feat(installer): add standalone Windows .exe installer (vp-setup.exe) (#1293)

Add a standalone `vp-setup.exe` Windows installer binary that installs
the vp CLI without requiring PowerShell, complementing the existing
`irm https://vite.plus/ps1 | iex` script-based installer.

- Create `vite_setup` shared library crate extracting installation logic
  (platform detection, registry queries, integrity verification, tarball
  extraction, symlink/junction management) from `vite_global_cli`
- Create `vite_installer` binary crate producing `vp-setup.exe` with
  interactive prompts, silent mode (-y), progress bars, and Windows PATH
  modification via direct registry API (no PowerShell dependency)
- Update `vite_global_cli` to use `vite_setup` instead of inline upgrade
  modules, ensuring upgrade and installer share identical logic
- Add CI build/upload steps for installer in release workflow, attached
  as GitHub Release assets
- Add RFC document at rfcs/windows-installer.md

<!-- CURSOR_SUMMARY -->
---

> [!NOTE]
> **Medium Risk**
> Adds a new Windows installer binary that performs downloads, filesystem/link manipulation, and registry PATH updates, plus refactors `vp upgrade` to share that code; failures could impact Windows install/upgrade behavior and release packaging.
>
> **Overview**
> Introduces a **standalone Windows installer** (`vp-setup.exe`) with interactive and silent modes that downloads the correct platform tarball, verifies integrity, installs dependencies, sets up shims/Node manager, and (on Windows) updates the user PATH via registry.
>
> Extracts the existing `vp upgrade` install pipeline into a new shared crate `vite_setup`, and switches `vite_global_cli` upgrade + upgrade-check to use it (including unified errors/constants and new helpers like `read_current_version`/`create_env_files`).
>
> Updates CI/release workflows to **build, cache, test, and attach** `vp-setup.exe` artifacts to GitHub Releases, and updates docs + Netlify redirect to advertise the new installer.
>
> <sup>Reviewed by [Cursor Bugbot](https://cursor.com/bugbot) for commit bfaa80f. Configure [here](https://www.cursor.com/dashboard/bugbot).</sup>
<!-- /CURSOR_SUMMARY -->

Author: fengmk2

.github/actions/build-upstream/action.yml

@@ -47,6 +47,7 @@ runs:
           ${{ steps.rust-target.outputs.dir }}/${{ inputs.target }}/release/vp
           ${{ steps.rust-target.outputs.dir }}/${{ inputs.target }}/release/vp.exe
           ${{ steps.rust-target.outputs.dir }}/${{ inputs.target }}/release/vp-shim.exe
+          ${{ steps.rust-target.outputs.dir }}/${{ inputs.target }}/release/vp-setup.exe
         key: ${{ steps.cache-key.outputs.key }}
 
     # Apply Vite+ branding patches to vite source (CI checks out
@@ -143,6 +144,11 @@ runs:
       shell: bash
       run: cargo build --release --target ${{ inputs.target }} -p vite_trampoline
 
+    - name: Build installer binary (Windows only)
+      if: steps.cache-restore.outputs.cache-hit != 'true' && contains(inputs.target, 'windows')
+      shell: bash
+      run: cargo build --release --target ${{ inputs.target }} -p vite_installer
+
     - name: Save NAPI binding cache
       if: steps.cache-restore.outputs.cache-hit != 'true'
       uses: actions/cache/save@94b89442628ad1d101e352b7ee38f30e1bef108e # v5
@@ -156,6 +162,7 @@ runs:
           ${{ steps.rust-target.outputs.dir }}/${{ inputs.target }}/release/vp
           ${{ steps.rust-target.outputs.dir }}/${{ inputs.target }}/release/vp.exe
           ${{ steps.rust-target.outputs.dir }}/${{ inputs.target }}/release/vp-shim.exe
+          ${{ steps.rust-target.outputs.dir }}/${{ inputs.target }}/release/vp-setup.exe
         key: ${{ steps.cache-key.outputs.key }}
 
     # Build vite-plus TypeScript after native bindings are ready

.github/workflows/release.yml

@@ -131,6 +131,14 @@ jobs:
             ./target/${{ matrix.settings.target }}/release/vp-shim.exe
           if-no-files-found: error
 
+      - name: Upload installer binary artifact (Windows only)
+        if: contains(matrix.settings.target, 'windows')
+        uses: actions/upload-artifact@ea165f8d65b6e75b540449e92b4886f43607fa02 # v4.6.2
+        with:
+          name: vp-setup-${{ matrix.settings.target }}
+          path: ./target/${{ matrix.settings.target }}/release/vp-setup.exe
+          if-no-files-found: error
+
       - name: Remove .node files before upload dist
         if: ${{ matrix.settings.target == 'x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu' }}
         run: |
@@ -241,6 +249,12 @@ jobs:
           path: rust-cli-artifacts
           pattern: vite-global-cli-*
 
+      - name: Download installer binaries (Windows)
+        uses: actions/download-artifact@d3f86a106a0bac45b974a628896c90dbdf5c8093 # v4.3.0
+        with:
+          path: installer-artifacts
+          pattern: vp-setup-*
+
       - name: Move Rust CLI binaries to target directories
         run: |
           # Move each artifact's binary to the correct target directory
@@ -265,6 +279,19 @@ jobs:
           echo "Found binaries:"
           echo "$vp_files"
 
+      - name: Prepare installer binaries for release
+        run: |
+          mkdir -p installer-release
+          for artifact_dir in installer-artifacts/vp-setup-*/; do
+            if [ -d "$artifact_dir" ]; then
+              dir_name=$(basename "$artifact_dir")
+              target_name=${dir_name#vp-setup-}
+              cp "$artifact_dir/vp-setup.exe" "installer-release/vp-setup-${target_name}.exe"
+            fi
+          done
+          echo "Installer binaries:"
+          ls -la installer-release/ || echo "No installer binaries found"
+
       - name: Set npm packages version
         run: |
           sed -i 's/"version": "0.0.0"/"version": "${{ env.VERSION }}"/' packages/core/package.json
@@ -318,6 +345,8 @@ jobs:
           ${INSTALL_PS1}
           \`\`\`
 
+          Or download and run \`vp-setup.exe\` from the assets below.
+
           View the full commit: https://github.com/${{ github.repository }}/commit/${{ github.sha }}
           EOF
 
@@ -332,6 +361,8 @@ jobs:
           name: vite-plus v${{ env.VERSION }}
           tag_name: v${{ env.VERSION }}
           target_commitish: ${{ github.sha }}
+          files: |
+            installer-release/vp-setup-*.exe
 
       - name: Send Discord notification
         if: ${{ inputs.npm_tag == 'latest' }}

.github/workflows/test-standalone-install.yml

@@ -8,6 +8,8 @@ on:
     paths:
       - 'packages/cli/install.sh'
       - 'packages/cli/install.ps1'
+      - 'crates/vite_installer/**'
+      - 'crates/vite_setup/**'
       - '.github/workflows/test-standalone-install.yml'
 
 concurrency:
@@ -786,3 +788,57 @@ jobs:
           which npm
           which npx
           which vp
+
+  test-vp-setup-exe:
+    name: Test vp-setup.exe (pwsh)
+    runs-on: windows-latest
+    permissions:
+      contents: read
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@de0fac2e4500dabe0009e67214ff5f5447ce83dd # v6.0.2
+      - uses: ./.github/actions/clone
+
+      - name: Setup Dev Drive
+        uses: samypr100/setup-dev-drive@30f0f98ae5636b2b6501e181dfb3631b9974818d # v4.0.0
+        with:
+          drive-size: 12GB
+          drive-format: ReFS
+          env-mapping: |
+            CARGO_HOME,{{ DEV_DRIVE }}/.cargo
+            RUSTUP_HOME,{{ DEV_DRIVE }}/.rustup
+
+      - uses: oxc-project/setup-rust@23f38cfb0c04af97a055f76acee94d5be71c7c82 # v1.0.16
+        with:
+          target-dir: ${{ format('{0}/target', env.DEV_DRIVE) }}
+
+      - name: Build vp-setup.exe
+        shell: bash
+        run: cargo build --release -p vite_installer
+
+      - name: Install via vp-setup.exe (silent)
+        shell: pwsh
+        run: ${{ format('{0}/target/release/vp-setup.exe', env.DEV_DRIVE) }}
+        env:
+          VP_VERSION: alpha
+
+      - name: Set PATH
+        shell: bash
+        run: echo "$USERPROFILE/.vite-plus/bin" >> $GITHUB_PATH
+
+      - name: Verify installation
+        shell: pwsh
+        run: |
+          vp --version
+          vp --help
+
+      - name: Verify installation (cmd)
+        shell: cmd
+        run: |
+          vp --version
+          vp --help
+
+      - name: Verify installation (bash)
+        shell: bash
+        run: |
+          vp --version
+          vp --help

.typos.toml

@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 ratatui = "ratatui"
 PUNICODE = "PUNICODE"
 Jod = "Jod" # Node.js v22 LTS codename
+flate = "flate" # flate2 crate name (gzip/deflate compression)
 
 [files]
 extend-exclude = [

Cargo.lock

@@ -197,6 +197,7 @@ vite_js_runtime = { path = "crates/vite_js_runtime" }
 vite_glob = { git = "https://github.com/voidzero-dev/vite-task.git", rev = "076cef486127e6cd1fefc58945f00dac316888ca" }
 vite_install = { path = "crates/vite_install" }
 vite_migration = { path = "crates/vite_migration" }
+vite_setup = { path = "crates/vite_setup" }
 vite_shared = { path = "crates/vite_shared" }
 vite_static_config = { path = "crates/vite_static_config" }
 vite_path = { git = "https://github.com/voidzero-dev/vite-task.git", rev = "076cef486127e6cd1fefc58945f00dac316888ca" }
@@ -206,6 +207,7 @@ vite_workspace = { git = "https://github.com/voidzero-dev/vite-task.git", rev =
 walkdir = "2.5.0"
 wax = "0.6.0"
 which = "8.0.0"
+winreg = "0.56.0"
 xxhash-rust = "0.8.15"
 zip = "7.2"
 
@@ -334,3 +336,7 @@ panic = "abort" # Let it crash and force ourselves to write safe Rust.
 # size instead of speed. This reduces it from ~200KB to ~100KB on Windows.
 [profile.release.package.vite_trampoline]
 opt-level = "z"
+
+# The installer binary is downloaded by users, so optimize for size.
+[profile.release.package.vite_installer]
+opt-level = "z"

Cargo.toml

@@ -12,17 +12,13 @@ name = "vp"
 path = "src/main.rs"
 
 [dependencies]
-base64-simd = { workspace = true }
 chrono = { workspace = true }
 clap = { workspace = true, features = ["derive"] }
 clap_complete = { workspace = true, features = ["unstable-dynamic"] }
 directories = { workspace = true }
-flate2 = { workspace = true }
 serde = { workspace = true }
 serde_json = { workspace = true }
 node-semver = { workspace = true }
-sha2 = { workspace = true }
-tar = { workspace = true }
 thiserror = { workspace = true }
 tokio = { workspace = true, features = ["full"] }
 tracing = { workspace = true }
@@ -34,13 +30,11 @@ vite_install = { workspace = true }
 vite_js_runtime = { workspace = true }
 vite_path = { workspace = true }
 vite_command = { workspace = true }
+vite_setup = { workspace = true }
 vite_shared = { workspace = true }
 vite_str = { workspace = true }
 vite_workspace = { workspace = true }
 
-[target.'cfg(windows)'.dependencies]
-junction = { workspace = true }
-
 [dev-dependencies]
 serial_test = { workspace = true }
 tempfile = { workspace = true }

crates/vite_global_cli/Cargo.toml

@@ -3,16 +3,12 @@
 //! Downloads and installs a new version of the CLI from the npm registry
 //! with SHA-512 integrity verification.
 
-mod install;
-mod integrity;
-mod platform;
-pub(crate) mod registry;
-
 use std::process::ExitStatus;
 
 use owo_colors::OwoColorize;
 use vite_install::request::HttpClient;
 use vite_path::AbsolutePathBuf;
+use vite_setup::{install, integrity, platform, registry};
 use vite_shared::output;
 
 use crate::{commands::env::config::get_vp_home, error::Error};
@@ -35,9 +31,6 @@ pub struct UpgradeOptions {
     pub registry: Option<String>,
 }
 
-/// Maximum number of old versions to keep.
-const MAX_VERSIONS_KEEP: usize = 5;
-
 /// Execute the upgrade command.
 #[allow(clippy::print_stdout, clippy::print_stderr)]
 pub async fn execute(options: UpgradeOptions) -> Result<ExitStatus, Error> {
@@ -154,7 +147,7 @@ async fn install_platform_and_main(
     install::extract_platform_package(platform_data, version_dir).await?;
 
     // Verify binary was extracted
-    let binary_name = if cfg!(windows) { "vp.exe" } else { "vp" };
+    let binary_name = vite_setup::VP_BINARY_NAME;
     let binary_path = version_dir.join("bin").join(binary_name);
     if !tokio::fs::try_exists(&binary_path).await.unwrap_or(false) {
         return Err(Error::Upgrade(
@@ -184,7 +177,8 @@ async fn install_platform_and_main(
     if let Some(ref prev) = previous_version {
         protected.push(prev.as_str());
     }
-    if let Err(e) = install::cleanup_old_versions(install_dir, MAX_VERSIONS_KEEP, &protected).await
+    if let Err(e) =
+        install::cleanup_old_versions(install_dir, vite_setup::MAX_VERSIONS_KEEP, &protected).await
     {
         output::warn(&format!("Old version cleanup failed (non-fatal): {e}"));
     }

crates/vite_global_cli/src/commands/upgrade/mod.rs

@@ -52,9 +52,6 @@ pub enum Error {
     #[error("Upgrade error: {0}")]
     Upgrade(Str),
 
-    #[error("Integrity mismatch: expected {expected}, got {actual}")]
-    IntegrityMismatch { expected: Str, actual: Str },
-
-    #[error("Unsupported integrity format: {0} (only sha512 is supported)")]
-    UnsupportedIntegrity(Str),
+    #[error("{0}")]
+    Setup(#[from] vite_setup::error::Error),
 }

crates/vite_global_cli/src/error.rs

@@ -11,8 +11,7 @@ use std::{
 
 use owo_colors::OwoColorize;
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
-
-use crate::commands::upgrade::registry;
+use vite_setup::registry;
 
 const CHECK_INTERVAL_SECS: u64 = 24 * 60 * 60;
 const PROMPT_INTERVAL_SECS: u64 = 24 * 60 * 60;