Install Zigbee2MQTT for Home Assistant on Arch Linux

Prerequisites:

1. Arch Linux or an Arch-based distribution.
2. A Zigbee coordinator (like a CC2531, Conbee II, or Sonoff Zigbee Dongle).
3. Node.js and NPM (since Zigbee2MQTT is written in JavaScript).

Step-by-Step Installation:

1. Install Node.js and npm

First, make sure Node.js and npm (Node Package Manager) are installed:

sudo pacman -S nodejs npm

Verify the installation:

node -v
npm -v

2. Install Mosquitto MQTT Broker

You need an MQTT broker (like Mosquitto) for communication between Zigbee2MQTT and Home Assistant.

sudo pacman -S mosquitto

Start and enable Mosquitto to run at boot:

sudo systemctl enable mosquitto
sudo systemctl start mosquitto

3. Download Zigbee2MQTT

Clone the Zigbee2MQTT repository from GitHub:

git clone https://github.com/Koenkk/zigbee2mqtt.git /opt/zigbee2mqtt

Change directory to Zigbee2MQTT:

cd /opt/zigbee2mqtt

4. Install Zigbee2MQTT dependencies

Install the required dependencies using npm:

npm ci

5. Configure Zigbee2MQTT

Before starting, you need to configure Zigbee2MQTT.

• Navigate to the configuration file:

nano /opt/zigbee2mqtt/data/configuration.yaml

• Set the MQTT broker details, and define your Zigbee device path (e.g., /dev/ttyACM0 for USB devices). Example configuration:

homeassistant: true
permit_join: true
mqtt:
base_topic: zigbee2mqtt
server: 'mqtt://localhost'
serial:
port: /dev/ttyACM0

6. Start Zigbee2MQTT

• Now that it’s configured, you can start Zigbee2MQTT manually:

npm start

7. Run Zigbee2MQTT as a Service (Optional)

To ensure Zigbee2MQTT starts automatically on boot, you can create a systemd service:

• Create the service file:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/zigbee2mqtt.service

• Add the following content to the file:

[Unit]
Description=Zigbee2MQTT
After=network.target

[Service]
ExecStart=/usr/bin/npm start --prefix /opt/zigbee2mqtt
WorkingDirectory=/opt/zigbee2mqtt
StandardOutput=inherit
StandardError=inherit
Restart=always
User=root

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

• Reload systemd to recognize the new service:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload

• Enable and start Zigbee2MQTT:

sudo systemctl enable zigbee2mqtt
sudo systemctl start zigbee2mqtt

8. Access Zigbee2MQTT Frontend

By default, Zigbee2MQTT runs a web interface at http://localhost:8080 (or replace localhost with your server’s IP). You can enable it in the configuration.yaml:

yaml:

frontend:
port: 8080

Now you can start using Zigbee2MQTT with Home Assistant or any other platform via the MQTT broker.