Any plans for local data access?

I was considering getting an Glow IHD for use with my SMETS2 meter and Home Assistant however I've noticed that the data access takes the path of going via a cloud MQTT server. Is there any particular reason that it is not possible to serve the live consumption data straight out of the IHD be that via HTTP or MQTT?


Thanks.

Comments

  • I too would really like this feature. There have been many outages over the last year that this would avoid. (I think there may be another one at the moment?)

  • My Glowstick is showing 3 green lights so presumably working OK.

    But some sort of server problem (DOS again ?) means that I'm getting no data from it.

    Local access would solve this at a stroke !

  • I think the issues everyone has been having over the last few weeks only confirms the reality that if you need a regular realtime feed of energy usage for a HEMS then doing it locally is the only sensible and reliable solution. As this requires no cloud support from the supplier there should be no need for an ongoing charge as once the device is purchased it will never need any further resources from them. The price needs to reflect the cost of hardware and development plus ongoing firmware updates and bug fixes. This could be a one off fee included in the purchase price for say 2 years and then an optional yearly maintenance charge to continue to get support afterwards. This is a very common model used my several suppliers.

    I certainly had my name down for a CAD, when they become available, but having now seen the issues over the last few weeks I have decided that it's not really an option and I'll be falling back to using a current clamp to get the information. This is crazy but it's the only solution that you can rely on until a CAD with a local feed becomes available.

  • Would love to see local MQTT access. I have a Glow stick. Was very reliable for the first 3 months, but the last few weeks much less so. I would pay a one-off fee for this, and also think that charges for updated functionality reasonable. Should reduce supplier infrastructure overhead substantially.

  • Good morning all,

    @martinb - could you please contact support so we can see where and why you are having "many outages" over the last year because the only one we have record of is the catastrophic firewall issue at the start of the month - prior to that, the last outage we had was four years ago. @meroberts could you please also do the same. We do not have resource to monitor these forums frequently so ask that all support requests are sent to support@glowmarkt.com, thank you.

    On local access, there are a range of reasons why we don't currently provide local access to the data - commercially it isn't our business model. Note that we believe we are the only UK CAD manufacturer to make the data readily available via our API's or MQTT. Practically, if we didn't have internet connectivity we couldn't join the device to the meter, provide firmware updates, deliver access to historical 30 minute data from before the CAD install, provide support, or any API access for other data streams we pick up from external sources, including the DCC itself. It is on the roadmap to do this at some point, but as we provide the service for free to the market, the time we do give it focuses on where we think we can make the most impact - Export is next.

    Appreciate that you are prepared to pay for local access @gedger - we've done polls previously and you are in the minority but thank you for offering. We also offer a clamp solution - we've been in this industry since 2009 (energyhive was our first retail brand) - but smart metering means accurate data and accurate cost of consumption.

    FYI, other than the outage at the start of the month - the only thing that has since been turned off a couple of times recently is the more frequent refresh of DCC sourced HH data for people using the free Bright App. We believe we are the only DCC Other User who offers this more frequent refresh service and normal service has now been resumed.

    To conclude - local access is on the roadmap, but after export.

  • Hi Jane. When you say ‘export’, what functionality do you specifically mean? I already get both live power export data and exported energy data from the API so I’m just curious as to what extra functionality you’re planning.

  • Hi @sOckhamSter - we currently aren't storing the data in our systems and while it is being published if you are using MQTT, I didn't think it was supported in our APIs - but I could be wrong! The intention is to also then include the export information within a front end application and show tariff. At least that is what I believe.

    Please note that support of local access is making progress as well.

    Happy soggy Thursday, Jane (who is in a soggy part of the country with very wet feet)

  • ah yes... I'm using MQTT not the API sorry, and that export information is extremely useful!

    Great to hear that local access is making progress, thanks for the update.

  • edited February 2022

    Just to add to that - and in case it would help cases like mine...

    I have solar, SMETS2 meters (which shows an export figure) & the Glowmarkt IHD,

    However, I've had the panels for over 7 years now so I'm on the FiT payments and not SEG - therefore my supplier doesn't care about the export figure and doesn't appear to utilize it (i.e. its not being sent to the DCC) - so despite using MQTT I do not get any export figures at all.

    So - will the export details that keep being mentioned actually enable me to get this detail in future (either locally or via the cloud) ?

    Thanks.

  • @janeatglow - any more updates on this?

  • Hi there,

    Nearly there - just need to find the time to finish off a few things in between all the other activities underway.

    Thanks for the ongoing enthusiasm!

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