GE Concord 4 RS232 Automation Module Interface Library and Server

This is a tool to let you interact with your GE Concord 4 alarm panel via the RS232 Automation module.

The goal of this project was to utilize my GE Concord 4 alarm panel with Home Assistant

Following the framework of kk7ds to integrate the nx584 into Home Assistant, and douglasdecouto's work into building the base communication class as part of their integration into the Indigo platform, we now have a working Interlogix/GE Concord 4 Automation Module interface

To install::

sudo pip3 install concord232

Installing Your Local Version

If you want to use your own improved version of this package (instead of the version from PyPI), you can install it directly from your local source.

1. Uninstall the PyPI version (optional, but recommended):

pip uninstall concord232

2. Install your local version in "editable" mode (recommended for development):

pip install -e .

This allows you to make changes to the code and have them reflected immediately.

3. Or, install your local version as a regular package:

pip install .

4. Verify your installation:

pip show concord232

Check that the Location: field points to your local directory.

The server must be run on a machine with connectivity to the panel, to get started, you must only supply the serial port. In this case I use a USB to Serial adapter

concord232_server --serial /dev/ttyUSB0

You can now also use a configuration file (config.ini by default) to specify server settings. Command-line arguments will override config file values if both are provided.

Using a config file

Create a config.ini file in your project directory (or specify a different file with --config myfile.ini). Example:

[server]
# Serial port to open for stream (e.g., /dev/ttyUSB0 or COM3)
serial = /dev/ttyUSB0
# Listen address for the API server (default: 0.0.0.0, all interfaces)
listen = 0.0.0.0
# Listen port for the API server (default: 5007)
port = 5007
# Path to log file (default: none; logs to stdout if not set)
log =

You can then start the server with just:

concord232_server

Or specify a different config file:

concord232_server --config mysettings.ini

Any command-line argument (e.g., --serial, --port) will override the value in the config file.

Once that is running, you should be able to do something like this::

 $ concord232_client summary
 +------+-----------------+--------+--------+
 | Zone |       Name      | Bypass | Status |
 +------+-----------------+--------+--------+
 |  1   |    FRONT DOOR   |   -    | False  |
 |  2   |   GARAGE DOOR   |   -    | False  |
 |  3   |     SLIDING     |   -    | False  |
 |  4   | MOTION DETECTOR |   -    | False  |
 +------+-----------------+--------+--------+

Basic arming and disarming

Arm to stay (level 2)

concord232_client arm-stay

Arm to away (level 3)

concord232_client arm-away

Disarm

concord232_client disarm --master 1234

Arming with options

Both stay (level 2) and away (level 3) alarms can take one of two options: silent arming, or instant arming. Silent arming will not beep while the alarm is setting. Instant arming has no delay. Clearly, this should only be used with away arming if you are already outside.

Examples:

Arm to stay with no delay

concord232_client arm-stay-instant

Arm to away without beeps

concord232_client arm-away-silent

Home Assistant

Home Assistant will automatically download and install the pip3 library, but it only utilizes the Client to connect to the server.

Running the server on Home Assistant (e.g. Yellow)

To run the concord232 server on your Home Assistant host (e.g. Home Assistant Yellow) so it starts automatically with HA:

1. Add this repository as an app source: Settings → Apps → ⋮ (three dots) → Repositories → add https://github.com/r26D/concord232. (In older HA versions the menu may still be Settings → Add-ons → Add-on store.)
2. Install the Concord232 app, set the serial option (e.g. /dev/ttyUSB0 for a USB adapter, or rfc2217://host:port for network serial), then enable Start on boot and start the app.
3. In the Concord Alarm integration, use host localhost and port 5007 (or the port you configured).

See Migrating from Mac Mini to Home Assistant Yellow for a full step-by-step migration and troubleshooting.

Running the server on a separate machine (e.g. Raspberry Pi, Mac)

For a server on another machine (Raspberry Pi, Mac Mini, etc.), you can use a systemd service to run the server at boot. Point the Concord Alarm integration in Home Assistant at that machine’s host and port (e.g. 5007).

HTTP API

The concord232 server also exposes a simple HTTP API for interacting with your panel.
Below are the available endpoints and their usage:

Endpoint	Method	Description/Commands
/panel	GET	Get panel state
/zones	GET	Get all zones
/partitions	GET	Get all partitions
/command	GET	cmd=arm, cmd=disarm, cmd=keys (see below for parameters)
/version	GET	Get API version
/equipment	GET	Request all equipment data
/all_data	GET	Request dynamic data refresh

/command endpoint

• Arm the system:

  • /command?cmd=arm&level=stay&option=<option>
  • /command?cmd=arm&level=away&option=<option>

• Disarm the system:

  • /command?cmd=disarm&master_pin=<PIN>

• Send keys (e.g., *, #, digits):

  • /command?cmd=keys&keys=<keys>&group=<group>
  • Example: To send a * key to partition 3:
    /command?cmd=keys&keys=*&group=3

Example usage

To send a * key to partition 3 using curl:

curl "http://<your_server_address>:<port>/command?cmd=keys&keys=*&group=3"

Replace <your_server_address> and <port> with your server's address and port.

Partition Support

You can target specific partitions for arming, disarming, and sending keys using the --partition argument in the CLI, or the partition parameter in the HTTP API.

CLI Examples

Arm partition 2 to stay:

concord232_client arm-stay --partition 2

Disarm partition 3 with master PIN:

concord232_client disarm --master 1234 --partition 3

Send keys to partition 4:

concord232_client keys --keys 1234* --partition 4

If --partition is not specified, partition 1 is used by default.

HTTP API Partition Parameter

For the /command endpoint, you can specify the partition parameter for cmd=keys (and for custom arming/disarming via keypresses):

• Send keys to a specific partition:
  • /command?cmd=keys&keys=<keys>&group=<group>&partition=<partition_number>
  • Example: To send a * key to partition 3: /command?cmd=keys&keys=*&group=True&partition=3

Testing

This project uses pytest for testing and uv as the Python package manager.

CLI Test Mode

The CLI (concord232_client) supports a test mode for automated testing. If you set the environment variable CONCORD232_TEST_MODE=1, the CLI will use a mock client that returns fixed data and does not make any real network requests. This allows CLI tests to run reliably without requiring a running server.

Example:

CONCORD232_TEST_MODE=1 python concord232_client summary

This is used automatically in the CLI test suite.

To run the tests:

uv venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
uv pip install -e .
uv pip install pytest
pytest

For development, you can install all dev dependencies with:

uv pip install --system --dev

You can also run tests in CI using GitHub Actions (see .github/workflows/ci.yml).

Code Style, Linting, and Formatting

This project uses Ruff, Black, and isort for code style, linting, and import sorting. These tools are enforced both locally and in CI.

Running Locally

Install all tools:

uv pip install ruff black isort

Check and fix code style:

ruff check . --fix
black .
isort .

Or, to just check (without fixing):

ruff check .
black --check .
isort --check-only .

Pre-commit Hooks

To automatically run these tools before every commit, install pre-commit and set up the hooks:

uv pip install pre-commit
pre-commit install
pre-commit run --all-files

The configuration is in .pre-commit-config.yaml.

Continuous Integration (CI)

All code style checks (Ruff, Black, isort) are run automatically in GitHub Actions CI on every push and pull request. See .github/workflows/ci.yml for details.

Configuration

All tool configurations are in pyproject.toml:

[tool.ruff]
line-length = 88
target-version = "py312"
exclude = [
    ".venv",
    "concord232.egg-info",
    "__pycache__",
]

[tool.black]
line-length = 88
target-version = ["py312"]

[tool.isort]
profile = "black"
line_length = 88
skip = [".venv", "concord232.egg-info", "__pycache__"]

Badges

Features

• Control and monitor GE Concord 4 alarm panels via RS232
• Home Assistant integration
• HTTP API for remote control
• Command-line client and server
• Extensible and developer-friendly

Quick Start

1. Install the package:

   pip install concord232

2. Connect your RS232 adapter and start the server:

   concord232_server --serial /dev/ttyUSB0

3. Use the client to check status:

   concord232_client summary

Project Structure

• concord232/ - Core library code
• concord232_client - Command-line client
• concord232_server - Server exposing HTTP API
• addon_concord232/ - Home Assistant app (formerly add-on; runs the server on HA OS, e.g. Yellow)
• docs-site/docs/ - Documentation (including migration guide to HA Yellow)
• tests/ - Test suite
• README.md - Project documentation
• pyproject.toml, setup.py - Packaging and configuration

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please see CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines (or create one if it does not exist). Typical steps:

• Fork the repository
• Create a new branch
• Make your changes
• Run tests and linting
• Submit a pull request

License

This project is licensed under the terms of the LICENSE file in this repository.

Contact & Support

For questions, issues, or feature requests, please open an issue on GitHub or contact the maintainer at brett@r26d.com.

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