A modular framework and equipment pack for Arma 3.

Advanced Equipment Revamped (AE3) delivers a functional terminal laptop running ArmaOS and a range of connected equipment such as generators, batteries, flash drives, solar panels, and interactable objects. It is designed as a complete mod, ready to use in missions and scenarios while also providing APIs for developers.

AE3 is both a gameplay mod and a framework. Players can interact with fully functional laptops, manage power systems, operate equipment, and access data through an in-game terminal interface. Developers can extend AE3 through its API.

AE3 provides six major systems:

• Unix-like shell interface with familiar commands (ls, cd, cat, mkdir, rm, mv, cp, etc.)
• Extensible command system - easily add custom OS commands
• 28+ built-in commands for filesystem, power, and system management
• Retro terminal designs - ArmaOS, C64, Apple II, Amber themes
• 9 keyboard layouts - AR, DE, FR, HE, HU, IT, RU, TR, US
• UI-on-Texture rendering - network-optimized terminal display
• Command history and autocomplete
• Shell script execution with .sh files

• Hierarchical directory structure stored in object variables
• Unix-style permissions - read, write, execute per owner/everyone
• Mount/unmount support for USB drives and remote filesystems
• Complete file operations - create, delete, move, copy, read, write
• Ownership and permission management with chown command
• Path resolution system with absolute and relative paths
• Encrypted file support - Caesar and Columnar cipher algorithms

• Battery simulation - capacity in Wh, charge/discharge cycles
• Power generators - fuel-powered with consumption tracking
• Solar panels - dynamic output based on sun position and panel orientation
• Power connections - link devices to power sources
• Consumption tracking - per-device power requirements
• Standby modes - reduced power consumption when idle
• CBA-configurable costs - customize power consumption per operation

• Interaction menus - laptop access, power connections, equipment management
• Animated interactions - laptop lid opening/closing, desk drawers
• Cargo system integration - portable equipment with custom names
• Progress bars - for generator startup/shutdown
• Mutex system (AE3_computer_mutex) - prevents concurrent terminal access

• Zeus filesystem browser - graphical file/directory management
• Zeus modules - Add User, Add File, Add Directory, Add Games, Add Security Commands
• 3DEN modules - mission editor integration for device setup
• Asset attributes interface - power state, battery/fuel levels, IP address
• Real-time status updates - live monitoring of device states

• Remote variable sync - sendVarToRemote/getRemoteVar for cross-client state management
• UI-on-Texture optimization - transmits raw STRING data, renders locally
• Network-safe serialization - never transmits TEXT type over network
• Player range detection - efficient UI updates for nearby players only
• Locality-aware operations - server/client execution control

• Terminal Laptop (ArmaOS) — core interactive computer.
• Flash Drive — removable storage.
• Solar Power Generator — clean energy source.
• Fuel/Electric Generators — primary power supply.
• Battery Units — charge and discharge dynamically.
• Interactable Lights & Lamps — power-sensitive illumination.

AE3 provides a rich API for building mods utilizing the armaOS Terminal:

Create, manage, and manipulate virtual filesystems on in-game objects:

// Initialize filesystem on a laptop
[_laptop] call AE3_filesystem_fnc_initFilesystem;

// Create a file with permissions
[
    [],                                    // Pointer
    _laptop getVariable "AE3_filesystem",  // Filesystem
    "/home/user/data.txt",                 // Path
    "Secret data",                         // Content
    "user",                                // User
    "user",                                // Owner
    [[true, true, true], [true, false, false]] // Permissions
] call AE3_filesystem_fnc_createFile;

// Move files
[[], _filesystem, "/home/user/data.txt", "/tmp/data.txt", "user", false] call AE3_filesystem_fnc_mvObj;

// Mount USB drive
[[], _filesystem, _usbFilesystem, "/mnt/usb0", "user"] call AE3_filesystem_fnc_mount;

Key Functions:

• createFile, createDir - Create filesystem objects
• delObj, mvObj - Delete and move objects
• mount, unmount - External filesystem mounting
• hasPermission - Permission validation
• resolvePntr - Path resolution
• writeToFile, getFile - File I/O

Add custom OS commands and control terminal behavior:

// Add a custom OS command
[
    _computer,
    "mycommand",           // Command name
    {
        params ["_computer", "_args", "_username"];
        // Command implementation
        [[["Command output"]]];
    },
    "My custom command description"
] call AE3_armaos_fnc_computer_addCustomCommand;

// Initialize computer with commands and users
[_laptop, ["root"], ["SecurePass123"], ["/root"]] call AE3_armaos_fnc_computer_initWithCommands;

// Add games (Snake)
[_computer, true] call AE3_armaos_fnc_computer_addGames;

// Add security tools (crypto/crack)
[_computer, true, true] call AE3_armaos_fnc_computer_addSecurityCommands;

// Terminal output
[_computer, _username, [[["Success!", "#00ff00"]]]] call AE3_armaos_fnc_shell_stdout;

Built-in Commands:

• File ops: ls, cat, cd, mkdir, rm, touch, cp, mv, find
• Permissions: chown
• System: clear, whoami, help, man, history, exit, date, echo
• Filesystem: mount, unmount
• Power: shutdown, standby
• Security: crypto, crack

Implement power systems for devices:

// Initialize generator
[_generator, 100, 0.5, 50] call AE3_power_fnc_initGenerator; // 100L fuel, 0.5L/h, 50Wh

// Initialize solar panel with orientation function
[_solarPanel, 30, {_this}] call AE3_power_fnc_initSolarPanel; // 30Wh capacity

// Initialize battery (standalone or internal)
[_battery, 500, false] call AE3_power_fnc_initBattery; // 500Wh capacity

// Get battery level
private _result = [_battery] call AE3_power_fnc_getBatteryLevel;
_result params ["_levelWh", "_levelPercent", "_capacityWh"];

// Create power connection
[_laptop, _generator] call AE3_power_fnc_createPowerConnection;

// Turn on device
private _success = [_device] call AE3_power_fnc_turnOnDevice;

Control terminal display and user input:

// Add output lines to terminal
[_computer, _username, [[["Line 1"], ["Line 2", "#00ff00"]]]] call AE3_armaos_fnc_terminal_addLines;

// Update terminal display (UI-on-Texture safe)
[_computer, _username] call AE3_armaos_fnc_terminal_updateOutput;

// Set keyboard layout
[_computer, _username, "DE"] call AE3_armaos_fnc_terminal_setKeyboardLayout; // German

// Set custom prompt
[_computer, _username, "user@laptop:/home/user$ "] call AE3_armaos_fnc_terminal_setPrompt;

USB drive item/object conversion and mounting:

// Connect flash drive to laptop
[_laptop, player, "Item_FlashDisk_AE3_ID_1", _usbInterface] call AE3_flashdrive_fnc_connectFlashDrive;

// Mount flash drive filesystem
[_laptop, "usb0", "user"] call AE3_flashdrive_fnc_mount;

// Convert item to object
private _flashDriveObj = [player, "Item_FlashDisk_AE3_ID_1"] call AE3_flashdrive_fnc_item2obj;

// Convert object to item
[_flashDriveObj, player] call AE3_flashdrive_fnc_obj2item;

Use AE3 to create custom terminal-based scenarios:

// initServer.sqf
private _laptop = _laptop1; // Editor-placed laptop

// Add user account
[_laptop, "hacker", "password123"] remoteExec ["AE3_armaos_fnc_computer_addUser", 2];

// Add game programs
[_laptop, true] remoteExec ["AE3_armaos_fnc_computer_addGames", 2];

// Players can now log in and use the terminal!

// Add a mission-specific command
[
    _laptop,
    "sitrep",
    {
        params ["_computer", "_args", "_username"];

        private _enemyCount = {side _x == east} count allUnits;
        private _output = format ["Enemy forces: %1 units", _enemyCount];

        [[[_output, "#ffff00"]]];
    },
    "Display mission situation report"
] remoteExec ["AE3_armaos_fnc_computer_addCustomCommand", 2];

// Create power grid with generator and solar panel
private _generator = _gen1;
private _solarPanel = _solar1;
private _laptop = _laptop1;

// Initialize power sources
[_generator, 100, 0.5, 50] remoteExec ["AE3_power_fnc_initGenerator", 2];
[_solarPanel, 30, {_this}] remoteExec ["AE3_power_fnc_initSolarPanel", 2];

// Connect laptop to generator
[_laptop, _generator] remoteExec ["AE3_power_fnc_createPowerConnection", 2];

• CBA_A3 - Community Base Addons (settings, events, functions)
• ACE3 - Advanced Combat Environment 3 (interaction menus)
• Arma 3 v2.12+ - Required for UI-on-Texture feature

1. Download the latest release from GitHub Releases
2. Extract the @AE3 folder to your Arma 3 directory
3. Add -mod=@CBA_A3;@ace;@AE3 to your launch parameters

Requires HEMTT:

# Clone repository
git clone https://github.com/y0014984/Advanced-Equipment.git
cd Advanced-Equipment

# Build for development (creates symlink)
hemtt dev

# Build for release
hemtt build

# Validate code
hemtt check

1. Interact with an AE3 laptop (ACE interaction menu)
2. Select Equipment � Terminal � Use Terminal
3. Log in with credentials (default: root/root if configured)
4. Use Unix commands: ls, cd /home, help, etc.
5. Type help to see all available commands

1. Open Zeus interface (Y key)
2. Find Advanced Equipment category
3. Place laptop, select it, open Asset Attributes
4. Use Add User module to create accounts
5. Use Add File/Add Directory modules to populate filesystem
6. Use filesystem browser to manage files graphically

1. Read the API Reference for complete function documentation
2. Study the Architecture guide to understand data structures
3. Check Mission Maker Guide for practical examples

Comprehensive documentation is available in the Wiki:

• Home - Framework overview and quick reference
• API Reference - Complete function reference with examples
• Architecture - Technical implementation and data structures
• Terminal Guide - ArmaOS commands and terminal usage
• Zeus Guide - Zeus modules and interface
• Eden Editor Guide - 3DEN modules and synchronization
• Mission Maker Guide - API usage and mission examples
• Configuration - CBA settings reference
• ACE Mutex - Understanding the mutex system

AE3 uses CBA settings for customization. Access via:

• Main Menu → Configure → Addon → AE3 armaOS

Key settings:

• Debug Mode - Enable system chat debug messages
• Power Costs - Customize battery consumption per operation
• Terminal Update Rate - UI-on-Texture refresh frequency (default: 0.3s)
• Network Debug - Optional verbose logging of AE3 remoteExec traffic (diag_log; off by default)

See Configuration Guide for complete settings reference.

AE3 uses a network-safe rendering approach:

• Terminal buffer (raw STRING/ARRAY) is synchronized across network
• Rendered TEXT is generated locally on each client
• Throttled updates - configurable refresh rate reduces network traffic
• Viewport-only payloads - only the visible window is transmitted, capped by AE3_UiMaxTransmitLines (defaults are recommended; raising this is not advised)
• Usage-aware - no UI-on-Texture traffic is sent when laptops are idle, UI-on-Texture is disabled, or no viewers are nearby

Prevents concurrent terminal access:

// Check if laptop is in use
private _mutex = _laptop getVariable ["AE3_computer_mutex", objNull];
if (isNull _mutex) then {
    // Laptop is available
    _laptop setVariable ["AE3_computer_mutex", player, true];
    // Use terminal...
    _laptop setVariable ["AE3_computer_mutex", objNull, true];
};

Virtual filesystems use nested hashmaps stored in object variables:

_laptop getVariable "AE3_filesystem" // Returns hashmap
// Structure: {"." => {...}, "home" => {"user" => {...}}}

Contributions welcome! Please:

1. Report Bugs - Use GitHub Issues
2. Suggest Features - Open enhancement requests
3. Submit Pull Requests:
   • Fork the repository
   • Create feature branch
   • Follow existing code patterns
   • Run hemtt check - ensure all validation passes
   • Update documentation
   • Submit PR with description

• Use PREP macro for function compilation (no execVM)
• Follow SQFdoc header format (see existing functions)
• Avoid undefined variables (caught by HEMTT)
• Use private for all variables
• Document public API functions thoroughly
• Test in multiplayer scenarios

/*
 * Author: <NAME>
 * Description: Brief description of what the function does
 *
 * Arguments:
 * 0: _param1 <TYPE> - Description
 * 1: _param2 <TYPE> (Optional) - Description, default: value
 *
 * Return Value:
 * Description <TYPE>
 *
 * Example:
 * [_param1, _param2] call AE3_addon_fnc_functionName;
 *
 * Public: Yes/No
 */

params ["_param1", ["_param2", defaultValue]];

private _result = 0;

// Implementation...

_result

Licensed under Arma Public License - Share Alike (APL-SA).

Key terms:

• Attribution - Credit original authors
• Non-Commercial - No commercial use
• Arma Only - Only for Arma games
• Share Alike - Derivative works must use same license

See LICENSE for full terms.

• Root - Current framework development and maintenance
• y0014984 - Original AE3 development
• Wasserstoff and JulesVerner - Original AE3 Core contributions and development

• Root's Cyber Warfare - Device hacking, GPS tracking, custom devices

Building a mod on AE3? Let us know and we'll add it here!

• GitHub Repository
• Issue Tracker
• Wiki Documentation
• HEMTT Build Tool

Advanced Equipment Revamped (AE3) — functional ArmaOS terminals and connected equipment for Arma 3.