Architecture

System architecture

DVM-MPC executes custody operations — key lifecycle, signing, publication, and recovery — through five controlled stages: policy admission, peer choreography, local secret-kernel execution, publication gating, and signed evidence.

Each sensitive transition maps to its control boundary, state, and artifact. The DVM execution layer enforces bounded, replayable operations through the interpreter's step contract; the DVM governance layer maintains authority continuity through a hash-linked, quorum-certified event log.

The same architecture runs on-prem, as a hosted service, or with a hybrid split; the deployment model is a configuration choice.

custody boundary mapExternal orchestration and the local secret boundary
Execution plane · external orchestration
Client / Product APITyped acts in, receipts out — idempotency keys, status stream, recovery polling.
Admission PlaneAdmissionDecision before any secret step — approvals, SoD, limits, epoch + display binding.
DVM Execution PlaneSans-I/O score over verified facts and call results. Deterministic, replayable, no secret access.
Transport / Validated IngressPeer signatures, sender + session binding, slot/phase and replay checks before facts enter state.
Local Secret KernelSecret Kernel · HSM / isolated node / mobile vaultShares, nonces, presign, permit_handle and one-time artifacts. A step_permit authorizes each transition — nothing leaves the boundary in the clear.
Publication gate

Separates Executed from Published: a computed signature waits at the gate until release policy or approval allows the public effect.

Evidence plane · external rail

Hash-linked AdmissionReceipt → PermitReceipt → PublicationReceipt, SIEM export, and rail continuation.

layer stackClient APIs above explicit runtime control layers
Client API
Typed acts, receipts, idempotency, recovery handles.
Admission Plane
Approvals, display binding, limits, policy roots.
DVM Execution
Sans-I/O interpreter over facts and call results.
Protocol Plane
Envelope, session, lane, phase, slot, and roster checks.
Transport
Validated ingress, peer delivery, equivocation evidence.
Local Secret Kernel
Shares, permits, nonces, opaque local handles.
Evidence Plane
Reason codes, event hashes, evidence export.
network admissionBinding checks between peer traffic and DVM state
CheckValidatesEmitsFailure
EnvelopeBindingexecution / lane / sitebinding_hashBINDING_MISMATCH
NetFramepayload root / recipientSignedEnvelopeWRONG_RECIPIENT
SessionBindingroster / originadmitted frameSESSION_MISMATCH
Payloaddecrypt / materializetyped graph factsPAYLOAD_REJECTED
CommitInbox / SigmaDVM factREPLAY_OR_CONFLICT
L2 / L1 / L0 bytecodeProduct workflows lower to L1 semantics and L0 bytecode
L2 surface workflowsignDigestpresign_batch[AFF3]rotate_keypublish_sig
L1 semantic scoreshare_randshare_mulshare_ec_mulopen_tofinalize_sig
L0 Bytecode profileDKLS23 share_mulFROST partial_sigCGGMP24 pail_affine_evalconsume_or_poison
operation walkthroughOne signing operation, step by step.
01Client intent

typed act, key id, display hash, idempotency key

CanonicalIntent
02Policy admission

policy roots, approvals, limits, epoch, roster

AdmissionDecision
03DVM execution

self_peer, score, facts, CallResult values

TraceRoot
04Secret step

CallContext, permit_handle, step_permit

PermitEvent
05Peer frontier

state-derived egress and validation-first ingress

PendingRemote
06Local result

controlled local_private result reference

ResultHandle
07PublishGate

scope, result_ref, policy context

PublicationReceipt
08Evidence package

events, receipts, reason codes, trace roots

EvidenceBundle