LithosAnanake/FABRIC-3.6.md

# FABRIC-3.6.md — the Tripod/kernel reshuffle: execution log

> ## START HERE — session handoff
>
> **If you have just been told "go build it", read this section, then `FABRIC-3.5.md`'s §XLI,
> then start at task 0.0 below. Do not re-derive the design — it is settled.**
>
> **Where the code is.** This repo is **LithosAnanke, on the Gitea instance at
> `gitea.strshipos.com`, repo `admin/LithosAnanake`** — Captain Bob has the credentials.
> **Confirm you are in the right repo before anything else.** `git remote -v` must show
> `gitea.strshipos.com/admin/LithosAnanake`. **Nothing outside Gitea is this project.** (The
> handoff was authored in a container whose default working directory was a *different*, empty
> repo on an unrelated remote — if you ever see that, you are in the wrong place.) `master` is
> the sole production line. Work on branch **`claude/starshipos-tripod-kernel-reshuffle-itbjns`**
> (a clean fast-forward of `master` at `e56974e`; **documentation only — no reshuffle code has
> been written**. The branch head is the source of truth; do not trust a commit id quoted here).
>
> **The two documents.** `FABRIC-3.5.md` is the **design record and is authoritative** — every
> ruling, with its reasoning and evidence, §I–§XLIII. **This** document is the execution log.
> Rulings are cited here, never restated. **If a task proves a ruling wrong, record the finding
> here and amend `FABRIC-3.5.md` — never silently diverge.**
>
> **First action: task 0.0**, the three-ISA baseline. It is a gate, not a formality — see its
> own rationale below. **Nothing else starts until it is recorded.**
>
> **Five traps this project's own history proves are real. A fresh session will walk into these:**
>
> 1. **Silent failure is the dominant mode here.** `FABRIC-3.5.md` §XXXV.0 lists four
>    independent instances. Most relevantly: *"a switch storm and a healthy idle REPL produce an
>    identical serial log."* **A green boot is weak evidence.** Name the specific observation
>    that proves a task worked, before running it.
> 2. **`grep` cannot establish capsule reachability.** Capsules are birthed by name from runtime
>    strings. A reference count over `capsules/` and `src/` put the six live `init-l8-*`
>    capsules at **zero references**; including `experiments/` found 18–19 each. §XXII.2. **Use
>    the three routes, never grep alone.**
> 3. **`fleet_conserved` cannot see Stadium heat.** The two heat accountings are entirely
>    decoupled (§XXXIX). A leaking message allocator leaves `fleet_conserved` reporting a serene
>    `1`. **Stage B's evidence is the ledger plus `stadium_conserved()`, never `fleet_conserved`.**
> 4. **`dict_hash` *changing* is expected; `dict_hash` *diverging* across architectures is the
>    stop condition.** §XXXIV.6. Do not "fix" a changed hash.
> 5. **Documentation in this repo drifts from the code — trust the code.** `.claude/CLAUDE.md`
>    carried four stale claims; **all four were corrected 2026-09-19 (§XLIV) and it is now
>    reliable.** Others are not: `capsules/MANIFEST.md` still describes block 4055 as a live
>    "immutable ABI" that `FABRIC-2.md:2773` declared stale, and still misdescribes block 2049.
>    `FABRIC-0.md` §25.7 lists resolved defects as open. **Where a document and the code
>    disagree, the code wins — and record the drift rather than working around it.**
>
> **Blocked, and not to be worked around:** Phase 3 needs three decisions from Captain Bob —
> **B1** channels (one membership or negotiation), **B2** the `SK_SWITCH_MAX_SLOTS` ceiling of
> 16, **B4** the payload bound against `INPUT_BUFFER_SIZE` 1025. **All design is complete; these
> are rulings, not investigations.**
>
> **Do not:** create branches, stash, fix defects found in passing, bundle tasks into one
> commit, or start any task without explicit authorization. Captain Bob's Law,
> `.claude/CLAUDE.md`.

**Status: LIVING WORKING DOCUMENT, opened 2026-09-19.** This is the **execution** record for
the reshuffle designed in `FABRIC-3.5.md`. Work is tracked, annotated and closed here.

**Why this is a separate document, per the series' own rule.** `FABRIC-1.md` closed at **4,420
lines** for a stated reason: *"continuing to append here made the still-open work hard to find."*
`FABRIC-3.5.md` stands at **4,452 lines** with 40+ open punch items scattered among hundreds of
settled rulings — **it has crossed the same threshold, for the same reason.** Annotating a task
list inside it, commit by commit, would bury the design record it exists to be.

**The split of responsibility is strict, and stated because `FABRIC-3.5.md` §XXXI found that
documents in this series lose track of each other:**

| | `FABRIC-3.5.md` | `FABRIC-3.6.md` (this) |
|---|---|---|
| **Holds** | The design record — every ruling, its reasoning, its evidence | The work — tasks, results, dates, commits |
| **State** | Design phase closed; archival close at `v2.1.0` (§XXVI.5) | Living until the work is done |
| **On a conflict** | **Authoritative** | Defers, and records the discrepancy |

**Design rulings are never restated here, only cited** (`§XXXIV.2`, `§XL.4`, …). If a task needs
a rule explained, read `FABRIC-3.5.md`. **If executing a task proves a ruling wrong, that is a
finding: record it here and amend `FABRIC-3.5.md` there** — never silently diverge.

**The checkbox convention is deliberate.** `FABRIC-3.5.md` §XXXI.2 found the series'
carry-forward discipline was mechanically auditable (`grep -c '\- \[ \]'`) up to `FABRIC-2.md`,
and **broke at `FABRIC-3.md`, which uses no checkboxes at all** — after which "is anything still
open?" stopped being a `grep` and became a reading exercise. **This document restores the
convention**, so that question stays answerable by machine.

---

## Standing rules

Apply to **every** task, from `.claude/CLAUDE.md` and `FABRIC-3.5.md` §XXXIV:

- **One task, one commit.** No bundling.
- **Acceptance is the three-architecture QEMU boot** — `clean qemu`, amd64/aarch64/riscv64, one
  at a time, in the foreground. Logs committed. There is no other acceptance test.
- **`dict_hash` changing is expected. `dict_hash` *diverging* between architectures is a stop
  condition** (§XXXIV.6).
- **`mkcapsule --lint capsules/` clean** after any capsule change.
- **No task starts without explicit authorization.** Captain Bob's Law.
- **Report, don't fix.** A defect found while doing a task is recorded here, not repaired in
  passing.

## Annotation convention

```
- [x] 0.2 — Strip common/msg.4th
      2026-09-DD · commit abc1234 · 3-arch boot clean, lint 0 violations
      note: <anything surprising; a finding gets its own entry below>
```

Mark `[~]` for started-not-finished, with what is outstanding. **Never mark `[x]` on a task
whose check did not actually run** — `FABRIC-3.5.md` §XXXV.6 records that declaring done too
early is this project's most repeated failure.

---

## Pre-flight — establish the baseline before anything changes

**Branch state at open (2026-09-19):** `claude/starshipos-tripod-kernel-reshuffle-itbjns`, head
`3a4e5cf`, **working tree clean, pushed, 33 commits ahead of `master`** — all documentation, no
code. `master` is unmoved at `e56974e`, so the branch remains a clean fast-forward. **Execution
starts from this commit.**

- [x] **0.0** — **Three-ISA baseline smoke test on the unmodified branch.**
      `make -f Makefile.starkernel ARCH=<arch> clean qemu` for amd64, aarch64, riscv64 — one at
      a time, in the foreground, per `.claude/CLAUDE.md`.
      *Check:* all three reach `zuse)ok>`; zero `UNKNOWN WORD`; logs committed under
      `logs/<timestamp>/<arch>/`; **record each `dict_hash` and confirm the three are
      identical.**
      2026-09-19 · `logs/20260919-130023/amd64/`, `logs/20260919-130137/aarch64/`,
      `logs/20260919-130319/riscv64/` — all three reach `[zuse@Hera] ok>`, zero `UNKNOWN WORD`.
      `dict_hash` identical across all three: Hera (`PARITY:M7.1a`) `0x6824fe5993239838`,
      Hermes `0x062252c4da6858da`, Artemis `0xed80117724c26f36`.
      note: **first attempt confounded, see findings log** — `logs/20260919-124835/amd64/` and
      `logs/20260919-124952/aarch64/` (kept, not deleted) show Artemis's `dict_hash` diverging
      (`0xed80117724c26f36` vs `0x93d6e815354b61c0`) purely because `disk/artemis.img` is shared
      across all three ISAs' `qemu` targets (`FABRIC-3.md` §XXXV.2) and the second run resumed
      the first run's already-formatted disk instead of formatting its own. Restored
      `disk/artemis.img` and `disk/thumbdrives/zuse-thumb-ident.img` to their committed blank
      state (`git checkout --`) before each of the three reruns above to remove the confound.

**Why this is a gate and not a formality.** Every task in this document takes the
three-architecture boot as its acceptance (§XXXIV). **Without a known-good baseline captured
first, the first red boot is ambiguous** — pre-existing fault or something task 0.2 just did?
This project has been bitten by exactly that ambiguity before (`FABRIC-3.md` §XXVI: "the
lockdown was never broken — wrong VM tested"). The baseline is what makes every later
acceptance run interpretable, and the recorded `dict_hash` triple is the reference every
subsequent §XXXIV.6 divergence check compares against.

**Run it yourself — you are expected to.** Captain Bob confirmed (2026-09-19) that execution
happens on his PC with the full toolchain installed, so **the session reading this can and
should run task 0.0 directly**, once authorized. Verify first that `qemu-system-x86_64`,
`qemu-system-aarch64`, `qemu-system-riscv64`, the aarch64/riscv64 cross-compilers and
OVMF/AAVMF are all present; **if any are missing you are not on the intended machine — stop and
say so rather than improvising a partial test.**

*(Historical note: this document was authored in a container with none of that toolchain, which
is why task 0.0 was written but never run. Do not take its unchecked state as a prior failure —
it has simply not been attempted.)*

---

## Phase 0 — Preparation (no behaviour change)

**Gate:** all three architectures boot to `zuse)ok>`, `stadium_conserved()` true, no
`UNKNOWN WORD`.

- [x] **0.1** — Establish Category A reachability by §XXII.2's three routes (boot path, tooling,
      baked capsule directory). **Never by grep alone.**
      *Check:* a written list naming the route that proves each entry dead.
      2026-09-19 · investigation only, no code changed. Checked by all three routes — a boot-path
      trace of `init.4th`/`hera`/`hermes/init.4th`/`artemis/init.4th` for any `EXEC`/`S" name"`
      load, an experiments/tools/docs invocation search, and confirming presence in the baked
      capsule directory doesn't by itself make a name reachable if nothing constructs it at
      runtime:

      | Candidate | Boot path | Tooling/experiments/docs | Verdict |
      |---|---|---|---|
      | `capsules/common/msg.4th` | zero `EXEC`/load sites in any boot-loaded capsule | zero invocations; its only two words `HERMES-ACK`/`HERMES-NACK` have zero callers anywhere; `messaging.4th` block 5033's own comment: "common:msg.4th's HERMES-ACK/NACK indirection is retired" | **DEAD** |
      | `capsules/process.4th` | zero `EXEC` sites anywhere | zero invocations; its four words `SPAWN`/`PAUSE`/`RESUME`/`KILL-VM` have zero callers outside the file itself | **DEAD** |
      | `SPAWN-EVENT` (constant, `messaging.4th`) | N/A — a constant, only ever defined, never read by name | zero invocations by name anywhere | **DEAD** |

      Both files are present in the baked capsule directory (`mkcapsule` build log: `[p]
      common:msg.4th`, `[p] process.4th`) — noted per §XXII.2 that presence alone proves
      nothing; it only means nothing constructs either name at runtime to reach them, which the
      other two routes confirm.

      finding: `EVENT-EMIT`/`EVENT-WAIT`/`EVENT-DRAIN` (`messaging.4th`, Category B, staying)
      have one caller beyond `process.4th` that §XXXIII.3 missed — `tools/hermes_smoke.sh` calls
      all three directly. This does not make them live: the script is already broken on its own
      terms, referencing `capsules/core/init.4th` and `build/amd64/standard/starforth`, neither
      of which exists in this repo, and calling the pre-rename `CD-INIT` word (`messaging.4th`
      block 5033 renamed it to `MSG-CD-INIT`) — it cannot currently execute. Task 0.3's plan
      stands unchanged; recorded because §XXXIII.3's "only other reference is `MANIFEST.md`"
      was itself an undercount of exactly the kind §XXII.2 warns about, even though the
      conclusion survives.

      finding: `PAUSE-EVENT`/`RESUME-EVENT`/`KILL-EVENT` (`messaging.4th`) are exactly as
      dead-by-name as `SPAWN-EVENT` — zero references anywhere outside their own definition;
      `process.4th`'s calls pass bare numeric literals (`1`/`2`/`3`/`4`), never the constant
      names. Task 0.4 only names `SPAWN-EVENT`; not expanding its scope here, but flagging that
      the other three meet the identical bar for whoever picks up Category A stripping next.
- [x] **0.2** — Strip `capsules/common/msg.4th`. *Check:* 3-arch boot; lint clean.
      2026-09-19 · `logs/20260919-131945/amd64/`, `logs/20260919-132054/aarch64/`,
      `logs/20260919-132226/riscv64/` — all three reach `[zuse@Hera] ok>`, zero `UNKNOWN WORD`.
      `mkcapsule --lint capsules/` clean, 38 files, 0 violations (was 39 before the strip).
      `dict_hash` **unchanged** from the task 0.0 baseline on all three (Hera
      `0x6824fe5993239838`, Hermes `0x062252c4da6858da`, Artemis `0xed80117724c26f36`) — expected,
      not a defect: task 0.1 confirmed `msg.4th` was never `EXEC`'d into any VM's dictionary, so
      removing the dead file from the baked capsule directory doesn't move anything actually
      loaded. `capsule-reserved.txt` not yet touched — block 4055's range is returned in task 0.6
      per the punchlist's own ordering. `MANIFEST.md`'s stale block-4055 entry not yet corrected
      — bundled into task 0.5 alongside block 2049's correction, per the punchlist.
- [x] **0.3** — Strip `capsules/process.4th` (takes `EVENT-EMIT`/`-WAIT`/`-DRAIN` with it,
      §XXXIII.3). *Check:* 3-arch boot; lint clean.
      2026-09-19 · `logs/20260919-132914/amd64/`, `logs/20260919-133024/aarch64/`,
      `logs/20260919-133156/riscv64/` — all three reach `[zuse@Hera] ok>`, zero `UNKNOWN WORD`.
      `mkcapsule --lint capsules/` clean, 37 files, 0 violations (was 38). Deleted
      `capsules/process.4th` outright and `messaging.4th`'s Block 5030 in full
      (`EVENT-EMIT`/`EVENT-WAIT`/`EVENT-DRAIN` — a self-contained block, nothing else in it).
      `dict_hash`: Hera's `PARITY:M7.1a` snapshot unchanged (`0x6824fe5993239838` — it fires
      before any capsule loads, so capsule edits never move it); Hermes and Artemis both moved
      (`0xa0f5c639a1228596`, `0x1650cb7153056160`) since both load `messaging.4th` — **identical
      across all three architectures**, which is the actual property that matters (§XXII.4: every
      strip changes `dict_hash`, cross-arch identity is the invariant). `capsule-reserved.txt`
      still untouched (task 0.6); `MANIFEST.md`'s stale block-4055/2049 entries still untouched
      (task 0.5, now unblocked since both 0.2 and 0.3 are done).
- [ ] **0.4** — Strip `SPAWN-EVENT`. *Check:* 3-arch boot; lint clean.
- [ ] **0.5** — Correct `capsules/MANIFEST.md` blocks 4055 and 2049 **as their files are
      stripped** (§XXII.5). *Check:* manifest describes no file that no longer exists.
- [ ] **0.6** — Return freed block ranges to `capsule-reserved.txt`. *Check:* lint clean.
- [ ] **0.7** — Add `stadium_conserved()`: `Σ patron + reservoir + consumed == Q48_ONE`,
      **epsilon zero** (§XL.4, item 41). *Check:* true on a clean boot, all three arches.
- [ ] **0.8** — Audit that `PLOT`/`FB-WIDTH`/`FB-HEIGHT` are registered **nowhere** but the
      table Hestia will own (item 33). *Check:* read-only; a second site is a defect to report.

## Phase 1 — Hestia (messaging untouched)

**Gate:** Tripod is Hera/Artemis/Hestia **plus** Hermes; drawing works from Hestia and only
Hestia; headless policy intact.

- [ ] **1.1** — Allocate Hestia's block range vs. `capsule-reserved.txt`, **avoiding 4997**.
      *Check:* lint clean.
- [ ] **1.2** — Create `capsules/hestia/init.4th`: messaging load, `MSG-CD-INIT`, banner. **No
      fabric yet.** *Check:* boots; Hestia not yet birthed.
- [ ] **1.3** — Add Hestia to `is_fleet_foundation` (`capsule_birth.c:793-796`) — **four names,
      Hermes retained** (§XXXIV.4). *Check:* 3-arch boot; Hermes still live.
- [ ] **1.4** — Birth Hestia in `kernel_main.c`, **alongside** Hermes's existing birth.
      *Check:* registry shows both; `dict_hash` identical across arches.
- [ ] **1.5** — Register Hestia for switch signals (the `:1007` pattern). *Check:* boot clean;
      **no switch storm** (§XXVIII.2's shape — and note it is invisible by default, §XXXV.0).
- [ ] **1.6** — Move `fabric.4th` from `init.4th` to `hestia/init.4th`. *Check:* Hera's dict
      shrinks, Hestia's grows; cross-arch identity holds.
- [ ] **1.7** — Move `font.4th` likewise. *Check:* same.
- [ ] **1.8** — Move `PLOT`/`FB-WIDTH`/`FB-HEIGHT` registration to Hestia's table **only**.
      *Check:* **positively verify** a non-Hestia VM calling `PLOT` gets `UNKNOWN WORD`.
- [ ] **1.9** — Assert §XVIII.6's headless invariant: Hestia's birth sets no
      `g_wirebind_attached_username` and mints no proxy. *Check:* boot headless, no thumbdrive,
      **no prompt appears**.

## Phase 2 — Allocator and audit (inert) — **the real go/no-go**

**Gate:** task 2.7. **If it fails, stop and re-plan. Do not proceed to Phase 3.**

- [ ] **2.1** — Kernel-Hermes message/membership structures, **wired to nothing, drawing no
      heat**. *Check:* boot byte-identical; `dict_hash` unmoved.
- [ ] **2.2** — Allocate: pull `Q.SLOT` from the caller's reservoir; roll back on refusal.
      *Check:* N allocs against a known reservoir; refusal at the right count.
- [ ] **2.3** — Release: return remaining heat via the eviction path. *Check:* reservoir
      restored exactly for an undecayed message.
- [ ] **2.4** — The four counters: `held`, `pulled`, `returned`, `consumed` (§XL.4). *Check:*
      each increments at exactly one site.
- [ ] **2.5** — Decay: apply, and **record the delta into `consumed`** (§XXXVII.3). *Check:*
      `consumed` grows by exactly `heat_before − heat_after`.
- [ ] **2.6** — Self-audit: `held == pulled − returned − consumed`, **epsilon zero**. *Check:*
      holds across the cycle; **deliberately corrupt a counter → audit fires on the first unit**.
- [ ] **2.7** — **Stage B proof** (§XXXIV.3 as corrected by §XXXIX.4): alloc/free cycle
      verifying **(a)** the ledger and **(b)** `stadium_conserved()` before and after.
      *Check:* both true, all three arches. **`fleet_conserved` is not evidence here** — it
      cannot see Stadium heat (§XXXIX.1).
- [ ] **2.8** — Scan-based cross-check of the counters, diagnostics only, off the hot path
      (§XXXVII.4). *Check:* scan agrees with counters.

## Phase 3 — Cutover — **BLOCKED**

**Not buildable until all three clear.** Shape once unblocked (§XXXIV.3): cut over
`BLK-ATTACH-EVENT` alone, then remaining types one at a time, under §XXXIV.2's partition rule —
one message type owned by exactly one layer, no message shared.

- [ ] **B1** — **Item 27**: channels — negotiation, or one broadcast membership? (§XXXIII.5
      recommends the latter; unruled.)
- [ ] **B2** — **Item 32**: `SK_SWITCH_MAX_SLOTS` is 16 and §XXXII made the switcher the sole
      mover of control. Constant bump or table redesign?
- [x] **B3** — **CLEARED 2026-09-19 by `FABRIC-3.5.md` §XLIII**: the target drains its own
      queue at its own outermost interpret checkpoint; kernel-Hermes publishes and never
      dispatches. Reuses `sk_vm_at_outermost_interpret()` and the Stage 3 checkpoint.
- [ ] **B4** — **Item 44**: payload bound or chunking against `INPUT_BUFFER_SIZE` 1025
      (§XLIII.6.1). Decide before Phase 3.

## Phase 4 — Category B strip

Only after every live type is cut over. **Hermes leaves `is_fleet_foundation` and
`kernel_main.c` here, not earlier** (§XXXIV.4).

- [ ] **4.1** — Strip `capsules/hermes/init.4th`.
- [ ] **4.2** — Strip the FORTH routing table and slot-3 pairing convention.
- [ ] **4.3** — Strip `capsules/common/messaging.4th`.
- [ ] **4.4** — Remove Hermes from `is_fleet_foundation` and its birth from `kernel_main.c`.

## Phase 5 — Close-out

- [ ] **5.1** — Isabelle/HOL pass. **Deliverable is the restated boundary**, explicitly
      including §XXV.4's coverage loss — *not* a green build (§XXV.3).
- [~] **5.2** — Documentation sweep, grepping **by exclusion** (§XXVIII.3).
      **CLAUDE.md's four errors: DONE 2026-09-19 (§XLIV), pointer to this document added.**
      Outstanding: `MANIFEST.md` (rides the strip, §XXII.5), the `TRIPOD.md`/0.1 contradiction,
      item 42's K-qualification, the superseded subsystem docs' update-or-archive call, and
      item 45 (`experiments/bare_metal/README.md` block framing).
- [ ] **5.3** — `make sbom`; check `Created:` and `DocumentName` (§XXVI.2).
- [ ] **5.4** — `LITHOS_VERSION = 2.1.0`; engine `VERSION` per §XXX.6's rule; roadmap table
      gains its `2.1.0` line in two live places (§XXVIII.2).
- [ ] **5.5** — Resolve the stray `refs/heads/v2.0.1` and PR #1 (§XXVI.4). **Investigate, do
      not delete.**
- [ ] **5.6** — Merge to `master`; tag `v2.1.0`.
- [ ] **5.7** — Archival close of `FABRIC-3.5.md` (§XXVI.5) and of this document.

---

## Findings log

*Defects and surprises found while executing. Reported, not fixed (unless the task was to fix
them). A finding that contradicts a `FABRIC-3.5.md` ruling must also be amended there.*

**2026-09-19, task 0.0 — shared `disk/artemis.img` confounds cross-ISA `dict_hash` comparison
unless reset between runs.** Not a code defect and does not contradict any `FABRIC-3.5.md`
ruling — `FABRIC-3.md` §XXXV.2 already documents that the disk is deliberately shared across all
three ISAs' `qemu` targets. But it means a same-order rerun of the three architectures will have
run 2 and 3 silently take Artemis's `resuming` branch instead of its `blank disk -- formatting`
branch, producing a different `dict_hash` for Artemis alone (Hera and Hermes are unaffected —
neither touches the artdisk at birth). Worth carrying forward: **any task in this document that
checks `dict_hash` identity across architectures and involves Artemis should restore
`disk/artemis.img` and `disk/thumbdrives/zuse-thumb-ident.img` to their committed blank state
(`git checkout --`) before each architecture's run**, or the check will fail on a confound rather
than a real divergence.

---

## Out of scope, carried for visibility

Recorded in `FABRIC-3.5.md`, deliberately **not** part of this reshuffle. Listed so they are not
absorbed by accident:

- **Item 43** — should a Stadium reservoir ever replenish? (§XL.6) A VM's send capacity declines
  monotonically today.
- **Items 23–26** — the `FABRIC-3.5.md` §XXXI gap-analysis follow-ups: re-home `FABRIC-2` §17.4,
  consolidate the three reported-not-scheduled registries, decide `FABRIC-2`'s five orphaned
  design items, reconcile `FABRIC-0`'s seven opens.
- **`src/*.c.bak`** — tracked-but-stale, reported in three places and actioned in none
  (§XXII.5).