# FlintTrade on Windows

> FlintTrade `v0.0.1` is not production ready; use Practice and example data
> before connecting any live broker workflow.

Everything below runs in stock **Windows PowerShell 5.1** — no WSL, no Git
Bash, no make. Two Windows notes that apply to every command on this page:

- Windows PowerShell 5.1 has **no `&&` operator**. Put each command on its own
  line, or separate them with `;`.
- `make` is not installed on Windows. Use the cross-platform runner instead:
  `python scripts/ft.py <start|stop|restart|status|dev|setup|test|lint|clean|version|help|desktop-test|desktop-build|desktop-package|desktop-dev>`.
  After an install, the shim makes the same subcommands available as
  `flinttrade <subcommand>`. `make <target>` is the POSIX alias only.

## One-line install (recommended — no prerequisites)

The web-app installer needs nothing pre-installed: no Python, no Node, no git
and no make. Open a normal (non-Administrator) Windows PowerShell window and
run:

```powershell
irm https://flinttrade.vercel.app/web-install.ps1 | iex
```

It downloads a pinned, checksum-verified toolchain (`uv`, Python 3.14, Node and
pnpm) into `~\.flinttrade\tools`, builds FlintTrade from a managed source
checkout at `~\.flinttrade\web-src\FlintTrade`, and installs a launcher at
`%LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\FlintTradeWeb\flinttrade-web.cmd` plus a **FlintTrade
Web** Start Menu shortcut. The Electron desktop shell owns
`%LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\FlintTrade` and its own Start Menu entry, so the two
installs never collide and can be run in either order.
The install is per-user — **no admin rights needed**. An elevated Administrator
PowerShell window is refused before installation begins.

### If the site is unreachable (repo-direct fallback)

Use this whenever the command above fails: the hosted URL is only a redirect to
the script in this repository, and a site outage or a deployment without an
immutable source commit answers `503` instead of the installer. This form
fetches the same script straight from GitHub and depends on no deployment:

```powershell
irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/navaneeshnagarajan/FlintTrade/main/scripts/install/flinttrade-web-install.ps1 | iex
```

To read the script before running it, clone the repository and run the file:

```powershell
git clone https://github.com/navaneeshnagarajan/FlintTrade.git
cd FlintTrade
powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File scripts\install\flinttrade-web-install.ps1
```

## Uninstall

The plain uninstall removes the application and its launcher integration and
keeps your workspace and data:

```powershell
irm https://flinttrade.vercel.app/uninstall.ps1 | iex
```

Add `-Purge` to also delete recognised FlintTrade data (workspace, managed
source and tools). Purge is irreversible and asks for explicit confirmation:

```powershell
& ([scriptblock]::Create((irm https://flinttrade.vercel.app/uninstall.ps1))) -Purge
```

If the site is unreachable, fetch the same uninstaller straight from GitHub —
the hosted URL is only a redirect to it:

```powershell
irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/navaneeshnagarajan/FlintTrade/main/scripts/install/flinttrade-uninstall.ps1 | iex
```

Or run the same script from a clone or from the managed source checkout
(`~\.flinttrade\web-src\FlintTrade` for the web app,
`~\.flinttrade\src\FlintTrade` for the desktop shell):

```powershell
powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File scripts\install\flinttrade-uninstall.ps1
```

## Electron installer status

The public [download surface](https://flinttrade.vercel.app/download)
distinguishes the source-built web-app install above from Electron-shell
installers. It withholds Electron commands and downloads unless one release
contains the Windows x64 NSIS installer, the universal macOS DMG, both Linux
AppImages, and `SHA256SUMS.txt`.

For a release that passes that gate, the one-command install is:

```powershell
irm https://flinttrade.vercel.app/install.ps1 | iex
```

The script requires the canonical Windows asset and `SHA256SUMS.txt` from the
same official release and verifies SHA-256 before running the installer. The
install is per-user — **no admin rights needed**.
The script lives at [`scripts/install/`](../../scripts/install/) — read it
before piping to a shell if that is your policy (it should be). If the site is
unreachable, run it repo-direct with
`irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/navaneeshnagarajan/FlintTrade/main/scripts/install/flinttrade-install.ps1 | iex`.

## Manual `.exe` download (after release availability)

**Windows 11 on ARM:** the x64 build runs via emulation — install the same
`FlintTrade-<version>-win-x64.exe`.

To build the installer locally (one command per line — PowerShell 5.1 has no
`&&`):

```powershell
pnpm install --frozen-lockfile
python scripts/ft.py desktop-test
python scripts/ft.py desktop-package
```

Output lands in `packages/apps/desktop/release/electron/`. Windows and Linux
runtime package behaviour is owned by CI and contributor runs; a Mac build is
not cross-platform proof.

## WSL2 (native performance)
1. Install WSL2: `wsl --install`
2. Open Ubuntu terminal in WSL2
3. Follow Linux setup instructions ([docs/setup/linux.md](linux.md))

## Source development (advanced)

Requires: Python `>=3.14`, Node.js `>=22.23.4`, `uv`, pnpm 10.34.5, Git, and
optionally Rust. Those floors come from `[requirements]` in `flint.toml`, which
is the single source of truth for them.
`make` is **not** required and is not available on Windows — use
`python scripts/ft.py <target>` instead.

pnpm is pinned in the root `package.json` `packageManager` field, so install it
directly (`npm install -g pnpm@10.34.5`) — Corepack still works if your Node
bundles it, but Node dropped Corepack in 25.0.0, so it is an optional
accelerator rather than a prerequisite.

To run the built web app from source:

```powershell
git clone https://github.com/navaneeshnagarajan/FlintTrade.git
cd FlintTrade
uv sync
pnpm install
pnpm --filter @flinttrade/terminal build
python scripts/ft.py start
```

Then open http://127.0.0.1:5100. The terminal build step is not optional: the
backend serves the UI only when `packages/apps/terminal/dist/index.html`
exists, so skipping it leaves you with an API and no interface.

To run the Vite dev server alongside the backend instead:

```powershell
python scripts/ft.py setup
python scripts/ft.py dev
```

Then open http://localhost:5173.

Note: systemd is not available on Windows.
Use Task Scheduler or NSSM to run as a Windows service.