What open source home automation software exists? What are the differences between them?

Question

I just bought my first apartment and I am now looking to setup a cheap home automation system.

I would like to control :

light
electric shutter
heater thermostat
other stuff in the future

I am looking to an open source software that I could install into a cheap linux box and which could be accessible from internet (mobile or desktop) with a nice UI. It would be best if it was technology independant (not X10 only for example) and plugin base to be able to add support for a new specific device in the futur.

I am also ready to do some code hacking to make it better as I am a web developer. I am a software and electronics engineer so not afraid of new tech.

A good community supporting the software is also a plus.

For info this is what I found with a first internet search :

This is something very interesting. What kind of hardware is required to interface with this? — Asdfg, Oct 27 '11 at 02:26
Have you heard of the [Nest](http://www.nest.com/)? It really goes above and beyond in automation features for a thermostat, but all the while still being more simple and intuitive to manage than any other thermostat. — Anticipation, Aug 09 '12 at 22:50
It seems like support for the home automation protocol (INSTEON vs. x10 vs. Zigbee, two or more supported technologies, etc) would be very important to know. — Stefan Lasiewski, Sep 20 '12 at 06:07
I've protected this since this sort of question tends to attract spam answers. For those that answer this question with a product link, realize that there's a high likelihood in the community flagging your answer as spam. — BMitch, Nov 22 '13 at 02:10

score 3 · Answer 1 · edited Mar 23 '17 at 12:23

Collecting the previous suggestions, I believe this is a good place to start a wiki discussion, since it's not a direct Q/A:

Maybe the community can enrich this list with experiences, oppinions, etc. I found it appropriate for this specific topic. Right?

score 3 · Answer 2 · edited Nov 23 '11 at 13:03

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So far all the arduino/home automations I have seen are custom built. We are planning on using Domotic Home in our hacker group.

edited Nov 23 '11 at 13:03

Tester101

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answered Oct 26 '11 at 14:22

jeds

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score 1 · Answer 3 · answered Aug 08 '12 at 13:28

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Another open-source project: http://majordomohome.com/

answered Aug 08 '12 at 13:28

SergeJey

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score 1 · Answer 4 · answered Aug 11 '12 at 03:22

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Look up a video demo for the LinuxMCE project. (Be sure to watch the video, it's hard to really "get it" until you've seen it in action.)

Pretty impressive IMHO.

answered Aug 11 '12 at 03:22

Bob

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score 1 · Answer 5 · answered Feb 14 '13 at 10:53

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Did you have a look at FreeDomotic? You may be impressed by the flexibility and the polyvalence of the protocol and the core engine.

answered Feb 14 '13 at 10:53

pol

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Please explain why you are suggesting this as answer in terms a DIYer would understand. At the moment this reads like spam. – ChrisF Feb 14 '13 at 12:15
What does _polyvalence_ mean in this context? – Niall C. Feb 14 '13 at 15:01

score 1 · Answer 6 · edited Mar 27 '13 at 11:41

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Another open source solution for you might be www.jubito.org.

edited Mar 27 '13 at 11:41

ShoeMaker

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answered Mar 27 '13 at 09:29

ian

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score 0 · Answer 7 · edited Nov 22 '13 at 03:35

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I saw a interesting project. curuba is Open Source and Open Hardware. It uses WiFi network.

Also, you can use it in any platform. (Android, Apple, BlackBerry, etc.).

edited Nov 22 '13 at 03:35

Niall C.

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answered Nov 22 '13 at 02:02

Laura

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What open source home automation software exists? What are the differences between them?

7 Answers7

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