Honeywell Galaxy SIA Notification Server

SIA-Server is a lightweight, self-hosted Python service that receives SIA protocol messages from Honeywell Galaxy Flex alarm systems and forwards them as rich, prioritized push notifications via ntfy.sh.

It was created as a replacement for the discontinued free Honeywell push notification service, allowing users to regain full control over their alarm alerts without ongoing subscription costs.

This project was developed and tested on a Honeywell Galaxy Flex 20. It is likely compatible with other Honeywell Galaxy panels, but this has not been verified.

If your Galaxy Flex notifications suddenly stopped working, this project provides a self-hosted alternative.

IMPORTANT SECURITY NOTICE The communication between the alarm panel and this server is unencrypted. This server is designed to be run on a trusted local network only. Please read the full Security & Privacy Guidelines before installation.

Features

• Self-Hosted: Runs on any local Windows or Linux machine, like a Raspberry Pi.
• Real-time Notifications: Instantly forwards alarm events to your devices.
• Prioritized Alerts: Uses ntfy.sh priorities to distinguish between urgent alarms and routine events.
• Advanced Notification Routing: Route notifications for different accounts to different ntfy.sh topics, each with its own authentication (Bearer Token or User/Pass).
• Robust Protocol Handling: Correctly parses the multi-message protocol used by Galaxy Flex panels.
• Broad SIA Level Support: The flexible parser can correctly handle event data from SIA Levels 0, 1, 2, and 3.
• Optional Heartbeat Server: Includes an optional server to handle the proprietary Honeywell "IP Check" heartbeat.
• Character Encoding Fixes: Decodes the proprietary character set used by Galaxy panels (e.g., Å, Ä, Ö).
• Highly Configurable: Most settings are in a simple sia-server.conf file, with advanced settings in defaults.py.

Prerequisites

• A Honeywell Galaxy Flex alarm system with an Ethernet module (e.g., A083-00-10 or E080-4).
• A Linux or Windows machine on the same network as the alarm system (a Raspberry Pi running Raspberry Pi OS is perfect).
• Python 3.
• The python3-requests package and the optional python3-uvloop package (for Linux).

File Structure

The project is structured to separate the server logic, protocol parsing, and configuration.

.
├── sia-server.py           # The main server application
├── sia-server.conf         # Main user configuration file.
├── defaults.py             # Advanced settings and constants.
├── configuration.py        # Loads and validates all configuration.
├── notification.py         # Handles formatting and sending of notifications.
├── ip_check.py             # Optional subprocess for answering heartbeats.
├── README.md               # This file.
├── galaxy/
│   ├── __init__.py
│   ├── README.md           # Technical description of the protocol.  
│   ├── parser.py           # Handles parsing of the Galaxy SIA protocol.
│   └── constants.py        # Constants used in the SIA protocol.
└── asuswrt-merlin/
    ├── README.md           # Install instructions for Asuswrt-Merlin.
    ├── S99siaserver        # Entware service (init.d) file.
    └── check-sia.sh        # Watchdog script for Entware service.

Installation & Setup

This guide will walk you through the five main steps to get your server running.

Step 1: Download the Server Code

The recommended way is to download the latest stable release.

1. Go to the Releases page on GitHub.
2. Under the latest release, download the Source code (zip) file.
3. Unzip the file to your chosen directory (e.g., /home/pi/Scripts/sia-server on Linux or C:\siaserver on Windows).

For Developers: Cloning with Git

If you want the latest development code, you can clone the repository directly:

git clone https://github.com/ZebMcKayhan/SIA-Server.git sia-server
cd sia-server

Step 2: Install Python and Dependencies

This server requires Python 3. The installation steps are different for Linux and Windows.

For Linux (e.g., Raspberry Pi, Debian, Ubuntu)

1. Install Python (if needed): Most modern Linux systems come with Python 3 pre-installed. You can check with python3 --version. If you need to install it

   sudo apt update
   sudo apt install python3

2. Install Dependencies: Use apt to install the required packages. uvloop is an optional performance enhancement.

   sudo apt update
   sudo apt install python3-requests python3-uvloop

For Windows

1. Install Python: Download and install the latest Python 3 from the official Python website. Important: During installation, make sure to check the box that says "Add Python to PATH".
2. Install Dependencies: Open a PowerShell or Command Prompt. It is strongly recommended to use python -m pip to ensure you are installing packages for the correct Python interpreter.

   python -m pip install requests pyopenssl cryptography ndg-httpsclient

   Note: The extra packages (pyopenssl, etc.) are highly recommended to avoid potential HTTPS/SSL errors when sending notifications from Windows.

Step 3: Get the Notification App and Topic

Before configuring the server, get the ntfy.sh app on your phone or computer.

1. Follow the instructions at the ntfy.sh documentation to get the app.
2. Inside the app, subscribe to a new topic. Choose a long, random, unguessable name for your topic to keep it private (e.g., alarm-skUHvisapP2J382MDI2).
3. You will use the full URL of this topic (e.g., https://ntfy.sh/alarm-skUHvisapP2J382MDI2) in the configuration file.

Step 4: Configure Your Alarm Panel

Log into your Galaxy Flex panel's installer menu and configure the Ethernet module. The numbers in parentheses are the menu codes for a Galaxy Flex 20.

• ARC IP Address: The IP of the machine running sia-server.py (e.g., 192.168.128.10). (Menu 56.1.1.1.4.1)
• ARC Port: The port for the [SIA-Server] and optionally the [IP-Check] server. (Menu 56.1.1.1.4.1)
• Protocol: SIA. Levels 0-3 are supported; Level 3 is recommended for the most detail. (Menu 56.1.1.1.4.2)
• Account Number: Your 4 or 6-digit alarm account number. SIA Level 3 requires 6 digits. (Menu 56.1.2.1.1)
• Encryption: Must be set to Off. The proprietary encryption is not supported. (Menu 56.3.3.5)
• IP-Check: (Optional) To use the heartbeat feature, enable it by setting a time interval (e.g., 00:30 for 30 minutes). 00:00 means disabled. (Menu 56.3.3.7.1)
• Eng. Test: Use this to send a test notification without generating a fault. (Menu 56.7.1)

Step 5: Configure the Server

Edit the sia-server.conf file to match your setup. The file is pre-populated with examples to guide you.

# On Linux
nano /path/to/your/sia-server/sia-server.conf

On Windows, simply edit the file with a text editor like Notepad.

Configuration Explained

The primary configuration is done in sia-server.conf. Advanced settings (like event priorities and character maps) can be found in defaults.py.

• Site Sections ([012345]): Each site is defined by a section where the header is the panel's unique Account Number.

  • SITE_NAME: A friendly name for the site (e.g., "Main House"). If omitted, the account number is used.
  • NTFY_ENABLED, NTFY_TOPIC, NTFY_TITLE: Configure notification delivery for this site.
  • NTFY_AUTH: Can be None, Token, or Userpass for private topics. Provide the corresponding NTFY_TOKEN or NTFY_USER/NTFY_PASS keys.

• [Default] Section: A special section for events from account numbers not specifically listed.

• [SIA-Server] & [IP-Check] Sections: Configure the ports and addresses for the main server and the optional heartbeat server.

• [Logging] Section: Control the log level, output, and file rotation.

  • LOG_LEVEL: Set the verbosity of logs (DEBUG, INFO, WARNING, ERROR). INFO is recommended for normal use.
  • LOG_TO: Choose Screen (for testing/systemd journal) or File.
  • LOG_FILE: If LOG_TO = File, specify the full path to the log file.
  • LOG_MAX_MB: The maximum size in Megabytes before the log file is rotated.
  • LOG_BACKUP_COUNT: The number of old log files to keep.

• [Notification] Section: Configures the server's resilient retry queue for handling network outages.

  • MAX_QUE_SIZE: The maximum number of failed notifications to keep in the queue. If the queue becomes full, the oldest notification is discarded to make room for the newest one.
  • MAX_RETRIES: The number of times to retry sending a failed notification after the initial attempt. Set to 0 for infinite retries.
  • MAX_RETRY_TIME: The maximum number of minutes to wait between retry attempts. The server uses a progressive backoff strategy, increasing the wait time with each failure up to this maximum.

Usage

For Linux

Manual Start (for testing)

Note: It's convenient to set LOG_TO = Screen in sia-server.conf to see live events in your terminal.

cd /path/to/your/sia-server
python3 sia-server.py

Press Ctrl+C to stop.

As a Service (Recommended)

Note: Set LOG_TO = File in sia-server.conf to keep a persistent log.

1. Create the Service File: sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/sia-server.service
2. Paste this content, changing the paths in WorkingDirectory and ExecStart.

   [Unit]
   Description=Galaxy SIA Alarm Server
   After=network.target
   [Service]
   Type=simple
   User=pi
   WorkingDirectory=/home/pi/Scripts/sia-server
   ExecStart=/usr/bin/python3 /home/pi/Scripts/sia-server/sia-server.py
   Restart=on-failure
   RestartSec=5s
   [Install]
   WantedBy=multi-user.target

   Note: You may need to add firewall rules (e.g., via ExecStartPre= & ExecStopPost=). If your firewall commands require root, you may need to remove or comment out the User=pi directive.

3. Enable and Start:

   sudo systemctl daemon-reload
   sudo systemctl enable sia-server.service
   sudo systemctl start sia-server.service

4. Manage:
   • Check status & recent logs: sudo systemctl status sia-server.service
   • Stop the service: sudo systemctl stop sia-server.service
   • Start the service: sudo systemctl start sia-server.service
   • Restart the service: sudo systemctl restart sia-server.service
   • View live logs: journalctl -u sia-server.service -f (if not logging to a file) or tail -f /path/to/your/log/file.log (if logging to a file).

For Windows

Manual Start (for testing)

Note: Set LOG_TO = Screen in sia-server.conf to see live events.

cd C:\path\to\your\sia-server
python sia-server.py

Press Ctrl+C to stop.

As a Service (Recommended)

Note: Set LOG_TO = File in sia-server.conf to keep a persistent log.

1. Download NSSM.
2. Open a Command Prompt as an Administrator.
3. Run the installer: C:\path\to\nssm.exe install SIA-Server
4. In the GUI that pops up:
   • Path: Browse to your Python executable (e.g., C:\Python312\python.exe).
   • Startup directory: Browse to your script folder.
   • Arguments: sia-server.py
5. Click Install service. You can now manage it from the Windows Services app (services.msc).

Security & Privacy Guidelines

Please read these guidelines carefully.

1. Local Network Communication (Panel to Server)

The communication between your alarm panel and this server is unencrypted. Run it on a trusted local network (LAN).

Warning: Do not expose the server's listening ports directly to the public internet. If you must, use a VPN (e.g., WireGuard).

2. Notification Privacy (Server to ntfy.sh)

• Transport Security: Communication to ntfy.sh uses HTTPS and is secure.
• Topic Privacy: ntfy.sh topics are public by default. To secure them:
  • Use a long, unguessable topic name.
  • Use a private, access-controlled topic. You can get one by subscribing to ntfy.sh Pro or by self-hosting your own ntfy.sh server. This server fully supports authentication via the NTFY_AUTH settings.
  • Consider a generic Site Name that cannot be linked to your address.
  • Alternatively: Subscribe to NTFY.sh PRO to setup private channels with authentication.
  • Alternatively: Host NTFY yourself to be able to setup private channels free of charge (Requires a machine with public ip)

Disclaimer: You are ultimately responsible for securing your own setup.

Acknowledgments

• This project was developed through a collaborative effort with Anthropic's AI assistant, Claude.
• The initial socket server structure was inspired by the nimnull/sia-server project.
• Some protocol information was found in dklemm/FlexSIA2MQTT project.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License.