docs(prd): finalize complete release flow

docs/ci.md

@@ -45,6 +45,23 @@ report; macOS reports advisory coverage in its own job. The macOS infra
 container is a singleton, so its job uses a concurrency group and always tears
 the service down.
 
+## Artifact publication and promotion
+
+[`publish-artifacts.yml`](../.gitea/workflows/publish-artifacts.yml) is the
+manual deployment-test boundary. Dispatch it with any branch, tag, or commit;
+it resolves that input once, publishes the orchestrator, gateway, Claude,
+Codex, Pi, and Firecracker artifacts, then publishes only the wheel verified
+against those identities. Install the reported commit with
+`BOT_BOTTLE_REF=<sha> sh install.sh`; the installer warns that snapshots may
+not have completed release qualification.
+
+[`release.yml`](../.gitea/workflows/release.yml) handles promotion tags.
+`vX.Y.Z-rc.N` must be reachable from `staging`; `vX.Y.Z` must be reachable
+from `production`. It runs the complete pre-release workflow, ensures that the
+same commit bundle is published, verifies a clean install, creates the
+qualified release pointer, and advances the matching channel. Promotion
+reuses immutable bundle bytes and never rebuilds them.
+
 ## Scheduled canary
 
 [`.gitea/workflows/canaries.yml`](../.gitea/workflows/canaries.yml) runs weekly

docs/prds/0083-packaged-infra-artifacts.md

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 # PRD 0083: Packaged infrastructure artifacts
 
-- **Status:** Draft
+- **Status:** Active
 - **Author:** Codex
 - **Created:** 2026-07-27
 - **Issue:** #536
@@ -167,7 +167,8 @@ immutable external bundle index under that SHA. The index contains:
 - Claude, Codex, and Pi agent OCI digest references;
 - Firecracker package versions and compressed-file SHA-256 values;
 - producing workflow/run identity and publication timestamp; and
-- qualification records, if any, naming the test workflow and release tag.
+- producing workflow provenance. Qualification is recorded separately in an
+  immutable tag pointer so the commit bundle itself never changes.
 
 The embedded wheel manifest contains the runtime subset of the same identities.
 Publication fails if the embedded manifest and external index differ.
@@ -234,7 +235,7 @@ The release workflow is triggered by an eligible staging or production tag:
    then if absent; otherwise verify every existing identity and checksum.
 4. Install using the published installer and bundle index on clean supported
    hosts, and run the post-install smoke test against the acquired artifacts.
-5. Attach a qualification record to the bundle, create the Gitea release, and
+5. Publish an immutable qualified tag pointer, create the Gitea release, and
    advance the matching channel pointer.
 
 No release artifact or channel update occurs before qualification succeeds.
@@ -256,9 +257,9 @@ and publish them first, then install the reported SHA.
 
 An exact-commit install prints a prominent warning that the snapshot may not
 have passed release qualification, even if the same SHA is later associated
-with a tag. A tag or channel install suppresses that warning only when the
-external index contains a successful qualification record for that tag and
-the tag selects the same bundle SHA.
+with a tag. A tag or channel install suppresses that warning only when its
+validated pointer is marked qualified and selects the same immutable bundle
+SHA.
 
 The installer downloads the wheel named by the external index, verifies its
 SHA-256 before invoking pipx or pip, and reports the selected channel/tag,
@@ -361,9 +362,10 @@ Firecracker, and Apple Container.
 
 Create and protect `staging` and `production`, then promote one commit from
 `main` through both branches. Publish its commit bundle, qualify an RC tag,
-perform clean installs through the staging channel, promote the same SHA,
-qualify a stable tag, and only then make the production channel the installer's
-default. The stable promotion must demonstrate that every production artifact
+perform clean installs through the staging channel, promote the same SHA, and
+qualify a stable tag. Until that first stable qualification exists, the
+installer's production default fails closed because there is no production
+pointer. The stable promotion must demonstrate that every production artifact
 identity matches the staging-qualified bundle.
 
 Existing source checkouts use explicit local mode. Existing mutable local