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Manifest schema

The manifest is Kern's portable wire contract. The current format is schema version 4.

Canonical schema

The JSON Schema is generated from the Rust manifest types and checked into the repository:

Use it for editor completion and generic structural checks. Run kern verify for the cross-field invariants and serving protocol validation implemented by Kern.

Top-level responsibilities

SectionDeclares
constantsReadable numeric dimensions expanded before typed validation
varsBounded values supplied for a particular call
buffersTyped weights, inputs, outputs, scratch, and state
modulesDigest-pinned sources of compiled device code
opsTyped launch interfaces and implementations
programsOrdered calls and their serving shape

The schema is exhaustive. Unknown variants or fields are errors, and a schema version is interpreted only by a runtime that implements that version.

Models ship as verified GPU programs.