v1.2.0

GST Automation

Windows desktop app automating GST portal verification and bulk GSTR downloads.

Project Overview

  • ❯Packaged into a standalone .exe using ncc + pkg (Node 18, targets Windows 10/11)
  • ❯A legacy branch supports Windows 7 using esbuild + pkg + Node 12 + Puppeteer 10.4 with a custom browser manager that connects to Chrome 109 via CDP
  • ❯Known build gotcha: ncc's asset relocator rewrites file-path strings, requiring a post-build patch step
  • ❯A companion pipeline processes downloaded GSTR-2A/2B Excel exports (multiple formats) using column-position mapping and GSTIN pattern detection, then merges monthly files into one workbook

System Requirements

Documentation and notes for System Requirements.

The application is packaged into a standalone `.exe` using ncc + pkg.

Modern Build

Targets Windows 10/11. Built on Node 12.

Legacy Windows 7 Build

A legacy branch strictly supports Windows 7 (32-bit). It is built using electron builder version 22

Known Build Gotchas

The ncc asset relocator has a known issue where it aggressively rewrites file-path strings in the compiled output. This requires an automated post-build patch step to correct the paths before packaging into an executable.

CLI Execution Guide

Documentation and notes for CLI Execution Guide.

The executable is invoked directly via command-line arguments using a strict pipe-delimited payload. (Note: All database paths, credentials, and GSTINs have been securely redacted in this documentation).

1. GST Verification (Taxpayer Sync)

"Y|<DB_PATH>|<SERVER>|<DB_USER>|<DB_PASSWORD>|<DRIVER>|<AUTH_KEY>|GST|<OUTPUT_DIR>|<PORTAL_USER>|<PORTAL_PASS>|<GSTIN>"

2. HSN Code Search

"Y|<DB_PATH>|<SERVER>|<DB_USER>|<DB_PASSWORD>|<DRIVER>|<AUTH_KEY>|HSN|<OUTPUT_DIR>|<GSTIN>"

3. B2B (GSTR-2A/2B Bulk Download)

"Y|<DB_PATH>|<SERVER>|<DB_USER>|<DB_PASSWORD>|<DRIVER>|<AUTH_KEY>|B2B|<OUTPUT_DIR>|<PORTAL_USER>|<PORTAL_PASS>|<GSTIN>"

4. Single Taxpayer Search

"Y|<DB_PATH>|<SERVER>|<DB_USER>|<DB_PASSWORD>|<DRIVER>|<AUTH_KEY>|SEARCH|<OUTPUT_DIR>|<GSTIN>"

Excel Pipeline

Documentation and notes for Excel Pipeline.

A dedicated companion pipeline processes the downloaded GSTR-2A/2B Excel exports.

Because the government portal outputs multiple shifting formats, the pipeline relies on advanced column-position mapping and GSTIN pattern detection (Regex) to extract the correct tabular data regardless of the export template version. It then normalizes and merges the scattered monthly files into a single master workbook for the accounting software to ingest.

Troubleshooting

Documentation and notes for Troubleshooting.

This guide is currently being written. Check back later for full documentation.