fix(release): stop shipping an unsigned elevate.exe on Windows

The release cut swaps the SignPath-signed elevate.exe into the
electron-builder toolset cache so the NSIS rebuild's CopyElevateHelper
re-copy becomes a no-op. It searched `<cache>\nsis`, a directory no
app-builder-lib layout creates, and `-ErrorAction SilentlyContinue`
plus `exit 0` turned that miss into a green step — v1.4.193 and
v1.4.194 shipped an unsigned UAC elevation helper.

Move the lookup into a script that covers the real layouts
(`nsis-3.0.4.1/…`, `nsis@<toolset>/…`, `ELECTRON_BUILDER_NSIS_DIR`),
asks app-builder-lib for the authoritative path, and exits non-zero
with an ::error:: annotation when it finds nothing. The step stays
continue-on-error so the inner-signing chain remains fail-open.
This commit is contained in:
Orca Worker
2026-09-01 18:15:43 -07:00
parent 4efc86a33c
commit 38ece930c8
3 changed files with 452 additions and 11 deletions
+20 -11
View File
@@ -1650,9 +1650,12 @@ jobs:
# no-op. Known quirk: the cache persists across releases via actions/cache,
# so later runs may see elevate.exe as already signed and skip staging it —
# that is fine (the signature is timestamped) and the evidence gate checks
# elevate.exe in the shipped installer unconditionally. If this ever causes
# trouble, delete this step; the only effect is elevate.exe shipping
# unsigned again, which the evidence gate will flag.
# elevate.exe in the shipped installer unconditionally.
#
# The cache lookup lives in a script because the inline path this step used
# (`<cache>\nsis`) matches no app-builder-lib layout, and `SilentlyContinue`
# plus `exit 0` turned that miss into a green step — v1.4.193 and v1.4.194
# shipped an unsigned elevate.exe that way. A miss now fails the step.
- name: Replace cached elevate.exe with the signed copy
id: sign-elevate-cache
if: matrix.platform == 'win' && github.run_attempt == 1 && steps.restore-signed-inner.outcome == 'success'
@@ -1664,20 +1667,26 @@ jobs:
Write-Host '::warning::No elevate.exe in win-unpacked resources; nothing to protect from the rebuild clobber.'
exit 0
}
# Why this guard stays: windows-signing-rehearsal.yml shares the
# electron-builder-win-<lockfile hash> cache key with this workflow, so a
# test-certificate elevate.exe must never be staged into a release cache.
$signature = Get-AuthenticodeSignature -FilePath $signed
$subject = if ($null -eq $signature.SignerCertificate) { '<none>' } else { $signature.SignerCertificate.Subject }
if ($signature.Status -ne 'Valid' -or $subject -notlike '*CN=SignPath Foundation*') {
Write-Host "::warning::win-unpacked elevate.exe is not SignPath-signed ($($signature.Status), $subject); skipping cache swap."
exit 0
}
$cached = @(Get-ChildItem "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\electron-builder\Cache\nsis" -Recurse -Filter elevate.exe -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue)
if ($cached.Count -eq 0) {
Write-Host '::warning::No cached elevate.exe found (electron-builder cache layout changed?); the rebuild will pack the unsigned copy and the evidence gate will flag it.'
exit 0
}
foreach ($file in $cached) {
Copy-Item -Path $signed -Destination $file.FullName -Force
Write-Host "Replaced $($file.FullName) with the SignPath-signed copy."
node config/scripts/replace-cached-nsis-elevate.mjs $signed
if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) {
$message = 'Cached elevate.exe swap found nothing to replace; the rebuilt installer ships an unsigned UAC elevation helper (issue #7785).'
if ($env:GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY) {
try {
Add-Content -Path $env:GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY -Value "**Windows elevate.exe cache swap:** FAILED — $message" -ErrorAction Stop
} catch {
Write-Host "::warning::Could not write the elevate.exe swap verdict to the job summary: $_"
}
}
throw $message
}
- name: Rebuild NSIS installer from signed unpacked app
@@ -0,0 +1,199 @@
#!/usr/bin/env node
// Why: electron-builder re-runs `CopyElevateHelper.copy` on every NSIS pack, so the
// release rebuild overwrites the SignPath-signed `resources/elevate.exe` with the
// unsigned copy sitting in the electron-builder toolset cache. The release workflow
// swapped the cached copy first, but searched `<cache>/nsis` — a directory no current
// app-builder-lib layout creates (real ones are `<cache>/nsis-3.0.4.1/nsis-3.0.4.1-<hash>/`
// and `<cache>/nsis@<toolset>/nsis-bundle-<v>-<hash>/`), so the swap silently found
// nothing and v1.4.193/v1.4.194 shipped an unsigned UAC elevation helper.
import { copyFileSync, readdirSync, statSync } from 'node:fs'
import { createRequire } from 'node:module'
import { homedir, platform as osPlatform, tmpdir } from 'node:os'
import { join, parse, resolve } from 'node:path'
const require = createRequire(import.meta.url)
const ELEVATE_EXE = 'elevate.exe'
// `nsis` (the layout the old hardcoded path assumed), `nsis-3.0.4.1` (legacy bundle,
// and `getBinFromCustomLoc('nsis', version)`), `nsis@1.2.1` (unified bundle).
const NSIS_RELEASE_DIR = /^nsis(?:[-@].*)?$/i
// elevate.exe lives at the bundle root, one level under the release dir. The legacy
// bundle carries thousands of files under Contrib/, so an unbounded walk is both slow
// and a way to match something that is not a toolset copy.
const MAX_DEPTH = 3
function isFile(path) {
try {
return statSync(path).isFile()
} catch {
return false
}
}
/**
* Mirrors `getCacheDirectory` in app-builder-lib's `out/util/electronGet.js`, which is what
* decides where the NSIS bundle is unpacked. Kept as a local port rather than an import
* because the swap must still resolve a cache root when app-builder-lib cannot be loaded.
*/
export function resolveElectronBuilderCacheDir({
env = process.env,
platform = osPlatform(),
home = homedir(),
temp = tmpdir()
} = {}) {
const override = env.ELECTRON_BUILDER_CACHE?.trim()
if (override && parse(override).root) {
return override
}
if (platform === 'darwin') {
return join(home, 'Library', 'Caches', 'electron-builder')
}
if (platform === 'win32') {
const localAppData = env.LOCALAPPDATA?.trim()
// https://github.com/electron-userland/electron-builder/issues/1164
const isSystemUser =
localAppData?.toLowerCase().includes('\\windows\\system32\\') === true ||
env.USERNAME?.trim().toLowerCase() === 'system'
if (!localAppData || isSystemUser) {
return join(temp, 'electron-builder-cache')
}
return join(localAppData, 'electron-builder', 'Cache')
}
const xdgCache = env.XDG_CACHE_HOME
return xdgCache && parse(xdgCache).root
? join(xdgCache, 'electron-builder')
: join(home, '.cache', 'electron-builder')
}
function collectElevateFiles(dir, depth, found) {
let entries
try {
entries = readdirSync(dir, { withFileTypes: true })
} catch {
return found
}
for (const entry of entries) {
const path = join(dir, entry.name)
if (entry.isFile()) {
if (entry.name.toLowerCase() === ELEVATE_EXE) {
found.push(path)
}
} else if (entry.isDirectory() && depth > 1) {
collectElevateFiles(path, depth - 1, found)
}
}
return found
}
/**
* Every cached `elevate.exe` under an NSIS release directory of `cacheDir`, plus the
* `ELECTRON_BUILDER_NSIS_DIR` override copy when that is set.
*/
export function findCachedElevatePaths(cacheDir, { env = process.env } = {}) {
const found = []
const overrideDir = env.ELECTRON_BUILDER_NSIS_DIR?.trim()
if (overrideDir && isFile(join(overrideDir, ELEVATE_EXE))) {
found.push(join(overrideDir, ELEVATE_EXE))
}
let entries
try {
entries = readdirSync(cacheDir, { withFileTypes: true })
} catch {
return found
}
for (const entry of entries) {
if (entry.isDirectory() && NSIS_RELEASE_DIR.test(entry.name)) {
collectElevateFiles(join(cacheDir, entry.name), MAX_DEPTH, found)
}
}
return found
}
/**
* The exact path `CopyElevateHelper` will pack, asked of app-builder-lib itself. Best-effort:
* the internal module path moves between majors, and a cold cache would need the network,
* so a failure here degrades to the directory scan rather than failing the swap.
*/
export async function resolveToolsetElevatePath(projectDir = process.cwd()) {
try {
const configPath = require.resolve(resolve(projectDir, 'config/electron-builder.config.cjs'))
const config = require(configPath)
const { getNsisElevatePath } = require('app-builder-lib/out/toolsets/windows.js')
return await getNsisElevatePath(config.toolsets?.nsis, config.nsis?.customNsisBinary)
} catch (error) {
process.stderr.write(
`Could not resolve elevate.exe through app-builder-lib (${error.message}); ` +
'falling back to the toolset cache scan.\n'
)
return null
}
}
/**
* Replaces every cached copy rather than picking one. Which bundle the rebuild packs
* depends on the toolset version resolved at pack time, and each cached copy is an
* unsigned `elevate.exe` that a later pack could reach for; the helper is a standalone
* UAC shim, not coupled to the NSIS version around it, so overwriting all of them is safe.
*/
export async function replaceCachedElevateHelpers({
signedPath,
cacheDir = resolveElectronBuilderCacheDir(),
projectDir = process.cwd(),
env = process.env,
probeToolset = true
} = {}) {
if (!isFile(signedPath)) {
throw new Error(`Signed elevate.exe not found: ${signedPath}`)
}
const targets = new Set(findCachedElevatePaths(cacheDir, { env }))
const toolsetPath = probeToolset ? await resolveToolsetElevatePath(projectDir) : null
if (toolsetPath != null && isFile(toolsetPath)) {
targets.add(toolsetPath)
}
const replaced = []
for (const target of targets) {
copyFileSync(signedPath, target)
replaced.push(target)
}
return { replaced, cacheDir, toolsetPath }
}
// Why an exit code and not a warning: a swap that finds nothing exits before the NSIS
// rebuild restores the unsigned helper, so a silent success here is indistinguishable
// from a release that shipped a signed one — which is how this went unnoticed for two
// releases. The workflow step is `continue-on-error`, so this annotates loudly without
// making a release unbuildable.
if (import.meta.filename === process.argv[1]) {
const signedPath = process.argv[2]
if (!signedPath) {
process.stderr.write('Usage: replace-cached-nsis-elevate.mjs <signed-elevate.exe>\n')
process.exit(2)
}
try {
const { replaced, cacheDir } = await replaceCachedElevateHelpers({ signedPath })
if (replaced.length === 0) {
process.stdout.write(
`::error::No cached elevate.exe found under ${cacheDir}; the NSIS rebuild will pack the ` +
'unsigned helper and ship an unsigned UAC elevation binary. The electron-builder ' +
'toolset cache layout has changed — update config/scripts/replace-cached-nsis-elevate.mjs.\n'
)
process.exit(1)
}
if (replaced.length > 1) {
process.stdout.write(
`Note: ${replaced.length} cached NSIS bundles were present; replaced the helper in all of them.\n`
)
}
for (const path of replaced) {
process.stdout.write(`Replaced ${path} with the SignPath-signed copy.\n`)
}
} catch (error) {
process.stdout.write(`::error::Could not replace the cached elevate.exe: ${error.message}\n`)
process.exit(1)
}
}
@@ -0,0 +1,233 @@
import { spawnSync } from 'node:child_process'
import {
existsSync,
mkdirSync,
mkdtempSync,
readdirSync,
readFileSync,
rmSync,
writeFileSync
} from 'node:fs'
import { tmpdir } from 'node:os'
import { join, resolve } from 'node:path'
import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest'
import { parse } from 'yaml'
import {
findCachedElevatePaths,
replaceCachedElevateHelpers,
resolveElectronBuilderCacheDir
} from './replace-cached-nsis-elevate.mjs'
const projectRoot = resolve(import.meta.dirname, '../..')
const scriptPath = join(projectRoot, 'config/scripts/replace-cached-nsis-elevate.mjs')
let scratch
beforeEach(() => {
scratch = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'orca elevate swap '))
})
afterEach(() => {
rmSync(scratch, { recursive: true, force: true })
})
function makeCache(...relativeFiles) {
const cacheDir = join(scratch, 'Cache')
for (const relative of relativeFiles) {
const path = join(cacheDir, ...relative.split('/'))
mkdirSync(join(path, '..'), { recursive: true })
writeFileSync(path, 'unsigned-elevate')
}
mkdirSync(cacheDir, { recursive: true })
return cacheDir
}
describe('cached elevate.exe swap covers the real electron-builder layouts', () => {
// Why these exact shapes: `downloadBuilderToolset` unpacks to
// `<cache>/<releaseName>/<archive basename>-<url hash>/`, and `releaseName` is
// `nsis-3.0.4.1` on the legacy bundle (`getBinFromUrl`), `nsis@<toolset>` on the
// unified bundle, and `nsis-<version>` for `customNsisBinary`. The release
// workflow searched `<cache>/nsis`, which matches none of them.
it.each([
['legacy bundle', 'nsis-3.0.4.1/nsis-3.0.4.1-1mx3n/elevate.exe'],
['unified bundle', 'nsis@1.2.1/nsis-bundle-3.12-k4d9x/elevate.exe'],
['custom nsis binary', 'nsis-9f3a1c2b/nsis-custom-3.11-0zqp2/elevate.exe'],
['bare nsis release dir', 'nsis/nsis-3.0.4.1/elevate.exe']
])('finds the cached helper in the %s layout', (_label, relative) => {
const cacheDir = makeCache(relative)
expect(findCachedElevatePaths(cacheDir, { env: {} })).toEqual([
join(cacheDir, ...relative.split('/'))
])
})
it('ignores cache siblings that are not NSIS toolset bundles', () => {
const cacheDir = makeCache(
'winCodeSign/winCodeSign-2.6.0-abc12/elevate.exe',
'downloads/nsis/elevate.exe',
'nsis-resources-3.4.1/nsis-resources-3.4.1-p8w1z/plugins/x86-unicode/nsProcess.dll'
)
expect(findCachedElevatePaths(cacheDir, { env: {} })).toEqual([])
})
// The rebuild picks one bundle, and nothing outside app-builder-lib knows which.
// Replacing every cached copy is the deliberate answer to that ambiguity.
it('replaces every cached copy when several bundles are present', async () => {
const cacheDir = makeCache(
'nsis-3.0.4.1/nsis-3.0.4.1-1mx3n/elevate.exe',
'nsis@1.2.1/nsis-bundle-3.12-k4d9x/elevate.exe'
)
const signed = join(scratch, 'signed-elevate.exe')
writeFileSync(signed, 'signpath-signed-elevate')
const { replaced } = await replaceCachedElevateHelpers({
signedPath: signed,
cacheDir,
env: {},
probeToolset: false
})
expect(replaced).toHaveLength(2)
for (const path of replaced) {
expect(readFileSync(path, 'utf8')).toBe('signpath-signed-elevate')
}
})
it('covers the ELECTRON_BUILDER_NSIS_DIR override copy', () => {
const overrideDir = join(scratch, 'nsis-override')
mkdirSync(overrideDir, { recursive: true })
writeFileSync(join(overrideDir, 'elevate.exe'), 'unsigned-elevate')
const cacheDir = makeCache()
expect(
findCachedElevatePaths(cacheDir, { env: { ELECTRON_BUILDER_NSIS_DIR: overrideDir } })
).toEqual([join(overrideDir, 'elevate.exe')])
})
it('resolves the cache root the same way app-builder-lib does', () => {
expect(
resolveElectronBuilderCacheDir({
env: { LOCALAPPDATA: 'C:\\Users\\runneradmin\\AppData\\Local' },
platform: 'win32'
})
).toBe(join('C:\\Users\\runneradmin\\AppData\\Local', 'electron-builder', 'Cache'))
expect(resolveElectronBuilderCacheDir({ env: {}, platform: 'darwin', home: '/Users/a' })).toBe(
join('/Users/a', 'Library', 'Caches', 'electron-builder')
)
expect(resolveElectronBuilderCacheDir({ env: { ELECTRON_BUILDER_CACHE: '/mnt/cache' } })).toBe(
'/mnt/cache'
)
})
// Proof against the layout actually on disk, not just the fixtures. Cross-checked
// against an independent unbounded walk so a search that scopes itself wrongly
// cannot pass by finding nothing — which is exactly how the inline path passed.
// Skipped only where no NSIS bundle has been downloaded into the cache yet.
it('finds every elevate.exe the real electron-builder cache holds', () => {
const cacheDir = resolveElectronBuilderCacheDir()
if (!existsSync(cacheDir)) {
return
}
const walk = (dir) =>
readdirSync(dir, { withFileTypes: true }).flatMap((entry) => {
const path = join(dir, entry.name)
if (entry.isDirectory()) {
return walk(path)
}
return entry.name.toLowerCase() === 'elevate.exe' ? [path] : []
})
const onDisk = walk(cacheDir)
if (onDisk.length === 0) {
return
}
expect(findCachedElevatePaths(cacheDir, { env: {} }).sort()).toEqual(onDisk.sort())
})
})
describe('a cached elevate.exe miss is not silent', () => {
// ELECTRON_BUILDER_NSIS_DIR short-circuits app-builder-lib's own resolution before
// any download, so the probe fails offline instead of fetching the NSIS bundle.
function runScript(cacheDir, nsisDir, signedPath) {
return spawnSync(process.execPath, [scriptPath, signedPath], {
cwd: projectRoot,
encoding: 'utf8',
env: {
...process.env,
ELECTRON_BUILDER_CACHE: cacheDir,
ELECTRON_BUILDER_NSIS_DIR: nsisDir
}
})
}
it('exits non-zero with an ::error:: annotation when no cached copy is found', () => {
const cacheDir = makeCache()
const emptyNsisDir = join(scratch, 'empty-nsis')
mkdirSync(emptyNsisDir, { recursive: true })
const signed = join(scratch, 'signed-elevate.exe')
writeFileSync(signed, 'signpath-signed-elevate')
const result = runScript(cacheDir, emptyNsisDir, signed)
expect(result.status).toBe(1)
expect(result.stdout).toContain('::error::No cached elevate.exe found')
})
it('exits zero and rewrites the cached copy when one is found', () => {
const cacheDir = makeCache('nsis-3.0.4.1/nsis-3.0.4.1-1mx3n/elevate.exe')
const emptyNsisDir = join(scratch, 'empty-nsis')
mkdirSync(emptyNsisDir, { recursive: true })
const signed = join(scratch, 'signed-elevate.exe')
writeFileSync(signed, 'signpath-signed-elevate')
const result = runScript(cacheDir, emptyNsisDir, signed)
expect(result.status).toBe(0)
expect(result.stdout).not.toContain('::error::')
expect(
readFileSync(join(cacheDir, 'nsis-3.0.4.1', 'nsis-3.0.4.1-1mx3n', 'elevate.exe'), 'utf8')
).toBe('signpath-signed-elevate')
})
})
describe('release-cut.yml swaps the cached elevate.exe through the resolver', () => {
function swapStep() {
const workflow = parse(
readFileSync(join(projectRoot, '.github/workflows/release-cut.yml'), 'utf8')
)
const step = workflow.jobs.build.steps.find(
(candidate) => candidate.name === 'Replace cached elevate.exe with the signed copy'
)
expect(step).toBeDefined()
return step
}
it('delegates the cache lookup to the script instead of an inline path', () => {
const step = swapStep()
expect(step.run).toContain('node config/scripts/replace-cached-nsis-elevate.mjs $signed')
// The hardcoded miss that shipped v1.4.193/v1.4.194 unsigned.
expect(step.run).not.toContain('electron-builder\\Cache\\nsis')
expect(step.run).not.toContain('-ErrorAction SilentlyContinue')
})
it('fails the step when the swap reports a miss', () => {
const step = swapStep()
// Matched as an executed statement: downgrading this to a Write-Host restores
// the silent fail-open that let the unsigned helper ship.
expect(step.run).toMatch(/if \(\$LASTEXITCODE -ne 0\) \{/)
expect(step.run).toMatch(/^\s*throw \$message\s*$/m)
expect(step.run).toContain('GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY')
})
// Why kept: windows-signing-rehearsal.yml shares the electron-builder-win-<hash>
// cache key, so dropping this guard would let a test certificate reach a release cache.
it('still refuses to stage anything but a SignPath-signed helper', () => {
const step = swapStep()
expect(step.run).toContain("$signature.Status -ne 'Valid'")
expect(step.run).toContain("$subject -notlike '*CN=SignPath Foundation*'")
})
// The inner-signing chain stays fail-open: a loud red step, not an unbuildable release.
it('keeps the step unable to fail the release job', () => {
expect(swapStep()['continue-on-error']).toBe(true)
})
})