Skip to content

RFC-038: Domain of Concern Registry — AIGP Dialects as First-Class Artifacts — 13. Dialect Lifecycle

AIGP SpecificationRFC-038: Domain of Concern Registry — AIGP Dialects as First-Class Artifacts › 13. Dialect Lifecycle

← 12. Distribution Model · Section index · 14. Compatibility and Migration →

13. Dialect Lifecycle

13.1 States

A dialect version progresses through a defined lifecycle:

DRAFT → REVIEW → PUBLISHED → DEPRECATED → ARCHIVED
State Meaning Subscriber Impact
DRAFT In development; not for production use Not resolvable by production subscriptions
REVIEW Submitted for peer review; structurally complete Not resolvable by production subscriptions
PUBLISHED Active, stable, subscribable Full governance contract applies
DEPRECATED Superseded; still resolvable but warnings issued Subscribers receive deprecation notice
ARCHIVED Historical record only; not resolvable Subscribers MUST have migrated

13.2 Lifecycle Transitions

Transition Trigger Authority
DRAFT → REVIEW Publisher submits for review Publisher
REVIEW → PUBLISHED Review passes Registry operator
REVIEW → DRAFT Review fails (feedback provided) Registry operator
PUBLISHED → DEPRECATED Successor published or flaw discovered Publisher or registry operator
DEPRECATED → ARCHIVED Grace period expires (minimum 12 months) Registry operator

13.3 Grace Periods

When a dialect version is deprecated:

  • Subscribers have a minimum 12-month grace period before archival
  • During grace, the version remains resolvable with a deprecation warning
  • The deprecation notice MUST include: successor version, migration guidance, and rationale
  • Production governance SHOULD warn (not block) on deprecated subscriptions during grace
  • After archival, resolution fails — applications must have migrated

13.4 Emergency Deprecation

In cases where a published dialect contains a safety-critical flaw (e.g., a variable type error that permits dangerous aggregation, or a missing hard stop that should have been mandatory), the registry operator MAY issue an emergency deprecation with a shortened grace period (minimum 30 days) and a security advisory.

Emergency deprecation:

  • Triggers immediate push notification to all subscribers
  • Elevates governance warnings to ENFORCE-level blocks after the shortened grace period
  • Requires a published successor or mitigation guidance within the advisory


← 12. Distribution Model · Section index · 14. Compatibility and Migration →