TeslaRel410/emulator/deploy/README.md

deploy/ -- install-side artifacts

Sources for the self-contained, air-gapped pod install. See ../DEPLOYMENT-PLAN.md for the full design.

Files

File	Role
postinstall.bat	elevated entry TeslaLauncher runs after extraction: finds the package folder, installs bundled Npcap, calls configure.ps1
configure.ps1	the per-pod step: detects the NIC + bay IP, derives the game IP = bayIP+100, binds DOSBox's pcap (realnic), renders the conf templates, stamps WATTCP.CFG my_ip
net_loop.conf.tmpl	BattleTech conf template (looped netnub)
net_rp.conf.tmpl	Red Planet conf template (single-shot)
package.ps1	assembles the deployable zip from repo sources + a fresh self-contained pod-launch publish

Template tokens filled at install: @@ROOT@@ (package dir), @@REALNIC@@ (this pod's NIC GUID fragment), @@MACADDR@@ (stable MAC derived from the game IP).

Packaged zip layout

The archive extracts to the games root (C:\games). Zip root = one package folder + postinstall.bat:

C:\games\
  postinstall.bat                 <- from deploy/postinstall.bat
  TeslaPod410\                     <- the single package folder (= ROOT)
    pod-launch.exe                 <- built from ../pod-launch (self-contained)
    dosbox-x.exe (+ DLLs)
    net_loop.conf.tmpl             <- from deploy/  (rendered -> net_loop.conf)
    net_rp.conf.tmpl               <- from deploy/  (rendered -> net_rp.conf)
    renderer.exe                   <- frozen renderer (OPEN: packaging w/ David)
    roms\awe32.raw
    ALPHA_1\...                    <- game content (incl. the WATTCP.CFG files)
    net-boot\...                   <- ODI/packet drivers, NET.CFG @340/INT10
    deploy\
      configure.ps1                <- from deploy/
      npcap.exe                    <- bundled Npcap silent installer (NOT in repo)
      vc_redist.x64.exe            <- optional, if the DOSBox build needs it

postinstall.bat derives ROOT as the single folder beside it, so the folder can be named per package.

What runs at install (elevated, no network -- air-gapped)

1. postinstall.bat locates ROOT, runs ROOT\deploy\npcap.exe /S.
2. configure.ps1 -Root ROOT:
   • finds the one static IPv4 (the bay IP) + its adapter GUID;
   • realnic = a contiguous, letter-leading fragment of a single GUID block (DOSBox reads a leading digit as an interface index; the fragment must be a substring of \Device\NPF_{GUID});
   • game IP = bay IP + 100 on the last octet (≤32 pods, bays .1-.100);
   • macaddr = 02:00:<game IP octets in hex> (stable, locally-administered);
   • renders *.conf.tmpl -> *.conf (tokens filled);
   • stamps my_ip = gameIP into every ALPHA_1\...\WATTCP.CFG.
3. pod-launch.exe (the supervisor) then selects + launches the rendered conf.

Verified against a scratch package tree: NIC detect, realnic (contiguous-match checked), bayIP+100, MAC, conf render, and WATTCP stamp all correct.

Building the zip

deploy\package.ps1 [-PackageName TeslaPod410] [-Npcap <installer>] `
                   [-Renderer <exe>] [-VcRedist <exe>] [-NoContent] [-SkipBuild]

Publishes pod-launch self-contained, stages the tree (postinstall.bat at the zip root + the package folder), and writes emulator\dist\<PackageName>.zip. -NoContent skips ALPHA_1/net-boot for a fast structural check. Externally- procured pieces are bundled only when their paths are passed (else flagged).

Not yet in the repo / OPEN

• npcap.exe (licensed installer -- procured out-of-band) and any vc_redist.
• The frozen renderer.exe (packaging decision with David; pod-launch falls back to pyw live_bridge.py when absent).
• DOSBox-X runtime DLL closure (MinGW/SDL DLLs): none sit beside dosbox-x.exe in the dev tree -- it finds them via MSYS2 on PATH. The air- gapped package must bundle them; package.ps1 copies any DLLs beside the exe and warns when there are none.
• RP loop-vs-single-shot for retail parity (template currently mirrors dev).