HomeKit challenges with Lutron RadioRA2 Connect Bridge after HomeKit upgrade (AppleTV, HomePod and iOS upgrades to 16.4)

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HomeKit challenges with Lutron RadioRA2 Connect Bridge after HomeKit upgrade (AppleTV, HomePod and iOS upgrades to 16.4)

I have a Lutron RadioRA2 system with 82 devices including the Lutron Connect Bridge for integrating RadioRA2 with HomeKit.

Previously, the Lutron RadioRA 2 + HWQS App / Settings / HomeKit & Siri feature would allow you to select rooms or devices in rooms to setup in HomeKit. If the room name in Lutron matched the HomeKit room name, then selecting the room or device would cause it to appear in the HomeKit room.

After the upgrade, the devices are placed into "Default room" on the HomeKit side instead of their proper room. Also, the radio buttons in the Lutron app for the room/zone and device are not filled in to indicate they sync'd with HomeKit.

I believe the issue is a compatibility problem between the Lutron Connect Bridge and the new version of HomeKit.

As a side note, the new version of the Home app on Ventura 13.3 has lots of quality issues. When I am moving devices from the Default Room to their proper room, the dialog can't be closed so I have to Command-Option-Escape to force quit.

If you are considering doing the HomeKit upgrade, please wait until Apple addresses the quality problems.

Posted on Apr 8, 2023 08:11 AM

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Answer 1

natdev Author

Level 1

10 points

Apr 11, 2023 07:48 AM in response to nathan430

Hi @nathan430,

Thanks for the reply. I opened a ticket with Lutron as well. I am using the latest Lutron app for iOS. I also have it for macOS. I am certified on RadioRA2 and use RadioRA2 Essentials. I factory reset the Lutron Connect Bridge (twice). I also did an Activate and Transfer with RadioRA2 Essentials which wipes the main repeater and reprograms it. I've also power cycled both the main repeater and Connect Bridge.

At our home, we have 3 x Apple TVs, 2 x HomePod Minis, 4 x HomePods (original ones) - all of them have the latest firmware updates. In Home Hubs & Bridges for this house, it shows the Basement Apple TV as the one that's connected (all others in Standby). That device was power cycled, too. The Home Hub Apple TV is connected to the same Ubiquiti switch via Cat6 that the Lutron Connect Bridge is on. It's a very robust network infrastructure. WiFi is 5 x wired eero Pro 6 network access points (all on latest firmware) with lots of coverage.

I completely removed the Lutron Connect Bridge from the home's list of Bridges and re-added it.

As I've gone through this kind of setup probably more than 20 times, the only thing that changed is HomeKit at this house.

The Lutron app continues to work fine on its own but does not show that the rooms/zones and devices are synchronized with HomeKit (via the filled in radio buttons as it did previously).

After painfully moving all devices in the Home app from "Default room" to their proper rooms (with at least 10 x Command-Option-Escapes to force quit the Home app and restart it), everything is functioning correctly.

I've read that an update for HomeKit was pulled after identifying quality problems. I got the upgrade after the re-release but it seems like there's a long way to go with QA. A concern I have is that Apple's testing might not include Lutron RadioRA2, HomeWorks, or RadioRA3 systems that have more devices than a typical consumer installation.

Also, Lutron has not had a firmware update for the Connect Bridge for quite some time (though I would argue that should not be necessary because Apple didn't theoretically introduce breaking changes in the latest version of HomeKit).

Unfortunately, as an advanced HomeKit and Lutron user, basic troubleshooting has not been effective.

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Answer 2

nathan430

Community Specialist

Apr 10, 2023 01:49 PM in response to natdev

Hey there, natdev,

Thanks so much for using Apple Support Communities. We want to help you get the Home app working seamlessly with all of your accessories. For general troubleshooting steps in adding an accessory to your Home setup, we would recommend following the guidance here: Add an accessory to the Home app - Apple Support. When it comes to specific compatibility issues between your Lutron accessories and HomeKit, the best place to start would be with Lutron support since they are going to be the experts at troubleshooting any sort of compatibility issues with their products.

You can start here for that: Lutron Support Center

As for the issues you mentioned with macOS Ventura 13.3 and the Home app, we would recommend working through some general troubleshooting steps for the Home app. That would include power cycling your devices by shutting them down and rebooting them, including the Home hub you set up as well as the Mac you're using and any accessories set up. If you installed any apps from the manufacturers of the accessories you're using, be sure that all of those apps are fully updated as well. These steps have proven helpful in resolving unexpected issues with the Home app which is why we recommend starting there.

We hope that this information is helpful.

Have a great day!

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Answer 3

Apr 11, 2023 08:14 AM in response to natdev

Hello natdev,

We're glad you were able to get everything functioning properly. If you would like to provide feedback to Apple about your concerns with HomeKit, you can do it here: Product Feedback - Apple

Thanks for using the Apple Support Communities, and have a great day!

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Answer 4

natdev Author

Level 1

10 points

Apr 11, 2023 08:44 AM in response to Community User

Yeah - I've submitted a bug report there. I'm hoping others with higher-end Lutron systems see this post and delay upgrading as it's not the kind of experience they will expect from Apple or Lutron.

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HomeKit challenges with Lutron RadioRA2 Connect Bridge after HomeKit upgrade (AppleTV, HomePod and iOS upgrades to 16.4)

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