# PEAC Protocol - Canonical Documentation Index

**Version:** 0.10.9
**Status:** Authoritative

This document defines which documentation files are the canonical, up-to-date references for the PEAC Protocol.

---

## Definitions

| Status            | Meaning                                      |
| ----------------- | -------------------------------------------- |
| **Normative**     | Defines behavior implementations MUST follow |
| **Authoritative** | Single source of truth for a topic           |
| **Reference**     | Supporting material, not primary source      |

---

## Canonical Documents

### Normative Specifications

| Document                                                                   | Status        | Purpose                        |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------- | ------------------------------ |
| [SPEC_INDEX.md](SPEC_INDEX.md)                                             | **Normative** | Entry point for implementers   |
| [specs/PEAC-RECEIPT-SCHEMA-v0.1.json](specs/PEAC-RECEIPT-SCHEMA-v0.1.json) | **Normative** | Wire format JSON Schema        |
| [specs/PROTOCOL-BEHAVIOR.md](specs/PROTOCOL-BEHAVIOR.md)                   | **Normative** | Issue, verify, discovery flows |
| [specs/ERRORS.md](specs/ERRORS.md)                                         | **Normative** | Error codes and HTTP mappings  |
| [specs/REGISTRIES.md](specs/REGISTRIES.md)                                 | **Normative** | Payment rails, agent protocols |
| [specs/PEAC-HTTP402-PROFILE.md](specs/PEAC-HTTP402-PROFILE.md)             | **Normative** | HTTP 402 integration           |
| [specs/AGENT-IDENTITY.md](specs/AGENT-IDENTITY.md)                         | **Normative** | Agent identity attestations    |
| [specs/ATTRIBUTION.md](specs/ATTRIBUTION.md)                               | **Normative** | Attribution chain semantics    |
| [specs/DISPUTE.md](specs/DISPUTE.md)                                       | **Normative** | Dispute attestations           |
| [specs/WORKFLOW-CORRELATION.md](specs/WORKFLOW-CORRELATION.md)             | **Normative** | Workflow DAG correlation       |
| [specs/TEST_VECTORS.md](specs/TEST_VECTORS.md)                             | **Normative** | Conformance test cases         |
| `specs/kernel/*.json`                                                      | **Normative** | Machine-readable constants     |

### Architecture & Process

| Document                                           | Status            | Purpose                               |
| -------------------------------------------------- | ----------------- | ------------------------------------- |
| [ARCHITECTURE.md](ARCHITECTURE.md)                 | **Authoritative** | Kernel-first DAG, layering            |
| [CI_BEHAVIOR.md](CI_BEHAVIOR.md)                   | **Authoritative** | CI pipeline behavior                  |
| [COMPATIBILITY_MATRIX.md](COMPATIBILITY_MATRIX.md) | **Authoritative** | Wire format, runtime, SDK parity      |
| [MIGRATION_CURRENT.md](MIGRATION_CURRENT.md)       | **Authoritative** | Upgrade paths and code migration      |
| [DEPRECATION_POLICY.md](DEPRECATION_POLICY.md)     | **Authoritative** | Surface lifecycle and removal windows |
| [QA.md](QA.md)                                     | **Reference**     | Manual QA checklist                   |
| [deps-policy.md](deps-policy.md)                   | **Reference**     | Dependency update policy              |

### Policy Kit

| Document                                             | Status            | Purpose                    |
| ---------------------------------------------------- | ----------------- | -------------------------- |
| [policy-kit/quickstart.md](policy-kit/quickstart.md) | **Authoritative** | Policy Kit getting started |

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## Key Frozen Values

These values NEVER change until v1.0:

| Value                     | Definition          | Location                    |
| ------------------------- | ------------------- | --------------------------- |
| `typ: "peac-receipt/0.1"` | Wire format type    | ARCHITECTURE.md, specs/     |
| `alg: "EdDSA"`            | Signature algorithm | specs/kernel/constants.json |
| `PEAC-Receipt`            | HTTP header name    | specs/kernel/constants.json |

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## Reading Order

### For Protocol Implementers

1. [SPEC_INDEX.md](SPEC_INDEX.md)
2. [specs/PROTOCOL-BEHAVIOR.md](specs/PROTOCOL-BEHAVIOR.md)
3. [specs/PEAC-RECEIPT-SCHEMA-v0.1.json](specs/PEAC-RECEIPT-SCHEMA-v0.1.json)
4. [specs/TEST_VECTORS.md](specs/TEST_VECTORS.md)
5. [ARCHITECTURE.md](ARCHITECTURE.md)

### For Contributors

1. [ARCHITECTURE.md](ARCHITECTURE.md)
2. [CI_BEHAVIOR.md](CI_BEHAVIOR.md)

---

## Summary

| Category     | Canonical Doc          |
| ------------ | ---------------------- |
| Specs        | SPEC_INDEX.md → specs/ |
| Architecture | ARCHITECTURE.md        |
| CI           | CI_BEHAVIOR.md         |
