How to Install a Supervised Home Assistant Server on Ubuntu
There are two Home Assistant versions that you’re able to install on a regular Linux distro. You can either install the supervised version or choose the non-supervised version of Home Assistant, based on your requirements and experience with Linux.
While non-supervised installation is quick and easy, the supervised version requires several additional steps. But if you want to experience the full power of Home Assistant on Ubuntu or Debian, you must go for the supervised version. Let’s see how you can set up a Supervised Home Assistant server on Ubuntu.
Install Supervised Home Assistant on Ubuntu/Debian
To install and set up Home Assistant Supervised, you first need toinstall Ubuntu on your computer. You can use an old PC or preferably a laptop as it consumes a lot less power.
We recommend you install Ubuntu Server as it’s much more lightweight than Ubuntu Desktop. Once Ubuntu is installed, follow the below steps to install and configure Home Assistant Supervised.
This is an advanced method for installing Home Assistant Supervised on a regular Linux OS. If you are not an advanced user or someone not familiar with Linux, you should avoid this as it requires experience with Linux, Docker, containers, and networking. But you’re free to experiment, of course.
Step 1: Install Docker on Ubuntu
First, check for and apply updates to Ubuntu Server using the following command:
Theninstall and set up Docker on Ubuntu. You may also installPortainer to manage and install containers.
Make sure to installUbuntu Server 20.04.5 LTSandDocker CE >= 20.10.17.
Step 2: Install Supervised Home Assistant on Ubuntu Using Docker
Access the Ubuntu terminal over SSH and run the following commands as root to install the Home Assistant container:
Next, copy and paste the below command to install the dependencies:
Install Docker-CE by running:
Download the latest OS-Agent fromthe GitHub pageusing the below command (thex86_64.debpackage):
Install the downloaded DEB package using dpkg by running:
Replace the package name in the commands above with the latest package name.
Check if the installation was successful with:
You should seeInterfacedetails in the output as shown below:
If thegdbuscommand is not recognized, installlibglib2.0-binusing APT to make it work.
Finally, run the following command to install the Supervised Home Assistant Debian package on your Ubuntu machine:
Next, run:
This won’t take much time to complete. After the installation, you can open Portainer to check the installed containers.
You can also visit the IP of the Ubuntu machine at port 8123 to access Supervised Home Assistant. You canfind the IP addressusing the ifconfig command.
For instance, let’s consider this as the IP address:
This should load the Home Assistant setup screen where you can create a user account and finish the initial setup. If you have a backup from your earlier Home Assistant instance, you may also restore it from the setup screen.
you’re able to also access Home Assistant using the following URL on a local network:
Once you have set up Home Assistant, you can install the add-ons and create backups with a few clicks. You can alsoexpose your Home Assistant server to the internet with a secure HTTPS connectionfor remote access using the Cloudflare tunnel.
Troubleshooting Home Assistant Errors on Linux
Home Assistant Supervised will work on any x86 or x64 hardware that can run Ubuntu or Debian. It works the same as on Raspberry Pi hardware with Home Assistant Operating System. However, you may experience some issues and receive warnings while using it.
While you can ignore some warnings, you may need to fix the errors to install the add-ons and Home Assistant Core system updates. Below we have addressed these issues with their solutions and workarounds.
1. Can’t Install or Update Add-Ons or HA Core
You may encounter an error while installing or updating the add-ons or the Home Assistant Core updates. To fix this, first, stop the Portainer container with:
Restart the Home Assistant Supervisor using the following command:
Now you can open Home Assistant and go toSettingsto install and update add-ons or Home Assistant Core updates without any error message.
2. Home Assistant Showing Multiple Repairs
Home Assistant can display issues under the Repair section that you must fix to ensure your smart devices are connected and working as intended. However, with Supervised Home Assistant installation, you may see multiple recommendations to repair or fix Home Assistant.
You can ignore the repair suggestions that show the following:
These may look intimidating but rest assured that they do not impact Supervised Home Assistant or its components in any way.
In case you see “Unhealthy system - Docker misconfigured” under theRepairssection, run the following command to restart Docker:
Experience the Power of Supervised Home Assistant on Ubuntu
Home Assistant is designed and developed to work with the Home Assistant Operating System (HassOS). While you can install non-supervised Home Assistant on a regular Linux OS such as Debian or Ubuntu quite easily, you won’t be able to install add-ons or use the backup service.
In Non-Supervised Home Assistant, you need to install and configure the add-ons manually, create backups, make repairs, reset settings, etc. However, you could do all the above in a few clicks on Home Assistant Supervised.
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