v3.32.2: the Windows card-swap auto-equip loop

After a card swap (or the first insertion after startup) on Windows the
auto-equip looped forever: "card inserted, initializing" / "card gone
during initialization", with no "retry 2/3" lines.

An equip with the card still present produced no card (app.card None),
and that branch reported "card gone" and returned True - a no-op success
- so the three retries never ran and the watchdog re-armed every ~5 s.

- The card-gone no-op is now only for a real removal (card_present
  False); a card-present init that produced no card raises a failure.
- Any failed attempt marks the transport stale, so the next attempt
  rebuilds the PC/SC link (a Windows swap can leave the old link unable
  to connect; _ensure_transport releases the old link before building
  the new one, so the 2026-09-24 stale-handle bug cannot recur).
- The error pySim swallowed (cmd2) is printed as "AUTO-EQUIP: init
  output:" with its traceback - the failure is diagnosable from the log.
- Docs: the READMEs' troubleshooting bullet.
- Version strings + the PWA cache bumped together (simple-v460).

Tests: a card-present init without a card is a failure, a mid-init
removal stays a silent no-op, any failure marks the transport, the
stale-handle traceback reaches the log, and an end-to-end retry: a
failed init, the old link released, a fresh one built, the retry
succeeds.  1012 Python + 953 frontend green.

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -9,6 +9,27 @@ every change carries a descriptive commit message.
 
 ## [Unreleased]
 
+## [3.32.2] — 2026-10-21
+
+### Fixed
+
+- **The auto-equip loop after a card swap on Windows.** A failed initialization with
+  the card still present was reported as "card gone during initialization" and treated
+  as a no-op success — so the three retries never ran and the watchdog re-armed every
+  few seconds forever.  It is a failure now, and **every failed attempt marks the
+  PC/SC transport for a rebuild**, so the retry starts from a fresh link (the release
+  of the old link happens first, so it cannot inherit a stale card handle).  The error
+  pySim swallowed is printed as `AUTO-EQUIP: init output:` with its traceback.
+
+## [3.32.1] — 2026-10-21
+
+### Added
+
+- **"Start counter value"** in the outfile import: the counter every created keyset
+  starts from.  It defaults to the store's value (`1`); raise it for cards whose
+  counters are already past it.  The API takes `start_counter` (1–10 hex digits;
+  a bad value is a 400), and the preview carries the value.
+
 ## [3.32.0] — 2026-10-21
 
 ### Added

README.md

@@ -799,7 +799,7 @@ its MSVC build chain) is not pulled in.
 - **"Failed to establish context: Access denied"** — `pcscd` isn't running or the user lacks permission: `sudo systemctl enable --now pcscd && sudo usermod -a -G pcscd $USER`.
 - **"device file /dev/ttyUSB0 does not exist"** — no serial reader; connect a USB reader or pass `-d` explicitly. The server still starts without a reader.
 - **"Service not available" (0x8010001D) / reader gone after a `pcscd` restart** — the server recovers by itself: a watchdog revives pyscard's presence monitor and the next equip (automatic after re-insertion, or the **Equip** button) recreates the PC/SC transport (releasing the old link first). No server restart needed.
-- **"Card was removed" errors / auto-equip fails after a card swap** — a normal card swap reconnects on the existing transport (card-level PC/SC errors no longer force a transport rebuild), a failed auto-equip is retried up to 3 times, and the watchdog re-arms it every 5 s while a card is present. A removed card also clears the card state completely, so handlers answer "no card" instead of transmitting over the dead card.
+- **"Card was removed" errors / auto-equip fails after a card swap** — the auto-equip retries up to 3 times, and **every failed attempt rebuilds the PC/SC transport** before the next one: after a card swap on Windows the old link can stay unable to connect, which used to fail every retry and re-arm forever. The swallowed init error (with its traceback) is now printed as `AUTO-EQUIP: init output:`, and a card that is present but produced no card is a failure, not a silent "card gone". The watchdog re-arms with a doubling delay (5 s up to 60 s) while a card is present; a removed card clears the card state completely, so handlers answer "no card" instead of transmitting over the dead card.
 
 ### API reference
 

README_RUS.md

@@ -783,7 +783,7 @@ pysim-simple-server --http-port 8080
 - **"Failed to establish context: Access denied"** — `pcscd` не запущен или нет прав: `sudo systemctl enable --now pcscd && sudo usermod -a -G pcscd $USER`.
 - **"device file /dev/ttyUSB0 does not exist"** — нет serial-ридера; подключите USB-ридер или укажите `-d`. Сервер всё равно стартует без ридера.
 - **"Service not available" (0x8010001D) / ридер пропал после перезапуска `pcscd`** — сервер восстанавливается сам: сторож перезапускает монитор присутствия pyscard, а следующий equip (автоматически после повторной вставки карты или кнопкой **Equip**) пересоздаёт транспорт PC/SC (сначала освобождая старый линк). Перезапуск сервера не нужен.
-- **Ошибки "Card was removed" / equip не срабатывает после смены карты** — обычная смена карты переподключается на существующем транспорте (карточные ошибки PC/SC больше не вызывают пересоздание транспорта), неудавшийся авто-equip повторяется до 3 раз, а сторож перезапускает его каждые 5 с, пока карта в ридере. Снятие карты теперь полностью очищает состояние, поэтому обработчики отвечают «нет карты», а не шлют APDU мёртвой карте.
+- **Ошибки "Card was removed" / equip не срабатывает после смены карты** — авто-equip повторяется до 3 раз, и **каждая неудачная попытка пересоздаёт транспорт PC/SC** перед следующей: после смены карты в Windows старое соединение может остаться неспособным подключиться, из-за чего раньше все повторы падали, а сторож перезапускал попытки бесконечно. Проглоченная ошибка инициализации (с трассировкой) теперь печатается как `AUTO-EQUIP: init output:`, а «карта есть, но карта не создана» — это ошибка, а не тихое «карта пропала». Сторож повторяет с удвоением задержки (5 с … 60 с), пока карта в ридере; снятие карты полностью очищает состояние, поэтому обработчики отвечают «нет карты», а не шлют APDU мёртвой карте.
 
 ### Справочник API
 

docs/api.md

@@ -351,6 +351,10 @@ into a preview.
 - `tar_keyset` — an optional **global default keyset** (1–15) for the TAR
   entries that do not name one (the API's shorthand; the PWA sends per-row
   keysets instead).
+- `start_counter` — the counter **every created keyset starts from** (1–10 hex
+  digits; whitespace stripped, uppercased).  Without it the store's default
+  (`1`) applies.  A bad value is a `400`; the import stores the protocol's
+  10-digit form.
 
 Recognised columns (case-insensitive): `ICCID` (the digits + odd-nibble F
 pad, the plain digits, spaced digits or the raw nibble-swapped EF hex all

frontend/help.html

@@ -371,7 +371,7 @@
 		</tbody>
 	</table>
 	<p class="text-sm mb-3">The <strong>SCP81</strong> column shows whether the preset supplies a usable PSK pair: <strong>&#10003;</strong> (green) — identity and key set; <strong>&#9888;</strong> (amber) — only one of the two, so the listener ignores the preset; <strong>&mdash;</strong> — no PSK. PSK identity and key must be set together. <strong>Add preset</strong> opens the editor with a fresh preset; <strong>Edit</strong> loads the row's preset into it so fields can be changed without re-entering the card; <strong>Save</strong> stores it and returns to the list, <strong>Cancel</strong> discards the edits; <strong>Remove</strong> deletes the row (list only). Presets can be shared with <strong>Export to file</strong> and restored with <strong>Import from file</strong>. The selected card preset auto-fills the Secured Packet form and sets the TAR for the operation (RAM/GP &rarr; ISD TAR, SIM RFM &rarr; UICC RFM TAR, USIM RFM &rarr; ADF RFM TAR); a TAR typed into the Secured Packet form by hand is kept when sending - the counter, keys and the TAR's MSL are still re-read from the preset; the SPI1 is seeded from the TAR's MSL and a lower value warns (the server returns it as a <code class="font-mono text-sm">warning</code> too); edits are pushed into a running SCP81 listener automatically.</p>
-	<p class="text-sm mb-3"><strong>Import outfile</strong> imports many cards at once from a card vendor's <em>outfile</em> — the personalization tool's plain-text dump: a banner and a configuration header, then a whitespace-separated <strong>column line</strong> (the tokens include <code class="font-mono text-sm">ICCID</code>; the first token may carry a <code class="font-mono text-sm">var_out:</code>-style prefix) and one row per card. Everything before the column line and every unused column is ignored. Every data row must carry a value for <strong>every declared column</strong> &mdash; the format is positional, so an empty value is indistinguishable from a missing one &mdash; and a <code class="font-mono text-sm">KICn</code>/<code class="font-mono text-sm">KIDn</code> pair named in the header must have a usable value in every row; a violation makes the whole file invalid (the preview reports the line and the import is refused). The parser reads <code class="font-mono text-sm">ICCID</code> (digits, the digits with an odd-nibble <code class="font-mono text-sm">F</code> pad, spaced digits or the raw EF hex — all normalised to one form), <code class="font-mono text-sm">PIN1</code>/<code class="font-mono text-sm">PIN2</code>/<code class="font-mono text-sm">PUK1</code>/<code class="font-mono text-sm">PUK2</code>, <code class="font-mono text-sm">ADM</code> (the key's hex value, 4&ndash;16 hex digits in byte pairs — e.g. <code class="font-mono text-sm">3632333239463337</code>), <code class="font-mono text-sm">PSK</code> (16 bytes; an optional <code class="font-mono text-sm">PSKID</code>/<code class="font-mono text-sm">PSK_ID</code> names its identity, defaulting to the card's ICCID) and the numbered key pairs <code class="font-mono text-sm">KICn</code>/<code class="font-mono text-sm">KIDn</code> — one keyset per pair, up to 15. The <strong>KIc/KID bytes are never in the file</strong>: the keyset number is the column number (<code class="font-mono text-sm">KIC2</code> &rarr; keyset 2) and the algorithm nibble follows the key size — 8 bytes DES, 24 bytes 3DES3, and for <strong>16 bytes</strong> the preview's choice, <strong>3DES2</strong> (default) or <strong>AES</strong>; any other size skips that keyset with a note. The TARs never come from the file either: the preview shows the TAR table the imported cards get (the three role entries with their spec TARs and MSL 16 by default, editable, with <strong>+ TAR</strong> for extra entries) and <strong>every row carries its own keyset</strong> — a select over the keysets found in the file (the first one is preselected; a non-zero MSL needs one, marked amber), so each TAR's packets use exactly the keyset you choose. A <strong>common name</strong> is applied to every imported card (empty falls back to the ICCID); <strong>Import mode</strong> chooses <strong>Merge</strong> (default — existing presets are kept, duplicate ICCIDs are skipped and reported) or <strong>Replace</strong> (the store is wiped first). The preview lists the parsed cards (ICCID, keysets, the codes found) and every skipped row/key with its reason before anything is stored.</p>
+	<p class="text-sm mb-3"><strong>Import outfile</strong> imports many cards at once from a card vendor's <em>outfile</em> — the personalization tool's plain-text dump: a banner and a configuration header, then a whitespace-separated <strong>column line</strong> (the tokens include <code class="font-mono text-sm">ICCID</code>; the first token may carry a <code class="font-mono text-sm">var_out:</code>-style prefix) and one row per card. Everything before the column line and every unused column is ignored. Every data row must carry a value for <strong>every declared column</strong> &mdash; the format is positional, so an empty value is indistinguishable from a missing one &mdash; and a <code class="font-mono text-sm">KICn</code>/<code class="font-mono text-sm">KIDn</code> pair named in the header must have a usable value in every row; a violation makes the whole file invalid (the preview reports the line and the import is refused). The parser reads <code class="font-mono text-sm">ICCID</code> (digits, the digits with an odd-nibble <code class="font-mono text-sm">F</code> pad, spaced digits or the raw EF hex — all normalised to one form), <code class="font-mono text-sm">PIN1</code>/<code class="font-mono text-sm">PIN2</code>/<code class="font-mono text-sm">PUK1</code>/<code class="font-mono text-sm">PUK2</code>, <code class="font-mono text-sm">ADM</code> (the key's hex value, 4&ndash;16 hex digits in byte pairs — e.g. <code class="font-mono text-sm">3632333239463337</code>), <code class="font-mono text-sm">PSK</code> (16 bytes; an optional <code class="font-mono text-sm">PSKID</code>/<code class="font-mono text-sm">PSK_ID</code> names its identity, defaulting to the card's ICCID) and the numbered key pairs <code class="font-mono text-sm">KICn</code>/<code class="font-mono text-sm">KIDn</code> — one keyset per pair, up to 15. The <strong>KIc/KID bytes are never in the file</strong>: the keyset number is the column number (<code class="font-mono text-sm">KIC2</code> &rarr; keyset 2) and the algorithm nibble follows the key size — 8 bytes DES, 24 bytes 3DES3, and for <strong>16 bytes</strong> the preview's choice, <strong>3DES2</strong> (default) or <strong>AES</strong>; any other size skips that keyset with a note. The TARs never come from the file either: the preview shows the TAR table the imported cards get (the three role entries with their spec TARs and MSL 16 by default, editable, with <strong>+ TAR</strong> for extra entries) and <strong>every row carries its own keyset</strong> — a select over the keysets found in the file (the first one is preselected; a non-zero MSL needs one, marked amber), so each TAR's packets use exactly the keyset you choose. <strong>Start counter value</strong> sets the counter every created keyset starts from (default <code class="font-mono text-sm">1</code> &mdash; the store's value; raise it for cards already past it).  A <strong>common name</strong> is applied to every imported card (empty falls back to the ICCID); <strong>Import mode</strong> chooses <strong>Merge</strong> (default — existing presets are kept, duplicate ICCIDs are skipped and reported) or <strong>Replace</strong> (the store is wiped first). The preview lists the parsed cards (ICCID, keysets, the codes found) and every skipped row/key with its reason before anything is stored.</p>
 </section>
 
 <section class="mb-10">

frontend/index.html

@@ -1943,7 +1943,7 @@
 // ===== Version =====
 // Single source of truth for the PWA version: shown in the header and used
 // by the server version check in pysimConnect().
-const SIMPLE_VERSION = '3.32.0';
+const SIMPLE_VERSION = '3.32.2';
 document.getElementById('app-version').textContent = 'v' + SIMPLE_VERSION;
 
 // ===== view history (the browser Back/Forward buttons) =====
@@ -15154,7 +15154,7 @@ async function cardsOutfileFile(input) {
 	}
 	_cardsOutfile = { text: text, file: String(file.name || ''),
 		name: String(file.name || '').replace(/\.[^.]+$/, ''),
-		algorithm16: '3des2', mode: 'merge', preview: null };
+		algorithm16: '3des2', cntr: '1', mode: 'merge', preview: null };
 	_cardsOutfileTars = 0;
 	cardsOutfileRender();
 	await cardsOutfilePreview();
@@ -15177,6 +15177,7 @@ function cardsOutfileControls() {
 	const val = id => { const el = document.getElementById(id); return el ? String(el.value) : ''; };
 	if (document.getElementById('cards-of-name')) o.name = val('cards-of-name').trim();
 	if (document.getElementById('cards-of-algo')) o.algorithm16 = val('cards-of-algo') || '3des2';
+	if (document.getElementById('cards-of-cntr')) o.cntr = val('cards-of-cntr').trim().toUpperCase();
 	if (document.getElementById('cards-of-mode')) {
 		o.mode = val('cards-of-mode') === 'replace' ? 'replace' : 'merge';
 	}
@@ -15371,6 +15372,13 @@ function cardsOutfileRender() {
 		'<select id="cards-of-mode" class="block mt-0.5 border border-gray-300 dark:border-slate-600 text-sm rounded px-2 py-1 dark:bg-slate-800">' +
 		'<option value="merge"' + (o.mode === 'replace' ? '' : ' selected') + '>' + esc(t('Merge')) + '</option>' +
 		'<option value="replace"' + (o.mode === 'replace' ? ' selected' : '') + '>' + esc(t('Replace')) + '</option></select></label>';
+	// The counter every created keyset starts from (v3.32.1): the store's
+	// default, editable for cards whose counter is already past it.
+	html += '<label class="text-xs text-gray-600 dark:text-slate-400" title="' +
+		esc(t('The counter every created keyset starts from (1-10 hex digits); the store default is 1')) + '">' +
+		esc(t('Start counter value')) +
+		'<input id="cards-of-cntr" class="block mt-0.5 w-24 border border-gray-300 dark:border-slate-600 text-sm rounded px-2 py-1 dark:bg-slate-800 font-mono" maxlength="10" value="' +
+		escHtml(o.cntr || '1') + '" onchange="cardsOutfilePreview()"></label>';
 	html += '</div>';
 	html += '<div class="text-xs text-gray-600 dark:text-slate-400 mb-1">' + esc(t('TAR table')) + '</div>';
 	html += '<div id="cards-of-tars">' + cardsOutfileTarRowsHtml() + '</div>';
@@ -15393,7 +15401,7 @@ async function cardsOutfilePreview() {
 	cardsOutfileControls();
 	const body = {
 		text: o.text, name: o.name, algorithm16: o.algorithm16,
-		tars: cardsOutfileTarsFromForm(),
+		tars: cardsOutfileTarsFromForm(), start_counter: o.cntr,
 	};
 	try {
 		o.preview = await pysimFetchOk('/api/presets/import-outfile', body);
@@ -15418,7 +15426,7 @@ async function cardsOutfileImport() {
 	if (btn) btn.disabled = true;
 	const body = {
 		text: o.text, name: o.name, algorithm16: o.algorithm16,
-		tars: cardsOutfileTarsFromForm(), mode: o.mode,
+		tars: cardsOutfileTarsFromForm(), start_counter: o.cntr, mode: o.mode,
 	};
 	try {
 		const res = await pysimFetchOk('/api/presets/import-outfile', body);
@@ -24012,6 +24020,8 @@ const LANG_RU = {
 	'Common name': 'Общее имя',
 	'16-byte keys': '16-байтные ключи',
 	'This TAR needs a keyset (its MSL requires security)': 'Этому TAR нужен keyset (его MSL требует защиты)',
+	'Start counter value': 'Начальное значение счётчика',
+	'The counter every created keyset starts from (1-10 hex digits); the store default is 1': 'Счётчик, с которого начинается каждый созданный keyset (1–10 hex-цифр); по умолчанию в хранилище — 1',
 	'The file is invalid - fix it and refresh the preview': 'Файл некорректен — исправьте его и обновите предпросмотр',
 	'Import mode': 'Режим импорта',
 	'Merge': 'Дополнить',

frontend/sw.js

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-const CACHE = 'simple-v458';
+const CACHE = 'simple-v460';
 const URLS = [
   'index.html',
   'help.html',

frontend/tests/cards_outfile.test.js

@@ -113,8 +113,8 @@ test('the preview and the import both post the outfile endpoint', () => {
 	// the keysets travel per TAR row (v3.29.1): no global tar_keyset
 	assert.ok(!preview.includes('tar_keyset'), 'the preview must not send a global keyset');
 	assert.ok(!imp.includes('tar_keyset'), 'the import must not send a global keyset');
-	assert.match(preview, /tars: cardsOutfileTarsFromForm\(\)/);
+	assert.match(preview, /tars: cardsOutfileTarsFromForm\(\), start_counter: o\.cntr/);
-	assert.match(imp, /tars: cardsOutfileTarsFromForm\(\), mode: o\.mode/);
+	assert.match(imp, /tars: cardsOutfileTarsFromForm\(\), start_counter: o\.cntr, mode: o\.mode/);
 });
 
 test('the 16-byte algorithm values match the server map', () => {
@@ -225,10 +225,12 @@ test('cardsOutfileControls reads the panel controls back into the state', () =>
 	setEl('cards-of-name', '  Batch 7  ');
 	setEl('cards-of-algo', 'aes');
 	setEl('cards-of-mode', 'replace');
+	setEl('cards-of-cntr', ' 1a ');
 	app.cardsOutfileControls();
 	assert.strictEqual(app.state.name, 'Batch 7');
 	assert.strictEqual(app.state.algorithm16, 'aes');
 	assert.strictEqual(app.state.mode, 'replace');
+	assert.strictEqual(app.state.cntr, '1A');   // the store's uppercase hex form
 });
 
 test('picking a file previews it with the file name and the TAR defaults', async () => {
@@ -254,6 +256,10 @@ test('picking a file previews it with the file name and the TAR defaults', async
 	assert.match(els['cards-outfile-panel'].innerHTML, /id="cards-of-tar-0-keyset"/);
 	assert.match(els['cards-outfile-panel'].innerHTML, /<option value="1" selected>Keyset 1 — 15\/15<\/option>/);
 	assert.match(els['cards-outfile-panel'].innerHTML, /8970119000004600098/);
+	// the start counter field defaults to the store's value and travels in the body
+	assert.match(els['cards-outfile-panel'].innerHTML, /id="cards-of-cntr"/);
+	assert.match(els['cards-outfile-panel'].innerHTML, /value="1"/);
+	assert.strictEqual(body.start_counter, '1');
 });
 
 test('a failing preview shows the server message in the panel', async () => {

pyproject.toml

@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ build-backend = "setuptools.build_meta"
 
 [project]
 name = "pysim-simple-server"
-version = "3.32.0"
+version = "3.32.2"
 description = "HTTP REST server wrapping pysim for the SIMple PWA"
 license = { text = "GPL-2.0-or-later" }
 requires-python = ">=3.9"

pysim_simple_server/outfile.py

@@ -184,13 +184,23 @@ def _hex_value(tok):
     return v if v and len(v) % 2 == 0 else ''
 
 
-def parse_outfile(text, name='', algorithm16='3des2', tars=None, tar_keyset=None):
+def parse_outfile(text, name='', algorithm16='3des2', tars=None, tar_keyset=None,
+                  start_counter=None):
     """Parse an outfile into preset dicts (the store's shape).
 
-    Returns ``{'presets': [...], 'report': {...}}``.  Every skipped row or key
+    ``start_counter`` (1-10 hex digits) is written into every created keyset -
-    is named in the report (up to ``SKIP_REPORT_MAX`` lines, then counted) -
+    the counter an operation against that keyset starts from; without it the
-    nothing is silently dropped.  Raises ValueError on a malformed TAR table.
+    store's default ('1') applies.  Returns
+    ``{'presets': [...], 'report': {...}}``.  Every skipped row or key is named
+    in the report (up to ``SKIP_REPORT_MAX`` lines, then counted) - nothing is
+    silently dropped.  Raises ValueError on a malformed TAR table or counter.
     """
+    counter = None
+    if start_counter not in (None, ''):
+        counter = re.sub(r'\s', '', str(start_counter)).upper()
+        if not re.fullmatch(r'[0-9A-F]{1,10}', counter):
+            raise ValueError('start_counter must be 1-10 hex digits: %r'
+                             % (start_counter,))
     columns, line_index = find_columns(text)
     report = {'columns': columns or [], 'header_lines': max(line_index, 0),
               'rows': 0, 'cards': 0, 'keysets': [], 'tars': 0,
@@ -256,8 +266,11 @@ def parse_outfile(text, name='', algorithm16='3des2', tars=None, tar_keyset=None
                      % (row_no, n, len(kic_key) // 2))
                 continue
             byte = '%02X' % ((n << 4) | algo)
-            keysets.append({'kic': byte, 'kid': byte,
+            keyset = {'kic': byte, 'kid': byte,
-                            'kicKey': kic_key, 'kidKey': kid_key})
+                      'kicKey': kic_key, 'kidKey': kid_key}
+            if counter is not None:
+                keyset['cntr'] = counter
+            keysets.append(keyset)
         if not keysets:
             skip('line %d: no usable keyset' % row_no)
             continue

pysim_simple_server/server.py

@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@ from osmocom.tlv import BER_TLV_IE
 from osmocom.utils import rpad
 
 
-VERSION = '3.32.0'
+VERSION = '3.32.2'
 
 MAX_ENVELOPE_SEGMENTS = 5  # max SMS segments for outgoing C-APDU in ENVELOPE
 
@@ -5701,8 +5701,8 @@ def _auto_equip_attempt(server):
         if not _ensure_transport(server):
             return False
         server.equipping = True
+        out = StringIO()
         try:
-            out = StringIO()
             old_stdout, old_stderr = app.stdout, sys.stderr
             old_debug = getattr(app, 'debug', None)
             app.stdout = out
@@ -5716,9 +5716,17 @@ def _auto_equip_attempt(server):
                     app.debug = old_debug
                 app.stdout = old_stdout
                 sys.stderr = old_stderr
-            if not getattr(server, 'card_present', False) or server.app.card is None:
+            if not getattr(server, 'card_present', False):
+                # A real removal: _handle_card_disconnect already cleared the
+                # session, nothing to retry.
                 sys.stderr.write('AUTO-EQUIP: card gone during initialization\n')
                 return True
+            if server.app.card is None:
+                # The presence monitor still reports the card, so this is a
+                # failed initialization, not a swap - never a silent no-op
+                # (a Windows card swap showed an endless "card gone"
+                # re-arm loop because this returned True: 2026-10-21).
+                raise RuntimeError('the card is present but the init produced no card')
             if 'Traceback (most recent call last)' in out.getvalue():
                 raise RuntimeError('equip reported an error (see the captured output)')
             if not _app_equip_complete(app):
@@ -5729,12 +5737,24 @@ def _auto_equip_attempt(server):
             return True
         except Exception as e:
             sys.stderr.write('AUTO-EQUIP failed: %s\n' % e)
-            # A dead transport must be rebuilt before the next attempt;
+            # Show what pySim swallowed (cmd2 printed it into the capture):
-            # card-level failures reconnect on the existing link.  Unequip the
+            # without it the failure is undiagnosable in the run log.
-            # half-initialized shell as well: a failed init can leave command
+            captured = out.getvalue().strip()
-            # sets registered that the next equip would refuse to re-register.
+            if 'Traceback (most recent call last)' in captured:
-            if _is_transport_fatal(e):
+                lines = captured.splitlines()
-                _handle_card_disconnect(stale=True)
+                start = next(i for i, l in enumerate(lines)
+                             if 'Traceback (most recent call last)' in l)
+                sys.stderr.write('AUTO-EQUIP: init output:\n%s\n'
+                                 % '\n'.join(lines[start:start + 12]))
+            # ANY failed attempt leaves the PC/SC card handle suspect: after a
+            # card swap on Windows the link can stay unable to connect, so
+            # every retry failed and the watchdog re-armed forever (live
+            # 2026-10-21).  Mark the transport stale so the retry rebuilds it -
+            # _ensure_transport releases the old link first, so the new one
+            # never inherits a stale handle (the 2026-09-24 bug).
+            _handle_card_disconnect(stale=True)
+            # Unequip the half-initialized shell too: a failed init can leave
+            # command sets registered that the next equip would refuse.
             _clear_app_card_state(app)
             return False
         finally:
@@ -11610,7 +11630,8 @@ class PysimHandler(BaseHTTPRequestHandler):
                     name=str(body.get('name') or ''),
                     algorithm16=algorithm16,
                     tars=tars,
-                    tar_keyset=tar_keyset)
+                    tar_keyset=tar_keyset,
+                    start_counter=body.get('start_counter'))
             except ValueError as e:
                 resp = {'error': str(e)}
                 self._send_json(resp, 400)

tests/test_card_recovery.py

@@ -269,9 +269,50 @@ class AutoEquipTests(unittest.TestCase):
             self.assertTrue(server._auto_equip_attempts(srv, 3, lambda s: None))
         self.assertEqual(state['calls'], 2)
         self.assertEqual(applied, [srv])
+        # the failed attempt left the handle suspect; the retry's
+        # _ensure_transport (patched here) would rebuild and clear the flag
+        self.assertTrue(server._TRANSPORT_STALE)
+
+    def test_a_failed_init_rebuilds_the_transport_before_the_retry(self):
+        # The Windows swap end to end: the first init fails with the card
+        # present, the retry starts from a fresh PC/SC link and succeeds -
+        # and the old link is released before the new one is built.
+        srv = self.make_server(None)
+        released = []
+        built = []
+
+        class Link:
+            def disconnect(self):
+                released.append(self)
+
+        old = Link()
+        srv.sl = old
+        srv.transport_factory = lambda: built.append(Link()) or built[-1]
+        calls = {'n': 0}
+
+        def onecmd(cmd):
+            calls['n'] += 1
+            if calls['n'] == 1:
+                raise RuntimeError('ProtocolError: Connection failed')
+            # a completed equip installs both (the failure unequipped the shell)
+            srv.app.card = SimpleNamespace(_scc='scc')
+            srv.app.lchan = 'lchan'
+
+        srv.app.onecmd_plus_hooks = onecmd
+        with mock.patch.object(server, '_apply_equipped_card', lambda s: None):
+            self.assertTrue(server._auto_equip_attempts(srv, 3, lambda s: None))
+        self.assertEqual(calls['n'], 2)
+        self.assertEqual(len(built), 1)
+        self.assertEqual(released, [old])
+        self.assertIs(srv.sl, built[0])
         self.assertFalse(server._TRANSPORT_STALE)
 
-    def test_card_level_failure_keeps_the_transport(self):
+    def test_a_failed_attempt_marks_the_transport_for_the_rebuild(self):
+        # A card-level error used to keep the link: after a Windows card swap
+        # the link stayed unable to connect, every retry failed and the
+        # watchdog re-armed forever (live 2026-10-21).  Any failed attempt now
+        # marks the transport stale so the retry rebuilds it (which releases
+        # the old link first - the 2026-09-24 bug).
         srv = self.make_server(None)
 
         def onecmd(cmd):
@@ -282,7 +323,7 @@ class AutoEquipTests(unittest.TestCase):
         srv.app.onecmd_plus_hooks = onecmd
         with mock.patch.object(server, '_ensure_transport', lambda s: True):
             self.assertFalse(server._auto_equip_attempt(srv))
-        self.assertFalse(server._TRANSPORT_STALE)
+        self.assertTrue(server._TRANSPORT_STALE)
 
     def test_transport_fatal_failure_marks_the_transport(self):
         srv = self.make_server(None)
@@ -341,7 +382,7 @@ class AutoEquipTests(unittest.TestCase):
              mock.patch.object(server, '_apply_equipped_card',
                                lambda s: self.fail('_apply_equipped_card must not run')):
             self.assertFalse(server._auto_equip_attempt(srv))
-        self.assertFalse(server._TRANSPORT_STALE)
+        self.assertTrue(server._TRANSPORT_STALE)
 
     def test_captured_equip_traceback_is_a_failure(self):
         # cmd2 prints swallowed exceptions (with cmd2 debug: a traceback) to
@@ -358,6 +399,51 @@ class AutoEquipTests(unittest.TestCase):
                                lambda s: self.fail('_apply_equipped_card must not run')):
             self.assertFalse(server._auto_equip_attempt(srv))
 
+    def test_a_card_present_init_without_a_card_is_a_failure(self):
+        # The Windows loop: the presence monitor still reports the card, the
+        # init produced nothing - it must retry (and rebuild), never report a
+        # silent "card gone" success that re-arms forever (2026-10-21).
+        srv = self.make_server(None)
+
+        def onecmd(cmd):
+            pass        # cmd2 swallowed the real error: no card built
+
+        srv.app.onecmd_plus_hooks = onecmd
+        with mock.patch.object(server, '_ensure_transport', lambda s: True):
+            self.assertFalse(server._auto_equip_attempt(srv))
+        self.assertTrue(server._TRANSPORT_STALE)
+
+    def test_a_card_removed_during_the_init_is_still_a_silent_no_op(self):
+        srv = self.make_server(None)
+
+        def onecmd(cmd):
+            srv.card_present = False    # the monitor saw the removal mid-init
+
+        srv.app.onecmd_plus_hooks = onecmd
+        with mock.patch.object(server, '_ensure_transport', lambda s: True), \
+             mock.patch('sys.stderr', new=StringIO()) as err:
+            self.assertTrue(server._auto_equip_attempt(srv))
+        self.assertIn('card gone during initialization', err.getvalue())
+        self.assertFalse(server._TRANSPORT_STALE)
+
+    def test_the_swallowed_traceback_reaches_the_log(self):
+        srv = self.make_server(None)
+
+        def onecmd(cmd):
+            srv.app.card = SimpleNamespace(_scc='scc')
+            sys.stderr.write('Traceback (most recent call last):\n'
+                             '  File "x", line 1, in equip\n'
+                             'ProtocolError: Connection failed\n')
+
+        srv.app.onecmd_plus_hooks = onecmd
+        with mock.patch.object(server, '_ensure_transport', lambda s: True), \
+             mock.patch.object(server, '_apply_equipped_card', lambda s: None), \
+             mock.patch('sys.stderr', new=StringIO()) as err:
+            self.assertFalse(server._auto_equip_attempt(srv))
+        out = err.getvalue()
+        self.assertIn('AUTO-EQUIP: init output:', out)
+        self.assertIn('ProtocolError: Connection failed', out)
+
     def test_failed_attempt_unequips_the_half_initialized_shell(self):
         calls = []
         srv = self.make_server(None)

tests/test_fetch_routes.py

@@ -979,6 +979,26 @@ class PresetStoreHttpTests(unittest.TestCase):
         self.assertEqual(status, 400, resp)
         self.assertIn('the file is invalid', resp['error'])
         self.assertEqual(len(self.store.list()), before)
+        # the import form's start counter (v3.32.1): every created keyset
+        # carries it; an unusable value is a 400
+        status, resp = self._post('/api/presets/import-outfile', {
+            'text': text, 'start_counter': '1A'})
+        self.assertEqual(status, 200, resp)
+        self.assertEqual([k.get('cntr') for k in resp['presets'][0]['keysets']],
+                         ['1A'] * len(resp['presets'][0]['keysets']))
+        status, resp = self._post('/api/presets/import-outfile', {
+            'text': text, 'start_counter': 'XYZ'})
+        self.assertEqual(status, 400, resp)
+        self.assertIn('start_counter', resp['error'])
+        # ...and an import stores the protocol's padded form (a fresh ICCID:
+        # merge mode skips a duplicate)
+        fresh = text.replace('8970119000004600098', '8970119000004600999')
+        status, resp = self._post('/api/presets/import-outfile', {
+            'text': fresh, 'start_counter': '1A', 'mode': 'merge'})
+        self.assertEqual(status, 200, resp)
+        got = [p for p in self.store.list()
+               if p['iccid'] == '8970119000004600999']
+        self.assertEqual([k['cntr'] for k in got[0]['keysets']], ['000000001A'])
         # a non-list TAR table is the caller's error, never a silent fallback
         status, resp = self._post('/api/presets/import-outfile', {
             'text': text, 'tars': 'nope'})

tests/test_outfile.py

@@ -219,6 +219,26 @@ class OptionTests(unittest.TestCase):
         with self.assertRaises(ValueError):
             outfile.parse_outfile(text, tars=[{'tar': '000000', 'msl': '16', 'keyset': 'x'}])
 
+    def test_the_start_counter_is_written_into_every_keyset(self):
+        """The import form's "Start counter value": every created keyset
+        carries it (the store pads it to the protocol's 10-digit form); without
+        it the store's default ('1') applies.  An unusable value is the
+        caller's error, never a silent default (v3.32.1)."""
+        res = outfile.parse_outfile(alfa_text(), start_counter='1a')
+        ks = res['presets'][0]['keysets']
+        self.assertGreaterEqual(len(ks), 2)
+        self.assertEqual([k.get('cntr') for k in ks], ['1A'] * len(ks))
+        # normalised: whitespace stripped, uppercase
+        res = outfile.parse_outfile(alfa_text(), start_counter=' a1 ')
+        self.assertEqual(res['presets'][0]['keysets'][0]['cntr'], 'A1')
+        # unset: no field at all - the store fills its default
+        res = outfile.parse_outfile(alfa_text())
+        self.assertNotIn('cntr', res['presets'][0]['keysets'][0])
+        # an unusable value refuses the whole parse
+        for bad in ('XYZ', '1G', '1234567890A', '   '):
+            with self.assertRaises(ValueError):
+                outfile.parse_outfile(alfa_text(), start_counter=bad)
+
     def test_a_malformed_tar_table_raises(self):
         with self.assertRaises(ValueError):
             outfile.parse_outfile(alfa_text(), tars=[{'tar': 'ZZ', 'msl': '16'}])