Predator Control v1.3.4 — Maintenance Release

Maintenance release: updated build binaries, packaged standalone executables, sanitized documentation, and dependencies.

Predator Control v1.3.3 — Reliability Fixes & Hardware Safety

Reliability fixes: safe keyboard hook matching, single-instance IPC timeouts, and battery persistence.

Predator Control v1.3.2 — Security Hardening: Authenticode Verification & User Consent

Predator Control v1.3.2 — Security Hardening: Authenticode Verification & User Consent for OEM Services

A dedicated, critical security release hardening the OEM Hardware Service Auto-Repair subsystem against local privilege escalation and unconsented persistence.

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🔒 1. Cryptographic Authenticode & Publisher Verification

• Added native Authenticode trust validation (WinVerifyTrust via wintrust.dll) ensuring that any OEM driver package or service binary has not been tampered with or modified.
• Added explicit X.509 certificate publisher verification (X509Certificate / X509Certificate2 / X509Chain). Binaries must be published explicitly by Acer Incorporated with a valid chain of trust to a trusted Windows Root Authority.
• Unsigned binaries, tampered files, or executables signed by unrecognized publishers are immediately rejected and logged.

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🛡️ 2. Isolation from User-Writable Directories

• Removed all search roots derived from the application directory (appDir/oem_drivers and parentOem/oem_drivers).
• Restricted hardware driver and service discovery strictly to C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository, which requires Administrator/TrustedInstaller privileges to write to.

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✋ 3. Explicit User Consent Before Service Registration

• Registering a new auto-starting Windows service (ASMSvc, AcerDeviceEnablingServiceV2, AcerLightingService) now requires explicit user consent via a one-time confirmation dialog.
• The confirmation prompt details the exact service display name and verified binary path about to be registered.
• User decisions are stored in registry (HKCU\SOFTWARE\PredatorControl\Consent_Install_{serviceName}). If the user declines, the installation aborts cleanly with zero partial state left behind.
• Existing installed services continue to be managed and started transparently without prompting.

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📦 Checksums & Verification

dd64d4ec23f7b9954707929ba2bcba2f3b4f4b6511ff71b99fe4c782ff49e459  PredatorControl-standalone.exe
48a33594f62df2f28f1658c88eace1017c8c8dfa12a68ee2f7fdb64b8846e261  PredatorControl-win-x64.exe

Predator Control v1.3.1 — Zero-Allocation Telemetry, C++ Architecture & Cause-Effect Mappings

Predator Control v1.3.1 — Zero-Allocation Telemetry, C++ Architecture & Hardware Cause-and-Effect Mappings

A performance, optimization, and code readability release designed to eliminate Garbage Collection overhead during high-refresh gaming while providing a complete, crystal-clear mental model for C++ systems programmers.

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⚡ 1. Zero-Allocation Telemetry Loop (0B Heap Allocations)

• Stack-Allocated Telemetry Record Struct: Converted TelemetrySnapshot from a heap-allocated class record into a stack-allocated readonly record struct.
• Cached Numeric String Tables: Pre-allocated immutable string lookup tables for CPU/GPU temperatures (0°C to 129°C) and RPM values, eliminating thousands of temporary string allocations every minute.
• Debounced Sensor Dispatcher: Added state-comparison debouncing in Form1.OnTelemetryReceived so unchanged sensor values avoid re-allocating formatting buffers or triggering redundant GDI invalidate/redraw cycles.
• Micro-Stutter Free Gaming: Reduces GC Gen 0 pressure to 0 bytes per tick during background 1Hz monitoring, preventing frametime spikes in competitive games.

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📖 2. C++ Systems Developer "Rosetta Stone" Headers

Comprehensive C++ concept mappings and type translation headers added across all core hardware, driver, and OS subsystem files:

• WmiController.cs: Maps to a C++ ACPI Embedded Controller Driver (\\.\root\wmi / WbemServices).
• AcerAgentClient.cs: Maps to a native Winsock2 TCP client (127.0.0.1:46933) and Named Pipe IPC.
• Form1.cs: Maps to a Win32 Message Pump (HWND, WndProc, WM_HOTKEY, WM_DPICHANGED).
• EtwFpsMonitor.cs: Maps to an Event Tracing for Windows (ETW) kernel session via advapi32.dll.
• NvmlGpuMonitor.cs: Maps to direct dynamic loading of nvml.dll via LoadLibraryExW.
• BatteryHealthMonitor.cs: Maps to native Win32 IOCTL_BATTERY_QUERY_INFORMATION and ACPI WMI probes.
• DisplayCcdController.cs: Maps to the Windows Connecting & Configuring Displays (CCD) API.
• OemServiceManager.cs: Maps to the Windows Service Control Manager (advapi32.dll / winsvc.h).
• PredatorKeyHook.cs: Maps to a native Win32 Low-Level Keyboard Hook (SetWindowsHookEx(WH_KEYBOARD_LL)).

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🔌 3. Explicit Hardware Cause-and-Effect Annotations

Every hardware action in WmiController.cs is now clearly annotated with a 3-part hardware flow block:

// [TRIGGER]     : User clicks "80% Battery Limit" toggle in UI
// [HARDWARE I/O]: Calls WMI method SetGamingSysInfo(0x0B, 1) or writes to QA settings.json
// [EFFECT]      : Embedded Controller firmware caps battery charge circuit at 80%

Covers Power Profiles, Fan Control (Auto/Max/Custom PWM), Boot Sound & Animation, Power-off USB Charging, Display Overdrive, and GPU MUX modes.

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🏗️ 4. Visual Architectural Grouping & Code Cleanliness

• WmiController.cs organized into 7 distinct hardware regions:
  1. HARDWARE DETECTION & BITMASK CAPABILITIES
  2. POWER MODES & PROFILES (EC DIRECT)
  3. FAN CONTROL & TACHOMETERS
  4. BATTERY CARE & CHARGE LIMITERS
  5. RGB KEYBOARD & BACKLIGHT (ITE8291)
  6. LOW-LEVEL WMI DRIVER WRAPPER
  7. GPU WORKING MODE (MUX SWITCH)
• 0 compiler warnings, 0 compiler errors.

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📦 Checksums & Verification

8dd7ca877189ff5bb3d1a0debde8d9146aabf02ae7a89e110930771408be5a7d  PredatorControl-standalone.exe
faed8897e057799e6bf5b77572c25fe47e7176fcfd0920a1f38fa2ff04cc8a11  PredatorControl-win-x64.exe

Predator Control v1.3.0 — Battery Diagnostics, Multi-Monitor High-DPI & Universal Repair

What's New in v1.3.0

🎬 Startup Animation & Sound (POST Boot Chime & Logo)

• Hardware POST Audio/Video Toggle: Upgraded and renamed the boot chime setting to Startup Animation & Sound. Synchronously integrates with AcerAgentService on port 46933 to command the Embedded Controller (EC) and firmware settings.
• Accurate State Detection: Eliminated false "On" status reporting; the toggle now reflects the true live hardware and service state.

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🔧 How to Enable BIOS Startup Animation & Sound

On Acer Predator and Nitro laptops (such as the Predator Helios Neo 16 / PHN16-71), the boot chime and animation run at the hardware level during the early Power-On Self-Test (POST) phase before Windows or any software starts.

Important

If the boot animation and sound do not play on startup:
If the setting was previously disabled or muted in your laptop's BIOS setup, the hardware ignores desktop audio commands. To activate and sync it:

1. Restart your laptop and immediately press F2 repeatedly as soon as the screen powers on to enter BIOS Setup.
2. Use the arrow keys to navigate to the Main tab.
3. Scroll down to POST Animation & Sound (or Boot Sound depending on BIOS revision).
4. Press Enter, select Enabled, and press Enter.
5. Press F10, select Yes, and press Enter to save changes and restart.
6. Once back in Windows, Predator Control's Startup Animation & Sound toggle can now switch it on or off directly without entering BIOS again!

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⚡ Power-off USB Charging

• Portable Power Bank Mode: Allows you to charge phones, controllers, wireless earbuds, or portable devices even when the laptop is completely turned off, sleeping, or hibernating.
• Designated Hardware Port: Works through the high-powered USB-A port marked with a battery icon or lightning bolt.
• Battery Protection Reserve: When running on battery power (unplugged), charging automatically cuts off if the laptop's battery drops below 30%, ensuring your laptop never drains itself while powering external accessories.
• Firmware Sync: Synchronizes directly with C:\ProgramData\Acer\QA\settings.json (USBChargeState, USBChargeSwitch, and USBChargeLimit).

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🔋 Battery Health Diagnostics & Full Reports

• Live Health & Wear Telemetry: Integrated battery health status directly beneath the 80% charge limit toggle, showing Battery Health %, Wear %, Current vs Design Capacity (mWh), and Cycle Count.
• Instant Start & Periodic Refresh: Diagnostics load instantly from cached telemetry upon launch and refresh periodically without blocking UI threads.
• Interactive Battery Report: Added a dedicated button to generate and open the comprehensive Windows battery health report.

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🖥️ Multi-Monitor & High-DPI Enhancements

• Dynamic Telemetry Layout: Resolved text overlap in the telemetry sensor cluster (CPU, GPU, fans, power) when dragging the app across monitors with different DPI scalings. Label positions now dynamically adapt to font metric advances and scale factors.
• Responsive Multi-Monitor Sizing: Eliminated horizontal clipping on secondary displays. All buttons, toggles, external monitor rows, and battery diagnostics remain pixel-perfect and comfortably within window bounds.
• Seamless Window Focus: Fixed focus-induced scroll snapping when switching between applications.

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🛠️ Universal OEM Auto-Repair & Optimization

• Multi-Chassis Auto-Repair: Expanded the OEM service auto-repair subsystem to universally verify, restore, and configure essential background services across both Acer Nitro and Predator families.
• Clean Settings Separation: Streamlined overlay and Jelli companion settings into organized dropdown menus and dedicated configuration views.

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SHA-256 Checksums

095FECBBFE7F64C303C2A51BFE98054288A518506CF898744863330187CA001C  PredatorControl-win-x64.exe
A5959F247B5B488F15A16A645C64EE0FDB195736F45D0CE33459043F88CE7397  PredatorControl-standalone.exe

Predator Control v1.2.7 — Universal Acer Nitro Hardware Support & CoolBoost

Predator Control v1.2.7

🎮 Universal Acer Nitro Hardware Support (Zero Hardcoded Models)

• 100% Generic Dynamic Probing: Probes hardware capabilities dynamically via OEM service detection, ACPI EC methods, and physical ITE RGB keyboard controller devices across all Acer Nitro models (Nitro 5, Nitro 16, Nitro 17, Nitro V).
• Keyboard Backlight Auto-Detection:
  • Automatically identifies single-color / monochrome backlit keyboards.
  • Hides unsupported 4-zone RGB dropdown, color pickers, and speed controls.
  • Displays dedicated single-color backlight brightness slider (0–100%) with instant Turn Off support via multi-channel ACPI/WMI/Named Pipe dispatches.
  • 4-Zone RGB keyboards retain full multi-zone color picking, animation effects, and profiles.
• Hardware Gating:
  • GPU MUX Switch section is automatically hidden on systems without a physical MUX switch.
• Nitro 3-Mode Power Profiles:
  • Dynamically configured for native Nitro power modes: Quiet (0x00), Default (0x01), and Performance (0x04).
  • Unsupported Turbo and Eco modes are hidden in Classic WinForms UI, Jelli WebView2 UI, and System Tray.
• Acer CoolBoost Restored:
  • Dedicated hardware toggle for Acer CoolBoost under Cooling and in the System Tray.
  • Multi-channel dispatch: Named pipe (nitrosense_hardware_service_), Acer Agent IPC (TCP port 46933), and direct ACPI WMI EC call (SetGamingFanBehavior with bit-24 / bit-8 flags).
• Battery Health 80% Limit:
  • Dual-channel dispatch: Native BIOS ACPI WMI BatteryControl class with automatic fallback to Acer Care Center / ASMSvc registry keys (StopCharging = 80).
  • Keeps the toggle enabled and active on all Nitro systems.

🛡️ Chassis-Aware Bloatware & Service Protection

• On Predator laptops: All 6 OEM background services are safely disabled since Predator BIOS handles hardware natively via ACPI WMI.
• On Nitro laptops: Hardware bridging services (ASMSvc, AcerDeviceEnablingService, AcerDeviceEnablingServiceV2, AcerServiceSvc) are protected and automatically auto-started so Battery Limit and CoolBoost work out of the box.
• Only intrusive background telemetry daemons (AcerCCAgentSvis, AcerQAAgentSvis, AcerDIAgentSvis) are disabled on Nitro.

📦 Release Assets

• PredatorControl-standalone.exe (~52.9 MB): Self-contained single-file executable with bundled .NET runtime. No installation required.
• PredatorControl-win-x64.exe (~3.7 MB): Lightweight single-file executable requiring .NET 10 Desktop Runtime.
• Restore-AcerNitroServices.bat: 1-click companion script to restore/enable Acer hardware services and battery registry keys on Nitro laptops.
• checksums.txt: SHA-256 integrity checksums for all binary assets.

Predator Control v1.2.6 — System Optimization SCM Fix & Scrolling Polish

Predator Control v1.2.6

🛡️ System Optimization SCM Engine

• Full Windows Service Control Manager Integration: The "Optimize Acer Services" toggle now interfaces directly with Windows SCM via sc.exe config and System.ServiceProcess.ServiceController.
• Live Daemon Stopping & Restoring: When enabled, properly commands SCM to stop and disable the 6 background telemetry services (AcerCCAgentSvis, AcerQAAgentSvis, AcerDIAgentSvis, ASMSvc, AcerServiceSvc, AcerDeviceEnablingServiceV2) while preserving essential hardware services (AASSvc, AcerLightingService). When toggled off, cleanly restores their startup mode and starts the service processes.
• Accurate Real-Time Status Counter: Live counter queries actual daemon status (Running vs Stopped), matching Windows Task Manager in real time.

🖱️ WinForms Scroll & Margin Polish

• Mouse Wheel Clamping: Clamped scroll target bounds in DarkScrollPanel to [0, maxScroll], eliminating the negative coordinate bug that pushed the entire interface downwards when scrolling up at the top of the window.
• Focus Shift Prevention: Normalized ScrollToControl coordinates to prevent WinForms from inverting display rectangle offsets on child focus or text layout updates.
• Persistent Unicode Icons: Restored Unicode escape sequences (\uD83C\uDFA8, \uD83C\uDFAE, \u2B07, \u25CF) to ensure 100% immunity to file encoding/BOM corruption.

🔒 Security & Robustness Hardening

• Qualified NVML Loading: nvml.dll is now loaded strictly from %WINDIR%\System32 with LOAD_LIBRARY_SEARCH_SYSTEM32, preventing DLL preloading/search-path hijacking.
• WebView2Loader Integrity Verification: The embedded WebView2Loader.dll is now verified against its known SHA-256 hash before loading into memory.
• Restricted IPC Access: The Named Pipe server now restricts access to the current interactive user SID rather than broad authenticated users.
• Auto-Updater Checksum Verification: The update engine now validates staged update binaries against checksums.txt published with the GitHub release.
• IFEO Removal: Removed registry Image File Execution Options manipulation.
• Unmatched Chassis Detection: Added notification when running on hardware that doesn't report an Acer Predator or Nitro DMI string.

📦 Release Assets

• PredatorControl-standalone.exe (~52.8 MB): Self-contained single-file executable with native assembly compression. No .NET runtime required; runs on any Windows 10/11 x64 PC.
• PredatorControl-win-x64.exe (~3.68 MB): Ultra-lightweight single-file executable. Requires .NET 10 Desktop Runtime installed on the system.
• checksums.txt: SHA-256 integrity checksums for all binary assets.

Predator Control v1.2.5 — Security Hardening & System Optimization Toggle

What's New in v1.2.5

🔒 Security Hardening

• IPC pipe hardened — Named pipe now restricted to authenticated users only (was open to all local processes)
• Auto-updater URL validation — Download URL is now validated to be HTTPS and from github.com before executing
• Removed personal file paths — Developer-local paths have been removed from the compiled binary
• Repository cleaned — Private conversation export file removed from public repo

⚙️ System Optimization Toggle (New)

• Added SYSTEM OPTIMIZATION section at the bottom of settings
• Toggle to disable Acer bloatware services (AcerCareCenter, QuickAccess, DeviceInfo, SystemMonitor) — opt-in only, no longer runs silently on every launch
• Toggling off restores all services back to Automatic

🌈 RGB Boot Fix

• Upgraded boot watchdog from 2 pulses to 4 pulses (at 1s, 3s, 6s, 10s after logon)
• More reliably beats AcerLightingService amber reset race condition

📦 Build

• Task scheduler priorities normalized (no longer kernel-level)
• Single-file compression enabled — standalone exe stays at ~50 MB
• Version: 1.2.5

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PredatorControl-standalone.exe — Self-contained, no .NET runtime required (~50 MB)
PredatorControl-win-x64.exe — Requires .NET 10 runtime (~3 MB)

Predator Control v1.2.4 — Custom 4-Zone RGB Preset Deletion & Refinements

🪼 Predator Control v1.2.4 — Custom 4-Zone RGB Preset Deletion & Refinements

A lightweight, bloat-free alternative to Acer PredatorSense for Acer Predator & Nitro gaming laptops.
Direct ACPI WMI hardware control, ~40 MB RAM (vs 1.5 GB+), and zero background bloat services.

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✨ What's New in v1.2.4

🗑️ Custom 4-Zone RGB Preset Deletion

• WinForms UI Integration:
  • Added a dedicated Delete button directly beside Save and + New in the SAVED 4-ZONE RGB PROFILES row.
  • Prompts with a native confirmation dialog ("Are you sure you want to delete the RGB profile '[Name]'?") before deleting.
  • Automatically falls back and applies the first remaining profile upon deletion so the keyboard LEDs never glitch.
  • Automatically disabled when only 1 profile remains (ensuring the user always retains at least one valid preset).
• Jelli Companion UI Integration:
  • Added full bridge support for rgb.profile.delete.
  • Safe 2-Step In-App Confirmation: Clicking Delete Profile turns into a highlighted Confirm Delete? button with a cancel ✕ button.
  • Includes a 4-second auto-revert timer to prevent accidental taps while gaming.
• Clean Registry Sync:
  • Deleting an active preset automatically updates the Windows Registry ActiveRgbProfile key to the first remaining valid preset so stale profile names are never retained.

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📦 Available Assets

Asset	Size	Description
PredatorControl-standalone.exe	~50.4 MB	(Recommended) Self-contained single-file executable with embedded WebView2Loader and Jelli frontend. Double-click and run directly with zero prerequisites.
PredatorControl-standalone.zip	~44.7 MB	Compressed standalone package containing the single-file executable.
PredatorControl-win-x64.exe	~3.4 MB	Ultra-lightweight framework-dependent build. Requires .NET 10 Desktop Runtime.

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🚀 Installation & Setup

1. Download: Download PredatorControl-standalone.exe from the Assets section below.
2. Run as Administrator: Double-click and accept the UAC prompt (required for ACPI WMI and Embedded Controller hardware communication).
3. Auto-Start: Toggle "Start with Windows" in settings to launch silently into the system tray on boot.

Predator Control v1.2.3 — Custom 4-Zone RGB Profiles & System Polish

🪼 Predator Control v1.2.3 — Custom 4-Zone RGB Profiles & System Polish

A lightweight, bloat-free alternative to Acer PredatorSense for Acer Predator & Nitro gaming laptops.
Direct ACPI WMI hardware control, ~40 MB RAM (vs 1.5 GB+), and zero background bloat services.

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✨ What's New in v1.2.3

🎨 Custom 4-Zone RGB Keyboard Profile Manager

• Per-Zone Profile Storage: Save, load, and manage custom 4-Zone RGB keyboard presets stored in %LOCALAPPDATA%\PredatorControl\rgb_profiles.json.
• Instant Preset Recall: One-click selection from the profile dropdown automatically switches to Static mode and applies per-zone colors, brightness, and speeds directly to laptop EC registers without dropped clicks.
• Dedicated UI Actions:
  • Save Zones to Profile: Update current active profile with live visual feedback (Saved ✓).
  • + New Profile: Add new named color themes via the custom dialog prompt or Jelli companion interface.
  • 🗑️ Delete Profile: Remove unwanted presets with confirmation prompts in both WinForms and Jelli UI (with safe fallbacks to remaining presets and disabling deletion when only 1 profile remains).
• Full Jelli UI Bridge Support: Complete bidirectional sync over Microsoft Edge WebView2, with an interactive inline profile creation form and safe 2-step Delete Profile verification in Jelli Settings.

📜 Scroll Lock & Tab State Persistence

• WinForms Scroll Lock: Overrode internal WinForms auto-scrolling (ScrollToControl) and preserved scroll offsets across layout refreshes so the dashboard no longer jumps back to (0, 0) on telemetry ticks or button clicks.
• Jelli Tab & Scroll Memory: Remembers the active tab in localStorage ('jelli-active-tab') and tracks independent vertical scroll positions (tabScrollMap) when toggling between System, Lighting, Fans, and Settings tabs.

🛡️ Windows Shutdown & Logoff Crash Guardrails

• Clean Session Termination: Added OnSessionEnding handler and IsShuttingDown guards across WinForms and Jelli to gracefully dispose WMI, NVML, keyboard hooks, and game sync whenever Windows initiates a shutdown, restart, or user logoff.
• Suppressed Modal Dialogs: Blocked modal error popups from appearing during system shutdown, preventing Windows from stalling on logoff.
• WebView2 Recovery Safety: Protected WebView2 IPC dispatches and recovery loops against invoking on disposed forms.

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📦 Available Assets

Asset	Size	Description
PredatorControl-standalone.exe	~50.4 MB	(Recommended) Self-contained single-file executable with embedded WebView2Loader. Double-click and run directly with zero prerequisites.
PredatorControl-standalone.zip	~44.7 MB	Compressed standalone package containing the single-file executable.
PredatorControl-win-x64.exe	~3.4 MB	Ultra-lightweight framework-dependent build. Requires .NET 10 Desktop Runtime.

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🚀 Installation & Setup

1. Download: Download PredatorControl-standalone.exe from the Assets section below.
2. Run as Administrator: Double-click and accept the UAC prompt (required for ACPI WMI and Embedded Controller hardware communication).
3. Auto-Start: Toggle "Start with Windows" in settings to launch silently into the system tray on boot.