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  Soar CSI ETABS V23 MCP — V1.1.1
  One-click installer (Customer Edition for Claude / Cowork)
  For CSI ETABS V23
  By Soar Design (Jimmy Kwok) © 2026
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[ BEFORE YOU INSTALL ]

1. Windows 10 / 11, 64-bit
2. CSI ETABS V23 installed (V21 / V22 not yet tested — V23 recommended)
3. Claude Desktop or Cowork already installed
4. A Soar Design license key (SOAR-ETAB-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX)
   (ETABS and SAP2000 / Office licenses are independent — they don't share keys)

Note: This version includes a built-in runtime. Python is NOT required.

[ ARCHITECTURE ]

Standalone EXE driving CSI ETABS V23 via comtypes COM — no .NET plugin required.
Business logic lives on Cloudflare; the launcher pulls the latest version
into memory on every start.

[ INSTALL STEPS ]

1. Unzip to a simple path (recommended: D:\Soar\ETABS_MCP)
   * Avoid Program Files (permission issues)
   * Avoid paths containing Chinese characters, spaces, parentheses,
     or special characters
2. Double-click install.bat — completes 3 steps automatically:
   - Check launcher.exe exists
   - Prompt for your license key
   - Test connection to Cloudflare, pull the latest module + write MCP config
3. Restart ETABS + Claude / Cowork
4. Try a prompt: "show model summary" or "list all frame sections"

[ DAILY USE ]

* Open CSI ETABS V23 + any .EDB model (or a fresh empty model)
* Open Claude / Cowork
* Ask in plain language, for example:
    "List all frame sections"
    "Add a W14X22 steel column section"
    "Define a modal analysis case"
    "Run analysis"
    "Show the period of mode 1"
    "Export reactions to Excel"

[ AUTO-UPDATE ]

Business-logic modules sync from Cloudflare automatically. On each start:
* The launcher checks Cloudflare for a newer version
* If found, the new module is downloaded automatically
* You don't have to do anything

[ UNINSTALL ]

Double-click uninstall.bat. It removes:
* Local log files
* Local lock files
* The "soar-etabs" entry inside the Cowork / Claude config

[ EMERGENCY UNLOCK ]

If the MCP is locked (e.g. anomaly triggered), double-click unlock_mcp.bat
to clear local lock files, then restart the MCP.

[ TROUBLESHOOTING ]

Q: install.bat says "Install path contains special characters".
A: The path has parentheses, !, & or similar. Move to a simple path
   like D:\Soar\ETABS_MCP

Q: install.bat says launcher.exe not found.
A: Make sure the launcher.dist folder and launcher.exe are intact.
   If corrupted, re-download the installer package.

Q: ETABS is open but commands do nothing.
A: Make sure ETABS is actually running (ETABS.exe visible in Task Manager)
   and at least one model is open (or a fresh empty model).

Q: License says invalid.
A: Double-check the key (uppercase + dashes). If expired, contact Soar.

Q: License says "bound to another machine".
A: Each license is bound to one machine. Contact Soar for a transfer.

Q: A modal dialog pops up and freezes the session.
A: Common dialog actions are already blacklisted. If a new one shows up,
   click Cancel and report the action name + screenshot to Soar.

[ SUPPORT ]

Email   : info@soarmcpsoftware.com
Subject : Please include the first 8 chars of your license key
          (e.g. SOAR-ETAB)

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