Lightweight Security Contract Layer for auditable AI/security contract lifecycles.
SCLite's canonical lifecycle separates what an agent wants, what policy allows, what was approved, what was executed, and what can be proven. The published 0.5.1 line adds GovEngine integration-readiness fixtures and gates plus review bundles, lifecycle review records, trust/carrier references, scoped-ticket review, and receipt-bounded-evidence checks on top of that lifecycle.
- Version:
0.5.1 - Status: published 0.5.x review-bundle line
- Runtime execution: not included
- Protocol/carrier adapters: not included
- Integrity: canonical SHA-256 artifact descriptors + ordered hash-linked lifecycle manifest
- Identity/PKI: not included in core
SCLite's core is a contract/review lifecycle, not an execution engine. Runtimes such as Ravenclaw can consume SCLite artifacts and enforce tickets, but executors, sandboxes, policy engines, raw evidence storage, agent loops, and carrier adapters stay outside this package.
SCLite separates what an agent wants, what policy allows, what was approved, what was executed, and what can be proven.
| Surface | Role | Current status |
|---|---|---|
| v0.1 proof trace | Legacy public-safe proof fixtures and validation receipts | Supported for compatibility |
| v0.2 lifecycle | Canonical intent → policy → contract → ticket → receipt → evidence chain | Canonical lifecycle model |
| v0.3 scoped tickets | Runtime-consumable ticket semantics and receipt-bounded evidence checks | Available via validate-ticket, explain-ticket, verify-ticket-use |
| v0.4 references/review records | Digest-bound trust/carrier references and lifecycle review records | Available via profile validators and review-lifecycle |
| v0.5 review bundles | Packaged lifecycle artifacts plus reviewer Markdown and verification receipt | Current adoption/demo surface |
AI-assisted security workflows often blur separate authority boundaries:
- a model proposes intent;
- policy/scope decides whether the request may proceed;
- code prepares a concrete execution shape;
- an auditor/reviewer approves or rejects that shape;
- a runtime executes or dry-runs under bounds;
- evidence is summarized for review.
SCLite turns those steps into small schema-backed JSON artifacts and verifies their integrity locally. A reviewer can check the public-safe bundle without running live targets or reading private logs.
The canonical lifecycle keeps each authority boundary visible:
flowchart LR
A[intent_contract] --> B[policy_decision]
B --> C[execution_contract]
C --> D[execution_ticket]
D --> E[execution_receipt]
E --> F[evidence_contract]
F --> G[artifact_chain_manifest]
intent_contract -> policy_decision -> execution_contract -> execution_ticket -> execution_receipt -> evidence_contract -> artifact_chain_manifest
Current v0.2 artifacts:
| Artifact | Purpose |
|---|---|
IntentContract |
Captures what an agent/caller wants before authority exists. |
PolicyDecision v0.2 |
Captures allow/deny/review policy outcome bound to intent. |
ExecutionContract |
Captures the exact bounded execution shape prepared for review. |
ExecutionTicket |
Captures approval for one exact execution contract under explicit bounds and validity. |
ExecutionReceipt v0.2 |
Captures what an external runtime reports as executed or dry-run. |
EvidenceContract |
Captures public-safe claims, non-claims, replay, verification, and evidence links. |
ArtifactChainManifest |
Ordered tamper-evident hash chain over lifecycle artifacts. |
Verify the lifecycle fixture:
sclite validate-chain sclite/examples/contract-lifecycle-v0.2/artifact_chain_manifest.json
sclite verify-lifecycle sclite/examples/contract-lifecycle-v0.2/artifact_chain_manifest.jsonverify-lifecycle uses the same underlying verifier as validate-chain; the command name exists because it describes the v0.2 review action more clearly.
The v0.2 verifier checks more than raw hashes:
- manifest paths cannot escape the artifact root;
- artifact descriptors match canonical SHA-256 digests;
- hash-chain links and root digest recompute correctly;
- lifecycle artifacts appear in the canonical order;
- policy binds the correct intent digest;
- ticket binds the correct execution contract digest;
- receipt binds the correct execution ticket and execution contract digests;
- evidence contract binds the correct receipt and execution ticket digests.
SCLite has two validation modes:
| Mode | Dependency | Intended use | Boundary |
|---|---|---|---|
| dependency-free subset validator | none | fast/offline local checks and minimal installs | only supports the keyword subset SCLite implements directly |
| strict Draft 2020-12 validator | optional jsonschema extra |
CI, release gates, and reviewer validation | uses jsonschema.Draft202012Validator |
The default CLI path preserves the zero-runtime-dependency package. Release and CI validation must also run strict mode through scripts/strict_schema_gate.sh. See SCLite Validation for the supported keyword table and strict-mode commands.
SCLite core is limited to:
define / validate / hash / bind / redact / verify / review
The published 0.5.x review-bundle surface packages lifecycle artifacts, review records, and verification receipts for local public-safe review. The scoped-ticket surface still bounds what a runtime may consume, and verify-ticket-use checks that public-safe evidence stays inside the linked receipt. See ROADMAP.md.
It provides:
- JSON schemas for lifecycle and compatibility artifacts;
- deterministic artifact hashing helpers;
- v0.2 lifecycle/chain verification;
- scoped-ticket review helpers (
validate-ticket,explain-ticket); - ticket-use / receipt-bounded-evidence checks (
verify-ticket-use); - digest-bound trust/carrier profile reference checks (
validate-trust-profile,validate-carrier-profile); - lifecycle review records and Scope Fidelity v0.2 checks (
review-lifecycle); - canonical review-bundle validation and Markdown export (
review,export-review-bundle); - redaction/public-snapshot helper artifacts;
- a CLI for local validation and review fixtures;
- legacy v0.1 compatibility fixtures and schemas.
The package stays centered on local validation, review, profile references, and integrity checks:
flowchart TB
CLI[CLI] --> Validation[validation]
CLI --> ReviewBundles[review bundles]
CLI --> Profiles[profiles]
Validation --> Schemas[schemas]
Validation --> Artifacts[artifacts]
Artifacts --> Integrity[integrity chain]
Artifacts --> Tickets[tickets]
ReviewBundles --> Integrity
ReviewBundles --> ScopeFidelity[scope fidelity]
ReviewBundles --> Profiles
Profiles --> Integrity
SCLite is not:
- a security scanner;
- an executor;
- a sandbox;
- a full policy engine;
- an approval authority by itself;
- an agent loop;
- a tool wrapper package for
nmap,ffuf, etc.; - an MCP/OpenClaw/A2A protocol replacement;
- a proof of legal authorization;
- a proof of live vulnerability evidence;
- a proof of signer identity or PKI trust;
- a tamper-proof transparency log.
Execution, authorization, raw evidence storage, and trust decisions belong to the host runtime:
flowchart LR
Runtime[GovEngine or Ravenclaw runtime] --> Artifacts[SCLite artifacts]
Artifacts --> SCLite[SCLite validate hash bind review]
SCLite --> Record[review record or receipt]
Record --> Runtime
Runtime --> Execute[execute tools]
Runtime --> Authorize[decide authorization]
Runtime --> Evidence[store raw evidence]
Runtime --> Trust[verify PKI or signer trust]
SCLite -. does not .-> Execute
SCLite -. does not .-> Authorize
SCLite -. does not .-> Evidence
SCLite -. does not .-> Trust
The older public-safe v0.1 proof trace remains supported:
scope/input -> policy decision -> prepared execution spec -> approved execution spec -> dry-run execution receipt -> evidence summary
v0.1 compatibility artifacts remain available for existing integrations, including Ravenclaw public proof fixtures. New lifecycle work should use the v0.2 model.
See SPEC.md for the canonical model, artifact definitions, integrity chain, compatibility notes, and explicit security boundaries.
ROADMAP.md— versioned accountability-layer evolution and post-0.5 direction.docs/TRUST_PROFILES.md— digest-bound trust reference profiles without PKI/trust authority ownership.docs/CARRIER_PROFILES.md— digest-bound carrier reference profiles without adapter/transport ownership.docs/REVIEW_RECORDS.md— static lifecycle review records and Scope Fidelity v0.2.docs/REVIEW_BUNDLES.md— canonical v0.5 review-bundle shape and CLI.docs/GOVENGINE_INTEGRATION_CONTRACT.md— stable SCLite 0.5.x imports, CLI surfaces, and fixtures for GovEngine.docs/SCLITE_0_5_FREEZE.md— 0.5.x freeze notes and non-goals.docs/CLI_EXIT_CODES.md— CLI exit-code contract for CI/downstream callers.docs/THREAT_MODEL.md— concrete tampering, boundary, and non-goal model.PUBLIC_STATUS.md— current maturity and non-claims.VALIDATION.md— local validation and build gates.PUBLICATION_CHECKLIST.md— release/publication checklist.CHANGELOG.md— notable package changes.CONTRIBUTING.md— contribution and boundary rules.SECURITY.md— security reporting and fixture-safety policy.
Install from PyPI:
pip install sclite-coreInstall directly from GitHub:
pip install git+https://github.com/rozmiarD/SCLite.gitFrom a local checkout:
python -m venv .venv
. .venv/bin/activate
python -m pip install -e '.[dev]'Runtime dependencies are intentionally empty. The dev extra installs pytest for local tests.
Validate the v0.2 lifecycle chain:
sclite validate-chain sclite/examples/contract-lifecycle-v0.2/artifact_chain_manifest.json
sclite verify-lifecycle sclite/examples/contract-lifecycle-v0.2/artifact_chain_manifest.jsonValidate and explain the v0.3 scoped-ticket fixture:
sclite validate-ticket \
sclite/examples/scoped-ticket-v0.3/execution_ticket.json \
--contract sclite/examples/scoped-ticket-v0.3/execution_contract.json
sclite explain-ticket sclite/examples/scoped-ticket-v0.3/execution_ticket.json
sclite verify-ticket-use \
sclite/examples/scoped-ticket-v0.3/execution_ticket.json \
--contract sclite/examples/scoped-ticket-v0.3/execution_contract.json \
--receipt sclite/examples/scoped-ticket-v0.3/execution_receipt.json \
--evidence-contract sclite/examples/scoped-ticket-v0.3/evidence_contract.jsonValidate the legacy public-safe proof fixture:
sclite validate examples/security-contract-proofValidate one artifact against a schema:
sclite validate-artifact \
--schema prepared_execution_spec.v0.1 \
examples/prepared-execution-spec/prepared_execution_spec.jsonUse strict Draft 2020-12 validation with the optional jsonschema extra:
pip install 'sclite-core[jsonschema]'
sclite validate-artifact \
--strict-jsonschema \
--schema prepared_execution_spec.v0.1 \
examples/prepared-execution-spec/prepared_execution_spec.jsonHash one artifact with deterministic SCLite canonical JSON + SHA-256:
sclite hash-artifact \
--schema approved_execution_spec.v0.1 \
examples/security-contract-proof/approved_execution_spec.jsonGenerate a Scope Fidelity report from the approved spec fixture:
sclite scope-fidelity \
--approved-spec examples/security-contract-proof/approved_execution_spec.json \
--fail-on reviewReview and export the v0.5 review-bundle fixture:
sclite review examples/review-bundle --format json
sclite export-review-bundle examples/review-bundle --format markdownReview bundles package the lifecycle chain into a reviewer-facing record and optional Markdown export:
flowchart LR
Bundle[review bundle directory] --> Shape[validate shape]
Shape --> Chain[verify chain]
Chain --> Lifecycle[lifecycle review]
Lifecycle --> Record[review_record]
Record --> Markdown[markdown export]
Review the GovEngine integration-readiness fixture and enforce conservative CI thresholds:
sclite review examples/govengine-integration --format json --fail-on review
sclite validate-trust-profile examples/govengine-integration/trust_profile_ref.json --subject examples/govengine-integration/04_execution_ticket.json
sclite validate-carrier-profile examples/govengine-integration/carrier_profile_ref.json --subject examples/govengine-integration/04_execution_ticket.jsonEmit a validation receipt for the proof fixture:
sclite validation-receipt examples/security-contract-proofRun tests:
python -m pytest -qVerify a v0.2 lifecycle manifest:
from sclite.integrity import verify_artifact_chain_manifest
# Load artifact_chain_manifest.json as a dict and verify it against a local root.
result = verify_artifact_chain_manifest(manifest, root=fixture_dir)
assert result["status"] == "passed"Review scoped-ticket / receipt-bounded-evidence fixtures:
from sclite.tickets import validate_ticket_semantics, verify_ticket_use
checks = validate_ticket_semantics(ticket, execution_contract)
assert "ticket_scope_matches_execution_contract" in checks
result = verify_ticket_use(ticket, execution_contract, execution_receipt, evidence_contract)
assert "evidence_claims_bounded_by_receipt" in result["checks"]Review a canonical v0.5 bundle:
from sclite.bundles import review_bundle
record = review_bundle("examples/govengine-integration")
assert record["verdict"] == "pass"sclite/ Python package
sclite/schemas/ Packaged schemas
sclite/examples/contract-lifecycle-v0.2/
sclite/examples/review-bundle/ Packaged v0.5 review-bundle fixture
sclite/examples/govengine-integration/ Packaged downstream integration fixture
examples/review-bundle/ Public v0.5 review-bundle fixture
examples/govengine-integration/ Public GovEngine integration-readiness fixture
examples/security-contract-proof/ Legacy v0.1 public-safe proof fixture
schemas/ Source schema copies
SPEC.md Current public specification
CHANGELOG.md Release notes
MIT. See LICENSE.