diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yml b/.github/workflows/release.yml
index 34ac4b6..2d13e0d 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yml
@@ -95,7 +95,7 @@ jobs:
         if: runner.os == 'Windows'
         shell: pwsh
         run: |
-          $flags = "--remap-path-prefix=$env:GITHUB_WORKSPACE=/src/rust-spine --remap-path-prefix=$env:USERPROFILE=/src/dependencies --remap-path-prefix=$env:CARGO_HOME=/src/dependencies"
+          $flags = "-C target-feature=+crt-static --remap-path-prefix=$env:GITHUB_WORKSPACE=/src/rust-spine --remap-path-prefix=$env:USERPROFILE=/src/dependencies --remap-path-prefix=$env:CARGO_HOME=/src/dependencies"
           "RUSTFLAGS=$flags" | Out-File -FilePath $env:GITHUB_ENV -Encoding utf8 -Append
 
       # gemm-f16's unoptimized AArch64 build currently fails in inline assembly:
@@ -129,6 +129,20 @@ jobs:
         if: runner.os != 'Windows'
         run: target/${{ matrix.target }}/release/spine --version
 
+      - name: Verify Windows needs no Visual C++ runtime installer
+        if: runner.os == 'Windows'
+        shell: pwsh
+        run: |
+          $vswhere = "${env:ProgramFiles(x86)}\Microsoft Visual Studio\Installer\vswhere.exe"
+          $dumpbin = & $vswhere -latest -products '*' -requires Microsoft.VisualStudio.Component.VC.Tools.x86.x64 -find 'VC\Tools\MSVC\**\bin\Hostx64\x64\dumpbin.exe' | Select-Object -First 1
+          if (-not $dumpbin) { throw "Cannot find dumpbin to verify Windows runtime dependencies" }
+          $imports = & $dumpbin /DEPENDENTS "target/$env:TARGET/release/spine.exe" | Out-String
+          if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) { throw "Cannot inspect Windows runtime dependencies" }
+          Write-Output $imports
+          if ($imports -match '(?i)\b(?:vcruntime|msvcp|concrt)\d+[^\s]*\.dll\b') {
+            throw "Windows executable requires a separate Visual C++ runtime installation"
+          }
+
       - name: Smoke-test Windows binary
         if: runner.os == 'Windows'
         shell: pwsh
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index e8e3dee..c35e616 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -1,6 +1,13 @@
 # Changelog
 
-## 0.3.0 — 2026-10-24
+## 0.3.1 — 2026-10-24
+
+- Includes the automatic setup and maintenance changes below.
+- Windows release binaries statically link the C runtime, removing the separate
+  Visual C++ Redistributable installation step. Release checks reject external
+  Visual C++ runtime DLL dependencies.
+
+## 0.3.0 — 2026-10-24 (validation tag; downloads not published)
 
 - Run `spine` to start chat. First-run setup asks for one model server URL,
   checks readiness and API access, downloads verified MiniLM assets when needed,
diff --git a/Cargo.lock b/Cargo.lock
index 125ea64..ea91ceb 100644
--- a/Cargo.lock
+++ b/Cargo.lock
@@ -2705,7 +2705,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "spine-cli"
-version = "0.3.0"
+version = "0.3.1"
 dependencies = [
  "async-trait",
  "axum",
@@ -2730,7 +2730,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "spine-heart"
-version = "0.3.0"
+version = "0.3.1"
 dependencies = [
  "argon2",
  "bip39",
@@ -2756,7 +2756,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "spine-models"
-version = "0.3.0"
+version = "0.3.1"
 dependencies = [
  "blake3",
  "candle-core",
@@ -2770,7 +2770,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "spine-runtime"
-version = "0.3.0"
+version = "0.3.1"
 dependencies = [
  "async-trait",
  "axum",
diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index 09f9b10..bf26dec 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ members = [
 exclude = ["fuzz", "vendor/candle-core"]
 
 [workspace.package]
-version = "0.3.0"
+version = "0.3.1"
 edition = "2024"
 rust-version = "1.99"
 license = "MIT OR Apache-2.0"
diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
index 0796502..0fbf640 100644
--- a/Dockerfile
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ RUN --mount=type=cache,target=/usr/local/cargo/registry,sharing=locked \
 
 FROM alpine:3.24@sha256:be2656061b536c1883c4034790e21d0a09c5aaaf51968b89368a3c0371ea2c9a AS runtime
 
-ARG APP_VERSION=0.3.0
+ARG APP_VERSION=0.3.1
 LABEL org.opencontainers.image.title="Spine" \
       org.opencontainers.image.description="Standalone native Spine harness" \
       org.opencontainers.image.version="${APP_VERSION}" \
diff --git a/PROJECT_STATE.md b/PROJECT_STATE.md
index d18c3cf..249f289 100644
--- a/PROJECT_STATE.md
+++ b/PROJECT_STATE.md
@@ -2,9 +2,11 @@
 
 ## Baseline
 
-- v0.3.0 includes first-run setup, the outstanding budget-aware file-pagination
+- v0.3.1 includes first-run setup, the outstanding budget-aware file-pagination
   fix, stable dependency updates, Rust 1.99.1, and refreshed pinned CI/container images.
 
+- Windows release builds statically include the C runtime and verify that no
+  separate Visual C++ runtime installer is required.
 - Standalone Rust workspace with no Python runtime imports.
 - One encrypted heart contains the signed canonical event log and its versioned cognitive projection.
 - The projection unifies DCMDb, per-agent Thymos, typed facts, learned risk, and context triangles.
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index be73444..9fe91e7 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ Python, Node.js, npm, or separate web server to install.
 
 ## First-time setup
 
-Spine v0.3.0 includes automatic memory-model setup and remembers successful
+Spine v0.3.1 includes automatic memory-model setup and remembers successful
 launch settings. Download the package for your platform, open Spine, connect your
 model service once, and choose a heart passphrase.
 
@@ -20,6 +20,8 @@ model. The optional NLI answer checker can be configured later.
 Download an archive and its checksum from the
 [GitHub Releases page](https://github.com/Jaredcastorena/Rust-spine/releases).
 No Rust, Git, Python, or Node.js is needed to run a prebuilt archive.
+The Windows executable includes its C runtime, so no separate Visual C++
+Redistributable installer is needed.
 
 | System | Archive name contains |
 | --- | --- |
diff --git a/crates/spine-cli/Cargo.toml b/crates/spine-cli/Cargo.toml
index 8953108..f19c32b 100644
--- a/crates/spine-cli/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/spine-cli/Cargo.toml
@@ -25,9 +25,9 @@ rpassword.workspace = true
 serde.workspace = true
 serde_json.workspace = true
 sha2.workspace = true
-spine-heart = { version = "0.3.0", path = "../spine-heart" }
-spine-models = { version = "0.3.0", path = "../spine-models" }
-spine-runtime = { version = "0.3.0", path = "../spine-runtime" }
+spine-heart = { version = "0.3.1", path = "../spine-heart" }
+spine-models = { version = "0.3.1", path = "../spine-models" }
+spine-runtime = { version = "0.3.1", path = "../spine-runtime" }
 tokio.workspace = true
 tempfile.workspace = true
 walkdir.workspace = true
diff --git a/crates/spine-models/Cargo.toml b/crates/spine-models/Cargo.toml
index 6be7e2f..b4ba0ff 100644
--- a/crates/spine-models/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/spine-models/Cargo.toml
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ candle-core.workspace = true
 candle-nn.workspace = true
 candle-transformers.workspace = true
 serde_json.workspace = true
-spine-heart = { version = "0.3.0", path = "../spine-heart" }
+spine-heart = { version = "0.3.1", path = "../spine-heart" }
 tokenizers.workspace = true
 
 [dev-dependencies]
diff --git a/crates/spine-runtime/Cargo.toml b/crates/spine-runtime/Cargo.toml
index 418e017..3ef5203 100644
--- a/crates/spine-runtime/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/spine-runtime/Cargo.toml
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ reqwest.workspace = true
 regex.workspace = true
 serde.workspace = true
 serde_json.workspace = true
-spine-heart = { version = "0.3.0", path = "../spine-heart" }
+spine-heart = { version = "0.3.1", path = "../spine-heart" }
 thiserror.workspace = true
 tokio.workspace = true
 
diff --git a/fuzz/Cargo.lock b/fuzz/Cargo.lock
index d4025d6..16f0f66 100644
--- a/fuzz/Cargo.lock
+++ b/fuzz/Cargo.lock
@@ -708,7 +708,7 @@ checksum = "0c790de23124f9ab44544d7ac05d60440adc586479ce501c1d6d7da3cd8c9cf5"
 
 [[package]]
 name = "spine-heart"
-version = "0.3.0"
+version = "0.3.1"
 dependencies = [
  "argon2",
  "bip39",