D054 - Distribution containers are never read

Status: decided Date: 2026-08-19

orbistoun never reads a package or a disc image. It accepts the installed directory tree a guest sees at /app0, and mounts are ordered layers in which a later layer shadows an earlier one.

Why: distribution containers are encrypted and need keys, which the repository never holds (D014). Both formats converge on the same directory tree before a guest runs. A patch or overlay shadows base files, so a single root would emulate a version nobody runs.

Rejected:

• Parsing packages: requires keys.
• A single mount root: loses patch and overlay layering.