@mcptoolshop/style-dataset-lab 3.3.0 → 3.5.0

package/lib/asset-source.js

@@ -0,0 +1,1176 @@
+/**
+ * Asset-source contract — load and validate an `asset-source.json` manifest,
+ * the ingest contract of the asset lane (docs/asset-lane-design.md).
+ *
+ * One manifest per exported asset, living in the export directory. The
+ * manifest carries ALL semantics (channels, palettes, classes, tolerances,
+ * gates, acceptance); this module carries none — it proves declarations
+ * against bytes:
+ *
+ *   1. schema      — shape, ids, the acceptance gate (verdict must be
+ *                    literally "accepted"; the Director's eye is the most
+ *                    canon-bound gate the studio has)
+ *   2. containment — every referenced path resolves INSIDE the manifest's
+ *                    directory (the export dir is untrusted input) and exists
+ *   3. encoding    — a PNG's IHDR must match its declared encoding; an NPY
+ *                    header must match its declared dtype/shape. A manifest
+ *                    that "looks right" but disagrees with its bytes is the
+ *                    failure class this lane exists to stop.
+ *   4. categorical — indexed: PLTE ⊆ declared palette (structural chunk
+ *                    proof, the brand/E09 contract — no pixel decode);
+ *                    non-indexed + filter "nearest": EXHAUSTIVE decode proof
+ *                    (every non-transparent pixel ∈ declared palette — a
+ *                    complete proof, not a sample); non-indexed + "linear":
+ *                    no proof here — classification happens at ingest as a
+ *                    measurement with an honest unclassified share; npy:
+ *                    EXHAUSTIVE value proof against declared integer classes.
+ *
+ * All violations are collected and refused in ONE loud error (ANDON:
+ * nothing registers on a bad manifest), with the code chosen by the most
+ * meaningful violation class present.
+ *
+ * ── Schema 1.1.0 ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+ * Additive, per facet E11 Ruling 6: the sidecars that rode UNDECLARED
+ * beside the declared channels become declarable, so they are contained,
+ * proven, hashed and carried into the record instead of being invisible.
+ *
+ *   - render-space `npy`     — per-view owner/class maps (`owner_id_*.npy`).
+ *                              1.0.0 refused these outright; the proof is a
+ *                              header match PLUS shape parallel to the
+ *                              render, numpy-axis-aware ([H, W], the
+ *                              transpose a render-space array gets wrong).
+ *   - categorical `npy`      — declares `classes: [{name, value}]` instead of
+ *                              an rgb `palette`, proven exhaustively.
+ *   - `json` encoding        — the measurement/camera sidecars
+ *                              (`admission_*.json`, `cam.json`). The proof is
+ *                              deliberately weak and SAID SO: parses as an
+ *                              object, declared `required_keys` present. sdlab
+ *                              does not read the values — a number in there
+ *                              means what the asset says it means.
+ *   - `identity.subject_name` — the split engine's authored subject-family
+ *                              key. Without it lib/split.js falls back to
+ *                              id-stem guessing, which reads two ingests of
+ *                              one subject as two families and lets the same
+ *                              subject sit in train and test.
+ *
+ * Every addition is OPTIONAL, so 1.0.0 manifests validate unchanged — which
+ * is why this is 1.1.0 and not 2.0.0: a major bump would refuse the very
+ * manifests E11 ruled to be the training input. The version gate is
+ * minor-aware in the other direction: a manifest declaring a HIGHER minor
+ * than this sdlab speaks is refused loudly rather than silently stripped of
+ * the channels this build cannot see.
+ *
+ * ── Schema 1.2.0 ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+ * Additive, per facet E12 Ruling 10b (the style directive), Rulings 23c/23f
+ * (the harmonization adoption) and Rulings 20a/24b (two measured generation
+ * phenomena). Same discipline as 1.1.0 — every addition OPTIONAL, so 1.0.0
+ * and 1.1.0 manifests validate unchanged. Hence 1.2.0, not 2.0.0.
+ *
+ *   - `asset.style`          — THE REGISTER IS SUBJECT DATA. Ruling 10b was
+ *                              bought by a rejection: the painterly register
+ *                              two subjects earned was inherited by a third
+ *                              that should read ultra-realistic — "a style
+ *                              decision nobody made." The register is an
+ *                              authored property of the SUBJECT, declared
+ *                              here beside the palette bands, never derived
+ *                              from the dataset and never inherited.
+ *
+ *                              `style.lora` carries a REQUIRED `declared`
+ *                              discriminator — "none" or "card". That is the
+ *                              ruling expressed mechanically: NO-LoRA is a
+ *                              positive declaration, not the absence of a
+ *                              field. A serializer that drops nulls cannot
+ *                              turn a ruled NONE into silence, and "no
+ *                              fixture may leave the section implicit again"
+ *                              becomes something bytes can prove.
+ *
+ *   - `asset.tone_transform` — a deterministic, generation-free tone map
+ *                              applied to the generated views BEFORE they
+ *                              became the projection sources these renders
+ *                              derive from (facet's Lab colour-statistics
+ *                              harmonization toward a reference view,
+ *                              adopted at Ruling 23f). Declared because this
+ *                              lane MEASURES colour — the palette gate, the
+ *                              class shares, the pre-registered ΔE
+ *                              experiment — and an undeclared upstream tone
+ *                              map is a systematic covariate sitting under
+ *                              every one of those numbers. Pooling
+ *                              harmonized-source and raw-source assets is a
+ *                              legitimate choice; doing it unknowingly is
+ *                              not.
+ *
+ *                              The proof is structural and the boundary is
+ *                              stated out loud, as with `json`: sdlab checks
+ *                              that `reference` names a render THIS manifest
+ *                              declares, and contains + hashes + carries the
+ *                              operands sidecar. It does NOT verify that the
+ *                              transform was applied, that the operands are
+ *                              correct, or that the arithmetic is
+ *                              reversible. It records what the asset
+ *                              declared, so a consumer can group by it and
+ *                              an audit can replay it.
+ *
+ *   - `renders[].generation` — per-image generation frame + seed, because
+ *                              both are MEASURED curation axes, not trivia:
+ *                              (1) bust/crop-framed generation drifts
+ *                              register — three independent instances
+ *                              (Ruling 24b); (2) term binding is
+ *                              seed-dependent — one seed resisted a prompt
+ *                              term across three independent stems where the
+ *                              next seed bound it (Ruling 20a), and one
+ *                              view's flat-black limb reproduced three times
+ *                              at that seed and cured all three times at the
+ *                              next (Ruling 23d). A curator who cannot ask
+ *                              "which records came from a crop frame" or
+ *                              "which came from that seed" cannot act on
+ *                              either finding.
+ *
+ *                              `generation.frame` is a CLOSED two-value enum
+ *                              ("full" | "crop") for the same reason
+ *                              `facing` is a derived vocabulary: it is the
+ *                              axis the phenomenon was measured on, and a
+ *                              free-text field where one asset writes "bust"
+ *                              and another "head-crop" cannot be queried.
+ *                              Everything finer is the asset's own business
+ *                              and rides in `frame_detail`.
+ *
+ * ── Schema 1.3.0 ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+ * One addition, closing a defect 1.2.0 shipped with. Per facet E11 Ruling 2
+ * (endorsed as E11 addenda 3), a dense turnaround's renders are
+ * DETERMINISTIC DERIVATIONS of the accepted asset by the anchored emit path
+ * — not generated images. They therefore carry no `generation` block, and
+ * *correctly* so: "an optional block that does not apply is left out, not
+ * filled in."
+ *
+ * 1.2.0 could not tell that apart from an export that simply failed to
+ * declare its seeds, so it reported the gap on both — which would have told
+ * an operator to go fix an export that was right by ruling. Crying wolf on
+ * correct data is how a notice channel stops being read.
+ *
+ *   - `asset.render_derivation` — {kind, generated, record}. `generated` is
+ *                              the load-bearing bit, and it is the same
+ *                              silence-vs-declaration principle as
+ *                              `style.lora.declared`: the manifest SAYS its
+ *                              renders are derivations rather than leaving
+ *                              the lane to infer it from an absence.
+ *
+ *                              When `generated: false`, a per-render
+ *                              `generation` block is REFUSED — a
+ *                              deterministic derivation has no seed of its
+ *                              own, so declaring one is a category error
+ *                              worth catching rather than recording. The
+ *                              generating provenance of the twins such a
+ *                              render was projected FROM lives on the asset
+ *                              side; it is not this render's.
+ *
+ * Optional, so 1.0.0–1.2.0 manifests validate unchanged; hence 1.3.0, not
+ * 2.0.0. Undeclared keeps 1.2.0's behaviour exactly — the gap notice still
+ * fires — because an export that declares nothing genuinely has not said
+ * whether its renders were generated.
+ */
+
+import { readFile } from 'node:fs/promises';
+import { existsSync } from 'node:fs';
+import { dirname, isAbsolute, relative, resolve } from 'node:path';
+import { inputError } from './errors.js';
+import { SAFE_ID_RE } from './export.js';
+import { parsePngMeta, decodePng } from './png-meta.js';
+import { parseNpyHeader, readNpyValues, NPY_PROVABLE_DTYPES } from './npy-meta.js';
+import { rgbAt, alphaAt } from './asset-masks.js';
+
+export const ASSET_SCHEMA_VERSION = '1.3.0';
+export const ASSET_MANIFEST_FILENAME = 'asset-source.json';
+
+const ENCODINGS = new Set(['indexed', 'rgb', 'rgba', 'grayscale', 'npy', 'json']);
+
+/**
+ * Schema 1.2.0. `none` is the ruled NO-LoRA register (facet E12 Ruling 10b:
+ * "none at all is better than making the same texture for everything"); a
+ * manifest must SAY it rather than omit the field, so silence can never be
+ * read as a decision.
+ */
+export const LORA_DECLARATIONS = new Set(['none', 'card']);
+
+/**
+ * Schema 1.2.0. The measured curation axis for the register-drift phenomenon
+ * (E12 Ruling 24b): the subject whole in frame, versus a sub-region of it
+ * generated at higher pixel density (bust, head-crop, detail crop).
+ */
+export const GENERATION_FRAMES = new Set(['full', 'crop']);
+
+/**
+ * Encodings that decode to pixels. Consumers that measure images (class
+ * shares at ingest) must gate on this — since 1.1.0 a channel instance can
+ * be an npy array or a json sidecar, and neither answers to decodePng.
+ */
+export const PIXEL_ENCODINGS = new Set(['indexed', 'rgb', 'rgba', 'grayscale']);
+const COLOR_TYPE_BY_ENCODING = { grayscale: 0, rgb: 2, indexed: 3, rgba: 6 };
+const RENDER_COLOR_TYPES = new Set([2, 6]); // trainable renders: color, 8-bit
+
+// Violation classes, ordered by which code the single thrown error carries.
+// The message always lists EVERY violation; the code names the loudest class.
+const CLASS_ORDER = [
+  'ASSET_NOT_ACCEPTED',
+  'ASSET_MANIFEST_INVALID',
+  'ASSET_PATH_ESCAPE',
+  'ASSET_FILE_MISSING',
+  'ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH',
+  'ASSET_PALETTE_PROOF_FAILED',
+];
+
+function v(cls, path, message) {
+  return { cls, path, message };
+}
+
+function isNonEmptyString(x) {
+  return typeof x === 'string' && x.trim().length > 0;
+}
+
+function safeId(x) {
+  return typeof x === 'string' && SAFE_ID_RE.test(x);
+}
+
+/**
+ * Validate `asset.style` (schema 1.2.0) — the STYLE-SUPPLIED section that
+ * facet E12 Ruling 10b requires every fixture to carry.
+ *
+ * The block is optional (1.0.0/1.1.0 manifests validate unchanged), but it is
+ * ALL-OR-NOTHING once present: a style block that names a register without
+ * answering the LoRA question is exactly the implicit section the ruling
+ * forbids, so it is refused rather than half-accepted.
+ *
+ * @param {Object} style — the manifest's asset.style
+ * @param {Function} bad — (jsonPath, message) => void
+ */
+function validateStyle(style, bad) {
+  if (typeof style !== 'object' || Array.isArray(style)) {
+    bad('asset.style', 'must be an object {register, lora}');
+    return;
+  }
+
+  // register — the terms the subject was ruled to read as
+  if (!style.register || typeof style.register !== 'object' || Array.isArray(style.register)) {
+    bad('asset.style.register', 'required object {terms: [string], ruling?, record?} — the register is subject data, not a studio default');
+  } else {
+    const terms = style.register.terms;
+    if (!Array.isArray(terms) || terms.length === 0 || !terms.every(isNonEmptyString)) {
+      bad('asset.style.register.terms', 'required non-empty array of non-empty strings (e.g. ["ultra-realistic", "menacing"])');
+    }
+    for (const key of ['ruling', 'record']) {
+      if (style.register[key] != null && !isNonEmptyString(style.register[key])) {
+        bad(`asset.style.register.${key}`, 'must be a non-empty string when present (the ruling that decided this register, and where it is recorded)');
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  // lora — the discriminator is the whole point: NONE is declared, not omitted
+  if (!style.lora || typeof style.lora !== 'object' || Array.isArray(style.lora)) {
+    bad('asset.style.lora',
+      'required object — a style block must answer the LoRA question explicitly. Use {"declared":"none"} for the ruled no-LoRA register, or {"declared":"card","card":"<live card name>"}. Omitting it is the implicit-section failure E12 Ruling 10b forbids.');
+  } else if (!LORA_DECLARATIONS.has(style.lora.declared)) {
+    bad('asset.style.lora.declared',
+      `must be one of ${[...LORA_DECLARATIONS].join(', ')} — "none" is a positive declaration that this subject runs with NO LoRA, not the absence of a value`);
+  } else if (style.lora.declared === 'card') {
+    if (!isNonEmptyString(style.lora.card)) {
+      bad('asset.style.lora.card', 'required non-empty string when declared is "card" — the LIVE card name as it exists in the model library, not a nickname');
+    }
+    if (style.lora.weight != null && typeof style.lora.weight !== 'number') {
+      bad('asset.style.lora.weight', 'must be a number when present');
+    }
+  } else {
+    // declared: "none" — carrying a card alongside it is a contradiction, and
+    // silently preferring one over the other is how a register drifts back in.
+    if (style.lora.card != null) {
+      bad('asset.style.lora.card', 'must not be present when declared is "none" — a no-LoRA register that names a card contradicts itself');
+    }
+    if (style.lora.weight != null && style.lora.weight !== 0) {
+      bad('asset.style.lora.weight', 'must be absent or 0 when declared is "none"');
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+/**
+ * Validate `asset.tone_transform` (schema 1.2.0) — a deterministic tone map
+ * applied upstream of these renders. Optional; complete once present.
+ *
+ * `reference` is checked against the manifest's own render ids: a reference
+ * view that this manifest does not declare is dangling provenance, and that
+ * IS checkable structurally. Everything semantic is the asset's.
+ *
+ * @param {Object} tt — the manifest's asset.tone_transform
+ * @param {Set<string>} renderIds — ids declared in renders[]
+ * @param {Function} bad — (jsonPath, message) => void
+ */
+function validateToneTransform(tt, renderIds, bad) {
+  if (typeof tt !== 'object' || Array.isArray(tt)) {
+    bad('asset.tone_transform', 'must be an object');
+    return;
+  }
+  if (!isNonEmptyString(tt.kind)) {
+    bad('asset.tone_transform.kind', 'required non-empty string naming the transform (e.g. "lab-stats-transfer") — sdlab does not interpret it, it records and groups by it');
+  }
+  if (!isNonEmptyString(tt.reference)) {
+    bad('asset.tone_transform.reference', 'required — the render id every other view was transferred toward');
+  } else if (renderIds.size > 0 && !renderIds.has(tt.reference)) {
+    bad('asset.tone_transform.reference',
+      `"${tt.reference}" is not a render id declared in this manifest — a tone transform whose reference view is not in the export leaves the provenance dangling`);
+  }
+  if (!isNonEmptyString(tt.operands)) {
+    bad('asset.tone_transform.operands', 'required path to the recorded per-view operands — it is contained, hashed and carried so the transform can be audited or replayed');
+  }
+  for (const key of ['space', 'scope', 'record']) {
+    if (tt[key] != null && !isNonEmptyString(tt[key])) {
+      bad(`asset.tone_transform.${key}`, 'must be a non-empty string when present');
+    }
+  }
+  if (tt.reversible != null && typeof tt.reversible !== 'boolean') {
+    bad('asset.tone_transform.reversible', 'must be a boolean when present — this is the asset\'s claim, which sdlab records without verifying');
+  }
+}
+
+/**
+ * Validate `asset.render_derivation` (schema 1.3.0) — how these renders came
+ * to exist. Optional; complete once present.
+ *
+ * The point of the block is `generated`. A dense turnaround's renders are
+ * deterministic derivations of an already-accepted asset (facet E11 Ruling
+ * 2), so they have no seed and no generation frame — and an export that
+ * leaves `generation` out for that reason is CORRECT, where an export that
+ * leaves it out because nobody recorded the seeds is not. Only the manifest
+ * can tell those apart, so it says which.
+ *
+ * @param {Object} rd — the manifest's asset.render_derivation
+ * @param {Function} bad — (jsonPath, message) => void
+ */
+function validateRenderDerivation(rd, bad) {
+  if (typeof rd !== 'object' || Array.isArray(rd)) {
+    bad('asset.render_derivation', 'must be an object {kind, generated, record?}');
+    return;
+  }
+  if (!isNonEmptyString(rd.kind)) {
+    bad('asset.render_derivation.kind',
+      'required non-empty string naming the path these renders came by (e.g. "emit") — sdlab does not interpret it, it records and groups by it');
+  }
+  if (typeof rd.generated !== 'boolean') {
+    bad('asset.render_derivation.generated',
+      'required boolean — true when these renders are generated images (seeds and frames apply), false when they are deterministic derivations of an already-accepted asset (no seed of their own). This is a declaration, not an inference from whether a generation block happens to be present.');
+  }
+  if (rd.record != null && !isNonEmptyString(rd.record)) {
+    bad('asset.render_derivation.record', 'must be a non-empty string when present (where this derivation path is recorded)');
+  }
+}
+
+/**
+ * Validate `renders[].generation` (schema 1.2.0) — per-image generation
+ * provenance for curation. Optional; complete once present.
+ *
+ * @param {Object} gen — the render's generation block
+ * @param {string} p — the render's json path prefix
+ * @param {Function} bad — (jsonPath, message) => void
+ */
+function validateGeneration(gen, p, bad) {
+  if (typeof gen !== 'object' || Array.isArray(gen)) {
+    bad(`${p}.generation`, 'must be an object');
+    return;
+  }
+  if (!GENERATION_FRAMES.has(gen.frame)) {
+    bad(`${p}.generation.frame`,
+      `must be one of ${[...GENERATION_FRAMES].join(', ')} — "full" is the whole subject in frame, "crop" is a sub-region generated at higher pixel density (bust, head-crop, detail). This is the axis the register-drift phenomenon was measured on; asset-specific naming goes in frame_detail.`);
+  }
+  // Seed: integer or digit-string. A digit-string is legal because seeds can
+  // exceed what a JSON number holds exactly, and a seed that silently loses
+  // its low bits cannot be grouped on — which is the entire reason it is here.
+  if (gen.seed != null) {
+    const okInt = Number.isInteger(gen.seed) && Number.isSafeInteger(gen.seed);
+    const okStr = typeof gen.seed === 'string' && /^\d+$/.test(gen.seed);
+    if (!okInt && !okStr) {
+      bad(`${p}.generation.seed`, 'must be a safe integer or a string of digits (a string keeps seeds too large for exact JSON numbers groupable)');
+    }
+  }
+  for (const key of ['frame_detail', 'stem', 'model', 'reroll_of']) {
+    if (gen[key] != null && !isNonEmptyString(gen[key])) {
+      bad(`${p}.generation.${key}`, 'must be a non-empty string when present');
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+// ─── 1. Schema ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+/**
+ * Validate the manifest's shape. Pure — no filesystem access.
+ * @returns {Array<{cls:string, path:string, message:string}>}
+ */
+export function validateManifestShape(m) {
+  const out = [];
+  const bad = (path, message) => out.push(v('ASSET_MANIFEST_INVALID', path, message));
+
+  if (!m || typeof m !== 'object' || Array.isArray(m)) {
+    bad('$', 'manifest must be a JSON object');
+    return out;
+  }
+
+  // schema_version — major must match; a HIGHER minor is refused rather
+  // than accepted-and-silently-stripped. Additive minors mean a newer
+  // manifest's extra channels would parse as "absent" to this build, and an
+  // asset lane that quietly drops declared provenance is the failure class
+  // this module exists to stop.
+  if (!isNonEmptyString(m.schema_version) || !/^\d+\.\d+\.\d+$/.test(m.schema_version)) {
+    bad('schema_version', 'must be a semver string, e.g. "1.1.0"');
+  } else {
+    const [major, minor] = m.schema_version.split('.').map(Number);
+    const [ourMajor, ourMinor] = ASSET_SCHEMA_VERSION.split('.').map(Number);
+    if (major !== ourMajor) {
+      bad('schema_version', `major version ${m.schema_version} is not supported (this sdlab speaks ${ASSET_SCHEMA_VERSION})`);
+    } else if (minor > ourMinor) {
+      bad('schema_version', `${m.schema_version} declares a newer minor than this sdlab speaks (${ASSET_SCHEMA_VERSION}) — it may declare channels this build cannot see, and ingesting it would silently drop them. Upgrade sdlab.`);
+    }
+  }
+
+  // identity — optional, but the split engine's only authored subject key
+  if (m.identity != null) {
+    if (typeof m.identity !== 'object' || Array.isArray(m.identity)) {
+      bad('identity', 'must be an object');
+    } else if (m.identity.subject_name != null && !safeId(m.identity.subject_name)) {
+      bad('identity.subject_name', 'must match [A-Za-z0-9._-]+ — it is the split engine\'s subject-family key, and two ingests of one subject must declare the SAME value or splits will read them as two families');
+    }
+  }
+
+  // asset
+  if (!m.asset || typeof m.asset !== 'object') {
+    bad('asset', 'required object');
+  } else {
+    if (!safeId(m.asset.id)) bad('asset.id', 'required; must match [A-Za-z0-9._-]+');
+    for (const key of ['mesh', 'atlas']) {
+      const ref = m.asset[key];
+      if (ref != null && (typeof ref !== 'object' || !isNonEmptyString(ref.path))) {
+        bad(`asset.${key}`, 'when present, must be an object with a non-empty "path"');
+      }
+    }
+    // schema 1.2.0 — the STYLE-SUPPLIED section (E12 Ruling 10b)
+    if (m.asset.style != null) validateStyle(m.asset.style, bad);
+    // schema 1.3.0 — how these renders came to exist (E11 Ruling 2)
+    if (m.asset.render_derivation != null) validateRenderDerivation(m.asset.render_derivation, bad);
+  }
+
+  // acceptance — the door
+  if (!m.acceptance || typeof m.acceptance !== 'object') {
+    out.push(v('ASSET_NOT_ACCEPTED', 'acceptance', 'required — only accepted assets are admissible; the acceptance block records the Gate verdict'));
+  } else {
+    if (m.acceptance.verdict !== 'accepted') {
+      out.push(v('ASSET_NOT_ACCEPTED', 'acceptance.verdict',
+        `is "${m.acceptance.verdict}" — only verdict "accepted" passes the door`));
+    }
+    if (!isNonEmptyString(m.acceptance.gate)) bad('acceptance.gate', 'required non-empty string (which gate accepted this asset)');
+    if (!isNonEmptyString(m.acceptance.date) || Number.isNaN(Date.parse(m.acceptance.date))) {
+      bad('acceptance.date', 'required parseable date (ISO recommended)');
+    }
+    if (!isNonEmptyString(m.acceptance.record)) bad('acceptance.record', 'required non-empty link/path to the acceptance ruling');
+  }
+
+  // palette
+  if (!m.palette || typeof m.palette !== 'object') {
+    bad('palette', 'required object — bands come with the asset, never derived from the dataset');
+  } else {
+    if (typeof m.palette.min_chroma !== 'number' || m.palette.min_chroma < 0) {
+      bad('palette.min_chroma', 'required number >= 0 (the chroma floor is load-bearing)');
+    }
+    if (!Array.isArray(m.palette.allowed_bands) || m.palette.allowed_bands.length === 0) {
+      bad('palette.allowed_bands', 'required non-empty array of {name, hue_deg: [lo, hi]}');
+    } else {
+      m.palette.allowed_bands.forEach((b, i) => {
+        if (!b || typeof b !== 'object' || !isNonEmptyString(b.name)) {
+          bad(`palette.allowed_bands[${i}].name`, 'required non-empty string');
+        }
+        const ok = Array.isArray(b?.hue_deg) && b.hue_deg.length === 2 &&
+          b.hue_deg.every((h) => typeof h === 'number' && h >= 0 && h <= 360);
+        if (!ok) bad(`palette.allowed_bands[${i}].hue_deg`, 'required [lo, hi] with both in 0–360 (lo > hi wraps around 0°)');
+      });
+    }
+    const gate = m.palette.gate;
+    if (!gate || typeof gate !== 'object') {
+      bad('palette.gate', 'required object {max_offpalette_pct: number|null, max_offpalette_blob_px: int}');
+    } else {
+      if (!Number.isInteger(gate.max_offpalette_blob_px) || gate.max_offpalette_blob_px < 0) {
+        bad('palette.gate.max_offpalette_blob_px', 'required integer >= 0 (the load-bearing blob gate)');
+      }
+      if (gate.max_offpalette_pct != null && typeof gate.max_offpalette_pct !== 'number') {
+        bad('palette.gate.max_offpalette_pct', 'must be a number or null (null = withdrawn, diagnostic only)');
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  // channels
+  const channelById = new Map();
+  if (m.channels != null && !Array.isArray(m.channels)) {
+    bad('channels', 'must be an array of channel declarations');
+  } else {
+    (m.channels || []).forEach((c, i) => {
+      const p = `channels[${i}]`;
+      if (!c || typeof c !== 'object') { bad(p, 'must be an object'); return; }
+      if (!safeId(c.id)) bad(`${p}.id`, 'required; must match [A-Za-z0-9._-]+');
+      else if (channelById.has(c.id)) bad(`${p}.id`, `duplicate channel id "${c.id}"`);
+      else channelById.set(c.id, c);
+      if (c.space !== 'texture' && c.space !== 'render') bad(`${p}.space`, 'must be "texture" or "render"');
+      if (!ENCODINGS.has(c.encoding)) bad(`${p}.encoding`, `must be one of ${[...ENCODINGS].join(', ')}`);
+      if (c.space === 'texture' && !isNonEmptyString(c.path)) {
+        bad(`${p}.path`, 'texture-space channels declare their single file here');
+      }
+      if (c.space === 'render' && c.path != null) {
+        bad(`${p}.path`, 'render-space channels have per-render instances (renders[].channels), not a path here');
+      }
+      if (c.categorical) {
+        if (c.encoding === 'json') {
+          bad(`${p}`, 'json channels cannot be categorical — sdlab does not read their values, so it can prove nothing about classes');
+        } else if (c.encoding === 'npy') {
+          // Integer classes, not rgb — an owner/class array has no colors.
+          if (!Array.isArray(c.classes) || c.classes.length === 0) {
+            bad(`${p}.classes`, 'categorical npy channels must declare integer classes [{name, value: int}] (rgb palettes are for pixel encodings)');
+          } else {
+            const names = new Set();
+            const values = new Set();
+            c.classes.forEach((cls, j) => {
+              if (!cls || !isNonEmptyString(cls.name)) bad(`${p}.classes[${j}].name`, 'required non-empty string');
+              else if (names.has(cls.name)) bad(`${p}.classes[${j}].name`, `duplicate class name "${cls.name}"`);
+              else names.add(cls.name);
+              if (!Number.isInteger(cls?.value)) bad(`${p}.classes[${j}].value`, 'required integer (the value carried in the array, e.g. -1 for "unowned")');
+              else if (values.has(cls.value)) bad(`${p}.classes[${j}].value`, `duplicate class value ${cls.value}`);
+              else values.add(cls.value);
+            });
+          }
+          if (c.dtype != null && !NPY_PROVABLE_DTYPES.has(c.dtype)) {
+            bad(`${p}.dtype`, `categorical npy channels must use a dtype whose values can be read (${[...NPY_PROVABLE_DTYPES].join(', ')}); "${c.dtype}" would leave the class declaration unproven`);
+          }
+        } else {
+          if (!Array.isArray(c.palette) || c.palette.length === 0) {
+            bad(`${p}.palette`, 'categorical channels must declare their class palette [{name, rgb: [r,g,b]}]');
+          } else {
+            const names = new Set();
+            c.palette.forEach((cls, j) => {
+              if (!cls || !isNonEmptyString(cls.name)) bad(`${p}.palette[${j}].name`, 'required non-empty string');
+              else if (names.has(cls.name)) bad(`${p}.palette[${j}].name`, `duplicate class name "${cls.name}"`);
+              else names.add(cls.name);
+              const ok = Array.isArray(cls?.rgb) && cls.rgb.length === 3 &&
+                cls.rgb.every((n) => Number.isInteger(n) && n >= 0 && n <= 255);
+              if (!ok) bad(`${p}.palette[${j}].rgb`, 'required [r, g, b] ints 0–255');
+            });
+          }
+          if (c.filter !== 'nearest' && c.filter !== 'linear') {
+            bad(`${p}.filter`, 'categorical channels must declare filter "nearest" (exact proof) or "linear" (tolerance classification)');
+          }
+          if (c.filter === 'linear' && (typeof c.classification_tolerance !== 'number' || c.classification_tolerance < 0)) {
+            bad(`${p}.classification_tolerance`, 'linear categorical channels must declare a tolerance >= 0 (max RGB distance)');
+          }
+        }
+      }
+      if (c.encoding === 'npy') {
+        if (!isNonEmptyString(c.dtype)) bad(`${p}.dtype`, 'npy channels must declare dtype (e.g. "|b1") — proven against the header');
+        if (c.space === 'texture') {
+          // One file, one declared shape.
+          if (!Array.isArray(c.shape) || c.shape.length === 0 || !c.shape.every((n) => Number.isInteger(n) && n >= 0)) {
+            bad(`${p}.shape`, 'texture-space npy channels must declare shape (array of ints) — proven against the header');
+          }
+        } else if (c.shape != null) {
+          // Render-space instances are proven parallel to their own render,
+          // which a channel-level shape cannot express across differently
+          // sized renders. Declaring one invites the two to disagree.
+          bad(`${p}.shape`, 'render-space npy channels do not declare shape — each instance is proven [height, width] against its own render (numpy row-major)');
+        }
+      }
+      if (c.encoding === 'json' && c.required_keys != null) {
+        const ok = Array.isArray(c.required_keys) && c.required_keys.every((k) => isNonEmptyString(k));
+        if (!ok) bad(`${p}.required_keys`, 'when present, must be an array of non-empty top-level key names');
+      }
+    });
+  }
+
+  // renders
+  const renderIds = new Set();
+  if (!Array.isArray(m.renders) || m.renders.length === 0) {
+    bad('renders', 'required non-empty array — an asset with no renders has nothing to ingest');
+  } else {
+    m.renders.forEach((r, i) => {
+      const p = `renders[${i}]`;
+      if (!r || typeof r !== 'object') { bad(p, 'must be an object'); return; }
+      if (!safeId(r.id)) bad(`${p}.id`, 'required; must match [A-Za-z0-9._-]+');
+      else if (renderIds.has(r.id)) bad(`${p}.id`, `duplicate render id "${r.id}"`);
+      else renderIds.add(r.id);
+      if (!isNonEmptyString(r.path)) bad(`${p}.path`, 'required');
+      if (!r.camera || typeof r.camera !== 'object' || typeof r.camera.yaw_deg !== 'number') {
+        bad(`${p}.camera`, 'required object with numeric yaw_deg (elevation_deg optional, default 0)');
+      } else if (r.camera.elevation_deg != null && typeof r.camera.elevation_deg !== 'number') {
+        bad(`${p}.camera.elevation_deg`, 'must be a number when present');
+      }
+      if (!isNonEmptyString(r.silhouette_mask)) {
+        bad(`${p}.silhouette_mask`, 'required — the palette gate measures inside the EXACT silhouette (E08-A2)');
+      }
+      if (r.channels != null) {
+        if (typeof r.channels !== 'object' || Array.isArray(r.channels)) {
+          bad(`${p}.channels`, 'must be an object mapping channel-type id → instance path');
+        } else {
+          for (const [cid, cpath] of Object.entries(r.channels)) {
+            const decl = channelById.get(cid);
+            if (!decl) bad(`${p}.channels.${cid}`, `references undeclared channel id "${cid}"`);
+            else if (decl.space !== 'render') bad(`${p}.channels.${cid}`, `channel "${cid}" is ${decl.space}-space; only render-space channels have per-render instances`);
+            if (!isNonEmptyString(cpath)) bad(`${p}.channels.${cid}`, 'instance path must be a non-empty string');
+          }
+        }
+      }
+      if (r.loss_mask != null && !isNonEmptyString(r.loss_mask)) bad(`${p}.loss_mask`, 'must be a non-empty path when present');
+      if (r.facing != null && !isNonEmptyString(r.facing)) bad(`${p}.facing`, 'must be a non-empty string when present');
+      // schema 1.2.0 — per-image generation provenance (Rulings 20a, 24b)
+      // schema 1.3.0 — refused outright on a declared non-generated render:
+      // a deterministic derivation of an accepted asset has no seed and no
+      // generation frame of its own. The generating provenance of the twins
+      // it was projected FROM is real, but it belongs to those twins, and
+      // recording it here would attribute a seed to an image that no seed
+      // produced.
+      if (r.generation != null && m.asset?.render_derivation?.generated === false) {
+        bad(`${p}.generation`,
+          `declares generation provenance, but asset.render_derivation.generated is false — these renders are "${m.asset.render_derivation.kind}" derivations of an already-accepted asset and have no seed of their own. If they ARE generated images, set generated: true.`);
+      } else if (r.generation != null) {
+        validateGeneration(r.generation, p, bad);
+      }
+      // schema 1.2.0 — a render may opt OUT of the asset-level tone transform.
+      // Boolean only: the asset declares the transform once, and a render says
+      // whether it carries it. Anything richer belongs in the asset block.
+      if (r.tone_transform != null && typeof r.tone_transform !== 'boolean') {
+        bad(`${p}.tone_transform`, 'must be a boolean when present — true/false says whether THIS render carries the asset-level tone transform; the transform itself is declared once at asset.tone_transform');
+      }
+      if (r.tone_transform != null && m.asset?.tone_transform == null) {
+        bad(`${p}.tone_transform`, 'declares a per-render tone_transform but the manifest has no asset.tone_transform to opt in or out of');
+      }
+      if (r.pair != null) {
+        if (typeof r.pair !== 'object' || Array.isArray(r.pair)) bad(`${p}.pair`, 'must be an object mapping pair name → path');
+        else {
+          for (const [name, ppath] of Object.entries(r.pair)) {
+            if (!safeId(name)) bad(`${p}.pair.${name}`, 'pair names must match [A-Za-z0-9._-]+');
+            if (!isNonEmptyString(ppath)) bad(`${p}.pair.${name}`, 'pair path must be a non-empty string');
+          }
+        }
+      }
+    });
+  }
+
+  // schema 1.2.0 — the tone transform, validated AFTER renders so its
+  // reference can be checked against the ids this manifest actually declares
+  if (m.asset?.tone_transform != null) {
+    validateToneTransform(m.asset.tone_transform, renderIds, bad);
+  }
+
+  // captions (material, not captions)
+  if (m.captions != null) {
+    if (typeof m.captions !== 'object' || Array.isArray(m.captions)) bad('captions', 'must be an object');
+    else {
+      for (const key of ['subject', 'style_trigger', 'domain_tag']) {
+        if (m.captions[key] != null && !isNonEmptyString(m.captions[key])) {
+          bad(`captions.${key}`, 'must be a non-empty string when present');
+        }
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  return out;
+}
+
+// ─── 2–4. Containment, existence, encoding + categorical proofs ──────
+
+/**
+ * Resolve a manifest-relative path, refusing absolute paths and escapes.
+ * @returns {{abs: string}|{violation: Object}}
+ */
+function containPath(baseDir, relPath, jsonPath) {
+  if (isAbsolute(relPath)) {
+    return { violation: v('ASSET_PATH_ESCAPE', jsonPath, `"${relPath}" is absolute — manifest paths must be relative to the manifest's directory`) };
+  }
+  const abs = resolve(baseDir, relPath);
+  const rel = relative(resolve(baseDir), abs);
+  if (rel.startsWith('..') || isAbsolute(rel)) {
+    return { violation: v('ASSET_PATH_ESCAPE', jsonPath, `"${relPath}" resolves outside the export directory`) };
+  }
+  return { abs };
+}
+
+async function provePng(absPath, relPath, jsonPath, expectations, violations) {
+  let buf;
+  try {
+    buf = await readFile(absPath);
+  } catch (err) {
+    violations.push(v('ASSET_FILE_MISSING', jsonPath, `cannot read "${relPath}": ${err.message}`));
+    return null;
+  }
+  let meta;
+  try {
+    meta = parsePngMeta(buf, relPath);
+  } catch (err) {
+    violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', jsonPath, `"${relPath}": ${err.message}`));
+    return null;
+  }
+  if (meta.interlaced) {
+    violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', jsonPath, `"${relPath}" is interlaced — the contract requires non-interlaced PNGs`));
+    return null;
+  }
+  if (expectations.colorTypes && !expectations.colorTypes.has(meta.colorType)) {
+    violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', jsonPath,
+      `"${relPath}" has PNG color type ${meta.colorType} (${meta.colorTypeName}); ${expectations.what} requires ${expectations.describe}`));
+    return null;
+  }
+  return { buf, meta };
+}
+
+/**
+ * Prove an npy file against its declaration.
+ *
+ * @param {number[]|null} expectShape — for render-space instances, the
+ *   [height, width] the array must be parallel to (numpy row-major, so a
+ *   [width, height] export is a transpose and is caught here). Null for
+ *   texture-space channels, which declare their own shape.
+ */
+async function proveNpy(absPath, relPath, jsonPath, decl, expectShape, violations) {
+  let buf;
+  try {
+    buf = await readFile(absPath);
+  } catch (err) {
+    violations.push(v('ASSET_FILE_MISSING', jsonPath, `cannot read "${relPath}": ${err.message}`));
+    return null;
+  }
+  let header;
+  try {
+    header = parseNpyHeader(buf, relPath);
+  } catch (err) {
+    violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', jsonPath, `"${relPath}": ${err.message}`));
+    return null;
+  }
+
+  let ok = true;
+  if (header.dtype !== decl.dtype) {
+    violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', jsonPath,
+      `"${relPath}" has dtype ${header.dtype}, manifest declares ${decl.dtype}`));
+    ok = false;
+  }
+  if (expectShape) {
+    const rankOk = header.shape.length === 2 || header.shape.length === 3;
+    if (!rankOk || header.shape[0] !== expectShape[0] || header.shape[1] !== expectShape[1]) {
+      violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', jsonPath,
+        `"${relPath}" has shape [${header.shape}]; a render-space array must open [height, width] = [${expectShape[0]}, ${expectShape[1]}] to be parallel to its render (numpy is row-major — a [width, height] export is transposed)`));
+      ok = false;
+    }
+  } else if (JSON.stringify(header.shape) !== JSON.stringify(decl.shape)) {
+    violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', jsonPath,
+      `"${relPath}" has shape [${header.shape}], manifest declares [${decl.shape}]`));
+    ok = false;
+  }
+  return ok ? { buf, meta: header } : null;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Prove a json sidecar. The proof is deliberately shallow and the contract
+ * says so out loud: the file parses as an object and carries the keys the
+ * manifest declared required. sdlab does NOT read the values — a number in
+ * an admission sidecar means whatever the asset says it means, and pretending
+ * to verify semantics the lane does not own is worse than declaring the
+ * boundary.
+ */
+async function proveJson(absPath, relPath, jsonPath, decl, violations) {
+  let buf;
+  try {
+    buf = await readFile(absPath);
+  } catch (err) {
+    violations.push(v('ASSET_FILE_MISSING', jsonPath, `cannot read "${relPath}": ${err.message}`));
+    return null;
+  }
+  let parsed;
+  try {
+    parsed = JSON.parse(buf.toString('utf-8'));
+  } catch (err) {
+    violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', jsonPath, `"${relPath}" is not valid JSON: ${err.message}`));
+    return null;
+  }
+  if (parsed === null || typeof parsed !== 'object' || Array.isArray(parsed)) {
+    violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', jsonPath, `"${relPath}" must be a JSON object`));
+    return null;
+  }
+  const missing = (decl.required_keys || []).filter((k) => parsed[k] === undefined);
+  if (missing.length > 0) {
+    violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', jsonPath,
+      `"${relPath}" is missing declared required key(s): ${missing.join(', ')}`));
+    return null;
+  }
+  return { buf, meta: { keys: Object.keys(parsed) } };
+}
+
+/**
+ * Prove every referenced file against its declaration. Reads bytes; decodes
+ * pixels only where a proof requires it.
+ *
+ * @param {Object} manifest — shape-valid manifest
+ * @param {string} baseDir — the manifest's directory (untrusted export dir)
+ * @returns {Promise<{violations: Array, resolved: Object}>}
+ *   resolved: {
+ *     baseDir, mesh, atlas,
+ *     textureChannels: Map<id, {relPath, abs, meta?}>,
+ *     renders: Map<id, {render, relPath, abs, meta,
+ *                       silhouette: {relPath, abs, meta},
+ *                       instances: Map<channelId, {relPath, abs, meta}>,
+ *                       lossMask: {relPath, abs, meta}|null,
+ *                       pairs: Map<name, {relPath, abs, meta}>}>
+ *   }
+ */
+export async function proveFiles(manifest, baseDir) {
+  const violations = [];
+  const resolved = {
+    baseDir,
+    mesh: null,
+    atlas: null,
+    toneOperands: null,
+    textureChannels: new Map(),
+    renders: new Map(),
+  };
+  const channelById = new Map((manifest.channels || []).map((c) => [c.id, c]));
+
+  const contain = (relPath, jsonPath) => {
+    const r = containPath(baseDir, relPath, jsonPath);
+    if (r.violation) { violations.push(r.violation); return null; }
+    if (!existsSync(r.abs)) {
+      violations.push(v('ASSET_FILE_MISSING', jsonPath, `"${relPath}" does not exist in the export directory`));
+      return null;
+    }
+    return r.abs;
+  };
+
+  // mesh / atlas: existence (+ atlas PNG parse when it is a .png, so its
+  // dimensions land in the receipt)
+  for (const key of ['mesh', 'atlas']) {
+    const ref = manifest.asset?.[key];
+    if (!ref) continue;
+    const abs = contain(ref.path, `asset.${key}.path`);
+    if (!abs) continue;
+    let meta = null;
+    if (key === 'atlas' && ref.path.toLowerCase().endsWith('.png')) {
+      try {
+        meta = parsePngMeta(await readFile(abs), ref.path);
+      } catch (err) {
+        violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', `asset.${key}.path`, `"${ref.path}": ${err.message}`));
+      }
+    }
+    resolved[key] = { relPath: ref.path, abs, meta };
+  }
+
+  // tone-transform operands (schema 1.2.0): contained, parsed as an object,
+  // then hashed and carried by the ingest. The proof stops at "it is a JSON
+  // object that exists inside the export" — the same declared-weak boundary
+  // as a `json` channel. sdlab reads no operand values and verifies no
+  // arithmetic; it makes the declaration auditable, not true.
+  const ttDecl = manifest.asset?.tone_transform;
+  if (ttDecl?.operands) {
+    const abs = contain(ttDecl.operands, 'asset.tone_transform.operands');
+    if (abs) {
+      const proved = await proveJson(abs, ttDecl.operands, 'asset.tone_transform.operands', {}, violations);
+      if (proved) resolved.toneOperands = { relPath: ttDecl.operands, abs, meta: proved.meta };
+    }
+  }
+
+  // texture-space channels
+  for (const c of manifest.channels || []) {
+    if (c.space !== 'texture') continue;
+    const jsonPath = `channels(${c.id}).path`;
+    const abs = contain(c.path, jsonPath);
+    if (!abs) continue;
+
+    if (c.encoding === 'npy') {
+      const proved = await proveNpy(abs, c.path, jsonPath, c, null, violations);
+      if (!proved) continue;
+      resolved.textureChannels.set(c.id, { relPath: c.path, abs, meta: proved.meta });
+      if (c.categorical) proveCategorical(c, proved, `channels(${c.id})`, violations);
+      continue;
+    }
+
+    if (c.encoding === 'json') {
+      const proved = await proveJson(abs, c.path, jsonPath, c, violations);
+      if (!proved) continue;
+      resolved.textureChannels.set(c.id, { relPath: c.path, abs, meta: proved.meta });
+      continue;
+    }
+
+    const expectType = COLOR_TYPE_BY_ENCODING[c.encoding];
+    const proved = await provePng(abs, c.path, jsonPath, {
+      colorTypes: new Set([expectType]),
+      what: `declared encoding "${c.encoding}"`,
+      describe: `color type ${expectType}`,
+    }, violations);
+    if (!proved) continue;
+    resolved.textureChannels.set(c.id, { relPath: c.path, abs, meta: proved.meta });
+
+    // Categorical proofs on texture channels
+    if (c.categorical) {
+      proveCategorical(c, proved, `channels(${c.id})`, violations);
+    }
+  }
+
+  // renders + silhouettes + instances + loss masks + pairs
+  for (const r of manifest.renders || []) {
+    const rEntry = { render: r, relPath: r.path, abs: null, meta: null, silhouette: null, instances: new Map(), lossMask: null, pairs: new Map() };
+
+    const rAbs = contain(r.path, `renders(${r.id}).path`);
+    if (rAbs) {
+      const proved = await provePng(rAbs, r.path, `renders(${r.id}).path`, {
+        colorTypes: RENDER_COLOR_TYPES,
+        what: 'a trainable render',
+        describe: 'rgb (2) or rgba (6)',
+      }, violations);
+      if (proved) {
+        if (proved.meta.bitDepth !== 8) {
+          violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', `renders(${r.id}).path`, `"${r.path}" is ${proved.meta.bitDepth}-bit; renders must be 8-bit`));
+        } else {
+          rEntry.abs = rAbs;
+          rEntry.meta = proved.meta;
+        }
+      }
+    }
+
+    const sAbs = r.silhouette_mask ? contain(r.silhouette_mask, `renders(${r.id}).silhouette_mask`) : null;
+    if (sAbs) {
+      const proved = await provePng(sAbs, r.silhouette_mask, `renders(${r.id}).silhouette_mask`, {
+        colorTypes: new Set([0]),
+        what: 'a silhouette mask',
+        describe: 'grayscale (0)',
+      }, violations);
+      if (proved) {
+        rEntry.silhouette = { relPath: r.silhouette_mask, abs: sAbs, meta: proved.meta };
+        if (rEntry.meta && (proved.meta.width !== rEntry.meta.width || proved.meta.height !== rEntry.meta.height)) {
+          violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', `renders(${r.id}).silhouette_mask`,
+            `silhouette is ${proved.meta.width}x${proved.meta.height} but the render is ${rEntry.meta.width}x${rEntry.meta.height} — masks are parallel to renders`));
+        }
+      }
+    }
+
+    for (const [cid, cpath] of Object.entries(r.channels || {})) {
+      const decl = channelById.get(cid);
+      if (!decl || decl.space !== 'render') continue; // shape stage already flagged
+      const jsonPath = `renders(${r.id}).channels.${cid}`;
+      const iAbs = contain(cpath, jsonPath);
+      if (!iAbs) continue;
+
+      // npy instances (schema 1.1.0): proven parallel to their own render.
+      // The render's dims are only known if the render itself proved, so an
+      // unproven render skips the parallelism check rather than inventing one.
+      if (decl.encoding === 'npy') {
+        const expectShape = rEntry.meta ? [rEntry.meta.height, rEntry.meta.width] : null;
+        const proved = await proveNpy(iAbs, cpath, jsonPath, decl, expectShape, violations);
+        if (!proved) continue;
+        rEntry.instances.set(cid, { relPath: cpath, abs: iAbs, meta: proved.meta });
+        if (decl.categorical) proveCategorical(decl, proved, jsonPath, violations);
+        continue;
+      }
+
+      // json sidecars (schema 1.1.0): parse + declared keys, nothing deeper.
+      if (decl.encoding === 'json') {
+        const proved = await proveJson(iAbs, cpath, jsonPath, decl, violations);
+        if (!proved) continue;
+        rEntry.instances.set(cid, { relPath: cpath, abs: iAbs, meta: proved.meta });
+        continue;
+      }
+
+      const expectType = COLOR_TYPE_BY_ENCODING[decl.encoding];
+      const proved = await provePng(iAbs, cpath, jsonPath, {
+        colorTypes: new Set([expectType]),
+        what: `channel "${cid}" (declared "${decl.encoding}")`,
+        describe: `color type ${expectType}`,
+      }, violations);
+      if (!proved) continue;
+      if (rEntry.meta && (proved.meta.width !== rEntry.meta.width || proved.meta.height !== rEntry.meta.height)) {
+        violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', jsonPath,
+          `instance is ${proved.meta.width}x${proved.meta.height} but the render is ${rEntry.meta.width}x${rEntry.meta.height}`));
+        continue;
+      }
+      rEntry.instances.set(cid, { relPath: cpath, abs: iAbs, meta: proved.meta });
+      if (decl.categorical) {
+        proveCategorical(decl, proved, jsonPath, violations);
+      }
+    }
+
+    if (r.loss_mask) {
+      const jsonPath = `renders(${r.id}).loss_mask`;
+      const lAbs = contain(r.loss_mask, jsonPath);
+      if (lAbs) {
+        const proved = await provePng(lAbs, r.loss_mask, jsonPath, {
+          colorTypes: new Set([0]),
+          what: 'a loss mask (soft weights)',
+          describe: 'grayscale (0)',
+        }, violations);
+        if (proved) rEntry.lossMask = { relPath: r.loss_mask, abs: lAbs, meta: proved.meta };
+      }
+    }
+
+    for (const [name, ppath] of Object.entries(r.pair || {})) {
+      const jsonPath = `renders(${r.id}).pair.${name}`;
+      const pAbs = contain(ppath, jsonPath);
+      if (!pAbs) continue;
+      const proved = await provePng(pAbs, ppath, jsonPath, {
+        colorTypes: new Set([0, 2, 6]),
+        what: 'a conditioning pair image',
+        describe: 'grayscale, rgb, or rgba',
+      }, violations);
+      if (proved) rEntry.pairs.set(name, { relPath: ppath, abs: pAbs, meta: proved.meta });
+    }
+
+    resolved.renders.set(r.id, rEntry);
+  }
+
+  return { violations, resolved };
+}
+
+/**
+ * Categorical channel proofs.
+ *  - npy: exhaustive value scan — every element must be a declared class
+ *    value. The array analogue of the "nearest" pixel proof: a class map has
+ *    no antialiasing to forgive, so an undeclared value is a real violation.
+ *  - indexed: PLTE ⊆ declared palette — structural, no pixel decode
+ *    (the brand/E09 contract: the PLTE *is* the palette; padded or
+ *    undeclared entries are violations).
+ *  - non-indexed + filter "nearest": exhaustive decode — every
+ *    non-transparent pixel's color must be a declared class color.
+ *  - non-indexed + filter "linear": no proof (classification is an ingest
+ *    measurement with an unclassified share).
+ */
+function proveCategorical(decl, proved, jsonPath, violations) {
+  if (decl.encoding === 'npy') {
+    const declaredValues = new Set(decl.classes.map((c) => c.value));
+    let values;
+    try {
+      values = readNpyValues(proved.buf, proved.meta, jsonPath);
+    } catch (err) {
+      violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', jsonPath, err.message));
+      return;
+    }
+    const shown = [...declaredValues].sort((a, b) => a - b).join(', ');
+    for (let i = 0; i < values.length; i++) {
+      if (!declaredValues.has(values[i])) {
+        violations.push(v('ASSET_PALETTE_PROOF_FAILED', jsonPath,
+          `value ${values[i]} at flat index ${i} is not a declared class value (declared: ${shown}) — a categorical npy channel is proven exhaustively, not sampled`));
+        return; // one offending value names the failure; no need to flood
+      }
+    }
+    return;
+  }
+
+  const declared = new Set(decl.palette.map((c) => c.rgb.join(',')));
+
+  if (decl.encoding === 'indexed') {
+    const plte = proved.meta.palette || [];
+    for (const entry of plte) {
+      if (!declared.has(entry.join(','))) {
+        violations.push(v('ASSET_PALETTE_PROOF_FAILED', jsonPath,
+          `PLTE entry rgb(${entry.join(', ')}) is not in the declared class palette — E09 discipline: PLTE ⊆ declared palette, no padding`));
+      }
+    }
+    return;
+  }
+
+  if (decl.filter === 'nearest') {
+    let img;
+    try {
+      img = decodePng(proved.buf, jsonPath);
+    } catch (err) {
+      violations.push(v('ASSET_ENCODING_MISMATCH', jsonPath, err.message));
+      return;
+    }
+    const n = img.width * img.height;
+    for (let i = 0; i < n; i++) {
+      if (alphaAt(img, i) === 0) continue;
+      const rgb = rgbAt(img, i);
+      if (!declared.has(rgb.join(','))) {
+        violations.push(v('ASSET_PALETTE_PROOF_FAILED', jsonPath,
+          `pixel ${i % img.width},${Math.floor(i / img.width)} is rgb(${rgb.join(', ')}) — not a declared class color; a "nearest"-filtered categorical channel must be exact (this is an exhaustive proof, not a sample)`));
+        return; // one offending color names the failure; no need to flood
+      }
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+// ─── Orchestration ───────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+function throwViolations(manifestPath, violations) {
+  const order = new Map(CLASS_ORDER.map((c, i) => [c, i]));
+  const sorted = [...violations].sort((a, b) => (order.get(a.cls) ?? 99) - (order.get(b.cls) ?? 99));
+  const code = sorted[0].cls;
+  const MAX_LINES = 20;
+  const lines = sorted.slice(0, MAX_LINES).map((x) => `  - [${x.cls}] ${x.path}: ${x.message}`);
+  if (sorted.length > MAX_LINES) lines.push(`  … and ${sorted.length - MAX_LINES} more`);
+  throw inputError(
+    code,
+    `${manifestPath}: ${sorted.length} contract violation(s) — nothing was registered.`,
+    `Fix the manifest/export and re-run.\n${lines.join('\n')}`
+  );
+}
+
+/**
+ * Load + fully validate an asset-source manifest. Throws one structured
+ * error listing every violation; returns the manifest and resolved file map
+ * on success.
+ *
+ * @param {string} manifestPath — absolute path to asset-source.json
+ * @returns {Promise<{manifest: Object, resolved: Object, manifestRaw: Buffer}>}
+ */
+export async function validateAssetSource(manifestPath) {
+  if (!existsSync(manifestPath)) {
+    throw inputError(
+      'ASSET_MANIFEST_NOT_FOUND',
+      `No ${ASSET_MANIFEST_FILENAME} at ${manifestPath}.`,
+      'The export directory must contain the asset\'s manifest. See docs/asset-lane-design.md for the contract.'
+    );
+  }
+  const manifestRaw = await readFile(manifestPath);
+  let manifest;
+  try {
+    manifest = JSON.parse(manifestRaw.toString('utf-8'));
+  } catch (err) {
+    throw inputError('ASSET_MANIFEST_INVALID', `${manifestPath} is not valid JSON: ${err.message}`,
+      'Fix the JSON syntax and re-run.');
+  }
+
+  const shapeViolations = validateManifestShape(manifest);
+  if (shapeViolations.length > 0) {
+    // Refuse before touching any referenced file: a manifest whose SHAPE is
+    // wrong cannot be trusted to name files safely.
+    throwViolations(manifestPath, shapeViolations);
+  }
+
+  const { violations, resolved } = await proveFiles(manifest, dirname(manifestPath));
+  if (violations.length > 0) throwViolations(manifestPath, violations);
+
+  return { manifest, resolved, manifestRaw };
+}
+
+// ─── Derived facing vocabulary ───────────────────────────────────────
+
+const FACING_TOKENS = [
+  'front',                        // 0°
+  'three-quarter front-right',    // 45°
+  'right profile',                // 90°
+  'three-quarter back-right',     // 135°
+  'back',                         // 180°
+  'three-quarter back-left',      // 225°
+  'left profile',                 // 270°
+  'three-quarter front-left',     // 315°
+];
+
+/**
+ * Deterministic facing token from camera yaw/elevation. Yaw 0 = front;
+ * buckets are 45° wide, centered on the eight canonical directions;
+ * |elevation| >= 30° appends an elevation clause. Camera-relative naming —
+ * "right" means the camera orbited toward the subject's right side of frame.
+ *
+ * The manifest may override per-render (`renders[].facing`) when the asset
+ * disagrees; this is the mechanical default. Per facet E01 (and Cheng et
+ * al. 2024, Continuous 3D Words): captions must carry facing — a
+ * front-facing phrase on a rear view makes the text fight the image.
+ */
+export function facingFromCamera(camera) {
+  const yaw = ((Number(camera.yaw_deg) % 360) + 360) % 360;
+  const elevation = Number(camera.elevation_deg ?? 0);
+  const bucket = Math.round(yaw / 45) % 8;
+  let token = FACING_TOKENS[bucket];
+  if (elevation >= 30) token += ', viewed from above';
+  else if (elevation <= -30) token += ', viewed from below';
+  return token;
+}