diff --git a/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/README.md b/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..833bfedb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,82 @@
+# gauge-ab -- the cockpit A/B rig
+
+Runs the reconstruction and the shipped 4.10 binary against the **same mount**
+(same `GAUGE/L4GAUGE.CFG`, same egg, same mech) and compares what each one
+paints into the gauge framebuffer.
+
+With `L4VIDEO=OFF` and `L4GAUGE=640x480x16`, the DOSBox window *is* the packed
+gauge framebuffer -- the exact buffer the pod's VDB splits into its physical
+heads. So a screen grab is a lossless read of the cockpit.
+
+## Running
+
+```bash
+bash ab.sh rec        # stage the fresh build + run the reconstruction
+bash ab.sh shp        # run the shipped binary
+powershell -File grab.ps1 -Out ours.png
+python3 planes.py shipped.png ours.png
+```
+
+**Always launch through `ab.sh`.** The confs run `BTL4REC.EXE` out of the
+mount, *not* `build410/btl4opt.exe`. Forgetting to re-stage silently measures
+the previous binary -- on 2026-07-27 that cost a full round of wrong
+conclusions (a fix "did nothing" three times because the tested exe never
+changed, and the correct first hypothesis was discarded on that evidence).
+`ab.sh` re-stages every time and kills any running DOSBox first (two
+instances share `OUT.TXT` and corrupt the trace).
+
+## The instruments
+
+### `planes.py` -- the per-head scoreboard (use this first)
+
+The framebuffer is **plane-packed**: `L4GAUGE.CFG` gives each of the ten
+logical ports a *bit mask*, not a rectangle --
+
+```
+configure(8,Heat, 0,0x4000,clut2,blue, NULL);   # UL
+configure(9,Comm, 0,0x8000,clut2,red,  NULL);   # UR
+```
+
+-- so all six heads occupy the same x/y and are separated only by bit. RGB
+comparison is therefore meaningless: a "magenta artifact" is really *the wrong
+heads lit at that pixel*. DOSBox presents the buffer as RGB565 with bit
+replication, so the original 16-bit word is recovered exactly by
+`R>>3, G>>2, B>>3`.
+
+`planes.py` reports, per head, how many pixels the shipped binary lights, how
+many we light, how many we're **missing**, how many are **extra**, and the
+bounding box of the extras. Missing vs extra is the useful signal: extras are
+*our* bugs, missing is unbuilt work.
+
+### `score.py` -- one whole-frame number
+
+Coarse (the big MFD heads dominate it). Good for "did this regress", useless
+for locating anything. Prefer `planes.py`.
+
+### `BT_VIS_LOG` -- the widget map
+
+`set BT_VIS_LOG=1` in the conf makes the build print every gauge widget the
+interpreter constructs, with its port and authored position:
+
+```
+[w] pilotList port=9 at 0,0
+[w] rankAndScore port=9 at 33,0
+[gen] port=0 x=443 y=322 lampA='sgena.pcc' ... on=1 col0=3 col1=9
+[cluster] port=4 x=0 y=240 title='qsensors.pcc' banner=1
+```
+
+The `[w]` line comes from the single dispatch every widget is built through
+(`MethodDescription::Execute`, MUNGA/GAUGREND.CPP), so the map is complete.
+This is what turns "a diff at framebuffer (67,3)" into "that head has no
+drawing widget there, so look elsewhere".
+
+## Method
+
+Source inspection has now produced **five** wrong suspects on this one
+artifact; each was settled -- or killed -- by one instrumented run. So:
+
+1. `planes.py` first: *which head*, and is it missing or extra?
+2. `BT_VIS_LOG`: which widgets exist on that head, at what position?
+3. Only then read code, and only that widget's.
+
+And re-stage before believing any measurement.
diff --git a/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/ab.sh b/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/ab.sh
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..4e5b9a07
--- /dev/null
+++ b/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/ab.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,43 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+#
+# gauge-ab: stage + run one side of the cockpit A/B rig.
+#
+#   ab.sh rec     -- stage the freshly built reconstruction and run it
+#   ab.sh shp     -- run the shipped 4.10 binary
+#
+# STAGING IS THE WHOLE POINT.  The rig's confs run BTL4REC.EXE / BTL4SHP.EXE
+# out of the shared mount, NOT build410/btl4opt.exe.  Forgetting to copy the
+# new build over BTL4REC.EXE silently measures the PREVIOUS binary -- which
+# on 2026-07-27 cost a full round of wrong conclusions (a change "did
+# nothing" three times because the tested exe never changed).  So: always
+# launch through this script, and it always re-stages first.
+#
+set -e
+
+R=/c/VWE/TeslaRel410/restoration
+IMG=$R/build410/run/image
+SIDE=${1:-rec}
+
+# one instance at a time -- two DOSBoxes share OUT.TXT and corrupt the trace
+if tasklist //FI "IMAGENAME eq dosbox-x.exe" 2>/dev/null | grep -qi dosbox-x; then
+	echo "killing running dosbox-x"
+	taskkill //F //IM dosbox-x.exe > /dev/null 2>&1 || true
+	sleep 2
+fi
+
+if [ "$SIDE" = "rec" ]; then
+	SRC=$R/build410/btl4opt.exe
+	DST=$IMG/BTL4REC.EXE
+	[ -f "$SRC" ] || { echo "no build at $SRC -- run build410.sh link"; exit 1; }
+	cp -f "$SRC" "$DST"
+	echo "staged $(ls -la "$DST" | awk '{print $5, $6, $7, $8}')  <- $(basename $SRC)"
+	CONF=$R/build410/run/vis_rec.conf
+else
+	echo "shipped side (no staging)"
+	CONF=$R/build410/run/vis_shp.conf
+fi
+
+rm -f "$IMG/OUT.TXT"
+cd /c/VWE/TeslaRel410/emulator/src/src
+./dosbox-x.exe -conf "$CONF" > /dev/null 2>&1 &
+echo "launched $SIDE ($(basename $CONF)) -- pid $!"
diff --git a/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/grab.ps1 b/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/grab.ps1
index d542b54f..6d9e995c 100644
--- a/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/grab.ps1
+++ b/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/grab.ps1
@@ -1,54 +1,81 @@
-param(
-    [Parameter(Mandatory=$true)][string]$Out,
-    [string]$Match = "DOSBox-X"
-)
-
-Add-Type @"
-using System;
-using System.Runtime.InteropServices;
-public class W {
-    [DllImport("user32.dll")] public static extern IntPtr GetForegroundWindow();
-    [DllImport("user32.dll")] public static extern bool GetWindowRect(IntPtr h, out RECT r);
-    [DllImport("user32.dll")] public static extern bool SetForegroundWindow(IntPtr h);
-    [DllImport("user32.dll")] public static extern bool IsWindowVisible(IntPtr h);
-    [DllImport("user32.dll", CharSet=CharSet.Auto)] public static extern int GetWindowText(IntPtr h, System.Text.StringBuilder s, int n);
-    [DllImport("user32.dll")] public static extern bool EnumWindows(EnumProc cb, IntPtr p);
-    public delegate bool EnumProc(IntPtr h, IntPtr p);
-    [StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential)] public struct RECT { public int L, T, R, B; }
-}
-"@
-
-$found = @()
-$cb = [W+EnumProc]{
-    param($h, $p)
-    if ([W]::IsWindowVisible($h)) {
-        $sb = New-Object System.Text.StringBuilder 512
-        [void][W]::GetWindowText($h, $sb, 512)
-        $t = $sb.ToString()
-        if ($t -like "*$Match*") { $script:found += ,@($h, $t) }
-    }
-    return $true
-}
-[void][W]::EnumWindows($cb, [IntPtr]::Zero)
-
-if ($found.Count -eq 0) { Write-Output "NO-WINDOW"; exit 1 }
-
-Add-Type -AssemblyName System.Drawing
-$i = 0
-foreach ($f in $found) {
-    $h = $f[0]; $title = $f[1]
-    [void][W]::SetForegroundWindow($h)
-    Start-Sleep -Milliseconds 1200
-    $r = New-Object W+RECT
-    [void][W]::GetWindowRect($h, [ref]$r)
-    $w = $r.R - $r.L; $ht = $r.B - $r.T
-    if ($w -le 0 -or $ht -le 0) { continue }
-    $bmp = New-Object System.Drawing.Bitmap $w, $ht
-    $g = [System.Drawing.Graphics]::FromImage($bmp)
-    $g.CopyFromScreen($r.L, $r.T, 0, 0, (New-Object System.Drawing.Size $w, $ht))
-    $path = if ($found.Count -eq 1) { $Out } else { $Out -replace '\.png$', "_$i.png" }
-    $bmp.Save($path, [System.Drawing.Imaging.ImageFormat]::Png)
-    $g.Dispose(); $bmp.Dispose()
-    Write-Output "SAVED $path  ${w}x${ht}  [$title]"
-    $i++
-}
+param(
+    [Parameter(Mandatory=$true)][string]$Out,
+    [string]$Match = "DOSBox-X"
+)
+
+Add-Type @"
+using System;
+using System.Runtime.InteropServices;
+public class W {
+    [DllImport("user32.dll")] public static extern bool GetWindowRect(IntPtr h, out RECT r);
+    [DllImport("user32.dll")] public static extern bool SetForegroundWindow(IntPtr h);
+    [DllImport("user32.dll")] public static extern bool IsWindowVisible(IntPtr h);
+    [DllImport("user32.dll")] public static extern bool PrintWindow(IntPtr h, IntPtr hdc, uint flags);
+    [DllImport("user32.dll", CharSet=CharSet.Auto)] public static extern int GetWindowText(IntPtr h, System.Text.StringBuilder s, int n);
+    [DllImport("user32.dll")] public static extern bool EnumWindows(EnumProc cb, IntPtr p);
+    public delegate bool EnumProc(IntPtr h, IntPtr p);
+    [StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential)] public struct RECT { public int L, T, R, B; }
+}
+"@
+
+$found = @()
+$cb = [W+EnumProc]{
+    param($h, $p)
+    if ([W]::IsWindowVisible($h)) {
+        $sb = New-Object System.Text.StringBuilder 512
+        [void][W]::GetWindowText($h, $sb, 512)
+        $t = $sb.ToString()
+        if ($t -like "*$Match*") { $script:found += ,@($h, $t) }
+    }
+    return $true
+}
+[void][W]::EnumWindows($cb, [IntPtr]::Zero)
+if ($found.Count -eq 0) { Write-Output "NO-WINDOW"; exit 1 }
+
+Add-Type -AssemblyName System.Drawing
+
+function Test-Blank($bmp) {
+    # sample a grid; blank/uniform => PrintWindow failed on this surface
+    $seen = @{}
+    for ($y = 10; $y -lt $bmp.Height - 10; $y += 23) {
+        for ($x = 10; $x -lt $bmp.Width - 10; $x += 29) {
+            $seen[$bmp.GetPixel($x, $y).ToArgb()] = $true
+            if ($seen.Count -gt 6) { return $false }
+        }
+    }
+    return $true
+}
+
+$i = 0
+foreach ($f in $found) {
+    $h = $f[0]; $title = $f[1]
+    [void][W]::SetForegroundWindow($h)
+    Start-Sleep -Milliseconds 600
+    $r = New-Object W+RECT
+    [void][W]::GetWindowRect($h, [ref]$r)
+    $w = $r.R - $r.L; $ht = $r.B - $r.T
+    if ($w -le 0 -or $ht -le 0) { continue }
+
+    # PRIMARY: PrintWindow(PW_RENDERFULLCONTENT) -- immune to occlusion
+    $bmp = New-Object System.Drawing.Bitmap $w, $ht
+    $g = [System.Drawing.Graphics]::FromImage($bmp)
+    $hdc = $g.GetHdc()
+    $ok = [W]::PrintWindow($h, $hdc, 2)
+    $g.ReleaseHdc($hdc)
+    $method = "PrintWindow"
+
+    if (-not $ok -or (Test-Blank $bmp)) {
+        # FALLBACK: screen copy (only valid if nothing is in front)
+        $g.Dispose(); $bmp.Dispose()
+        $bmp = New-Object System.Drawing.Bitmap $w, $ht
+        $g = [System.Drawing.Graphics]::FromImage($bmp)
+        $g.CopyFromScreen($r.L, $r.T, 0, 0, (New-Object System.Drawing.Size $w, $ht))
+        $method = "CopyFromScreen(FALLBACK -- occlusion-sensitive)"
+    }
+
+    $path = if ($found.Count -eq 1) { $Out } else { $Out -replace '\.png$', "_$i.png" }
+    $bmp.Save($path, [System.Drawing.Imaging.ImageFormat]::Png)
+    $g.Dispose(); $bmp.Dispose()
+    Write-Output "SAVED $path  ${w}x${ht}  via $method  [$title]"
+    $i++
+}
diff --git a/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/planes.py b/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/planes.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..45343af9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/planes.py
@@ -0,0 +1,74 @@
+#
+# PER-HEAD A/B scoreboard for the packed gauge framebuffer.
+#
+# L4GAUGE.CFG configures ten logical ports onto ONE 640x480x16 buffer, each
+# port owning a BIT MASK, not a rectangle -- the VDB later splits the planes
+# into the pod's separate physical heads.  Comparing RGB is therefore
+# meaningless; the only useful question is "which HEAD differs, and where".
+#
+# DOSBox presents the buffer as RGB565 with bit replication, so the original
+# 16-bit word is recovered exactly by R>>3, G>>2, B>>3.
+#
+import sys
+from PIL import Image
+
+BOX = (8, 52, 648, 531)
+
+PORTS = [
+    ("sec",     0x003F),   # the 3-D scene (6-bit colour)
+    ("overlay", 0x00C0),
+    ("Mfd1",    0x0100), ("Eng1", 0x0200),
+    ("Mfd2",    0x0400), ("Eng2", 0x0800),
+    ("Mfd3",    0x1000), ("Eng3", 0x2000),
+    ("Heat",    0x4000), ("Comm", 0x8000),
+]
+
+
+def words(path):
+    im = Image.open(path).convert("RGB").crop(BOX)
+    w, h = im.size
+    px = im.load()
+    out = []
+    for y in range(h):
+        row = []
+        for x in range(w):
+            r, g, b = px[x, y]
+            row.append(((r >> 3) << 11) | ((g >> 2) << 5) | (b >> 3))
+        out.append(row)
+    return out, w, h
+
+
+def main(ship_path, ours_path):
+    A, w, h = words(ship_path)
+    B, w2, h2 = words(ours_path)
+    if (w, h) != (w2, h2):
+        print("SIZE MISMATCH")
+        return
+
+    print("%-8s %8s %8s %8s %8s   %s" %
+          ("head", "shipped", "ours", "missing", "extra", "extra-bbox"))
+    for name, mask in PORTS:
+        sa = so = both = 0
+        xs = []
+        ys = []
+        for y in range(h):
+            ra, rb = A[y], B[y]
+            for x in range(w):
+                a = (ra[x] & mask) != 0
+                b = (rb[x] & mask) != 0
+                if a:
+                    sa += 1
+                if b:
+                    so += 1
+                if a and b:
+                    both += 1
+                if b and not a:
+                    xs.append(x)
+                    ys.append(y)
+        bbox = ("(%d,%d)-(%d,%d)" % (min(xs), min(ys), max(xs), max(ys))
+                if xs else "-")
+        print("%-8s %8d %8d %8d %8d   %s" %
+              (name, sa, so, sa - both, so - both, bbox))
+
+
+main(sys.argv[1], sys.argv[2])
diff --git a/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/score.py b/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/score.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..aac37444
--- /dev/null
+++ b/emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/score.py
@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+import sys
+from PIL import Image
+
+BOX = (8, 52, 648, 531)          # the DOSBox client area = the gauge framebuffer
+SHIPPED = "shipped.png"
+
+
+def load(p):
+    return Image.open(p).convert("RGB").crop(BOX)
+
+
+def magenta(p):
+    return p[0] > 150 and p[2] > 150 and p[1] < 140
+
+
+def score(path):
+    a, b = load(SHIPPED), load(path)
+    if a.size != b.size:
+        return "%-10s SIZE MISMATCH %s vs %s" % (path, a.size, b.size)
+    pa, pb = a.load(), b.load()
+    w, h = a.size
+    same = lit_ship = lit_both = mag = 0
+    for y in range(h):
+        for x in range(w):
+            s, o = pa[x, y], pb[x, y]
+            if s == o:
+                same += 1
+            if sum(s) > 60:
+                lit_ship += 1
+                if sum(o) > 60:
+                    lit_both += 1
+            if 0 <= x < 200 and 0 <= y < 60 and magenta(o):
+                mag += 1
+    n = w * h
+    return "%-10s identical %5.1f%%   coverage %3d%%   title-band magenta %4d" % (
+        path, 100.0 * same / n, round(100.0 * lit_both / max(lit_ship, 1)), mag)
+
+
+for p in sys.argv[1:]:
+    print(score(p))
diff --git a/restoration/source410/BT/MECHMPPR.HPP b/restoration/source410/BT/MECHMPPR.HPP
index dfe3ee61..e38b8cc9 100644
--- a/restoration/source410/BT/MECHMPPR.HPP
+++ b/restoration/source410/BT/MECHMPPR.HPP
@@ -152,6 +152,19 @@
 	// Local Data -- the published control inputs (the streamed mappings write
 	// these; InterpretControls, phase 5.3, reads them to drive the mech).
 	//
+	public:
+		//
+		// The POD ROSTER (binary mapper attributes PilotArrayPage/PilotArray,
+		// ids 15/16): the comm scoreboard's row source.  Zero = no roster
+		// authored (a solo mission), which is why the shipped cockpit leaves
+		// that page blank.
+		//
+		int
+			GetPilotArray() const		{ Check(this); return pilotArray; }
+		int
+			GetPilotArrayPage() const	{ Check(this); return pilotArrayPage; }
+
+
 	protected:
 		ControlsJoystick	stickPosition;
 		Scalar				throttlePosition;
diff --git a/restoration/source410/BT_L4/BTL4GAU2.CPP b/restoration/source410/BT_L4/BTL4GAU2.CPP
index 887fa462..8ea37b0c 100644
--- a/restoration/source410/BT_L4/BTL4GAU2.CPP
+++ b/restoration/source410/BT_L4/BTL4GAU2.CPP
@@ -1427,6 +1427,15 @@ GeneratorCluster::GeneratorCluster(
 		generatorOn, "TwoState");
 	Register_Object(lampB);
 
+	if (getenv("BT_VIS_LOG"))
+		DEBUG_STREAM << "[gen] port=" << graphics_port_number
+			<< " x=" << x << " y=" << y
+			<< " lampA='" << lampA_image << "' at " << (x + 0xC) << "," << (y + 2)
+			<< " lampB='" << lampB_image << "' at " << (x + 2) << "," << (y + 2)
+			<< " on=" << *generatorOn
+			<< " col0=" << lamp_on_color << " col1=" << lamp_off_color
+			<< "\n" << flush;
+
 	subsystem     = subsystem_in;		// @0xAC
 	_reserved0xB0 = 0;					// @0xB0 (binary leaves uninit; zeroed)
 
@@ -1953,6 +1962,11 @@ SubsystemCluster::SubsystemCluster(
 			);
 			Register_Object(titleBanner);
 		}
+		if (getenv("BT_VIS_LOG"))
+			DEBUG_STREAM << "[cluster] port=" << mfd_port
+				<< " x=" << x << " y=" << y
+				<< " title='" << (title ? title : "(null)")
+				<< "' banner=" << (titleBanner ? 1 : 0) << "\n" << flush;
 	}
 
 	//------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/restoration/source410/BT_L4/BTL4GAU3.CPP b/restoration/source410/BT_L4/BTL4GAU3.CPP
index cdad1163..5e131897 100644
--- a/restoration/source410/BT_L4/BTL4GAU3.CPP
+++ b/restoration/source410/BT_L4/BTL4GAU3.CPP
@@ -37,6 +37,10 @@
 #include <btl4.hpp>
 #pragma hdrstop
 
+#if !defined(MECHMPPR_HPP)
+#	include <mechmppr.hpp>
+#endif
+
 #if !defined(MISSION_HPP)
 #	include <mission.hpp>
 #endif
@@ -53,6 +57,10 @@
 #	include <btplayer.hpp>
 #endif
 
+#if !defined(MECHMPPR_HPP)
+#	include <mechmppr.hpp>
+#endif
+
 #if !defined(NTTMGR_HPP)
 #	include <nttmgr.hpp>
 #endif
@@ -104,6 +112,56 @@ static Player *
 	return NULL;
 }
 
+//
+//#############################################################################
+// COMM-PAGE roster gate -- the cockpit's pilot list is NOT the mission's
+// player list.  The binary fed it from the viewpoint mech's ControlsMapper
+// pilot array (mapper attributes PilotArrayPage / PilotArray, ids 15/16),
+// which the pod network authors; a mission with no pod roster leaves it
+// zero and the shipped cockpit draws the page EMPTY.
+//
+// A/B EVIDENCE (5.3.32): with the ungated walk our slot 0 resolved the solo
+// mission player and painted its icon in colour 0xff -- 404 magenta pixels
+// in the Comm title band where the shipped binary paints the black erase
+// rect.  Gate the ROW SOURCE here, not PilotList::Execute: Execute's empty
+// branch still has to run, because erasing IS what the shipped page draws.
+//
+// PlayerStatus (the observer/camera scoreboard) keeps the ungated walk -- it
+// is a mission-wide standings page, not the pod roster.
+//#############################################################################
+//
+static Player *
+	ResolveCommRosterPlayer(int slot)
+{
+	if (application == NULL)
+	{
+		return NULL;
+	}
+
+	Entity
+		*viewpoint = application->GetViewpointEntity();
+	if (viewpoint == NULL || viewpoint->GetSubsystemCount() <= 0)
+	{
+		return NULL;
+	}
+
+	Subsystem
+		*controls = viewpoint->GetSubsystem(0);
+	if (controls == NULL
+	 || !controls->IsDerivedFrom(MechControlsMapper::ClassDerivations))
+	{
+		return NULL;
+	}
+
+	if (((MechControlsMapper *) controls)->GetPilotArray() == 0)
+	{
+		return NULL;		// no pod roster authored -> the page stays empty
+	}
+
+	return ResolveRosterPlayer(slot);
+}
+
+
 //
 //#############################################################################
 // KILLS access (the gauge scoring wave): the KILLS column must read the SAME
@@ -916,7 +974,7 @@ void
 		*pilot;
 	if (built == False)
 	{
-		pilot = ResolveRosterPlayer(currentSlot);
+		pilot = ResolveCommRosterPlayer(currentSlot);
 		if (pilot == NULL)
 		{
 			built = True;	// past the first empty slot -> rest empty this cycle
diff --git a/restoration/source410/BT_L4/GAUGE-BLOCK.NOTES.md b/restoration/source410/BT_L4/GAUGE-BLOCK.NOTES.md
index b00bf043..ad27453a 100644
--- a/restoration/source410/BT_L4/GAUGE-BLOCK.NOTES.md
+++ b/restoration/source410/BT_L4/GAUGE-BLOCK.NOTES.md
@@ -622,3 +622,103 @@ use, switch the grab to PrintWindow(hwnd, hdc, PW_RENDERFULLCONTENT), which
 asks the window to render itself and works while occluded (verify it against
 the OpenGL output mode first -- if PrintWindow comes back blank on GL, set
 [sdl] output=surface in the vis_*.conf for capture runs).
+
+================================================================================
+5.3.32 -- THE PER-HEAD A/B: the packed framebuffer, read one head at a time
+================================================================================
+
+The stray magenta blocks are GONE (404 px -> 0), and the three engineering
+heads are now PIXEL-IDENTICAL to the shipped binary.
+
+Per-head, shipped vs reconstruction (planes.py):
+
+    head      shipped     ours   missing    extra
+    Eng1        17981    17981         0        0     <- exact
+    Eng2        17981    17981         0        0     <- exact
+    Eng3        17981    17981         0        0     <- exact
+    Comm        15656    13557      2099        0     <- nothing wrong drawn
+    Heat        21374    20913       566      105
+    overlay      3283     3325        55       97
+    sec         35423    36096       357     1030
+    Mfd1        41784    37040      8807     4063     <- the remaining climb
+    Mfd2        40799    39197      6882     5280
+    Mfd3        32146    27870      6935     2659
+
+TWO THINGS CAME OUT OF THIS PASS.  The fix is the smaller one.
+
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+1.  THE INSTRUMENT: the framebuffer is PLANE-PACKED, so RGB diffing is a lie
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+L4GAUGE.CFG gives every port a BIT MASK, not a rectangle:
+
+    configure(8,Heat, 0,0x4000,clut2,blue, NULL);   # UL
+    configure(9,Comm, 0,0x8000,clut2,red,  NULL);   # UR
+
+All six heads live at the SAME x/y and are separated only by bit -- that is
+exactly the packing the VDB splits into the pod's physical screens.  So the
+"magenta artifact" I had been chasing for two rounds was never a colour bug:
+magenta 0xD2BB simply means Comm+Heat+Mfd3+Eng1 lit at a pixel where the
+shipped buffer has Eng1+Eng2+Eng3.  Decode the word (R>>3,G>>2,B>>3 inverts
+DOSBox's RGB565 bit replication), mask per port, and each head can be scored
+on its own.  That is emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/planes.py, and it turned
+a vague 89.7%-identical number into "Eng1 has 1030 extra pixels at (67,3)".
+
+Second instrument, same session: BT_VIS_LOG.  MethodDescription::Execute
+(MUNGA/GAUGREND.CPP) is the ONE dispatch every gauge widget is constructed
+through, so a single line there prints the entire cockpit as a map --
+
+    [w] pilotList port=9 at 0,0
+    [w] rankAndScore port=9 at 33,0
+
+-- name, port, authored position.  That is how "the Eng1 head has a spurious
+block at (67,3)" became "port 3 has no drawing widget at all, so stop reading
+Eng1 code".  Both instruments are banked with a README in gauge-ab/.
+
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+2.  THE FIX: the Comm page's roster is the POD roster, not the mission's
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+PilotList::Execute drew slot 0 from the EntityManager "Players" group, which
+in a solo mission resolves the local player and paints its icon in colour
+0xff.  The shipped binary feeds that page from the viewpoint mech's
+ControlsMapper pilot array (mapper attributes PilotArrayPage / PilotArray,
+ids 15/16) -- authored by the pod network, zero in a solo mission, so the
+shipped page draws EMPTY.
+
+The gate belongs in the ROW SOURCE (ResolveCommRosterPlayer), NOT in
+PilotList::Execute: Execute's empty branch still has to run, because erasing
+is what the shipped page actually draws there.  Gating Execute instead
+removed the erase too and cost a point of coverage.  PlayerStatus keeps the
+ungated walk -- it is the observer/camera standings page, not the pod roster.
+MECHMPPR.HPP grew GetPilotArray()/GetPilotArrayPage() for the gate.
+
+Result: Comm extra 1253 -> 0, Eng1 extra 1030 -> 0, and the 2099 Comm pixels
+we are MISSING were missing before the change too, so the gate is a strict
+improvement.  (Those 2099 are unbuilt Comm content -- a separate thread.)
+
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+THE METHOD LESSON, WHICH COST MORE THAN THE BUG
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+The rig's confs run BTL4REC.EXE out of the shared mount; `build410.sh link`
+writes build410/btl4opt.exe.  Nothing connected the two.  Three consecutive
+measurements ran a binary from 11:02 while I believed I was testing 11:05,
+11:13 and 11:32 builds -- so a change that "did nothing" three times was in
+fact never tested, and I discarded the CORRECT first hypothesis (the roster)
+on that evidence and went hunting through generator lamps, blit primitives
+and port tables instead.
+
+Now enforced: emulator/render-bridge/gauge-ab/ab.sh re-stages the exe on
+every launch and kills any running DOSBox first (two instances share OUT.TXT
+and interleave the trace).  Launch the rig no other way.
+
+The earlier note in this file still stands and now has a fifth data point:
+for anything cockpit-visual, measure before reading code.  Five suspects came
+from source inspection -- PilotList slot coords, PlayerStatus off-by-one, the
+generator TwoState lamp polarity, the shared DrawBitMap primitive, and the
+Plasma port table -- and every one of them was killed by an instrumented run
+that took four minutes.  The generator lamps in particular looked airtight
+until the widget map showed they draw on port 0, nowhere near the pixels.
+
+NEXT ON THIS HEAD-BY-HEAD LADDER: the three MFD quadrant heads (Mfd1/2/3),
+which now hold essentially all of the remaining difference -- ~22.6K missing
+and ~12K extra between them, against ~0 on the engineering heads.  Those are
+the SubsystemCluster quadrant panels ([cluster] port=2/4/6 in the map).
diff --git a/restoration/source410/MUNGA/GAUGREND.CPP b/restoration/source410/MUNGA/GAUGREND.CPP
index 93fd499d..590f7816 100644
--- a/restoration/source410/MUNGA/GAUGREND.CPP
+++ b/restoration/source410/MUNGA/GAUGREND.CPP
@@ -2734,6 +2734,14 @@ void
 	//-------------------------------------------------------------
 	// Execute the call
 	//-------------------------------------------------------------
+	// COCKPIT WIDGET MAP (env BT_VIS_LOG): the single dispatch every
+	// gauge widget is built through -- name, port and authored position.
+	// This is the map that turns an A/B pixel difference into a widget.
+	if (getenv("BT_VIS_LOG"))
+		DEBUG_STREAM << "[w] " << name
+			<< " port=" << display_port_index
+			<< " at " << position.x << "," << position.y
+			<< "\n" << flush;
 	Check_Pointer(execute);
 #	if DEBUG_LEVEL > 0
 		Logical