TIC Processor

Handles FidoNet file echoes — files distributed network-wide
the same way Echomail distributes messages, but with metadata
in a separate .TIC companion file.

Flow

inbound BinkP
    ↓
.TIC + file land in inbox/<area>/
    ↓
TIC processor parses .TIC:
  Area: SCENE_FILES
  File: scene2026-01.zip
  Desc: BBS scene news, January
  Crc: 12345678
    ↓
File moves to data/files/<area>/  +  description set
    ↓
File appears in /files/<area>/

Sysop config

File areas that carry a TIC file-echo are managed at
/admin/file-areas — each one is a FileArea row attached to an
EchomailNetwork (network_id set). For each: which local storage
path to drop into, and (under /admin/file-echo-subs) which peers
are subscribed to receive it.

Forwarding

If you have nodes peering off you for the same TIC area, the
processor regenerates a fresh .TIC with you in the path and
queues it for outbound BinkP to each downlink.

Outbound — auto-hatch on local upload

Inbound TIC processing (above) isn't the only way a file gets
distributed. Any file that lands in a network-attached file area
gets queued for outbound distribution automatically — no separate
"send this out" step:

A user or sysop uploads a file into a file area whose
network_id is not null (for example one of
ANotherNetwork's ANN.FILES.* areas).
The upload route calls hatch_local_file(), which looks up every
peer subscribed to that file echo and drops one HatchQueue row
per peer — this is the origin hop, so there's no prior TIC to
forward, just a fresh one built from scratch.
The next outbound BinkP session to each subscribed peer picks up
its pending HatchQueue rows, builds the .TIC companion file
(filling in SEEN-BY/PATH for that hop), and ships the file.

This runs from every upload path that can write into a network file
area — the regular /files/ upload form, the sysop's
"manage upload" tool, the smart-upload flow, and approving a queued
file in the upload-review queue. A local-only file area
(network_id is null) never triggers this — there's nobody to hatch
to.

Checksums