Compute a solutionRoot and expand development search paths (LanMountainDesktop and dev-test) in DeploymentLocator, add logging when scanning/finding hosts, and return distinct full paths. Ensure backward-compatible path checks. Fix cross-thread UI calls: invoke splashWindow.DismissAsync on the UI thread in LauncherFlowCoordinator, and make SplashWindow.DismissAsync ensure it runs on the UI thread before closing (simplified Close call). These changes improve development host discovery and prevent UI-thread access issues during shutdown.
Introduce a persistent LauncherDebugSettingsStore and wire it into ErrorWindow and SplashWindow so dev-mode and custom host path can be saved/loaded. Harden DeploymentLocator/FlexibleHostLocator to safely normalize and validate saved debug paths and log warnings for malformed values. Add a WaitingForShell startup state and recoverable-activation logic across App and LauncherFlowCoordinator (with registry updates) so Launcher can attach to an in-progress desktop shell rather than failing. Clean up ErrorDebugWindow UI/flow (WasAccepted flag, localization fixes, event wiring) and improve splash version population. Improve AppVersionProvider to trim surrounding quotes, robustly parse version.json via JsonDocument and read string properties; add unit tests for AppVersionProvider, DeploymentLocator and LauncherDebugSettingsStore. Also quote Exec commands in the csproj and harden scripts/Generate-VersionFile.ps1 (argument normalization, LiteralPath, error handling).
Add automatic release version stamping and multiple launcher reliability improvements. The Release workflow now runs scripts/Set-ReleaseVersion.ps1 in build jobs to inject tag-derived Version/AssemblyVersion into project metadata; several .csproj/Directory.Build.props and app.manifest files were changed to use a dev placeholder. Introduced AppVersionProvider (and related runtime metadata) to centralize version resolution and updated DeploymentLocator to use it and to prefer package-root/version.json. Launcher startup flow was hardened: added startup success tracking, public-activation recovery path, improved success/fallback semantics, and related IPC handling. UI/UX fixes include OOBE entrance/exit animation improvements (scaling-aware, concurrent fade+translate) and minor window lifecycle reorder in DesktopShellHost. CommandContext now recognizes restart and key=value args. New DesktopTrayService and .trae spec files (spec, checklist, tasks) document shell/tray hardening work. Miscellaneous logging, comments and housekeeping edits across launcher and shared contracts to support the above.
