> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Learn the dashboard
> Find your way around the main dashboard, sidebar, and daily work areas without needing technical knowledge.
Use this guide when you are signing in for the first time or helping a teammate learn where things are in the dashboard.
For the shortest first-day checklist, start with [Getting started](/docs/getting-started). For the full first-week onboarding path, read [Getting started overview](/docs/basics/overview).
The dashboard is the staff area of Car Storage Software. This is where your team manages customers, cars, appointments, payments, parking, messages, settings, and more.
## What you will accomplish
You will learn how to use the sidebar, how to open the main work areas, and how to choose the right page for a task.
***Create event** at [Create event](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard) is the classic home with workflow cards. **Dashboard** (Beta) is the customizable widget page covered in [Customize your Overview dashboard](/docs/basics/customize-your-overview).*
## Before you start
* You should be signed in as a staff user.
* If you are on a phone or small tablet, the sidebar may appear as a menu button instead of a full list.
* Your facility may hide some areas if your role does not need them.
## Understand the sidebar menu
The sidebar is the menu on the left side of the screen. It stays visible on most pages so you can move between areas without getting lost.
*The sidebar stays on the left. **Create event** is the large button at the top. Below it are the main work areas — the active page is highlighted.*
Look at the left edge of the screen. You should see menu items such as **Dashboard**, **Cars**, **Contacts**, **Schedule**, and **Payments**.
On a small screen, tap the menu icon (often three lines) to open the same list.
**Expected result:** You can open any main area with one click.
Each page has a title near the top, such as **Cars**, **Contacts**, or **Payments**.
**Why this matters:** If you are unsure where you landed, the page title confirms the area before you change anything.
Most work starts with a clear button. Examples include **Create New Customer**, **Create New Car**, **Create Invoice**, or **Schedule Event**.
**Expected result:** Clicking an action button opens a form, page, or dialog where you can complete the task.
Many pages show records in a list, table, or card view. Use search or filters when the list is long.
**Why this matters:** Searching first helps prevent duplicate customers, duplicate cars, or work on the wrong record.
## Create event: the classic home screen
The large **Create event** button at the top of the sidebar opens [Create event](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard). This is where front-desk staff pick an event type card (drop-off, detail, pickup, and more) and start work on a vehicle.
Read [Use the Create event home page](/docs/basics/use-the-create-event-home) for step-by-step help with event cards, vehicle search, and the **Continue** button.
## Dashboard (beta): your customizable home
[Dashboard](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/v2) is an optional widget page you can tailor with charts, schedule calendars, parking maps, inbox lists, and more. In the sidebar it appears as **Dashboard** with a **Beta** badge.
* Open [Dashboard in edit mode](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/v2?edit=true) to add or rearrange panels.
* Click **Add panel** to insert views from Schedule, Cars, Parking, and other areas.
* Team admins set the starting layout for new staff in [Settings → Team](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/settings/team).
Read [Customize your Overview dashboard](/docs/basics/customize-your-overview) for step-by-step help with screenshots.
## Find anything with facility search (Ctrl+K / ⌘K)
You do not need to open Cars or Contacts first when you only need to **look up** a record. From almost any dashboard page, press **Ctrl+K** on Windows or **⌘K** on Mac to open **Search your facility**.
Press **Ctrl+K** or **⌘K**. A search window opens in the center of the screen.
On [Dashboard](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/v2), you can also click the search bar that says **Search cars, customers, parking, events…**.
Try a customer name, plate, VIN fragment, spot name, or event title.
**Expected result:** Matching cars, customers, parking spots, zones, and events appear in labeled groups.
Click the row you need. The app opens that record immediately.
**Why this matters:** When a customer calls, search is often faster than clicking through sidebar pages.
*Facility search groups results by type. Click a row to jump straight to that record.*
Read [Search your facility quickly](/docs/basics/search-your-facility-quickly) for troubleshooting and tips.
## Choose the right page for common tasks
**Cars** is for vehicles your facility stores, services, moves, photographs, or tracks.
**Contacts** is for customers, owners, family members, business contacts, and other people connected to vehicles or billing.
**Schedule** is for appointments, pickups, drop-offs, service work, and team calendar planning.
**Payments** is for invoices, quotes, products, services, recurring billing, and vendors.
**Parking Spots** is for your floor plan, parking locations, and spot assignment.
**Inbox** is for customer conversations by text, email, and phone — all in one timeline.
**Marketing & Events** is for campaigns, community, reviews, and social events.
**AI Assistant** is for searching records and getting help with tasks inside the app.
**Settings** is for facility setup, team access, billing setup, communications, portal settings, and security.
**Setup Guide** (when shown in your sidebar) is the in-app checklist for first-time facility setup at [Setup Guide](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/onboarding).
## Practice a safe first tour
If you are new, follow this tour before editing live records. You are only looking around, and you do not need to save anything.
Go to [Cars](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/cars). Notice the vehicle list, search, filters, and **Create New Car** button.
Do not add or edit anything yet. This first pass is only to understand the page.
*The Cars page lists every vehicle your facility tracks. Search before you create a new car.*
Go to [Contacts](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/contacts). Notice the customer list and **Create New Customer** button.
**Expected result:** You understand where customer records live.
*The Contacts page is where you add and find customer records before linking cars or sending invoices.*
Go to [Schedule](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/schedule). Notice the calendar or table of events, plus buttons such as **Schedule Event** and **Filters & Settings**.
**Why this matters:** Many teams use Schedule every day to plan arrivals, departures, inspections, and service.
*Schedule shows when work happens. Color blocks are individual events — open one to see customer, vehicle, and status details.*
When you are ready to book work, read [Schedule overview](/docs/schedule/overview).
Go to [Payments](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/payments) or [Invoices](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/payments/invoices). Notice links to quotes, recurring billing, products, services, and vendors.
**Expected result:** You know where to go when money or pricing is involved.
*Payments is where you create and track invoices, quotes, and related billing work.*
Go to [Parking Spots](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/parking-spots). Notice the floor plan or spot list and tools to assign or find spaces.
**Why this matters:** Storage facilities use this area daily to know where each vehicle is parked.
**Expected result:** You can see how spots link to cars on the layout or in a list.
*Parking Spots shows where cars sit in your building. Green or open spots are available; filled spots show the assigned vehicle.*
When you are ready to assign spaces, read [Parking Spots overview](/docs/parking-spots/overview).
Go to [Marketing & Events](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/marketing). Notice tabs or sections for campaigns, social events, community, and reviews.
**Why this matters:** This area is for customer outreach and facility events — not the same as daily service scheduling on Schedule.
**Expected result:** You understand where campaigns and car-show RSVPs live.
*Marketing & Events is for newsletters, car shows, community channels, and review requests — separate from your shop Schedule calendar.*
Read [Marketing & Events overview](/docs/marketing-events/overview) when your team runs events or email campaigns.
Go to [AI Assistant](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/agent). Notice the microphone area and suggestion buttons such as “What's on the schedule today?”
**Why this matters:** Staff can ask plain-language questions about cars, customers, schedule, and parking without clicking through multiple pages.
**Expected result:** You see the starting screen where you type or speak a question.
*AI Assistant answers questions about your facility’s records. Click a suggestion or type your own question to start.*
Read [AI Assistant overview](/docs/ai-assistant/overview) before relying on it for billing or contract decisions.
Go to [Inbox](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/inbox). Notice the conversation list on the left. When you click a customer name, the message timeline opens on the right.
**Why this matters:** Most customer questions arrive by text, email, or phone. Inbox keeps every message in one place next to the customer record — so you do not need to search email and texts separately.
*Inbox lists recent conversations on the left. Click a name to read and reply on the right. New messages from customers appear here automatically when communications are set up.*
**Expected result:** You see recent threads with customer names (or a helpful empty state if messaging is not configured yet).
When communications are ready, read [Inbox overview](/docs/inbox/overview).
Go to [Settings](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/settings). Settings affects the whole facility, so move slowly here.
**Why this matters:** A small settings change can affect emails, customer forms, billing, or teammate access. Front-desk staff usually **read** settings to understand what is enabled; managers and owners **edit** them.
*Settings is organized by topic. Use the menu on the left to open Branding, Team, Billing, Communications, and other facility-wide options.*
**Expected result:** You see a menu of setup areas. You do not need to change anything during this tour.
Start with [Settings overview](/docs/settings/overview) when a manager asks you to help with setup.
## Sign out and switch accounts safely
Look at the bottom of the left sidebar for your name or email.
*Your account area is at the bottom of the sidebar. Open it to sign out on shared front-desk computers.*
**Expected result:** A menu opens with options such as **Sign out** or **Log out**.
Always sign out when you finish on a front-desk computer other staff share.
**Why this matters:** Staying signed in lets the next person see customer records and send messages as your account.
Use the login link your facility gave you. Do not use a customer portal link for staff work.
**Expected result:** You land on [Create event](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard) or [Dashboard](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/v2) with your facility name in the sidebar.
**Customer portal vs staff dashboard**
Customers use the **portal** (their own login) to see their cars and pay invoices. Staff use the **dashboard** (this sidebar). If you landed on a customer page by mistake, sign out and use your staff login link instead.
## Using the app on a phone or tablet
* Tap the **menu** icon (three horizontal lines) to open the sidebar when it is hidden.
* Tap the page title area to confirm which section you are in before you tap action buttons.
* Some tables scroll sideways — swipe left on column headers to see more fields.
* For parking and photos, a tablet often works better than a small phone screen.
## Common mistakes to avoid
**Do not create duplicate records**
Before adding a customer or car, search first. Duplicate records make it harder to find the right owner, invoice, vehicle history, or message thread.
**Do not change settings while exploring**
It is safe to look around. If you are not responsible for setup, avoid changing Settings until a manager asks you to.
**Use direct links when you feel lost**
These docs include direct links such as [Cars](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/cars), [Contacts](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/contacts), and [Settings](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/settings). Use them any time you are not sure where to click.
## Find Setup Guide in the sidebar
Some facilities show **Setup Guide** in the left menu during first-time setup. It links to [Setup Guide](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/onboarding) — the same checklist described in [Complete the Setup Guide](/docs/basics/complete-the-setup-guide).
*If **Setup Guide** appears in your sidebar, click it anytime to see setup progress and **Set up** buttons for unfinished tasks.*
**No Setup Guide in the sidebar?**
You can always open [Setup Guide](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/onboarding) directly. Some roles hide the menu label, but the page still works when you have permission to view setup progress.
## What success looks like
When you know the dashboard well:
* You can open **Cars**, **Contacts**, and **Create event** without asking where they are.
* You know the difference between **Schedule** (planning) and **Create event** (starting work now).
* You search before creating customers or cars to avoid duplicates.
* You know **Inbox** is for messages and **Settings** is for facility-wide setup.
* You sign out on shared computers at the end of your shift.
## Troubleshooting
**I do not see an item in the sidebar**
Your role may not include that area. Ask your facility owner to review your access in [Settings > Team](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/settings/team).
*Managers open [Settings > Team](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/settings/team) to control which sidebar areas each teammate can see.*
**The page looks empty**
Some pages need records first. For example, Payments invoices need customers; Schedule events need event types configured in Settings. Use the [Setup Guide](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/onboarding/v2) to see what your facility still needs.
**Inbox shows no conversations**
Communications may still be setting up. Ask a manager to review [Settings > Communications](https://www.carstoragesoftware.com/dashboard/settings/communications). You can still use Contacts and Cars while Inbox is being configured.
**I clicked the wrong customer in Inbox**
Click a different name in the left list. The timeline on the right updates to that customer's messages. Always read the customer name at the top before you reply.
## What to do next
If your team starts work from the home screen, read [Use the Create event home page](/docs/basics/use-the-create-event-home).
If your team is ready to enter real data, read [Prepare your first customer and car](/docs/basics/prepare-your-first-customer-and-car).
If you want a customizable home screen, read [Customize your Overview dashboard](/docs/basics/customize-your-overview).
If you want the app on a phone home screen, read [Install the mobile app](/docs/basics/install-the-mobile-app).
If you are still setting up the workspace, read [Complete the Setup Guide](/docs/basics/complete-the-setup-guide) and [Complete the onboarding wizard](/docs/basics/complete-the-onboarding-wizard).
If you need to find a record quickly, read [Search your facility quickly](/docs/basics/search-your-facility-quickly).
## Related topics
- [Customize your Overview dashboard](/docs/basics/customize-your-overview.md)
- [Getting started](/docs/getting-started.md)
- [Getting started overview](/docs/basics/overview.md)
- [Complete the onboarding wizard](/docs/basics/complete-the-onboarding-wizard.md)
- [Use the Create event home page](/docs/basics/use-the-create-event-home.md)
This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.