# Installing Runic Gateway on your shard

Operator guide for the **Runic Gateway installer** — the tool that takes a working ServUO
installation and connects it to a Runic Gateway website.

> **The installer is the supported way to set this up.** Download one binary, run `install`, paste
> four values into your website. It deploys the plugin overlay, installs the uo-link sidecar and
> registers it as a service, and gives you [`doctor`, `update` and `uninstall`](#7-day-two)
> afterwards. Start at [§1](#1-download-and-verify).
>
> [Appendix A](#appendix-a--installing-by-hand) is the same deployment done by hand. It is
> **supported, not deprecated** — use it on a host that cannot run the binary, when you want to
> place things yourself, or when you are developing on the bridge and installing from a working
> tree rather than a release. It is also the reference for what the installer does under the hood.
>
> Design of record: [PLAN.md](PLAN.md).

---

## What this installs

Three things, on the machine that runs your shard:

| # | Component | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | **The plugin overlay** — C# source that ServUO compiles at boot, copied into your server tree | [`RunicGateway/servuo-plugins`](https://gitea.whitlocktech.com/RunicGateway/servuo-plugins) release tarball |
| 2 | **The uo-link sidecar** — a small Rust service that the shard dials out to, and that your website reads from | [`RunicGateway/link`](https://gitea.whitlocktech.com/RunicGateway/link) release binary |
| 3 | **A record of what it did** — `install.json`, plus cached copies of the patches and of every file the patch tier edited | Written by the installer |

```
    ServUO shard  ──loopback TCP 127.0.0.1:7788──►  uo-link sidecar  ──HTTP + WebSocket──►  website
    (1) overlay                                     (2) binary + service                    (yours)
```

The shard **dials out**; it never listens for the website and is never reachable from the internet.
Only the sidecar is exposed, and only to your website.

### What it deliberately does not do

- **It never restarts or manages ServUO.** Your shard keeps starting the way it always has. The
  installer refuses to run while ServUO is up, and tells you when a restart is required.
- **It never deletes anything from your server tree.** The overlay sync only adds and overwrites.
- **It never contacts your website.** It prints four values for you to paste into Admin → Shard.
- **It never edits stock ServUO files without asking.** That is the opt-in
  [patch tier](#4-the-patch-tier-optional), and skipping it still leaves you with a working bridge.

---

## Before you begin

| Requirement | Detail |
|---|---|
| A working ServUO install | It must currently boot and compile scripts cleanly. The installer deploys onto a healthy shard; it does not repair a broken one. |
| ServUO **57.4** *(patch tier only)* | **57.4 is the only supported version.** The base install works on any reasonably current ServUO. The patch tier is written and tested against stock 57.4; on any other version it is **unsupported and untested** — you can still choose to run it, behind an explicit opt-in, and it applies only where the exact lines it patches are unchanged. See [§4](#4-the-patch-tier-optional). |
| ServUO **stopped** | `ServUO.exe` holds a lock on `Scripts.dll` and writes `Saves/` on exit. The installer refuses to deploy under a running shard. |
| Administrator / root | It writes into system directories and registers a service. |
| Outbound HTTPS | To `gitea.whitlocktech.com`, to fetch the bundle and the two artifacts. Nothing inbound is needed, and no Gitea account or git client is required. |
| The sidecar on the **same host** as the shard | The shard connects to `127.0.0.1:7788`. Splitting them is not supported — the loopback socket *is* the trust boundary for inbound commands. |
| Admin access to your Runic Gateway site | The last step is pasting four values into Admin → Shard. |

**Back up first.** The overlay overwrites `Scripts/Scripts.csproj` (a stock file), and the patch
tier edits stock sources. A copy of `Scripts/` and `Config/` before you start costs nothing.

---

## 1. Download and verify

Releases are **unsigned**. There is no code-signing certificate and no notarization, so the
`SHA256SUMS` file published beside every artifact is the whole trust anchor — check it.

Download the installer for your OS, plus `SHA256SUMS`, from the
[installer releases page](https://gitea.whitlocktech.com/RunicGateway/installer/releases):

```
runicgateway-installer-linux-x86_64
runicgateway-installer-linux-aarch64
runicgateway-installer-windows-x86_64.exe
SHA256SUMS
```

`linux-aarch64` is for arm64 hosts — Ampere/Graviton instances, Pi-class boxes. `uname -m` says
`aarch64` on those and `x86_64` otherwise. There is no macOS build and no Windows-on-arm build: the
shard dials the sidecar out on loopback, so the two have to share a host, and no ServUO host is
either of those.

**Linux**

```bash
sha256sum -c SHA256SUMS --ignore-missing
chmod +x runicgateway-installer-linux-x86_64
```

**Windows** (PowerShell)

```powershell
(Get-FileHash .\runicgateway-installer-windows-x86_64.exe -Algorithm SHA256).Hash
Get-Content .\SHA256SUMS      # compare the line for this file, case-insensitively
```

Windows will show a **SmartScreen "Windows protected your PC"** prompt on first run, because the
binary is unsigned and unknown. Once you have verified the checksum above: *More info* →
*Run anyway*. If you would rather not, Appendix A's manual path uses no unsigned binary except the
sidecar itself, which you verify the same way.

The installer applies the same standard to everything **it** downloads: each artifact's SHA256 is
checked against the value recorded in the bundle manifest — which CI computed after verifying it
against the publishing repo's own `SHA256SUMS` — and a mismatch aborts the run.

### What it installs is a bundle, not "latest"

The three components version independently but must agree on one wire protocol, so CI publishes a
[**bundle**](https://gitea.whitlocktech.com/RunicGateway/installer/src/branch/main/bundles/README.md):
one exact, protocol-checked pair of sidecar + overlay versions. The installer resolves that at run
time rather than hardcoding versions or blindly taking each repo's newest release.

Consequences worth knowing:

- A sidecar patch release does **not** mean re-downloading the installer. The bundle is data.
- `--bundle <tag>` (e.g. `--bundle 2026.08.04`) pins an exact past combination, so a reinstall six
  months from now reproduces today's install rather than tomorrow's.

---

## 2. Run it

```bash
sudo ./runicgateway-installer-linux-x86_64 install
```

```powershell
# Windows: from an elevated PowerShell
.\runicgateway-installer-windows-x86_64.exe install
```

Run `install --verify` first if you want to see exactly what would change and write nothing — the
same idea as `deploy.ps1 -Verify`, which developers of the plugin use.

The installer **does not install itself.** Keep the binary somewhere sensible on the host (it is
one file); `doctor`, `update` and `uninstall` are run from it later. Examples below shorten it to
`runicgateway`.

### What it asks

1. **Your ServUO root** — detected if the installer is run from inside it or from an obvious
   sibling, otherwise prompted. A directory qualifies only if it contains `ServUO.exe`, `Scripts/`
   and `Config/`.
2. **Whether to apply the patch tier** — off unless you say yes. On a ServUO that is not 57.4 the
   prompt defaults to **no** and carries an unsupported-version warning you have to answer past.
   See [§4](#4-the-patch-tier-optional).
3. **The hostname your website should use to reach this machine** — used only to compose the two
   URLs it prints at the end. The sidecar's bind address is frequently `127.0.0.1` or `0.0.0.0`,
   neither of which is something to hand to a website.
4. **Your site's URL** — used only to print a clickable link to its Admin → Shard page. The
   installer never contacts your website.

### An illustrative run

```
Runic Gateway installer — bundle 2026.08.04 (protocol 3)

  ServUO           /opt/ServUO  (57.4)
  Shard process    not running
  Overlay          servuo-plugins v0.1.1   protocol 3
  Sidecar          uo-link v1.1.0          protocol 3

✓ overlay tarball verified   sha256 75dc6d6c…
✓ sidecar binary verified    sha256 27d491ef…

Overlay sync
  ADD     Config/Bridge.cfg
  ADD     Scripts/Custom/Bridge/*.cs        (22 files)
  CHANGE  Scripts/Scripts.csproj
  deployed. add=23 change=1 unchanged=0 kept=0

  Patch tier       not selected
  Without it: no vendor.sale events, no in-game moderation audit forwarding.

uo-link sidecar
  binary           /usr/bin/runicgateway-link            install
✓ sidecar binary verified    sha256 27d491ef…
  config           /etc/runicgateway/sidecar.toml        created
  database         /var/lib/runicgateway/uo-link.db
  listening on     shard 127.0.0.1:7788   website 127.0.0.1:8080
  service          runicgateway-link.service             active, enabled
  running as       runicgateway

Recorded /etc/runicgateway/install.json

Scripts.csproj changed — ServUO rebuilds Scripts.dll on next boot.
Start your shard when ready; the installer does not start it for you.
```

Then the [token handoff](#5-connect-the-website).

### Commands and flags

The surface this guide specifies. Each command is idempotent: a second run with nothing new to do
reports "unchanged" and writes nothing.

| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| `install` | The full run above. |
| `doctor` | Diagnoses an existing deployment end to end — see [§7](#7-day-two). |
| `update` | Re-resolves the bundle; updates the sidecar (replace + restart) and the overlay (re-sync + tell you to restart ServUO). |
| `uninstall` | Removes only what the installer exclusively owns; prints — never performs — anything inside your ServUO tree. |

| Flag | Applies to | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| `--verify` | `install`, `update` | Dry run. Report every change that would be made; write nothing. |
| `--servuo <path>` | `install`, `doctor`, `update` | Name the ServUO root instead of detecting or prompting. |
| `--bundle <tag>` | `install`, `update` | Pin an exact published bundle instead of the current one. |
| `--patches` / `--no-patches` | `install`, `update` | Decide the patch tier non-interactively. `--patches` never loosens the region check: patches whose target lines are not stock are reported for you to apply by hand, not forced. On `update` it is what takes up a feature the shard does not already have. |
| `--patches-unsupported-servuo` | `install` | Required *in addition to* `--patches` to run the patch tier on a ServUO that is not 57.4. Unsupported and untested — see [§4](#4-the-patch-tier-optional). Ignored on 57.4. |
| `--host <name>` | `install` | The hostname to print in the website URLs. |
| `--site-url <url>` | `install` | Your site's base URL, for the Admin → Shard link. |
| `--yes` | all | Assume the default answer to every prompt. Combine with the flags above for an unattended run. **On `uninstall` it means yes** — that prompt defaults to no, and typing `uninstall --yes` is not an accident. |
| `--no-backup` | `install`, `update` | Do not copy the files this run is about to overwrite. They are otherwise saved under the state directory — see [§7](#7-day-two). |
| `--purge` | `uninstall` | Also delete `sidecar.toml`, `uo-link.db`, the cached patch set and every backup, all of which are otherwise kept. |

Exit codes are `0` success, `1` the run failed, `2` the arguments were unusable. Two commands also
use `1` for a run that *completed* and found something wrong, so they can be read from a script:
`doctor` when any check failed, and `uninstall` when a step could not be carried out (everything
else still was).

---

## 3. Where everything lands

**Linux**

| Path | What |
|---|---|
| `/usr/bin/runicgateway-link` | The sidecar binary |
| `/etc/runicgateway/sidecar.toml` | Sidecar config, including the auth token |
| `/etc/runicgateway/install.json` | What the installer deployed: versions, commit, per-file hashes, applied patches, timestamps |
| `/etc/runicgateway/patches/` | Copies of the patches the tier evaluated, so `uninstall` can print the exact hunks long after the release tarball is gone, and a refused one is still on hand to apply yourself |
| `/etc/runicgateway/patches/originals/` | Each file the patch tier edited, exactly as it was beforehand — a revert you can verify rather than reconstruct |
| `/etc/runicgateway/backups/<timestamp>/` | Copies of the files a run replaced, with a `manifest.json` naming each. Newest three kept; skip with `--no-backup` |
| `/var/lib/runicgateway/uo-link.db` | The sidecar's SQLite store (event history, cached profiles, link map) |
| `/etc/systemd/system/runicgateway-link.service` | The service unit, running as a dedicated user |

**Windows**

| Path | What |
|---|---|
| `%ProgramFiles%\RunicGateway\uo-link-sidecar.exe` | The sidecar binary |
| `%ProgramData%\RunicGateway\sidecar.toml` | Sidecar config, including the auth token |
| `%ProgramData%\RunicGateway\install.json` | As above |
| `%ProgramData%\RunicGateway\patches\` | As above |
| `%ProgramData%\RunicGateway\patches\originals\` | As above |
| `%ProgramData%\RunicGateway\backups\<timestamp>\` | As above |
| `%ProgramData%\RunicGateway\uo-link.db` | The sidecar's SQLite store |
| `%ProgramData%\RunicGateway\uo-link-sidecar.<date>.log` | The service's log. A Windows service has no console to write to, so it logs here instead; rolled daily, seven kept. A foreground run still logs to stdout as usual |
| Service `RunicGatewayLink` | Automatic start, restart on failure, running as `NT SERVICE\RunicGatewayLink`. Needs a sidecar **v1.2.0 or newer** — see [Troubleshooting](#troubleshooting) on error 1053 |

**Inside your ServUO tree** (added by the overlay sync — 24 files):

```
Config/Bridge.cfg                     every bridge setting, heavily commented
Scripts/Custom/Bridge/*.cs            22 files: the plugin itself
Scripts/Scripts.csproj                OVERWRITES a stock file (see below)
```

**Both service definitions pin the config path**, because the sidecar's own default is relative to
its working directory — and a service manager's working directory is not somewhere you want a
database or a config file. On Windows it can be `%SystemRoot%\System32` or, under
`C:\Program Files\`, a silently redirected VirtualStore copy.

How the *database* path is pinned differs by platform, and that is deliberate:

| | Config | Database |
|---|---|---|
| **Linux** | `Environment=UOLINK_CONFIG=` in the unit | `Environment=UOLINK_DB_PATH=` in the unit — `/etc` and `/var/lib` are different directories, so both need naming |
| **Windows** | `--config` inside the service's own `binPath` | nothing to set: a relative `[store] path` resolves against the config's directory, which *is* `%ProgramData%\RunicGateway` |

The Windows service would otherwise need a **machine-wide** environment variable — `sc.exe` has no
per-service one — which every process on the host inherits and which outlives an uninstall.

**Both run as a dedicated, unprivileged account.** Linux gets a `runicgateway` system user; Windows
gets a virtual service account, `NT SERVICE\RunicGatewayLink`, which Windows creates as part of
registering the service and which has no password. Neither runs as root or `LocalSystem`.

**`sidecar.toml` is locked down, because it holds your auth token.** Neither default location
protects it on its own — `/etc` is world-readable, and `%ProgramData%` grants `Users` read access by
inheritance — so the installer sets the permissions itself: `chmod 600` plus `chown` to the service
user on Linux, and an explicit ACL of SYSTEM, Administrators and the service account on Windows.

> **`Scripts.csproj` is overwritten deliberately.** The stock file omits `Scripts/Custom/`, so the
> plugin would sit in the tree and never compile — and ServUO would not tell you, because it
> ignores the script build's exit code and silently reloads the previous `Scripts.dll`. That
> failure mode is the reason [§6](#6-start-servuo-and-verify) exists.

---

## 4. The patch tier (optional)

Most of the plugin ships as **added** files, which is why the base install is a safe file copy. Two
features cannot: they need edits to stock ServUO sources, because the events they depend on do not
exist.

| Patch | Edits | Gives you | Rebuild needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| `playervendor-sale-eventsink.patch` + `playervendor-sale-gump.patch` | `Server/EventSink.cs`, `Scripts/Gumps/PlayerVendorGumps.cs` | `vendor.sale` events — player-vendor purchases with buyer, owner, price and commission, which is what cheat detection needs | **Core solution rebuild** (`dotnet build ServUO.sln`) — the dynamic script build is not enough |
| `commandlogging-event.patch` | `Scripts/Commands/Logging.cs` | In-game moderation actions (`[ban`, `[kick`, `[bcast`) forwarded to the website's moderation log as `admin.audit` | Script build only — a shard restart is enough |

Each patch has a companion `.cs` file that is copied **only after** its patch applies, because it
references symbols the patch introduces. That is why they are not in the base overlay: shipping them
unconditionally would break the build on every unpatched install.

How the installer handles it:

- **Opt-in.** The base install completes without it, and declining is a supported outcome, not a
  degraded one.
- **Dry-run first, always.** Every patch is checked before anything is applied, and reported per
  patch. Most real shards are hand-modified; a patch that does not apply is expected, not alarming.
- **A modified file is not automatically a refusal.** These patches touch three small regions of
  three large files. If you have edited `Logging.cs` somewhere else entirely, the installer says so
  and still applies the patch — it checks whether *the lines the patch edits* are still stock, not
  whether the whole file is. It applies only where the surrounding lines match the patch exactly and
  appear exactly once; anything less and it stops and hands you the hunk to apply by hand. It never
  force-fits a patch by loosening the match.
- **All or nothing per feature.** The two vendor-sale patches are one unit and are applied together
  or not at all — and within a patch, if one hunk cannot be placed safely, none are. A patch that
  could have been placed but was held back by its sibling says exactly that; it is never reported as
  applied.
- **It does not need `git`, and does not use it.** The matching and the writing are the installer's
  own, which is why it can place a patch on a shard where `git apply` refuses — the shipped patches
  and their target files do not all use the same line endings, and that alone defeats `git apply`.
  Nothing outside a patched region is touched, down to the byte, and inserted lines take your file's
  own line ending.
- **Your ServUO version is reported, not decisive** — but see the warning below before running this
  on anything other than 57.4.
- **Recorded, and the `.patch` files cached**, so re-runs stay idempotent and `uninstall` can print
  the exact hunks to revert — along with how each was applied, since a patch placed into a file you
  had already modified is one to look at more carefully when reverting. Patches that were *not*
  applied are cached too, because that is the copy the run tells you to apply by hand.
- **A copy of every file it edits is kept, exactly as it was beforehand**, under
  `patches/originals/` in the installer's own directory — not in your ServUO tree. It is written
  before the first edit and never overwritten, so however many times you re-run `install`, it stays
  the version from before the tier ever touched the file. That is what lets you verify a revert
  rather than reconstruct one.
- **Re-running is safe.** A patch already in place is recognised and left alone, and the record
  keeps the way it originally landed rather than relabelling it.

### ⚠ On any ServUO that is not 57.4: unsupported, untested, no guarantees

> **Runic Gateway is designed, built and tested against stock ServUO 57.4.** That is the only
> supported version.
>
> On any other version — a newer release, an older one, or a fork — the patch tier is
> **UNSUPPORTED, UNTESTED, and NOT GUARANTEED TO WORK.** You may run it. If you do, you are on your
> own: it is not covered by support, and a bad outcome may not show up until your shard is live,
> because ServUO's script build reports success even when it failed and quietly keeps running the
> previous `Scripts.dll`.
>
> The installer will still refuse to place a patch anywhere the exact lines it edits have changed —
> but matching text is not the same as matching behaviour. A hunk can land correctly and still be
> wrong for a tree that has diverged around it.
>
> **Back up your ServUO tree first, and verify your shard boots and compiles afterwards.**

Because of that, on a non-57.4 tree the tier is off by default and takes a deliberate yes:

- the interactive prompt defaults to **no** and prints the warning above;
- `--patches` on its own is **not** enough — an unattended run must also pass
  `--patches-unsupported-servuo`;
- the choice is recorded, and `doctor` keeps showing an unsupported-version row for the life of the
  install — so whoever looks after this shard next can see it without being told.

A run where the tier is selected on a shard that has been worked on looks like this:

```
  Patch tier       2 of 3 applied
  ✓ playervendor-sale-eventsink    Server/EventSink.cs
      stock file — applied at line 171, 1521, 1771, 2416
  ✓ playervendor-sale-gump         Scripts/Gumps/PlayerVendorGumps.cs
      file modified, patched region stock — applied at line 95
  ✗ commandlogging-event           Scripts/Commands/Logging.cs
      patched region has been modified (hunk 1) — not applied
      apply this by hand, then re-run install to record it:
        /etc/runicgateway/patches/commandlogging-event.patch

⚠ Server/EventSink.cs — a CORE ServUO file was patched. Rebuild the solution:
      dotnet build ServUO.sln
  A shard restart is not enough; ServUO's dynamic script build does not rebuild the core, and it
  will not tell you so.

  Not applied, so you do not get: no in-game moderation audit forwarding.
  Everything else works. Apply the hunks by hand if you want them, then re-run install to record it.
```

The line numbers are where each hunk was actually found in *your* file, not where it sits in stock
ServUO — they differ as soon as anything above the region has been edited, and yours is the one to
go to.

If it is skipped or fails, you lose exactly two things — **`vendor.sale` events** and **in-game
moderation audit forwarding**. Everything else works. You can apply the patches later by hand (see
`patches/README.md` in the tarball) and re-run `install` to record it.

---

## 5. Connect the website

The installer ends a successful run by printing the one manual step it cannot do for you:

```
Runic Gateway is installed.

One manual step remains — connect the website to this sidecar:

  Base URL          http://shard.example.com:8080
  WebSocket URL     ws://shard.example.com:8080/ws
  Protocol version  3
  Auth token        4f9c…   (also in /etc/runicgateway/sidecar.toml)

Paste these into  Admin → Shard  on your Runic Gateway site:
  https://your-site.example/admin/shard

The token is write-only once saved — the site will never show it back to you.
```

Every value there comes from asking the installed sidecar itself (`--print-config`), not from a
log file or a guess, so it cannot drift from what the service actually runs.

On your site, sign in as an administrator and open **Admin → Shard (uo-link)**:

| Field on the page | Paste |
|---|---|
| Enable the shard integration | ✔ on |
| Base URL (REST) | the **Base URL** line |
| WebSocket URL (feed) | the **WebSocket URL** line |
| Auth token | the **Auth token** line |
| Protocol | the **Protocol version** line (`3`) |

Saving restarts the site's ingest client, so the change takes effect immediately. The token is
AES-GCM encrypted at rest and **never returned to any client** — losing it means reading it back
from `sidecar.toml` on the shard host, not from the website.

### If your website is on a different machine

The sidecar binds `127.0.0.1:8080` by default, which is reachable only from the shard host. If your
website runs elsewhere, you must widen the bind — and then narrow the access:

1. Set `[web] bind` in `sidecar.toml` to `0.0.0.0:8080` (or a specific LAN address) and restart the
   service.
2. **Firewall port 8080 to your website's address only.** The auth token is always on, but it
   travels as a plain bearer token — the sidecar speaks HTTP, not HTTPS.
3. If the two hosts are not on a trusted network, put the sidecar behind a TLS reverse proxy or a
   VPN/WireGuard link, and give the website the proxied `https://` / `wss://` URLs.

The `[shard] bind` line is a different matter: leave it on `127.0.0.1:7788`. That socket accepts
*inbound commands* to the game, and being loopback-only is what makes that safe.

---

## 6. Start ServUO and verify

Start your shard the way you always do. Then confirm the bridge is actually live — not merely
installed. **A successful file copy is not a working bridge**: ServUO shells out to `dotnet build`,
prints the output, ignores the exit code, and reloads the existing `Scripts.dll`, so a broken script
build looks exactly like a clean boot.

**a. Watch the boot output.** You want to see the build succeed *and* the bridge announce itself:

```
Core: Compiling scripts...
Build succeeded.
[Bridge] enabled=True endpoint=127.0.0.1:7788 queueCap=10000 sweeps(stat=30s decay=60s …
```

If you scrolled past it, force the question:

```bash
cd <servuo root>
dotnet build Scripts/Scripts.csproj -c Release -p:Platform=x64      # must be 0 errors
```

**b. Ask the shard, in game.** As an Administrator:

```
[bridge status
```

It reports the config plus `connected=True depth=0 sent=… dropped=0 …`. `connected=False` means the
shard cannot reach the sidecar; `dropped` climbing means the sidecar is wedged and the shard is
shedding events rather than stalling — which it is designed to do. `[bridge reload` re-reads
`Bridge.cfg` without a restart; `[bridge sweepnow` forces one pass of every stream.

**c. Ask the sidecar.** `/health` needs no auth, so it is safe to curl from a terminal:

```bash
curl -s http://127.0.0.1:8080/health
{"status":"ok","protocol":3,"plugin_connected":true,"database":"ok","uptime":"2m","last_event":"2026-08-04T18:22:10.412Z"}
```

`plugin_connected: true` is the one that matters — it is the only value in this whole guide that
distinguishes "files copied" from "the bridge works".

**d. Ask the website.** The public site should stop showing the shard as offline, and live events
should appear on the admin dashboard within seconds.

---

## 7. Day two

### `runicgateway doctor`

The command that makes this supportable. Run it before asking anyone for help — its output is the
first thing a maintainer will want.

```
✓ Install record          /etc/runicgateway/install.json  (bundle 2026.08.04, installer 1.0.0, …)
✓ ServUO found            /opt/ServUO  (57.4)
✓ Overlay in sync         24 files, all hashes match install.json
⚠ Patch tier              1 applied — moderation-audit (region-match)
✓ uo-link installed       uo-link-sidecar 1.1.0 (protocol 3)
    config /etc/runicgateway/sidecar.toml   database /var/lib/runicgateway/uo-link.db
✓ Service                 runicgateway-link.service   active, enabled   as runicgateway
✓ Sidecar reachable       127.0.0.1:8080  /health ok, up 6h, database ok
✓ Protocol                sidecar 3 = overlay manifest 3
✗ Shard connected         no — the shard is running (pid 8123) but has not dialed in
✓ Bundle                  2026.08.04 — up to date
✓ Backups                 2026-08-04T09:12:44Z — 3 file(s) replaced by update to bundle 2026.08.04
    3 kept in /etc/runicgateway/backups
```

Rows come from asking the installed sidecar (`--version`, `--print-config`) rather than from reading
`install.json`, so `doctor` reports what the binary would actually do — including which config and
database file the *service* resolves — rather than what the installer believes it was told. The
overlay row compares live file hashes against `install.json`, which is how it tells "you edited a
deployed file" from "the file is gone"; the bundle row is what tells you the overlay upstream has
moved on. Each patched file is re-checked against the cached copy of its patch, so a core upgrade or
a restored backup that quietly removed the tier's edits is caught here — nothing else would notice.

It writes nothing at all, and it is safe to run while the shard is up; that is in fact the only
state in which the last row can be `✓`.

**Reading the marks:**

| | |
|---|---|
| `✓` | as it should be |
| `⚠` | worth knowing, not broken — a stopped shard, a service you never registered, an unpatched tier, or no route to Gitea to check for a newer bundle |
| `✗` | broken. `doctor` exits `1` if any row is `✗`, so it can be run from a monitoring script; a `⚠` never causes that |

The distinction on the last row is worth spelling out: **shard not running** is a `⚠` (start it),
while **shard running and not dialed in** is a `✗` — that is the silent failure this whole guide
warns about, where ServUO reports a clean boot over a script build that failed.

### `runicgateway update`

Re-resolves the bundle and moves both halves to a combination whose protocol versions were checked
together — never to two independently-latest artifacts that may disagree.

- **Sidecar**: download → verify → replace binary → restart service. No shard downtime.
- **Overlay**: download → verify → re-sync → record the new commit → **tell you to restart ServUO.**
  It does not restart your shard.

Your `sidecar.toml`, your `Bridge.cfg` edits and your database are not touched. `Bridge.cfg` is
overwritten only if you have not changed it; a modified copy is reported, not clobbered.

**Anything it does overwrite is copied first.** Every `.cs` file the overlay owns is replaced
unconditionally — that is deliberate, they are code — so if you have edited one, the run saves your
copy under `backups/<timestamp>/` in the state directory before writing, alongside `sidecar.toml`
and any stock ServUO file the patch tier is about to touch. Each backup carries a `manifest.json`
saying where every file came from. The newest three are kept; `--no-backup` skips taking one.

Putting a file back is yours to do — the installer will not restore an old file over a newer
release, because it cannot know what has changed since. A run that overwrites nothing takes no
backup, so a no-op `update` leaves nothing behind.

It updates the ServUO tree `install.json` names — not a tree it detects — and it needs the shard
stopped, exactly as `install` does. There is nothing to update on a host that was never installed;
it says so rather than performing a first install under a verb that promises to preserve.

**Your auth token is not reprinted.** It has not changed and your website already has it. The one
thing an update can change that the site must be told about is the **protocol version**, and it says
so plainly when that happens — a stale number in Admin → Shard is answered with `409` and looks
exactly like your shard going offline.

**The patch tier under `update`:** features you already have are re-checked against the new release
(normally nothing to do), without asking you again — you consented when they were installed, and
that includes a shard where the tier ran unsupported. Features you never took are **named, not
applied**; run `update --patches` (or `install --patches`) to take one up. A shard that declined the
tier stays unpatched through every update.

### `runicgateway uninstall`

Removes what it exclusively owns, and **prints** everything else. The installer cannot know what you
have changed in your own server tree since deployment, so an automatic revert risks silently eating
your work.

| | |
|---|---|
| **Removed** | The sidecar binary, its service entry, `install.json` |
| **Kept** | `sidecar.toml`, `uo-link.db`, the cached patch set with its pre-patch originals, and every backup an upgrade took (`--purge` drops all of them) |
| **Printed, not done** | Every overlay file deployed into your ServUO tree, by path, for you to delete — with any file you have edited since deployment flagged, so you do not delete your own work by mistake |
| **Printed, not done** | The exact hunks each applied patch added to `EventSink.cs`, `PlayerVendorGumps.cs` and `Logging.cs`, for you to revert — with how each landed, since one placed into a file you had already modified is worth a closer look. The pre-patch copy kept under `patches/originals/` is there to diff against. |

It lists all of that **before** asking, and the prompt defaults to **no**. `--yes` proceeds, which is
what an unattended uninstall needs; nothing else about the command is destructive to your shard,
which is neither stopped nor started.

The report is also written to a file — `runicgateway-uninstall-<timestamp>.txt` in the directory you
ran the command from — so it survives the scrollback. That is why the cached patches and the
originals stay behind by default: they are the only offline record of what the tier changed once the
release tarball is gone, and the report tells you to diff against them.

---

## Troubleshooting

| Symptom | Cause and fix |
|---|---|
| **Windows asks for Administrator as soon as you launch it** | Expected, and it needs Administrator anyway. Windows applies *installer detection* to unsigned executables whose file name contains `install` and elevates them before the program starts. Run it from an already-elevated PowerShell and you will not see the prompt. |
| **"ServUO is running — stop it before installing"** | Correct, and not overridable. `ServUO.exe` locks `Scripts.dll` and rewrites `Saves/` on exit; deploying underneath it corrupts one or both. Stop the shard, install, start it again. |
| Shard boots clean but nothing reaches the site | The classic silent failure: ServUO ignores the script build's exit code and reloaded a **stale `Scripts.dll`**. Run `dotnet build Scripts/Scripts.csproj -c Release -p:Platform=x64` and read the errors it prints. |
| `[bridge status` says `connected=False` | The sidecar is not listening on `127.0.0.1:7788`. Check the service is running, and that `[shard] bind` in `sidecar.toml` matches `Host`/`Port` in `Bridge.cfg`. |
| `[bridge` is not a command | The plugin did not compile, or `Bridge.cfg` has the bridge disabled. See the row above. |
| Website says the shard is offline; `/health` is fine locally | The website cannot reach port 8080 — bind address or firewall. See [§5](#if-your-website-is-on-a-different-machine). Note that the site is *designed* to render normally with the shard offline, so this fails quietly by design. |
| Website logs `409` from the sidecar | Protocol mismatch: the number in Admin → Shard does not match the sidecar's. The sidecar rejects rather than mis-parsing. Set the field to what `/health` reports (`protocol`). If the *sidecar* and *overlay* disagree, you have a hand-assembled pair — reinstall from a bundle. |
| `401` from the sidecar | Wrong or missing auth token. Read the live one back with `uo-link-sidecar --print-config --config <path>`; do not retype it from a screenshot. |
| **"service NOT REGISTERED" at the end of an otherwise successful run** | The host has no service manager the installer can drive — most often no systemd (a container, or a distro that never had it), or the `runicgateway` user could not be created. The binary and config *are* installed; the run prints the exact unit and commands to finish by hand. It never falls back to running the service as root or `LocalSystem`. |
| **Windows: `sc start` fails with 1053, "the service did not respond in a timely fashion"** | Almost always a **sidecar older than v1.2.0**, which cannot start as a service no matter how correct its config. 1053 is a handshake failure, not a crash: Windows waited 30 seconds for the process to identify itself to the service control manager, and a sidecar built before service support was added never does. Check with `"C:\Program Files\RunicGateway\uo-link-sidecar.exe" --version`. Tell-tale signs: `sc query` shows `SERVICE_EXIT_CODE : 0` (nothing crashed), and running the same binary in the foreground with the same `--config` works perfectly. |
| Service registered but stops immediately | Distinct from 1053 above — here the process really did exit. On Windows read `%ProgramData%\RunicGateway\uo-link-sidecar.<date>.log`, which is where a service logs since it has no stdout, and check that `sc qc RunicGatewayLink` shows `--config` in `BINARY_PATH_NAME` and that `NT SERVICE\RunicGatewayLink` has read access to `sidecar.toml`; on Linux check the `runicgateway` user can read `/etc/runicgateway/sidecar.toml` and write `/var/lib/runicgateway/`, and read `journalctl -u runicgateway-link`. |
| A patch will not apply | Expected on a hand-modified shard. The base install is unaffected; you lose only the two features in [§4](#4-the-patch-tier-optional). Apply the hunks by hand if you want them. |
| `vendor.sale` events never arrive despite patching | The `EventSink.cs` patch is a **core** change. A shard restart is not enough — rebuild the solution (`dotnet build ServUO.sln`). |
| Sidecar writes its database somewhere unexpected | A relative `[store] path` resolves against the directory holding `sidecar.toml` — not the working directory. Run `--print-config` to see the absolute path it will actually use. |
| Token leaked into a log or a screenshot | Clear `[web] auth_token` in `sidecar.toml`, restart the service (a new token is generated and saved), read it back with `--print-config`, and re-save it in Admin → Shard. |

---

## Appendix A — installing by hand

This is what the installer automates, done by hand. It is a **supported path**, not a deprecated
one — reach for it when the host cannot run the binary, when you would rather not run an unsigned
one, when you want to place every file yourself, or when you are developing on the bridge and
installing from a working tree instead of a release. It is also the reference for what
[§2](#2-run-it) does under the hood.

For a normal shard, [the installer](#1-download-and-verify) is fewer steps and checks more.

Throughout: `<servuo>` is your ServUO root, and **the shard is stopped**.

### A1. Fetch the bundle (so you install a checked pair)

```bash
curl -s https://gitea.whitlocktech.com/RunicGateway/installer/raw/branch/bundles/current.json
```

It names the sidecar tag, the overlay tag, their agreed `protocol`, and the SHA256 of every asset.
Use those versions together; that pairing is the only thing CI has verified.

### A2. Deploy the plugin overlay

```bash
curl -LO https://gitea.whitlocktech.com/RunicGateway/servuo-plugins/releases/download/v0.1.1/runicgateway-overlay-0.1.1.tar.gz
curl -LO https://gitea.whitlocktech.com/RunicGateway/servuo-plugins/releases/download/v0.1.1/SHA256SUMS
sha256sum -c SHA256SUMS --ignore-missing        # must say: OK

tar xzf runicgateway-overlay-0.1.1.tar.gz       # → runicgateway-overlay/
cd runicgateway-overlay
cat manifest.json                               # version, commit, protocol, per-file hashes

cp -r overlay/. <servuo>/                       # adds files; overwrites Scripts/Scripts.csproj
```

On Windows, `Expand-Archive` does not read `.tar.gz`; use `tar.exe` (shipped with Windows 10+) and
`Copy-Item -Recurse -Force`. Plugin developers have `deploy.ps1` in the source repo, which does the
same copy with a hash diff and a `-Verify` dry run — it is not shipped in the tarball.

The overlay only ever **adds or overwrites**. Nothing in your tree is deleted.

*Optional — the patch tier* (stock ServUO 57.4 only; see `patches/README.md` in the tarball for the
full explanation):

```bash
cd <servuo>
git apply --check patches/playervendor-sale-eventsink.patch patches/playervendor-sale-gump.patch
git apply         patches/playervendor-sale-eventsink.patch patches/playervendor-sale-gump.patch
cp patches/BridgeVendorSale.cs Scripts/Custom/Bridge/
dotnet build ServUO.sln          # REQUIRED — EventSink.cs is a core file

git apply --check patches/commandlogging-event.patch
git apply         patches/commandlogging-event.patch
cp patches/BridgeModerationAudit.cs Scripts/Custom/Bridge/
```

`git apply` works in a plain directory — the shard does not need to be a git repo. If you use
`patch` instead, note that some core files are CRLF while others are LF: use `patch --binary`.

**If `git apply` refuses a patch whose target region is visibly untouched, line endings are the
usual cause** — the `.patch` files and their targets do not all use the same ones, and `git apply`
compares them literally. The installer's own tier normalizes line endings and trailing whitespace
for the *comparison* while writing back your file's own endings, which is why it can place patches
`git apply` rejects. Running the installer is the easier route here.

### A3. Install the sidecar

On an arm64 host substitute `uo-link-sidecar-linux-aarch64` for the asset name below (`uname -m`
says `aarch64`); releases from v1.2.0 carry both. Take the version from the bundle you fetched in
A1 rather than the one written here.

```bash
curl -LO https://gitea.whitlocktech.com/RunicGateway/link/releases/download/v1.1.0/uo-link-sidecar-linux-x86_64
curl -LO https://gitea.whitlocktech.com/RunicGateway/link/releases/download/v1.1.0/SHA256SUMS
sha256sum -c SHA256SUMS --ignore-missing

sudo install -m 0755 uo-link-sidecar-linux-x86_64 /usr/bin/runicgateway-link
sudo mkdir -p /etc/runicgateway /var/lib/runicgateway
```

Provision the config and read back the token in one step. `--print-config` writes the file if it is
missing, generates the auth token if there is none, and prints the resolved settings as JSON — it is
the supported alternative to scraping the startup log:

```bash
sudo UOLINK_DB_PATH=/var/lib/runicgateway/uo-link.db \
     /usr/bin/runicgateway-link --print-config --config /etc/runicgateway/sidecar.toml
```

```json
{
  "component": "uo-link-sidecar",
  "version": "1.1.0",
  "protocol": 3,
  "config_path": "/etc/runicgateway/sidecar.toml",
  "config_created": true,
  "token_generated": true,
  "shard": { "bind": "127.0.0.1:7788" },
  "web": {
    "bind": "127.0.0.1:8080",
    "ws_path": "/ws",
    "auth_required": true,
    "auth_token": "4f9c…"
  },
  "store": { "path": "/var/lib/runicgateway/uo-link.db" }
}
```

`config_created` and `token_generated` tell you whether *this* run provisioned anything — the values
alone cannot distinguish a fresh install from a re-read. **The output contains the auth token in
clear text**: keep it out of shell transcripts, logs and support bundles.

### A4. Register the service

**Linux** — `/etc/systemd/system/runicgateway-link.service`:

```ini
[Unit]
Description=Runic Gateway uo-link sidecar
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=runicgateway
Environment=UOLINK_CONFIG=/etc/runicgateway/sidecar.toml
Environment=UOLINK_DB_PATH=/var/lib/runicgateway/uo-link.db
ExecStart=/usr/bin/runicgateway-link
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=5

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
```

```bash
sudo useradd --system --no-create-home runicgateway
sudo chown -R runicgateway /var/lib/runicgateway /etc/runicgateway
sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable --now runicgateway-link
systemctl status runicgateway-link
```

**Windows** (elevated PowerShell) — binary under `%ProgramFiles%`, data under `%ProgramData%`:

```powershell
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force "$env:ProgramFiles\RunicGateway", "$env:ProgramData\RunicGateway" | Out-Null
Copy-Item .\uo-link-sidecar-windows-x86_64.exe "$env:ProgramFiles\RunicGateway\uo-link-sidecar.exe"

& "$env:ProgramFiles\RunicGateway\uo-link-sidecar.exe" --print-config --config "$env:ProgramData\RunicGateway\sidecar.toml"

# The config file now holds your auth token. Lock it down before anything else can read it:
icacls "$env:ProgramData\RunicGateway\sidecar.toml" /inheritance:r /grant:r '*S-1-5-18:(F)' /grant:r '*S-1-5-32-544:(F)'

# binPath carries the config path. The single quotes matter: the value itself contains the double
# quotes the service manager needs around a path with spaces in it.
sc.exe create RunicGatewayLink `
  binPath= '"C:\Program Files\RunicGateway\uo-link-sidecar.exe" --config "C:\ProgramData\RunicGateway\sidecar.toml"' `
  obj= 'NT SERVICE\RunicGatewayLink' start= auto
sc.exe failure RunicGatewayLink reset= 86400 actions= restart/5000

# The service account exists only once sc create has created it, so its grants come after:
icacls "$env:ProgramData\RunicGateway\sidecar.toml" /grant 'NT SERVICE\RunicGatewayLink:(R)'
icacls "$env:ProgramData\RunicGateway"              /grant 'NT SERVICE\RunicGatewayLink:(OI)(CI)M'

sc.exe start RunicGatewayLink
```

Four things there are easy to get wrong:

- **The sidecar must be v1.2.0 or newer.** Earlier builds are plain console programs, and the
  Windows service control manager cannot supervise one: it waits 30 seconds for the process to
  identify itself, then fails the start with **1053** even though the process is running and healthy.
  From v1.2.0 the same binary does both — started by the SCM it runs as a service, started from a
  shell it runs in the foreground, with no flag to choose between them.
- **The config path goes in `binPath`, not in a machine environment variable.** `sc.exe` has no
  per-service environment, and a machine-wide `UOLINK_CONFIG` would be inherited by every process on
  the host and survive an uninstall. Never leave the config path to the default — it is relative to
  the service's working directory, which for a service is `%SystemRoot%\System32`.
- **The database needs no pinning here.** A relative `[store] path` resolves against the directory
  holding `sidecar.toml`, which is already `%ProgramData%\RunicGateway`.
- **`obj=` is what keeps this off `LocalSystem`.** `NT SERVICE\RunicGatewayLink` is a virtual
  service account: Windows creates it with the service, it has no password, and it exists only for
  this service. Omit `obj=` and you get the most privileged local identity there is, for a process
  listening on two TCP ports.

Once it is running, `%ProgramData%\RunicGateway\uo-link-sidecar.<date>.log` is where it logs — a
service has no console to write to. Seven days are kept.

### A5. Connect the website, start the shard, verify

Exactly as in [§5](#5-connect-the-website) and [§6](#6-start-servuo-and-verify): paste the four
values into Admin → Shard, start ServUO, then check `[bridge status` in game and `/health` on the
sidecar.

### A6. Updating by hand

Re-read `current.json`, and if either version moved: replace the sidecar binary and restart its
service; re-extract the overlay tarball over your tree and restart ServUO. Keep the two in step —
`current.json` is the only statement that a given pair speaks the same protocol.

---

## Appendix B — `sidecar.toml` reference

Written on first run with a generated token. Environment variables override the file; the file
overrides these defaults.

```toml
[shard]
bind = "127.0.0.1:7788"     # where the SHARD dials in. Keep this on loopback.

[web]
bind = "127.0.0.1:8080"     # where the WEBSITE connects. Widen only with a firewall in front.
auth_token = "…"            # generated if blank; the website's Admin → Shard "Auth token"

[store]
path = "uo-link.db"         # relative paths resolve against this file's directory, not the CWD
```

| Environment variable | Overrides |
|---|---|
| `UOLINK_CONFIG` | Which config file to read (`--config <PATH>` outranks it) |
| `UOLINK_SHARD_BIND` | `[shard] bind` |
| `UOLINK_WEB_BIND` | `[web] bind` |
| `UOLINK_WEB_TOKEN` | `[web] auth_token` |
| `UOLINK_DB_PATH` | `[store] path` |

| Sidecar command | Output |
|---|---|
| `uo-link-sidecar --version` | `uo-link-sidecar 1.1.0 (protocol 3)` |
| `uo-link-sidecar --print-config [--config PATH]` | The JSON in [A3](#a3-install-the-sidecar). Provisions on first run. **Contains the token.** |
| `uo-link-sidecar --help` | Usage. An unrecognized argument exits `2` rather than starting a sidecar you did not ask for. |

Authentication is **always on**: a blank token is generated and written back, so the web surface is
never unauthenticated. `/health` is the one unauthenticated route, so monitoring can reach it.

---

## Appendix C — `Config/Bridge.cfg` settings worth reviewing

The file is deployed heavily commented and every setting has a working default — you can leave it
entirely alone. These are the ones most shards want to look at once. Run `[bridge reload` after
editing; endpoint changes take effect on the next reconnect.

| Setting | Default | Why you might change it |
|---|---|---|
| `LinkUrl` | `https://yoursite/link` | Shown in game when a player runs `[link` to connect their account. **Set this to your site.** |
| `PublicConnectAddress` | *(blank)* | The one connection detail the bridge will publish, e.g. `play.myshard.com,2593`. Blank omits it; `Server.cfg`'s address is **never** published automatically. |
| `AdminWriteEnabled` | `false` | Opt-in staff write plane: kick/ban/broadcast from the website. Authorization is enforced on the website; `AdminAccessFloor` is the shard-side floor that even a compromised sidecar cannot cross. |
| `MarketEnabled`, `MarketSweepSeconds`, `MarketSweepBatch` | `true`, `60`, `25` | The player-vendor index. Coverage takes `ceil(vendors / batch) × seconds` — 500 vendors is one full pass every 20 minutes at the defaults. |
| `PointsLeaderboardEnabled`, `PointsTopN`, `PointsSystems` | `true`, `10`, *(all shown on the loyalty gump)* | Standings boards. One frame **per system**, and ServUO carries ~25 of them, so a large `TopN` multiplies. |
| `RulesetEnabled`, `RulesetIncludeSchedule` | `true`, `true` | Publishes your ruleset (expansion, caps, systems on/off) to the site's rules page. Turn the schedule off if you would rather not advertise a predictable restart window. |
| `SignupMode` | `hybrid` | Which side may mint accounts — `website`, `game`, or `hybrid`. Pair `website` with `Accounts.AutoCreateAccounts=false`, or an in-game login still creates accounts. |
| `QueueCap` | `10000` | Outbound queue cap. On overflow the plugin **drops oldest** and counts drops, because a stalled sidecar must never take the shard down with it. |

Sweep intervals (`StatSweepSeconds`, `DecaySweepSeconds`, `EconomySweepSeconds`, and the rest) trade
freshness against Core-thread time. The measured cost is small — a vitals sweep is 0.0015 ms per
character, so 1000 online players is ~1.5 ms per pass — but there is rarely anything to gain by
hurrying them.

---

## Where to go next

| Doc | What |
|---|---|
| [PLAN.md](PLAN.md) | The installer's design of record — phases, locked decisions, the bundle model |
| [`bundles/README.md`](https://gitea.whitlocktech.com/RunicGateway/installer/src/branch/main/bundles/README.md) | The compat matrix: what a bundle is and how it is composed |
| [link/INTEGRATION.md](../link/INTEGRATION.md) | The sidecar's HTTP/WS API — for anyone integrating something other than the website |
| [link/ADMIN_CONTROLS.md](../link/ADMIN_CONTROLS.md) | The staff write plane in detail, before you turn `AdminWriteEnabled` on |
| [website/SHARD_VISIBILITY.md](../website/SHARD_VISIBILITY.md) | Which shard data each audience sees, configured on the website |
| [link/SHARD_PREREQS.md](../link/SHARD_PREREQS.md) | A worked example of diagnosing a shard whose scripts silently stopped compiling |
