01 / THE ROLE
In this lab.
Home Assistant runs in the home-automation environment alongside MQTT-related services. It presents entities and integrations and provides the application-level automation layer. The public explanation omits device inventories, household routines, physical locations and any personal presence data.
02 / THE CONNECTIONS
Follow the flow.
A responsibility view: branches show related components, rather than physical placement or a single request path.
03 / How it works
How it works.
An integration exposes data and actions to the application. Automation logic then reacts to conditions or events. The MQTT and Zigbee bridge services have their own responsibilities and state; restarting Home Assistant is not the same as restarting the whole device-integration path.
04 / Persistent data & recovery
Persistent data & recovery.
Recovery includes the application configuration and persistent state plus any integration-specific requirements. Document which state belongs to Home Assistant and which belongs to the MQTT broker or Zigbee bridge. Restore tests should prevent unintended actions in the real environment.
05 / How to check it
How to check it.
Validate the interface and an authorised, harmless test of the relevant integration. A login-page check does not prove automations are firing or devices are connected. No live device state is included in this website.
06 / Decisions & limits
Decisions & limits.
Home automation combines software state with physical effects. That makes controlled testing and isolation especially important: a recovered system can cause actions even when the operator only intended to inspect it.