Actionable Notifications
Actionable notifications are a unique type of notification as they allow the user to add buttons to the notification which can then send an event to Home Assistant once clicked. This event can then be used in an automation allowing you to perform a wide variety of actions. These notifications can be sent to either iOS or Android.
Some useful examples of actionable notifications:
- A notification is sent whenever motion is detected in your home while you're away or asleep. A "Sound Alarm" action button is displayed alongside the notification, that when tapped, will sound your burglar alarm.
- Someone rings your front doorbell. You receive a notification with a live camera stream of the visitor outside along with action buttons to lock or unlock your front door.
- Receive a notification whenever your garage door opens with action buttons to open or close the garage.
Building actionable notifications#
iOS Version
Versions of the iOS app prior to 2021.5 require setting up categories in advance of using them. See iOS Before 2021.5.
You can include an actions array in your service call. On iOS you are limited to 4 actions, while Android is limited to 3.
Each action may consist of the following keys:
| Key | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
action | Required. The identifier passed back in events | When set to REPLY, you will be prompted for text to send with the event. |
title | Required. The title of the button shown in the notification | |
uri | Optional. The URL to open when tapped |  Android requires setting the action to URI to use this key. See notes below. |
Android specific options#
All of the following keys are optional.
| Key | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| None | There are no Android-specific keys at this time. |
specific options#
All of the following keys are optional.
| Key | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
activationMode | Set to foreground to launch the app when tapped. Defaults to background which just fires the event. | This is automatically set to foreground when providing a uri. |
authenticationRequired | true to require entering a passcode to use the action. | |
destructive | true to color the action's title red, indicating a destructive action. | |
behavior | textInput to prompt for text to return with the event. This also occurs when setting the action to REPLY. | |
textInputButtonTitle | Title to use for text input for actions that prompt. | |
textInputPlaceholder | Placeholder to use for text input for actions that prompt. |
uri values#
To navigate to a frontend page, use the format /lovelace/test where test is replaced by your defined path in the defined view. If you plan to use a lovelace dashboard the format would be /lovelace-dashboard/view where /lovelace-dashboard/ is replaced by your defined dashboard URL and view is replaced by the defined path within that dashboard. For example:
Android specific#
If you want to open an application you need to set the action to URI. The format will be app://<package> where <package> is replaced by the package you wish to open (ex: app://com.twitter.android). If the device does not have the application installed then the Home Assistant application will open to the default page.
With action set to URI you can also trigger the More Info panel for any entity. The format will be entityId:<entity_ID> where <entity_id> is replaced with the entity ID you wish to view. Ex: entityId:sun.sun
specific#
You can also use application-launching URLs. For example, to make a telephone call:
Or to launch a page in your default browser:
Building automations for notification actions#
Here is an example automation to send a notification with a category in the payload:
The previous automation will fire an event with the following data:
Here's an example automation for the given payload:
Migrating from iOS 2021.4 and earlier#
Starting in iOS version 2021.5, actions are specified inline with notifications. To migrate, do the following:
- Add the
actionsarray to each notification. For example:
- Convert your event triggers to the new values
iOS before 2021.5#
In advance of sending a notification:
- Define a notification category in your Home Assistant configuration which contain 1-4 actions.
- At launch iOS app requests notification categories from Home Assistant (can also be done manually in notification settings).
When sending a notification:
- Send a notification with
data.push.categoryset to a pre-defined notification category identifier. - Push notification delivered to device.
- User opens notification.
- Action tapped.
- Identifier of action sent back to HA as the
actionNameproperty of the eventios.notification_action_fired, along with other metadata such as the device and category name.
Definitions#
- Category - A category represents a type of notification that the app might receive. Think of it as a unique group of actions.
- Actions - An action consists of a button title and the information that iOS needs to notify the app when the action is selected. You create separate action objects for distinct action your app supports.
Category parameters#
| Name | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
name: | required | A friendly name for this category. |
identifier: | required | A unique identifier for the category. Must be lowercase and have no special characters or spaces (underscores are ok). |
actions: | required | A list of actions. See below. |
Actions parameters#
| Name | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
identifier: | required | A unique identifier for this action. Can be entirely either upper or lower case (but should not mix the two) and have no special characters or spaces (underscores are ok). Only needs to be unique to the category, not unique globally. |
title: | required | The text to display on the button. Keep it short. |
activationMode: | optional | The mode in which to run the app when the action is performed. Setting this to foreground will make the app open after selecting. Default value is background. |
authenticationRequired: | optional | If true, the user must unlock the device before the action is performed. |
destructive: | optional | When true, the corresponding button is displayed with a red text color to indicate the action is destructive. |
behavior: | optional | When textInput the system provides a way for the user to enter a text response to be included with the notification. The entered text will be sent back to Home Assistant. Default value is default. |
textInputButtonTitle: | optional* | The button label. Required if behavior is textInput. |
textInputPlaceholder: | optional | The placeholder text to show in the text input field. Only used if behavior is textInput |
Here's a fully built example configuration:
Rather than defining categories using YAML within configuration.yaml, you can create them directly within the Companion App. This can be done from the Notifications page of the App Configuration Menu (accessed from the sidebar menu).
Two variables are available for use in the Hidden preview placeholder and Category summary. %u will give the total number of notifications which have been sent under the same thread ID (see this document for more details). %@ will give the text specified with summary: in the push: section of the notification payload.
Building automations for notification actions#
Here is an example automation to send a notification with a category in the payload:
If you want to navigate to a Lovelace page or launch an app for a notification, you can use the url key.
To navigate to a dashboard when tapping a notification:
To navigate to a specific dashboard when tapping a notification action:
You can also use application-launching URLs. For example, launch an external website using https://example.com or make a phone call using tel:2125551212.
When an action is selected an event named ios.notification_action_fired will be emitted on the Home Assistant event bus. Below is an example payload:
Here's an example automation for the given payload:
Compatibility with different devices#
Specific
iOS 13 and later#
- All devices support notification expanding by performing a right to left swipe and pressing 'View' in the lock screen or pressing and holding, but on 3D Touch-enabled devices you may still need to apply some force to do it. If you're not in the lock screen, you can also pull the notification down to expand it.
Prior to iOS 13#
For devices that support 3D Touch - a firm press on the notification will expand it, showing the action buttons underneath. Supported devices include the iPhone 6S, iPhone 6S Plus, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X, iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max. If not in lock screen, you can also pull the notification down to expand it.
For devices that do not support "3D Touch" (such as the iPhone 6 and below, iPhone SE, iPhone XR and iPads), you perform a left to right swipe on the notification, then tap on the 'View' button. This will expand the notification and show the relevant action buttons underneath. If not in lock screen, you need to pull the notification down to expand it.