¿Qué tal, Akiles?

This week, we’re thrilled to share an early preview of our exciting new integration with Akiles, a leading provider of smart lock solutions in Europe!

Barcelona-based Akiles produces the Smart Cylinder, Roomlock, and Pinpad, as well as the Smart Controller for electrified locks and access points. The company also offers the Akiles Gateway and Akiles Cloud.

See our list of supported Akiles devices.

With this integration, you can…

• Perform remote unlocking.
• Create and manage online access codes.
• View battery level.
• Receive real-time events.

We’re excited to be working with the Akiles team, and we look forward to seeing what you build with their devices and Seam.

In the meantime, check out our Get started with Akiles locks guide to get a head start! If you have any questions, contact us.

2024.10.11 Changelog

Fixes

• Too frequent thermostat manually_adjusted event: We corrected an issue that caused the thermostat.manually_adjusted event to occur unnecessarily.
• Thermostat climate_preset_activated event: We corrected a minor issue that was preventing the thermostat.climate_preset_activated event from occurring.
• NoiseAware device sync: We corrected an issue in which Seam only synced some of the NoiseAware devices within a connected account.

Introducing the Sandbox Simulate Feature

This week, we’re releasing a new set of simulate endpoints to enable you to simulate interactions and events with sandbox devices. The Seam sandbox is a special type of workspace where you can interact with virtual devices. These devices mimic very closely their real-world counterparts, which means that you can create device integration features without ever needing to own real devices. In fact, we’re often told that our sandbox is one of the best features in the Seam platform.

One limitation of virtual sandbox devices though is that you can’t physically interact with them to recreate real-world operating conditions, such as the Wi-Fi going out or someone unlocking a door. Furthermore, some conditions can be difficult to simulate even on real devices, like triggering a low-battery event.

Today, we’re making our sandbox even more powerful by introducing the first three endpoints to simulate specific conditions.

• devices/simulate/disconnect
• devices/simulate/connect
• devices/simulate/remove

For now, these endpoints are only available on Yale and August sandbox devices. However, our plan is to add them to more device types over time, as well as to introduce new endpoints, like door unlocking, low battery, and so on.

The following JavaScript example shows how to simulate disconnecting a device:

1// Get the device.
2const device = await seam.devices.get({
3  device_id: "11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444"
4});
5
6// Confirm that Seam supports simulated disconnection for the device.
7if (device.can_simulate_disconnection) {
8  // Perform the simulated disconnection.
9  await seam.devices.simulate.disconnect({
10    device_id: device.device_id
11  })
12};

For details, see our docs.

2024.10.04 Changelog

New

• New thermostat.manually_adjusted and thermostat.climate_preset_activated events: We added new events to report when a thermostat climate setting changes, either due to a scheduled climate preset becoming active or because something has changed on the device itself. We're introducing these events as a preview so that you can test while we continue to fine-tune them.

• Simulation capability flags: To accompany our new simulate feature, we’ve added the following capability flags to show you which sandbox devices support these simulate endpoints:

  • device.can_simulate_disconnection
  • device.can_simulate_connection
  • device.can_simulate_removal

  For more information about capability flags, see our docs.

• Climate preset management in Seam Console: You can now create and manage climate presets in the Seam Console.

• Climate preset scheduling in Seam Console: You can now create and manage climate schedules in the Seam Console.

Fixes

• August/Yale access code sync: We fixed an issue that prevented access codes from being synced with August and Yale devices.

Mac lovers, this week, we’re excited to announce that you can now brew install the Seam CLI on your Mac! Simply run brew install seam to get started. Special thanks to all of you who upvoted our GitHub project to help us secure the Seam name with Homebrew.

If you're not familiar with the Seam CLI, you can give it a spin in your browser first. It’s a great way to explore and test the Seam API.

1brew tap seamapi/homebrew-seam
2brew install seam

You can also install the Seam CLI using npm install -g seam-cli.

2024.09.27 Changelog

New

• Thermostats API refinement: Last week, we announced our powerful and flexible new thermostats API. We appreciate your ideas and suggestions, and we are continuing to refine this API based on your feedback. For more details, see last week’s changelog or contact Seam.

Changed

• August-Yale device name changes: When you change the name of an August or Yale (North America) lock using the Yale Access app, Seam now reflects this update right away instead of waiting for the next full device refresh.
• More SmartThings sandbox device accounts: We added more sandbox device accounts for SmartThings.
• Improved Igloohome Bridge access code performance: We introduced automatic job throttling with Igloohome access code creation to avoid job limits and timeouts on Igloohome Bridges.

Fixes

• August/Yale capability detection: We improved the sync process to report device capabilities more accurately for August and Yale devices that are initially missing a bridge.
• Igloohome access code creation: We expanded access code programming support for additional Igloohome device models.

Grab a Scarf! The New Seam Thermostat Endpoints Just Dropped

This week, we're excited to release a preview of the new thermostats API, improving existing functionality, as well as introducing new features such as climate presets! Note that final functionality is still subject to change so check with us first before launching this to a ton of users.

Why New Endpoints

Our previous thermostats API did a great job of retrieving thermostat data and enabling you to perform imperative commands, such as switching a thermostat to heat mode. However, we realized it needed a more intuitive and flexible interface for climate preset and scheduling. It also didn’t handle prioritization of overlapping scheduled climate presets, as well as reverting to a fallback preset.

This new and improved API now addresses all these, letting you create a set of reusable climate presets for a thermostat and then schedule these climate presets, by name, as needed.

New Thermostats API Endpoints

We've added or improved the following endpoints:

• Get thermostats: Retrieve and monitor your users’ thermostats using /thermostats/list and /devices/get. The Seam API returns robust, up-to-date information about your connected thermostats.
• Imperative endpoints: Perform immediate changes to your users’ thermostats using “imperative” endpoints, such as /thermostats/heat, /thermostats/cool, /thermostats/set_fan_mode, and so on.
• [New] Create climate presets: Use /thermostats/create_climate_preset to create named climate presets, such as “occupied,” “eco,” “unoccupied,” “vacation mode,” and so on. Each preset can be configured with a specific operating mode (e.g. auto) and temperature.
• [New] Flexible climate schedules: Schedule the climate presets that you have created, using /thermostats/schedules/create. Simply specify the preset climate name—that is, the climate_preset_key—along with starts_at and ends_at timestamps and the maximum override period. You can also set a fallback climate preset.

Feedback and Next Steps

Because this release is a preview, we encourage you to try it out using the Seam CLI and give us your feedback. Note that we're also developing new capability flags for thermostats. Stay tuned for relevant announcements soon!

2024.09.20 Changelog

Changed

• More Schlage sandbox device accounts: Added more sandbox device accounts for Schlage.

Fixes

• TTLock capabilities detection: Fixed an issue in which TTLock devices with keypads were incorrectly reporting a lack of access code support.
• SmartThings device refresh token detection: Improved automatic detection of failing refresh tokens. Instead of silently failing, Seam now correctly prompts the account owner to reauthenticate using a Connect Webview.
• Dormakaba Oracode device reconnection: Fixed an issue that incorrectly disconnected Dormakaba Oracode accounts on reconnection.

New Python SDK

This week, we’re excited to continue our new SDK releases with the official announcement of our new Python SDK!

Like the new Seam JavaScript SDK we released last week, the new Python SDK is generated automatically on a daily basis to ensure that methods and types are always up-to-date with the latest API changes. Our new Python SDK streamlines dependencies and standardizes the core interfaces to match our JavaScript SDK. This means that if your organization uses multiple programming languages, you can expect the same familiar features—like the SeamWebhook handler and waitForActionAttempt option—no matter which SDK you need.

By auto-generating and aligning our SDKs, we make sure that using the Seam SDKs is always the best developer experience for integrating with Seam.

We encourage you to install the new Seam Python SDK right away, using the following command:

1pip install seam
2# For some development environments, use pip3 in this command instead of pip.

If you’re running the original Seam Python SDK (that is, the seamapi package instead of the new seam package), see our migration guide. seam is mostly a drop-in replacement for seamapi, but some method signatures and options have changed to improve overall consistency with the Seam API.

2024.09.13 Changelog

New

• Enhanced events filtering in Seam Console: We’ve made our events filtering more robust in the Seam Console. You can now filter events by a date range, filter to show only errors or warnings, and filter by a UUID. Also, you can now view the details of any event.

• Extended log retention: We’ve introduced extended log retentions for select partners at an additional cost. Device logs, such as entry events and deleted device information, can now be retained longer than the default two weeks. Contact support@seam.co if you would like additional information.

Changed

• Dormakaba Oracode error: Our previous error message for unsuccessful site connection inside the Connect Webview was confusing. We’ve adjusted it to make it clearer for users. If you’re trying to connect Oracode sites and are having issues, please let us know so that we can help you.
• More August-Yale sandbox device accounts: We’ve added more sandbox device accounts for August-Yale. This expansion enables you to test multiple different accounts from the same provider in the same workspace.

Fixes

• Salto account cleanup: We corrected an issue in which Salto locks were being deleted before dependent resources, which sometimes resulted in an error.

New JavaScript SDK

This week, we’re excited to announce the official release of our new JavaScript SDK!

The new SDK has a smaller bundle size and fewer dependencies, and it is generated automatically on a daily basis to ensure that methods and types are always up-to-date with the latest API changes. Written entirely in TypeScript, this SDK works both on the server and in the browser, powering the Seam Console, Seam Components, Seam CLI, and more.

Our plan is to move all of our SDKs to this new auto-generated approach. We want to make sure that using any of our variety of Seam SDKs is always the best developer experience for integrating with Seam.

We encourage you to install the new Seam JavaScript SDK right away, using the following command:

1npm i seam

If you’re running the original Seam JavaScript SDK (that is, the seamapi package instead of the new seam package), see our migration guide. seam is mostly a drop-in replacement for seamapi, but some method signatures and options have changed to improve overall consistency with the Seam API.

2024.09.06 Change Log

New

• Preferred access code length: We’ve added a preferred_code_length parameter to the access code create function. When creating an access code, if you do not specify a code (for example, “1234”), you can now set the preferred_code_length. Seam then generates a code of this length if the affected device supports the specified preferred code length.
• August-Yale name change events: We’ve added support for immediately detecting name changes for August-Yale devices and updating our data. Previously, it could take a while for these changes to be reflected in Seam. Note that this addition is only for August-Yale devices in North America.

Changed

• August-Yale online status: We’ve improved the detection of online/offline status for August-Yale devices. You should now see much more accurate reports.

Fixes

• SmartThings events: Previously, our backend would occasionally throw an error on incoming SmartThings events, causing some events to be dropped. We have fixed this issue. Thanks to the couple of folks who reported this issue!
• Igloohome access codes: Our Igloohome integration was incorrectly accepting PIN codes longer than six digits for online access codes on create. We’ve fixed this behavior to allow codes only between four and six digits in length. Note that offline access codes can still contain up to nine digits.
• Console: Provider logos weren’t correctly showing up in the connected account view. We’ve corrected this view.
• Seam Component edit access code function: We fixed a bug that would prevent users from editing time_bound ****access codes in our access code Seam Component.

This week, we’re excited to announce that we’ve released real-time events for Yale and August devices within the North American region. That is, if you control your devices using the Yale Access app, you should now notice a massive improvement in how quickly you receive events relating to your device unlocking or changing online status. For devices outside of North America, we are working with Yale’s APAC and EMEIA teams to bring this enhancement later on.

From polling to real-time

The August-Yale integration is one of our oldest and has relied from the start on plain old polling to update device status and events. That meant that when a lock operation (such as an unlock) took place, it would take a few minutes for the event to be emitted from the Seam API to your server. Furthermore, as the number of Yale devices connected via Seam grew larger, we further decreased polling frequency to avoid flooding Yale’s server (fun fact: Seam’s Yale largest connected partner!).

Last spring, our friends at Yale informed us that real-time events would become available for Seam to consume and relay. We were thrilled and jumped at the opportunity to implement this enhancement for our customers. Not only does it improve the overall Yale-Seam integration experience, but it also ensures that our Yale friends can sleep soundly at night.

Rollout and available events

we began rolling out real-time events in late June. Given the importance of reliable events, we only slow rolled this out to more customers in July. As of August, we’re making this enhancement broadly available to all our customers, at no extra charge.

The following events are currently available:

• lock.locked
• lock.unlocked
• device.connected
• device.disconnected

We are also working on adding additional events for access code creation operations and device metadata updates, such as a user changing a device name.

What about Yale devices out of North America

As some Yale owners may recall, in May of 2023, Assa Abloy sold its Yale North American assets to Fortune Brands. As a result of this transaction, all Yale users outside of North America were migrated to a new backend accessible via the Yale Home app. For all intents and purposes, this is effectively a completely different integration. We are currently working with the Yale Home team to add support for real-time events and will release this at a later time.

Change Log

New

• August-Yale real-time events: All August and Yale devices in North America now support real-time events for unlocking operations.
• Connect Webview events: We’ve added two new events—connect_webview.login_succeeded and connect_webview.login_failed—to notify you whenever a Connect Webview completes. This will also create a more consistent developer experience with the events you receive from the iFrame-embedded Connect Webview.
• Connect Webview styling: When you set a primary color, we now automatically adjust the text color to maximize contrast-ratio. Thanks to our friends at Lodgify for spotting this for us!
• Lockly offline codes: You can now program offline access codes on all Lockly devices, and we also added the can_program_offline_access_codes capability flag. If you are not familiar with offline access codes, check out our Managing Offline Access Codes documentation.
• Event descriptions: We’ve added an event_description to the payload for all events. It’s a human-readable string that tells you what the event is about and saves you a trip to our docs.
• Access denied event: We’ve added a new lock.access_denied event to indicate when an incorrect access code is entered multiple times in a row on a smartlock device. This is only available on Kwikset devices at the moment.
• Automatic relock event: We’ve added a new automatic value for lock_method events, which means that we now make it clearer when a lock automatically relocks after an unlocking operation.
• Unmanaged device location: We now expose the location field for unmanaged devices. This enhancement can make it easier to identify where a device is located and whether it should be converted to managed.

Changed

• Deprecate Get Locks: We’ve deprecated the /locks/get endpoint. If your code uses it, you will begin to see a warning.
• Kwikset duplicate code name error: We’ve improved the error message to indicate clearly that Kwikset requires the first 14 characters of a Kwikset device access code name to be unique across the device.

Fixed

• Schlage silent failing code: We’ve received a handful of reports that access codes on Schlage devices would occasionally report as set, despite not actually being set on the device. After weeks of investigation, we’ve identified the issue as a false positive status reported by the Schlage API. The good news is that we know how to identify this and have since implemented a fix that automatically recreates the code. We’ve seen a vast reduction in Schlage related access codes errors.
• Kwikset Seam API unlock: Previously, lock.unlocked events on Kwikset devices didn’t reliably add the seamapi unlocking method to the event payload. We’ve improved the logic to make this detection more reliable.
• Igloohome: We’ve fixed an issue related to the handling of invalid auth tokens whereas the renewal process wasn’t always correctly initiated.
• Lockly: We now surface a clearer error message whenever a Lockly account’s API key does not have sufficient permissions.
• Honeywell Resideo: We added a unique account id constraints on a given workspace because creating the same account twice lead to errors later on.
• Nuki: We’ve improved the Nuki offline status detection because it was previously reporting devices as online when they were not.

This week, we’re thrilled to announce the release of our new device capability flags. Compared to the legacy capabilities_supported, these new flags provide far more granularity on what a specific device can do. They’re also computed in real time for each device to ensure timely knowledge of a given device instance’s functions. For example, these flags correctly detect the presence or lack of an accessory that is required for a specific function, such as an accessory keypad for programming online access codes.

First four flags

For this feature launch, we are releasing the first four capability flags across all providers and existing devices that we support.

• can_remotely_unlock: Indicates whether the device can perform a remote unlock operation.
• can_remotely_lock: Indicates whether the device can perform a remote lock operation.
• can_program_online_access_codes: Indicates whether the device can program online access codes. If true, it is currently possible to create new online access codes for the device, and Seam programs the device the next time it's online.
• can_program_offline_access_codes: Indicates whether the device can program offline access codes. When this flag is true, Seam can generate an offline code for this device, regardless of the current online status of the device.

Example

1# Get the device.
2device = seam.devices.get(
3  device_id="11111111-1111-1111-1111-444444444444"
4)
5
6# Confirm that the device can remotely lock.
7if device.can_remotely_lock:
8  # Perform the lock operation.
9  seam.locks.lock_door(device_id=device.device_id)

Getting Started

We recommend that you begin migrating to these new flags because they will ensure that your applications correctly reflect the state and functions of a device.

To get started:

• Read the full announcement here
• Start diving into the new documentation 📖

This week, we are super excited to release our official Honeywell Thermostat integration! Along with Ecobee and Nest thermostats, you can now connect and control all Honeywell Resideo thermostats and control them through our SDKs, Seam-CLI, and the Seam Console.

Our office has a number of Honeywell thermostats. With the winter weather overtaking typically sunny California, we can confirm that the Seam CLI has been handy to crank up the heat on the Honeywell thermostats without having to get up and walk over to the actual thermostat…

Some resources to get you started with this integration:

• Thermostats API guide
• Getting Started With Honeywell
• Supported Honeywell Devices

As always, this integration will be in beta for the next couple of weeks; though we’ve thoroughly tested this integration, if you see any inconsistencies or bug, please let us know and we’ll patch issues right away.

Changelog

Added

• Tedee: we added the ability to update an access code set on a Tedee device.
• Seam Bridge: you can now setup Seam Bridge for on-prem systems through the Seam Connect Webview. If you need to connect on-prem devices or systems, contact us and we’ll fill you in on this Seam Bridge.
• Seam Console & Account Disconnection: we added a button to let you quickly reconnect a third-party account; we also renamed the disconnect button to “delete” to avoid confusion with disconnection events tied to auth tokens expiring.

Fixed

• Seam Components: we shipped a couple of visual tweaks to remove unnecessary borders and make components look generally better :)