Win Setup

Windows Setup

Procedure

1. Inspect current state first. Use env_inspect and project requirements. Preserve null/unknown probe state; do not reinstall a tool merely because discovery failed to establish it.
2. Locate the earliest missing or broken prerequisite. Distinguish runtime absence, unknown probe state, PATH/session propagation, version mismatch, package-manager failure, project dependency failure, and Windows feature state.
3. Choose the native repair. Prefer the smallest Windows-owned change that repairs that prerequisite. Do not turn a local project problem into a machine-wide setup rewrite.
4. For system packages, resolve identity before install. Preserve an exact ID supplied by the user or authoritative project/config state. Otherwise call package_search, inspect the candidates, and call package_install with execute: false for the resolved ID before requesting execution.
5. For Windows optional features, use an explicitly approved PowerShell action only when the feature is actually required. WSL, Windows Sandbox, and Hyper-V are OS features, not ordinary package installs. If feature discovery is unknown because the current process could not establish it, resolve that fact before treating the feature as absent.
6. For project dependencies, switch to the project's own package manager only after the required runtime/toolchain is established. Preserve lockfiles and project conventions. Project-code/build/test execution follows the active host's ordinary permission path.
7. Verify the repaired joint with fresh state. Prefer the narrow version, availability, build, or project check that can establish the requested post-state. If full env_inspect is the right witness after a host mutation, use force_refresh: true.

Rules

• Never use --silent to bypass license or installer interaction.
• Resolve an exact package identity before installation; do not guess WinGet IDs.
• Do not treat a successful installer exit as proof that the current shell sees the new PATH.
• Do not mutate unrelated runtimes or package-manager state while repairing one dependency.
• If elevation or restart is required, state that post-state explicitly rather than claiming completion early.