Scheduling different actions - is it possible?

tri356
tri356
in SecuritySpy

Hi, When we'll be traveling, I'd like to get emailed if someone is inside our house - for example someone comes by to feed the cats. However, when we're in town, the emails would generally be noise - notifying about our own comings/goings. Is there any way to schedule that different type of action? I don't think so, but wanted to check. I understand that I can just change the setting under Settings/Actions for a camera when the travel dates occur.


Thanks

Mike

Comments

  • Ben
    Ben

    Hi Mike, this is basically what Schedule Presets are for. You would configure one "Home" preset that defines the set of schedules for each camera (which does not include arming Actions for this particular camera), and one "Away" preset that defines the set of schedules while you are away (which does include arming this camera's Actions mode).

    You can apply each schedule preset manually via the macOS interface, web interface, or iOS app. Alternatively, they can be triggered by HomeKit events or AppleScripts.

  • tri356
    tri356

    Sorry Ben, I'm missing something. The values that I can choose in the Schedule Presets are Armed/Unarmed, Sunrise, etc.. My cameras are armed the whole time. What I'm after is the Armed AND send email combo. How do I set that?


    Thanks

    Mike

  • Ben
    Ben

    Hi Mike, the basic idea is this:

    "Home" Preset

    Motion Capture schedule: Armed 24/7

    Actions schedule: Unarmed 24/7

    "Away" Preset

    Motion Capture schedule: Armed 24/7

    Actions schedule: Armed 24/7

    You would invoke the Home preset when you return home (which turns off email notifications), and you would invoke the Away preset when you leave (which enables email notifications). Both presets maintain motion-capture recording.

  • kilopixel
    kilopixel

    I'm looking for the same feature. I want to be able to select a specific action (out of many) within a schedule as opposed to the current binary choice (action or no action). You get extra credit if you enable sets of predefined actions to be selected!

    My requirement is similar to Mike's. I only want email notifications when I am away but I want various HomeKit automations when I am home (and sometimes when I am away).

    Thanks,

    Rick

  • Ben
    Ben

    Hi Rick, sorry but the current scheme that SecuritySpy uses does not offer this level of granularity - for each camera, all Actions (which include notifications and HomeKit actions) are either on or off.

    One workaround is to add the same camera twice, using identical device settings. Then you can have different schedules for different actions. SecuritySpy won't count the additional camera instance towards your license limit.

    Alternatively, if you don't mind a bit of scripting, it's possible to schedule some AppleScripts to turn specific features of specific cameras on/off at specific times. This is a little fiddly, but will achieve what you want, and avoids duplicating cameras. Let me know if you want further information about this.

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