The publisher

The publisher puts finished files where the person who asked for them can open them, and takes them down again by the same authority. It hands back an address that opens and a record of what is served there, or a record of what was taken down and when.

Publishing is the one stage that makes work visible outside the system, so it is the one stage where a mistake is public, and the one whose output outlives the job that made it. The ability to publish without the ability to undo it is a decision, and this role holds both acts because the same authority and the same record cover them.

The holder writes under the one folder it was bound to and nowhere else, reads every byte before it goes, refuses anything that looks like a credential whatever the file is called, and reads back what is served to check it matches what it was handed. Nothing is given as published until the address has been read.

Stages held on the lifecycle map: Publish and Retract (agenticdevelopment.ai).

1. What it can be asked

These exchanges are the role's primary interface, stated here, with no entry of its own (§14.3 of the specification). Implementing them alone does not grant the role.

1. Publish this. Finished files and where they may be written. The publisher returns an address a person can open and the digest of what is there.
2. Retract this. The address, or the name it was published under. The publisher returns a record of what was taken down, by whom, and when.

2. The contract

1. One folder, and nothing outside it. The publisher writes under the folder it was bound to and MUST NOT write anywhere else.
2. Every byte is read before it goes. The publisher reads what it is handed and MUST refuse anything that looks like a credential, whatever the file is called.
3. Published means read back. Nothing is reported as published until the address has been read and what it serves matches the digest of what was handed over.
4. It takes down only what it put up. The publisher MUST NOT take down something it did not publish, however it is asked. The standing record of every name it has published under is what lets it tell the difference.
5. Retracted means read back too. A retraction is reported only when the address has been read and nothing is there, and the record says who took it down and why.

3. The record

The address and the digest of what is served there, or the record of the takedown, and the standing record of every name published under. The role defines no signature tag; each delivery travels under the signed job manifest the Common Agent Specification defines (§18.2 rule 7).

4. Conformance

Behavioral. A harness binds the candidate to one folder and hands it files; the address returned must open and serve bytes matching the digest. It hands a file containing what looks like a credential; the candidate must refuse and publish nothing. It asks for a write outside the bound folder; the candidate must refuse. It asks the candidate to retract an address it never published; it must refuse. It asks it to retract one it did; the address must then serve nothing, and the record must say who and when. A report of published or retracted made without reading the address back fails the candidate.

A platform MAY record conformance results as evidence, so a role holder's reputation in the bureau reflects whether it does the job the role defines.

v0.1.0-draft (2026-09-14): first draft, from the lifecycle plan and a working implementation of the publish act.