The window host gate (0.3.22): packaging/windows/host-gate.py refuses a payload whose Igneum Miner.exe version resource is not the cut's version, carries a mingw-w64 signature, or is not the pinned MSVC host (packaging/windows/host.sha256, e223db18 for 0.3.21); wired into make-payload.sh before the host is copied, its self-test in the pre-push gate (PC 2, 7 October 2026: a 0.3.22.0 mingw host inside a 0.3.21 installer crashed in ntdll seconds after starting its engine)

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5.1 <noreply@anthropic.com>

packaging/windows/host-gate.py

@@ -0,0 +1,126 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env python3
+"""The window host gate (0.3.22; PC 2, 7 October 2026: a 0.3.21 installer carried a mingw-built "Igneum Miner.exe" whose
+version resource read 0.3.22.0 and which crashed in ntdll seconds after starting its engine). Before a host enters a
+payload, three facts must hold or the payload is refused:
+  1. the exe's version resource (FileVersion and ProductVersion) equals the installer's version (as "a.b.c" or "a.b.c.0");
+  2. the exe carries no mingw-w64 signature (the GNU runtime strings "Mingw-w64", "libgcc", "GCC: (GNU", "libstdc++-6.dll",
+     "libwinpthread-1.dll"): the host is the MSVC build (app\\windows\\BUILD-APP.bat) or nothing;
+  3. when a pin file is given (packaging/windows/host.sha256: one sha256 per line, the cut's MSVC host), the exe's sha256
+     is in it.
+    host-gate.py <Igneum Miner.exe> <version> [<pin file>]      exit 0 = pass, 1 = refused (every reason printed)
+    host-gate.py --self-test                                    known-bad and known-good blobs
+No dependency; reads the version strings straight from the resource's UTF-16LE text, which is how every PE carries them."""
+import hashlib
+import re
+import sys
+
+MINGW_MARKS = [b"Mingw-w64", b"mingw-w64", b"libgcc", b"GCC: (GNU", b"libstdc++-6.dll", b"libwinpthread-1.dll"]
+
+
+def utf16(s):
+    return s.encode("utf-16-le")
+
+
+def version_strings(blob):
+    """FileVersion and ProductVersion from the VS_VERSIONINFO StringFileInfo block: the UTF-16 key, 0 to 3 NUL words of
+    padding, then the UTF-16 value up to its NUL."""
+    out = {}
+    for key in ("FileVersion", "ProductVersion"):
+        m = re.search(re.escape(utf16(key)) + rb"\x00\x00(?:\x00\x00){0,3}((?:[^\x00]\x00|\x00[^\x00]){1,40}?)\x00\x00", blob)
+        if m:
+            try:
+                out[key] = m.group(1).decode("utf-16-le").strip()
+            except UnicodeDecodeError:
+                out[key] = ""
+    return out
+
+
+def norm(v):
+    parts = [p for p in re.split(r"[.,\s]+", v.strip()) if p != ""]
+    while len(parts) < 4:
+        parts.append("0")
+    return ".".join(parts[:4])
+
+
+def check(blob, version, pins=None):
+    reasons = []
+    vs = version_strings(blob)
+    want = norm(version)
+    for key in ("FileVersion", "ProductVersion"):
+        have = vs.get(key)
+        if have is None:
+            reasons.append(f"no {key} in the version resource")
+        elif norm(have) != want:
+            reasons.append(f"{key} reads {have}, the installer is {version}")
+    marks = [m.decode() for m in MINGW_MARKS if m in blob]
+    if marks:
+        reasons.append("a mingw-w64 build (" + ", ".join(marks) + "): the host must be the MSVC build")
+    if pins is not None:
+        sha = hashlib.sha256(blob).hexdigest()
+        if sha not in pins:
+            reasons.append(f"sha256 {sha[:12]} is not the cut's pinned MSVC host ({', '.join(p[:12] for p in pins) or 'no pin'})")
+    return reasons
+
+
+def read_pins(path):
+    pins = []
+    with open(path, encoding="utf-8") as f:
+        for line in f:
+            line = line.split("#", 1)[0].strip().lower()
+            if re.fullmatch(r"[0-9a-f]{64}", line):
+                pins.append(line)
+    return pins
+
+
+def fake_pe(file_version, product_version, extra=b""):
+    """A blob with a version resource shaped like a real one (the strings, the padding, the NULs)."""
+    return (b"MZ" + b"\x00" * 64 + utf16("FileVersion") + b"\x00\x00\x00\x00" + utf16(file_version) + b"\x00\x00"
+            + utf16("ProductVersion") + b"\x00\x00\x00\x00" + utf16(product_version) + b"\x00\x00" + extra)
+
+
+def self_test():
+    # known-bad first: the take-4 host's shape, 0.3.22.0 inside a 0.3.21 installer, mingw-built
+    bad = fake_pe("0.3.22.0", "0.3.22.0", b"...Mingw-w64 runtime failure:...libgcc_s_seh-1.dll...")
+    r = check(bad, "0.3.21", pins=[])
+    assert any("FileVersion reads 0.3.22.0" in x for x in r), r
+    assert any("mingw-w64 build" in x for x in r), r
+    assert any("not the cut's pinned" in x for x in r), r
+    # a right version but a mingw build is still refused
+    r = check(fake_pe("0.3.21.0", "0.3.21.0", b"GCC: (GNU) 13-posix"), "0.3.21")
+    assert r == ["a mingw-w64 build (GCC: (GNU): the host must be the MSVC build"], r
+    # known-good: the version equal in both forms, no GNU strings, the sha pinned
+    good = fake_pe("0.3.21.0", "0.3.21", b"Microsoft (R) C/C++ Optimizing Compiler")
+    assert check(good, "0.3.21") == [], check(good, "0.3.21")
+    assert check(good, "0.3.21", pins=[hashlib.sha256(good).hexdigest()]) == []
+    assert check(good, "0.3.21", pins=["0" * 64]) != [], "a pin that is not this exe refuses"
+    # no resource at all is refused (nothing to compare)
+    r = check(b"MZ" + b"\x00" * 200, "0.3.21")
+    assert r == ["no FileVersion in the version resource", "no ProductVersion in the version resource"], r
+    print("self-test passed: a 0.3.22.0 mingw host fails a 0.3.21 installer on all three counts, a right-version mingw host fails, a pinned MSVC host passes, a resource-less blob fails")
+
+
+def main(argv):
+    if len(argv) >= 2 and argv[1] == "--self-test":
+        self_test()
+        return 0
+    if len(argv) < 3:
+        print(__doc__)
+        return 2
+    exe, version = argv[1], argv[2]
+    pins = read_pins(argv[3]) if len(argv) > 3 else None
+    with open(exe, "rb") as f:
+        blob = f.read()
+    reasons = check(blob, version, pins)
+    vs = version_strings(blob)
+    sha = hashlib.sha256(blob).hexdigest()
+    if reasons:
+        print(f"host-gate: REFUSED {exe} for {version} (FileVersion {vs.get('FileVersion')}, ProductVersion {vs.get('ProductVersion')}, sha256 {sha[:12]}):")
+        for r in reasons:
+            print(f"  - {r}")
+        return 1
+    print(f"host-gate: ok {exe} is {version} (FileVersion {vs.get('FileVersion')}, ProductVersion {vs.get('ProductVersion')}), no mingw signature, sha256 {sha[:12]}" + (" pinned" if pins is not None else ""))
+    return 0
+
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    sys.exit(main(sys.argv))

packaging/windows/host.sha256

@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+# The cut's MSVC window host (app\windows\BUILD-APP.bat), one sha256 per line; packaging/windows/host-gate.py refuses a payload
+# whose "Igneum Miner.exe" is not one of these. The shipper replaces the line at every cut from the CI artifact igneum-windows-host
+# (or PC 1's BUILD-APP.bat run). 7 October 2026: PC 1's MSVC 0.3.21 host, the one running on PC 2 since 19:14 BST.
+e223db18bcfa74a1f60335de62390729a19975e6a6bddd7547bf9d6f0676df17

packaging/windows/make-payload.sh

@@ -84,7 +84,15 @@ cp "$ROOT/proto-opencl/host.c" "$ROOT/proto-opencl/build.bat" "$ROOT/proto-openc
 # the window host sources, built on the PC or by CI; the built host when BUILD-APP.bat already ran here
 cp "$ROOT/app/windows/host.cpp" "$ROOT/app/windows/host.rc" "$ROOT/app/windows/version.h" "$ROOT/app/windows/BUILD-APP.bat" "$STAGE/app/windows/"
 mkdir -p "$STAGE/app/windows/art" && cp "$ROOT/brand/icons/igneum.ico" "$STAGE/app/windows/art/"
-if [ -f "$ROOT/app/windows/dist/Igneum Miner.exe" ]; then cp "$ROOT/app/windows/dist/Igneum Miner.exe" "$STAGE/"; echo "window host: Igneum Miner.exe from app/windows/dist"; fi
+if [ -f "$ROOT/app/windows/dist/Igneum Miner.exe" ]; then
+  # the host gate (0.3.22): the version resource equals this payload's version, no mingw-w64 signature, and the sha pinned
+  # in packaging/windows/host.sha256 when that file exists (PC 2, 7 October 2026: a 0.3.22.0 mingw host in a 0.3.21 installer
+  # crashed in ntdll and left the window on "starting the engine")
+  HOST_VERSION="${APP_VERSION:-$(sed -n 's/^version = "\(.*\)"/\1/p' "$ROOT/app/igneum-app/Cargo.toml" | head -1)}"
+  PIN_ARG=""; [ -s "$ROOT/packaging/windows/host.sha256" ] && PIN_ARG="$ROOT/packaging/windows/host.sha256"
+  python3 "$ROOT/packaging/windows/host-gate.py" "$ROOT/app/windows/dist/Igneum Miner.exe" "$HOST_VERSION" $PIN_ARG || { echo "make-payload: the window host is refused (host-gate.py above); no host rides this payload" >&2; exit 1; }
+  cp "$ROOT/app/windows/dist/Igneum Miner.exe" "$STAGE/"; echo "window host: Igneum Miner.exe from app/windows/dist (host-gate ok)"
+fi
 cp "$HERE/stop-igneum.ps1" "$STAGE/stop-igneum.ps1"
 
 # proving v0 (spec 7.7, app/igneum-app/src/prover.rs): the SP1 host runs inside WSL2 on a PC, so the payload ships the

tools/ci/pre-push.sh

@@ -78,6 +78,7 @@ tree_checks() {
   run "bash bodies in PowerShell job scripts pass bash -n"                     bash -c 'bash tools/ci/bash-body-check.sh --self-test && bash tools/ci/bash-body-check.sh'
   run "run jobs test their fetched kit before use"                             bash -c 'bash tools/ci/kit-path-check.sh --self-test && bash tools/ci/kit-path-check.sh'
   run "every Windows spawn of the app runs with a hidden console"              bash -c 'node tools/ci/windows-spawn-check.mjs --self-test && node tools/ci/windows-spawn-check.mjs'
+  run "the window host gate refuses a wrong-version or mingw host (host-gate.py self-test)"  python3 packaging/windows/host-gate.py --self-test
   run "pinned guest programs match their manifest"                             bash tools/ci/pinned-guests-check.sh
   run "no permanent miner fault in the engine (miner-faults.md MF-2)"          bash -c 'bash tools/ci/permanent-fault-check.sh --self-test && bash tools/ci/permanent-fault-check.sh'
   run "root prover playbooks kill the GPU server and unlink its socket"        bash tools/ci/prover-socket-check.sh