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Base64URL can encode a won Minesweeper board, but it does not define how a board should be represented. First serialize the cells and any game-state details into bytes, then encode those bytes using the URL-safe alphabet. For a reliable interchange string, specify the board dimensions, cell order, format version, and whether the output keeps Base64 padding.

Choose what “the board” includes

A won board can mean the underlying solution or the visible game state. The solution records which cells are mines and the adjacent-mine count for each safe cell. A visible-state representation may also need to record which cells are open or flagged. Decide which object you need to preserve before defining the serialization.

Minesweeper configurations vary in dimensions and mine count, so a transferable representation must include the dimensions or make them unambiguous. It also needs a defined cell order; row-major order is one straightforward choice: read each row from left to right, proceeding from top to bottom.

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The win condition is to open every non-mine cell without opening a mine. That describes the game outcome, not a universal byte format for storing a board. See Wikipedia’s Minesweeper overview for a general description of the game and its variations.

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Define a reversible byte format

Example: one byte per cell

One simple schema assigns values 0 through 8 to safe cells, representing their adjacent-mine counts, and value 9 to a mine. Store the values in row-major order. This is an example format, not an official Minesweeper standard.

For a 2×2 board whose rows are [1, 1] and [1, mine], the cell values are 1, 1, 1, 9. As bytes, they are hexadecimal 01 01 01 09. This describes three safe cells, each adjacent to one mine, and one mine.

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Add metadata for real interchange

The four cell bytes alone do not tell a decoder the board’s dimensions or how to interpret future format changes. For a real interchange format, prepend or otherwise specify a version and the row and column counts. If the goal is to preserve the visible play state rather than just the solved board, also define how opened and flagged status is represented.

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Document the byte order and field meanings alongside the format. A decoder must be able to reconstruct the original board and state without guessing; a version field also gives later revisions a way to distinguish formats.

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Encode the bytes as Base64URL

  1. Serialize the board. Apply your documented schema to produce bytes, including any required version and dimensions.
  2. Apply Base64 encoding. Base64 converts each 24-bit input group into four 6-bit output symbols.
  3. Use the URL-safe alphabet. In Base64URL, the symbols + and / are replaced by - and _, respectively.
  4. Choose a padding convention. The RFC encoding uses = padding. Padding may be omitted when the data length is implicit, but the receiving format must then know how to recover the original byte length. State whether your format retains or omits it.

For the example’s four cell bytes, the Base64URL output is AQEBCQ== with padding, or AQEBCQ if the application explicitly uses unpadded Base64URL. Those strings encode only the example cell bytes; they do not include dimensions, a version, or visible-state fields.

RFC 4648 defines the URL-safe alphabet, padding, and encoding rules. A conforming encoder sets unused pad bits to zero, producing a canonical encoding. See RFC 4648, The Base16, Base32, and Base64 Data Encodings.

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Check compatibility and security

  • Target application: If an app or API already specifies a board format, follow its required fields and encoding conventions. A string that decodes correctly under your own schema may still be unusable by another platform.
  • Base64URL versus Base64: Name the variant explicitly. Calling a string simply “Base64” leaves unclear whether it uses + and / or the URL-safe - and _.
  • Padding: Make the padded or unpadded choice part of the format contract so encoders and decoders agree.
  • Confidentiality and integrity: Base64URL is an encoding, not encryption or tamper protection. Anyone who has the string can decode it if they know the serialization format.

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