FAQ

Do I need Home Assistant?

For the web interface, yes. The native iPhone and iPad app also works directly with Apple Home, without Home Assistant or a Hauser server. See Choose your setup.

Does Hauser replace Home Assistant?

Hauser provides the everyday controls. With Home Assistant, integrations and automations stay there; with Apple Home, the native app uses your existing HomeKit home.

Can I run it as a Home Assistant Container user?

Yes, with Docker Compose. Container has no app store.

Can I use it on an iPad or an Android tablet?

Yes. Open the address in the browser and use full-screen or kiosk mode. See Phones and panels.

Can I install it as a PWA?

Yes. Add it to the home screen. It starts standalone and caches for offline start.

Where is the configuration stored?

In the volumes, as JSON. See Configuration reference. Some choices such as the appearance state are per device and stay in the browser.

Does Hauser need cloud services?

Everyday room control needs no Hauser cloud account. Optional features can contact external services: weather and maps request public data, Notion is a cloud service, and image providers receive the photo you choose. Those services have their own accounts, costs and limits. See requirements and room pictures.

How are room pictures made?

Four ways: keep the defaults, upload your own, let the wizard draw one from a photo (with your ChatGPT plan or a free Cloudflare account), or draw it yourself with the wizard’s wording in any image service and mark the windows by hand. See Room pictures.

Will the room-image wizard become free?

Hauser does not charge for the wizard. You can keep the bundled pictures or upload your own without an image provider. Cloudflare offers an allowance under its own terms; OpenAI needs your own access, and any external service you use manually sets its own costs. Experimental Apple Intelligence generation is separate from the normal setup. See Room pictures.

What happens when Home Assistant is unreachable?

The room picture stays, the controls dim, the title bar says Disconnected. Hauser reconnects on its own and never shows fake data.

Can several people use Hauser?

Yes. Every device shows the same household. There are no user accounts. Residents come from Home Assistant persons and get their own notes and colour.

Is there a login?

The Hauser server’s web port has no separate login and belongs on a trusted home network. Native Apple Home access uses iOS permissions instead. For access to a Hauser server from outside, use Remote access, which only lets paired devices through.

How do I update?

Through the Home Assistant app update, or docker compose pull and up -d. See Updates and backups.

Does the demo talk to my home?

No. The demo runs against simulated devices and never connects to a Home Assistant.

How do I report a problem or make a suggestion?

Tap the question mark at the top right of the title bar. Choose Something is wrong or I would like …, write a sentence, optionally leave a reply address and send. Hauser attaches its version, language, screen size and connection mode, nothing else. The message reaches the author’s inbox without a GitHub account. In the demo nothing is sent. Bugs with details are still welcome as GitHub issues.

Hauser also keeps an error log: when something fails on the server, in the browser or in the iOS app, it notes where and what kind of error it was. Repeats of the same error only raise a counter. Entity IDs, room and device names, readings, addresses and keys are removed before anything is written. The log stays in your home. If it has entries, the sheet offers Include errors from the error log, and What gets sent shows every line before you send. Nothing leaves on its own. The same applies to the iOS app, which also sends without a Hauser server.

What licence is it under?

AGPL-3.0-only. Every running instance shows its licence, version and source link under Status & Updates.