OpenHue CLI

Control Philips Hue lights and scenes via a Hue Bridge from the terminal.

Prerequisites

# Linux (pre-built binary — releases ship tarballs, not bare binaries)
curl -sL "https://github.com/openhue/openhue-cli/releases/latest/download/openhue_Linux_x86_64.tar.gz" \
  | tar -xz -C ~/.hermes/cache/scratch openhue \
  && install -m 0755 ~/.hermes/cache/scratch/openhue ~/.local/bin/openhue
# (use openhue_Linux_arm64.tar.gz on ARM64)

# macOS
brew install openhue/cli/openhue-cli

First run requires pressing the button on your Hue Bridge to pair. The bridge must be on the same local network.

When to Use

"Turn on/off the lights"
"Dim the living room lights"
"Set a scene" or "movie mode"
Controlling specific Hue rooms, zones, or individual bulbs
Adjusting brightness, color, or color temperature

Common Commands

List Resources

openhue get light       # List all lights
openhue get room        # List all rooms
openhue get scene       # List all scenes

Control Lights

# Turn on/off
openhue set light "Bedroom Lamp" --on
openhue set light "Bedroom Lamp" --off

# Brightness (0-100)
openhue set light "Bedroom Lamp" --on --brightness 50

# Color temperature (warm to cool: 153-500 mirek)
openhue set light "Bedroom Lamp" --on --temperature 300

# Color (by name or hex)
openhue set light "Bedroom Lamp" --on --color red
openhue set light "Bedroom Lamp" --on --rgb "#FF5500"

Control Rooms

# Turn off entire room
openhue set room "Bedroom" --off

# Set room brightness
openhue set room "Bedroom" --on --brightness 30

Scenes

openhue set scene "Relax" --room "Bedroom"
openhue set scene "Concentrate" --room "Office"

Quick Presets

# Bedtime (dim warm)
openhue set room "Bedroom" --on --brightness 20 --temperature 450

# Work mode (bright cool)
openhue set room "Office" --on --brightness 100 --temperature 250

# Movie mode (dim)
openhue set room "Living Room" --on --brightness 10

# Everything off
openhue set room "Bedroom" --off
openhue set room "Office" --off
openhue set room "Living Room" --off

Notes

Bridge must be on the same local network as the machine running Hermes
First run requires physically pressing the button on the Hue Bridge to authorize
Colors only work on color-capable bulbs (not white-only models)
Light and room names are case-sensitive — use openhue get light to check exact names
Works great with cron jobs for scheduled lighting (e.g. dim at bedtime, bright at wake)