cgateweb

MQTT bridge for Clipsal C-Bus lighting systems, written in Node.js. Available as a Home Assistant Add-on or as a standalone service.

Connects to C-Gate over TCP, publishes C-Bus events to an MQTT broker, and supports Home Assistant MQTT Discovery for automatic device configuration. Control your C-Bus lights, covers, switches, and sensors from Home Assistant or any MQTT-compatible platform.

Looking for HVAC support? See this fork: https://github.com/mminehanNZ/cgateweb

Home Assistant Add-on Repositories

• Source repository (this repo): https://github.com/dougrathbone/cgateweb
• Home Assistant add-on repository (for Home Assistant): https://github.com/dougrathbone/cgateweb-homeassistant
• Add the add-on repository URL above in Home Assistant Add-on Store to install/update the add-on.

Install:

Option 1: Home Assistant Addon (Recommended for HA users)

1. Add HACS Repository:

   • In Home Assistant, go to HACS → Integrations
   • Click the 3-dot menu → Custom repositories
   • Add repository: https://github.com/dougrathbone/cgateweb-homeassistant
   • Category: Add-on

2. Install Addon:

   • Search for "cgateweb" in HACS
   • Install the addon
   • Go to Settings → Add-ons → cgateweb
   • Configure your C-Gate and MQTT settings in the Configuration tab
   • Start the addon

Option 2: Standalone Installation

These instructions assume a Linux system with Node.js, npm, and systemd.

1. Clone the repository:

   # Navigate to your desired installation directory, e.g., /usr/local/src
   cd /usr/local/src 
   sudo git clone https://github.com/dougrathbone/cgateweb.git
   cd cgateweb

2. Install dependencies:

   sudo npm install # Install required node modules

3. Configure Settings:

   sudo nano settings.js

   Edit the file to match your C-Gate server IP address, project name, MQTT broker address, and any necessary credentials.

4. Install and Start the Service: Run the installer script using sudo:

   sudo node install-service.js

   This script will:

   • Check for root privileges.
   • Copy cgateweb.service to /etc/systemd/system/.
   • Reload the systemd daemon.
   • Enable the service to start on boot (systemctl enable).
   • Start the service immediately (systemctl start).

   Follow the output of the script for status and any potential errors.

Usage if not using as service:

1. Put your settings in settings.js.
2. Run npm start or node index.js (useful for testing or foreground operation).

Status Topic

cgateweb publishes its status to the hello/cgateweb topic:

• Online: Published when cgateweb successfully connects to MQTT and C-Gate.
• Offline: Published automatically by the MQTT broker (using Last Will and Testament - LWT) if cgateweb disconnects uncleanly.

Updates get published on these topics:

• cbus/read/#1/#2/#3/state - ON/OFF gets published to these topics if the light is turned on/off

• cbus/read/#!/#2/#3/level - The level of the light gets published to these topics

Publish to these topics to control the lights:

• cbus/write/#1/#2/#3/switch - Publish ON/OFF to these topics to turn lights on/off

• cbus/write/#1/#2/#3/ramp - Publish a % to ramp to that %. Optionally add a comma then a time (e.g. 50,4s or 100,2m). Also, INCREASE/DECREASE ramp by 5% up or down and ON/OFF turns on/off.

Control covers/blinds:

• cbus/write/#1/#2/#3/position - Publish a position 0-100 (0=closed, 100=fully open)

• cbus/write/#1/#2/#3/stop - Publish STOP to stop the cover at its current position

This requests an update from all lights:

• cbus/write/#1/#2//getall - current values get published on the cbus/read topics

#1,#2 and #3 should be replaced by your c-bus network number, application number, and the group number.

Requesting an update on start or periodic updates can be set in the settings file.

This requests the network tree:

• cbus/write/#1///tree - result gets published as JSON on cbus/read/#1///tree

Home Assistant MQTT Discovery

cgateweb supports automatic discovery of C-Bus devices in Home Assistant using the MQTT Discovery protocol.

When enabled, cgateweb queries the C-Gate network structure (TREEXML) and publishes configuration messages to the specified MQTT discovery prefix (default: homeassistant). Home Assistant listens to this prefix and automatically adds discovered devices.

Supported Device Types:

• Lights: C-Bus Lighting Application groups (typically App ID 56) are discovered as Home Assistant light entities, supporting on/off and brightness control.
• Covers: Devices using the configured ha_discovery_cover_app_id (default: null — disabled; commonly set to 203 for Enable Control) are discovered as cover entities (device class shutter), supporting:
  • Position control: Set position 0-100% (0=closed, 100=fully open)
  • Stop: Stop the cover at its current position
  • Open/Close: Basic open/close commands
• Switches: Devices using the configured ha_discovery_switch_app_id (default: null) are discovered as switch entities.
• Relays: Devices using the configured ha_discovery_relay_app_id (default: null) are discovered as switch entities with device class outlet.
• PIR Motion Sensors: Devices using the configured ha_discovery_pir_app_id (default: null) are discovered as binary_sensor entities with device class motion.
• HVAC / Climate (via lighting): Devices using the configured ha_discovery_hvac_app_id (default: null — disabled) are discovered as climate entities. This drives a lighting-compatible group, not the native C-Bus Air Conditioning application — use the app ID of a PAC/touchscreen-exposed HVAC group (e.g. an "HVAC Actuator" lighting-style app), NOT the Air Conditioning app 172. See "HVAC notes" below.

HVAC notes: The real C-Bus Air Conditioning application (172) and Heating (136) are not driven by C-Gate's lighting verbs, so cgateweb cannot control a native thermostat directly through ha_discovery_hvac_app_id. The supported pattern is to program a Pascal Logic Controller (PAC) or touchscreen to mirror HVAC control onto a lighting-compatible group/application, then point ha_discovery_hvac_app_id at that app.

Native read-only Air Conditioning (172) data is available via cbus_aircon_app_id. Set it to your AC application id (typically 172) and cgateweb will decode broadcasts from the C-Bus Air Conditioning application and publish to the following topics — keyed by the thermostat's source unit (e.g. 201, 202), not the zone group, so multiple thermostats on the same network never collide:

Topic	Value
cbus/read/{net}/172/{sourceUnit}/current_temperature	Room temperature in °C (raw / 256)
cbus/read/{net}/172/{sourceUnit}/setpoint	Target setpoint in °C (raw / 256)
cbus/read/{net}/172/{sourceUnit}/mode	off or heat (verified); cool, auto, fan_only (best-effort, not yet confirmed on hardware)
cbus/read/{net}/172/{sourceUnit}/state	ON / OFF (zone-group master on/off)

This is read-only — no HVAC control commands are sent. To help capture raw event samples for other specialised applications (e.g. Temperature Broadcast app 25, Measurement app 228), set cbusRawEventLogApps to a list of app IDs (e.g. ['25', '228']) — cgateweb will then log each matching C-Gate event line verbatim and publish it to cbus/read/{net}/{app}/{group}/raw. Defaults to [] (off).

Configuration (settings.js):

module.exports = {
    // ... other settings ...

    // --- HA Discovery Settings ---
    ha_discovery_enabled: true,         // Set to true to enable discovery
    ha_discovery_prefix: 'homeassistant', // Default HA discovery topic prefix
    ha_discovery_networks: ['254'],     // List C-Bus network IDs to scan (e.g., ['254', '200'])
    
    // Application IDs for specific device types (MUST match your C-Bus project configuration).
    // All of these default to `null` (disabled). Only the Lighting application (56) is
    // discovered out of the box, and every Lighting group is published as a `light`.
    ha_discovery_cover_app_id: '203',   // App ID for Covers (e.g., Enable Control) - null to disable (default)
    ha_discovery_switch_app_id: null,   // App ID for Switches (e.g., Enable Control, Trigger Control) - null to disable
    ha_discovery_relay_app_id: null,    // App ID for Relays (e.g., Enable Control) - null to disable
    ha_discovery_pir_app_id: null,     // App ID for PIR Motion Sensors (e.g., Trigger Control) - null to disable
    ha_discovery_hvac_app_id: null     // App ID of a lighting-compatible HVAC group (PAC/touchscreen-exposed); NOT the Air Conditioning app 172 - null to disable
};

Finding C-Bus Application IDs:

The crucial step is setting the correct ha_discovery_*_app_id values to match your specific C-Bus project configuration. Here are common ways to find these IDs:

1. C-Bus Toolkit Software: This is the most reliable method. Open your C-Bus project file (.cbz) in Toolkit, navigate to the relevant Units (dimmers, relays, sensors) and check the Application ID assigned to them (often Lighting=56, Enable Control=203, Trigger Control=28, Measurement=60, etc., but can be customized).
2. Project Documentation: If you have documentation from the original C-Bus installer/programmer, it might list the Application assignments.
3. Examine TREE Output (Advanced): You can temporarily trigger a gettree command via MQTT:
   • Publish an empty message to cbus/write/<network>///gettree (e.g., cbus/write/254///gettree).
   • Listen to the cbus/read/<network>///tree topic.
   • The JSON payload published here contains the raw network structure. You can inspect the Unit -> Application sections to find ApplicationAddress values associated with known device labels.

Important Notes:

• Discovery for Covers, Switches, Relays, PIRs, and HVAC is disabled by default (null). Only the Lighting application (56) is discovered automatically, and every Lighting group is published as a light. You must set the corresponding ha_discovery_*_app_id in settings.js to the correct C-Bus Application ID to enable the other types.
• Devices that live on the Lighting application (56) but are not lights — e.g. shutter-relay units (blinds use lighting group addresses) or a thermostat exposed on app 56 — are classified by Application ID and so default to light. Motorised covers whose label contains a cover keyword are now auto-detected (see Automatic cover detection below). For anything auto-detection can't infer, add a per-group type_overrides entry in your labels file ("<net>/<app>/<group>": "cover" | "switch" | "relay" | "pir" | "hvac") or via the web UI; an override always wins.
• If multiple discovery types (e.g., Cover and Switch) are configured with the same Application ID, cgateweb prioritizes discovery in this order: Cover > Switch > Relay > PIR. Only the first matching type will be discovered for a given C-Bus group using that Application ID.
• For more technical details, see docs/project-homeassistant-discovery.md.

Automatic cover detection

Groups on the Lighting application (56) whose label contains a cover keyword (blind, shutter, shade, awning, curtain, roller, garage door) are published as Home Assistant cover entities instead of light. This is on by default (ha_discovery_auto_type: true).

Precedence: a manual type_overrides entry always wins, then application-id mappings, then this automatic detection, then the default light. To disable auto-detection set ha_discovery_auto_type: false; to keep it on but turn off keyword matching set ha_discovery_auto_type_name_heuristics: false. Customise the keyword list with ha_discovery_auto_type_cover_keywords (matching is case-insensitive and catches plurals).

Note: a shutter relay with a non-descriptive name still appears as a light — add a type_overrides entry (e.g. "254/56/15": "cover") for those.

Testing

This project uses Jest for unit testing.

1. Install development dependencies: npm install
2. Run tests: npm test
3. Run tests with coverage report: npm test -- --coverage

Other notes:

This project is actively developed against Home Assistant, but should work with any MQTT-compatible system. It assumes the default cgate ports