LlamaCasty/TASKS/task-48-distribution-msix.md

# TASK 48 — Distribution & packaging: route decision, MSIX, signing

> ⛔ **THE ROUTE IN THIS FILE IS SUPERSEDED — 2026-10-31.** Distribution is **direct download from
> `llamacasty.com` (GitHub Releases) + winget primary**; **Steam and the Microsoft Store are parked**,
> third and fourth. Store IAP is not the billing path — **Polar** is, and the paid delta is output
> quality. Live policy: [`docs/ai/commercial.md`](../docs/ai/commercial.md); mechanics:
> [`Distribution.md`](../Distribution.md); cause of death: [`docs/ai/decisions.md`](../docs/ai/decisions.md).
> The MSIX build steps below are still accurate and remain the parked Store channel's artifact.

> Catalog: [`TASKS.md`](../TASKS.md) — status and requirements live here.
> **Research: [`TASKS/research-store-certification.md`](research-store-certification.md)** — the "why".
> Carved out of TASK 36 item 6 (release engineering) on 2026-09-27 so distribution has one
> owner instead of three scattered mentions.

**Status:** ⏸ **DEFERRED 2026-10-26 (creator ruling) — revisit near v1, not now.** This file is the
record of what was decided and built, not an active queue: the remaining programming work is far
from release and a complete UX redesign comes first. See `TASKS.md` → Open items → the ⏸ TASK 48
bullet for exactly what is frozen (items 6-8, signing, updater, and the route contradiction against
`ai.md`). Do not start or re-litigate any of it before that revisit.

**Historical status:** 🔶 In progress — **✅ ROUTE DECIDED 2026-09-27: Microsoft Store MSIX + Store IAP.**
Polar is deleted; every licensing subsystem goes with it.

**Goal:** get LlamaCasty in front of a user without a SmartScreen scarewall, ideally without
an annual certificate bill, and without breaking recording, capture, or audio.

---

## 0. ✅ THE DECISION — Microsoft Store, MSIX, Store IAP (creator ruling 2026-09-27)

**Creator's stated criteria, verbatim: "zero headaches, minimal maintenance (for me) while
still providing accountability and a reasonably easy upgrade flow."**

**Ruling: distribute as an MSIX package through the Microsoft Store, and take payment through
Store IAP.** All four criteria are satisfied by the same mechanism:

| Criterion | How MSIX + Store IAP satisfies it |
|---|---|
| Zero headaches | **$0/yr** — Microsoft holds the signing certificate, the reputation, and the installer. No cert, no HSM, no annual renewal, no SmartScreen ramp |
| Minimal maintenance | Microsoft handles **updates**, **payments**, **entitlements**, **refunds**, and **customer support**. Nothing to run |
| Accountability | Microsoft reviews every submission — that *is* the accountability layer, and it is a real one |
| Easy upgrade flow | Store auto-update. **Velopack, the update URL, and the DO droplet all go** |

### The consequence that makes this cheap: the entire licensing subsystem is deleted

Choosing Store IAP over Store+Polar is what makes "minimal maintenance" real. Keeping Polar
would have left the creator maintaining a licensing backend, a customer portal, activation
limits, and an offline-grace machine — the exact burden the ruling was made to avoid.

**Dead code / deleted concepts (TASK 10 is now a teardown, not a build):**
- `Services/PolarLicenseService.cs` — HTTP validation, the swallowed network failures, the
  ignored `expires_at`
- `Helpers/PolarLicense.cs` — the record type
- `ViewModels/MainViewModel.License.cs` — `PremiumUrl`, the customer portal, the
  `OfflineGracePeriod = 14 days` subscription-era artifact, renewal/lapse copy
- `Controls/OverlayHost.xaml` — the incorrect "Polar unlocks alerts" copy resolves itself
- `ytLive.csproj:92` Velopack `PackageReference` + `App.xaml.cs:3,38-46` — see item 3
- The `MONETIZATION.md` provider sections (gitignored — local file)

**What replaces it:** `IsPremium` is derived from the **Store entitlement** instead of a
remote HTTP call. One bit, locally cached, refreshed by the OS. The offline-grace machine
disappears because the OS supplies license state — and with it the whole class of
"network flaky → app thinks I'm expired" bugs.

⚠️ **The watermarks posture is unchanged:** free gets everything; the branding flash stays the
ONLY paid delta (TASK 36 item 2). Store IAP changes how the bit is *obtained*, never what it
*gates*.

### Still to verify (does not block packaging work)

- ☑ **Current Store revenue-share terms — VERIFIED 15%, subscriptions included.** Read from the
  ADA v8.10 PDF (downloaded and text-extracted), §6(b): 15% for Apps and their In-App Products
  *not listed in* 6(b)(iii); 12% is Games-only; 30% is Xbox console / Xbox non-subscription IAP /
  Windows 8. LlamaCasty is a Windows PC App, so **6(b)(i) 15% governs** ⇒ `$8.50/mo` net,
  `$340` lifetime net. The agreement's own changelog (v8.0, Oct 26 2017) states it plainly:
  *"implement the 85/15 revenue share for non-Game subscriptions."* Smaller-indie better rates
  were **not** found in the standard terms. Microsoft also requires that any IAP products and
  their pricing be declared in Partner Center.
- ☑ **Store IAP tier shape — ✅ DECIDED 2026-09-27: `$10/mo` subscription + `$400` lifetime,
  no annual.** Declare **two** products in Partner Center: one auto-renewing monthly
  subscription, one non-expiring lifetime IAP. ⛔ **No `.99` prices** (settled). ⛔ **No annual
  product** — Microsoft does not pro-rate: *"monthly subscriptions and initial (pre-renewal)
  purchases aren't eligible for a prorated refund"*, so an annual sub cancelled in year 1
  forfeits the remainder **and the developer cannot refund it**. Net after the 15% Store Fee
  (verified, §6(b)(i) — applies to non-Game subscriptions too): **`$8.50/mo` and `$340`**.
  Note ADA §6(h): we must fulfil the subscription for the whole period, and **raising the price
  disables auto-renew** — so `$10` is effectively locked for the product's life. ⛔ A discounted
  subscriber→lifetime upgrade SKU is **not** approved; do not declare one.
- ☐ Individual vs Company Partner Center account (10.8.3 / 10.14 — see
  `research-store-certification.md` §11 item 1). **Get this right before enrolling**; a
  Store+IAP product needing financial info for primary functionality would require Company,
  but a free product with a paid upgrade tier is the normal consumer shape and is fine on an
  individual account.

---

## 1. ☑ Bundle ffmpeg instead of downloading it — **SHIPPED 2026-09-28**

**This is item 1 because it is genuinely first** — it fixes a user-facing failure on its own and is a hard certification gate.

`Services/Encoder/FfmpegLocator.cs` used to pin a GitHub release URL, download it on first run,
extract it, and execute the result. On a cold cache the app downloaded an unsigned executable from
the internet and ran it.

- **Store blocker:** policy 10.2.2 forbids dynamic code inclusion (download-and-execute).
- **Route-independent bug class:** the previous daily pin aged out of GitHub retention and
  **404'd on the first real recording attempt (2026-09-01)**. Bundling kills this permanently and
  removes the startup network dependency.

**What shipped (2026-09-28, `eb0dd91` docs + this unit):**
- `scripts/fetch-ffmpeg.sh` — populates `./ffmpeg` from a pinned month-end BtbN LGPL-shared
  artifact, **SHA-256 verified before extraction**, idempotent, `FFMPEG_ZIP=` override. The
  binaries are **gitignored** (135 MB of DLLs would tax every commit on the 9p tree); the pinned
  URL + SHA-256 are the audit trail the LGPL written-offer actually needs.
- `ytLive.csproj` — copies `ffmpeg\**` to the output with `CopyToPublishDirectory="Always"` (the
  MSIX one), plus a **`GuardBundledFfmpeg` target that fails the build** if the folder is missing,
  so a fresh clone finds out before a take rather than during one.
- `FfmpegLocator` — downloader, zip extraction, and the `%APPDATA%\ytLlive\tools` cache are all
  **gone**. Order is now **bundle → PATH** (deliberately inverted from "the user's install wins":
  a PATH ffmpeg may be a different major version or a GPL build). A missing bundle throws a loud
  `IOException` naming the folder and the fetch script — the "found something on disk" path that
  could mask a missing bundle is deliberately deleted.
- `ffplay.exe` (18 MB) is **not** shipped; nothing calls it.
- `THIRD-PARTY-NOTICES.txt` — "downloads" → "bundled" throughout, and the stale build tag
  `autobuild-2026-08-09-13-03` (**the tag that 404'd**) corrected to `autobuild-2026-08-31-13-27`
  with the exact artifact name and archive SHA-256 recorded. OpenH264 item made precise: it is
  **compiled into `avcodec-63.dll`**, not a separate binary.

**Immutable tag (licensing rule):** `autobuild-2026-08-31-13-27`, artifact
`ffmpeg-N-126342-gf88b741dbf-win64-lgpl-shared.zip`, SHA-256
`46ea6521ed3877689d2ff0bd03640ac2637104415f6237d42625d13408767146`. The URL is now a **provenance
record, not a runtime fetch**. Month-end on purpose: BtbN keeps ~14 dailies but month-end builds
~2 years — a daily pin is what aged out.

**Licensing:** the LGPL-shared build was chosen for LGPL §6 compliance (dynamic linking =
"license text + source offer"). That reasoning is **unaffected**, and the notices now cover the
bundled copy explicitly.

**Tests (16 facts, `FfmpegLocatorTests`, suite 379/379):** the Good Dog integration test walks the
real build output, asserts the 9 files ship, resolves via the locator with an empty PATH, and
**executes `ffmpeg -version`** — running it is the part that matters, because a shared build only
starts if every `libav*.dll` is a sibling. Plus: bundle-over-PATH, PATH fallback, zero-byte bundle,
the loud failure, `TheBuildRefusesToCompileWithoutTheBundle`, and
`TheLocatorCarriesNoNetworkCapability` — a source-level fact that no `HttpClient`/URL/downloader
can reappear, so 10.2.2 cannot rot back.

**Answering "were there other 3p binaries needing bundling?" (verified 2026-09-28): no.** ffmpeg was
the only download-and-execute. `e_sqlite3.dll` + `WebView2Loader.dll` already ship via NuGet into
`runtimes\win-x64\native\`; OpenH264 is inside `avcodec-63.dll`; everything else is managed. The two
real gaps are **not** bundling problems: the **WebView2 Evergreen runtime** is a machine prerequisite
(item 2's manifest dependency + a graceful-failure path), and **Velopack's updater downloads and
executes** — its teardown (item 3) is a compliance action, not just cleanup.

---

## 2. ✅ `Package.appxmanifest` — full trust, camera, microphone (DONE 2026-10-22)

There was **no `.manifest` file in the repo at all**, so this was purely additive.

**Shipped:** `Packaging/Package.appxmanifest` + `Packaging/Assets/` (the four logo tiles) +
`scripts/package-msix.sh` (publish → stage → `makeappx pack`, optional `signtool` via
`MSIX_PFX`). The first real package was built on 2026-10-22: **`Package creation succeeded`,
159 MB, 509 files** in `artifacts/LlamaCasty.msix` (gitignored). The logos are generated from
the app's own artwork by `scripts/make-store-logos.py`, so listing art and app art cannot drift.

- `rescap:Capability Name="runFullTrust"` — medium integrity, not AppContainer
- `DeviceCapability` **webcam** and **microphone**
- `uap10:TrustLevel="mediumIL"` and `uap10:RuntimeBehavior="packagedClassicApp"` on
  `<Application>` — the latter is what allows launching package executables (the bundled
  ffmpeg) as child processes
- **English only** (`<Resource Language="en-US"/>`) — 10.7: otherwise the description must be
  localized into every declared language
- Block map SHA2-256 is generated by `makeappx`; no `StoreManifest` is needed for a plain
  MSIX submission; 159 MB is far under the 25 GB cap
- **x64 only** (creator ruling 2026-10-09 — `PlatformTarget=x64` already in both csproj files):
  `ProcessorArchitecture="x64"`, published `-r win-x64 --self-contained` so only the win-x64
  native folders ship (an RID-less build copies every RID's ONNX Runtime native, ~17 MB each)
  and the package carries its own .NET runtime. Store listing system requirements:
  "64-bit Windows 10 or 11".

**Do NOT use `appContainer`** — see the invariant in item 6.

**Schema gotchas found the hard way** (the packer rejects the manifest, one error at a time):
`Square310x310Logo` and `Wide310x150Logo` are **NOT** attributes of `uap:VisualElements` in the
Windows 10 schema — they belong on `<uap:DefaultTile>`, a child of `VisualElements`. And
`Assert.DoesNotContain("appContainer", manifest.ToString())` fails on the manifest's own
comment: guard the **attribute values**, not the file text.

**Guard:** `ytLive.Tests/StorePackagingTests.The_package_manifest_declares_full_trust_camera_and_microphone`
— identity (x64), full-trust application element, the three capabilities, no `appContainer`
value, en-US only, and every referenced logo exists in `Packaging/` (makeappx refuses to pack
otherwise).

## 3. ✅ Remove Velopack — 3 edit sites (DONE 2026-10-22)

The Store handles updates, so this is simply **deleted**. Trivially removable; the code was
written defensively for exactly this.

- `ytLive.csproj:92` — `<PackageReference Include="Velopack" Version="1.2.0" />` — **REMOVED**
- `App.xaml.cs:3` — `using Velopack;` — **REMOVED**
- `App.xaml.cs:38-46` — the sole call site (already try/caught and commented
  "(non-fatal) … when no URL is set, the check is a no-op") — **REMOVED**

**Guard:** `ytLive.Tests/StorePackagingTests.cs` — the ONE test asserts the app project
references no updater package (Velopack/Squirrel/NetSparkle/AutoUpdater/WinSparkle) and that no
app source file uses the updater API (matched as CODE — a `using` directive, a type usage — not
as a bare word, so a file's prose may still name what it deliberately does not do). The app was
smoke-tested after the removal: `MainWindow loaded`, no exceptions.

**Retires:** the pending "Velopack update URL" item (`TASKS.md` open items,
`task-10-monetization.md:43`) and the self-hosted DigitalOcean droplet.

## 4. ☐ Windows App Certification Kit

Run before submission. Technical compliance is tested by WACK; it is not optional. Known
relevant check: the app must start promptly, stay responsive, and shut down gracefully
(10.4.2).

## 5. ☐ Certification notes + the three documentation artifacts

**In Partner Center (submission):**

- ☐ **The IARC age-rating questionnaire** (10.11.1) — general audience, 12+ territory
- ☐ **A working YouTube demo account** (10.3.1) — the app is useless to a reviewer without one.
  Must be a real, maintained account able to sign in and start a stream; a dead or
  credentials-lapsed account is a rejection. ⛔ **This was accidentally dropped from this list**
  during the Store-IAP edit — it is in `research-store-certification.md` §4 and must be done.
- ☐ **Declare the IAP products and their pricing** in Partner Center (required for Store IAP).
  ⛔ **No `.99` prices** — creator ruling, and incoherent for a no-dark-patterns brand. Confirm
  the **net** after the revenue share, not the list.
- ☐ Note that the product is **general audience, not directed at under-13s**
- ☐ The 11.12 UGC position is **less load-bearing now that Polar is gone** — the strong part of
  the original argument was "we render transiently, persist nothing, and provide no
  user-to-user communication surface," which is *unaffected*. State it in full anyway; the
  reasoning and the Q1-2026 YouTube enforcement numbers are in
  `research-store-certification.md` §9
- ☐ The **YouTube age-gate argument** — the operator is 13+ by construction (§8)

**On `llamachile.shop`:**

- ☐ **Privacy policy** (10.5.1 — mandatory for Win32/Desktop Bridge). Must state: camera/mic
  access is user-directed and OS-gated; **no retention** of chat or reward payloads; no
  viewer data collected; **ffmpeg is bundled and nothing is fetched at runtime**
- ☐ **Code of conduct + content guidelines** (11.12 / 11.15)
- ☐ Confirm `THIRD-PARTY-NOTICES.txt` covers the bundled LGPL ffmpeg build

**In Partner Center (listing):**

- ☐ Title is exactly **`LlamaCasty`** — 10.1.1 forbids marketing text or extraneous keywords
- ☐ Search terms: max 7, no pricing terms, and **no other product titles** (10.1.3 — cannot
  list `OBS` or `StreamYard`)
- ☐ Real listing content — 10.1.4 requires an active, substantive presence
- ☐ Review the **Individual vs Company** account question before enrolling

## 6. ☐ The full-trust recording invariant — **comment lands WITH this work**

`ViewModels/MainViewModel.Recording.cs:173-179` (`DefaultRecordFolder()`) writes to
`%USERPROFILE%\Downloads` or `SpecialFolder.MyVideos`; `ChooseRecordFolder()` (line 151)
uses `Microsoft.Win32.OpenFolderDialog`; the temp-write-then-move lifecycle stays in one
directory (line 131-132).

**This works only because the package is full trust.** At `mediumIL`, user-profile writes
pass through unvirtualized and `OpenFolderDialog` is an ordinary Win32 browser with no
capability token. No `broadFileSystemAccess` needed.

⚠️ **If anyone flips the manifest to `appContainer`, recording silently breaks** —
`Directory.CreateDirectory` and `File.Move` start resolving to a per-package virtualized
location and output vanishes.

**Add a comment at `DefaultRecordFolder()` in this task, not before.** A comment describing
a manifest that does not exist is worse than no comment.

**Also verify on a real packaged build** before trusting it with recordings — the docs say
full trust passes writes through, but that is worth confirming with an actual package
identity rather than an unpackaged run.

## 7. ☐ Confirm the disqualifiers stay clear after packaging

All four are currently clear (verified by grep 2026-09-27) — re-verify once the packaging
project exists:

- No Windows driver installed (we consume DShow filters, we do not install one)
- No per-user Windows service
- No elevation / `requireAdministrator` / UAC manifest
- No shell extension, no in-process module loading by outside processes, no jump list

## 8. ☐ Pre-submission gates

- ☐ 0 warnings, full suite green
- ☐ **Vertical-recording path verified end-to-end** (compositor tier is proven by
  `Render_VerticalTier_Outputs_1080x1920_From_The_Center_Crop`; the *record* path has never
  been exercised — `Services/Pump/FramePump.cs:645` flags off-size tiers as a known
  follow-up)
- ☐ **The real-output confirmation** the creator has been doing manually
- ☐ Camera/mic/wasapi capture verified **from the packaged build**, not just unpackaged
- ☐ Clean uninstall verified (10.2.7)
- ☐ Notification-disabled path leaves the app functional (10.9)

---

## Not in this task (deliberately)

- **Velopack hardening / obfuscation / assembly splitting** — stays a GA-time decision per
  TASK 36 item 6's agreed ceiling. Compile flags max at `HARDENED` + `MOCK_REWARDS`,
  additive-only.
- **EULA draft/review and the THIRD-PARTY-NOTICES gate** — stay in TASK 36 item 6.
- **Vertical-canvas feature work** — the feature exists; only the *record-path test* above
  is missing.
- **macOS / Avalonia port** — deferred; would be a second app, not a port.