---
title: Actions
description: Control Home Assistant entities from the command line, one action per command.
---

Action commands send one Home Assistant action through the bridge and exit. They exit with status 1 and print the error when the bridge isn't running, the options are invalid, or Home Assistant rejects the action.

## Targets

Action commands act on a target, like actions in Home Assistant. Entity IDs go last, with or without the domain, since the command already says which domain it acts on. Repeat them for more:

```bash
# Acts on light.bedroom_lamp and light.hall
ha-bridge light turn-on bedroom_lamp hall
```

Flags pick entities by what they belong to. Each takes an ID or a name, and can be repeated:

```bash
ha-bridge light turn-off --area Kitchen --area "Living room"
ha-bridge cover close --floor Upstairs
ha-bridge switch turn-on --label Christmas
ha-bridge light toggle --device "Desk lamp"
ha-bridge light turn-on --entity "Bedroom lamp"
```

`--entity` takes an entity ID, an ID without the domain, or the entity's display name in that domain. A name has to match exactly one item, ignoring case, or the command fails and lists the matches. Home Assistant then decides which entities the target contains, so an area includes entities on devices in it.

Commands that need one entity, such as `script run`, `camera snapshot` and `assist_satellite ask-question`, take the same target and fail unless it matches exactly one. Fixed arguments, such as the position in `cover position 50 office_blind`, come before the entity IDs.

[`get` and `watch`](/using/reading) take full entity IDs, since they read entities in any domain.

## Domains

| Domain | Command | Alias | What it does |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Lights](/actions/lights) | `light` | `l` | On, off and toggle, with brightness, colour and effects |
| [Switches](/actions/switches) | `switch` | `s` | On, off and toggle |
| [Input booleans](/actions/input-booleans) | `input_boolean` | `ib` | On, off, toggle and reload |
| [Input numbers](/actions/input-numbers) | `input_number` | `in` | Set, step up or down, and reload |
| [Covers](/actions/covers) | `cover` | `c` | Open, close, stop, position and tilt |
| [Climate](/actions/climate) | `climate` | `cl` | HVAC mode, temperature, humidity and other modes |
| [Assist satellites](/actions/assist-satellites) | `assist_satellite` | `as` | Announce, start a conversation or ask a question |
| [Cameras](/actions/cameras) | `camera` | None | Snapshots, recording, streams and motion detection |
| [Buttons](/actions/buttons) | `button`, `input_button` | None | Press, and reload input buttons |
| [Locks](/actions/locks) | `lock` | None | Lock, unlock and open |
| [Valves](/actions/valves) | `valve` | None | Open, close, stop and position |
| [Sirens](/actions/sirens) | `siren` | None | On, off and toggle, with tone and volume |
| [Remotes](/actions/remotes) | `remote` | None | On, off, and send, learn or delete commands |
| [Selects](/actions/selects) | `select`, `input_select` | None | Pick or step through options |
| [Numbers, text, dates and times](/actions/values) | `number`, `text`, `date`, `time`, `datetime`, `input_text`, `input_datetime` | None | Set a value |
| [Counters](/actions/counters) | `counter` | None | Step, reset or set the count |
| [Scripts](/actions/scripts) | `script` | None | Start, stop or run and wait for a response |
| [Automations](/actions/automations) | `automation` | None | On, off, trigger and reload |
| [Scenes](/actions/scenes) | `scene` | None | Activate, apply states, create and delete |
| [Timers and schedules](/actions/timers) | `timer`, `schedule` | None | Start, pause and change timers, read schedules |
| [Groups](/actions/groups) | `group` | None | Create, change and remove groups |
| [Fans](/actions/fans) | `fan` | None | On, off, speed, preset, oscillation and direction |
| [Humidifiers and water heaters](/actions/humidifiers) | `humidifier`, `water_heater` | None | On, off, modes, humidity and temperature |
| [Media players](/actions/media-players) | `media_player` | `mp` | Playback, volume, sources, grouping and browsing |
| [Vacuums and lawn mowers](/actions/vacuums) | `vacuum`, `lawn_mower` | None | Start, pause, dock and clean areas |
| [Alarm panels](/actions/alarms) | `alarm_control_panel` | `alarm` | Arm, disarm and trigger |
| [Updates](/actions/updates) | `update` | None | Install, skip and clear skipped |
| [Notifications and speech](/actions/notifications) | `notify`, `persistent_notification`, `tts` | `pn` | Send notifications and speak messages |
| [To-do lists](/actions/todo-lists) | `todo` | None | Read, add, change and remove items |
| [Calendars and weather](/actions/calendars) | `calendar`, `weather` | None | Read and add events, read forecasts |
| [Conversation and AI tasks](/actions/conversation) | `conversation`, `ai_task` | None | Talk to agents, generate data and images |
| [Images and device trackers](/actions/images) | `image`, `image_processing`, `device_tracker` | None | Save images, scan and report locations |
| [Alerts and utility meters](/actions/alerts) | `alert`, `utility_meter` | None | Acknowledge alerts, reset and calibrate meters |
| [System](/actions/system) | `logbook`, `system_log`, `logger`, `recorder`, `frontend`, `lovelace`, `backup`, `wake_on_lan`, `cloud`, `ffmpeg`, `google_assistant` | `wol` | Logs, log levels, history, themes, backups, wake on LAN, cloud, FFmpeg and Google Assistant |
| [Shell, REST and Python commands](/actions/commands) | `shell_command`, `rest_command`, `python_script` | None | Run configured commands and scripts, with their results |
| [Supervisor](/actions/supervisor) | `hassio` | None | Apps, backups, restores, host and mounts |
| [Home Assistant](/actions/home-assistant) | `homeassistant`, `template`, `zone` and other YAML integrations | None | Any entity, restart, reload and location |

[Commands](/commands) lists every argument and flag. Any other action can be called from your own app with [`CallAction`](/libraries).