Horizon AIOS — End-to-End Lifecycle Test

A runbook for proving the full install → switch → (provision/update/back up) → uninstall → clean-reset lifecycle on a dedicated clean machine. Running it on a throwaway box keeps that box a reusable test rig: the uninstall reverses the entire bootstrap footprint, so you can re-run from a clean slate.

Do not run this on your primary/owner machine — bootstrap rewrites the live ~/.claude (skills + memory redirect) and local security policy (ACLs/logon rights). dev-env == build-target is exactly the tension this test isolates.

This runbook is Windows-first (matches the verified platform). Linux/macOS use the uninstall.sh/bootstrap.sh equivalents; the structure is identical.

Scope vs. system/uninstall.md: that doc is the authoritative uninstall procedure and post-uninstall verification checklist. This runbook is the broader operator lifecycle — it adds the parts the uninstall doc doesn't cover (the AIOS-switch test and optional brain provisioning / sync / backup) and defers to system/uninstall.md for the removal + verification detail rather than repeating it.

Prerequisites

A clean Windows machine with your AI harness (e.g. Claude Code) installed.
Admin rights (bootstrap/uninstall set ACLs and need elevation).
Python on PATH, git configured for DCO sign-off (user.name + user.email).
A scratch remote you own for the backup step (never the public upstream).

Runbook

Run in an elevated PowerShell. AIOS switching needs a second AIOS root, so this uses two clones.

# ── 1. Baseline (nothing installed yet) ─────────────────────────────
git clone <your-remote> C:\devroot ; cd C:\devroot
.\horizon_system\sbin\uninstall.ps1 --dry-run      # should report ~nothing to remove

# ── 2. Install AIOS #1 ──────────────────────────────────────────────
.\horizon_system\sbin\bootstrap.ps1 --yes
aios list                                           # note the auto-registered name + (*) active
aios current                                        # confirm root = C:\devroot

# ── 3. AIOS switching test (needs a 2nd root) ──────────────────────
git clone <your-remote> C:\horizon-home             # second valid AIOS root
aios register home C:\horizon-home
aios list                                           # both shown; #1 still (*)
aios switch home --dry-run                          # preview pointer rewrites, no change
aios switch home
aios current                                         # root now C:\horizon-home
Get-Content $HOME\.horizon\active_env.ps1 | Select-String HORIZON_ROOT   # regenerated to new root
#   → open a NEW shell, check $env:HORIZON_ROOT == C:\horizon-home (env changes don't reach live shells)
aios switch <name-from-step-2>                      # switch back to #1
aios current                                         # root back to C:\devroot
aios unregister home                                # (optional) drop the 2nd registration; files untouched

# ── 4. Optional: exercise the rest of the lifecycle ────────────────
#   python horizon_system\sbin\horizon_aios_create_brain.py testbrain --automation scheduled
#   python horizon_system\sbin\horizon_aios_sync.py            # simulate FF upstream update
#   python horizon_system\sbin\horizon_aios_backup_user_data.py     # to YOUR remote (never public upstream)

# ── 4b. Optional: prove brain isolation (criterion #5) ─────────────
python horizon_system\sbin\horizon_aios_verify_isolation.py            # safe ACL check, non-destructive
#   --live opt-in: provisions a throwaway brain, reads as it (bin OK / sbin denied), removes it:
#   python horizon_system\sbin\horizon_aios_verify_isolation.py --live --yes

# ── 5. Reset to clean ──────────────────────────────────────────────
#   if you made a brain:  python horizon_system\sbin\horizon_aios_remove_brain.py testbrain --yes
.\horizon_system\sbin\uninstall.ps1 --dry-run       # preview full reversal
.\horizon_system\sbin\uninstall.ps1 --yes
#   then on C:\horizon-home if you bootstrapped it too:
#   cd C:\horizon-home ; .\horizon_system\sbin\uninstall.ps1 --yes

If aios isn't found right after bootstrap (PATH not refreshed in that shell), open a fresh elevated shell or use the long form python horizon_system\sbin\horizon_aios_switch.py ....

What to verify

AIOS switching (step 3)

aios switch home moves the (*) in aios list and updates aios current.
~/.horizon/active_env.ps1 is regenerated to the new root — but ~/.claude/settings.json is unchanged (it points at the stable ~/.horizon/bin/aios-exec.ps1 wrapper; that is the indirection layer that makes a switch a pointer write, not a re-stamp). See system/aios_switching.md.
A new shell picks up the new $env:HORIZON_ROOT; already-open shells do not.
aios switch is operator-config only — it does not touch brain users' own profiles/ACLs.

Clean reset after uninstall (step 5)

Run the post-uninstall verification checklist in system/uninstall.md — it is authoritative (horizon_aios_doctor.py failures = success, skills/memory symlinks gone with targets intact, PATH cleaned, ACEs stripped, idempotent re-run).

One switch-test-specific note: the registry (aios_registry.json) lives under ~/.horizon/, which uninstall removes — so the home registration from step 3 is cleaned up automatically (no manual aios unregister needed before teardown).