[ci] include version alias in version.json for compatibility

.github/workflows/build.yml

@@ -53,7 +53,11 @@ jobs:
             PATCH_NUMBER=0
           fi
 
-          if [[ "${VERSION_BASE}" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$ ]]; then
+          if [[ "${VERSION_BASE}" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]+)-([0-9]{8})$ ]]; then
+            VERSION_BASE="${BASH_REMATCH[1]}"
+            PATCH_NUMBER="${BASH_REMATCH[3]}"
+            BUILD_DATE_OVERRIDE="${BASH_REMATCH[4]}"
+          elif [[ "${VERSION_BASE}" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$ ]]; then
             VERSION_BASE="${BASH_REMATCH[1]}"
             BUILD_DATE_OVERRIDE="${BASH_REMATCH[3]}"
             PATCH_NUMBER="${BASH_REMATCH[4]}"
@@ -82,7 +86,7 @@ jobs:
           fi
 
           if [[ "${PATCH_NUMBER}" != "0" ]]; then
-            LEGAL_VERSION="v${VERSION_BASE}-${BUILD_DATE}-${PATCH_NUMBER}"
+            LEGAL_VERSION="v${VERSION_BASE}-${PATCH_NUMBER}-${BUILD_DATE}"
           else
             LEGAL_VERSION="v${VERSION_BASE}-${BUILD_DATE}"
           fi
@@ -146,7 +150,11 @@ jobs:
             PATCH_NUMBER=0
           fi
 
-          if [[ "${VERSION_BASE}" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$ ]]; then
+          if [[ "${VERSION_BASE}" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]+)-([0-9]{8})$ ]]; then
+            VERSION_BASE="${BASH_REMATCH[1]}"
+            PATCH_NUMBER="${BASH_REMATCH[3]}"
+            BUILD_DATE="${BASH_REMATCH[4]}"
+          elif [[ "${VERSION_BASE}" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$ ]]; then
             VERSION_BASE="${BASH_REMATCH[1]}"
             BUILD_DATE="${BASH_REMATCH[3]}"
             PATCH_NUMBER="${BASH_REMATCH[4]}"
@@ -159,7 +167,7 @@ jobs:
           fi
 
           if [[ "${PATCH_NUMBER}" != "0" ]]; then
-            VERSION_NUM="v${VERSION_BASE}-${BUILD_DATE}-${PATCH_NUMBER}"
+            VERSION_NUM="v${VERSION_BASE}-${PATCH_NUMBER}-${BUILD_DATE}"
           else
             VERSION_NUM="v${VERSION_BASE}-${BUILD_DATE}"
           fi
@@ -228,7 +236,11 @@ jobs:
             $PATCH_NUMBER = "0"
           }
 
-          if ($version -match '^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$') {
+          if ($version -match '^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]+)-([0-9]{8})$') {
+            $version = $Matches[1]
+            $PATCH_NUMBER = $Matches[3]
+            $BUILD_DATE = $Matches[4]
+          } elseif ($version -match '^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$') {
             $version = $Matches[1]
             $BUILD_DATE = $Matches[3]
             $PATCH_NUMBER = $Matches[4]
@@ -241,7 +253,7 @@ jobs:
           }
 
           if ($PATCH_NUMBER -ne "0") {
-            $VERSION_NUM = "v$version-$BUILD_DATE-$PATCH_NUMBER"
+            $VERSION_NUM = "v$version-$PATCH_NUMBER-$BUILD_DATE"
           } else {
             $VERSION_NUM = "v$version-$BUILD_DATE"
           }
@@ -321,8 +333,7 @@ jobs:
       - name: Package
         shell: pwsh
         run: |
-          cd "${{ github.workspace }}\scripts\windows"
-          makensis /DVERSION=$env:VERSION_NUM nsis_script.nsi
+          & "${{ github.workspace }}\scripts\windows\pkg_x64.ps1" $env:VERSION_NUM
 
       - name: Build Portable CrossDesk
         run: |
@@ -403,7 +414,11 @@ jobs:
             PATCH_NUMBER=0
           fi
 
-          if [[ "${VERSION_BASE}" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$ ]]; then
+          if [[ "${VERSION_BASE}" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]+)-([0-9]{8})$ ]]; then
+            VERSION_BASE="${BASH_REMATCH[1]}"
+            PATCH_NUMBER="${BASH_REMATCH[3]}"
+            BUILD_DATE="${BASH_REMATCH[4]}"
+          elif [[ "${VERSION_BASE}" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$ ]]; then
             VERSION_BASE="${BASH_REMATCH[1]}"
             BUILD_DATE="${BASH_REMATCH[3]}"
             PATCH_NUMBER="${BASH_REMATCH[4]}"
@@ -417,7 +432,7 @@ jobs:
 
           BUILD_DATE_ISO="${BUILD_DATE:0:4}-${BUILD_DATE:4:2}-${BUILD_DATE:6:2}"
           if [[ "${PATCH_NUMBER}" != "0" ]]; then
-            VERSION_NUM="${VERSION_BASE}-${BUILD_DATE}-${PATCH_NUMBER}"
+            VERSION_NUM="${VERSION_BASE}-${PATCH_NUMBER}-${BUILD_DATE}"
           else
             VERSION_NUM="${VERSION_BASE}-${BUILD_DATE}"
           fi
@@ -486,6 +501,7 @@ jobs:
         run: |
           cat > version.json << EOF
           {
+            "latest_version": "${{ steps.version.outputs.VERSION_NUM }}",
             "version": "${{ steps.version.outputs.VERSION_NUM }}",
             "releaseDate": "${{ steps.version.outputs.BUILD_DATE_ISO }}",
             "patch": ${{ steps.version.outputs.PATCH_NUMBER }},

.github/workflows/update-version-json.yml

@@ -28,8 +28,13 @@ jobs:
           VERSION_BASE="${TAG_VERSION}"
           PATCH_NUMBER=0
 
-          # Extract date and patch from tags such as v1.2.3-20251113-1.
-          if [[ "${TAG_VERSION}" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$ ]]; then
+          # Extract date and patch from tags such as v1.2.3-1-20251113.
+          if [[ "${TAG_VERSION}" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]+)-([0-9]{8})$ ]]; then
+            VERSION_BASE="${BASH_REMATCH[1]}"
+            PATCH_NUMBER="${BASH_REMATCH[3]}"
+            DATE_STR="${BASH_REMATCH[4]}"
+            BUILD_DATE_ISO="${DATE_STR:0:4}-${DATE_STR:4:2}-${DATE_STR:6:2}"
+          elif [[ "${TAG_VERSION}" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$ ]]; then
             VERSION_BASE="${BASH_REMATCH[1]}"
             DATE_STR="${BASH_REMATCH[3]}"
             PATCH_NUMBER="${BASH_REMATCH[4]}"
@@ -135,6 +140,7 @@ jobs:
           # Generate version.json using cat and heredoc
           cat > version.json << EOF
           {
+            "latest_version": "${{ steps.version.outputs.VERSION_FULL }}",
             "version": "${{ steps.version.outputs.VERSION_FULL }}",
             "releaseDate": "${{ steps.version.outputs.BUILD_DATE_ISO }}",
             "patch": ${{ steps.version.outputs.PATCH_NUMBER }},

scripts/linux/pkg_amd64.sh

@@ -4,13 +4,31 @@ set -e
 PKG_NAME="crossdesk"
 APP_NAME="CrossDesk"
 
-APP_VERSION="$1"
 ARCHITECTURE="amd64"
 MAINTAINER="Junkun Di <junkun.di@hotmail.com>"
 DESCRIPTION="A simple cross-platform remote desktop client."
 ALSA_RUNTIME_DEP="libasound2 | libasound2t64"
 PORTAL_RUNTIME_RECOMMENDS="xdg-desktop-portal, xdg-desktop-portal-gtk | xdg-desktop-portal-kde | xdg-desktop-portal-wlr"
 
+normalize_app_version() {
+    local input="$1"
+    local prefix=""
+    local body="$input"
+
+    if [[ "$body" == v* ]]; then
+        prefix="v"
+        body="${body#v}"
+    fi
+
+    if [[ "$body" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$ ]]; then
+        echo "${prefix}${BASH_REMATCH[1]}-${BASH_REMATCH[4]}-${BASH_REMATCH[3]}"
+    else
+        echo "$input"
+    fi
+}
+
+APP_VERSION="$(normalize_app_version "$1")"
+
 # Remove 'v' prefix from version for Debian package (Debian version must start with digit)
 DEB_VERSION="${APP_VERSION#v}"
 

scripts/linux/pkg_arm64.sh

@@ -4,13 +4,31 @@ set -e
 PKG_NAME="crossdesk"
 APP_NAME="CrossDesk"
 
-APP_VERSION="$1"
 ARCHITECTURE="arm64"
 MAINTAINER="Junkun Di <junkun.di@hotmail.com>"
 DESCRIPTION="A simple cross-platform remote desktop client."
 ALSA_RUNTIME_DEP="libasound2 | libasound2t64"
 PORTAL_RUNTIME_RECOMMENDS="xdg-desktop-portal, xdg-desktop-portal-gtk | xdg-desktop-portal-kde | xdg-desktop-portal-wlr"
 
+normalize_app_version() {
+    local input="$1"
+    local prefix=""
+    local body="$input"
+
+    if [[ "$body" == v* ]]; then
+        prefix="v"
+        body="${body#v}"
+    fi
+
+    if [[ "$body" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$ ]]; then
+        echo "${prefix}${BASH_REMATCH[1]}-${BASH_REMATCH[4]}-${BASH_REMATCH[3]}"
+    else
+        echo "$input"
+    fi
+}
+
+APP_VERSION="$(normalize_app_version "$1")"
+
 # Remove 'v' prefix from version for Debian package (Debian version must start with digit)
 DEB_VERSION="${APP_VERSION#v}"
 

scripts/macosx/pkg_arm64.sh

@@ -4,13 +4,31 @@ set -e
 APP_NAME="crossdesk"
 APP_NAME_UPPER="CrossDesk"
 EXECUTABLE_PATH="./build/macosx/arm64/release/crossdesk"
-APP_VERSION="$1"
 PLATFORM="macos"
 ARCH="arm64"
 IDENTIFIER="cn.crossdesk.app"
 ICON_PATH="icons/macos/crossdesk.icns"
 MACOS_MIN_VERSION="10.12"
 
+normalize_app_version() {
+    local input="$1"
+    local prefix=""
+    local body="$input"
+
+    if [[ "$body" == v* ]]; then
+        prefix="v"
+        body="${body#v}"
+    fi
+
+    if [[ "$body" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$ ]]; then
+        echo "${prefix}${BASH_REMATCH[1]}-${BASH_REMATCH[4]}-${BASH_REMATCH[3]}"
+    else
+        echo "$input"
+    fi
+}
+
+APP_VERSION="$(normalize_app_version "$1")"
+
 APP_BUNDLE="${APP_NAME_UPPER}.app"
 CONTENTS_DIR="${APP_BUNDLE}/Contents"
 MACOS_DIR="${CONTENTS_DIR}/MacOS"

scripts/macosx/pkg_x64.sh

@@ -4,13 +4,31 @@ set -e
 APP_NAME="crossdesk"
 APP_NAME_UPPER="CrossDesk"
 EXECUTABLE_PATH="build/macosx/x86_64/release/crossdesk"
-APP_VERSION="$1"
 PLATFORM="macos"
 ARCH="x64"
 IDENTIFIER="cn.crossdesk.app"
 ICON_PATH="icons/macos/crossdesk.icns"
 MACOS_MIN_VERSION="10.12"
 
+normalize_app_version() {
+    local input="$1"
+    local prefix=""
+    local body="$input"
+
+    if [[ "$body" == v* ]]; then
+        prefix="v"
+        body="${body#v}"
+    fi
+
+    if [[ "$body" =~ ^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$ ]]; then
+        echo "${prefix}${BASH_REMATCH[1]}-${BASH_REMATCH[4]}-${BASH_REMATCH[3]}"
+    else
+        echo "$input"
+    fi
+}
+
+APP_VERSION="$(normalize_app_version "$1")"
+
 APP_BUNDLE="${APP_NAME_UPPER}.app"
 CONTENTS_DIR="${APP_BUNDLE}/Contents"
 MACOS_DIR="${CONTENTS_DIR}/MacOS"

scripts/windows/pkg_x64.ps1

@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+param(
+  [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)]
+  [string]$Version
+)
+
+$ErrorActionPreference = "Stop"
+
+function Normalize-AppVersion {
+  param(
+    [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)]
+    [string]$InputVersion
+  )
+
+  $prefix = ""
+  $body = $InputVersion
+
+  if ($body.StartsWith("v")) {
+    $prefix = "v"
+    $body = $body.Substring(1)
+  }
+
+  if ($body -match '^([0-9]+(\.[0-9]+){1,3})-([0-9]{8})-([0-9]+)$') {
+    return "${prefix}$($Matches[1])-$($Matches[4])-$($Matches[3])"
+  }
+
+  return $InputVersion
+}
+
+$normalizedVersion = Normalize-AppVersion -InputVersion $Version
+$scriptDir = Split-Path -Parent $MyInvocation.MyCommand.Path
+
+Push-Location $scriptDir
+try {
+  & makensis "/DVERSION=$normalizedVersion" "nsis_script.nsi"
+  if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) {
+    exit $LASTEXITCODE
+  }
+} finally {
+  Pop-Location
+}

src/gui/render.cpp

@@ -1719,26 +1719,6 @@ int Render::DrawServerWindow() {
 }
 
 int Render::Run() {
-  latest_version_info_ = CheckUpdate();
-  if (!latest_version_info_.empty() &&
-      latest_version_info_.contains("version") &&
-      latest_version_info_["version"].is_string()) {
-    latest_version_ = 'v' + latest_version_info_["version"].get<std::string>();
-    if (latest_version_info_.contains("releaseNotes") &&
-        latest_version_info_["releaseNotes"].is_string()) {
-      release_notes_ = latest_version_info_["releaseNotes"].get<std::string>();
-    } else {
-      release_notes_ = "";
-    }
-    update_available_ = IsNewerVersion(CROSSDESK_VERSION, latest_version_);
-    if (update_available_) {
-      show_update_notification_window_ = true;
-    }
-  } else {
-    latest_version_ = "";
-    update_available_ = false;
-  }
-
   path_manager_ = std::make_unique<PathManager>("CrossDesk");
   if (path_manager_) {
     exec_log_path_ = path_manager_->GetLogPath().string();
@@ -1767,6 +1747,41 @@ int Render::Run() {
   InitializeLogger();
   LOG_INFO("CrossDesk version: {}", CROSSDESK_VERSION);
 
+  latest_version_info_ = CheckUpdate();
+  if (!latest_version_info_.empty()) {
+    std::string version;
+    if (latest_version_info_.contains("latest_version") &&
+        latest_version_info_["latest_version"].is_string()) {
+      version = latest_version_info_["latest_version"].get<std::string>();
+    } else if (latest_version_info_.contains("version") &&
+               latest_version_info_["version"].is_string()) {
+      version = latest_version_info_["version"].get<std::string>();
+    }
+
+    if (!version.empty()) {
+      latest_version_ = 'v' + version;
+    } else {
+      latest_version_ = "";
+    }
+    if (latest_version_info_.contains("releaseNotes") &&
+        latest_version_info_["releaseNotes"].is_string()) {
+      release_notes_ = latest_version_info_["releaseNotes"].get<std::string>();
+    } else {
+      release_notes_ = "";
+    }
+    update_available_ =
+        !version.empty() && IsNewerVersion(CROSSDESK_VERSION, latest_version_);
+    LOG_INFO("Update check: current={}, latest={}, available={}",
+             CROSSDESK_VERSION, latest_version_, update_available_);
+    if (update_available_) {
+      show_update_notification_window_ = true;
+    }
+  } else {
+    latest_version_ = "";
+    update_available_ = false;
+    LOG_WARN("Update check skipped: version.json is empty or missing latest_version");
+  }
+
   InitializeSettings();
   InitializeSDL();
   InitializeModules();

src/version_checker/version_checker.cpp

@@ -8,8 +8,13 @@
 
 #include <httplib.h>
 
+#include "rd_log.h"
+
 #include <algorithm>
+#include <array>
 #include <cctype>
+#include <cstdlib>
+#include <filesystem>
 #include <iostream>
 #include <limits>
 #include <sstream>
@@ -137,27 +142,6 @@ bool ExtractDateFromText(const std::string& value,
   return false;
 }
 
-bool ExtractPatchAfterDate(const std::string& value,
-                           size_t start,
-                           int* patch) {
-  size_t pos = start;
-  while (pos < value.size() && !IsAlphaNumeric(value[pos])) {
-    pos++;
-  }
-
-  const size_t token_start = pos;
-  while (pos < value.size() && IsAlphaNumeric(value[pos])) {
-    pos++;
-  }
-
-  if (token_start == pos) {
-    return false;
-  }
-
-  return TryParseInlinePatch(value.substr(token_start, pos - token_start),
-                             patch);
-}
-
 ParsedVersion ParseVersion(const std::string& version) {
   const size_t numeric_start = FindNumericStart(version);
   const size_t numeric_end = FindNumericEnd(version, numeric_start);
@@ -167,10 +151,29 @@ ParsedVersion ParseVersion(const std::string& version) {
                                                numeric_end - numeric_start));
 
   const std::string suffix = version.substr(numeric_end);
-  size_t date_end = 0;
-  if (ExtractDateFromText(suffix, &parsed.date, &date_end)) {
+  size_t pos = 0;
+  while (pos < suffix.size()) {
+    while (pos < suffix.size() && !IsAlphaNumeric(suffix[pos])) {
+      pos++;
+    }
+
+    const size_t token_start = pos;
+    while (pos < suffix.size() && IsAlphaNumeric(suffix[pos])) {
+      pos++;
+    }
+
+    if (token_start == pos) {
+      continue;
+    }
+
+    const std::string token = suffix.substr(token_start, pos - token_start);
+    if (parsed.date.empty() && IsCompactDateAt(token, 0)) {
+      parsed.date = CompactDateToIso(token);
+      continue;
+    }
+
     int patch = 0;
-    if (ExtractPatchAfterDate(suffix, date_end, &patch)) {
+    if (!parsed.has_patch && TryParseInlinePatch(token, &patch)) {
       parsed.has_patch = true;
       parsed.patch = patch;
     }
@@ -227,6 +230,85 @@ bool ReadPatchField(const nlohmann::json& json, int* patch) {
   return false;
 }
 
+void LogHttpError(const httplib::Result& result) {
+  LOG_WARN("Failed to fetch version.json: error={}, message={}",
+           static_cast<int>(result.error()), httplib::to_string(result.error()));
+#ifdef CPPHTTPLIB_OPENSSL_SUPPORT
+  LOG_WARN("version.json SSL error={}, OpenSSL error={}", result.ssl_error(),
+           result.ssl_openssl_error());
+#endif
+}
+
+#if defined(CPPHTTPLIB_OPENSSL_SUPPORT) && defined(__linux__)
+bool PathExists(const std::string& path) {
+  if (path.empty()) {
+    return false;
+  }
+
+  std::error_code ec;
+  return std::filesystem::exists(path, ec);
+}
+
+std::string GetEnvPathIfExists(const char* key) {
+  const char* value = std::getenv(key);
+  if (!value) {
+    return "";
+  }
+
+  const std::string path = value;
+  return PathExists(path) ? path : "";
+}
+
+std::string FindFirstExistingPath(
+    const std::vector<std::string>& candidates) {
+  for (const auto& candidate : candidates) {
+    if (PathExists(candidate)) {
+      return candidate;
+    }
+  }
+  return "";
+}
+
+void ConfigureLinuxCaCerts(httplib::Client* cli) {
+  const std::string ca_file = [&]() {
+    const std::string env_path = GetEnvPathIfExists("SSL_CERT_FILE");
+    if (!env_path.empty()) {
+      return env_path;
+    }
+
+    return FindFirstExistingPath({
+        "/etc/ssl/certs/ca-certificates.crt",
+        "/etc/pki/tls/certs/ca-bundle.crt",
+        "/etc/ssl/cert.pem",
+        "/etc/pki/ca-trust/extracted/pem/tls-ca-bundle.pem",
+    });
+  }();
+
+  const std::string ca_dir = [&]() {
+    const std::string env_path = GetEnvPathIfExists("SSL_CERT_DIR");
+    if (!env_path.empty()) {
+      return env_path;
+    }
+
+    return FindFirstExistingPath({
+        "/etc/ssl/certs",
+        "/etc/pki/tls/certs",
+        "/etc/openssl/certs",
+    });
+  }();
+
+  if (ca_file.empty() && ca_dir.empty()) {
+    LOG_WARN("No Linux CA bundle found for version.json request; relying on OpenSSL defaults");
+    return;
+  }
+
+  cli->set_ca_cert_path(ca_file, ca_dir);
+  LOG_INFO("Configured version.json TLS CA bundle: file={}, dir={}",
+           ca_file.empty() ? "<none>" : ca_file,
+           ca_dir.empty() ? "<none>" : ca_dir);
+}
+#endif
+
 }  // namespace
 
 std::string ExtractNumericPart(const std::string& ver) {
@@ -280,6 +362,8 @@ bool IsNewerVersionWithMetadata(const std::string& current,
                                 const std::string& latest,
                                 const std::string& latest_date,
                                 int latest_patch) {
+  (void)latest_date;
+
   const ParsedVersion current_version = ParseVersion(current);
   const ParsedVersion latest_version = ParseVersion(latest);
 
@@ -292,21 +376,6 @@ bool IsNewerVersionWithMetadata(const std::string& current,
     return false;
   }
 
-  const std::string resolved_latest_date =
-      !latest_date.empty() ? latest_date : latest_version.date;
-  if (!resolved_latest_date.empty() && !current_version.date.empty()) {
-    if (resolved_latest_date > current_version.date) {
-      return true;
-    }
-    if (resolved_latest_date < current_version.date) {
-      return false;
-    }
-  } else if (!resolved_latest_date.empty() && current_version.date.empty()) {
-    return true;
-  } else if (resolved_latest_date.empty() && !current_version.date.empty()) {
-    return false;
-  }
-
   const bool metadata_has_patch = latest_patch >= 0;
   const bool latest_has_patch = metadata_has_patch || latest_version.has_patch;
   if (latest_has_patch || current_version.has_patch) {
@@ -327,8 +396,14 @@ nlohmann::json CheckUpdate() {
 
   cli.set_connection_timeout(5);
   cli.set_read_timeout(5);
+  cli.set_follow_location(true);
 
-  if (auto res = cli.Get("/version.json")) {
+#if defined(CPPHTTPLIB_OPENSSL_SUPPORT) && defined(__linux__)
+  ConfigureLinuxCaCerts(&cli);
+#endif
+
+  auto res = cli.Get("/version.json");
+  if (res) {
     if (res->status == 200) {
       try {
         auto j = nlohmann::json::parse(res->body);
@@ -339,16 +414,23 @@ nlohmann::json CheckUpdate() {
         }
         latest_patch_ = 0;
         latest_patch_available_ = ReadPatchField(j, &latest_patch_);
+        LOG_INFO("Fetched version.json: latest_version={}, releaseDate={}, patch={}",
+                 j.value("latest_version", j.value("version", "")),
+                 j.value("releaseDate", ""),
+                 latest_patch_available_ ? latest_patch_ : -1);
         return j;
-      } catch (std::exception&) {
+      } catch (const std::exception& e) {
+        LOG_WARN("Failed to parse version.json: {}", e.what());
         ResetLatestMetadata();
         return nlohmann::json{};
       }
     } else {
+      LOG_WARN("Failed to fetch version.json: HTTP status={}", res->status);
       ResetLatestMetadata();
       return nlohmann::json{};
     }
   } else {
+    LogHttpError(res);
     ResetLatestMetadata();
     return nlohmann::json{};
   }

tests/version_checker_test.cpp

@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+#include "version_checker.h"
+
+#include <iostream>
+#include <string>
+
+namespace {
+
+bool ExpectEqual(const std::string& name, bool actual, bool expected) {
+  if (actual == expected) {
+    return true;
+  }
+
+  std::cerr << name << " mismatch\n"
+            << "  expected: " << expected << "\n"
+            << "  actual:   " << actual << "\n";
+  return false;
+}
+
+}  // namespace
+
+int main() {
+  bool ok = true;
+
+  ok &= ExpectEqual("new patch-before-date is newer",
+                    crossdesk::IsNewerVersionWithMetadata(
+                        "v1.3.5-20260529", "v1.3.5-1-20260529", "", -1),
+                    true);
+  ok &= ExpectEqual("larger patch wins regardless of date",
+                    crossdesk::IsNewerVersionWithMetadata(
+                        "v1.3.5-2-20260530", "v1.3.5-3-20260529", "", -1),
+                    true);
+  ok &= ExpectEqual("smaller patch loses regardless of date",
+                    crossdesk::IsNewerVersionWithMetadata(
+                        "v1.3.5-3-20260529", "v1.3.5-2-20260530", "", -1),
+                    false);
+  ok &= ExpectEqual("old date-before-patch remains supported",
+                    crossdesk::IsNewerVersionWithMetadata(
+                        "v1.3.5-20260529-1", "v1.3.5-20260529-2", "", -1),
+                    true);
+  ok &= ExpectEqual("metadata patch overrides date",
+                    crossdesk::IsNewerVersionWithMetadata(
+                        "v1.3.5-9-20260530", "v1.3.5", "2026-05-31", 10),
+                    true);
+  ok &= ExpectEqual("date alone does not update same version",
+                    crossdesk::IsNewerVersionWithMetadata(
+                        "v1.3.5-20260529", "v1.3.5-20260530", "", -1),
+                    false);
+  ok &= ExpectEqual("numeric version still wins",
+                    crossdesk::IsNewerVersionWithMetadata(
+                        "v1.3.5-9-20260529", "v1.3.6-1-20260529", "", -1),
+                    true);
+
+  return ok ? 0 : 1;
+}

xmake/targets.lua

@@ -70,6 +70,19 @@ function setup_targets()
         set_default(false)
         add_files("tests/display_popup_hover_state_test.cpp")
 
+    target("version_checker_test")
+        set_kind("binary")
+        set_default(false)
+        add_packages("cpp-httplib")
+        add_deps("rd_log")
+        add_includedirs("src/version_checker")
+        add_files("tests/version_checker_test.cpp",
+            "src/version_checker/version_checker.cpp")
+        if is_os("macosx") then
+            add_defines("CPPHTTPLIB_USE_CERTS_FROM_MACOSX_KEYCHAIN")
+            add_frameworks("Security", "CoreFoundation")
+        end
+
     target("screen_capturer")
         set_kind("object")
         add_deps("rd_log", "common")
@@ -169,6 +182,10 @@ function setup_targets()
         add_deps("rd_log")
         add_files("src/version_checker/*.cpp")
         add_includedirs("src/version_checker", {public = true})
+        if is_os("macosx") then
+            add_defines("CPPHTTPLIB_USE_CERTS_FROM_MACOSX_KEYCHAIN")
+            add_frameworks("Security", "CoreFoundation")
+        end
 
     target("tools")
         set_kind("object")