D018 - A save transfer decides before it moves anything

Status: decided Date: 2026-09-26

Before a save goes to a target, origin decides whether it belongs to that target's account: from the save's own ACCOUNT_ID, then from a record written when this tool made the copy, and otherwise Unknown. A mismatch or Unknown is a refusal naming both accounts; copy anyway is offered and never the default.

Why: a copy to the wrong account completes without error and fails later, when the target refuses the save. Not every save carries a parameter file, and a save with no provenance is the one most likely to have come from elsewhere.

Rejected:

• The save's parameter file alone: many saves have none.
• Treating Unknown as a plain copy: puts the failure where it does most damage.
• Refusing without an override: the operator may know something this does not.