Reload Google Assistant

The Reload Google Assistant action reloads the manual Google Assistant configuration from YAML. Use it after you change the google_assistant section of your configuration.yaml, such as which entities are exposed or their names and aliases, to apply the changes without restarting Home Assistant.

If you configured a service_account, Home Assistant then asks Google to sync your devices, so the Google Home app shows the changes right away.

Only users with administrator rights can run this action.

Using this action from the user interface

If you prefer building automations and scripts visually, Home Assistant walks you through this action step by step. You pick what to target, tweak a few options, and save. No YAML knowledge required.

To use this action in an automation or script:

1. Go to Settings > Automations & scenes.
2. Open an existing automation or script, or select Create to start a new one.
3. If you’re setting up a new automation, add a trigger in the When section. Scripts don’t need a trigger.
4. In the Then do section, select Add action.
5. From the search box, search for and select Reload.
6. Select Save.

You can also reload the Google Assistant configuration from Settings > Tools > YAML.

This action does not support targets. In the UI, you are not prompted to choose an area, device, entity, or label.

Options in the UI

This action has no additional options in the UI.

Using this action in YAML

If you work directly in YAML, or you want to know exactly what Home Assistant does under the hood, this section has the technical reference. It lists the field names you use in YAML, their types, and which ones are required. For how an automation or a script is built in YAML, refer to Automations in YAML and Scripts.

In YAML, refer to this action as google_assistant.reload:

action: google_assistant.reload

Options in YAML

This action has no additional options in YAML.

Good to know

• Changing project_id or service_account requires a restart. The action reports an error and keeps the current configuration.
• Google uses the room hint only when it first adds a device, so changing it doesn’t move a device that’s already in Google Home.
• If your YAML configuration is invalid, Home Assistant shows the error and keeps the current Google Assistant configuration.
• To remove google_assistant from your YAML configuration, restart Home Assistant.

Try it yourself

Ready to test this? Open Settings > Tools > Actions, search for this action, fill in the fields, and select Perform action. You see what happens on your actual entitiesAn entity represents a sensor, actor, or function in Home Assistant. Entities are used to monitor physical properties or to control other entities. An entity is usually part of a device or a service. [Learn more] without writing a line of YAML.

More examples

Real scenarios where this action shows up in automations and scripts. Copy any example and adapt it to your setup. In the visual editor, select the UI options listed in the example or paste the YAML code.

Automation: reload from a dashboard button

If you edit your Google Assistant configuration often, add a button to your dashboard that applies the changes. This example uses a Button helperA helper is a virtual entity you create inside Home Assistant. It is not backed by a physical device. Helpers store values, track state, or do calculations that your automations and dashboards need. [Learn more] that you create separately.

• Trigger: State
  • Entity: Reload Google Assistant (input_button.reload_google_assistant)
• Action: Reload

alias: "Reload Google Assistant from a button"
triggers:
  - trigger: state
    entity_id: input_button.reload_google_assistant
actions:
  - action: google_assistant.reload

Automation: apply configuration changes every night

If you edit your YAML configuration in a file editor and don’t want to reload by hand, reload Google Assistant once a night. Your changes show up in the Google Home app by the next morning.

• Trigger: Time
  • At: 03:00
• Action: Reload

alias: "Reload Google Assistant every night"
triggers:
  - trigger: time
    at: "03:00:00"
actions:
  - action: google_assistant.reload

Still stuck?

To test the action on its own, run it in the automation editor with Run action, and check the message that it shows. To see what the action did when the automation ran, open the trace of that run. For details, refer to Testing automations. For common problems and their solutions, refer to Troubleshooting automations.

If that doesn’t help, the Home Assistant community is quick to help: join Discord for real-time chat, post on the community forum with the action you’re calling and what you expected to happen, or share on our subreddit /r/homeassistant.