, then Netmask and same Gateway address that was before. Confirm and confirm and yes, confirm. :) 
  • Wait a little bit and then restart application if necessary and check that it is working.
  • Make sure that all HUE applications on mobile devices are CLOSED and that no one is playing with HUE!
  • Open HC2 web GUI interface and install HUE plugin.
  • When it show up on the screen with that nice color stripe don't stare at it but click on Advanced tab to see this:

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  • Click on IP address Search button and wait until it shows bridge you want to add then select it so IP address will show up in IP address field
  • Polling timeout(seconds) is by default set to 1 second. That is ridicules for any HUE system with more than 10 bulbs and completely unnecessary. Set pooling to at least 3 to 6 seconds. More bulbs more seconds!
  • Press SAVE button!!!
  • Now walk to your HUE bridge, say hello and then press button on top of it!

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  • Run back to computer with open HC web GUI interface and quickly press button Create user.
  • Wait 10 to 20 seconds and scratch for a reason: 

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  • Now press Start search button
  • Scratch for a reason again :D and then go to home page (click on Your house on top menu bar)
  • Scroll home page down to Unassigned 
  • You should see this picture

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TADA!!! :) One HUE device with name "Philips HUE" is actually master plugin and you can make it hidden or leave it in Unassigned room. It really doesn't control any bulb and if you delete it then all others will be deleted too! Devices that have number in their name are controlling bulbs and that number is actually ID number of the bulb.

 

To rename HUE devices from ID number to some normal name of the bulb you don't need to run around the house like a rooster! Open HUE HomeKit application tap on the bottom right of the screen on Setting and then select About! That number that you see in front of the bulb name is same number that is on plugin device of each bulb!

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Please when you add HUE plugin to report back here so we can make a list of compatible HC2 firmwares and HUE bridges. At the moment I tested and can confirm that this combinations should work:

 

  1. HC2 4.100 - HUE Bridge 1 - HUE Bridge 2 BSB002
  2. HC2 4.110 - HUE Bridge 1 - HUE Bridge 2 BSB002
  3. HC2 4.120 - HUE Bridge 2 BSB002

 

TIPS & TRICKS

Did you know:

 

  • That if you delete plugin device of one HUE bulb (not the master one) that it will reappear again in Unassigned room?!?! So if you accidentally deleted some HUE bulb plugin device DON'T PANIC! Just refresh HC web GUI page and it should come back! :) ( Sankotronic  added 05/04/2017)

 

  • That HUE plugin slider doesn't update on web GUI interface but it does on mobile applications! So, when you are staring at web GUI interface don't think that something is wrong with your HUE bulb or that plugin doesn't work because it does, just web GUI has problem with updating sliders not only of this plugin but also from other devices! (Sankotronic added 05/04/2017)

 

  • That you need to press button on HUE plugin to turn On/Off light. If you move brightness slider and light is off nothing will happen. On Philips HUE VD you can use both brightness slider and button to turn HUE light On/Off (Sankotronic added 05/04/2017)

 

  • That Philips HUE bridge is using same frequency range of 2.4GHz as WIFI routers and access points. Even they are not talking same language (protocol) they can make noise to each other.  Philips HUE bridge is using 2.4GHz frequency and offers four different channels 11, 15, 20 and 25. WiFi routers use same frequency range of 2.4GHz but offers channels 1 to 14 or more in some very rare cases.

 

Usually WIFI routers or access points channel selection is set to Automatic and in most cases channels 1, 6 or 11 are used. I recommend to change that to fixed channel. Here is a picture of mostly used WiFi 2.4GHz channels from one study: 

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You can pickup any of those channels with small column if you have only one WiFi router and no other access points. But if you have at least two WiFi devices then since WiFi channels are overlapping the best is to set them on channels 3, 8 and 13 or 4, 9 and 14(if exists on your device) and avoid using channels 1, 6 and 11.

 

But since now we have also Philips HUE bridge that is using 2.4GHz bandwidth then it is very important how we will select channels on both devices, WIFI and Zigbee to avoid any interference at all. Philips HUE bridge is by default set on channel 11. Here are tables with channel frequencies for WIFI and Zigbee:

 

WIFI CHANNEL FREQUENCIES (highlighted recommended channels)

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ZIGBEE 2.4GHz CHANNEL FREQUENCIES with highlighted HUE bridge channels

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As you can see from above tables, Zigbee CH11 is overlapping with WIFI CH1 but if you set your WIFI router to CH8 and leave Philips HUE bridge on CH11 then their signal will not overlap and make trouble to each other. So if you have problems with unresponsive bulbs or delays then check your WIFI router or access point channels settings and change from Automatic (that is case in 90%) to recommended ones. Also it is good practice not to place WIFI router and Philips HUE bridge near to each other. I had problems in the past with unresponsive HUE bulbs until I relocated my WIFI access point two meters away from HUE bridge and I also set WIFI channel. (Sankotronic added 08/04/2017)

 

More T&T will come so stay tuned! If you have one please send me to PM and contribute to the good cause! :) 

 

 

Edited by Sankotronic
Added new TIP & TRICK :)
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12 minutes ago, Sankotronic said:

So, for all of you that don't want to mess with 

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 here is complete tutorial on what needs to be done or checked to successfully add Philips HUE plugin:

 

Hi @Sankotronic, Dobar dan Zoran,

 

I'm using your VD for all my HUE lamps and I have also HUE plugin installed. Don't know whether I can delete it without "damage". I have installed the plugin in order to get to know the HUE ID's of the lamps to be used with your VD.

So I'm convinced, and correct me if I;m wrong please, that one need the plugin in order to get your VD working.

 

Best regards,

 

Peter

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  • Just now, Bodyart said:

     

    Hi @Sankotronic, Dobar dan Zoran,

     

    I'm using your VD for all my HUE lamps and I have also HUE plugin installed. Don't know whether I can delete it without "damage". I have installed the plugin in order to get to know the HUE ID's of the lamps to be used with your VD.

    So I'm convinced, and correct me if I;m wrong please, that one need the plugin in order to get your VD working.

     

    Best regards,

     

    Peter

     

    Dobar večer @Bodyart,

     

    Philips HUE VD is working completely independent from plugin, so if you prefer to use VD then you can delete plugin. You only need to delete plugin with name "Philips Hue" and then others will also be removed.

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    Just now, Sankotronic said:

     

    Dobar večer @Bodyart,

     

    Philips HUE VD is working completely independent from plugin, so if you prefer to use VD then you can delete plugin. You only need to delete plugin with name "Philips Hue" and then others will also be removed.

    And how and where do i fetch the ID's of the lamps? Don't understand yet.

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  • Just now, Bodyart said:

    And how and where do i fetch the ID's of the lamps? Don't understand yet.

     

    Didn't you read end of my tutorial? You have installed Philips HUE application on your mobile phone? This new one with support for HomeKit? App that has a color icon. Well then on the bottom of the screen. at least on iOS version, is Settings icon and when you tap it then you get list of options and last one is About. Tap about adn you wil be presented with list of all bulbs that you added to the HUE bridge. In front of the bulb name is a number and that number goes to hueLightID.

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    Sorry, I've red them all, but didn't realize that mobile device woul'd be necessary. That why I've use HUE plugin. Going to delete it right now.

     

    Laku noć.

     

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    I received the below email from Fibaro support when I wrote them about the plugin, never heard from them again.

     

    At the time I was running Hue bridge Firmware version 331531141 and Fibaro 4.100. I have since upgraded to Hue firmware 01036659 and Fibaro 4.120 and just tested all works now. I dont know if the fix are in Hue bridge firmware or Fibaro 4.120

     

    Hello,
    Our developers still working on it.
    We know that the issue is related with new update released by Philips.
    Now we have to re-optimize the plugin.
    It takes a long time – thank for your patience
    At this moment I do not have information when functionality will be restored.
    Sorry for inconvenience.
    When we will know some more details – Piotr will inform You.

    As workaround You can perform firmware downgrade of Philips Hue.
    Regards

    -- 
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    10 hours ago, Sankotronic said:

    HC2 4.120 - HUE Bridge 2 BSB002

     

    Thanks @Sankotronic

    Good clear instructions as usual :-)

    This will help me start my journey with Hue

     

    -f

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  • Hello all!

     

    Here 

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     you can check all firmware releases that are out for both versions of HUE bridges. According to the list my HUE bridge V2 is on version 01036659 released on 28th November 2016 which is not thew latest one 01038390 released in February this year. I still have Philips HUE app version 1 and have new app version 2 with support for HomeKit but they are telling me that my bridge is up to date! Because of that I'm unable to upgrade my bridge V2 to the latest firmware release at this moment.

     

    These are firmwares that bring biggest changes on the HUE bridges, but they didn't really disable installation of Philips Hue plugin on HC2:

     

    April 18, 2016

    Firmware 01032318 (Bridge V1 & V2):

    • Improved authentication process for all apps. Note that this may have impact on all mobile apps working with the hue system. See the support pages for more information.
    • Stability and performance improvements

    Sept 19, 2016

     Firmware 01035934 (Bridge V1 & V2):

    • Support for Hue motion sensors
    • Support for Hue connected luminaries
    • Support for Hue white ambiance GU10 and BR30
    • Doubled rule capacity to allow more connected Hue accessories
    • Stability and performance improvements

     

    Biggest change was authentication process when new way of adding users where introduced by using long strings "0AVecPYhvxFF3R9EgGYaDuiTbQ2sJ9Qo3kAgOkmh"  instead of names "newdeveloper". I didn't pay attention to that before so I didn't check, but now I checked and Philips HUE plugin is using this new generated user (long string) without problem. You can check that on http://<YOUR_HC_IP>/docs/#!/devices/modDevice.

     

    Enjoy! :) 

     

    Added some TIPS & TRICKS in first post! :) 

    Edited by Sankotronic
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  • Hello all!

     

    Just added new TIP & TRICK! Please check, you may find it interesting! :) 

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  • 4 hours ago, rasiam said:

    @Sankotronic Any functional difference in using the plugin vs your VD for Hue?

     

    There is no functional difference really. They both have three sliders and one button :) But VD looks nicer with customizable icon that can even show ten different brightness levels.

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    Great tuto! Just one small remark maybe; namely the fact you state that a dhcp lease always results in a /24 subnet mask.

    This isn't always the case, my dhcp provides leases with 255.255.252.0 as the mask for specific reasons for example.. You might want to reconsider and change it to 'almost always'. :)

    Great work on the tutorial!

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  • 13 minutes ago, MaTi said:

    Great tuto! Just one small remark maybe; namely the fact you state that a dhcp lease always results in a /24 subnet mask.

    This isn't always the case, my dhcp provides leases with 255.255.252.0 as the mask for specific reasons for example.. You might want to reconsider and change it to 'almost always'. :)

    Great work on the tutorial!

     

    Hi @MaTi,

     

    Thank you and done :) 

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    Great job, @Sankotronic !

     

    Just slightly off topic....

    Did you know that IKEA has released a smart light system, also based upon ZigBee Light Link.   Check out: 

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    According to IKEA, it should adhere to open Zigbee standards and be compatible...  

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    It's really a lot cheaper than Phillips Hue. And knowing IKEA, they will expand the range and cut prices...

     

    I wonder if you or someone is able to make a plugin or VD for IKEAs Zigbee hub, so that it can be included in the Fibaro system? That would be a big step forward for whole-house total light control on a budget!

     

    Probably I should make an award of €100 for the first successful integration into Fibaro.... :-)

     

    Cheers,

    Ole Kenneth

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  • Hi @olekenneth,

     

    At the moment it is not possible to make anything for IKEA smart lights as they stated on their website

    (quote):

    Can I develop the TRÅDFRI system by getting access to the systems API?

    Not in the first release. But IKEA is working towards an open system.

    (end of quote)

     

    But when they make it public then it will be doable possibly same way as for Philips HUE.

     

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    Thanks a lot for tips about channel on wifi 2,4 Ghz. 

    I will try to chance my router or hue bridge. 

    I have one router an one hue bridge down an one accespoint an one hue bridge upstairs. 

    I have som problems with bulbs wornt turn on or off sometimes. 

     

    I don't no my channels on my to wifi routers but on my hue bridge is channels 11 an 15 if I remember right. 

     

    Thanks again you really helps a lot of people. 

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    • 4 weeks later...

    dose anyone know if you can change the icon for thr plugin the icon "Philips Hue" isnt that good be nice if it could at least be a light buld

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    • 4 weeks later...

    Just to add to this topic I could not get the plugin to work until I set the polling to 6 seconds as per this guide, even though I only had 3 bulbs at the time.  1 second would not find anything.  The plugin should probably be updated with a more realistic number, even just for the initial scan.

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