Documentation

This is the official documentation for the Tesla for Windows app.

This wiki will cover all aspects of the app and will document all the features it supports. To make full use of the app please skim read through the wiki so you have a basic understanding of how to use the app to its full capacity.

Tesla for Windows is installed and registered in the Control Panel via an installer.  This installer is an executable file that contains the app and .DLLs  integral to the functionality of the app. These files are extracted to the installation location (it is recommended to keep the default folder choice) on a Windows machine that meets the minimum operating requirements. It is imperative that none of the files once installed are not tampered with, such as renamed or moved. (See requirements for more info.)

Tesla for Windows supports Windows Vista/7/8.1/10 64bit. A minimum .NET Framework version of 4.6 is required. An active internet connection and Tesla Model S,X,3 or Powerwall is obviously also needed.

The Tesla for Windows interface is minimal, clean and functional. The login screen (fig. 1) has on the bottom four buttons that the user can use. To save your username/password combo for future use, fill out the Username and Password fields out, then tick the ‘Remember Me’ checkbox. To remove saved passwords, you can either untick ‘Remember Me’ or use the ‘Erase all Saved Data’ button.

If you do not want to input your own email and password into the application, click the ‘Login With’ button, and input your own OAuth.2.0 access token. This feature is for advanced users only.

Figure 1

If there is any error with login, such as bad password or the servers are down, you will see an error message. That alerts you to the error. It will tell if you your credentials are incorrect, the connection has timed out, or if the server is not responding. (Fig. 2)

Figure 2

If you login successfully, the login screen will be replaced with the ‘Main Controls’ screen. (Fig. 3)

Figure 3

From the Main screen you can view and control almost every aspect of your car that Tesla allows. Towards the left of the screen you can view sensor and analytics data from your Tesla car.

As of version 2, Tesla for Windows supports the second generation Tesla powerwall. You are able to view its remaining charge, total capacity, and charge/discharge rate in kWh. More features are planned soon.

See figure 5 for a screenshot of what powerwall integration looks like.

Figure 5

Tesla for Windows will automatically notify you about the charge state of your car. Every 8 seconds it fetches new data from Tesla’s servers and will trigger a popup notification from the Windows System Tray if anything has changed. The app will prompt you if charging starts/stops/finishes/abruptly stops.

By default, Tesla for Windows will cease to communicate to Tesla automatically after 4 hours of running. This way, vampire loss is minimised. In the Settings area, the user can choose to how long until this happens from a drop down list of values. They are: 1 Minute, 10 Mins, 20 Mins, 30 Mins, 1 Hour, 2 Hours, 4 Hours, 8 Hours and 12 Hours. Donating Users will have the option to expand the timeout limit beyond 2 days. Coming soon.

Tesla For Windows will capture and graph a variety of information about your driving. It captures speed, charging voltage, range and more which is all graphed on a 2D axis. Tesla for Windows will ‘ping’ the car about 4 times a minute, providing reliable and relatively high resolution data which can be plotted on a graph. The app will keep all the data it collects locally, so you can see all information ever collected, in one big graph. See fig. 4 for an example of what the graphs look like.

Figure 4

Another handy feature Tesla for Windows supports is the ability to use a microphone connected to the PC. The app supports a set of voice commands, and when a command is spoken and recognised, the app will execute the command. Make sure your microphone is not muted, is set to default and is configured properly, for this feature to work. Currently this feature is only supported on vehicles, and not Powerwalls.

If you enjoy using the app and appreciate its continued development, consider donating a small amount to keep the project alive. In return, users receive small perks and bonus features from inside the app.

These bonus feature are:

• Ability to extend auto disconnect limit from 2 days onwards Coming soon.
• Remote weather monitoring and alerts every 5 mins from your exact vehicles location, and the ability to automatically close your sun roof if its open and rain is imminent.
• Access to unlimited email notifications on whatever you specify. Coming Soon…
• Share access to your vehicle/powerwall through the app and restrict what other guests can see or control. Coming Soon…

Some of the perks you get access to cost money to run, on top of the cost of a website domain + hosting. All money collected from donations goes towards maintaining the project and paying for API access. No profit comes from donations.

How does donating work?

Whenever a user clicks ‘login’ on the app launch screen, their email address is hashed client side and sent to my server for comparison to hashes in the database. If the hash is a match, then that user has donated. This method allows the process to be anonymous and is the same technique used for storing passwords.

Tesla for Windows has a few hidden Easter Eggs in its code. You will have to use the app regularly to see if you can figure them all out!

Here is a hint, name your car ‘Starman’ and see if you can find the Easter Egg in the app.

Advanced Graphing is currently in its infant stage.

This web based graphing feature leverages the powerful Google Charts API to graph data collected from your vehicle inside the app. Simply export your graphing data to CSV and copy it to a Google Sheets document following the template found here. You will need to copy/past the contents of each individual .CSV file (eg BatteryLevel.CSV, Voltage.CSV) into its appropriate sheet in the document. For an example of what a completed document looks like, click here.

You will then need to share your Google Sheets document, such that anyone with a link can view. This is important so that when you input the URL to your Google Sheets document on the graphing page, the sheet is visible.

Pick a range of dates to filter through, or plot the entire sheet, the choice is yours!