So I´ve been runing DeConz for a longe time. More or less everything been good, occasionally a bulbe (ikea) fails out of network and has been needing to be restarted og repaired. Yesterday I updated DeConz from 2.12.6 to 2.13.01, and it gives me a new perspective on the network that I did not have before. Not sure if this is a 2.13.01 issue or I simply missed it in the past. But my LQI is very low for most of the network.
Environment:
Windows Server 2019 Standard
DeConz 2.13.01 beta
ConBee II
Firmware 26720700
As you can see from the screenshot bellow, there is a lot of yellow lines. 2.12 version showed all green. But I might have had this issue al along, without knowing it. I did enable Source Routing max 6 hops and min LQI 140 so see results.
My NetWork settings:
Channel 26 (to avoid 2,4Ghz access point interference)
Device Type Coordinator
Security Mode - High, No Master but TC Link Key
So the million dollar question, what can I do to enhance my network and get better LQI for my devices.
114 Devices in network, 5-6 of them are motion sensor, switch, 2 motion is Hue, and 1 Develco Plug, rest is Ikea.
Any thoughts, suggestions?
Any other info needed to be able to assist?
Yes you are correct about the color on network links.
But the question is how to improve connection to get a better and responsive network.
Most of my score is less than 100, recomenter is above 150. And alot of the devices is a short distanse from eachother.
Let me spesifiy that I never looked at LQI score before. But looking at z-wave network, there is a optimization functionallity that can be run.
Seriously, seeing the density of your network, you have 1000m2 of area, a 10-storey building , or you can’t have connexion issues for me, lot of routers, good mesh …
Wait a little for the value be updated, but if you don’t have issue on working mode, I don’t think you have “quality problems”, perhaps a “display problem”.
I wish, 150m2 house 1 floor, its been updatet for 20 hours now.
It might be a bug, I dont know.
I just see what i see And have no way to confirm.
At least not the know how
It is always important to use the recommended USB extension for the ConBee II, especially if other USB devices are connected. Then connect this extension if available to a USB 2.0 port (not blue). At its extension the ConBee II should then have distance to USB devices, SSD, metal, radio, routers or other electronics. In case of problems, a different position of the ConBee II can bring improvements even if the current position seems optimal.
A few notes to the different color display of the links between nodes:
The network connectivity on a functional level is the same between v2.12.6 and v2.13.x. To better identify weaker links lower LQI values show more contrast and are displayed with increased transparency and more yellow/red’ish.
Beside that, the actual LQI value used to pick the color is calculated differently:
v2.12.6 (LQI A + LQI B) / 2
v2.13.x Minimum of LQI A and LQI B
So the weak side of a connection determines the color.
v2.12.6 showed greener lines because surrounding devices can see the ConBee with it’s strong signal (often 200…255 LQI) due to the power amplifier. But for a connection it’s good to also look at device signal strength. Most lights don’t use a power amplifier and have a rather weak signal, covering only 5–7 meters in clear sight of line.
In the screenshot you can see greener lines of nodes which are close together, without walls between them.
How to improve
You can figure out the weak spots by setting the “Panels → Source routing → Minimum LQI filter” to higher values like 140 (or even 200 if you’re aiming to make it super strong).
After while weaker links disappear (they are still there just not shown) you’ll see connected isles which and can place routers between them to fill the gaps.
Unfortunately consumer routers, as lights and plugs, usually don’t have a power-amplifier, so keep the 5–7 meters line of sight in mind. The only ones with a power-amplifier I know of are our FLS-PP lp LED-strip ballasts which have a equally strong signal as the ConBee itself with 150–200 meters line of sight range.
Thanks for you explanation, then I guess I have to live with the somewhat bad connections here and there. From my ConBee to the bulb furthest away is probably 12-15m but though walls and here i get LQI down to about 50ish. But stuff works, I was hoping for a optimise network functionality, per you explanation I guess it would not be possible except to look at amplifiers.
First thing would be to figure out where the weak spots are as mentioned above with the Minimum LQI display filter setting you can hide too weak links to get a much better overview.
Then you can place lights / routers at these locations if there aren’t strong connections between “isles”. Currently not recommended are Osram devices as they seem to be poor repeaters. Ikea will do, but Philips is way more stable. Usually with these routers you can bridge 5 meters with an ok’ish signal.
And have no way to confirm.