SODIUM.COLLAB — COMPUTER LINK 0.8.5

WINDOWS SETUP
1. Download Sodium-Computer-Link-Setup.exe from the public website's Computer
   Link for Windows link or Installed > Open computer link.
2. Open the installer and choose Install. It includes a private audio runtime;
   users do not need Python, pip, a terminal, or administrator access.
3. Keep Sodium open and signed in. Finish installation to open Computer Link;
   it connects to the eligible open Sodium tab without opening another tab.
   Allow browser local-network access if asked.
4. If needed, choose Connect to Sodium in Computer Link. If it sees multiple
   account requests, select the intended account in the custom app window.
   An eligible Producer or Studio Executive account and internet are required.

The app, installer and uninstaller have custom borders and controls. Browser
permission prompts, Windows security prompts and third-party plugin interfaces
belong to their respective providers. An unsigned release can show SmartScreen.
Start at sign-in, custom plugin folders, rescan, pairing and disconnect are in
Computer Link settings. Add folders opens the Windows folder dialog; Ctrl/Shift
selects multiple folders. Closing the main window keeps its tray service available.

MAKING MUSIC
Drag an installed VST3 generator onto a MIDI track and edit its notes as usual.
Computer Link lists the VST tracks in the active Sodium project. Choose Open
beside your track, or open its editor from Sodium's pedal board. The same branded
Computer Link window expands to the plugin's full editor size. Back saves its
local sound and returns to the track list; plugins do not scroll inside the frame.
Tracks hosted by other accounts are read-only; missing plugins are labelled.
Keep the project open in Sodium. If a plugin is larger than your display, use
its own size controls or a larger display. Computer Link does not scale vendor UI.
The companion hosts one live generator at a time, saving the previous sound when
switching. VST2, AU and native effects are not supported. Compatibility varies.

After a brief pause in MIDI or preset edits, the current sound is rendered into
an audio cache on its MIDI track. Playback is independent for each collaborator.
Guests see the source MIDI read-only and hear its cached audio without the VST.
This is not simultaneous note streaming. Rendering speed depends on the plugin
and phrase length. The latest completed cache tries a direct peer transfer; if
that connection fails, cloud storage supplies it. Completed audio is also backed
up to the project cloud. Superseded renders are discarded and upload work stops
when an asset no longer represents the current MIDI or sound.

Finish or recover a pending take before switching, updating or uninstalling.
Completed unacknowledged audio is journaled locally. After a restart, open its
original generator and project, then use Recover latest take in Advanced.
If an update finds an active recording/render/recovery, it stops safely and asks
you to finish that work; it never forcibly kills the generator to replace files.

SECURITY AND STORAGE
The service listens only on loopback. Only approved Sodium origins can pair.
A protected device key identifies this Windows installation; it cannot grant
account access. Commands also require a short-lived, account/session/origin/
instance-scoped server authorization. When disconnected, a foreground app launch
or Connect permits a verified eligible account to link for 90 seconds; background startup cannot
approve a new account. Approved accounts can reconnect automatically. Eligibility,
suspension and session
revocation are checked by Sodium. The native verification endpoint supplies no
login cookie, account bearer or project token. Disconnect rotates the device key
and clears approved accounts. Never share a manual pairing code.

App files: %LOCALAPPDATA%/Sodium Computer Link/current
Private settings, pairing, plugin states and recovery files:
%LOCALAPPDATA%/Sodium Native Generators
An update/uninstall preserves these private files. Browser audio caches are
separate. Cloud playback requires a completed upload or the owner's peer cache.
The installer copies saved sessions from a recognized older registered source
installation without replacing newer private sessions or deleting originals.
If that old folder was moved or never registered, recover any pending take in
the old tool first, then close it. Copy its .sessions files into the private
data folder's .sessions without replacing existing files before opening a
generator. Keep originals until the saved sounds and takes are recovered.

LICENSES AND RELEASE BUILD
The private runtime contains CPython, NumPy, Pedalboard, SoundDevice and CFFI.
The installer includes their notices and IBM Plex font license. Pedalboard is
GPL-3.0; the corresponding source ZIP and SHA256SUMS are offered beside the
installer at the exact release version. No runtime dependency download occurs
during installation. Build and publish scripts are in scripts/computer-link;
publishing files and deploying the website are separate steps.

Plugin behavior, vendor licensing windows, audio hardware latency and every
Windows display configuration require testing on the target computer. Private
startup errors are recorded in last-launch.log / last-controller.log in the data
folder. Do not include pairing credentials or project audio in a bug report.
