Automated Home Assistant Updates

Overview

This feature introduces a robust, automated update mechanism for Home Assistant installations within the Selora ecosystem. By orchestrating version monitoring, pre-update backups, and post-update health checks, we ensure that systems remain secure and feature-rich with minimal risk of downtime or configuration loss.

Problem Statement

Manual Home Assistant updates can be intimidating for homeowners and time-consuming for installers. A failed update without a recent backup can lead to broken automations, lost data, and extended system downtime. Currently, users often delay critical security updates due to fear of “breaking” their smart home, leaving systems vulnerable.

Solution

A centralized, “safety-first” update orchestration service that automates the entire lifecycle of a Home Assistant update. The system enforces a mandatory backup before any update, monitors system health post-update, and automatically rolls back to the previous stable state if anomalies or high error rates are detected.

Target Audience

Homeowners: Users who want the latest features and security without the technical anxiety of manual maintenance.

Installers: Professional partners who need to manage fleets of installations efficiently and reduce truck rolls caused by failed updates or user-initiated maintenance errors.

Key Benefits

• Zero-Touch Maintenance: Systems stay current with the latest security patches and features automatically.
• Safety Net: Mandatory pre-update backups ensure a recovery point is always available.
• Intelligent Rollback: Automated health monitoring detects failures early and restores service without manual intervention.
• Reduced Support Burden: Fewer “broken system” reports for installers following Home Assistant core releases.
• Transparency: Clear notifications to users about update status, successes, and any necessary rollbacks.

Technical Considerations

• Backup Integration: Mandatory integration with the Automated System Backups and Restore (Epic #3). A verified snapshot is required before any update proceeds.
• Health Monitoring: Real-time monitoring of Home Assistant core logs and integration status for 15 minutes post-update. Any spike in error rates triggers an automatic rollback.
• Manual Intervention Handling: Automated parsing of Home Assistant release notes to identify “Breaking Changes” that require user migration steps. In these cases, the system will pause and prompt the user rather than attempting a fully-automatic update.
• Dashboard & UI Stability: Impact assessment for updates that alter Lovelace/Dashboard schemas. This is critical for wall-mounted tablets where layout shifts can break the user experience.
• Hybrid Automation Model: Support for “fully-automatic” updates for minor/patch releases, while major version updates default to a “guided” mode requiring user confirmation.
• Staged Rollouts: Ability for installers to test updates on a subset of their fleet before pushing to all managed homes.
• Infrastructure: Centralized orchestration and version tracking via Selora Foundation Infrastructure (Epic #7).

Timeline & Milestones

• Phase 1: Automated version monitoring and manual “safe update” trigger with mandatory backup.
• Phase 2: Automated health check suite (log analysis, integration status) and basic rollback.
• Phase 3: Fully automated update scheduling with intelligent window selection.
• Phase 4: Fleet-wide analytics and staged rollout management for installers.

Success Metrics

• 100% of automated updates preceded by a verified successful backup.
• Average system downtime during updates reduced to under 5 minutes.