The RPi Reporter Daemon is a simple Linux python script which queries the Raspberry Pi on which it is running for various configuration and status values which it then reports via via MQTT to your Home Assistant installation.
This page describes how to enable control features over your RPi which would allow you to shutdown or reboot your RPi from within Home Assistant. Enabling this feature allows you to add buttons to your RPi display in HA (e.g., press a button to reboot your RPi) and it also activates the MQTT listening features so that the RPi can hear the request and run the associated script (e.g., reboot)
In order for this to work you need to make a few adjustments on each RPi you wish to control:
- Enable optional settings in your
config.ini - Add permissions to run each command for the user underwhich the Daemon script runs
- Add a card on Home Assistant which displays the control button
This page will walk you through each of these steps.
On this Page:
- Script Configuration - configuring the script to offer commands
- Permissions Configuration - allow the Daemon to run the new commands
- Add initial card to HA - create your first button allowing you to reboot your RPi
Additional pages:
- Overall Daemon Instructions
- The Associated Lovelace RPi Monitor Card - This is our companion Custom Lovelace Card that makes displaying this RPi Monitor data very easy.
- ChangeLog - We've been repairing or adding features to this script as users report issues or wishes. This is our list of changes.
Each RPi device is reported as:
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
Manufacturer |
Raspberry Pi (Trading) Ltd. |
Model |
RPi 4 Model B v1.1 |
Name |
(fqdn) pimon1.home |
sofware ver |
OS Name, Version (e.g., Buster v4.19.75v7l+) |
Each RPi device is reported as five topics:
| Name | Device Class | Units | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
~/monitor |
'timestamp' | n/a | Is a timestamp which shows when the RPi last sent information, carries a template payload conveying all monitored values (attach the lovelace custom card to this sensor!) |
~/temperature |
'temperature' | degrees C | Shows the latest system temperature |
~/disk_used |
none | percent (%) | Shows the percent of root file system used |
~/cpu_load |
none | percent (%) | Shows CPU load % over the last 5 minutes |
~/mem_used |
none | percent (%) | Shows the percent of RAM used |
To match personal needs, all operational details can be configured by modifying entries within the file config.ini.
The file needs to be created first: (in the following: if you don't have vim installed you might try nano)
sudo cp /opt/RPi-Reporter-MQTT2HA-Daemon/config.{ini.dist,ini}
sudo vim /opt/RPi-Reporter-MQTT2HA-Daemon/config.iniYou will likely want to locate and configure the following (at a minimum) in your config.ini:
fallback_domain = {if you have older RPis that dont report their fqdn correctly}
# ...
hostname = {your-mqtt-broker}
# ...
discovery_prefix = {if you use something other than 'homeassistant'}
# ...
base_topic = {your home-assistant base topic}
# ...
username = {your mqtt username if your setup requires one}
password = {your mqtt password if your setup requires one}
Now that your config.ini is setup let's test!
A first test run is as easy as:
python3 /opt/RPi-Reporter-MQTT2HA-Daemon/ISP-RPi-mqtt-daemon.pyNOTE: it is a good idea to execute this script by hand this way each time you modify the config.ini. By running after each modification the script can tell you through error messages if it had any problems with any values in the config.ini file, or any missing values. etc.``
Using the command line argument --config, a directory where to read the config.ini file from can be specified, e.g.
python3 /opt/RPi-Reporter-MQTT2HA-Daemon/ISP-RPi-mqtt-daemon.py --config /opt/RPi-Reporter-MQTT2HA-DaemonBy adding more information to your configuration you will now be able to add and execute commands in the monitored Raspberry Pis using MQTT, meaning yes, from buttons in your Home Assistant interface!
Examples are in config.ini.dist in the Commands section
Added the new Commands section to config.ini.
An example to reboot or shutdown the Pi:
[Commands]
shutdown = /usr/bin/sudo /sbin/shutdown -h now
reboot = /usr/bin/sudo /sbin/rebootThe "daemon" user proposed to start the daemon in the installation instructions doesn't have enough privileges to reboot or power down the computer. A possible workaround is to give permissions to daemon to the commands we want to execute using the sudoers configuration file:
# edit sudoers file
sudo vim /etc/sudoers
# add the following lines at the bottom.
# note that every service that we want to allow to restart must be specified here
daemon <raspberrypihostname> =NOPASSWD: /usr/bin/systemctl restart isp-rpi-reporter,/sbin/reboot,/sbin/shutdownNOTE: In some systems the path for systemctl / reboot / shutdown can be different.
Additionally, the daemon user needs permission to execute the shell script referenced in the run-script command (and any command referenced there/access to the directories specified). If the script has been created by the standard pi user, a simple workaround could be:
chown daemon RPi-mqtt-daemon-script.sh
groupsIf you like my work and/or this has helped you in some way then feel free to help me out for a couple of ☕'s or 🍕 slices!
Raspberry Pi is registered trademark of Raspberry Pi (Trading) Ltd.
This project is a community project not for commercial use. The authors will not be held responsible in the event of device failure or simply errant reporting of your RPi status.
This project is in no way affiliated with, authorized, maintained, sponsored or endorsed by Raspberry Pi (Trading) Ltd. or any of its affiliates or subsidiaries.