Getting Started¶

From the box to a working Matter device — for ordinary smart-home tinkerers. No soldering, no UART, no programming knowledge required.

Warranty

Custom software on the gateway voids the warranty. There is a safety net (A/B slots, a way back), but use it at your own risk.

What you end up with¶

Your GARDENA smart Gateway appears as a Matter device in your smart home — the GARDENA devices (sensors, mower …) local and cloud-free, usable at the same time in Home Assistant, Apple Home and Google Home. No second box, no GARDENA cloud.

Prerequisites¶

GARDENA smart Gateway Art. 19005, on the LAN (or Wi-Fi set up), powered.
The device ID from the sticker on the bottom. The first 8 characters of the ID = the login password (same for SSH and the gateway web interface).
A running Home Assistant installation (for the add-on path below).
A Matter-capable smart home: Home Assistant 2024.10+, Apple Home or Google Home.

Home Assistant add-on — 1-click setup¶

The easiest way: add the repository in Home Assistant and let the add-on deploy the bridge to your gateway automatically — no SSH, no building, no command line.

Step 1 — Add the repository¶

Click the badge below or go to Home Assistant → Settings → Add-ons → Add-on store → tap the three-dot menu → Repositories → paste the URL:

https://github.com/wuselAUT/gardena-matter-mqtt-bridge

Honest ~3 steps, not 1

Home Assistant cannot install a third-party add-on without your confirmation. After clicking the badge, you confirm "Add repository?", then find and install the add-on, then start it — roughly 3 confirmed steps. Still much easier than SSH.

Step 2 — Install and configure¶

Find "GARDENA Matter Bridge" in the add-on store and click Install.
Go to the add-on's Configuration tab and fill in:
Gateway address: IP or hostname of your gateway (e.g. 192.168.1.100 or GARDENA-ab1234 — find it in your router).
Device ID: the full ID from the sticker on the gateway underside (e.g. a1b2c3d4-e5f6-…). The login password is derived automatically from the first 8 characters; you don't type the password separately.
Leave all other options at their defaults for now.
Click Save.

Step 3 — Deploy and pair¶

Go to the add-on's Info tab → click Start.
Open the add-on's Web UI (the sidebar item "GARDENA Matter" or the "Open Web UI" button). The status page shows the deploy progress and, once done, the pairing QR code and the 11-digit manual code.
In Home Assistant: Settings → Devices & Services → + Add integration → Matter. Scan the QR code or enter the manual code.
Home Assistant commissions the device. After a few seconds, the gateway and its GARDENA devices appear as entities.

Done — no SSH, no command line.

Gateway web UI

The gateway's own built-in web interface also shows the pairing QR code and a Matter on/off toggle. Open it in your browser:

https://<gateway-ip>/assets/matter.html

Accept the self-signed certificate warning once. Log in with the gateway password (first 8 characters of the device ID).

Pair the gateway in your smart-home app¶

Home Assistant¶

Settings → Devices & Services → Matter → Add device
Scan the QR code or enter the 11-digit manual code.
Two to three entities appear per GARDENA device.

Apple Home¶

+ → Add Accessory → More options → scan the QR code.
Apple shows "This accessory is not certified" — tap "Add Anyway". This is expected for a hobby project (see Certificates).

Google Home¶

+ → Set up device → Works with Google → Matter → scan the QR code.
Google requires a developer registration for test-vendor devices — see Certificates.

Unique pairing code per gateway¶

Each gateway generates its own random, unique pairing code the first time the bridge starts. The code is derived from a cryptographic key (Spake2+ verifier) and stored on the gateway's persistent storage — it is never re-used across devices and never stored as plain text in the process list.

The QR code and 11-digit manual code shown in the web UI are unique to this specific gateway. Two gateways → two different codes.

The code remains stable across reboots, add-on updates, and OTA firmware updates as long as you do not perform a deliberate virgin reset.

Survives a power cut ✅¶

All commissioning data and configuration live in the gateway's persistent storage. After a power cut or reboot, the gateway restarts automatically and is immediately ready again — no re-pairing needed.

Uninstall / back to original¶

Remove the bridge via the add-on (the add-on's "Uninstall from gateway" button or the "Restore original" option). The original Slot A system is never touched; you can always switch back by resetting the boot slot — see Manual §5.

Matter certificates and the "uncertified device" notice¶

This bridge is a hobby project and is not CSA-certified. It uses the Matter SDK's test attestation (test vendor ID 0xFFF1). Every Matter controller therefore treats it as a development / uncertified device. What that means per ecosystem:

Home Assistant — two options¶

Option A — Quick setup (toggle on): Enable "Enable test-net DCL usage" in the HA Matter Server settings (Settings → Devices & Services → Matter Server → Configure). This lets HA fetch the test PAA root certificates that the bridge's attestation chain connects to. When adding the device you may also have to confirm an "uncertified device" prompt.

Option B — Own PAA root (toggle off): The release package includes a project-specific PAA root certificate (gardena-paa-cert.pem). When you add this file to the HA Matter Server's credential store, Home Assistant validates the bridge's attestation chain locally — without contacting the test DCL. "Enable test-net DCL usage" can stay off.

Steps for Option B:

Download gardena-paa-cert.pem from the latest release.
Add it to the HA Matter Server credential store. The Matter Server reads from --paa-root-cert-dir (default /data/credentials):

# Example via HA SSH add-on or terminal
cp gardena-paa-cert.pem /data/credentials/gardena-paa-cert.pem

If you run python-matter-server directly, use the directory passed as --paa-root-cert-dir.

Restart the HA Matter Server (add-on restart or systemctl restart matter-server).
Leave "Enable test-net DCL usage" off in the Matter Server settings.
Commission the bridge — HA validates the attestation chain against your locally added PAA root, no DCL lookup needed.

Option B caveats

The "uncertified device" prompt may still appear — it is controlled by the Certification Declaration (CD), which remains test-signed. Only a paid CSA certification removes it. Option B only eliminates the need for the DCL toggle.
Option B does not help with Apple Home or Google Home — they use their own trust models (see below). The per-ecosystem rules there remain unchanged.
Re-commissioning is required after switching between Option A and B.

Apple Home — works, with a warning¶

Apple Home accepts the test vendor ID 0xFFF1. During setup it shows "This accessory is not certified" — tap "Add Anyway". No extra configuration needed. The own PAA root from Option B above has no effect here.

Google Home — extra step required¶

Google Home is the strictest: a test-VID device only commissions if you register a matching Matter integration (test VID/PID) in the Google Home Developer Console. Without that registration, Google Home rejects it as "Not a Matter-certified device." The own PAA root has no effect here.

Fully warning-free?¶

Only real CSA certification (paid membership, a registered vendor ID and certification testing) removes the warning across all ecosystems — out of scope for a hobby project. The recommended, fully-functional path is Home Assistant (Option A or B above); you can then share the device to Apple Home / Google Home via Matter multi-admin, where the same per-ecosystem rules above apply.

Help¶

Gateway not found: look up the IP address in your router and enter it manually.
Commissioning fails: keep the gateway and the smart-home hub on the same network; mDNS/Bonjour must work on the network.
"Uncertified device" prompt: see Matter certificates above.
More details + technical background: Manual.

MQTT frontend (optional)¶

The MQTT publisher runs alongside the Matter bridge — independently, both always active. Enable it in the add-on configuration and point it at your MQTT broker. Full setup guide: MQTT.