Robert Allan JamesandClaude Sonnet 5
a8692681a8
Replaces the crashed NVRAM approach entirely. New include/starkernel/zuse_cert_devblock.h: a standalone on-disk record (magic + version + 32-byte seed + 32-byte pubkey + a real CRC-64/ISO from day one, same discipline homeblocks_sig_t established) occupying devblock_from_top=0 of the fence. Its own header, not inlined at the boot call site, since the still-open MINT word will be a second consumer of this exact format. kernel_main.c's mint-or-load logic now reads the fence, installs an existing valid cert, or mints fresh via virtio_rng+ed25519_keygen and writes it. Runs right after virtio_rng_init(), before capsule_birth_mama() -- unlike the crashed NVRAM attempt, raw block I/O against Artemis's already-proven device has no boot-timing risk, so the earlier "re-invoke ACL-ZUSE-BOOT after Mama birth" workaround is gone; ACL.4th's self-activating ACL-ZUSE-BOOT sees a correct cert on its one ordinary pass. Verified independently across every real scenario, never trusting the kernel's own report: fresh mint decodes correctly on disk with a CRC confirmed by a from-scratch Python re-implementation of the algorithm; a reboot without reformatting loads back byte-for-byte identical seed/pubkey (genuinely "mint once, ever"); a pre-fence volume refuses cleanly (no crash, no silent data loss, honest "not persistent" reporting); the real, untouched disk/artemis.img exercises the same graceful-refusal path identically on all three architectures. Phase 8's core arc is now functionally complete: real entropy -> real signing -> real anti-file block-native persistence -> a first-boot mint that survives reboots. Still open: the ongoing MINT word for minting additional regular users. Documented in FABRIC-3.md. Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 5 <noreply@anthropic.com> Claude-Session: https://claude.ai/code/session_01U14ET9CWAtbQMbYqomKgXd
capsules/
FORTH personality files loaded by the VM at boot. A capsule is an immutable, content-addressed payload; its XXHash64 hash is its identity. Any mutation changes the hash and the birth protocol rejects the image.
Key files
| File | Type | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
init.4th |
(m) MAMA_INIT |
Default Mama VM personality — loaded at LBN 2048 |
ACL.4th |
user | Word-level ACL system; self-activating at boot |
zuse.4th |
user | Bootstrap superuser; loaded by ACL.4th |
doe.4th |
user | DoE workload words (EXEC-DOE) — opt-in |
init-0.4th … init-9.4th |
(p) |
Numbered personality variants |
init-l8-*.4th |
(p) |
L8 Jacquard mode variants (stable/volatile/diverse/temporal/transition/omni) |
hermes/init.4th |
(p) |
Hermes baby VM personality |
artemis/init.4th |
(p) |
Artemis baby VM personality |
Block namespace
Block ranges are shared across all loaded capsules — collisions cause silent word-definition overwrites.
| Range | Owner |
|---|---|
| 2048–2099 | init.4th |
| 2100–2199 | doe.4th |
| 3000–3999 | workload capsules |
| 4000+ | user-defined (ACL.4th, zuse.4th, …) |
Each block is limited to 1024 bytes. Verify with wc -c before committing.
See also
experiments/bare_metal/README.md— DoE protocols and block namespace rulesdocs/03-architecture/word-acl/DESIGN.md— ACL system designtools/mkcapsule.c— assembles capsules intocapsule_generated.c- Project root