The ultimate Home Assistant beginner’s guide
Home Assistant is an open-source DIY home automation platform. To get started, all you need is a Raspberry Pi, an existing server or NAS, or an old computer. You will also need a bit of patience (okay, maybe a lot of patience). To get you started, I’ve put together a few beginner-friendly guides on Home Assistant that should ease your entry into the world of limitless home automation.
The following beginner’s guide will guide you through the setup of the Home Assistant Operating System on a Raspberry Pi, the installation of your first add-on, the integration of your first services, and much more. The articles are structured hierarchically, meaning the knowledge you gain from the first will be needed in the second, and so on.
Basic knowledge of Home Assistant
I recommend starting with reading these two articles. Knowing exactly what Home Assistant can and can’t do will help you make the decision whether it is what you are looking for. The second article is recommended because you will find many brand names in the Home Assistant communities, which could lead to some confusion.
Home Assistant hardware should be chosen wisely
As you’ve returned to this page, I’m going to assume that you’ve decided to go with Home Assistant for your home automation. Good choice! To get your project started, you will want to buy a Raspberry Pi. I’ve got a detailed comparison of the different models ready for you. The reason I suggest a Raspberry Pi is that it is far and away the easiest way of getting started for absolute beginners and has great support from developers.
Installing Home Assistant and its add-ons on a Raspberry Pi
Congratulations on coming this far. With all the hardware in place, the fun can finally start. The following beginner’s guides will help you install Home Assistant, and set up the most important add-ons.
Setting up Home Assistant
Web access
Setting up DuckDNS, so you can access your Home Assistant from anywhere.
Integrating Home Assistant with the Google Assistant
The Google Assistant is an easy way to control your Home Assistant.
What next?
Now that you’ve got everything set up you can take things one step further. Setting up integrations and your Home Assistant dashboard should be next on the list. Home Assistant supports over 1700 integrations!