diff --git a/c/meterpreter/README.md b/c/meterpreter/README.md
index b58c4379..28aca684 100644
--- a/c/meterpreter/README.md
+++ b/c/meterpreter/README.md
@@ -14,7 +14,6 @@ You will need:
  - gcc-multilib, if you're building on a 64-bit machine
  - jam
  - wget
- - patience and luck
 
 Meterpreter requires libpcap-1.1.1 and OpenSSL 0.9.8o sources, which it
 will download automatically during the build process. If for some
@@ -25,13 +24,51 @@ reason, you cannot access the internet during build, you will need to:
 Note that the 'depclean' and 'really-clean' make targets will *delete*
 these files.
 
+Now you should be able to type `make` in the base directory, go make a
+sandwich, and come back to a working[1] meterpreter for Linux.
+
+[1] For some value of "working."  Meterpreter in POSIX environments is
+not considered stable.  It does stuff, but expect occasional problems.
+
+
 Building - Windows
 ==================
-You will need:
- - Visual Studio 2010
- - luck and patience
+You will need installed *in this order*:
+
+1. Visual C++ 2010 Express (VS2010Express1.iso)
+2. Visual Studio 2010 SP1 (VS2010SP1dvd1.iso)
+3. Windows SDK 7.1 (GRMSDK_EN_DVD.iso or GRMSDKX_EN_DVD.iso, for x64 compiler tools)
+4. VC-Compiler-KB2519277.exe (to fix broken x64 compiler tools)
+
+If you see an error like this during build:
+
+  Error: The "ConfigurationGeneral" rule is missing from the project.
+
+Then your x64 compiler tools are broken. Reinstall Visual Studio and
+hope for the best.
 
 
+Now start Visual Studio and open workspace\meterpreter.sln, and build
+the solution (F7). If you get errors about the linker being unable to
+open kernel32.lib or other standard Windows libraries, the most likely
+cause is an incorrectly installed SDK.
+
+If you are not a Rapid7 employee and therefore don't have access to the
+PacketSniffer SDK, the ext_server_sniffer project will fail with an
+error about being unable to find a header file. This is normal, don't
+worry about it.
 
 
+Testing
+=======
+There is currently no automated testing for meterpreter.
+
+Once you've made changes and compiled a new .dll or .so, copy the
+contents of the output/ directory into your Metasploit Framework's
+data/meterpreter/ directory. In POSIX you can do this automatically if
+metasploit-framework and meterpreter live in the same place by running
+`make install`
+
+If you made any changes to metsrv.dll or msflinker_linux_x86.bin, ensure
+that all extensions still load and function properly.