HACS Update Action Tracker

UPDATE: This functionality has been incorporated into the existing Custom Component Monitor integration.

Overview

A replacement for the regular HACS update entities card in Home Assistant. Instead of just showing updates and letting you install them, Update Action Tracker gives you three clear choices for each pending HACS update:

• Skip – Dismiss the update (marks it as skipped in HA)
• Update – Install the update normally
• Update & Action – Install the update and create a to-do item with the release notes so you can review what changed and take any follow-up action

This is particularly useful when HACS updates include breaking changes, new features that need configuration, or deprecations that require attention.

Screenshots

List of components to update

Item added to to-do list

To-do item details

Features

📋 Smart Update Card

• Lists all pending HACS integration updates in a clean Lovelace card
• Shows entity icon, current version, and available version
• Expandable release notes for each update (fetched directly from the integration)
• Link to the GitHub release page for each update

🔄 Real-time Progress Tracking

• Shows installation progress bar during updates (determinate with percentage when available, animated pulse when indeterminate)
• Buttons are disabled during active installations to prevent conflicts
• Automatic polling during updates for responsive UI feedback

✅ Todo List Integration

• "Update & Action" creates a to-do item in Home Assistant's native todo list
• Each item includes:
  • Update date
  • Release URL link
  • Entity reference
  • Full release notes
• Track which updates need follow-up action and mark them as done when reviewed

🎨 Polished UI

• Visual editor for card title
• Badge showing count of pending updates (or "Up to date" when clear)
• Themed to match your Home Assistant UI
• Markdown rendering for release notes (headings, lists, links, code blocks, alerts)

Installation

HACS (Recommended)

1. Open HACS in your Home Assistant instance
2. Click the three dots in the top right corner and select Custom repositories
3. Add this repository URL: https://github.com/loryanstrant/HACS-Update-Action-Tracker
4. Select Integration as the category
5. Click Add
6. Search for "Update Action Tracker" in HACS and install it
7. Restart Home Assistant

Manual Installation

1. Download the latest release from the Releases page
2. Copy the custom_components/update_action_tracker folder to your Home Assistant config/custom_components/ directory
3. Restart Home Assistant

Configuration

Setting Up the Integration

1. Go to Settings > Devices & Services
2. Click + Add Integration
3. Search for Update Action Tracker
4. Click to add it (no configuration options required)

The integration will automatically:

• Create a todo list entity: todo.hacs_update_actions
• Register the custom Lovelace card
• Register the update_action_tracker.update_and_action service

Adding the Card to Your Dashboard

IMPORTANT: Before adding the card, make sure you restart HA after you've configured the integration. Once HA has restarted, perform a force refresh (Ctrl+F5) on your browser.

1. Edit your dashboard
2. Click + Add Card
3. Search for HACS Update Action Tracker
4. Optionally customise the card title
5. Save

Alternatively, add it manually via YAML:

type: custom:update-action-tracker-card
title: HACS Update Tracker

Service

update_action_tracker.update_and_action

Installs a HACS update and creates a to-do item to track follow-up actions.

Parameter	Required	Description
entity_id	Yes	The update entity to install (e.g., update.my_integration_update)
version	No	Specific version to install. If omitted, installs the latest version

The to-do item created includes:

• Summary: {Integration name} updated to {version} ({date})
• Description: Update date, release URL, entity reference, and full release notes

Todo Entity

The integration creates a persistent todo list entity (todo.hacs_update_actions) that supports:

• Creating items (via the service or manually)
• Updating item status (mark as completed when you've reviewed the changes)
• Deleting items
• Viewing descriptions with release notes

Items persist across Home Assistant restarts using local storage.

Development Approach

This integration was developed with the assistance of GitHub Copilot, guided by human expertise in Home Assistant integration design and HACS ecosystem best practices.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Support

If you encounter any issues or have feature requests, please open an issue.