# research/

Deep-research notes backing **ConfigAtlas** — the configuration control plane for
discovering, mapping, explaining, and governing the living configuration surface
of fast-moving companies.

This directory is the *evidence layer* for the product thesis. It is not part of
the configuration surface registry (`registry/`); it is the reasoning and sourcing
behind the registry's design choices.

## Contents

| File | What it is |
|------|------------|
| [`configuration-control-plane.md`](configuration-control-plane.md) | Main digest: what the configuration control plane is, why it matters, the layering and resolution model, adjacent topics, and where ConfigAtlas fits. |
| [`sources.md`](sources.md) | Annotated bibliography — every cited source with a one-line note on why it matters. |

## Related repo material

- [`../wiki/ConfigLayering.md`](../wiki/ConfigLayering.md) — the layering primer (scope model, precedence, merge rules, mutability classes).
- [`../wiki/CompetitiveLandscape.md`](../wiki/CompetitiveLandscape.md) — adjacent tool families and white space.
- [`../wiki/ProductVision.md`](../wiki/ProductVision.md) / [`../wiki/BrandFrame.md`](../wiki/BrandFrame.md) — product framing.

## Method

Synthesized 2026-06-26 from the repo's own wiki material plus web research across
vendor docs, primary-source engineering writing (Brian Grant / KRM, InfoQ, CUE),
and 2024–2026 outage retrospectives. Sources captured in `sources.md`; claims tied
to live behavior of tools are dated because this category is moving fast.
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