VirtualHere for remote USB with NAS (Synology?)

Hi guys,

I just discovered https://www.virtualhere.com/nas

It allows you to share a USB port remotely. See:
https://www.virtualhere.com/usb_client_software

Has anyone tried using a USB Insteon adapter via VirtualHere? This would solve many problems for me; my USB Insteon adapter sits in a drawer because all I have is laptops and never want to connect the USB to run my Indigo. I'd really rather be using something like this that worked over WiFi.

Thanks
Danny

[jay (support)]

I'm a little confused - since Indigo has to be running all the time to do it's automation, why can't you leave the PowerLinc plugged in?

But to answer your question, we've never tried it. However, PowerLincs are notoriously susceptible to timing issues on the USB bus, so if I had to guess I'd bet that it wouldn't work reliably. But that's just a guess.

I've been meaning to try this for a while. I even have a raspberryPi waiting for the job, I just haven't had the time. I used a serial version of the PLM with a different HA program for years with a serial-IP adapter and never had a problem, it was as reliable as having it local.

@Jay, for me the reason is because the optimal place for the PLM (best response with Insteon devices) isn't the best place for the Mini that runs Indigo. In fact, those places are almost 70 feet apart, in wire distance.

Terry


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I would add that I wouldn't trust wifi, but would do this over Ethernet. As Jay mentioned, the timing will probably kill you.


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[jay (support)]

Oh, I understand the placement issue. But the OP didn't seem to imply that placement was an issue, but rather that using MacBooks (which sleep) was the issue.

I think the USB controller chip in the USB PowerLincs leads to the timing issue, which would be supported by your experience with the serial PowerLinc. It's also supported by the relative consistency with which we see PowerLinc issues running over USB hubs but not when plugged directly into a Mac's port.

I could be wrong, and perhaps the PowerLinc has gotten better over time (hardware tweaks, etc), so it would be cool if it did actually work.

Thanks everyone for your feedback.

I don't stay super current on all the advances; I bought my PowerLinc 2413U (V1.5) 1141 when it was state of the art.
My goal is to allow Indigo to run my Insteon system without having to run a USB cable to my Mac. If there is a better (out-of-the-box) way to do this, please let me know.
Maybe there is an ethernet based adapter or hub now that would alleviate these problems.
I had always heard that there was no dual-band Insteon adapter other than this one; the Ethernet one was powerline only.

I can get my wife to leave the MacBook running, she just gets confused with all the cords.

Is there an ethernet based dual-band hub for Insteon now, or some other way around using VirtualHere to go dual-band? I'd be willing to upgrade to something HomeKit compatible...

Thanks!
Danny

I'm a little confused - since Indigo has to be running all the time to do it's automation, why can't you leave the PowerLinc plugged in?

But to answer your question, we've never tried it. However, PowerLincs are notoriously susceptible to timing issues on the USB bus, so if I had to guess I'd bet that it wouldn't work reliably. But that's just a guess.

I can't speak about this product, but I can say that the powerlinc, RFX, and a Z-stick will work using the Silex usb over wifi adapter on a local network without an issue, so if this uses a similar basis, it will probably work just fine. I use the silex to keep the RFX in the attic to get better reception, and borrowed it long enough to temporarily get the Z-stick next to some locks that were failing to enroll to the network through a relay and moved the powerLinc around the property to diagnose the source of signal noise that kept insteon signals from getting from the house to the barn.

[jay (support)]

borrowed it long enough to temporarily get the Z-stick next to some locks that were failing to enroll to the network through a relay and moved the powerLinc around the property to diagnose the source of signal noise that kept insteon signals from getting from the house to the barn.

How long and how much did you stress it? What we've seen on these is that under sustained use there are inevitable failures, though they may not happen in the first days or even weeks. If it was in use for extended periods without any issues then that would be a great alternative.

How long and how much did you stress it? What we've seen on these is that under sustained use there are inevitable failures, though they may not happen in the first days or even weeks. If it was in use for extended periods without any issues then that would be a great alternative.

For the Z-wave locks, just long enough to do the encrypted include; once included, everything works through a plugin relay near the center of the house that can see the Zstick in a back bedroom converted to the "server room". For the Powerlinc,, only a few hours to verify that signals work fine in whichever of the 3 sites being served by the same power pole it was located in, but not at the power pole or in any other area when the new well pump was running. But the RFX (23 Temp/Humidity/wind/rain sensors) has been happily running up in the attic since July of 2015 and except for occasionally dropping the link when we have momentary power blips due to thunderstorms, it's been rock solid... we've been thinking about a small UPS for it, since the server, satellite uplink, and access point are protected, but it seems kind of overkill for something that small.

[jay (support)]

I was specifically interested in the PowerLinc since it's the one that's shown in the past that it really doesn't like extenders and hubs much. The Z-Stick Series 2 also showed repeated problems with USB extension cables. Thanks for the feedback.

So I loaded the free VirtualHere server on to a spare Raspberry Pi and put the client on the mini running Indigo on Sierra 10.12.4. The client "sees" the RPi, and shows USB devices in the client window when any particular device is plugged into the RPi. However, the remote USB device doesn't seem to make it from the VirtualHere client to MacOS. I tried the Insteon PLM, a USB thumb drive, and a USB printer. They were all correctly recognized by the VirtualHere client, but Sierra had no clue of their existence. There are some versions of Sierra not supported, but 10.12.4 "should" be... I double checked the settings, rebooted, etc. nothing...

I'll play with it some more, but so far it isn't very promising.

Terry

After a little more digging, it would seem that those of us running version 10.11 or higher of OS X will have problems with the VirtualHere Client. Thanks again Apple...

Below is a quote from the VirtualHere Dev, taken from this thread: https://www.virtualhere.com/comment/2928#comment-2928

...What happens is apple re-wrote the entire usb stack in 10.11. They removed support for 3rd party USB host controllers like virtualhere. I complained as did other companies and apple hacked back in support again for 10.12.2. I notice for example that the virtualhere host controller does not appear in the apple system dialog. Even when a device is connected it doesnt show. This tells me they have quickly hacked back in support but not really put official support back in. Ive tried contacting them multiple times and they basically just say nothing. So my guess is that your software might be trying to walk the device tree to find the davinci printer. Since the device tree is not properly formed with the virtualhere host controller it cannot see it. Strangely most devices do work via virtualhere in 10.12 eg. iPad, serial devices etc and basically everything except webcams. Software that uses those devices however can sometimes not see the virtualhere shared devices. I think perhaps apple might put "official" support for 3rd party host controllers back in at some point so i've been watching the release notes for each osx build. ...

Terry