homebridge-ring

homebridge-ring

This Homebridge plugin provides a platform for Ring Doorbells, Ring Cameras, the Ring Alarm System, Ring Smart Lighting, and third party devices that connect to the Ring Alarm System.

Troubleshooting Issues

If you are having issues, please look for related articles in the wiki and search existing Issues before opening a new Issue/Discussion

Installation

Assuming a global installation of homebridge:

npm i -g --unsafe-perm homebridge-ring

Homebridge Configuration

Add the Ring platform in your homebridge config.json file.

Easiest Configuration

For the best experience setting up this plugin, please use homebridge-config-ui-x or HOOBS. Both have a UI that will walk you through linking your account without any cli tools or storing your email/password.

Basic Configuration

First, generate a refreshToken using the instructions in the Refresh Tokens Wiki

{
  "platforms": [
    {
      "platform": "Ring",
      "refreshToken": "token generated with ring-auth-cli.  See https://github.com/dgreif/ring/wiki/Refresh-Tokens"
    }
  ]
}

Optional Parameters

Only include an optional parameter if you actually need it. Default behavior without any of the optional parameters should be sufficient for most users.

{
  "alarmOnEntryDelay": true,
  "beamDurationSeconds": 60,
  "hideDeviceIds": [
    "477e4800-fcde-4493-969b-d1a06f683102",
    "5aaed7a7-06df-4f18-b3af-291c89854d60"
  ],
  "hideLightGroups": true,
  "hideDoorbellSwitch": true,
  "hideCameraLight": true,
  "hideCameraMotionSensor": true,
  "hideCameraSirenSwitch": true,
  "hideInHomeDoorbellSwitch": true,
  "hideAlarmSirenSwitch": true,
  "avoidSnapshotBatteryDrain": true,
  "cameraStatusPollingSeconds": 20,
  "locationModePollingSeconds": 20,
  "locationIds": [
    "488e4800-fcde-4493-969b-d1a06f683102",
    "4bbed7a7-06df-4f18-b3af-291c89854d60"
  ]
}

Option	Default	Explanation
unbridgeCameras	false	if true, all Ring Cameras we be treated as external accessories, which generally leads to better performance. This means they each need to be individually added to HomeKit. This option will be enabled by default in the next major release. WARNING: If your cameras are already bridged, they will be deleted from HomeKit when you enable this option, and you will need to reconfigure any associated automations or HomeKit settings
alarmOnEntryDelay	false	if true, HomeKit will register a delayed entry event as a triggered alarm. There are some households where this is a nice feature as a heads up if you have other people who enter your house and you want an alert so that you can disable the alarm for them before it actually goes off. This works well if you automatically arm/disarm on leave/arrive (see setup instructions below)
beamDurationSeconds	60 for light groups, previous from Ring app for individual lights	Ring smart lighting has a default behavior of only staying on for 60 seconds when you turn on a light via the Ring app. To force a duration when the light is turned on from HomeKit, set this option to a specific number of seconds. If this option is not set, the lights will use the duration from the previous time the light was turned on in the Ring app. For light groups, this will default to 60 seconds. The maximum value is 32767, which is ~9.1 hours.
hideDeviceIds	[]	Allows you to hide specific devices by an array of ids. The id for each device is logged when homebridge starts.
hideLightGroups	false	Ring smart lighting allows you to create lighting groups within the Ring app. These groups are convenient for detecting motion in an area of your yard and turning on/off all lights in the group. However, you may wish to group the lights differently in HomeKit and ignore the groups you have configured in Ring. If this option is true, your Ring groups (and their associated motion sensor) will be ignored and will not show up in HomeKit.
hideDoorbellSwitch	false	If you have a Ring video doorbell, you will see a Programmable Switch associated with it. This switch can be used to perform actions on when the doorbell is pressed using "Single Press" actions. If you do not care to perform actions when the doorbell is pressed, you can hide the Programmable Switch by setting this option to true. You will still be able to receive notifications from the doorbell even if the Programmable Switch is hidden (notifications can be configured in the settings for the doorbell camera in the Home app)
hideCameraLight	false	If true, hides the light for Ring cameras in HomeKit.
hideCameraMotionSensor	false	If true, hides the motion sensor for Ring cameras in HomeKit.
hideCameraSirenSwitch	false	If true, hides the siren switch for Ring cameras in HomeKit.
hideInHomeDoorbellSwitch	false	If true, hides the switch for in-home doorbells in HomeKit.
hideAlarmSirenSwitch	false	If you have a Ring Alarm, you will see both the alarm and a "Siren" switch in HomeKit. The siren switch can sometimes get triggered by Siri commands by accident, which is loud and annoying. Set this option to true to hide the siren switch.
showPanicButtons	false	Creates a new Panic Buttons device in HomeKit with Burglar Alarm and Fire Alarm switches. Use these at your own risk. I do not guarantee functionality in case of emergency, nor do I take responsibility for any false alarms. These function just like the SOS sliders in the Ring app.
nightModeBypassFor	no Night Mode	Allows you to use Night mode to "Bypass and Arm" a Ring Alarm. Can be set to all for Away or some for Home. If set and Night mode is activated from HomeKit, any open contact sensors will automatically be bypassed.
avoidSnapshotBatteryDrain	false	Causes snapshots for battery cameras to be fetched at a minimum 10 minute interval to avoid draining the battery.
cameraStatusPollingSeconds	20	How frequently to poll for updates to your cameras and chimes (in seconds). Information like light/siren/volume/snooze status do not update in real time and need to be requested periodically.
locationModePollingSeconds	20	How frequently to poll for location mode updates (in seconds). This is only useful if you are using location modes to control camera settings and want to keep an up-to-date reference of the current mode for each location. Polling is automatically disabled for locations equipped with a Ring Alarm. Will hide Location Mode switch if set to 0
locationIds	All Locations	Use this option if you only want a subset of your locations to appear in HomeKit. If this option is not included, all of your locations will be added to HomeKit (which is what most users will want to do).
onlyDeviceTypes	All Device Types	A subset of device types to be shown. If set, all other device types will be hidden in HomeKit.
ffmpegPath	Uses ffmpeg-for-homebridge	A custom path to the ffmpeg executable. By default, the static binaries built in ffmpeg-for-homebridge will be used. If you prefer to use your own version of ffmpeg, you can pass a complete path, or simply "ffmpeg" to use ffmpeg from your PATH.
debug	false	Turns on additional logging. In particular, ffmpeg logging.
disableLogs	false	Turns off all logging

Cameras

The plugin supports all Ring camera models, as well as ONVIF cameras connected via Ring Edge

• Camera Feed
  • Shows a snapshot from the camera while viewing the room in Home. There are limitations on when battery cameras can take snapshots. See the Snapshot Limitations Wiki for details.
  • Shows a live feed from the camera if you click on it. The feed supports video and 2-way audio, but requires that you have ffmpeg with libfdk_aac installed. A pre-built ffmpeg will be automatically installed on most platforms using ffmpeg-for-homebridge. See the FFmpeg wiki for details. 2-way audio may not work for ONVIF cameras.
• Motion Sensor
  • Can be hidden with hideCameraMotionSensor
• Light (if camera is equipped)
• Siren Switch (if camera is equipped)
  • Can be hidden with hideCameraSirenSwitch
• In-Home Doorbell Switch (if doorbell is equipped)
  • This will turn your physical in-home doorbell (mechanical/digital) on and off. Useful for automating situations where you don't want your in-home doorbell to ring during certain situations, such as when a child's night light is on, or during certain hours of the night.
  • Can be hidden with hideInHomeDoorbellSwitch
• Programmable switch for doorbells (triggers Single Press actions)
  • Note: doorbell event notifications should be configured via settings on the camera feed
  • Can be hidden with hideDoorbellSwitch

If you turn on notifications for the motion sensors, or for any doorbell camera, you will get rich notifications from HomeKit with a snapshot from the camera

If you are having issues with your cameras in the Home app, please see the Camera Troubleshooting Wiki

If you are having issues with Notifications, please see the Notification Troubleshooting Wiki

Note: Although homebridge has support for HomeKit Secure Video (HKSV), I will not be adding it to this plugin. Please see this issue for more details.

Supported Devices via Ring Alarm and Ring Smart Lighting Hubs

• Security Panel
  • This is a software device that represents the alarm for a Ring location
  • Arm Home / Arm Away / Disarm alarm for Ring location.
  • Detect active burglar alarm
  • Sound/silence siren (shows as a "Ring Alarm Siren" switch, can be hidden with hideAlarmSirenSwitch)
• Base Station
  • Set Volume (Not currently supported in Home, but works in other apps like Eve)
  • Battery status
  • Brightness
• Keypad
  • Set Volume (Not currently supported in Home, but works in other apps like Eve)
  • Battery status
  • Brightness
• Contact Sensor/Retrofit Alarm Zones/Tilt Sensor
  • Detect if sensor is open or closed
  • Tamper status
  • Battery status
• Motion Sensor
  • Detect motion
  • Tamper status
  • Battery status
• Flood/Freeze Sensor
  • Detect water leak
  • Detect freezing temperature
    • Shows as an occupancy sensor in HomeKit because there is no "Freeze" sensor service. "Occupied" indicates that freezing temperatures have been detected
  • Tamper status
  • Battery status
• Freeze Sensor (untested)
  • Detect freezing temperature
  • Shows as an occupancy sensor in HomeKit because there is no "Freeze" sensor service. "Occupied" indicates that freezing temperatures have been detected
  • Has not been confirmed to work yet. Please open an issue on GitHub if you have a Freeze Sensor (not the flood/freeze sensor) and can test it out for me
  • Tamper status
  • Battery status
• Temperature Sensor
  • Temperature
  • Battery status
• Water Sensor
  • Detect water leak
  • Tamper status
  • Battery status
• Glassbreak Sensor (untested)
  • Detect glass breaking
  • Tamper status
  • Battery status
• Ring Smart Lights (Motion Detector, Flood/Path/Step/Spot Lights, Bulbs, Transformer, Outdoor Smart Plug, Mailbox Sensor)
  • On/Off
  • Brightness Level
  • Detect motion
  • Battery Status
• Smoke Alarm
• Carbon Monoxide Alarm
• Smoke/Carbon Monoxide Listener
• Smart Locks
• Fans
  • On/Off
  • Speed
• Lights/Switches/Outlets/Unknown (some brands of blinds, etc.)
  • On/Off
  • Brightness Level (if applicable)
  • Hue/Sat/Color Temp are possible, but currently not supported. Please open an issue if you have a device that you would be able to test these on.
• Panic Buttons
  • These can be added by setting showPanicButtons: true in your config
  • Creates Burglar Alarm and Fire Alarm switches in a new Panic Buttons device in HomeKit
  • Use these at your own risk. I do not guarantee functionality in case of emergency, nor do I take responsibility for any false alarms
  • If either switch is turned on, you will receive a call from Ring monitoring to verify the emergency, and then authorities will be dispatched
• Location Modes
  • For homes not equipped with a Ring Alarm, Locations Modes can be used as an alternative way to change settings for Ring cameras.
  • Shows as a security system in HomeKit, just like the Ring Alarm.
  • Can be hidden with "locationModePollingSeconds": 0
• Thermostats
  • Set Thermostat mode to heat/cool/off
  • Set target temperature
  • View current temperature and heating/cooling status
• Water Valves (untested)
  • Open/Close the valve

Chimes

• Snooze for 24 hours or clear snooze
• Play "Ding" sound
• Play "Motion" sound
• Adjust speaker volume (Not supported in Home app)

Intercoms

Intercom support is still experimental. See this issue for more details

• Unlock door
• Doorbell which can cause Homepods to chime when the intercom doorbell is pressed
• Programmable switch which is trigged when the intercom doorbell is pressed

Alarm/Location Modes

HomeKit Mode	Ring Mode
Off	Disarmed
Home	Home
Away	Away
Night	Hidden by default. Configurable with nightModeBypassFor

Entry delays and bypassed sensors (ex. for Home mode) are all controlled in the Ring app. These settings will automatically be used by HomeKit.

Siri Commands for Alarm/Location Modes

Siri Command	Outcome
Set Ring Alarm to Away	Away mode activated
Arm my security system	Away mode activated
Set Ring Alarm to Stay	Home mode activated
Arm my security system for stay	Home mode activated
Disarm Ring Alarm	Disarmed
Disarm my security system	Disarmed
Turn on Ring Alarm	Turns on Ring Alarm Siren (unless hideAlarmSirenSwitch is set)
Turn off Ring Alarm	Turns off Ring Alarm Siren (unless hideAlarmSirenSwitch is set)

Changes Modes on Arrive/Leave Home

The Home app allows you to create an automation that runs when you arrive/leave home. If you include an accessory or scene that "allows access" to your home (e.g. Security System or Lock), the Home app will require you to manually verify that you actually want to run the automation every time it gets triggered. For anyone who wants to arm/disarm their Ring Alarm automatically, this manual verification can be quite annoying. To work around this issue, you can add two "dummy" switches to you homebridge setup using homebridge-dummy. You can then use these dummy switches to trigger your other automation (e.g. Arm/Disarm Ring Alarm).

Example Dummy Config

{
  "accessories": [
    {
      "accessory": "DummySwitch",
      "name": "Arrived Home"
    },
    {
      "accessory": "DummySwitch",
      "name": "Left Home"
    }
  ]
}

Example Home Automations

Trigger	Action
People Arrive	Turn on "Arrived Home"
People Leave	Turn on "Left Home"
"Arrived Home" turns on	Set Ring Alarm mode to Off
"Left Home" turns on	Set Ring Alarm mode to Away