---
id: capability.infotech.config-surface-atlas
name: Configuration Surface Atlas
summary: Read-first, cross-kind map and evidence layer for configuration surfaces — what configures a system, who owns it, its scope, and where the source of truth lives.
owner: config-atlas
status: draft
domain: infotech
tags:
  - configuration
  - registry
  - control-plane
  - effective-config
  - evidence

maturity:
  discovery:
    current: D5
    target: D6
    confidence: medium
    rationale: >
      Intent, scope, layering model, competitive landscape, and a control-plane
      research digest are documented (INTENT, SCOPE, research/, wiki/, PRD,
      ArchitectureBlueprint). Boundaries vs sister repos are explicit.
  availability:
    current: A0
    target: A2
    confidence: medium
    rationale: >
      Markdown/YAML registry with a JSON Schema for entries; no runtime resolver
      or API (intentionally — resolution is delegated). Consumed informationally
      and by agents; a source-module validator exists under tools/.

external_evidence:
  completeness:
    level: C2
    confidence: low
    basis: scope_vs_intent_and_consumer_expectations
    satisfied_expectations:
      - configuration-surface entry schema (schemas/surface-entry.schema.json)
      - scope/precedence/merge model (docs/configuration-surface-schema.md)
      - canon mapping to InfoTechCanon (docs/canon-mapping.md)
      - seed configuration surfaces (registry/surfaces/)
    broken_expectations: []
    out_of_scope_expectations:
      - runtime effective-value resolution
      - configuration delivery or control execution
      - secret value storage
  reliability:
    level: R2
    confidence: low
    basis: consumer_quality_signals
    known_reliability_risks:
      - schema and surface seed are early; coverage is partial
      - ownership resolution to domain-tree not yet wired

discovery:
  intent: >
    Make the distributed configuration surface of the ecosystem discoverable,
    explainable, and governable — map the territory before controlling it.
  includes:
    - configuration-surface registry and entry schema
    - scope/layer ordering and explicit merge semantics
    - cross-repo relationship and effective-config path modelling
    - canon alignment and sister-repo boundary documentation
  excludes:
    - runtime resolver, delivery, or control plane
    - secret values or live configuration values
    - feature-availability runtime control (feature-control owns it)
  assumptions:
    - downstream repos remain authoritative for their own config
    - reuse-surface federation and the State Hub graph are available
  use_cases: []
  research_memos:
    - research/configuration-control-plane.md
    - docs/configuration-surface-schema.md

availability:
  current_level: A0
  target_level: A2
  current_artifacts:
    - registry/surfaces/
    - schemas/surface-entry.schema.json
    - docs/configuration-surface-schema.md
    - docs/canon-mapping.md
    - tools/validate_registry.py
  consumption_modes:
    - informational
    - source module

relations:
  depends_on:
    - capability.statehub.workstream-coordinate
  supports: []
  related_to:
    - capability.registry.register

evidence:
  documentation:
    - INTENT.md
    - SCOPE.md
    - specs/ProductRequirementsDocument.md
    - specs/ArchitectureBlueprint.md
    - docs/ecosystem-boundaries.md
  tests:
    - tools/validate_registry.py

consumer_guidance:
  recommended_for:
    - discovering what configures a system and who owns it
    - reasoning about defaults, precedence, and cross-repo config relationships
  not_recommended_for:
    - storing or resolving live configuration values
    - secret management or feature-flag runtime control
  known_limitations:
    - early-stage schema and partial surface coverage
    - effective-value resolution is out of scope by design
---

# Configuration Surface Atlas

config-atlas indexes **configuration surfaces** — bounded, named places where
configuration is defined, read, or overridden — as source-linked registry entries
with ownership, kind, scope, and evidence. It is the read-first map and evidence
layer of a configuration control plane; it does not resolve, deliver, or control
configuration (see `SCOPE.md`, `docs/ecosystem-boundaries.md`).

See `docs/configuration-surface-schema.md` for the entry model and
`docs/canon-mapping.md` for InfoTechCanon alignment.