5 practical tips for using your WiFi Switch

Since the Smart Switch from Swisscom does not have any local memory built in to save costs, it always goes to the “power on” position after a power interruption (even a very short one), regardless of the control stored in the Home App.

So you should really only use it to control non-critical devices such as lamps, where it doesn’t matter if the circuit is wrong.

Swisscom Smart Switches should under no circumstances be used wherever there could be a latent risk of fire due to incorrect switching.

Hello @Werner

The behavior you describe was actually like that in the past. We have updated the switch’s firmware in the meantime so that the Home App restores the previous status after a power interruption. The prerequisite for this is that the Smart Switch is added to the Home App.

Have you recently observed the behavior you describe or is it an experience that happened a long time ago? If it’s the first, we’d be happy to hear from you so we can take a look at it again.

Best regards,
Cem from the Home App team

@CemÖ

Thanks for the feedback.

My Smart Switch experiences are already a few months old and may actually be outdated.

I’ll test it again with the coming Christmas lights…

@CemÖ

But that means that the HomeApp is always at least running in the background and connected, right?

@hed

No. Simply put, the Home App on your smartphone is just the user interface. The magic happens inside your Internet Box.

Your Internet Box and its WLAN must therefore be switched on, but the Home App must not be.

Best regards,

Cem from the Home App team

@CemÖ

And what happens in the event of a power outage (that’s what @Werner assumed) because then the IB also appears. Does the switch get the correct switching status from the IB as soon as it is up again?

@hed

Exactly. The IB remembers the last state and passes it back to the devices. The information is stored in the IB instead of on the switch.

Best regards,
Cem from the Home App team

@CemÖ

Certainly better than originally, but if you want/have to get by without a local control memory, the last state alone is not enough, because it may well be that it is wrong, namely if the last switch was made via the WLAN of the Internet box during should have taken place at the time of the Wi-Fi or power outage.

Is the switching rule currently valid according to the plan checked and synchronized again every time the IB is reconnected to the Smart Switch?

@Werner & @hed

Unfortunately, there was a small misunderstanding during my research, which is why I have to correct my statements:

• If a device is offline (e.g. because the backup leaks), the IB restores the expected state. This means that if you have a rule “switch on the lamp”, but the lamp cannot be reached at this point, then the IB will continue to try according to the rule until it can reach the device in order to establish the “expected state”. But if there is a power outage where the IB is also disconnected from the power, then it will not work as you expected.
• The Smart Switch has only been adjusted for the above scenario. In order for the switch to switch correctly again, the IB must have been connected to power. In the event of a total power failure, the switch would switch back to “on” as soon as the power is back on.

This misunderstanding arose because we are working on the fact that the IB can restore the last state even in the event of a power failure in which the IB itself is also affected.

I apologize for my incorrect statements. Thank you for your understanding.

Best regards,

Cem from the Home App team

@CemÖ

Thank you very much for the clarification. Did I understand that correctly, you are working on a solution that will synchronize everything correctly again even after a total power failure? If so, when should this be implemented?

@hed

We are constantly improving the Home App. The behavior described is one of the points we are working on. I can’t give you a date or duration at the moment.

Best regards,
Cem from the Home App team

@Niku

You can’t change that because the Swisscom Smart Switch lacks a local rule storage and when restarted they always go to the “on” position.

If you need more reliable circuits, switch to a better product, e.g. the myStrom switches and also avoid the Swisscom Home App for the control, but use the original control from the manufacturer.

@Niku

As mentioned, I have MyStrom devices throughout the entire installation and the last states are reactivated after a power failure.

I also use the original app from MyStrom.

https://mystrom.ch/de/wifi-switch/

One post just says the following:
The behavior you describe was actually like that in the past. We have updated the switch’s firmware in the meantime so that the Home App restores the previous status after a power interruption. The prerequisite for this is that the Smart Switch is added to the Home App.

@Niku

Read the other comments again, this information was taken back by Swisscom.

Currently, it is still the case that Swisscom Smart Switches should only be used for completely non-critical circuits, certainly not for anything that could lead to a fire hazard if switched incorrectly.

@Werner

If you are already talking about the risk of fire, then, according to the recommendation of building insurance companies, devices that are not in use should be completely disconnected from the power supply, i.e., for example, do not use standby.

My MyStrom control wouldn’t control any heat-generating devices, such as: Coffee machines or fan heaters.

These control the air filter systems and lighting themselves.

How do I turn the smart switches on my phone back on? Everything is switched off and the devices cannot be found on the phone.

@Udot2022

Is it about the MyStrom Switch?

https://mystrom.ch/de/

In any case, you can switch the Internet box off and on and then briefly disconnect the Smart Switch from the power supply.

It is important that the WiFi is switched on.