> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.csharness.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# EVCore Studio Packaging and Releases

> How EVCore Studio is packaged, built, and released. Covers the packaging script, portable zip, CI artifacts, and the license-config.json requirement.

EVCore Studio is built and released as a portable Windows installer. This page covers the packaging script, what the build produces, how releases are published, and the requirements for a working release build.

## Packaging script

`scripts/package-studio.ps1` (from the repository root) performs the full build:

1. Builds and tests the firmware (`scripts/run-all.ps1 -TestsOnly`).
2. Builds the customer installer with electron-builder. The output goes to `dist/` by default, or to a local temp folder if the project is inside OneDrive (to avoid sync locks).
3. Runs the desktop smoke test against the packaged `EVCore Studio.exe`, which checks that it offers no simulation.
4. Produces `dist/EVCore-Studio-<version>-win-x64.zip`.

The script also supports Microsoft cloud code signing (Azure Trusted Signing) when the environment variables are set:

* `AZURE_SIGNING_ENDPOINT`
* `AZURE_SIGNING_ACCOUNT`
* `AZURE_SIGNING_PROFILE`
* `AZURE_PUBLISHER_NAME`

Plus secrets:

* `AZURE_TENANT_ID`
* `AZURE_CLIENT_ID`
* `AZURE_CLIENT_SECRET`

If these are not present, the build is unsigned.

## What the build produces

| File                                         | Purpose                                                            |
| -------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| `EVCore-Studio-Setup-<version>.exe`          | NSIS installer, x64, per-user install without administrator rights |
| `EVCore-Studio-Setup-<version>.exe.blockmap` | Blockmap used by auto-update                                       |
| `latest.yml`                                 | Update manifest with version and SHA-512                           |

The installer is portable: unzip and run. Uninstalling keeps the shop's records and backups in `%APPDATA%\EVCore Studio`.

## Customer builds vs internal testing

Every GitHub release is a customer release. Customer builds exclude the in-app demo and the firmware simulator (`extraMetadata: evcoreBuild: customer` in `electron-builder.yml`). Internal testing, with the demo and the firmware simulator, runs from the source code (`npm start` in `software/evcore-studio`, or `npm run package:win` for a local unpacked build). Nothing internal is ever published to the releases repository.

## CI artifacts

Every push to GitHub produces the same zip as a CI artifact via the `release-studio` workflow. Pushing a tag `studio-vX.Y.Z` runs the full build in CI, signed when configured, and keeps the installer as a workflow artifact. The workflow never publishes automatically.

## Publishing a release

After local build and test:

1. Bump `version` in `software/evcore-studio/package.json`.
2. Add a `## X.Y.Z` section at the top of `CHANGELOG.md` with the release notes users will see.
3. Build and test locally with `scripts/package-studio.ps1`.
4. Install that installer on a test computer and check it, including updating from the previous version with records in place.
5. Publish with `scripts/publish-studio.ps1 -Version X.Y.Z`.

The publish script:

* Publishes the tested installer in `dist/` as `vX.Y.Z`.
* Refuses a build that carries the simulator.
* Refuses an unsigned installer unless `-AllowUnsigned` is given.

## Release hosting

Installers and update manifests live in the public repository `csharness/evcore-studio-releases` (releases only, never source code). The website download link points to:

```text theme={null}
https://github.com/csharness/evcore-studio-releases/releases/latest/download/EVCore-Studio-Setup.exe
```

Studio's update feed is configured in `software/evcore-studio/desktop/update-config.json`. The updater checks the feed 30 seconds after start and every 6 hours, downloads new versions in the background, and installs only when the user chooses **Restart and update** or quits Studio. The page refuses to restart while a test is running.

## license-config.json requirement

A release build needs the account server settings in `desktop/license-config.json`. Until they are filled in, the packaged app opens on a "cannot sign in" screen. `npm start` has licensing off.

To point Studio at the project:

```bash theme={null}
node scripts/license-keys.mjs server https://<project-ref>.supabase.co <anon-key>
node scripts/license-keys.mjs check
```

A packaged Studio refuses to run until all three settings are present.