Robert Allan JamesandClaude Sonnet 5
3699be964d
Introduces src/starkernel/heartbeat.c as the shared top/bottom-half implementation of heartbeat_init/tick/service/ticks/trust/state, replacing the per-architecture duplicates in amd64/riscv64/aarch64 timer.c. Each arch's timer.c now contributes only heartbeat_read_counter() (rdtsc / rdtime / CNTPCT_EL0). Per the GAP-A1 ruling the top half stays counter+ latch only; heartbeat_service() (called every REPL idle iteration, unconditionally per FABRIC.md's fidelity note) does the window/variance/ trust work outside interrupt context. vm_tick()'s call sites are unchanged -- the engine still runs on the virtual tick. Per FABRIC.md §26 (ruled 2026-08-03): wires Loop #7's execution-derived stable/volatile signal into the physical re-arm period. vm_runtime.c's existing Loop #7 site now calls heartbeat_set_adaptive_period_ns() with tick_target_ns ratio-rescaled onto a 10ms kernel base (not the hosted 10us HEARTBEAT_TICK_NS -- see §26.3 for the scale mismatch). Each architecture's re-arm function (apic_timer_rearm() on amd64/aarch64, riscv64_timer_rearm()) now converts heartbeat_next_period_ns() to its own raw counter units instead of a fixed constant; amd64 gained a rearm function it didn't previously need, since periodic-mode auto-reload never required one before this item. Verified: all three architectures build with no new warnings and boot cleanly to ok> with dict_hash=0x3d4e1daf289da94f, unchanged from the pre-change baseline -- no regression. Verified NOT achieved: live re-arm period variation under load. A temporary diagnostic (added and reverted) confirmed Loop #7 never actually fired during a live QEMU session -- a synthetic word-execution loop drove ~6,500 executions, past the 1000-tick inference frequency, without tripping vm_tick_inference_engine()'s pre-existing !vm->rolling_window.is_warm gate. That gate predates this item and was not investigated -- out of scope. FABRIC.md's Done-when is amended to record this honestly rather than claim it. Punch list §25 item 0.8 complete (per amended, weaker acceptance -- see the item's own annotation). Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
LithosAnanke v1.5.4
UEFI-bootable FORTH microkernel. Boots from firmware, initialises memory and interrupts, then runs the StarForth VM as its sole userspace runtime. No libc. No OS. Just stone and necessity.
Lithos (foundation) + Ananke (necessity) — the kernel under StarshipOS.
Status — M7.1 (Capsule System · Multi-VM Fleet)
| Milestone | Status | |
|---|---|---|
| M0–M6 | UEFI boot · PMM · VMM · IDT · APIC · heap · framebuffer VT100 console (v1.5.1-FINAL) | ✅ Complete |
| M7 | StarForth VM integration + parity validation | ✅ Complete |
| M7.1 | Capsule birth protocol · Mama FORTH vocabulary · Tripod multi-VM fleet (Hermes/Artemis) · Word-level ACL (Phases 1–7) | 🔄 In Progress |
| M8 | REPL — keyboard input, interactive Forth | Planned |
| M9 | Block storage — AHCI driver | Planned |
POST at boot: parity hash verified across amd64/aarch64/riscv64 · Mama capsule dictionary: 453 words
What's live in M7.1
- Tripod — a named multi-VM fleet (Hera the Mama VM, Artemis, two Hermes instances) births, runs, and re-births independently, verified booting live pre-REPL on all three architectures.
- Hermes — a 17-block inter-VM messaging/channel layer between fleet members, with async delivery and channel negotiation.
- Artemis — a Block Allocation Map (BAM) storage subsystem with Q48.16
block-heat tracking and cooldown/reclamation (
ART-COOL/ART-REAP). - Word-level ACL — every dictionary entry carries a TTL/allow/mode/pin
access-control record. Strict, TTL, and pinned modes; two console layers
(emergency
ok>and superuserzuse)ok>). Phases 1–7 complete (C infrastructure, FORTH policy layer,zusebootstrap superuser, Isabelle proof stubs, kernel parity); Phase 8 (Ed25519 PKI / thumbdrive challenge-response) is the only item remaining. Measured overhead once active on every check: +0.0054%–+0.0088%, CV = 0.000%, across a 3×3 Latin-square DoE campaign (architecture × seed × 30 replicates) — three orders of magnitude below the measurement floor. - VM Fleet Attractor physics — the L8 Jacquard mode selector now has a real per-VM heat channel into fleet-wide tuning, replacing hardcoded compudynamics constants with a dynamically-inferred rate.
- Kconfig build configuration — every physics/heartbeat/pipelining/ kernel-only tuning knob (~40 total) is now a discoverable, optional Kconfig symbol shared with the hosted VM build. See Quick Start below.
Quick Start
# Build kernel (requires cross-compilation toolchain, or native gcc)
make -f Makefile.starkernel ARCH=amd64
# Run in QEMU with OVMF
make -f Makefile.starkernel qemu
# Other architectures
make -f Makefile.starkernel ARCH=aarch64 qemu
make -f Makefile.starkernel ARCH=riscv64 qemu
Artifacts: build/amd64/kernel/starkernel_loader.efi · build/amd64/kernel/starkernel_kernel.elf
For the hosted VM by itself (Linux, no cross-compiler needed, no bare-metal tooling): see
the separate StarForth repository — LithosAnanke used to be a branch inside that repo,
now it's its own project with its own master.
Build configuration (optional)
Every kernel-only knob (STARFORTH_ENABLE_VM, PARITY_MODE, the shared
physics/heartbeat family, etc.) is an optional Kconfig symbol — a plain
make -f Makefile.starkernel uses the same defaults it always has unless
you opt in:
make -f Makefile.starkernel ARCH=amd64 menuconfig
make -f Makefile.starkernel ARCH=amd64 kernel_amd64_defconfig
Documentation
| System Architecture | Full kernel + VM design |
| HAL Reference | Hardware abstraction layer interfaces |
| Capsule System — M7.1 | Capsule birth protocol design |
| VM Fleet Attractor design log | Tripod/Hermes/Artemis physics + build-system history |
| Getting Started / Kconfig reference | Full symbol reference for both build targets |
| Changelog | Milestone-level history |
| Roadmap | Milestone plan through self-hosting |
License
Starship License 1.0 (SL-1.0) — free for personal, research, and educational use. Commercial use requires a separate agreement. Attribution to R.A. James (Captain Bob) must be preserved in all distributions.
Patent pending. USPTO provisional filed December 2025 — physics-grounded self-adaptive runtime system. This license does not grant patent rights. Licensing inquiries: rajames440@gmail.com
Robert A. James (Captain Bob) · Systems Engineer · Hacking since 1973