Level 1

20 points

Homekit Automations are broken in iOS 16

Since iOS 16 HomeKit automations aren't triggered reliably. Simple timed automations like "Open Shutters at 9am" are triggered randomly. All my Hubs, Homepods, iPhones, etc are up-to-date, restarted, reseted all the devices, recreated all the automations, but still not reliable.

My only solution at the moment is to schedule the automations with the accessories' own hub. (eg. IKEA light automations are set in IKEA's own app, and my Bosch smart home shutters are scheduled within Bosch's app) It works, but would be better to see everything within Apple's Home.

Posted on Sep 16, 2022 1:47 AM

Top-ranking reply

Glennch

Level 1

24 points

Posted on Sep 21, 2022 12:52 PM

I too suffered from my automations no longer working after upgrading my AppleTV's (4K and HD) to TV OS 16. After about 5 days of troubleshooting I cannot say what specifically is wrong but I can provide what seems to be a consistent way to create HomeKit automations that consistently work on IOS 16 / TV OS 16.

First, the iphone / ipad you run this procedure on must be running IOS 16 for this to work.
Delete the automation in question (either via the Home app or the Shortcuts app)
Create the automation in the latest version of the shortcut app (Do NOT use the Home App).
In the shortcut application when you create your automation, do not select your scene or accessory in the first menu, instead scroll down to the bottom and select "Convert to shortcut"
In the shortcut menu select your scene or accessory as you normally would.
Before hitting "Done" in the Shortcut menu, select the small arrow at the very bottom right of the screen to test your script. Assuming it works as desired you can select "Done" in the Shortcut menu.
Now don't panic, it takes approximately 3-5 seconds to copy the new automation to your home hub before it will be listed in the Automations screen.

This has worked consistently for me for both simple automations such as turning on a light at a certain time as well as complex automations based on location that SSH into a remote server.

Good Luck

View in context

Similar questions

442 replies

Jan 23, 2023 10:35 PM in response to Burnett

I am pretty close to doing this as well. Two homes here and especially any automation that depends on geofencing is broken in some form. And the time I spent to get it working at all after iOS 16 is just not justified anymore. Either it works in the next 3 to 6 months through proper updates by Apple, or I am done. I will not spend any more time trying out different ideas to fix their problems. Fortunately, at least my second home is 99% relying on KNX and Homekit is just the front end. So it should be not too big a deal to change it to something reliable, though possibly not as pretty.

Burnett

Level 1

4 points

Jan 24, 2023 9:37 AM in response to dMindFuse

This reinforces what I have experienced since apple introduced the HomePods. The more Apple devices I've purchased (phones, MacBooks, appletvs, OG HomePods...) and more sophisticated my smart homeS became, the more super user I've become, the worse Apple value has been in product and software quality, testing, support, overall ecosystem subject matter expertise.

This 16-16.2 alignment with the "new" HomePod launch, crashing so many customers home automations, and zero customer communication only highlights how completely tone deaf Apple leadership is at best, or doesn't think it will impact their sales at worst.

I'm not buying any more HomePods or other new ecosystem products.

Jan 24, 2023 12:00 PM in response to Burnett

Well… I myself can’t wait to see a hands-on article with the CES 2023 introduced Nicla Voice. Let’s see how that stacks up to a HomePod. I don’t think it will be any better. I see no Alternative to Siri. Without voice any home automation is almost useless, barring time/geo/sensor-driven automation.

tomg15

Level 1

51 points

Jan 24, 2023 1:17 PM in response to dMindFuse

Respectfully disagree with respect to voice. A great (meaning reliable) mobile app with on/off automation would solve all my use cases. Hardly ever use voice and until its drop dead reliable (SIRI suddenly doesn't understand Garage Door #2) I'm happy to use an app...

Jan 25, 2023 3:01 AM in response to tomg15

Granted. I didn’t consider some people are ok with pulling up the app. Myself I don’t carry my phone on me everywhere around the place all the time. So I find voice to be accommodating me more often. I agree that Siri is the same disastrous pile of crap it was when it was launched. Nothing improved in the field of AI voice capabilities. I guess IBM Watson (which Siri runs on to my Knowledge?) is a static model. The big hooha about a new manager on the Siri team years ago was very much a damp squib. But… I use only what works (though “on” and “off” are even frequently miss understood).

ullal

Level 1

0 points

Jan 25, 2023 3:28 AM in response to dMindFuse

Slightly off topic but the biggest issue with Siri (if you're like me and walk around with Apple headphones on) is that Siri will answer randomly on whichever device it thinks it should. So, although I may be in the living room and say, "Hey Siri" and expect it to respond on my headphones it doesn't. What I don't realize is that the Homepod has heard me all the way in the bedroom and has responded there. There is no way to set different wake words like I do with all the Alexa speakers in my house. Now, if only they had SiriusXM integration like Alexa I would be thrilled.

Jan 25, 2023 4:34 AM in response to ullal

Still off topic, but yes, true. It’s annoying. Feels as if Apple takes ages to get past „Minimum viable product“. Same with the temperature sensors in HomePod mini: there is no offset!!!! WTF. Put it on a high cupboard and it reads 25 C … although it’s actually closer to 22.5C… MVP once again.

Jan 25, 2023 4:58 AM in response to dMindFuse

I have 2 ATVs and 3 minis set up. A few months ago when I found this thread, I tried everything in the thread to fix the constant intermittent issues. I have had relatively stable and reliable performance since then. Suddenly, with 16.2 I believe, all my devices go to “No Response” almost daily. I have to restart whichever ATV or mini that’s the connected hub at the time. Anyone experiencing this issue?

Jan 25, 2023 10:32 AM in response to dMindFuse

One of the ATVs is 8 feet from my router yet I have had to reboot it as often as any of the others. It doesn’t seem to matter. If it was once in a blue moon it wouldn’t matter but it’s practically daily now.

Jan 26, 2023 3:27 AM in response to wArch

iOS 16.3 has not yet appeared to impact anything on my devices. I know that the iPad is no longer allowed to act as a HomeKit hub, so I won’t be upgrading the HomeKit stuff when that becomes available again. Unless Apple changes which devices can be a HomeKit hub, or I buy an Apple TV or HomePod Mini, I’ll be stuck on the old protocols/architecture.

MEGATOMI Author

Level 1

20 points

Sep 24, 2022 2:17 AM in response to MEGATOMI

Okay, I might solve the issue, but it is a pain in the... First, I had to do a full reset in the Home (e.g. DELETE the current home and CREATE a new one from scratch). Since there is no option to export the settings (accessories, scenes, automation, etc.) I had to screenshot every page/menu for all my accessories so I didn't have to remember all tweaks.

Currently, I have around 20 accessories, which isn't that much, but it took a few hours until I went through all of them (Add, Setup, Add to Scenes, Automate, Repeat...)

The cause of the issues remains unknown to me, but something has happened during the transition from iOS15 >>> iOS16 Beta >> iOS16.

Now, after a week of testing, I don't have any problems with automation, I can tweak them, and they work flawlessly.

The lesson I learned is that I won't install iOS betas anymore and probably won't upgrade till 17.1 or 17.2. As our Smart Home is slowly growing, I don't want to do another "factory reset". I hope these "bugs" will disappear with the transition to Matter, or at least I can rely on other platforms (Google Assistant) to handle everything around the house.

Sep 26, 2022 8:18 PM in response to MEGATOMI

Ok, I ran into the same problems with automations failing to initiate. I have 37+ devices s well as several automations and scenes. What worked for me was a simple starting point. I deleted the home app and rebooted the phone. I then reinstalled the app, verified devices populated again. Then nervously sat back and waited for the 10:00 pm bed time automation (all but two lights turn off) Lo and behold the automation worked perfectly as before. Hopefully it works for others with the same issue. Hope it helps

Sep 19, 2022 11:11 AM in response to Mucci

I have the same issue. I’ve reset and rebooted everything. Disconnected iCloud account on Apple TVs etc etc nothing seems to fix the issue

Sep 25, 2022 11:47 AM in response to real_chris1003

Sep 26, 2022 7:56 AM in response to Stu Baker1

Same. All worked perfectly pre ios16. Now do not. I remove/readd automations and they still dont work.

This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

Homekit Automations are broken in iOS 16