publish: 1.2.6 — smoke-test the direct VSTOInstaller updater

No code change. Confirms that the v1.2.5 updater (VSTOInstaller.exe /I)
bypasses the Chrome download trap and pops the install dialog directly.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

docs/PROJECT-BRIEFING.md

@@ -268,14 +268,47 @@ If the session is on the Linux dev server (`/home/chaim/espocrm-extensions/Outlo
 
 ---
 
+## How releases work (current, 2026-05-24)
+
+**Production install URL:** `https://platform.dev.marcus-law.co.il/outlook-addin/OutlookAddin.vsto`
+
+**Release flow:**
+
+1. Code change merged to `main` (push or PR-merge — no CI fires yet)
+2. Bump `<ApplicationVersion>` in `src/OutlookAddin/OutlookAddin.csproj` and `AssemblyVersion` + `AssemblyFileVersion` in `src/OutlookAddin/Properties/AssemblyInfo.cs` to the next 4-part version (e.g. `1.2.1.0`). CI overrides `ApplicationVersion` from the tag at build time, but leaves AssemblyInfo alone — keep them in sync manually so the bundled DLL's FileVersion matches the manifest.
+3. `git tag -a v1.2.1 -m "..." && git push --tags`
+4. Gitea Actions workflow (`.gitea/workflows/build.yml`) fires:
+   - Imports the **real** codesign cert from secrets `CODESIGN_CERT_PFX_BASE64` + `CODESIGN_THUMBPRINT` (publicKeyToken `c68d2b4c25051c5b`, `CN=Marcus-Law OutlookAddin`)
+   - Patches csproj to swap the dev self-signed thumbprint (`2399E9BF…`) for the real one
+   - `msbuild /t:Publish` with `/p:InstallUrl=https://platform.dev.marcus-law.co.il/outlook-addin/` and `/p:ApplicationVersion=<tag>.0`
+   - Uploads `publish.tar.gz` to Gitea generic registry (`outlook-addin-publish/<version>/publish.tar.gz`)
+   - Linux job downloads the tar.gz, builds a Docker image `outlook-addin-cdn:latest`, pushes to Gitea registry, calls Coolify to redeploy the CDN container
+   - Posts to Mattermost channel `git-verelasim` with the install URL on success / a failure link on failure
+5. Lawyers' installed Add-in checks the deployment manifest at the install URL every 7 days (configured in csproj `<UpdateInterval>7</UpdateInterval>`) or whenever they click "בדוק עדכונים" in Settings → אודות.
+
+**Semver policy:** PATCH for bug fixes (unilateral), MINOR for visible features (unilateral when warranted), MAJOR only with Chaim's explicit approval.
+
+**Branding (`KlearBranding` repo):** the product is presented to lawyers as **Klear** — title bars, MessageBox titles, ribbon group label, About header all say "Klear". The logo is mirrored from `espocrm-extensions/KlearBranding/files/client/custom/img/logo-klear.png` into `src/OutlookAddin.UI/Resources/logo-klear.png` and embedded as a WPF Resource. Brand accent color: `#121d2e` (dark navy).
+
+**What stays MarcusLaw under the hood (deliberate — preserves auto-update across the rebrand):**
+- ClickOnce app identity (`AssemblyName=MarcusLaw.OutlookAddin`)
+- `%APPDATA%\MarcusLaw\OutlookAddin\settings.json` and `creds.dat`
+- `%LOCALAPPDATA%\MarcusLaw\OutlookAddin\logs\`
+- `DpapiCredentialStore.EntropySeed = "MarcusLaw.OutlookAddin.v1"`
+- Code namespaces `MarcusLaw.OutlookAddin.*`
+- Named pipe `MarcusLaw.OutlookAddin`
+
+Changing any of these would orphan all existing installs and require a coordinated uninstall+reinstall on every lawyer's PC plus an entropy migration for DPAPI-encrypted credentials. See the LegalCRM rebrand misadventure in git history for what *not* to do.
+
+**Known traps when releasing:**
+- VS Publish wizard (Project Properties → Publish) **rewrites** csproj at every click — flips `<AutoIncrementApplicationRevision>` back to `true`, resets `<ApplicationVersion>` to whatever's in the UI, sometimes deletes prior `Application Files/<...>/` bundles. **Don't use it.** Tag and let CI do it.
+- There's an old `Publish/` directory in git history that was a parallel manual-release channel via `gitea.../raw/branch/main/Publish/`. It's **not the production install URL** — that's platform.dev. The folder was dropped in v1.2.0.
+
 ## Things deliberately deferred
 
 | What | When | Why deferred |
 |---|---|---|
-| Windows CI runner on Coolify | Until ClickOnce publish becomes useful | Local builds on dev's VS 2022 suffice through week 5 |
-| Code signing cert (self-signed) + GPO push to 10 PCs | Week 6 (before release) | IT task; cert isn't useful until we have something to sign |
-| ClickOnce hosting setup at `platform.dev.marcus-law.co.il/outlook-addin/` | Week 6 | No build artifacts yet |
-| Mattermost release notification webhook in CI | Week 6 | Coupled to CI runner |
+| Identity-level rebrand to a pure Klear product (AssemblyName, namespaces, DPAPI entropy, AppData paths) | Until there's another reason to force-reinstall on all 10 PCs | Visible rebrand already done in v1.2.0 without disrupting users; full rename trades aesthetic cleanliness for a day of IT coordination + lost credentials |
 
 ---
 

src/OutlookAddin.UI/Dialogs/SettingsDialog.xaml

@@ -123,10 +123,22 @@
                                Foreground="{Binding UpdateStatusBrush}"
                                TextWrapping="Wrap"
                                Margin="0,4,0,0" />
-                    <TextBlock Margin="0,16,0,0" TextWrapping="Wrap"
-                               Text="לוגים: %LOCALAPPDATA%\MarcusLaw\OutlookAddin\logs" />
-                    <TextBlock TextWrapping="Wrap"
-                               Text="הגדרות: %APPDATA%\MarcusLaw\OutlookAddin\settings.json" />
+                    <TextBlock Margin="0,16,0,0" TextWrapping="Wrap">
+                        <Run Text="לוגים: " />
+                        <Hyperlink Tag="%LOCALAPPDATA%\MarcusLaw\OutlookAddin\logs"
+                                   Click="OnOpenFolderHyperlink"
+                                   ToolTip="פתח את התיקייה ב-Explorer">
+                            <Run Text="%LOCALAPPDATA%\MarcusLaw\OutlookAddin\logs" />
+                        </Hyperlink>
+                    </TextBlock>
+                    <TextBlock TextWrapping="Wrap">
+                        <Run Text="הגדרות: " />
+                        <Hyperlink Tag="%APPDATA%\MarcusLaw\OutlookAddin"
+                                   Click="OnOpenFolderHyperlink"
+                                   ToolTip="פתח את התיקייה ב-Explorer">
+                            <Run Text="%APPDATA%\MarcusLaw\OutlookAddin\settings.json" />
+                        </Hyperlink>
+                    </TextBlock>
                 </StackPanel>
             </TabItem>
         </TabControl>

src/OutlookAddin.UI/Dialogs/SettingsDialog.xaml.cs

@@ -1,5 +1,8 @@
 using System;
+using System.Diagnostics;
+using System.IO;
 using System.Windows;
+using System.Windows.Documents;
 using MarcusLaw.OutlookAddin.UI.ViewModels;
 
 namespace MarcusLaw.OutlookAddin.UI.Dialogs
@@ -40,5 +43,23 @@ namespace MarcusLaw.OutlookAddin.UI.Dialogs
             DialogResult = _viewModel?.DialogResult;
             Close();
         }
+
+        private void OnOpenFolderHyperlink(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
+        {
+            if (!(sender is Hyperlink h) || !(h.Tag is string raw)) return;
+            try
+            {
+                var path = Environment.ExpandEnvironmentVariables(raw);
+                // Create the folder lazily so the link works even on the very
+                // first run, before any log has been written.
+                if (!Directory.Exists(path)) Directory.CreateDirectory(path);
+                Process.Start(new ProcessStartInfo("explorer.exe", "\"" + path + "\"") { UseShellExecute = true });
+            }
+            catch (Exception ex)
+            {
+                MessageBox.Show("פתיחת התיקייה נכשלה: " + ex.Message, "Klear",
+                    MessageBoxButton.OK, MessageBoxImage.Warning);
+            }
+        }
     }
 }

src/OutlookAddin.UI/ViewModels/SettingsViewModel.cs

@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 using System;
 using System.Collections.Generic;
 using System.Collections.ObjectModel;
+using System.Linq;
 using System.Net.Http;
 using System.Threading.Tasks;
 using System.Windows.Media;
@@ -178,18 +179,78 @@ namespace MarcusLaw.OutlookAddin.UI.ViewModels
                 }
 
                 var deployment = System.Deployment.Application.ApplicationDeployment.CurrentDeployment;
-                var info = await Task.Run(() => deployment.CheckForDetailedUpdate(false)).ConfigureAwait(true);
-                if (!info.UpdateAvailable)
+                var currentVersion = deployment.CurrentVersion;
+                var manifestUri = deployment.UpdateLocation;
+
+                // ApplicationDeployment.CheckForDetailedUpdate triggers a
+                // TrustManager re-evaluation which throws TrustNotGranted
+                // inside a hosted VSTO process even when the publisher and
+                // permissions are unchanged. Bypass it by fetching the
+                // deployment manifest directly and reading the version.
+                Version? availableVersion = null;
+                try
                 {
-                    UpdateStatusBrush = SuccessBrush;
-                    UpdateStatus = "אתה על הגרסה האחרונה (" + deployment.CurrentVersion + ").";
+                    availableVersion = await Task.Run(() => FetchManifestVersion(manifestUri)).ConfigureAwait(true);
+                }
+                catch (Exception fetchEx)
+                {
+                    _logger.Warning(fetchEx, "CheckForUpdate: manifest fetch failed");
+                    UpdateStatusBrush = ErrorBrush;
+                    UpdateStatus = "שגיאה בבדיקת השרת: " + fetchEx.Message;
                     return;
                 }
 
-                UpdateStatus = $"זמינה גרסה {info.AvailableVersion} — מוריד…";
-                var result = await Task.Run(() => deployment.Update()).ConfigureAwait(true);
-                UpdateStatusBrush = SuccessBrush;
-                UpdateStatus = $"הותקנה גרסה {info.AvailableVersion}. סגור ופתח את Outlook כדי לטעון אותה.";
+                if (availableVersion == null)
+                {
+                    UpdateStatusBrush = ErrorBrush;
+                    UpdateStatus = "לא ניתן לקרוא את גרסת השרת מ-" + manifestUri;
+                    return;
+                }
+
+                if (availableVersion <= currentVersion)
+                {
+                    UpdateStatusBrush = SuccessBrush;
+                    UpdateStatus = "אתה על הגרסה האחרונה (" + currentVersion + ").";
+                    return;
+                }
+
+                // VSTO add-ins cannot be updated programmatically from inside
+                // a running Outlook — ApplicationDeployment.Update() throws.
+                // Don't shell-launch the .vsto URL either: Chrome / Edge will
+                // download it to disk, and the resulting file has a different
+                // security zone than the deployment manifest, which fails with
+                // InvalidDeploymentException ("no matching security zones").
+                // Call VSTOInstaller.exe directly so the URL is processed in
+                // the Internet zone, matching the manifest.
+                var installerPath = FindVstoInstaller();
+                if (installerPath != null)
+                {
+                    try
+                    {
+                        System.Diagnostics.Process.Start(new System.Diagnostics.ProcessStartInfo(
+                            installerPath, "/I \"" + manifestUri + "\"")
+                        {
+                            UseShellExecute = false
+                        });
+                        UpdateStatusBrush = SuccessBrush;
+                        UpdateStatus = $"זמינה גרסה {availableVersion} — אשר את ההתקנה בחלון שנפתח, ואז סגור ופתח את Outlook.";
+                    }
+                    catch (Exception launchEx)
+                    {
+                        _logger.Warning(launchEx, "CheckForUpdate: VSTOInstaller launch failed");
+                        UpdateStatusBrush = ErrorBrush;
+                        UpdateStatus = $"זמינה גרסה {availableVersion} — סגור ופתח את Outlook כדי להתקין אוטומטית.";
+                    }
+                }
+                else
+                {
+                    // VSTOInstaller not at the canonical path — VSTO runtime
+                    // still picks up new manifests on Outlook startup, so
+                    // ask the user to restart instead of attempting a hack.
+                    UpdateStatusBrush = SuccessBrush;
+                    UpdateStatus = $"זמינה גרסה {availableVersion} — סגור ופתח את Outlook כדי להתקין אוטומטית.";
+                }
+                return;
             }
             catch (System.Deployment.Application.DeploymentDownloadException ex)
             {
@@ -215,6 +276,77 @@ namespace MarcusLaw.OutlookAddin.UI.ViewModels
             }
         }
 
+        /// <summary>
+        /// Reads the top-level &lt;assemblyIdentity&gt; version from the
+        /// .vsto deployment manifest at <paramref name="manifestUri"/>.
+        /// Returns null if the document doesn't look like a deployment
+        /// manifest. Runs on a worker thread (synchronous HTTP).
+        /// </summary>
+        private static Version? FetchManifestVersion(Uri manifestUri)
+        {
+            // The .vsto manifest is small (≈6KB). Keep this synchronous —
+            // no point pulling in HttpClient and its lifecycle just for one
+            // GET. WebRequest works fine on .NET FW 4.8 and through proxies.
+            var req = System.Net.WebRequest.Create(manifestUri);
+            req.Timeout = 10_000;
+            using (var response = req.GetResponse())
+            using (var stream = response.GetResponseStream())
+            {
+                var doc = System.Xml.Linq.XDocument.Load(stream);
+                System.Xml.Linq.XNamespace asmv1 = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:asm.v1";
+                var identity = doc.Root?
+                    .Elements()
+                    .FirstOrDefault(e => e.Name.LocalName == "assemblyIdentity" && e.Name.Namespace == asmv1);
+                var versionAttr = identity?.Attribute("version")?.Value;
+                if (string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(versionAttr)) return null;
+                return Version.TryParse(versionAttr, out var v) ? v : null;
+            }
+        }
+
+        /// <summary>
+        /// Locates VSTOInstaller.exe on the machine. The path is stable
+        /// for VSTO 4.0 (Office 2010+) — falls back to a registry lookup
+        /// if the default install location was customised.
+        /// </summary>
+        private static string? FindVstoInstaller()
+        {
+            string[] candidates =
+            {
+                @"C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\VSTO\10.0\VSTOInstaller.exe",
+                @"C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\VSTO\10.0\VSTOInstaller.exe"
+            };
+            foreach (var p in candidates)
+            {
+                if (System.IO.File.Exists(p)) return p;
+            }
+
+            // Registry fallback: HKCR\VstoFile\shell\Open\command stores
+            // the verb VSTOInstaller registers for the .vsto extension.
+            try
+            {
+                using (var key = Microsoft.Win32.Registry.ClassesRoot.OpenSubKey(@"VstoFile\shell\Open\command"))
+                {
+                    var cmd = key?.GetValue(null) as string;
+                    if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(cmd))
+                    {
+                        // Value looks like: "C:\...\VSTOInstaller.exe" "%1"
+                        var firstQuote = cmd!.IndexOf('"');
+                        if (firstQuote == 0)
+                        {
+                            var endQuote = cmd.IndexOf('"', 1);
+                            if (endQuote > 1)
+                            {
+                                var exe = cmd.Substring(1, endQuote - 1);
+                                if (System.IO.File.Exists(exe)) return exe;
+                            }
+                        }
+                    }
+                }
+            }
+            catch { /* registry access denied or schema differs — fall through */ }
+            return null;
+        }
+
         private bool CanCheckForUpdate() => !IsCheckingForUpdate;
 
         partial void OnIsCheckingForUpdateChanged(bool value)

src/OutlookAddin/OutlookAddin.csproj

@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@
     <PublishUrl>C:\Users\Chaim\source\repos\OutlookAddin\Publish\</PublishUrl>
     <InstallUrl>https://gitea.dev.marcus-law.co.il/espocrm-extensions/OutlookAddin/raw/branch/main/Publish/</InstallUrl>
     <TargetCulture>en</TargetCulture>
-    <ApplicationVersion>1.2.0.0</ApplicationVersion>
+    <ApplicationVersion>1.2.6.0</ApplicationVersion>
     <AutoIncrementApplicationRevision>false</AutoIncrementApplicationRevision>
     <UpdateEnabled>true</UpdateEnabled>
     <UpdateInterval>7</UpdateInterval>

src/OutlookAddin/Properties/AssemblyInfo.cs

@@ -33,6 +33,6 @@ using System.Security;
 // You can specify all the values or you can default the Build and Revision Numbers 
 // by using the '*' as shown below:
 // [assembly: AssemblyVersion("1.0.*")]
-[assembly: AssemblyVersion("1.2.0.0")]
-[assembly: AssemblyFileVersion("1.2.0.0")]
+[assembly: AssemblyVersion("1.2.6.0")]
+[assembly: AssemblyFileVersion("1.2.6.0")]