From 900bf890aa81f92471ee5e0cb51e8a452954017b Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: kali-upper <ahmedaboalayoun0016K@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2026 02:43:25 +0200
Subject: [PATCH] feat(zcode): persist clone-launch console output to
 tools/logs transcripts

The launcher windows opened by GHOST.bat ZCode [1]-[6] close automatically
when done, and the Desktop/Start-menu shortcuts run the same script with
-WindowStyle Hidden - so the ram-guard exchange, seed/telegram/sync steps,
spawn PID and taskbar stamping were unreviewable after the fact.

launch_zcode_second_instance.ps1 now appends every run to
tools/logs/launch_zcode_<Instance>.log via Start-Transcript (one file per
instance so the five parallel launchers never interleave; -Append +
-IncludeInvocationHeader). Setup and teardown are best-effort: transcript
failure prints a yellow warning and never blocks the launch, and
Stop-Transcript runs before the ram-guard exit-0 paths and at script end.
GHOST.bat ZCode [6] prints the log location after opening the windows.
---
 CHANGELOG.md                                 | 12 ++++++++++
 GHOST.bat                                    |  1 +
 src/windows/launch_zcode_second_instance.ps1 | 24 ++++++++++++++++++++
 3 files changed, 37 insertions(+)

diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 456e721..f9c8282 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -8,6 +8,18 @@ Format based on [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.1.0/).
 ## [Unreleased]
 
 ### Added
+- **ZCode clone launches persist their console output to a log** (2026-11-03):
+  `launch_zcode_second_instance.ps1` appends every run to
+  `tools\logs\launch_zcode_<Instance>.log` via a PowerShell transcript (one
+  file per instance, `-Append` with invocation headers) — the auto-closing
+  GHOST.bat launcher windows (ZCode [1]-[6]) and the hidden Desktop/Start-menu
+  shortcut launches no longer lose their output: the ram-guard question and
+  answer, seed/telegram/sync step results, spawn PID and taskbar stamping are
+  all reviewable after the fact. Logging is fully best-effort: a transcript
+  failure prints a yellow warning and never blocks the launch, and
+  `Stop-Transcript` runs before the ram-guard `exit 0` paths and at script
+  end. GHOST.bat ZCode [6] also prints the log location after opening the
+  five windows.
 - **ZCode patch [27] waits for you to close the app** (2026-10-31):
   `patch_zcode_icon_override.ps1` gained `-WaitForClose` (GHOST.bat ZCode
   [27] passes it via `:RunWith`'s new optional extra-args slot) — when
diff --git a/GHOST.bat b/GHOST.bat
index e676d0c..0277299 100644
--- a/GHOST.bat
+++ b/GHOST.bat
@@ -488,6 +488,7 @@ if "%~1"=="18" (
     call :StartClone "ZCode Orange" "src\windows\launch_zcode_second_instance.ps1" "-Instance Sixth"
     echo Five launcher windows opened - each closes automatically when done.
     echo First runs clone the Primary profile, so expect a short delay per clone.
+    echo Launch logs: tools\logs\launch_zcode_Second..Sixth.log - one file per clone.
     pause
     exit /b
 )
diff --git a/src/windows/launch_zcode_second_instance.ps1 b/src/windows/launch_zcode_second_instance.ps1
index 7079da9..c476f21 100644
--- a/src/windows/launch_zcode_second_instance.ps1
+++ b/src/windows/launch_zcode_second_instance.ps1
@@ -38,6 +38,26 @@ param(
 )
 $ErrorActionPreference = 'Stop'
 
+# --- Persistent launch log ---------------------------------------------------
+# The launcher windows close automatically when done (GHOST.bat :StartClone) and
+# the Desktop/Start-menu shortcuts run this script with -WindowStyle Hidden, so
+# the console output is otherwise lost entirely. Append every run to
+# tools\logs\launch_zcode_<Instance>.log via a transcript. One file per instance
+# keeps the five parallel launchers from interleaving. Everything here is
+# best-effort: a logging failure must never block the launch.
+try {
+    $logDir = [IO.Path]::GetFullPath((Join-Path $PSScriptRoot '..\..\tools\logs'))
+    New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path $logDir | Out-Null
+    $script:LaunchLogPath = Join-Path $logDir ("launch_zcode_{0}.log" -f $Instance)
+    Start-Transcript -Path $script:LaunchLogPath -Append -IncludeInvocationHeader | Out-Null
+    Write-Host "[log] transcript: $script:LaunchLogPath"
+} catch {
+    Write-Host "[log] transcript disabled: $($_.Exception.Message)" -ForegroundColor Yellow
+}
+function Stop-LaunchLog {
+    try { Stop-Transcript | Out-Null } catch { }
+}
+
 # Portable paths: work for any Windows user, no hardcoded username.
 $UserProfile  = $env:USERPROFILE
 if ([string]::IsNullOrWhiteSpace($UserProfile)) { $UserProfile = [Environment]::GetFolderPath('UserProfile') }
@@ -210,6 +230,7 @@ if ($mainsNow.Count -ge $MaxConcurrent) {
                 $guardAnswer = Read-Host '[ram-guard] Launch anyway? (y/N)'
                 if ($guardAnswer -notmatch '^[Yy]') {
                     Write-Host '[ram-guard] Launch cancelled - nothing was started.'
+                    Stop-LaunchLog
                     exit 0
                 }
             } else {
@@ -217,6 +238,7 @@ if ($mainsNow.Count -ge $MaxConcurrent) {
                 # invisible and hang the launch forever - ask via a dialog instead.
                 if (-not (Show-GhostRamGuardDialog ($guardLines -join "`n"))) {
                     Write-Host '[ram-guard] Launch cancelled - nothing was started.'
+                    Stop-LaunchLog
                     exit 0
                 }
             }
@@ -782,3 +804,5 @@ if ($targetProc) {
 } else {
     Write-Host "[taskbar] no window found - identity left to the app's process-level AUMID." -ForegroundColor Yellow
 }
+
+Stop-LaunchLog