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+# HOA LedgerIQ — Deployment Guide
+
+**Version:** 2026.3.2 (beta)
+**Last updated:** 2026-03-02
+
+---
+
+## Table of Contents
+
+1. [Prerequisites](#prerequisites)
+2. [Deploy to a Fresh Docker Server](#deploy-to-a-fresh-docker-server)
+3. [Backup the Local Test Database](#backup-the-local-test-database)
+4. [Restore a Backup into the Staged Environment](#restore-a-backup-into-the-staged-environment)
+5. [Running Migrations on the Staged Environment](#running-migrations-on-the-staged-environment)
+6. [Verifying the Deployment](#verifying-the-deployment)
+7. [Environment Variable Reference](#environment-variable-reference)
+
+---
+
+## Prerequisites
+
+On the **target server**, ensure the following are installed:
+
+| Tool            | Minimum Version |
+|-----------------|-----------------|
+| Docker Engine   | 24+             |
+| Docker Compose  | v2+             |
+| Git             | 2.x             |
+| `psql` (client) | 15+ *(optional, for manual DB work)* |
+
+The app runs five containers — nginx, backend (NestJS), frontend (Vite/React),
+PostgreSQL 15, and Redis 7. Total memory footprint is roughly **1–2 GB** idle.
+
+---
+
+## Deploy to a Fresh Docker Server
+
+### 1. Clone the repository
+
+```bash
+ssh your-staging-server
+
+git clone <repo-url> /opt/hoa-ledgeriq
+cd /opt/hoa-ledgeriq
+```
+
+### 2. Create the environment file
+
+Copy the example and fill in real values:
+
+```bash
+cp .env.example .env
+nano .env          # or vi, your choice
+```
+
+**Required changes from defaults:**
+
+```dotenv
+# --- CHANGE THESE ---
+POSTGRES_PASSWORD=<strong-random-password>
+JWT_SECRET=<random-64-char-string>
+
+# Database URL must match the password above
+DATABASE_URL=postgresql://hoafinance:<same-password>@postgres:5432/hoafinance
+
+# AI features (get a key from build.nvidia.com)
+AI_API_KEY=nvapi-xxxxxxxxxxxx
+
+# --- Usually fine as-is ---
+POSTGRES_USER=hoafinance
+POSTGRES_DB=hoafinance
+REDIS_URL=redis://redis:6379
+NODE_ENV=development        # keep as development for staging
+AI_API_URL=https://integrate.api.nvidia.com/v1
+AI_MODEL=qwen/qwen3.5-397b-a17b
+AI_DEBUG=false
+```
+
+> **Tip:** Generate secrets quickly:
+> ```bash
+> openssl rand -hex 32    # good for JWT_SECRET
+> openssl rand -base64 24 # good for POSTGRES_PASSWORD
+> ```
+
+### 3. Build and start the stack
+
+```bash
+docker compose up -d --build
+```
+
+This will:
+- Build the backend and frontend images
+- Pull `postgres:15-alpine`, `redis:7-alpine`, and `nginx:alpine`
+- Initialize the PostgreSQL database with the shared schema (`db/init/00-init.sql`)
+- Start all five services on the `hoanet` bridge network
+
+### 4. Wait for healthy services
+
+```bash
+docker compose ps
+```
+
+All five containers should show `Up` (postgres and redis should also show
+`(healthy)`). If the backend is restarting, check logs:
+
+```bash
+docker compose logs backend --tail=50
+```
+
+### 5. (Optional) Seed with demo data
+
+If deploying a fresh environment for testing and you want the Sunrise Valley
+HOA demo tenant:
+
+```bash
+docker compose exec -T postgres psql -U hoafinance -d hoafinance < db/seed/seed.sql
+```
+
+This creates:
+- Platform admin: `admin@hoaledgeriq.com` / `password123`
+- Tenant admin: `admin@sunrisevalley.org` / `password123`
+- Tenant viewer: `viewer@sunrisevalley.org` / `password123`
+
+### 6. Access the application
+
+| Service   | URL                            |
+|-----------|--------------------------------|
+| App (UI)  | `http://<server-ip>`           |
+| API       | `http://<server-ip>/api`       |
+| Postgres  | `<server-ip>:5432` (direct)    |
+
+> **Note:** For production, add an SSL-terminating proxy (Caddy, Traefik, or
+> an nginx TLS config) in front of port 80.
+
+---
+
+## Backup the Local Test Database
+
+### Full database dump (recommended)
+
+From your **local development machine** where the app is currently running:
+
+```bash
+cd /path/to/HOA_Financial_Platform
+
+# Dump the entire database (all schemas, roles, data)
+docker compose exec -T postgres pg_dump \
+  -U hoafinance \
+  -d hoafinance \
+  --no-owner \
+  --no-privileges \
+  --format=custom \
+  -f /tmp/hoafinance_backup.dump
+
+# Copy the dump file out of the container
+docker compose cp postgres:/tmp/hoafinance_backup.dump ./hoafinance_backup.dump
+```
+
+The `--format=custom` flag produces a compressed binary format that supports
+selective restore. The file is typically 50–80% smaller than plain SQL.
+
+### Alternative: Plain SQL dump
+
+If you prefer a human-readable SQL file:
+
+```bash
+docker compose exec -T postgres pg_dump \
+  -U hoafinance \
+  -d hoafinance \
+  --no-owner \
+  --no-privileges \
+  > hoafinance_backup.sql
+```
+
+### Backup a single tenant schema
+
+To export just one tenant (e.g., Pine Creek HOA):
+
+```bash
+docker compose exec -T postgres pg_dump \
+  -U hoafinance \
+  -d hoafinance \
+  --no-owner \
+  --no-privileges \
+  --schema=tenant_pine_creek_hoa_q33i \
+  > pine_creek_backup.sql
+```
+
+> **Finding a tenant's schema name:**
+> ```bash
+> docker compose exec -T postgres psql -U hoafinance -d hoafinance \
+>   -c "SELECT name, schema_name FROM shared.organizations WHERE status = 'active';"
+> ```
+
+---
+
+## Restore a Backup into the Staged Environment
+
+### 1. Transfer the backup to the staging server
+
+```bash
+scp hoafinance_backup.dump user@staging-server:/opt/hoa-ledgeriq/
+```
+
+### 2. Ensure the stack is running
+
+```bash
+cd /opt/hoa-ledgeriq
+docker compose up -d
+```
+
+### 3. Drop and recreate the database (clean slate)
+
+```bash
+# Connect to postgres and reset the database
+docker compose exec -T postgres psql -U hoafinance -d postgres -c "
+  SELECT pg_terminate_backend(pid)
+  FROM pg_stat_activity
+  WHERE datname = 'hoafinance' AND pid <> pg_backend_pid();
+"
+docker compose exec -T postgres dropdb -U hoafinance hoafinance
+docker compose exec -T postgres createdb -U hoafinance hoafinance
+```
+
+### 4a. Restore from custom-format dump
+
+```bash
+# Copy the dump into the container
+docker compose cp hoafinance_backup.dump postgres:/tmp/hoafinance_backup.dump
+
+# Restore
+docker compose exec -T postgres pg_restore \
+  -U hoafinance \
+  -d hoafinance \
+  --no-owner \
+  --no-privileges \
+  /tmp/hoafinance_backup.dump
+```
+
+### 4b. Restore from plain SQL dump
+
+```bash
+docker compose exec -T postgres psql \
+  -U hoafinance \
+  -d hoafinance \
+  < hoafinance_backup.sql
+```
+
+### 5. Restart the backend
+
+After restoring, restart the backend so NestJS re-establishes its connection
+pool and picks up the restored schemas:
+
+```bash
+docker compose restart backend
+```
+
+---
+
+## Running Migrations on the Staged Environment
+
+Migrations live in `db/migrations/` and are numbered sequentially. After
+restoring an older backup, you may need to apply newer migrations.
+
+Check which migrations exist:
+
+```bash
+ls -la db/migrations/
+```
+
+Apply them in order:
+
+```bash
+# Run all migrations sequentially
+for f in db/migrations/*.sql; do
+  echo "Applying $f ..."
+  docker compose exec -T postgres psql \
+    -U hoafinance \
+    -d hoafinance \
+    < "$f"
+done
+```
+
+Or apply a specific migration:
+
+```bash
+docker compose exec -T postgres psql \
+  -U hoafinance \
+  -d hoafinance \
+  < db/migrations/010-health-scores.sql
+```
+
+> **Note:** Migrations are idempotent where possible (`IF NOT EXISTS`,
+> `DO $$ ... $$` blocks), so re-running one that has already been applied
+> is generally safe.
+
+---
+
+## Verifying the Deployment
+
+### Quick health checks
+
+```bash
+# Backend is responding
+curl -s http://localhost/api/auth/login | head -c 100
+
+# Database is accessible
+docker compose exec -T postgres psql -U hoafinance -d hoafinance \
+  -c "SELECT count(*) AS tenants FROM shared.organizations WHERE status = 'active';"
+
+# Redis is working
+docker compose exec -T redis redis-cli ping
+```
+
+### Full smoke test
+
+1. Open `http://<server-ip>` in a browser
+2. Log in with a known account
+3. Navigate to Dashboard — verify health scores load
+4. Navigate to Capital Planning — verify Kanban columns render
+5. Navigate to Projects — verify project list loads
+6. Check the Settings page — version should read **2026.3.2 (beta)**
+
+### View logs
+
+```bash
+docker compose logs -f              # all services
+docker compose logs -f backend      # backend only
+docker compose logs -f postgres     # database only
+```
+
+---
+
+## Environment Variable Reference
+
+| Variable          | Required | Description                                        |
+|-------------------|----------|----------------------------------------------------|
+| `POSTGRES_USER`   | Yes      | PostgreSQL username                                |
+| `POSTGRES_PASSWORD`| Yes     | PostgreSQL password (**change from default**)      |
+| `POSTGRES_DB`     | Yes      | Database name                                      |
+| `DATABASE_URL`    | Yes      | Full connection string for the backend             |
+| `REDIS_URL`       | Yes      | Redis connection string                            |
+| `JWT_SECRET`      | Yes      | Secret for signing JWT tokens (**change from default**) |
+| `NODE_ENV`        | Yes      | `development` or `production`                      |
+| `AI_API_URL`      | Yes      | OpenAI-compatible inference endpoint               |
+| `AI_API_KEY`      | Yes      | API key for AI provider (Nvidia)                   |
+| `AI_MODEL`        | Yes      | Model identifier for AI calls                      |
+| `AI_DEBUG`        | No       | Set `true` to log raw AI prompts/responses         |
+
+---
+
+## Architecture Overview
+
+```
+                    ┌─────────────┐
+  Browser ────────► │  nginx :80  │
+                    └──────┬──────┘
+                  ┌────────┴────────┐
+                  ▼                 ▼
+          ┌──────────────┐  ┌──────────────┐
+          │ backend :3000│  │frontend :5173│
+          │   (NestJS)   │  │ (Vite/React) │
+          └──────┬───────┘  └──────────────┘
+            ┌────┴────┐
+            ▼         ▼
+    ┌────────────┐ ┌───────────┐
+    │postgres:5432│ │redis :6379│
+    │ (PG 15)    │ │ (Redis 7) │
+    └────────────┘ └───────────┘
+```
+
+**Multi-tenant isolation:** Each HOA organization gets its own PostgreSQL
+schema (e.g., `tenant_pine_creek_hoa_q33i`). The `shared` schema holds
+cross-tenant tables (users, organizations, market rates). Tenant context
+is resolved from the JWT token on every API request.