Installing Home Assistant Operating System

1. Download the Image: Visit the Home Assistant website and download the appropriate image for your system.

-Minimum  virtual system requirements:

2 GB RAM | 32 GB Storage | 2vCPU

2. Create a Virtual Machine:
   • VirtualBox:
     1. Create a new virtual machine.
     2. Select type Linux and version Linux 2.6 / 3.x / 4.x (64-bit).
     3. Under Hardware, select the amount of memory and number of CPUs. Then, select Enable EFI. (Make sure EFI is enabled. If EFI is not enabled, HAOS won’t boot.)
     4. Under Hard Disk, select Use an existing virtual hard disk file, select the unzipped VDI file from above.
     5. Then go to Network > Adapter 1. Choose Bridged Adapter and choose your network adapter.
   • VMwareWorkstation
     1. Start VMware Workstation and select Create a New Virtual Machine. 
     2. Select “I will install the operating system later”, then select Linux > Other Linux 5.x kernel 64-bit.
     3. Give the VM a name, home-assistant, and define an easy to reach storage location, such as C:\home-assistant.
     4. Specify the disk size and select Store virtual disk as a single file.
     5. Select Customize Hardware. Define the amount of memory and the number of cores the VM is allowed to use.
     6. Remove the New CD/DVD entry. It will not be used.
     7. Connect an Ethernet cable and make sure it is connected to your network.
     8. Under Network adapter, select Bridged: Connected directly to the physical network.
     9. Make sure the Replicate physical network connection state is not selected.
     10. Select Configure Adapters. Make sure all virtual adapters and Bluetooth devices are deselected.
     11. Select your host network adapter. Most likely, this is one of the first 2 checkboxes in the list: Select the one for Ethernet. The exact names of these adapters depend on your hardware.
     12. At the end of the wizard, select Finish.
   • Hyper-V:
     1. Create a new virtual machine.
     2. Select Generation 2.
     3. Select Connection > Your Virtual Switch that is bridged.
     4. Select Use an existing virtual hard disk and select the VHDX file from above.
     5. After creation, go to Settings > Security and deselect Enable Secure Boot
3. Start the Virtual Machine: Boot the virtual machine and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation.
4. Use Home Assistant: You will be able to reach Home Assistant on homeassistant.local:8123. If you are running an older Windows version or have a stricter network configuration, you might need to access Home Assistant at homeassistant:8123 or http://X.X.X.X:8123 (replace X.X.X.X with your ’s IP address).

Restoring the Home Assistant Blueprint provided by EffortlessHome

1. Download the Home Assistant Blueprint: Visit our website to download the EffortlessHome Assistant image.
2. Open the Home Assistant version installed above: Once you have opened Home Assistant, log in using your credentials. 
3. Navigate to the ‘settings’ in the bottom left. Once you have entered settings click on System>Backups
4. Now you are in the Backups tab: Click on the 3 dots in the top right, and select upload backup
5. Upload the ‘.tar’ file downloaded from our website.
6. Now you are all set! 

Installing Home Assistant Core

1. Enable WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux):

Open PowerShell as Administrator and run:
dism.exe /online /enable-feature /featurename:Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux /all /norestart

dism.exe /online /enable-feature /featurename:VirtualMachinePlatform /all /norestart

2. Install a Linux Distribution:
   • Visit the Microsoft Store and install a Linux distribution like Ubuntu.
3. Set Up Home Assistant Core:

Open your Linux distribution and update the package list:
sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get upgrade

Install dependencies:
sudo apt-get install python3 python3-venv python3-pip

Create a virtual environment and install Home Assistant:
python3 -m venv homeassistant

cd homeassistant

source bin/activate

pip install homeassistant

4. Run Home Assistant:

Start Home Assistant with the following command:
hass

Overview

EffortlessHome uses Vaultwarden technology to securely and bi-directionally communicate secret information. This solution ensures your information remains secure and encrypted while still facilitating the required steps to configure and support your home automation solution.

How To Get A Vaultwarden Account 

When you begin working with us we will send an email invite to our Vaultwarden server for you to create a login of your own. Once you have your own credentials we will assign your vault.

Creating Your Vaultwarden Login

Once you receive your invite email click the “Join Organization Now” link:

You will be taken this page, if you already have a Vaultwarden/Bitwarden account, select “Log In”. If you do not, choose “Create Account”.

When creating a new account, fill in the details as shown with your own values:

Once you have created your account, log in. Then send a quick email to support@effortlesshome.co to let us know you have created your Vaultwarden login.

At that point we will assign your vault. Once that is complete you will get this email:

Using Your Personal Vault

Login to your account at https://vw.effortlesshome.co

You will see your vault items presented like this:

These items are the secure values to be communicated between EffortlessHome and yourself. 

When you click on the first item, you are presented with this screen. This is your information to access your EffortlessHome system. Please be sure to change the initial password to your own when you first access the home automation dashboard.

Next click on the Wifi SSID and Password option. You will be presented with this screen. In this instance you are required to share the Wifi SSID and Password for your home system. This information is required to communicate with certain devices such as light bulbs and smart plugs. Please enter your values and click save. EffortlessHome will keep this information secure and confidential and it will not be shared with any other parties.

If there are any other items in your vault to view or enter, please repeat the steps above, accordingly. 

When you are done updating the required details please send a note to support@effortlesshome.co letting us know. We will use this information to complete your system configuration.

FAQ’s

1. What if I forget my login information or password?

No problem, we can reset your password or recover your account. Just send a request to support@effortlesshome.co 

2.  Why is Vaultwarden used/required?  

Vaultwarden is a highly secure secret management system. It allows us to communicate, store, reference confidential information in a secure manner. Due to the customizations and support involved with EffortlessHome’s services certain secure communications are required.

3.  What do I do if I hit any issues or have any questions about using this system?

We’re here to help! Either send an email to support@effortlesshome.co or use our Support Discord channel here: https://discord.com/channels/1228440720348549234/1228486017808334958 

4. I didn’t receive the invite email, what do I do now?

No problem, first we ask that you look in your spam and junk folders as sometimes the emails get incorrectly filtered. Next please search your email folder for support@effortlesshome.co and/or Vaultwarden. If no luck, send an email to support@effortlesshome.co and we will assist.

5. Can I use my EffortlessHome VaultWarden instance to store my own passwords and information? 

Yes you can, there is nothing stopping that, but be aware that EffortlessHome Support can see the values you enter. Also, if you discontinue your EffortlessHome services in the future your Vaultwarden account will be disabled and you won’t have access.

What is different about EffortlessHome?

Our mission is to make truly automated homes affordable and available to everyone. We dislike how the big vendors have created siloed solutions which are hard to make work together let alone with other vendors products. At EffortlessHome we only sell devices we use in our own homes and give our customers the benefits of our many years of experience and best practices at very reasonable prices.

Why choose EffortlessHome?

We offer affordable, simple home automation solutions which work together and are endlessly customizable. We believe in giving our customers controls of their homes and their data so we sell devices which run locally but still provide remote access (if desired). Our solutions are also independently updated and won’t go obsolete when a flashy new version gets released. 

Is support and hosting required?

We recommend our hosting and support services to enable all the benefits, however, it is not required. We provide a free month of service with your purchase to get your system up and running and to trial the services.

Can I add devices to the EffortlessHome solution?

Definitely! In fact, we encourage it. The ecosystem we use for our solutions is huge and growing.

What if my system hits an issue or something breaks?

EffortlessHome’s solutions include automated system and configuration backups. Typically, an issue can be easily resolved by simply rolling back to a prior working version. We provide the backup service for our active subscription customers.

How do you customize the home automations to my needs?

When you work with EffortlessHome we make sure to customize your home automations to your needs.

How Often Are Software Updates Provided?

Any critical and/or security updates will be provided ASAP. All other available updates are provided (at least) monthly.

How Do You Ensure The Security And Privacy Of My System?

The EffortlessHome solutions run natively on your home network, as long as that is secure, the solution is secure. Our remote access service uses an encrypted tunnel and is combined with complex passwords and 2-factor authentication.

How do I reach EffortlessHome support?

We’re here to help, you can reach us via email or on Discord

Help Documentation

Frequently Asked Questions

We’re here to help, you can also reach us via email or on Discord or contact us: