qCompute — Resonance Frame Manager

File: qc_ResonanceFrame.md
Layer: RTT‑Inside Compute Harness
Status: Canonical (2026)

A ResonanceFrame is the fundamental structural container of qCompute.

Frames bind:

• environment
• backend
• resonance tier
• drift envelope
• operator list
• timestamps
• lineage

Frames ensure that structural computation remains stable, bounded, and governed.

qCompute computes structure, not amplitudes.

1. Purpose#

The Frame Manager:

• opens frames
• closes frames
• enforces tier monotonicity
• enforces backend consistency
• enforces drift bounds
• enforces environment legality
• segments structural computation
• emits frame metadata for capture
• reconstructs frames during replay

Frames are append‑only and immutable after closure.

2. Frame Identity#

Each frame has:

frame_id: <int>
environment: "sandbox" | "production" | "archive"
backend: "<backend-id>"
tier: "r1" | "r2" | "r3"
drift:
  accumulated: <float>
  max: <float>
operators: [ ... ]
timestamp_open: "<iso8601>"
timestamp_close: "<iso8601>"

All fields are required.

3. When Frames Open#

A new frame opens when:

1. first operator
2. tier escalation (r1 → r2, r2 → r3)
3. tier decrease (measurement)
4. r3 operator
5. meta operator
6. drift overflow
7. environment transition
8. backend change

Router determines the trigger; Frame Manager enforces it.

4. When Frames Close#

A frame closes when:

• a new frame opens
• an environment transition occurs
• session ends
• archive is entered

Closed frames are immutable.

5. Tier Semantics Inside Frames#

Tier monotonicity:

r1 → r2 → r3 (allowed)
r3 → r2 → r1 (forbidden)

If a tier decrease is attempted:

• measurement forces a new frame
• other decreases are illegal

If illegal:

allowed: false
reason: "tier decrease inside frame"

6. Backend Semantics Inside Frames#

Backend must remain consistent within a frame.

If backend changes:

• frame closes
• new frame opens

Backend changes occur due to:

• tier escalation
• r3 operator
• environment transition

7. Drift Semantics Inside Frames#

Drift accumulates monotonically:

drift_total = drift_prev + drift_measured

If drift exceeds environment bound:

• frame closes
• new frame opens
• operator routed into new frame

Drift resets when:

• new frame opens
• measurement occurs
• meta operator occurs
• r3 operator occurs

8. Environment Semantics Inside Frames#

Environment must remain consistent within a frame.

If environment changes:

• frame closes
• new frame opens
• drift resets
• backend legality rechecked

Environment transitions:

• sandbox → production (token required)
• production → archive (token required)
• archive → (forbidden)

9. Operator Interaction#

Operators appended to a frame must satisfy:

• grammar validity
• argument validity
• environment legality
• backend legality
• tier monotonicity
• drift bounds

Operators carry:

• tier
• backend
• drift
• routing reason

10. Capture Metadata#

Each frame produces:

frame:
  frame_id: <int>
  environment: "<env>"
  backend: "<backend-id>"
  tier: "<tier>"
  drift:
    accumulated: <float>
    max: <float>
  operators: [op_ids...]
  timestamp_open: "<iso8601>"
  timestamp_close: "<iso8601>"

All fields are required.

11. Replay Reconstruction#

Replay reconstructs frames by:

1. reading operator stream
2. applying routing logic
3. applying drift logic
4. applying tier monotonicity
5. applying backend legality
6. applying environment transitions
7. opening/closing frames deterministically

Replay must confirm:

• frame boundaries match routing + drift logic
• backend consistency
• tier monotonicity
• drift bounds
• environment legality
• hash chain integrity

Replay is deterministic and read‑only.

12. Invariants#

1. frames are append‑only
2. frames are immutable after closure
3. tier must not decrease inside a frame
4. backend must remain consistent inside a frame
5. drift must not exceed bound
6. r3 always opens a new frame
7. measurement always opens a new frame
8. meta always opens a new frame
9. environment transitions always open a new frame
10. archive forbids all operators

13. Summary#

ResonanceFrames provide:

• structural segmentation
• stability envelopes
• deterministic boundaries
• drift‑bounded execution
• environment‑aware computation
• replay‑verifiable correctness

Frames are the structural heartbeat of qCompute.