SLZB-06 * Series Manual

Connecting Matter-over-Thread Device to Home Assistant

Youtube video tutorial is available. Click hereopen in new window

Prerequisites

  • A server with Home Assistant installed and running. In this manual, we are using Raspberry Pi 4 with clean fresh install of HAOSS version 20240303.
  • An SLZB-06 or 07 families Coordinator flashed with OpenThread Border Router firmware. In this manual, we use SMLIGHT SLZB-06 flashed with Thread RCP firmware. This is available in the Core firmware v2.1.0-dev and up.
  • The Matter device you want to connect (in this manual, we use the Eve Energy-EU socket).
  • An Android smartphone.

Software set-up

Setting Up the Thread Border Router Add-on

  1. We'll need to install the OpenThread Border Router add-on in Home Assistant. Head over to the Left panel within Home Assistant and Click Settings and choose Add-ons.
  2. Navigate to the Add-on Store and search for OpenThread Border Router Add-on. Click Install and wait for the installation to complete.
  3. Once installed, click Configure tab on the top side of the add-on. Make the following settings:
  • Port: choose port of your device. If you do not know which one, I recommend you to leave just once device in your USB ports and choose it.
  • Hardware flow control: click No.
  • Baud rate: it depends on the firmware you are using. My firmware supports up to 460kb baud rate.
  • Flash firmware: No (we use pre-flashed coordinator)
  • Click Save.
  1. Go back to the INFO tab and Start the OpenThread Border Router add-on. It may take a moment to initialize. We would suggest to activate both Start on boot and Watchdog.
  2. You can check logs, they should say that addon started, although they can contain some errors as Thread and Matter are still under development in Home Assistant.

Setting Up the Matter add-on and Integration

  1. Go to the Home Assistant interface and navigate to Settings > Devices & Services.
  2. Click on Add integration and search for Matter.
  3. Keep checkbox Use the official Matter Server Supervisor add-on and click Submit.
  4. Wait untill installation of Matter Integration and Matter Server add-on is completed.
  5. Head over to the Left panel within Home Assistant and Click Settings and choose Add-ons. Go to the Matter Server add-on. Start the Matter Server add-on. Here we would suggest as well to click both Start on boot and Watchdog.

Set-up and configuring the Integrations

  1. Now, let's install the required integration: Thread and OpenThread Border Router.
  2. Go back to the Home Assistant interface and navigate to Settings > Devices & Services.
  3. Basically, all two should be autodiscovered so you just need to configure them. If they are not, click on Add integration and search for them there.
  4. OpenThread Border Router – no configurations, just add.
  5. Thread Integration – click Configure and make sure you have OpenThread Border Router under Preferred network line, and it contains an icon with key+phone. If not, do the following:
  • click three dots on the right to OpenThread Border Router, choose Add to preferrede network.
  • Under the preferred network now, click again three dots on the right to OpenThread Border Router, and choose Use router for Android + iOS credentials.
  1. Start the add-on. Here we would suggest as well to click both Start on boot and Watchdog.

Reboot your Home Assistant server

  1. Once all Home Assistant components are installed, we reccomend to reboot your Home Assistant server.

Pre-set up your phone

  1. Install Home Assistant app on your Android phone from Play store. At the time of this video, we were unable to pair Matter-over-Thread device via iPhone.
  2. Install Google Home app from Play store. It is recommended by Home Assistant developers and we were not able to pair our Thread devices without installed Google Home app.
  3. Open Home Assistant app and sync it with your Home Assistant server. Your phone and Home assistant server should be in the same Wi-Fi network.
  4. In app, go to Settings – Companion app -> Click Troubleshooting and click Sync Thread Credentials.
  5. Wait until message Home Assistant and this device use the same network. If you see another message, namely Added network from Home Assistant to this device – you need to click on Sync Thread Credentials again, until you get that message about the same network.
  6. If yoiu are not getting message Home Assistant and this device use the same network - try to reset your Google Play Store app (remove all date, usually by App settings -> Erase data -> Clear All Data, but namings depend on the smarphone model).

Adding the Matter Device

  1. With the Matter integration set up, grab your Matter device and Android smartphone. Make sure Bluetooth is enabled on your phone.
  2. Open the Home Assistant app and navigate to Settings > Devices & Services -> Devices Tab.
  3. Click the + ADD DEVICE button at the borrom right part of the screen to add a device, choose Add Matter device.
  4. Follow the on-screen instructions in the app. You'll likely need to scan a QR code located on your Eve Energy socket or enter pairing code manually. We did it with QR-code scanning.
  5. Home Assistan app on your phone can as Which app to open? Select other and then Home assistant.
  6. The app will guide you through pairing the device with your Thread network. It should pass through this satuses:
  • Connecting to device...
  • Generating Matter credentials...
  • Connecting device to network...
  • Checking netwoek connectivity...
  • Connecting device to Home Assistant...
  • Device connected!
  1. Note:
  • If a Matter-over-Thread end-device has been powered up for a long time, it may require a reset of device to put back into pairing mode.
  • In case you have Google home devices (Nest hub) and experiances issues with pairing, try to turn them off before starting OpenThread Border router add-on on your Home Assistant and your Home Assistant app.

Verifying Connection and Control

  1. Once the pairing is complete, head back to the Home Assistant interface. You should see your Eve Energy socket listed on your Dashboard or under the Devices section .
  2. Click on the device to access its controls. You should be able to turn the socket on and off remotely within the Home Assistant interface.

Congratulations! You've successfully connected your Matter-over-Thread device to Home Assistant using the OpenThread Border Router and Matter Integrations. Now you can enjoy the benefits of Matter's secure and interoperable smart home ecosystem.

TIP

You can refer to the Home Assistant documentation for Matter and Thread for more troubleshooting steps https://www.home-assistant.io/integrations/thread/.

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