Easy ESP-01 Tasmota Programming

A simple consolidation of information to flash the ESP-01 module with Tasmota using Tasmotizer.

Supplies

You require the following for this project:

• ESP01 Module and programmer
• Male and Female jumper wires
• Optional push button
• Latest version of Tasmota
• Latest version of Tasmotizer

Step 1: Download Required Software

The first step is to download the required software to flash your ESP-01 with Tasmota.

1. Download the latest binary version of Tasmota from this link.
2. Download the latest version of Tasmotizer
   1. For Windows, the easiest method is to download and install the standalone .exe from this link.
   2. For MAC, have a look at the tutorial by SuperHouse
3. Run the Tasmotizer application

In the next step we will configure the ESP-01 module and programmer to get ready to Flash Tasmota.

Step 2: Hardware Setup

The ESP-01 board can be flashed with Tasmota using the provided Programmer board, however the ESP8266 needs to be in the programming state. To get the ESP8266 into programming mode we need to connect GPIO_0 and Ground on startup.

There are various ways to achieve this, a simple on is to solder a male and female jumper lead to GPIO_0 and GND.

• Solder a male jumper lead to GND
• Solder a female jumper lead to GPIO_0
• Connect the two jumper leads
• Plug the ESP-01 module into the programmer
• Plug the programmer into a USB port on your computer running Tasmotizer

An alternative to the jumper leads can be seen in this tutorial, where a small push button is used instead.

Step 3: Flash Tasmota Using Tasmotizer

With your programmer connected and the ESP8266 in programming mode, navigate to your Tasmotizer application.

1. Click on "Refresh" to make sure your port is updated and set to the programmer. In my example it is port 4, but it could be different on your computer.
2. Click on "Open" and select your version of the tasmota.bin file downloaded earlier.
3. Make sure the "Erase before flashing" option is checked.
4. Click on "Tasmotize!"
5. Wait for the process to finish
6. If you get a message "Process success.....", click "OK".
   1. Remove the programmer from your computer
   2. Disconnect the jumper wires between GPIO_0 and GND
   3. Plug the programmer back into your computer.
7. Now we can try and connect the module to your WiFi network. This will be done in the next step.

Troubleshooting: If you get an error when clicking "Tasmotize!" make sure that you are using the correct port, or that the ESP8266 is in programming mode

Step 4: Connecting ESP-01 to WiFi Network

You can now connect the ESP-01 module to your Wifi Network using two methods.

Please note that the WiFi network should be a 2.4 GHz network...

1. The ESP-01 module will starup in Access Point mode, allowing you to connect to it using a phone or laptop with WiFi.
2. You can use Tasmotizer to send your WiFi details to the module.

Tasmotizer method (Easier)

1. Navigate back to Tasmotizer (ESP8266 NOT in programming mode)
2. Click on "Send config"
3. Enter your SSID
4. Enter your password
5. Click "Save"
6. Click "OK"
7. Wait about 10-20 seconds
8. Click "Get IP" to get the IP address your router assigned to the module

Access point method

With your module plugged back into the computer, open a WiFi search on your phone

1. Select the tasmota_xxxxxx network
2. Connect to the network
3. Wait for prompt to open on your phone
4. Enter you WiFi details and click "save"
5. Now you will have to use an application like FING to discover the IP address of the module

In the next step we will test the setup

Step 5: Testing

You can now simply navigate to the IP address of your module in a browser on the same network.

In my case the provided IP address was 192.168.1.37

When you see the Tasmota interface, your are done.

You can now use Tasmota for a range of projects like smart home projects like this

Step 6: Additional Resources

• Official Tasmota Documentation
• Tasmotizer

Comments

[mikehendricks]

Very Nice - Thank you. I get the "idea" - but I'm such a noob that most of this goes over my head as the number of uses or possibilities for example. What's the comparison of advantages over using ZigBee's? (I just picked up the book by Robert Faludi Wireless Sensor Networks) or wouldn't know to even make the suggestion - sad, but true. Coming to Instuctables is great - you get to see examples of so many smart people. Yet, there are days where I see so much, it makes me feel dumb. I'm lucky I know and can find my PC's button for ON/OFF! Thanks again for your post.

[kcow3]

Hi there, thanks for the interest.

The big difference is the wireless protocol used. The ESP-based systems such as the ESP8266 or ESP32 uses WiFi, which means you can easily integrate them into your existing WiFi network. Whereas Zigbee-based systems use the IEEE_802.15.4 standard. So for integrating a Zigbee device into your existing network you will require some sort of hub.
Zigbee protocols can be generalized as being more "lightweight" than WiFi. This is in terms of power consumption and bandwidth.

If I had to give you few examples of using Zigbee it would be the following: Wireless sensor (IR motion sensor), wireless thermometer, or humidity sensor - all these items can use the Zigbee protocol and be powered using a small battery and last a long time without needing to change the battery. It is important to note that you require a central hub to collect data from these sensors.

On the other hand, you have systems using the ESP8266 or ESP32. They use WiFi (the same WiFi you connect to your phone or laptop). The benefit here is that these systems can handle high-throughput data. This can include various use cases such as streaming video from a camera in the case of the ESP32 or controlling lights (like this instructable I just finished - https://www.instructables.com/DIY-Smart-Home-PC-Am.... The benefit here is you don't need a hub to get data from the devices, as they form part of your existing home network.

Have a look at the links below with some better explanations of the differences between the two technologies:
https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/difference-between-z...
https://www.link-labs.com/blog/zigbee-vs-wifi-802-...

Hope the info helps a bit in answering your question.