core: Automation action delay not working

The problem

I have a delay that isn’t working sometimes on my automation. It seems to be depending on time of the day.

Environment

Home Assistant release with the issue: 0.104.3
Last working Home Assistant release (if known): /
Operating environment (Hass.io/Docker/Windows/etc.): Hass.io
Integration causing this issue:
Link to integration documentation on our website:

Problem-relevant `configuration.yaml`

---
alias: Switch on lights when coming home
initial_state: true
trigger:
  - platform: state
    entity_id: person.andrea
    to: home
  - platform: state
    entity_id: person.rina
    to: home
condition:
  condition: state
  entity_id: switch.day_night  #off = night 
  state: 'off'
action:
  - service: notify.ios_iphoneadonno
    data:
      title: Welcome home
      message: Welcome
  - service: light.turn_on
    entity_id: light.hall_entree
  - service: light.turn_on
    entity_id: light.lum_ext_avant
  - delay: '00:05:00'
  - service: light.turn_off
    entity_id: light.hall_entree
  - service: light.turn_off
    entity_id: light.lum_ext_avant
#add message just to be sure delay isn't taken in to account if both notifications are within the same minute 
  - service: notify.ios_iphoneadonno
    data:
      title: Welcome home
      message: lights off

Traceback/Error logs

Additional information

About this issue

Original URL
State: closed
Created 4 years ago
Comments: 15 (11 by maintainers)

Most upvoted comments

Sounds good. I agree that restart makes most sense. A common use case for delay is turn light on, wait 30 minutes, turn light off. That will continue to work.

balloob on Feb 6, 2020

By starting/stopping scripts that are invoked by automation in order to have it working we create a workaround. If we need a workaround something is not working as expected. I still think this is a bug. Especially if HA has to get more userfriendly, these hurdles should be avoided for “less” experienced users. But that’s just me.

Now if this is an expected behavior then the documentation has to be changed. To " yeah there is a delay but it’s kinda useless" 😂
Jokes aside, The documentation should be adapted if it is not considered a bug

Edit: referring to @pnbruckner,

it’s always worked that way

It’s not because it worked that way that it is right or that it should work that way 😂 . We wouldn’t evolve if we wouldn’t do some disruptive changes sometimes.

adonno on Feb 4, 2020

@adonno take a look at my thread: https://community.home-assistant.io/t/automation-trigger-for-state-crazy-behaviour-maybe-a-bug/140745/2 I had the exact same problem - I wasn’t aware that triggering the same automation skips the delay. I also think this is a bug. If you want a delay then you should have a delay, automation shouldn’t skip it. If this is a feature, then at least it should be documented correctly (with bold, red text)

Misiu on Feb 3, 2020