Release v4.0.0

PCLink 4.0.0 — Codename “Cortex”

⚠️ IMPORTANT: BREAKING CHANGES

This is a breaking version. Because of the massive structural changes in how the server manages configuration, permissions, and routing, a Factory Reset is highly recommended for a clean, stable start.

Please ensure you back up any critical configuration or data before updating, as this reset will clear old settings and re-initialize your server identity.

This release, “Cortex”, represents a massive architectural refactor. We have moved toward a modular, scalable router architecture and introduced granular permission management, headless pairing capabilities, and a safer, more robust server lifecycle.

🧠 Architectural Overhaul (The “Cortex” Core)

• Modular Router Architecture: The API has been reorganized into discrete routers/ (e.g., auth, devices, pairing, transfers, websocket_routes), significantly improving maintainability and startup speed.
• Permission Middleware: Introduced a powerful service_enforcement_middleware that handles global "kill switches" and device-specific permission checks dynamically, preventing unauthorized access at the gateway level.
• Websocket Manager: Centralized WebSocket lifecycle management for both Mobile and Web UI clients into a robust ws_manager.
• Headless Device Management: Added dedicated CLI commands (pclink device ...) to list, revoke, ban, and assign roles to paired devices without needing the Web UI.

🚀 New Features

• Headless Pairing: You can now manage pairing requests directly from the CLI or via the pairing/ router API, perfect for headless/server-only deployments.
• Permission Roles: Added predefined roles (admin, viewer, media, remote, none) for bulk device permission assignment.
• Hardware Blacklisting: Added a new device ban system to permanently block hardware IDs from re-pairing to your server.
• Factory Reset: Added a secure, local-only Factory Reset feature via the Web UI to completely purge server data, auth credentials, and extensions when starting fresh.
• Headless-Friendly Notification Handlers: Improved notification dispatch for Linux/Windows to ensure trays and native toasts work reliably in background service contexts.

🛠 Improvements & Infrastructure

• Dependency Migration: Upgraded pre-commit to v4.6.0 and fully migrated from flake8/isort/autoflake to Ruff for high-performance linting and formatting.
• Extension Hot-Loading: Added extension_runtime_middleware to allow hot-loading extensions on-demand if the manifest is found, without restarting the server.
• Terminal Stability: Refactored terminal service logic into a dedicated router for better reliability.
• Robust Startup: Added a StartupManager class to handle cross-platform boot persistence more reliably than legacy systemd scripts.
• Pathing: Standardized path management for configuration and data files to prevent cross-platform issues.

🐛 Bug Fixes & Refactors

• Session Restoration: Fixed issues with transfer session recovery on startup; sessions now properly cleanup after a configurable threshold.
• XML Parsing: Fixed WebDAV-related XML parsing issues for more reliable phone file browsing.
• Logging: Introduced a fatal.log hook to catch and persist crash traces in the config directory, aiding in debugging background service failures.
• DPI Awareness: Added explicit DPI awareness settings for Windows to prevent blurry UI on high-resolution displays.
• Cleanup: Removed controller.py in favor of more direct, granular service interactions.
• Security: Enforced local-only constraints for destructive operations like the Factory Reset to ensure the security of the host machine.

📦 Maintenance

• Updated pyproject.toml dependencies.
• Switched to a more consistent naming convention for build artifacts.
• Removed legacy api_key and port files; settings are now exclusively managed through the consolidated config.json.

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Note: Since version 4.0.0 introduces breaking changes, a Factory Reset is highly encouraged to ensure your server configuration is clean and compatible. Ensure your mobile app is updated to match your server version to maintain full feature compatibility.