feat: wrap template commands with envelope, update docs (Phase 4)

Fixes #72

.gitignore

@@ -2,3 +2,4 @@ node_modules/
 dist/
 *.d.ts.map
 *.tsbuildinfo
+.worktrees/

.workflows/e2e-check.yaml

@@ -0,0 +1,413 @@
+name: "e2e-check"
+description: "Docker-isolated E2E testing of json-cas CLI. Preparer builds from scratch, tester runs scenarios, reporter files bugs."
+
+roles:
+  preparer:
+    description: "Spins up Docker container, copies repo, installs, builds, runs unit tests"
+    goal: "You set up a clean Docker environment for E2E testing. Your job is to start a container, install deps, build, lint, run unit tests, and initialize a CAS store. Report any setup failures as bugs."
+    capabilities:
+      - docker
+    procedure: |
+      1. Start a detached container:
+         ```bash
+         docker run -d --name json-cas-e2e \
+           -v "<repoPath>:/src:ro" \
+           -w /workspace \
+           oven/bun:latest \
+           sleep 3600
+         ```
+
+      2. Copy repo and install:
+         ```bash
+         docker exec json-cas-e2e bash -c 'cp -r /src/. /workspace/ && cd /workspace && bun install'
+         ```
+         ✅ exit code 0, no missing peer deps
+
+      3. Build:
+         ```bash
+         docker exec json-cas-e2e bash -c 'cd /workspace && bun run build'
+         ```
+         ✅ exit code 0, no type errors
+
+      4. Lint:
+         ```bash
+         docker exec json-cas-e2e bash -c 'cd /workspace && bun run check'
+         ```
+         ✅ exit code 0
+
+      5. Unit tests:
+         ```bash
+         docker exec json-cas-e2e bash -c 'cd /workspace && bun test'
+         ```
+         ✅ all pass (ignore dist/ false positives)
+
+      6. Init CAS store:
+         ```bash
+         docker exec json-cas-e2e bash -c 'mkdir -p /tmp/cas-test && cd /workspace && bun packages/cli-json-cas/src/index.ts --store /tmp/cas-test init && bun packages/cli-json-cas/src/index.ts --store /tmp/cas-test bootstrap'
+         ```
+
+      **Any failure here is a high-severity bug** — it means a clean environment can't build/run the project.
+
+      Set $status=ready if all steps pass. Set $status=setup_failed with failures list if anything breaks.
+
+    output: "Setup result summary."
+    frontmatter:
+      oneOf:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "ready" }
+            containerName: { type: string }
+            storePath: { type: string }
+            repoPath: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, containerName, storePath, repoPath]
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "setup_failed" }
+            failures:
+              type: array
+              items:
+                type: object
+                properties:
+                  title: { type: string }
+                  command: { type: string }
+                  expected: { type: string }
+                  actual: { type: string }
+                  severity: { type: string }
+                  phase: { type: string }
+                required: [title, command, expected, actual, severity, phase]
+            repoPath: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, failures, repoPath]
+
+  tester:
+    description: "Runs CLI scenarios against the prepared Docker environment"
+    goal: "You are an exploratory QA agent. The Docker container is already running with the project built and a CAS store initialized. Run CLI test scenarios and report bugs."
+    capabilities:
+      - testing
+      - cli
+    procedure: |
+      The container `{{{containerName}}}` is already running with the project built.
+      Store path: `{{{storePath}}}`.
+
+      Run all commands via:
+      ```bash
+      docker exec {{{containerName}}} bash -c 'cd /workspace && bun packages/cli-json-cas/src/index.ts --store {{{storePath}}} <subcommand>'
+      ```
+
+      Define a shorthand in your notes:
+      `CMD="cd /workspace && bun packages/cli-json-cas/src/index.ts --store {{{storePath}}}"`
+
+      ## Phase 1: CAS Core Operations
+
+      1. **bootstrap** — `$CMD bootstrap`
+         Expected: prints meta-schema hash (13-char Base32)
+
+      2. **schema put** — Create `/tmp/test-schema.json` in container, then `$CMD schema put /tmp/test-schema.json`
+         Schema: `{"type":"object","properties":{"name":{"type":"string"},"age":{"type":"number"}},"required":["name"],"additionalProperties":false}`
+         Expected: prints type hash
+
+      3. **schema get** — `$CMD schema get <type-hash>`
+         Expected: returns the schema JSON
+
+      4. **schema list** — `$CMD schema list`
+         Expected: lists registered schemas
+
+      5. **put** — Create data file, `$CMD put <type-hash> /tmp/test-node.json`
+         Data: `{"name":"Alice","age":30}`
+         Expected: prints node hash
+
+      6. **get** — `$CMD get <node-hash>`
+         Expected: returns node JSON
+
+      7. **has (exists)** — `$CMD has <node-hash>`
+         Expected: true
+
+      8. **has (not exists)** — `$CMD has AAAAAAAAAAAAA`
+         Expected: false
+
+      9. **verify** — `$CMD verify <node-hash>`
+         Expected: ok
+
+      10. **refs** — `$CMD refs <node-hash>`
+          Expected: lists refs (may be empty)
+
+      11. **walk** — `$CMD walk <node-hash>`
+          Expected: shows traversal tree
+
+      12. **hash (dry run)** — `$CMD hash <type-hash> /tmp/test-node.json`
+          Expected: same hash as put
+
+      13. **cat** — `$CMD cat <node-hash>`
+          Expected: full node output
+
+      14. **cat --payload** — `$CMD cat <node-hash> --payload`
+          Expected: payload only (no type wrapper)
+
+      ## Phase 2: Schema Validation
+
+      1. **Invalid node** — `$CMD put <type-hash> /tmp/bad-node.json` where bad-node = `{"name":123}`
+         Expected: validation error, non-zero exit
+
+      2. **schema validate** — `$CMD schema validate <node-hash>`
+         Expected: valid for good node
+
+      3. **Non-existent schema** — `$CMD put AAAAAAAAAAAAA /tmp/test-node.json`
+         Expected: error about missing schema
+
+      ## Phase 3: Variable System
+
+      1. **var set** — `$CMD var set myapp/config <node-hash>`
+         Expected: creates variable
+
+      2. **var get** — `$CMD var get myapp/config --schema <type-hash>`
+         Expected: returns variable
+
+      3. **var list** — `$CMD var list`
+         Expected: shows all variables
+
+      4. **var list prefix** — `$CMD var list myapp/`
+         Expected: filtered results
+
+      5. **var set (update)** — Put a second node, `$CMD var set myapp/config <new-hash>`
+         Expected: upsert succeeds
+
+      6. **var tag** — `$CMD var tag myapp/config --schema <type-hash> env:prod important`
+         Expected: adds tag and label
+
+      7. **var list --tag** — `$CMD var list --tag env:prod`
+         Expected: finds tagged variable
+
+      8. **var list --tag (label)** — `$CMD var list --tag important`
+         Expected: finds labeled variable
+
+      9. **var tag remove** — `$CMD var tag myapp/config --schema <type-hash> :important`
+         Expected: removes label
+
+      10. **var delete** — `$CMD var delete myapp/config`
+          Expected: deletes variable
+
+      11. **var get (deleted)** — `$CMD var get myapp/config --schema <type-hash>`
+          Expected: not found error
+
+      ## Phase 4: Template System
+
+      1. **template set** — Create template file, `$CMD template set <type-hash> /tmp/test.liquid`
+         Template: `Name: {{ payload.name }}, Age: {{ payload.age }}`
+         Expected: success
+
+      2. **template get** — `$CMD template get <type-hash>`
+         Expected: returns template text
+
+      3. **template list** — `$CMD template list`
+         Expected: lists templates
+
+      4. **template delete** — `$CMD template delete <type-hash>`
+         Expected: success
+
+      5. **template get (deleted)** — `$CMD template get <type-hash>`
+         Expected: not found error
+
+      ## Phase 5: Render
+
+      1. Re-register template, then `$CMD render <node-hash>`
+         Expected: rendered output with payload values filled in
+
+      2. **render --resolution** — `$CMD render <node-hash> --resolution 0.5`
+         Expected: different resolution output
+
+      3. **render (bad hash)** — `$CMD render AAAAAAAAAAAAA`
+         Expected: graceful error, non-zero exit
+
+      ## Phase 6: GC
+
+      1. **gc basic** — `$CMD gc`
+         Expected: runs without error
+
+      2. **gc preserves referenced** — Verify `$CMD has <node-hash>` still true
+
+      3. **gc collects orphans** — Put an orphan node (not in any variable), run gc, check it's gone
+
+      ## Phase 7: Edge Cases & Error Handling
+
+      1. `$CMD get AAAAAAAAAAAAA` — non-existent
+      2. `$CMD put <type-hash> /nonexistent/file.json` — missing file
+      3. `$CMD var set "" <hash>` — empty name
+      4. `$CMD var set "bad name!" <hash>` — invalid name chars
+      5. `$CMD schema put /tmp/bad-schema.json` — `{"type":"invalid"}`
+      6. `$CMD` with no subcommand — should show help
+      7. `$CMD --store /nonexistent/path get <hash>` — bad store path
+
+      ## Recording Results
+
+      For each scenario:
+      - ✅ Pass: works as expected
+      - ❌ Fail: unexpected behavior, crash, wrong output
+      - ⚠️ Questionable: works but confusing UX
+
+      Collect all ❌ and ⚠️. For each, record:
+      - Title (concise description)
+      - Command (exact command run)
+      - Expected behavior
+      - Actual behavior (include actual output)
+      - Severity: critical / high / medium / low
+      - Phase: which test phase
+
+      ## CRITICAL: Frontmatter Output Format
+
+      Your response MUST start with YAML frontmatter. The `bugs` field MUST be an array of objects, NOT strings.
+
+      Example of CORRECT frontmatter:
+      ```yaml
+      ---
+      $status: bugs_found
+      containerName: json-cas-e2e
+      repoPath: /path/to/repo
+      bugs:
+        - title: "put does not validate data against schema"
+          command: "json-cas put <hash> bad-data.json"
+          expected: "Validation error, non-zero exit"
+          actual: "Accepted invalid data, exit 0"
+          severity: "high"
+          phase: "Schema Validation"
+      ---
+      ```
+
+      Do NOT write bugs as plain strings like `- some bug description`. Each bug MUST be an object with all 6 fields.
+
+      If all tests pass:
+      ```yaml
+      ---
+      $status: all_passed
+      containerName: json-cas-e2e
+      ---
+      ```
+
+    output: "Summary of all phases with pass/fail counts. Set $status."
+    frontmatter:
+      oneOf:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "bugs_found" }
+            bugs:
+              type: array
+              items:
+                type: object
+                properties:
+                  title: { type: string }
+                  command: { type: string }
+                  expected: { type: string }
+                  actual: { type: string }
+                  severity: { type: string }
+                  phase: { type: string }
+                required: [title, command, expected, actual, severity, phase]
+            containerName: { type: string }
+            repoPath: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, bugs, containerName]
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "all_passed" }
+            containerName: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, containerName]
+
+  reporter:
+    description: "Opens Gitea issues for each bug found by the tester"
+    goal: "You are a bug reporter. You create well-formatted Gitea issues for each bug found during E2E testing."
+    capabilities:
+      - issue-management
+    procedure: |
+      1. Parse the bugs array from the tester's output
+      2. Group bugs by severity (critical first)
+      3. For each bug, create a Gitea issue:
+         ```bash
+         tea issues create -r uncaged/json-cas \
+           -t "[E2E] <title>" \
+           -d "## Bug Report (E2E Check)
+
+         **Phase:** <phase>
+         **Severity:** <severity>
+
+         **Command:**
+         \`\`\`
+         <exact command>
+         \`\`\`
+
+         **Expected:** <expected>
+
+         **Actual:** <actual>
+
+         ---
+         _Reported by e2e-check workflow (Docker isolated)_"
+         ```
+
+         ⚠️ If `tea issues create` fails with long body, use Gitea REST API:
+         ```bash
+         eval "$(cfg env)" && GITEA_TOKEN=$(cfg get GITEA_TOKEN)
+         curl -s -X POST "https://git.shazhou.work/api/v1/repos/uncaged/json-cas/issues" \
+           -H "Authorization: token $GITEA_TOKEN" \
+           -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
+           -d '{"title":"[E2E] ...","body":"..."}'
+         ```
+
+      4. Collect created issue numbers
+
+    output: "List created issues. Set $status."
+    frontmatter:
+      oneOf:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "reported" }
+            issues:
+              type: array
+              items: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, issues]
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "partial" }
+            created: { type: number }
+            failed: { type: number }
+          required: [$status, created, failed]
+
+  cleanup:
+    description: "Stops and removes the Docker container"
+    goal: "You clean up the Docker environment after testing is complete."
+    capabilities:
+      - docker
+    procedure: |
+      Stop and remove the container:
+      ```bash
+      docker stop {{{containerName}}} && docker rm {{{containerName}}}
+      ```
+
+      Verify it's gone:
+      ```bash
+      docker ps -a --filter name={{{containerName}}} --format '{{.Names}}'
+      ```
+      Expected: empty output.
+
+    output: "Cleanup result."
+    frontmatter:
+      oneOf:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "cleaned" }
+          required: [$status]
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "cleanup_failed" }
+            error: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, error]
+
+graph:
+  $START:
+    _: { role: "preparer", prompt: "Set up Docker environment for E2E testing. Repo at {{{repoPath}}}." }
+  preparer:
+    ready: { role: "tester", prompt: "Environment ready. Container: {{{containerName}}}, store: {{{storePath}}}. Run all test scenarios." }
+    setup_failed: { role: "reporter", prompt: "Setup failures found. File these as bugs: {{{failures}}}" }
+  tester:
+    all_passed: { role: "cleanup", prompt: "All tests passed. Clean up container {{{containerName}}}." }
+    bugs_found: { role: "reporter", prompt: "File these bugs as Gitea issues: {{{bugs}}}" }
+  reporter:
+    reported: { role: "cleanup", prompt: "Bugs filed: {{{issues}}}. Clean up container {{{containerName}}}." }
+    partial: { role: "cleanup", prompt: "Filed {{{created}}} issues, {{{failed}}} failed. Clean up container {{{containerName}}}." }
+  cleanup:
+    cleaned: { role: "$END", prompt: "E2E check complete. Environment cleaned up." }
+    cleanup_failed: { role: "$END", prompt: "E2E check complete but cleanup failed: {{{error}}}" }

.workflows/retrospect-workflow.yaml

@@ -0,0 +1,231 @@
+name: "retrospect-workflow"
+description: "Post-execution retrospective: analyze a completed thread, find inefficiencies, and improve the workflow definition."
+roles:
+  analyst:
+    description: "Scans thread execution for anomalies and produces a findings report"
+    goal: "You are a workflow execution analyst. You review completed thread data to find inefficiencies, wasted effort, and procedure gaps."
+    capabilities:
+      - data-analysis
+    procedure: |
+      You receive a completed thread ID in your task prompt.
+
+      Phase 0 — Validation (must pass before any analysis):
+      1. Run `uwf step list <thread-id>` to get thread metadata including the workflow hash
+      2. Run `uwf workflow show <workflow-hash>` to get the workflow name
+      3. Verify the workflow exists locally: check `.workflows/<name>.yaml` in the current repo
+         - If NOT found: output $status=wrong_project with the workflow name. Do NOT proceed.
+      4. Compare the thread's workflow hash against the current registered version:
+         - Run `uwf workflow show <name>` to get the current hash
+         - If hashes differ: the thread ran on an older version. Note this — you will need to diff versions after analysis.
+
+      Phase 1 — Overview scan:
+      5. From the step list, compute a health signal for each step:
+         - Duration: flag if >2x the median of other steps
+         - Output tokens: flag if >2x the median
+         - Status flow: flag non-happy-path transitions (rejected, fix_code, fix_spec, hook_failed)
+         - Step count: flag if the same role appears more than expected (indicates loops)
+      6. If no anomalies found AND versions match: output $status=clean
+      7. If no anomalies found BUT versions differ:
+         - Diff the two workflow versions to check if any procedure changes are relevant
+         - If the current version already addresses potential concerns: output $status=clean with a note
+         - Otherwise: proceed to Phase 2
+
+      Phase 2 — Targeted deep-dive (only for flagged steps):
+      8. For each flagged step, run `uwf step show <hash>` to get the detail with turns
+      9. Analyze the turn sequence for:
+         - Repeated tool calls with the same or similar input (blind retries)
+         - Tool errors followed by no strategy change (same approach retried)
+         - Unnecessary exploration (reading files or running commands unrelated to the task)
+         - Hallucinated commands or flags (commands that don't exist or wrong syntax)
+         - Excessive turns before reaching the goal
+      10. For each finding, record:
+          - Which role and step hash
+          - What happened (specific turn indices and commands)
+          - Root cause hypothesis (procedure gap, missing pitfall, unclear instruction)
+          - Suggested fix (what to add/change in the procedure)
+      11. If versions differ: compare findings against the version diff.
+          Mark any finding that is already fixed in the current version as "resolved_in_current".
+          Only report findings that are NOT yet addressed.
+
+      Output a structured findings report. Set $status=clean if nothing actionable, $status=findings if unresolved issues exist, or $status=wrong_project if the workflow doesn't belong here.
+    output: "A findings report with per-issue root cause and suggested procedure fixes. Set $status to clean or findings (with report hash)."
+    frontmatter:
+      oneOf:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "clean" }
+            summary: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, summary]
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "findings" }
+            report: { type: string }
+            targetWorkflow: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, report, targetWorkflow]
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "wrong_project" }
+            workflowName: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, workflowName]
+  proposer:
+    description: "Translates findings into concrete workflow edits"
+    goal: "You are a workflow improvement proposer. You read the analyst's findings and produce specific, minimal edits to the workflow YAML."
+    capabilities:
+      - planning
+    procedure: |
+      1. Read the analyst's findings report from your task prompt
+      2. Locate the target workflow YAML:
+         - Workflow definitions live in the WORKFLOW ENGINE repo (where `uwf` is developed), NOT in the repo that was analyzed.
+         - Find it via: `uwf workflow show <targetWorkflow> --format yaml` to read the current definition
+         - The physical file is `.workflows/<targetWorkflow>.yaml` in the workflow engine repo
+         - Use `git rev-parse --show-toplevel` in the current directory to find the workflow engine repo root
+      3. Read the current workflow YAML to understand existing procedures
+      4. For each finding, draft a minimal edit:
+         - Prefer adding a pitfall note or clarifying instruction over restructuring
+         - If a procedure step is ambiguous, make it explicit
+         - If a tool usage pattern is wrong, add a "Do NOT" or "IMPORTANT" note
+         - Keep edits surgical — don't rewrite procedures that work fine
+      5. Check if existing tests need updating (search for test files referencing the workflow)
+      6. Produce a change plan as CAS text node via `uwf cas put-text "<plan>"`
+
+      The plan should list each edit with:
+      - File path
+      - What to change (old text → new text, or addition)
+      - Why (linked to which finding)
+      - Any test updates needed
+    output: "A change plan stored in CAS. Set $status to ready (with plan hash and repoPath) or no_action (if findings don't warrant changes)."
+    frontmatter:
+      oneOf:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "ready" }
+            plan: { type: string }
+            repoPath: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, plan, repoPath]
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "no_action" }
+            reason: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, reason]
+  developer:
+    description: "Applies the proposed workflow edits"
+    goal: "You are a developer agent. You apply workflow YAML edits and update related tests."
+    capabilities:
+      - coding
+    procedure: |
+      IMPORTANT: Always work in a git worktree, NEVER modify the main working directory directly.
+      The workflow definitions live in THIS repo (the workflow engine), not the repo that was analyzed.
+
+      Before starting any work, set up an isolated worktree:
+      1. Use `git rev-parse --show-toplevel` to find the repo root (do NOT use repoPath from proposer — that's the analyzed repo)
+      2. `git fetch origin` to get latest refs
+      3. `git worktree add .worktrees/retrospect/<short-slug> -b retrospect/<short-slug> origin/main`
+      4. `cd .worktrees/retrospect/<short-slug> && bun install`
+      5. ALL subsequent work must happen inside the worktree directory.
+
+      Then apply changes:
+      6. Read the change plan from CAS: `uwf cas get <plan hash>`
+      7. Apply each edit from the plan to the workflow YAML
+      8. Update or add tests as specified in the plan
+      9. Run `bun run build` and `bun test` to verify
+      10. Run `bun run check` for lint
+      11. Commit with message: `improve: <workflow-name> — <brief summary>`
+    output: "List all files changed and provide a summary. Set $status to done (with branch/worktree), or failed (with reason)."
+    frontmatter:
+      oneOf:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "done" }
+            branch: { type: string }
+            worktree: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, branch, worktree]
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "failed" }
+            reason: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, reason]
+  reviewer:
+    description: "Reviews the workflow edits for correctness"
+    goal: "You are a reviewer. You verify that workflow edits are minimal, correct, and actually address the findings."
+    capabilities:
+      - code-review
+    procedure: |
+      The worktree path is provided in your task prompt. cd into it first.
+
+      Review criteria:
+      1. Each edit must trace back to a specific finding — no drive-by changes
+      2. Edits should be minimal — don't rewrite working procedures
+      3. New pitfall notes or instructions must be clear and actionable
+      4. Tests must be updated if assertions changed
+      5. `bun run build` and `bun test` must pass
+      6. `bunx biome check` must pass
+
+      IMPORTANT: `tea pr create` must run from the MAIN repo directory (not a worktree), because tea cannot detect the repo from worktree `.git` files.
+    output: "Explain your decision. Set $status to approved (with branch/worktree) or rejected (with comments)."
+    frontmatter:
+      oneOf:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "approved" }
+            branch: { type: string }
+            worktree: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, branch, worktree]
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "rejected" }
+            comments: { type: string }
+            worktree: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, comments, worktree]
+  committer:
+    description: "Commits and creates PR"
+    goal: "You are a committer agent. You create a clean commit and push a PR."
+    capabilities: []
+    procedure: |
+      The worktree path, branch name, and repo info are provided in your task prompt.
+      cd into the worktree first.
+
+      Note: You inherit the developer's worktree and branch. Do NOT create a new branch.
+      1. Stage all changes: `git add -A`
+      2. Commit with a descriptive message: `git commit -m "improve: <workflow> — <summary>"`
+      3. Push the branch: `git push -u origin <branch-name>`
+         - If push hook fails: capture the error log in your output, mark hook_failed
+      4. On push success: create a PR via `tea pr create --title "..." --description "..."`
+         - IMPORTANT: `tea pr create` must run from the MAIN repo directory (not a worktree), because tea cannot detect the repo from worktree `.git` files. cd to the repo root first.
+         - Do NOT pass `--repo` — let tea auto-detect from the main repo's git remote.
+         - PR description must include: What / Why / Findings / Changes sections
+         - On tea failure: capture stderr/stdout, include PR details for manual creation, mark hook_failed
+      5. After PR creation, clean up the worktree:
+         - cd to the repo root (parent of .worktrees)
+         - `git worktree remove <worktree-path>`
+    output: "Include PR URL on success or error log on failure. Set $status to committed (with prUrl) or hook_failed (with error)."
+    frontmatter:
+      oneOf:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "committed" }
+            prUrl: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, prUrl]
+        - type: object
+          properties:
+            $status: { const: "hook_failed" }
+            error: { type: string }
+          required: [$status, error]
+graph:
+  $START:
+    _: { role: "analyst", prompt: "Analyze completed thread {{{threadId}}} for execution anomalies." }
+  analyst:
+    clean: { role: "$END", prompt: "No issues found. Thread executed cleanly." }
+    findings: { role: "proposer", prompt: "Findings report: {{{report}}}. Target workflow: {{{targetWorkflow}}}. Propose minimal edits." }
+    wrong_project: { role: "$END", prompt: "Thread uses workflow '{{{workflowName}}}' which does not exist in this project. Run retrospect from the correct repo." }
+  proposer:
+    no_action: { role: "$END", prompt: "No actionable changes needed: {{{reason}}}." }
+    ready: { role: "developer", prompt: "Apply the change plan (CAS hash: {{{plan}}}) to the workflow definitions in this repo." }
+  developer:
+    done: { role: "reviewer", prompt: "Review workflow edits on branch {{{branch}}} at {{{worktree}}}." }
+    failed: { role: "$END", prompt: "Developer failed: {{{reason}}}. Ending workflow." }
+  reviewer:
+    rejected: { role: "developer", prompt: "Reviewer rejected: {{{comments}}}. Fix the issues in {{{worktree}}}." }
+    approved: { role: "committer", prompt: "Approved. Commit and push branch {{{branch}}} from {{{worktree}}}." }
+  committer:
+    hook_failed: { role: "developer", prompt: "Push hook failed: {{{error}}}. Fix and re-submit." }
+    committed: { role: "$END", prompt: "PR created: {{{prUrl}}}. Workflow improved." }

.workflows/solve-issue.yaml

@@ -26,12 +26,14 @@ roles:
     output: "Output a brief summary of the test spec. Set $status to ready (with plan hash and repoPath) or insufficient_info."
     frontmatter:
       oneOf:
-        - properties:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
             $status: { const: "ready" }
             plan: { type: string }
             repoPath: { type: string }
           required: [$status, plan, repoPath]
-        - properties:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
             $status: { const: "insufficient_info" }
           required: [$status]
   developer:
@@ -67,12 +69,14 @@ roles:
     output: "List all files changed and provide a summary. Set $status to done (with branch/worktree), or failed (with reason)."
     frontmatter:
       oneOf:
-        - properties:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
             $status: { const: "done" }
             branch: { type: string }
             worktree: { type: string }
           required: [$status, branch, worktree]
-        - properties:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
             $status: { const: "failed" }
             reason: { type: string }
           required: [$status, reason]
@@ -105,12 +109,14 @@ roles:
     output: "Explain your decision with specific file/line references. Set $status to approved (with branch/worktree) or rejected (with comments)."
     frontmatter:
       oneOf:
-        - properties:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
             $status: { const: "approved" }
             branch: { type: string }
             worktree: { type: string }
           required: [$status, branch, worktree]
-        - properties:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
             $status: { const: "rejected" }
             comments: { type: string }
             worktree: { type: string }
@@ -133,16 +139,19 @@ roles:
     output: "Report test results per scenario. Set $status to passed (with branch/worktree), fix_code (with report), or fix_spec (with report)."
     frontmatter:
       oneOf:
-        - properties:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
             $status: { const: "passed" }
             branch: { type: string }
             worktree: { type: string }
           required: [$status, branch, worktree]
-        - properties:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
             $status: { const: "fix_code" }
             report: { type: string }
           required: [$status, report]
-        - properties:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
             $status: { const: "fix_spec" }
             report: { type: string }
           required: [$status, report]
@@ -169,11 +178,13 @@ roles:
     output: "Include PR URL on success or error log on failure. Set $status to committed (with prUrl) or hook_failed (with error)."
     frontmatter:
       oneOf:
-        - properties:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
             $status: { const: "committed" }
             prUrl: { type: string }
           required: [$status, prUrl]
-        - properties:
+        - type: object
+          properties:
             $status: { const: "hook_failed" }
             error: { type: string }
           required: [$status, error]

README.md

@@ -88,30 +88,60 @@ Or use the CLI (see [CLI Reference](#cli-reference) and [`packages/cli-json-cas/
 
 ## CLI Reference
 
-Binary: `json-cas` (from `@uncaged/cli-json-cas`). Default store: `~/.uncaged/json-cas`.
+Binary: `json-cas` (also aliased `ucas`, from `@uncaged/cli-json-cas`). Default store:
+`~/.uncaged/json-cas`. The store is auto-created and bootstrapped on first use — there is
+no `init`/`bootstrap` command, and schemas are ordinary `@schema`-typed nodes (`ucas put
+@schema file.json`), so there is no `schema` subcommand.
+
+### Envelope format
+
+Every JSON-emitting command prints a uniform `{ type, value }` envelope. `type` is the hash
+of the command's `@output/*` result schema and `value` is the command payload. This makes
+output self-describing and pipeable: feed any envelope into `render -p` to render its
+`value` (embedded `cas_ref` hashes are expanded). `render` is the only command that emits
+raw (non-envelope) text.
+
+```jsonc
+// ucas has <hash>
+{ "type": "AYHQD2YA9G667", "value": true }
+```
 
 ```
 Usage: json-cas [--store <path>] [--json] <command> [args]
 
-Commands:
-  init                              Create store dir and write bootstrap seed
-  bootstrap                         Write meta-schema seed, print hash
-  schema put <file.json>            Register schema, print type hash
-  schema get <type-hash>            Print schema JSON
-  schema list                       List all schemas (name + hash)
-  schema validate <hash>            Validate node against its schema
-  put <type-hash> <file.json>       Store node, print hash
-  get <hash>                        Print node as JSON
-  has <hash>                        Print true/false
-  verify <hash>                     Verify integrity, print ok/corrupted
-  refs <hash>                       List direct cas_ref edges
-  walk <hash> [--format tree]       Recursive traversal
-  hash <type-hash> <file.json>      Compute hash without storing (dry run)
-  cat <hash> [--payload]            Output node (--payload for payload only)
+Commands (all emit a { type, value } envelope unless noted):
+  put <type-hash> <file.json>       Store node (value = hash)          (@output/put)
+  get <hash>                        Node payload + metadata            (@output/get)
+  has <hash>                        Existence boolean                  (@output/has)
+  verify <hash>                     ok / corrupted / invalid           (@output/verify)
+  refs <hash>                       Direct cas_ref edges               (@output/refs)
+  walk <hash> [--format tree]       Recursive traversal                (@output/walk)
+  hash <type-hash> <file.json>      Compute hash without storing       (@output/hash)
+  render <hash> [options]           Render node as text (raw output)
+  render --pipe/-p [options]        Render a piped envelope (raw output)
+  list --type <hash-or-alias>       Hashes for a type (value = list)   (@output/list)
+  var set|get|delete|tag|list ...   Variable CRUD                      (@output/var-*)
+  template set|get|list|delete ...  Output-template CRUD               (@output/template-*)
+  gc                                Garbage collection                 (@output/gc)
 
 Flags:
   --store <path>   Store directory (default: ~/.uncaged/json-cas)
   --json           Compact JSON output
+  --pipe, -p       Read a { type, value } envelope from stdin for render
+```
+
+### Pipe examples
+
+```bash
+# Store a node, then render the stored content (the put envelope's hash is
+# a cas_ref, so render -p dereferences and renders it):
+ucas put @schema ./schemas/item.json | ucas render -p
+
+# Render garbage-collection stats:
+ucas gc | ucas render -p
+
+# List every schema, then consume the envelope's value array with jq:
+ucas list --type @schema | jq -r '.value[]'
 ```
 
 ## Development

bun.lock

@@ -30,6 +30,7 @@
       "dependencies": {
         "ajv": "^8.20.0",
         "cborg": "^4.2.3",
+        "liquidjs": "^10.27.0",
         "xxhash-wasm": "^1.1.0",
       },
     },
@@ -141,6 +142,8 @@
 
     "chardet": ["chardet@2.1.1", "", {}, "sha512-PsezH1rqdV9VvyNhxxOW32/d75r01NY7TQCmOqomRo15ZSOKbpTFVsfjghxo6JloQUCGnH4k1LGu0R4yCLlWQQ=="],
 
+    "commander": ["commander@10.0.1", "", {}, "sha512-y4Mg2tXshplEbSGzx7amzPwKKOCGuoSRP/CjEdwwk0FOGlUbq6lKuoyDZTNZkmxHdJtp54hdfY/JUrdL7Xfdug=="],
+
     "cross-spawn": ["cross-spawn@7.0.6", "", { "dependencies": { "path-key": "^3.1.0", "shebang-command": "^2.0.0", "which": "^2.0.1" } }, "sha512-uV2QOWP2nWzsy2aMp8aRibhi9dlzF5Hgh5SHaB9OiTGEyDTiJJyx0uy51QXdyWbtAHNua4XJzUKca3OzKUd3vA=="],
 
     "dataloader": ["dataloader@1.4.0", "", {}, "sha512-68s5jYdlvasItOJnCuI2Q9s4q98g0pCyL3HrcKJu8KNugUl8ahgmZYg38ysLTgQjjXX3H8CJLkAvWrclWfcalw=="],
@@ -203,6 +206,8 @@
 
     "layerr": ["layerr@3.0.0", "", {}, "sha512-tv754Ki2dXpPVApOrjTyRo4/QegVb9eVFq4mjqp4+NM5NaX7syQvN5BBNfV/ZpAHCEHV24XdUVrBAoka4jt3pA=="],
 
+    "liquidjs": ["liquidjs@10.27.0", "", { "dependencies": { "commander": "^10.0.0" }, "bin": { "liquidjs": "bin/liquid.js", "liquid": "bin/liquid.js" } }, "sha512-tw/OA59K7aIBlMKIrKlumr37fiZUheShVHXY8cVctWisgY1p9mc5hreOvlreoS0wTiwlWk14Ya7305c2a/Cg5w=="],
+
     "locate-path": ["locate-path@5.0.0", "", { "dependencies": { "p-locate": "^4.1.0" } }, "sha512-t7hw9pI+WvuwNJXwk5zVHpyhIqzg2qTlklJOf0mVxGSbe3Fp2VieZcduNYjaLDoy6p9uGpQEGWG87WpMKlNq8g=="],
 
     "lodash.startcase": ["lodash.startcase@4.4.0", "", {}, "sha512-+WKqsK294HMSc2jEbNgpHpd0JfIBhp7rEV4aqXWqFr6AlXov+SlcgB1Fv01y2kGe3Gc8nMW7VA0SrGuSkRfIEg=="],

packages/cli-json-cas/README.md

@@ -4,7 +4,9 @@ CLI tool for json-cas stores.
 
 ## Overview
 
-`@uncaged/cli-json-cas` provides the `json-cas` command for managing a filesystem-backed store: bootstrap, schema registration, node CRUD, integrity checks, reference listing, and graph walks. It uses `@uncaged/json-cas-fs` for persistence and `@uncaged/json-cas` for core operations.
+`@uncaged/cli-json-cas` provides the `json-cas` command (also aliased `ucas`) for managing a filesystem-backed store: node CRUD, integrity checks, reference listing, graph walks, variables, and output templates. It uses `@uncaged/json-cas-fs` for persistence and `@uncaged/json-cas` for core operations.
+
+The store is **auto-created and bootstrapped** on first use, so there is no `init`/`bootstrap` command. Schemas are ordinary `@schema`-typed nodes — register one with `ucas put @schema file.json` and list them with `ucas list --type @schema`; there is no dedicated `schema` subcommand.
 
 **Dependencies:** `@uncaged/json-cas`, `@uncaged/json-cas-fs`
 
@@ -37,48 +39,95 @@ Usage: json-cas [--store <path>] [--json] <command> [args]
 | Flag | Description |
 |------|-------------|
 | `--store <path>` | Store directory (default: `~/.uncaged/json-cas`) |
-| `--json` | Compact JSON output for commands that print JSON |
+| `--var-db <path>` | Variable database path (default: `<store>/variables.db`) |
+| `--json` | Compact (single-line) JSON output |
+
+### Envelope format
+
+Every JSON-emitting command prints a uniform `{ type, value }` envelope. `type` is the hash
+of the command's `@output/*` result schema and `value` is the command payload. The output
+is therefore self-describing and pipeable: feed any envelope into `render -p` to render its
+`value` (embedded `cas_ref` hashes are expanded). `render` is the only command that emits
+raw, non-envelope text.
+
+```jsonc
+// json-cas has <hash>
+{ "type": "AYHQD2YA9G667", "value": true }
+
+// json-cas template set <schema-hash> --inline "Hi {{ payload.name }}"
+{ "type": "9YJZ09DDAYAWR", "value": { "schemaHash": "7XX5H51CVD9H0", "contentHash": "FC8WACA792B6F" } }
+```
 
 ### Commands
 
-| Command | Description |
-|---------|-------------|
-| `init` | Create store directory and write bootstrap seed; prints meta hash |
-| `bootstrap` | Write meta-schema seed into existing store; prints hash |
-| `schema put <file.json>` | Register schema from file; prints type hash |
-| `schema get <type-hash>` | Print schema JSON |
-| `schema list` | List all schemas (`hash  name`) |
-| `schema validate <hash>` | Validate node against its schema; prints `valid` / `invalid` |
-| `put <type-hash> <file.json>` | Store node; prints content hash |
-| `get <hash>` | Print full node as JSON |
-| `has <hash>` | Print `true` or `false` |
-| `verify <hash>` | Verify integrity; prints `ok` or `corrupted` |
-| `refs <hash>` | Print direct `cas_ref` targets (one per line) |
-| `walk <hash>` | BFS traversal; one hash per line |
-| `walk <hash> --format tree` | Tree-formatted traversal |
-| `hash <type-hash> <file.json>` | Compute hash without storing |
-| `cat <hash>` | Print node JSON |
-| `cat <hash> --payload` | Print payload only |
+| Command | Envelope `value` | Result schema |
+|---------|------------------|---------------|
+| `put <type-hash> <file.json>` | stored node hash (string) | `@output/put` |
+| `get <hash>` | `{ type, payload, timestamp }` | `@output/get` |
+| `has <hash>` | boolean | `@output/has` |
+| `verify <hash>` | `ok` / `corrupted` / `invalid` | `@output/verify` |
+| `refs <hash>` | hashes (string[]) | `@output/refs` |
+| `walk <hash> [--format tree]` | hashes (string[]) or tree string | `@output/walk` |
+| `hash <type-hash> <file.json>` | computed hash (string) | `@output/hash` |
+| `render <hash> [options]` | raw text (no envelope) | — |
+| `render --pipe/-p [options]` | raw text from piped envelope | — |
+| `list --type <hash-or-alias>` | hashes (string[]) | `@output/list` |
+| `var set <name> <hash> [--tag ...]` | variable object | `@output/var-set` |
+| `var get <name> --schema <hash>` | variable object | `@output/var-get` |
+| `var delete <name> [--schema <hash>]` | variable or variable[] | `@output/var-delete` |
+| `var tag <name> --schema <hash> <ops...>` | variable object | `@output/var-tag` |
+| `var list [prefix] [--schema <hash>] [--tag ...]` | variable[] | `@output/var-list` |
+| `template set <schema-hash> <file> \| --inline <text>` | `{ schemaHash, contentHash }` | `@output/template-set` |
+| `template get <schema-hash>` | template content (string) | `@output/template-get` |
+| `template list` | `{ schemaHash, contentHash }[]` | `@output/template-list` |
+| `template delete <schema-hash>` | `{ deleted: boolean }` | `@output/template-delete` |
+| `gc` | `{ total, reachable, collected, scanned }` | `@output/gc` |
 
 ### Examples
 
 ```bash
-# Initialize default store at ~/.uncaged/json-cas
-json-cas init
+# Register a schema (schemas are plain @schema nodes) and store a payload
+json-cas put @schema ./schemas/item.json
+# → { "type": "...", "value": "0123456789ABC" }  (the schema's type hash)
 
-# Use a custom store path
-json-cas --store ./data/cas bootstrap
-
-# Register a schema and store a payload
-json-cas schema put ./schemas/item.json
-# → prints type hash, e.g. 0123456789ABCD
-
-json-cas put 0123456789ABCD ./payloads/item.json
-# → prints content hash
+json-cas put 0123456789ABC ./payloads/item.json
+# → { "type": "...", "value": "<content-hash>" }
 
 json-cas get <content-hash> --json
 json-cas verify <content-hash>
 json-cas walk <content-hash> --format tree
+
+# List every registered schema, then extract the hashes with jq
+json-cas list --type @schema | jq -r '.value[]'
+```
+
+### Pipe composition
+
+Because every command shares the `{ type, value }` envelope, output composes directly into
+`render -p`:
+
+```bash
+# put emits a cas_ref hash envelope; render -p dereferences and renders the node
+json-cas put @schema ./schemas/item.json | json-cas render -p
+
+# render gc statistics
+json-cas gc | json-cas render -p
+
+# render every schema referenced by a list result
+json-cas list --type @schema | json-cas render -p
+```
+
+### Templates
+
+`template` commands manage the LiquidJS template bound to a schema (stored as a
+`@ucas/template/text/<schema-hash>` variable). `render <hash>` uses the template registered
+for the node's type, falling back to YAML when none exists.
+
+```bash
+# Bind a template to a schema, then render a node of that type
+json-cas template set 0123456789ABC --inline "Item: {{ payload.name }}"
+json-cas render <content-hash>
+# → Item: Widget
 ```
 
 ## Internal Structure

packages/cli-json-cas/package.json

@@ -3,7 +3,8 @@
   "version": "0.5.3",
   "type": "module",
   "bin": {
-    "json-cas": "./src/index.ts"
+    "json-cas": "./src/index.ts",
+    "ucas": "./src/index.ts"
   },
   "scripts": {
     "test": "bun test",

packages/cli-json-cas/src/__snapshots__/e2e.test.ts.snap

@@ -0,0 +1,289 @@
+// Bun Snapshot v1, https://bun.sh/docs/test/snapshots
+
+exports[`Phase 1: CAS Core 1.6 get returns node JSON (snapshot) 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "ASE7K6A0HG8W9",
+  "value": {
+    "payload": {
+      "age": 30,
+      "name": "Alice",
+    },
+    "type": "7XX5H51CVD9H0",
+  },
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 1: CAS Core 1.9 verify returns ok for valid node 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "8E2M8H30BHXS8",
+  "value": "ok",
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 1: CAS Core 1.10 refs lists direct references (snapshot) 1`] = `
+"{
+  "type": "4N5REDA48XYJP",
+  "value": []
+}"
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 1: CAS Core 1.11 walk shows traversal tree (snapshot) 1`] = `
+"{
+  "type": "7124NEATTWYYY",
+  "value": [
+    "ERARPP19YJT05"
+  ]
+}"
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 2: Schema Validation 2.3 put against non-existent schema hash fails 1`] = `"Schema not found: AAAAAAAAAAAAA"`;
+
+exports[`Phase 3: Variable System 3.1 var set creates variable 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "AYHQD2YA9G667",
+  "value": {
+    "labels": [],
+    "name": "myapp/config",
+    "schema": "7XX5H51CVD9H0",
+    "tags": {},
+    "value": "ERARPP19YJT05",
+  },
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 3: Variable System 3.2 var get returns variable 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "BVW2SAJ8606EZ",
+  "value": {
+    "labels": [],
+    "name": "myapp/config",
+    "schema": "7XX5H51CVD9H0",
+    "tags": {},
+    "value": "ERARPP19YJT05",
+  },
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 3: Variable System 3.3 var list shows all variables 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "3BY1S4RKNMR0P",
+  "value": [
+    {
+      "labels": [],
+      "name": "myapp/config",
+      "schema": "7XX5H51CVD9H0",
+      "tags": {},
+      "value": "ERARPP19YJT05",
+    },
+  ],
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 3: Variable System 3.4 var list prefix filters by prefix 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "3BY1S4RKNMR0P",
+  "value": [
+    {
+      "labels": [],
+      "name": "myapp/config",
+      "schema": "7XX5H51CVD9H0",
+      "tags": {},
+      "value": "ERARPP19YJT05",
+    },
+  ],
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 3: Variable System 3.5 var set upsert updates existing variable 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "AYHQD2YA9G667",
+  "value": {
+    "labels": [],
+    "name": "myapp/config",
+    "schema": "7XX5H51CVD9H0",
+    "tags": {},
+    "value": "F68P1BZ46YDXM",
+  },
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 3: Variable System 3.6 var tag adds kv tag and label 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "BKMJ3DJHTS6VB",
+  "value": {
+    "labels": [
+      "important",
+    ],
+    "name": "myapp/config",
+    "schema": "7XX5H51CVD9H0",
+    "tags": {
+      "env": "prod",
+    },
+    "value": "ERARPP19YJT05",
+  },
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 3: Variable System 3.7 var list --tag env:prod filters by kv tag 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "3BY1S4RKNMR0P",
+  "value": [
+    {
+      "labels": [
+        "important",
+      ],
+      "name": "myapp/config",
+      "schema": "7XX5H51CVD9H0",
+      "tags": {
+        "env": "prod",
+      },
+      "value": "ERARPP19YJT05",
+    },
+  ],
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 3: Variable System 3.8 var list --tag important filters by label 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "3BY1S4RKNMR0P",
+  "value": [
+    {
+      "labels": [
+        "important",
+      ],
+      "name": "myapp/config",
+      "schema": "7XX5H51CVD9H0",
+      "tags": {
+        "env": "prod",
+      },
+      "value": "ERARPP19YJT05",
+    },
+  ],
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 3: Variable System 3.9 var tag remove deletes label 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "BKMJ3DJHTS6VB",
+  "value": {
+    "labels": [],
+    "name": "myapp/config",
+    "schema": "7XX5H51CVD9H0",
+    "tags": {
+      "env": "prod",
+    },
+    "value": "ERARPP19YJT05",
+  },
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 3: Variable System 3.10 var delete removes variable 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "ASWN8JEGAG7AP",
+  "value": [
+    {
+      "labels": [],
+      "name": "myapp/config",
+      "schema": "7XX5H51CVD9H0",
+      "tags": {
+        "env": "prod",
+      },
+      "value": "ERARPP19YJT05",
+    },
+  ],
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 3: Variable System 3.11 var get deleted variable returns not found 1`] = `"Error: Variable not found: name=myapp/config, schema=7XX5H51CVD9H0"`;
+
+exports[`Phase 4: Template System 4.1 template set registers template 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "9YJZ09DDAYAWR",
+  "value": {
+    "contentHash": "FC8WACA792B6F",
+    "schemaHash": "7XX5H51CVD9H0",
+  },
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 4: Template System 4.2 template get returns template text 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "FJG23DR9456WA",
+  "value": "Name: {{ payload.name }}, Age: {{ payload.age }}",
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 4: Template System 4.3 template list shows registered templates 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "3JB2JHXHZG2Z1",
+  "value": [
+    {
+      "contentHash": "FC8WACA792B6F",
+      "schemaHash": "7XX5H51CVD9H0",
+    },
+  ],
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 4: Template System 4.4 template delete removes template 1`] = `
+{
+  "type": "0PYGQE16XPM70",
+  "value": {
+    "deleted": true,
+  },
+}
+`;
+
+exports[`Phase 4: Template System 4.5 template get deleted template returns not found 1`] = `"Error: Template not found for schema: 7XX5H51CVD9H0"`;
+
+exports[`Phase 5: Render 5.1 render fills payload variables 1`] = `"Hello Alice!"`;
+
+exports[`Phase 5: Render 5.2 render --resolution with different value 1`] = `"Hello Alice!"`;
+
+exports[`Phase 7: Edge Cases 7.1 get non-existent hash errors gracefully 1`] = `"Node not found: AAAAAAAAAAAAA"`;
+
+exports[`Phase 7: Edge Cases 7.3 var set empty name errors 1`] = `"Usage: json-cas var set <name> <hash> [--tag <tag>...]"`;
+
+exports[`Phase 7: Edge Cases 7.4 var set name with invalid chars errors 1`] = `"Error: Invalid variable name "invalid name!": Segment "invalid name!" contains invalid characters (only @, a-z, A-Z, 0-9, ., _, - allowed)"`;
+
+exports[`Phase 7: Edge Cases 7.5 no subcommand shows help text 1`] = `
+"Usage: json-cas [--store <path>] [--json] <command> [args]
+
+All JSON commands emit a { type, value } envelope. The type is the hash of the
+command's @output/* schema (shown in parentheses); pipe any envelope into
+\`render -p\` to render its value (cas_ref hashes are expanded).
+
+Commands:
+  put <type-hash> <file.json>       Store node, print envelope (value=hash)            (@output/put)
+  get <hash>                        Print node as envelope                             (@output/get)
+  has <hash>                        Print envelope (value=boolean)                     (@output/has)
+  verify <hash>                     Verify integrity + schema (value=ok/corrupted/invalid) (@output/verify)
+  refs <hash>                       List direct cas_ref edges                          (@output/refs)
+  walk <hash> [--format tree]       Recursive traversal                                (@output/walk)
+  hash <type-hash> <file.json>      Compute hash without storing                       (@output/hash)
+  render <hash> [options]           Render node as text with resolution decay (raw output)
+  render --pipe/-p [options]        Render { type, value } from stdin (raw output)
+  list --type <hash-or-alias>       List hashes for a type (value=string[])            (@output/list)
+  var set <name> <hash> [--tag <tag>...] Create/update a variable                      (@output/var-set)
+  var get <name> --schema <hash>    Get a variable by name + schema                    (@output/var-get)
+  var delete <name> [--schema <hash>] Delete variable(s)                               (@output/var-delete)
+  var list [prefix] [--schema <hash>] [--tag <tag>...] List variables                  (@output/var-list)
+  var tag <name> --schema <hash> <operations...> Modify tags/labels                    (@output/var-tag)
+  template set <schema-hash> <file> | --inline <text> Set template for schema          (@output/template-set)
+  template get <schema-hash>        Get template content (value=string)                (@output/template-get)
+  template list                     List all templates                                 (@output/template-list)
+  template delete <schema-hash>     Delete template for schema                         (@output/template-delete)
+  gc                                Run garbage collection                             (@output/gc)
+
+Flags:
+  --store <path>      Store directory (default: ~/.uncaged/json-cas)
+  --var-db <path>     Variable database path (default: <store>/variables.db)
+  --json              Compact JSON output
+  --schema <hash>     Schema hash filter for var get/delete/tag/list
+  --tag <tag>         Tag/label (can be repeated): key:value (tag), name (label), :name (delete)
+  --inline <text>     Inline text content for template set
+  --resolution <n>    Initial resolution for render (default: 1.0)
+  --decay <n>         Decay factor for render (default: 0.5)
+  --epsilon <n>       Cutoff threshold for render (default: 0.01)
+  --pipe, -p          Read { type, value } JSON from stdin for render"
+`;

packages/cli-json-cas/src/e2e.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,630 @@
+import { afterAll, beforeAll, describe, expect, test } from "bun:test";
+import { mkdtempSync, readFileSync, rmSync, writeFileSync } from "node:fs";
+import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
+import { join, resolve } from "node:path";
+
+const entrypoint = resolve(import.meta.dir, "index.ts");
+
+let tmpStore: string;
+let varDbPath: string;
+
+// Shared hashes across phases
+let typeHash: string;
+let nodeHash: string;
+
+beforeAll(() => {
+  tmpStore = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "json-cas-e2e-"));
+  varDbPath = join(tmpStore, "variables.db");
+});
+
+afterAll(() => {
+  rmSync(tmpStore, { recursive: true, force: true });
+});
+
+async function runCli(
+  args: string[],
+): Promise<{ stdout: string; stderr: string; exitCode: number }> {
+  const proc = Bun.spawn(
+    ["bun", entrypoint, "--store", tmpStore, "--var-db", varDbPath, ...args],
+    { stdout: "pipe", stderr: "pipe" },
+  );
+  const exitCode = await proc.exited;
+  const stdout = (await new Response(proc.stdout).text()).trim();
+  const stderr = (await new Response(proc.stderr).text()).trim();
+  return { stdout, stderr, exitCode };
+}
+
+/**
+ * Parse JSON and strip volatile fields (timestamp, created, updated)
+ * so snapshots are stable across runs.
+ */
+function stripVolatile(json: string): unknown {
+  const strip = (v: unknown): unknown => {
+    if (Array.isArray(v)) return v.map(strip);
+    if (v !== null && typeof v === "object") {
+      const out: Record<string, unknown> = {};
+      for (const [k, val] of Object.entries(v as Record<string, unknown>)) {
+        if (k === "timestamp" || k === "created" || k === "updated") continue;
+        out[k] = strip(val);
+      }
+      return out;
+    }
+    return v;
+  };
+  return strip(JSON.parse(json));
+}
+
+/** Extract the `value` field from a { type, value } envelope JSON string. */
+function envValue(json: string): unknown {
+  return (JSON.parse(json) as { value: unknown }).value;
+}
+
+/** Run a CLI command feeding `stdin` to its standard input. */
+async function runCliWithStdin(
+  args: string[],
+  stdin: string,
+): Promise<{ stdout: string; stderr: string; exitCode: number }> {
+  const proc = Bun.spawn(
+    ["bun", entrypoint, "--store", tmpStore, "--var-db", varDbPath, ...args],
+    { stdin: "pipe", stdout: "pipe", stderr: "pipe" },
+  );
+  proc.stdin.write(stdin);
+  proc.stdin.end();
+  const exitCode = await proc.exited;
+  const stdout = (await new Response(proc.stdout).text()).trim();
+  const stderr = (await new Response(proc.stderr).text()).trim();
+  return { stdout, stderr, exitCode };
+}
+
+// ---- Phase 1: CAS Core ----
+
+describe("Phase 1: CAS Core", () => {
+  test("1.1 init + put with @object bootstraps store", async () => {
+    const schemaFile = join(tmpStore, "test-schema.json");
+    writeFileSync(
+      schemaFile,
+      JSON.stringify({
+        type: "object",
+        properties: {
+          name: { type: "string" },
+          age: { type: "number" },
+        },
+        required: ["name"],
+        additionalProperties: false,
+      }),
+    );
+    // Use putSchema via the library to register schema, since CLI schema put is removed
+    const { openStore: openFsStore } = await import("@uncaged/json-cas-fs");
+    const { putSchema } = await import("@uncaged/json-cas");
+    const store = await openFsStore(tmpStore);
+    const hash = await putSchema(
+      store,
+      JSON.parse(readFileSync(schemaFile, "utf-8")),
+    );
+    typeHash = hash;
+    expect(typeHash).toMatch(/^[0-9A-HJKMNP-TV-Z]{13}$/);
+  });
+
+  test("1.5 put returns node hash", async () => {
+    const nodeFile = join(tmpStore, "test-node.json");
+    writeFileSync(nodeFile, JSON.stringify({ name: "Alice", age: 30 }));
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["put", typeHash, nodeFile]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(envValue(stdout)).toMatch(/^[0-9A-HJKMNP-TV-Z]{13}$/);
+    nodeHash = envValue(stdout) as string;
+  });
+
+  test("1.6 get returns node JSON (snapshot)", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["get", nodeHash]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("1.7 has returns true for existing node", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["has", nodeHash]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(envValue(stdout)).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  test("1.8 has returns false for non-existing hash", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["has", "AAAAAAAAAAAAA"]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(envValue(stdout)).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  test("1.9 verify returns ok for valid node", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["verify", nodeHash]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("1.10 refs lists direct references (snapshot)", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["refs", nodeHash]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stdout).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("1.11 walk shows traversal tree (snapshot)", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["walk", nodeHash]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stdout).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("1.12 hash dry-run returns same hash as put", async () => {
+    const nodeFile = join(tmpStore, "test-node.json");
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["hash", typeHash, nodeFile]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(envValue(stdout)).toBe(nodeHash);
+  });
+
+  test("1.13 list --type returns nodes of that type", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["list", "--type", typeHash]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(envValue(stdout)).toContain(nodeHash);
+  });
+});
+
+// ---- Phase 2: Schema Validation ----
+
+describe("Phase 2: Schema Validation", () => {
+  test("2.1 put {name:123} against string-schema fails with non-zero exit", async () => {
+    const badFile = join(tmpStore, "bad-node.json");
+    writeFileSync(badFile, JSON.stringify({ name: 123 }));
+    const { stdout, stderr, exitCode } = await runCli([
+      "put",
+      typeHash,
+      badFile,
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).not.toBe(0);
+    expect(stdout).toBe("");
+    expect(stderr).toContain("Validation failed");
+    expect(stderr).toContain(typeHash);
+    // Do NOT snapshot stderr — it embeds a machine-specific tmp path
+  });
+
+  test("2.2 verify on valid node returns ok (hash + schema)", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["verify", nodeHash]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(envValue(stdout)).toBe("ok");
+  });
+
+  test("2.3 put against non-existent schema hash fails", async () => {
+    const nodeFile = join(tmpStore, "test-node.json");
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli([
+      "put",
+      "AAAAAAAAAAAAA",
+      nodeFile,
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).not.toBe(0);
+    expect(stderr).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+});
+
+// ---- Phase 3: Variable System ----
+
+describe("Phase 3: Variable System", () => {
+  test("3.1 var set creates variable", async () => {
+    const { exitCode, stdout } = await runCli([
+      "var",
+      "set",
+      "myapp/config",
+      nodeHash,
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("3.2 var get returns variable", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli([
+      "var",
+      "get",
+      "myapp/config",
+      "--schema",
+      typeHash,
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+    expect(stdout).toContain(nodeHash);
+  });
+
+  test("3.3 var list shows all variables", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["var", "list"]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+    expect(stdout).toContain("myapp/config");
+  });
+
+  test("3.4 var list prefix filters by prefix", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["var", "list", "myapp/"]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+    expect(stdout).toContain("myapp/config");
+  });
+
+  test("3.5 var set upsert updates existing variable", async () => {
+    const node2File = join(tmpStore, "node2.json");
+    writeFileSync(node2File, JSON.stringify({ name: "Bob", age: 25 }));
+    const { stdout: node2Out } = await runCli(["put", typeHash, node2File]);
+    const node2Hash = envValue(node2Out) as string;
+    const { exitCode, stdout } = await runCli([
+      "var",
+      "set",
+      "myapp/config",
+      node2Hash,
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+    // Restore original value
+    await runCli(["var", "set", "myapp/config", nodeHash]);
+  });
+
+  test("3.6 var tag adds kv tag and label", async () => {
+    const { exitCode, stdout } = await runCli([
+      "var",
+      "tag",
+      "myapp/config",
+      "--schema",
+      typeHash,
+      "env:prod",
+      "important",
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("3.7 var list --tag env:prod filters by kv tag", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli([
+      "var",
+      "list",
+      "--tag",
+      "env:prod",
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stdout).toContain("myapp/config");
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("3.8 var list --tag important filters by label", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli([
+      "var",
+      "list",
+      "--tag",
+      "important",
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stdout).toContain("myapp/config");
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("3.9 var tag remove deletes label", async () => {
+    const { exitCode, stdout } = await runCli([
+      "var",
+      "tag",
+      "myapp/config",
+      "--schema",
+      typeHash,
+      ":important",
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+    // Verify label is gone
+    const { stdout: listOut } = await runCli([
+      "var",
+      "list",
+      "--tag",
+      "important",
+    ]);
+    expect(listOut).not.toContain("myapp/config");
+  });
+
+  test("3.10 var delete removes variable", async () => {
+    const { exitCode, stdout } = await runCli([
+      "var",
+      "delete",
+      "myapp/config",
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("3.11 var get deleted variable returns not found", async () => {
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli([
+      "var",
+      "get",
+      "myapp/config",
+      "--schema",
+      typeHash,
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).not.toBe(0);
+    expect(stderr).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+});
+
+// ---- Phase 4: Template System ----
+
+describe("Phase 4: Template System", () => {
+  test("4.1 template set registers template", async () => {
+    const tmplFile = join(tmpStore, "test.liquid");
+    writeFileSync(tmplFile, "Name: {{ payload.name }}, Age: {{ payload.age }}");
+    const { exitCode, stdout } = await runCli([
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      typeHash,
+      tmplFile,
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("4.2 template get returns template text", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["template", "get", typeHash]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(envValue(stdout)).toBe(
+      "Name: {{ payload.name }}, Age: {{ payload.age }}",
+    );
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("4.3 template list shows registered templates", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["template", "list"]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stdout).toContain(typeHash);
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("4.4 template delete removes template", async () => {
+    const { exitCode, stdout } = await runCli(["template", "delete", typeHash]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stripVolatile(stdout)).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("4.5 template get deleted template returns not found", async () => {
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli(["template", "get", typeHash]);
+    expect(exitCode).not.toBe(0);
+    expect(stderr).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+});
+
+// ---- Phase 5: Render ----
+
+describe("Phase 5: Render", () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
+    const tmplFile = join(tmpStore, "render-template.liquid");
+    writeFileSync(tmplFile, "Hello {{ payload.name }}!");
+    await runCli(["template", "set", typeHash, tmplFile]);
+  });
+
+  test("5.1 render fills payload variables", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["render", nodeHash]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stdout).toBe("Hello Alice!");
+    expect(stdout).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("5.2 render --resolution with different value", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli([
+      "render",
+      nodeHash,
+      "--resolution",
+      "0.5",
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stdout).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("5.3 render non-existent hash fails with error", async () => {
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli(["render", "ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ"]);
+    expect(exitCode).not.toBe(0);
+    expect(stderr).toContain("Node not found");
+    expect(stderr).toContain("ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ");
+  });
+});
+
+// ---- Phase 6: GC ----
+
+describe("Phase 6: GC", () => {
+  let gcNodeHash: string;
+
+  beforeAll(async () => {
+    // Create a fresh node for GC tests (independent of shared nodeHash)
+    const gcNodeFile = join(tmpStore, "gc-node.json");
+    writeFileSync(gcNodeFile, JSON.stringify({ name: "GcAlice", age: 30 }));
+    const { stdout } = await runCli(["put", typeHash, gcNodeFile]);
+    gcNodeHash = envValue(stdout) as string;
+    // Set a var referencing this node so it survives GC during Phase 6
+    await runCli(["var", "set", "gc-test/ref", gcNodeHash]);
+  });
+
+  test("6.1 gc runs without error", async () => {
+    const { exitCode, stdout } = await runCli(["gc"]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    // Assert structural shape only — exact counts depend on phase history
+    const result = envValue(stdout) as Record<string, unknown>;
+    expect(typeof result.total).toBe("number");
+    expect(typeof result.reachable).toBe("number");
+    expect(typeof result.collected).toBe("number");
+    expect(typeof result.scanned).toBe("number");
+    expect(result.total as number).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(
+      result.reachable as number,
+    );
+  });
+
+  test("6.2 gc preserves node referenced by a var", async () => {
+    const { exitCode } = await runCli(["gc"]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    const { stdout } = await runCli(["has", gcNodeHash]);
+    expect(envValue(stdout)).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  test("6.3 gc reclaims orphan node", async () => {
+    const orphanFile = join(tmpStore, "orphan.json");
+    writeFileSync(orphanFile, JSON.stringify({ name: "Orphan", age: 99 }));
+    const { stdout: orphanOut } = await runCli(["put", typeHash, orphanFile]);
+    const orphanHash = envValue(orphanOut) as string;
+
+    const { stdout: beforeGc } = await runCli(["has", orphanHash]);
+    expect(envValue(beforeGc)).toBe(true);
+
+    await runCli(["gc"]);
+    const { stdout: afterGc } = await runCli(["has", orphanHash]);
+    expect(envValue(afterGc)).toBe(false);
+  });
+});
+
+// ---- Phase 7: Edge Cases ----
+
+describe("Phase 7: Edge Cases", () => {
+  test("7.1 get non-existent hash errors gracefully", async () => {
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli(["get", "AAAAAAAAAAAAA"]);
+    expect(exitCode).not.toBe(0);
+    expect(stderr).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("7.2 put with non-existent file errors with ENOENT", async () => {
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli([
+      "put",
+      typeHash,
+      "/nonexistent/file.json",
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).not.toBe(0);
+    expect(stderr).toContain("ENOENT");
+  });
+
+  test("7.3 var set empty name errors", async () => {
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli(["var", "set", "", nodeHash]);
+    expect(exitCode).not.toBe(0);
+    expect(stderr.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
+    expect(stderr).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("7.4 var set name with invalid chars errors", async () => {
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli([
+      "var",
+      "set",
+      "invalid name!",
+      nodeHash,
+    ]);
+    expect(exitCode).not.toBe(0);
+    expect(stderr.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
+    expect(stderr).toMatchSnapshot();
+  });
+
+  test("7.5 no subcommand shows help text", async () => {
+    const { stdout, stderr, exitCode: _exitCode } = await runCli([]);
+    const combined = stdout + stderr;
+    expect(combined.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
+    expect(combined).toMatchSnapshot();
+    expect(combined.toLowerCase()).toContain("usage");
+  });
+
+  test("7.6 --store path is a file errors", async () => {
+    const fileAsStore = join(tmpStore, "not-a-directory");
+    writeFileSync(fileAsStore, "test");
+    const proc = Bun.spawn(
+      [
+        "bun",
+        entrypoint,
+        "--store",
+        fileAsStore,
+        "--var-db",
+        varDbPath,
+        "get",
+        "AAAAAAAAAAAAA",
+      ],
+      { stdout: "pipe", stderr: "pipe" },
+    );
+    const exitCode = await proc.exited;
+    const stderr = (await new Response(proc.stderr).text()).trim();
+    expect(exitCode).not.toBe(0);
+    expect(stderr).toContain("not a directory");
+  });
+});
+
+// ---- Phase 8: Pipe Composition ----
+//
+// Every JSON command emits a { type, value } envelope, so its stdout can be
+// fed straight into `render --pipe` (which renders the envelope value) or into
+// any downstream JSON consumer. These tests verify the envelopes compose
+// end-to-end.
+
+describe("Phase 8: Pipe Composition", () => {
+  test("8.1 put | render -p expands the stored hash to its content", async () => {
+    const nodeFile = join(tmpStore, "pipe-node.json");
+    writeFileSync(nodeFile, JSON.stringify({ name: "Bob", age: 42 }));
+
+    const { stdout: putOut, exitCode: putExit } = await runCli([
+      "put",
+      typeHash,
+      nodeFile,
+    ]);
+    expect(putExit).toBe(0);
+
+    // The put envelope value is a cas_ref hash; render -p dereferences it and
+    // renders the stored node's payload.
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCliWithStdin(
+      ["render", "--pipe"],
+      putOut,
+    );
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stdout).toContain("Bob");
+  });
+
+  test("8.2 gc | render -p renders the gc stats", async () => {
+    const { stdout: gcOut, exitCode: gcExit } = await runCli(["gc"]);
+    expect(gcExit).toBe(0);
+
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCliWithStdin(
+      ["render", "--pipe"],
+      gcOut,
+    );
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    // gc value is an object { total, reachable, collected, scanned }
+    expect(stdout).toContain("total:");
+  });
+
+  test("8.3 list --type @schema emits a parseable envelope of hashes", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["list", "--type", "@schema"]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+
+    // Downstream consumers (jq, etc.) read the `value` array of hashes.
+    const value = envValue(stdout) as string[];
+    expect(Array.isArray(value)).toBe(true);
+    for (const hash of value) {
+      expect(hash).toMatch(/^[0-9A-HJKMNP-TV-Z]{13}$/);
+    }
+  });
+
+  test("8.4 list --type @schema | render -p expands the schema list", async () => {
+    const { stdout: listOut } = await runCli(["list", "--type", "@schema"]);
+    // list result items are cas_ref hashes; render -p dereferences each one
+    // and renders the schema contents.
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCliWithStdin(
+      ["render", "--pipe"],
+      listOut,
+    );
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stdout.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
+  });
+
+  test("8.5 render <hash> uses a registered template", async () => {
+    // Register a template for the schema, then render a fresh node by hash.
+    const tmplFile = join(tmpStore, "pipe-render.liquid");
+    writeFileSync(tmplFile, "Person: {{ payload.name }} ({{ payload.age }})");
+    const { exitCode: setExit } = await runCli([
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      typeHash,
+      tmplFile,
+    ]);
+    expect(setExit).toBe(0);
+
+    const nodeFile = join(tmpStore, "pipe-render-node.json");
+    writeFileSync(nodeFile, JSON.stringify({ name: "Carol", age: 25 }));
+    const { stdout: putOut } = await runCli(["put", typeHash, nodeFile]);
+    const freshHash = envValue(putOut) as string;
+
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(["render", freshHash]);
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stdout).toBe("Person: Carol (25)");
+  });
+});

packages/cli-json-cas/src/template.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,639 @@
+import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, test } from "bun:test";
+import { mkdirSync, rmSync, writeFileSync } from "node:fs";
+import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
+import { join } from "node:path";
+import type { Hash, Store } from "@uncaged/json-cas";
+import { bootstrap } from "@uncaged/json-cas";
+import { createFsStore } from "@uncaged/json-cas-fs";
+
+// ---- Test helpers ----
+
+let testDir: string;
+let storePath: string;
+let varDbPath: string;
+let cliPath: string;
+
+beforeEach(() => {
+  // Create unique temp directory for each test
+  testDir = join(
+    tmpdir(),
+    `json-cas-test-${Date.now()}-${Math.random().toString(36).slice(2)}`,
+  );
+  storePath = join(testDir, "store");
+  varDbPath = join(testDir, "variables.db");
+  cliPath = join(import.meta.dir, "index.ts");
+
+  mkdirSync(testDir, { recursive: true });
+  mkdirSync(storePath, { recursive: true });
+});
+
+afterEach(() => {
+  // Clean up test directory
+  try {
+    rmSync(testDir, { recursive: true, force: true });
+  } catch {
+    // Ignore cleanup errors
+  }
+});
+
+/**
+ * Run CLI command and return stdout, stderr, and exit code
+ */
+async function runCli(...args: string[]): Promise<{
+  stdout: string;
+  stderr: string;
+  exitCode: number;
+}> {
+  const proc = Bun.spawn(
+    [
+      "bun",
+      "run",
+      cliPath,
+      "--store",
+      storePath,
+      "--var-db",
+      varDbPath,
+      ...args,
+    ],
+    {
+      stdout: "pipe",
+      stderr: "pipe",
+    },
+  );
+
+  const [stdout, stderr] = await Promise.all([
+    new Response(proc.stdout).text(),
+    new Response(proc.stderr).text(),
+  ]);
+
+  await proc.exited;
+
+  return {
+    stdout: stdout.trim(),
+    stderr: stderr.trim(),
+    exitCode: proc.exitCode ?? 0,
+  };
+}
+
+/**
+ * Get bootstrap @string type hash
+ */
+async function getStringHash(store: Store): Promise<Hash> {
+  const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+  return builtinSchemas["@string"] ?? "";
+}
+
+// ---- Tests ----
+
+describe("template set", () => {
+  test("set template from file", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const templateFile = join(testDir, "template.txt");
+    writeFileSync(templateFile, "Hello {{name}}!");
+
+    const { stdout, stderr, exitCode } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      stringHash,
+      templateFile,
+    );
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stderr).toBe("");
+
+    const envelope = JSON.parse(stdout);
+    expect(envelope).toHaveProperty("type");
+    expect(envelope.value).toHaveProperty("contentHash");
+    expect(envelope.value.schemaHash).toBe(stringHash);
+  });
+
+  test("set template with --inline flag", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      stringHash,
+      "--inline",
+      "Inline template content",
+    );
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+
+    const envelope = JSON.parse(stdout);
+    expect(envelope).toHaveProperty("type");
+    expect(envelope.value).toHaveProperty("contentHash");
+    expect(envelope.value.schemaHash).toBe(stringHash);
+  });
+
+  test("update existing template (idempotent)", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const templateFile = join(testDir, "template.txt");
+    writeFileSync(templateFile, "Version 1");
+
+    // Set first time
+    await runCli("template", "set", stringHash, templateFile);
+
+    // Update with new content
+    writeFileSync(templateFile, "Version 2");
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      stringHash,
+      templateFile,
+    );
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+
+    const envelope = JSON.parse(stdout);
+    expect(envelope.value).toHaveProperty("contentHash");
+
+    // Verify we can get the new version
+    const { stdout: getOut } = await runCli("template", "get", stringHash);
+    expect(JSON.parse(getOut).value).toBe("Version 2");
+  });
+
+  test("error when file not found", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      stringHash,
+      "/nonexistent/file.txt",
+    );
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(1);
+    expect(stderr).toContain("Error:");
+  });
+
+  test("error when schema hash invalid", async () => {
+    const templateFile = join(testDir, "template.txt");
+    writeFileSync(templateFile, "content");
+
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      "INVALID_HASH",
+      templateFile,
+    );
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(1);
+    expect(stderr).toContain("Error:");
+  });
+
+  test("error when both file and --inline provided", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const templateFile = join(testDir, "template.txt");
+    writeFileSync(templateFile, "content");
+
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      stringHash,
+      templateFile,
+      "--inline",
+      "inline content",
+    );
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(1);
+    expect(stderr).toContain("Error:");
+  });
+
+  test("support multi-line templates", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const multilineContent = "Line 1\nLine 2\nLine 3";
+    const { exitCode } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      stringHash,
+      "--inline",
+      multilineContent,
+    );
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+
+    // Verify content
+    const { stdout: getOut } = await runCli("template", "get", stringHash);
+    expect(JSON.parse(getOut).value).toBe(multilineContent);
+  });
+
+  test("support empty templates", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      stringHash,
+      "--inline",
+      "",
+    );
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+
+    const envelope = JSON.parse(stdout);
+    expect(envelope.value).toHaveProperty("contentHash");
+  });
+
+  test("error when neither file nor --inline provided", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli("template", "set", stringHash);
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(1);
+    expect(stderr).toContain("Usage:");
+  });
+
+  test("support templates with special characters", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const specialContent = "Template with {{var}} and $env and @ref";
+    const { exitCode } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      stringHash,
+      "--inline",
+      specialContent,
+    );
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+
+    // Verify content preserved
+    const { stdout: getOut } = await runCli("template", "get", stringHash);
+    expect(JSON.parse(getOut).value).toBe(specialContent);
+  });
+});
+
+describe("template get", () => {
+  test("retrieve template as envelope value", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const content = "Hello {{name}}!";
+    await runCli("template", "set", stringHash, "--inline", content);
+
+    const { stdout, stderr, exitCode } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "get",
+      stringHash,
+    );
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stderr).toBe("");
+    const envelope = JSON.parse(stdout);
+    expect(envelope).toHaveProperty("type");
+    expect(envelope.value).toBe(content);
+  });
+
+  test("error when template not found", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli("template", "get", stringHash);
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(1);
+    expect(stderr).toContain("Error:");
+    expect(stderr).toContain("not found");
+  });
+
+  test("preserve exact whitespace", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    // The envelope's value preserves exact whitespace (JSON-escaped),
+    // so trimming the surrounding JSON output is harmless.
+    const content = "spaces\n\ttabs\t\nmixed";
+    await runCli("template", "set", stringHash, "--inline", content);
+
+    const { stdout } = await runCli("template", "get", stringHash);
+
+    expect(JSON.parse(stdout).value).toBe(content);
+  });
+
+  test("support multi-line templates", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const multiline = "Line 1\nLine 2\nLine 3";
+    await runCli("template", "set", stringHash, "--inline", multiline);
+
+    const { stdout } = await runCli("template", "get", stringHash);
+
+    expect(JSON.parse(stdout).value).toBe(multiline);
+  });
+});
+
+describe("template list", () => {
+  test("list all templates", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    // Create multiple templates
+    await runCli("template", "set", stringHash, "--inline", "Template 1");
+    await runCli("template", "set", "SCHEMA_HASH_2", "--inline", "Template 2");
+
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli("template", "list");
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+
+    const envelope = JSON.parse(stdout);
+    expect(envelope).toHaveProperty("type");
+    expect(Array.isArray(envelope.value)).toBe(true);
+    expect(envelope.value.length).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(1);
+
+    // Check structure
+    const item = envelope.value[0];
+    expect(item).toHaveProperty("schemaHash");
+    expect(item).toHaveProperty("contentHash");
+  });
+
+  test("entry contentHash matches set result", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const { stdout: setOut } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      stringHash,
+      "--inline",
+      "Some template content",
+    );
+    const { contentHash } = JSON.parse(setOut).value;
+
+    const { stdout } = await runCli("template", "list");
+
+    const value = JSON.parse(stdout).value as Array<{
+      schemaHash: string;
+      contentHash: string;
+    }>;
+    const item = value.find((i) => i.schemaHash === stringHash);
+    expect(item).toBeDefined();
+    if (item) {
+      expect(item.contentHash).toBe(contentHash);
+    }
+  });
+
+  test("empty list when no templates", async () => {
+    const { stdout, exitCode } = await runCli("template", "list");
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+
+    const envelope = JSON.parse(stdout);
+    expect(Array.isArray(envelope.value)).toBe(true);
+    expect(envelope.value.length).toBe(0);
+  });
+
+  test("exclude non-template variables", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    // Create a template
+    await runCli("template", "set", stringHash, "--inline", "Template");
+
+    // Create a regular variable (not under @ucas/template/text/)
+    const hash = await store.put(stringHash, "regular var content");
+    await runCli("var", "set", "regular/var", hash);
+
+    const { stdout } = await runCli("template", "list");
+
+    const envelope = JSON.parse(stdout);
+    // Should only contain template variables
+    for (const item of envelope.value) {
+      expect(item.schemaHash).toBeDefined();
+    }
+  });
+
+  test("output JSON envelope with array value", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    await runCli("template", "set", stringHash, "--inline", "Test");
+
+    const { stdout } = await runCli("template", "list");
+
+    // Should be valid JSON
+    expect(() => JSON.parse(stdout)).not.toThrow();
+
+    const envelope = JSON.parse(stdout);
+    expect(Array.isArray(envelope.value)).toBe(true);
+  });
+});
+
+describe("template delete", () => {
+  test("delete template variable binding", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    await runCli("template", "set", stringHash, "--inline", "Template");
+
+    const { stdout, stderr, exitCode } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "delete",
+      stringHash,
+    );
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(0);
+    expect(stderr).toBe("");
+
+    const envelope = JSON.parse(stdout);
+    expect(envelope).toHaveProperty("type");
+    expect(envelope.value).toHaveProperty("deleted");
+    expect(envelope.value.deleted).toBe(true);
+
+    // Verify template is gone
+    const { exitCode: getExitCode } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "get",
+      stringHash,
+    );
+    expect(getExitCode).toBe(1);
+  });
+
+  test("error when template not found", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli("template", "delete", stringHash);
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(1);
+    expect(stderr).toContain("Error:");
+    expect(stderr).toContain("not found");
+  });
+
+  test("deletion does not affect other templates", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    // Create two templates
+    await runCli("template", "set", stringHash, "--inline", "Template 1");
+    await runCli("template", "set", "SCHEMA_HASH_2", "--inline", "Template 2");
+
+    // Delete first template
+    await runCli("template", "delete", stringHash);
+
+    // Verify second still exists
+    const { stdout } = await runCli("template", "list");
+    const value = JSON.parse(stdout).value as Array<{
+      schemaHash: string;
+      contentHash: string;
+    }>;
+
+    // Should not find deleted template
+    const deleted = value.find((i) => i.schemaHash === stringHash);
+    expect(deleted).toBeUndefined();
+  });
+
+  test("CAS content remains after variable deletion", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    await runCli("template", "set", stringHash, "--inline", "Content");
+
+    // Get the content hash before deletion
+    const { stdout: setOut } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      stringHash,
+      "--inline",
+      "Content",
+    );
+    const { contentHash } = JSON.parse(setOut).value;
+
+    // Delete the template variable
+    await runCli("template", "delete", stringHash);
+
+    // Verify CAS node still exists
+    const { exitCode: hasExitCode } = await runCli("has", contentHash);
+    expect(hasExitCode).toBe(0);
+  });
+
+  test("deletion is non-idempotent (second delete fails)", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    await runCli("template", "set", stringHash, "--inline", "Template");
+
+    // First deletion succeeds
+    const { exitCode: firstExit } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "delete",
+      stringHash,
+    );
+    expect(firstExit).toBe(0);
+
+    // Second deletion fails
+    const { exitCode: secondExit } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "delete",
+      stringHash,
+    );
+    expect(secondExit).toBe(1);
+  });
+});
+
+describe("template integration", () => {
+  test("end-to-end workflow: set→get→list→delete", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    const content = "Integration test template";
+
+    // Set
+    const { exitCode: setExit } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "set",
+      stringHash,
+      "--inline",
+      content,
+    );
+    expect(setExit).toBe(0);
+
+    // Get
+    const { stdout: getOut, exitCode: getExit } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "get",
+      stringHash,
+    );
+    expect(getExit).toBe(0);
+    expect(JSON.parse(getOut).value).toBe(content);
+
+    // List
+    const { stdout: listOut, exitCode: listExit } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "list",
+    );
+    expect(listExit).toBe(0);
+    const listData = JSON.parse(listOut).value;
+    expect(listData.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
+
+    // Delete
+    const { exitCode: delExit } = await runCli(
+      "template",
+      "delete",
+      stringHash,
+    );
+    expect(delExit).toBe(0);
+
+    // Verify deleted
+    const { exitCode: finalGet } = await runCli("template", "get", stringHash);
+    expect(finalGet).toBe(1);
+  });
+
+  test("templates compatible with generic var commands", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    // Set via template command
+    await runCli("template", "set", stringHash, "--inline", "Content");
+
+    // List via var command - should see template variable
+    const { stdout } = await runCli("var", "list", "@ucas/template/text/");
+
+    const output = JSON.parse(stdout);
+    expect(output.value.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
+  });
+
+  test("multiple templates for different schemas", async () => {
+    const store = createFsStore(storePath);
+    const stringHash = await getStringHash(store);
+
+    // Create templates for different schemas
+    await runCli("template", "set", stringHash, "--inline", "Template 1");
+    await runCli("template", "set", "SCHEMA_HASH_2", "--inline", "Template 2");
+    await runCli("template", "set", "SCHEMA_HASH_3", "--inline", "Template 3");
+
+    // List should show all
+    const { stdout } = await runCli("template", "list");
+    const value = JSON.parse(stdout).value;
+    expect(value.length).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(1);
+  });
+});
+
+describe("template error handling", () => {
+  test("unknown template subcommand", async () => {
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli("template", "unknown");
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(1);
+    expect(stderr).toContain("Unknown");
+  });
+
+  test("missing schema hash argument", async () => {
+    const { stderr, exitCode } = await runCli("template", "set");
+
+    expect(exitCode).toBe(1);
+    expect(stderr).toContain("Usage:");
+  });
+});

packages/json-cas-fs/src/index.ts

@@ -1 +1 @@
-export { createFsStore } from "./store.js";
+export { createFsStore, openStore } from "./store.js";

packages/json-cas-fs/src/store.test.ts

@@ -1,5 +1,11 @@
 import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, test } from "bun:test";
-import { existsSync, mkdtempSync, readdirSync, rmSync } from "node:fs";
+import {
+  existsSync,
+  mkdtempSync,
+  readdirSync,
+  rmSync,
+  writeFileSync,
+} from "node:fs";
 import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
 import { join } from "node:path";
 import type { CasNode } from "@uncaged/json-cas";
@@ -10,7 +16,7 @@ import {
   verify,
 } from "@uncaged/json-cas";
 
-import { createFsStore } from "./store.js";
+import { createFsStore, openStore } from "./store.js";
 
 function makeTmpDir(): string {
   return mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "json-cas-fs-test-"));
@@ -43,7 +49,8 @@ describe("createFsStore – init and bootstrap", () => {
 
   test("bootstrap returns a valid 13-char self-referencing hash", async () => {
     const store = createFsStore(dir);
-    const hash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const hash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
 
     expect(hash).toHaveLength(13);
     expect(hash).toMatch(/^[0-9A-HJKMNP-TV-Z]{13}$/);
@@ -57,8 +64,8 @@ describe("createFsStore – init and bootstrap", () => {
     const h1 = await bootstrap(store);
     const h2 = await bootstrap(store);
 
-    expect(h1).toBe(h2);
-    expect(store.listByType(h1)).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(h1).toEqual(h2);
+    expect(store.listByType(h1["@schema"] ?? "")).toHaveLength(24);
   });
 });
 
@@ -104,7 +111,8 @@ describe("createFsStore – persistence round-trip", () => {
 
   test("bootstrap survives round-trip: self-referencing node reloads correctly", async () => {
     const store1 = createFsStore(dir);
-    const hash = await bootstrap(store1);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store1);
+    const hash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
 
     const store2 = createFsStore(dir);
     const node = store2.get(hash) as CasNode;
@@ -251,10 +259,11 @@ describe("createFsStore – listByType", () => {
 
   test("bootstrap node is listed under its self type after reload", async () => {
     const store1 = createFsStore(dir);
-    const hash = await bootstrap(store1);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store1);
+    const hash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
 
     const store2 = createFsStore(dir);
-    expect(store2.listByType(hash)).toEqual([hash]);
+    expect(store2.listByType(hash)).toContain(hash);
   });
 });
 
@@ -284,7 +293,8 @@ describe("createFsStore – verify on disk-loaded nodes", () => {
 
   test("verify passes on a disk-loaded bootstrap node", async () => {
     const store1 = createFsStore(dir);
-    const hash = await bootstrap(store1);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store1);
+    const hash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
 
     const store2 = createFsStore(dir);
     const node = store2.get(hash) as CasNode;
@@ -308,3 +318,114 @@ describe("createFsStore – verify on disk-loaded nodes", () => {
     }
   });
 });
+
+// ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// openStore – async with auto-bootstrap
+// ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+describe("openStore – async with auto-bootstrap", () => {
+  let dir: string;
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    dir = makeTmpDir();
+  });
+  afterEach(() => {
+    rmSync(dir, { recursive: true, force: true });
+  });
+
+  test("openStore returns Promise<Store>", async () => {
+    const store = await openStore(dir);
+    expect(store).toBeDefined();
+    expect(typeof store.put).toBe("function");
+    expect(typeof store.get).toBe("function");
+  });
+
+  test("openStore auto-creates directory when it doesn't exist", async () => {
+    const nested = join(dir, "sub", "nested", "store");
+    expect(existsSync(nested)).toBe(false);
+
+    const store = await openStore(nested);
+    expect(existsSync(nested)).toBe(true);
+
+    // Verify store works
+    const typeHash = await computeSelfHash({ name: "t" });
+    const hash = await store.put(typeHash, { x: 1 });
+    expect(store.has(hash)).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  test("openStore works when directory already exists", async () => {
+    // Pre-create the directory
+    const store1 = await openStore(dir);
+    const typeHash = await computeSelfHash({ name: "t" });
+    await store1.put(typeHash, { x: 1 });
+
+    // Open again
+    const store2 = await openStore(dir);
+    expect(store2.listByType(typeHash)).toHaveLength(1);
+  });
+
+  test("openStore throws error when path exists but is not a directory", async () => {
+    const filePath = join(dir, "not-a-dir");
+    writeFileSync(filePath, "test");
+
+    await expect(openStore(filePath)).rejects.toThrow();
+  });
+
+  test("openStore auto-bootstraps on first open (empty directory)", async () => {
+    const store = await openStore(dir);
+
+    // Check that bootstrap schemas exist
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"];
+
+    expect(metaHash).toBeDefined();
+    expect(store.has(metaHash as string)).toBe(true);
+
+    // Verify all core schemas exist
+    expect(store.has(builtinSchemas["@string"] as string)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(builtinSchemas["@number"] as string)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(builtinSchemas["@object"] as string)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(builtinSchemas["@array"] as string)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(builtinSchemas["@bool"] as string)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(builtinSchemas["@schema"] as string)).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  test("openStore bootstrap is idempotent on subsequent opens", async () => {
+    const store1 = await openStore(dir);
+    const schemas1 = await bootstrap(store1);
+    const count1 = store1.listAll().length;
+
+    const store2 = await openStore(dir);
+    const schemas2 = await bootstrap(store2);
+    const count2 = store2.listAll().length;
+
+    // Same schemas, same count
+    expect(schemas1).toEqual(schemas2);
+    expect(count1).toBe(count2);
+  });
+
+  test("openStore works on already-bootstrapped store", async () => {
+    // Bootstrap manually first
+    const store1 = createFsStore(dir);
+    const schemas1 = await bootstrap(store1);
+
+    // Open with openStore
+    const store2 = await openStore(dir);
+    const schemas2 = await bootstrap(store2);
+
+    expect(schemas1).toEqual(schemas2);
+  });
+
+  test("openStore auto-bootstraps old store without bootstrap", async () => {
+    // Create a store with some data but no bootstrap
+    const store1 = createFsStore(dir);
+    const typeHash = await computeSelfHash({ name: "custom" });
+    await store1.put(typeHash, { data: "old" });
+
+    // Open with openStore - should auto-bootstrap
+    const store2 = await openStore(dir);
+    const schemas = await bootstrap(store2);
+
+    expect(store2.has(schemas["@schema"] as string)).toBe(true);
+    // Old data still exists
+    expect(store2.listByType(typeHash)).toHaveLength(1);
+  });
+});

packages/json-cas-fs/src/store.ts

@@ -5,6 +5,8 @@ import {
   readdirSync,
   readFileSync,
   renameSync,
+  statSync,
+  unlinkSync,
   writeFileSync,
 } from "node:fs";
 import { join } from "node:path";
@@ -12,6 +14,7 @@ import type { BootstrapCapableStore, CasNode, Hash } from "@uncaged/json-cas";
 
 import {
   BOOTSTRAP_STORE,
+  bootstrap,
   cborEncode,
   computeHash,
   computeSelfHash,
@@ -175,8 +178,100 @@ export function createFsStore(dir: string): BootstrapCapableStore {
       return typeIndex.get(typeHash) ?? [];
     },
 
+    listAll(): Hash[] {
+      return Array.from(data.keys());
+    },
+
+    delete(hash: Hash): void {
+      const node = data.get(hash);
+      if (node) {
+        data.delete(hash);
+        // Delete file
+        try {
+          unlinkSync(join(dir, `${hash}.bin`));
+        } catch {
+          // ignore if file doesn't exist
+        }
+        // Remove from type index
+        const list = typeIndex.get(node.type);
+        if (list) {
+          const idx = list.indexOf(hash);
+          if (idx !== -1) {
+            list.splice(idx, 1);
+          }
+          if (list.length === 0) {
+            typeIndex.delete(node.type);
+            // Delete empty index file
+            try {
+              unlinkSync(join(indexDir, node.type));
+            } catch {
+              // ignore
+            }
+          } else {
+            // Rewrite index file
+            const body = `${list.join("\n")}\n`;
+            writeFileSync(join(indexDir, node.type), body, "utf8");
+          }
+        }
+      }
+    },
+
     [BOOTSTRAP_STORE]: putSelfReferencing,
   };
 
   return store;
 }
+
+/**
+ * Open a filesystem-backed CAS store with automatic directory creation and bootstrap.
+ * This is an async function that:
+ * 1. Creates the directory (with recursive: true) if it doesn't exist
+ * 2. Validates that the path is actually a directory (not a file)
+ * 3. Creates the store
+ * 4. Runs bootstrap (which is idempotent)
+ *
+ * @param dir - The directory path for the store
+ * @returns A Promise resolving to the BootstrapCapableStore
+ * @throws Error if the path exists but is not a directory
+ */
+export async function openStore(dir: string): Promise<BootstrapCapableStore> {
+  // Create directory if it doesn't exist
+  try {
+    mkdirSync(dir, { recursive: true });
+  } catch (error) {
+    if (error instanceof Error && "code" in error) {
+      const nodeError = error as NodeJS.ErrnoException;
+      if (nodeError.code === "EACCES") {
+        throw new Error(`Permission denied: cannot access store at ${dir}`);
+      }
+      if (nodeError.code === "ENOTDIR") {
+        throw new Error(`Path exists but is not a directory: ${dir}`);
+      }
+    }
+    throw error;
+  }
+
+  // Validate that the path is a directory
+  try {
+    const stats = statSync(dir);
+    if (!stats.isDirectory()) {
+      throw new Error(`Path exists but is not a directory: ${dir}`);
+    }
+  } catch (error) {
+    if (error instanceof Error && "code" in error) {
+      const nodeError = error as NodeJS.ErrnoException;
+      if (nodeError.code === "ENOENT") {
+        throw new Error(`Store not found at ${dir}`);
+      }
+    }
+    throw error;
+  }
+
+  // Create the store
+  const store = createFsStore(dir);
+
+  // Bootstrap (idempotent)
+  await bootstrap(store);
+
+  return store;
+}

packages/json-cas/package.json

@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@
   "dependencies": {
     "ajv": "^8.20.0",
     "cborg": "^4.2.3",
+    "liquidjs": "^10.27.0",
     "xxhash-wasm": "^1.1.0"
   }
 }

packages/json-cas/src/bootstrap.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,318 @@
+import { describe, expect, test } from "bun:test";
+import { bootstrap } from "./bootstrap.js";
+import type { JSONSchema } from "./schema.js";
+import { getSchema } from "./schema.js";
+import { createMemoryStore } from "./store.js";
+
+const OUTPUT_ALIASES = [
+  "@output/put",
+  "@output/get",
+  "@output/has",
+  "@output/hash",
+  "@output/verify",
+  "@output/refs",
+  "@output/walk",
+  "@output/list",
+  "@output/var-set",
+  "@output/var-get",
+  "@output/var-delete",
+  "@output/var-tag",
+  "@output/var-list",
+  "@output/template-set",
+  "@output/template-get",
+  "@output/template-list",
+  "@output/template-delete",
+  "@output/gc",
+] as const;
+
+// ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// Built-in Schema Registration Tests
+// ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+describe("bootstrap - Built-in Schemas", () => {
+  test("should return map of 24 built-in schema aliases to hashes", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    // Should return object with 6 primitive + 18 output aliases = 24
+    expect(builtinSchemas).toHaveProperty("@schema");
+    expect(builtinSchemas).toHaveProperty("@string");
+    expect(builtinSchemas).toHaveProperty("@number");
+    expect(builtinSchemas).toHaveProperty("@object");
+    expect(builtinSchemas).toHaveProperty("@array");
+    expect(builtinSchemas).toHaveProperty("@bool");
+
+    for (const alias of OUTPUT_ALIASES) {
+      expect(builtinSchemas).toHaveProperty(alias);
+    }
+
+    expect(Object.keys(builtinSchemas)).toHaveLength(24);
+
+    // All values should be valid hashes
+    for (const [_alias, hash] of Object.entries(builtinSchemas)) {
+      expect(typeof hash).toBe("string");
+      expect(hash).toMatch(/^[0-9A-HJKMNP-TV-Z]{13}$/);
+    }
+  });
+
+  test("should register @schema as meta-schema alias", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"];
+    if (!metaHash) throw new Error("@schema not found");
+
+    const metaSchema = getSchema(store, metaHash);
+    expect(metaSchema).not.toBeNull();
+    expect(metaSchema?.type).toBe("object");
+    expect(metaSchema?.description).toBe("json-cas JSON Schema meta-schema");
+  });
+
+  test("should register @string schema correctly", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const stringHash = builtinSchemas["@string"];
+    if (!stringHash) throw new Error("@string not found");
+
+    const stringSchema = getSchema(store, stringHash);
+    expect(stringSchema).toEqual({ type: "string" });
+  });
+
+  test("should register @number schema correctly", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const numberHash = builtinSchemas["@number"];
+    if (!numberHash) throw new Error("@number not found");
+
+    const numberSchema = getSchema(store, numberHash);
+    expect(numberSchema).toEqual({ type: "number" });
+  });
+
+  test("should register @object schema correctly", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const objectHash = builtinSchemas["@object"];
+    if (!objectHash) throw new Error("@object not found");
+
+    const objectSchema = getSchema(store, objectHash);
+    expect(objectSchema).toEqual({ type: "object" });
+  });
+
+  test("should register @array schema correctly", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const arrayHash = builtinSchemas["@array"];
+    if (!arrayHash) throw new Error("@array not found");
+
+    const arraySchema = getSchema(store, arrayHash);
+    expect(arraySchema).toEqual({ type: "array" });
+  });
+
+  test("should register @bool schema correctly", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const boolHash = builtinSchemas["@bool"];
+    if (!boolHash) throw new Error("@bool not found");
+
+    const boolSchema = getSchema(store, boolHash);
+    expect(boolSchema).toEqual({ type: "boolean" });
+  });
+
+  test("should return same hashes on repeated bootstrap calls", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const first = await bootstrap(store);
+    const second = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    expect(first).toEqual(second);
+
+    // Verify each alias points to same hash
+    expect(first["@string"]).toBe(second["@string"]);
+    expect(first["@number"]).toBe(second["@number"]);
+    expect(first["@object"]).toBe(second["@object"]);
+    expect(first["@array"]).toBe(second["@array"]);
+    expect(first["@bool"]).toBe(second["@bool"]);
+    expect(first["@schema"]).toBe(second["@schema"]);
+  });
+
+  test("all built-in schemas should be typed by meta-schema", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"];
+    if (!metaHash) throw new Error("@schema not found");
+
+    for (const [alias, hash] of Object.entries(builtinSchemas)) {
+      if (alias === "@schema") continue; // meta-schema is self-typed
+
+      const node = store.get(hash);
+      expect(node).not.toBeNull();
+      expect(node?.type).toBe(metaHash);
+    }
+  });
+});
+
+// ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// @output/* Schema Registration Tests
+// ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+describe("bootstrap - @output/* Schemas", () => {
+  test("each @output/* schema has a title", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    for (const alias of OUTPUT_ALIASES) {
+      const hash = aliases[alias];
+      if (!hash) throw new Error(`${alias} not found`);
+
+      const schema = getSchema(store, hash) as JSONSchema;
+      expect(schema).not.toBeNull();
+      expect(typeof schema.title).toBe("string");
+      expect((schema.title as string).startsWith("ucas ")).toBe(true);
+    }
+  });
+
+  test("@output/put schema describes a cas_ref string", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+    const hash = aliases["@output/put"];
+    if (!hash) throw new Error("@output/put not found");
+
+    const schema = getSchema(store, hash);
+    expect(schema).toEqual({
+      type: "string",
+      format: "cas_ref",
+      title: "ucas put result",
+    });
+  });
+
+  test("@output/get schema describes object with type, payload, timestamp", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+    const hash = aliases["@output/get"];
+    if (!hash) throw new Error("@output/get not found");
+
+    const schema = getSchema(store, hash) as JSONSchema;
+    expect(schema.type).toBe("object");
+    expect(schema.title).toBe("ucas get result");
+
+    const props = schema.properties as Record<string, JSONSchema>;
+    expect(props.type).toEqual({ type: "string", format: "cas_ref" });
+    expect(props.payload).toEqual({});
+    expect(props.timestamp).toEqual({ type: "number" });
+  });
+
+  test("@output/has schema describes a boolean", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+    const hash = aliases["@output/has"];
+    if (!hash) throw new Error("@output/has not found");
+
+    expect(getSchema(store, hash)).toEqual({
+      type: "boolean",
+      title: "ucas has result",
+    });
+  });
+
+  test("@output/verify schema describes enum of ok|corrupted|invalid", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+    const hash = aliases["@output/verify"];
+    if (!hash) throw new Error("@output/verify not found");
+
+    const schema = getSchema(store, hash);
+    expect(schema).toEqual({
+      type: "string",
+      enum: ["ok", "corrupted", "invalid"],
+      title: "ucas verify result",
+    });
+  });
+
+  test("@output/refs schema describes array of cas_ref strings", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+    const hash = aliases["@output/refs"];
+    if (!hash) throw new Error("@output/refs not found");
+
+    expect(getSchema(store, hash)).toEqual({
+      type: "array",
+      items: { type: "string", format: "cas_ref" },
+      title: "ucas refs result",
+    });
+  });
+
+  test("@output/gc schema describes object with gc stats fields", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+    const hash = aliases["@output/gc"];
+    if (!hash) throw new Error("@output/gc not found");
+
+    const schema = getSchema(store, hash) as JSONSchema;
+    expect(schema.type).toBe("object");
+    expect(schema.title).toBe("ucas gc result");
+
+    const props = schema.properties as Record<string, JSONSchema>;
+    expect(props.total).toEqual({ type: "number" });
+    expect(props.reachable).toEqual({ type: "number" });
+    expect(props.collected).toEqual({ type: "number" });
+    expect(props.scanned).toEqual({ type: "number" });
+  });
+
+  test("@output/var-set schema describes a Variable object", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+    const hash = aliases["@output/var-set"];
+    if (!hash) throw new Error("@output/var-set not found");
+
+    const schema = getSchema(store, hash) as JSONSchema;
+    expect(schema.type).toBe("object");
+    expect(schema.title).toBe("ucas var set result");
+
+    const props = schema.properties as Record<string, JSONSchema>;
+    expect(props.name).toEqual({ type: "string" });
+    expect(props.schema).toEqual({ type: "string", format: "cas_ref" });
+    expect(props.value).toEqual({ type: "string", format: "cas_ref" });
+  });
+
+  test("@output/var-list schema describes array of Variable objects", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+    const hash = aliases["@output/var-list"];
+    if (!hash) throw new Error("@output/var-list not found");
+
+    const schema = getSchema(store, hash) as JSONSchema;
+    expect(schema.type).toBe("array");
+    expect(schema.title).toBe("ucas var list result");
+
+    const items = schema.items as JSONSchema;
+    expect(items.type).toBe("object");
+    const props = items.properties as Record<string, JSONSchema>;
+    expect(props.name).toEqual({ type: "string" });
+  });
+
+  test("@output/template-delete schema describes object with deleted boolean", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+    const hash = aliases["@output/template-delete"];
+    if (!hash) throw new Error("@output/template-delete not found");
+
+    expect(getSchema(store, hash)).toEqual({
+      type: "object",
+      properties: { deleted: { type: "boolean" } },
+      title: "ucas template delete result",
+    });
+  });
+
+  test("all @output/* schemas are distinct hashes", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const outputHashes = OUTPUT_ALIASES.map((alias) => aliases[alias]);
+    const uniqueHashes = new Set(outputHashes);
+    expect(uniqueHashes.size).toBe(OUTPUT_ALIASES.length);
+  });
+});

packages/json-cas/src/bootstrap.ts

@@ -63,14 +63,198 @@ const BOOTSTRAP_PAYLOAD = {
   },
 } as const;
 
+const VARIABLE_PROPERTIES = {
+  name: { type: "string" },
+  schema: { type: "string", format: "cas_ref" },
+  value: { type: "string", format: "cas_ref" },
+  created: { type: "number" },
+  updated: { type: "number" },
+  tags: { type: "object" },
+  labels: { type: "array", items: { type: "string" } },
+} as const;
+
+const OUTPUT_SCHEMAS: ReadonlyArray<
+  readonly [alias: string, schema: Record<string, unknown>]
+> = [
+  [
+    "@output/put",
+    { type: "string", format: "cas_ref", title: "ucas put result" },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/get",
+    {
+      type: "object",
+      properties: {
+        type: { type: "string", format: "cas_ref" },
+        payload: {},
+        timestamp: { type: "number" },
+      },
+      title: "ucas get result",
+    },
+  ],
+  ["@output/has", { type: "boolean", title: "ucas has result" }],
+  [
+    "@output/hash",
+    { type: "string", format: "cas_ref", title: "ucas hash result" },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/verify",
+    {
+      type: "string",
+      enum: ["ok", "corrupted", "invalid"],
+      title: "ucas verify result",
+    },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/refs",
+    {
+      type: "array",
+      items: { type: "string", format: "cas_ref" },
+      title: "ucas refs result",
+    },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/walk",
+    {
+      type: "array",
+      items: { type: "string" },
+      title: "ucas walk result",
+    },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/list",
+    {
+      type: "array",
+      items: { type: "string", format: "cas_ref" },
+      title: "ucas list result",
+    },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/var-set",
+    {
+      type: "object",
+      properties: { ...VARIABLE_PROPERTIES },
+      title: "ucas var set result",
+    },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/var-get",
+    {
+      type: "object",
+      properties: { ...VARIABLE_PROPERTIES },
+      title: "ucas var get result",
+    },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/var-delete",
+    {
+      type: "object",
+      properties: { ...VARIABLE_PROPERTIES },
+      title: "ucas var delete result",
+    },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/var-tag",
+    {
+      type: "object",
+      properties: { ...VARIABLE_PROPERTIES },
+      title: "ucas var tag result",
+    },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/var-list",
+    {
+      type: "array",
+      items: { type: "object", properties: { ...VARIABLE_PROPERTIES } },
+      title: "ucas var list result",
+    },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/template-set",
+    {
+      type: "object",
+      properties: {
+        schemaHash: { type: "string", format: "cas_ref" },
+        contentHash: { type: "string", format: "cas_ref" },
+      },
+      title: "ucas template set result",
+    },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/template-get",
+    { type: "string", title: "ucas template get result" },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/template-list",
+    {
+      type: "array",
+      items: {
+        type: "object",
+        properties: {
+          schemaHash: { type: "string", format: "cas_ref" },
+          contentHash: { type: "string", format: "cas_ref" },
+        },
+      },
+      title: "ucas template list result",
+    },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/template-delete",
+    {
+      type: "object",
+      properties: { deleted: { type: "boolean" } },
+      title: "ucas template delete result",
+    },
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/gc",
+    {
+      type: "object",
+      properties: {
+        total: { type: "number" },
+        reachable: { type: "number" },
+        collected: { type: "number" },
+        scanned: { type: "number" },
+      },
+      title: "ucas gc result",
+    },
+  ],
+];
+
 /**
- * Write the meta-schema seed node into the store.
- * The returned hash equals the node's own type field (self-referencing).
- * Idempotent: calling bootstrap multiple times returns the same hash.
+ * Write the meta-schema seed node into the store and register built-in schemas.
+ * The returned object contains aliases for the meta-schema, 5 primitive schemas,
+ * and 18 @output/* schemas (24 total).
+ * Idempotent: calling bootstrap multiple times returns the same hashes.
  */
-export async function bootstrap(store: Store): Promise<Hash> {
+export async function bootstrap(store: Store): Promise<Record<string, Hash>> {
   if (!isBootstrapCapableStore(store)) {
     throw new Error("Store does not support bootstrap");
   }
-  return store[BOOTSTRAP_STORE](BOOTSTRAP_PAYLOAD);
+
+  // 1. Bootstrap the meta-schema (self-referential)
+  const metaHash = await store[BOOTSTRAP_STORE](BOOTSTRAP_PAYLOAD);
+
+  // 2. Register built-in primitive schemas directly (without putSchema to avoid recursion)
+  const stringHash = await store.put(metaHash, { type: "string" });
+  const numberHash = await store.put(metaHash, { type: "number" });
+  const objectHash = await store.put(metaHash, { type: "object" });
+  const arrayHash = await store.put(metaHash, { type: "array" });
+  const boolHash = await store.put(metaHash, { type: "boolean" });
+
+  // 3. Register @output/* schemas
+  const aliases: Record<string, Hash> = {
+    "@schema": metaHash,
+    "@string": stringHash,
+    "@number": numberHash,
+    "@object": objectHash,
+    "@array": arrayHash,
+    "@bool": boolHash,
+  };
+
+  for (const [alias, schema] of OUTPUT_SCHEMAS) {
+    aliases[alias] = await store.put(metaHash, schema);
+  }
+
+  return aliases;
 }

packages/json-cas/src/gc.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,179 @@
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, test } from "bun:test";
+import { unlinkSync } from "node:fs";
+import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
+import { join } from "node:path";
+import { bootstrap } from "./bootstrap.js";
+import { gc } from "./gc.js";
+import { putSchema } from "./schema.js";
+import { createMemoryStore } from "./store.js";
+import type { Store } from "./types.js";
+import { VariableStore } from "./variable-store.js";
+
+const tmpDbPath = () =>
+  join(
+    tmpdir(),
+    `test-gc-${Date.now()}-${Math.random().toString(36).slice(2)}.db`,
+  );
+
+describe("GC - Variable Model Refactoring", () => {
+  let store: Store;
+  let dbPath: string;
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    try {
+      unlinkSync(dbPath);
+    } catch {
+      // Ignore cleanup errors
+    }
+  });
+
+  test("GC preserves variable-referenced nodes", async () => {
+    store = createMemoryStore();
+    await bootstrap(store);
+    const schema = { type: "object", properties: { name: { type: "string" } } };
+    const schemaHash = await putSchema(store, schema);
+
+    const hashRef = await store.put(schemaHash, { name: "referenced" });
+    const hashOrphan = await store.put(schemaHash, { name: "orphan" });
+
+    dbPath = tmpDbPath();
+    const varStore = new VariableStore(dbPath, store);
+
+    varStore.set("config", hashRef);
+
+    const stats = gc(store, varStore);
+
+    expect(store.has(hashRef)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(hashOrphan)).toBe(false);
+    expect(stats.scanned).toBe(1);
+    expect(stats.collected).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(1);
+
+    varStore.close();
+  });
+
+  test("GC preserves nodes from variables with same name, different schemas", async () => {
+    store = createMemoryStore();
+    await bootstrap(store);
+    const schemaA = { type: "object", properties: { x: { type: "number" } } };
+    const schemaB = { type: "object", properties: { y: { type: "string" } } };
+    const schemaAHash = await putSchema(store, schemaA);
+    const schemaBHash = await putSchema(store, schemaB);
+
+    const hashA = await store.put(schemaAHash, { x: 42 });
+    const hashB = await store.put(schemaBHash, { y: "hello" });
+    const hashOrphan = await store.put(schemaAHash, { x: 99 });
+
+    dbPath = tmpDbPath();
+    const varStore = new VariableStore(dbPath, store);
+
+    varStore.set("config", hashA);
+    varStore.set("config", hashB);
+
+    const stats = gc(store, varStore);
+
+    expect(store.has(hashA)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(hashB)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(hashOrphan)).toBe(false);
+    expect(stats.scanned).toBe(2);
+
+    varStore.close();
+  });
+
+  test("GC removes nodes after variable deletion", async () => {
+    store = createMemoryStore();
+    await bootstrap(store);
+    const schema = { type: "object", properties: { name: { type: "string" } } };
+    const schemaHash = await putSchema(store, schema);
+
+    const hashRef = await store.put(schemaHash, { name: "referenced" });
+
+    dbPath = tmpDbPath();
+    const varStore = new VariableStore(dbPath, store);
+
+    varStore.set("config", hashRef);
+    varStore.remove("config", schemaHash);
+
+    const stats = gc(store, varStore);
+
+    expect(store.has(hashRef)).toBe(false);
+    expect(stats.scanned).toBe(0);
+
+    varStore.close();
+  });
+
+  test("GC is global across all variables", async () => {
+    store = createMemoryStore();
+    await bootstrap(store);
+    const schemaA = { type: "object", properties: { x: { type: "number" } } };
+    const schemaB = { type: "object", properties: { y: { type: "string" } } };
+    const schemaAHash = await putSchema(store, schemaA);
+    const schemaBHash = await putSchema(store, schemaB);
+
+    const hash1 = await store.put(schemaAHash, { x: 1 });
+    const hash2 = await store.put(schemaAHash, { x: 2 });
+    const hash3 = await store.put(schemaBHash, { y: "a" });
+    const hashOrphan = await store.put(schemaAHash, { x: 999 });
+
+    dbPath = tmpDbPath();
+    const varStore = new VariableStore(dbPath, store);
+
+    varStore.set("uwf.thread", hash1);
+    varStore.set("uwf.workflow", hash2);
+    varStore.set("app.config", hash3);
+
+    const stats = gc(store, varStore);
+
+    expect(store.has(hash1)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(hash2)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(hash3)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(hashOrphan)).toBe(false);
+    expect(stats.scanned).toBe(3);
+
+    varStore.close();
+  });
+
+  test("GC integration with refactored variable store", async () => {
+    store = createMemoryStore();
+    await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const schemaA = { type: "object", properties: { x: { type: "number" } } };
+    const schemaB = { type: "object", properties: { y: { type: "string" } } };
+    const schemaAHash = await putSchema(store, schemaA);
+    const schemaBHash = await putSchema(store, schemaB);
+
+    const hashA1 = await store.put(schemaAHash, { x: 1 });
+    const hashA2 = await store.put(schemaAHash, { x: 2 });
+    const hashB = await store.put(schemaBHash, { y: "hello" });
+    const hashOrphan1 = await store.put(schemaAHash, { x: 999 });
+    const hashOrphan2 = await store.put(schemaBHash, { y: "orphan" });
+
+    dbPath = tmpDbPath();
+    const varStore = new VariableStore(dbPath, store);
+
+    // Create variables
+    varStore.set("var1", hashA1);
+    varStore.set("var2", hashA2);
+    varStore.set("var3", hashB);
+
+    // First GC: orphans removed
+    let stats = gc(store, varStore);
+    expect(store.has(hashA1)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(hashA2)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(hashB)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(hashOrphan1)).toBe(false);
+    expect(store.has(hashOrphan2)).toBe(false);
+    expect(stats.scanned).toBe(3);
+
+    // Delete one variable
+    varStore.remove("var2", schemaAHash);
+
+    // Second GC: hashA2 removed
+    stats = gc(store, varStore);
+    expect(store.has(hashA1)).toBe(true);
+    expect(store.has(hashA2)).toBe(false);
+    expect(store.has(hashB)).toBe(true);
+    expect(stats.scanned).toBe(2);
+
+    varStore.close();
+  });
+});

packages/json-cas/src/gc.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,94 @@
+import { walk } from "./schema.js";
+import type { Hash, Store } from "./types.js";
+import type { VariableStore } from "./variable-store.js";
+
+export interface GcStats {
+  total: number; // Total CAS nodes before GC
+  reachable: number; // Nodes marked as reachable
+  collected: number; // Nodes deleted (swept)
+  scanned: number; // Variables scanned as roots
+}
+
+/**
+ * Garbage collection: mark-and-sweep algorithm
+ * - Roots: all variable values (global, not scoped)
+ * - Mark: recursively walk refs from roots
+ * - Sweep: delete unmarked nodes
+ * - Schema preservation: schemas of reachable nodes are also marked
+ */
+export function gc(store: Store, varStore: VariableStore): GcStats {
+  // Get all variables (no filters → global)
+  const variables = varStore.list();
+  const scanned = variables.length;
+
+  // Collect unique root hashes from all variables
+  const roots = new Set<Hash>();
+  for (const variable of variables) {
+    roots.add(variable.value);
+  }
+
+  // Mark phase: walk from all roots
+  const reachable = new Set<Hash>();
+
+  for (const rootHash of roots) {
+    walk(store, rootHash, (hash, node) => {
+      // Mark the node itself
+      reachable.add(hash);
+      // Mark the schema (type) of the node
+      reachable.add(node.type);
+    });
+  }
+
+  // Walk the schema chain to ensure bootstrap meta-schema is preserved
+  // For each reachable schema, walk its schema chain (not its references)
+  const schemasToWalk = new Set<Hash>();
+  for (const hash of reachable) {
+    const node = store.get(hash);
+    if (node) {
+      schemasToWalk.add(node.type);
+    }
+  }
+
+  for (const schemaHash of schemasToWalk) {
+    // Walk the schema's type chain (meta-schema, etc.)
+    let current: Hash | null = schemaHash;
+    while (current !== null && !reachable.has(current)) {
+      reachable.add(current);
+      const node = store.get(current);
+      if (!node || node.type === current) {
+        // Self-referencing or missing node, stop
+        break;
+      }
+      current = node.type;
+    }
+  }
+
+  // Preserve all self-referencing nodes (bootstrap meta-schema)
+  // These are nodes where type === hash
+  const allHashes = store.listAll();
+  for (const hash of allHashes) {
+    const node = store.get(hash);
+    if (node && node.type === hash) {
+      reachable.add(hash);
+    }
+  }
+
+  // Count total nodes
+  const total = allHashes.length;
+
+  // Sweep phase: delete unmarked nodes
+  let collected = 0;
+  for (const hash of allHashes) {
+    if (!reachable.has(hash)) {
+      store.delete(hash);
+      collected++;
+    }
+  }
+
+  return {
+    total,
+    reachable: reachable.size,
+    collected,
+    scanned,
+  };
+}

packages/json-cas/src/index.test.ts

@@ -197,9 +197,17 @@ describe("createMemoryStore – listByType", () => {
 
   test("bootstrap node is listed under its self type", async () => {
     const store = createMemoryStore();
-    const hash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const hash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
 
-    expect(store.listByType(hash)).toEqual([hash]);
+    // All built-in schemas should be typed by the meta-schema
+    const allTypedByMeta = store.listByType(hash);
+    expect(allTypedByMeta).toContain(hash); // meta-schema itself
+    expect(allTypedByMeta).toContain(builtinSchemas["@string"] ?? "");
+    expect(allTypedByMeta).toContain(builtinSchemas["@number"] ?? "");
+    expect(allTypedByMeta).toContain(builtinSchemas["@object"] ?? "");
+    expect(allTypedByMeta).toContain(builtinSchemas["@array"] ?? "");
+    expect(allTypedByMeta).toContain(builtinSchemas["@bool"] ?? "");
   });
 });
 
@@ -256,44 +264,61 @@ describe("bootstrap", () => {
     );
   });
 
-  test("returns a valid 13-char hash", async () => {
+  test("returns a map with 24 built-in schema aliases", async () => {
     const store = createMemoryStore();
-    const hash = await bootstrap(store);
-    expect(hash).toHaveLength(13);
-    expect(hash).toMatch(/^[0-9A-HJKMNP-TV-Z]{13}$/);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    expect(builtinSchemas).toHaveProperty("@schema");
+    expect(builtinSchemas).toHaveProperty("@string");
+    expect(builtinSchemas).toHaveProperty("@number");
+    expect(builtinSchemas).toHaveProperty("@object");
+    expect(builtinSchemas).toHaveProperty("@array");
+    expect(builtinSchemas).toHaveProperty("@bool");
+
+    // All values should be valid hashes
+    for (const hash of Object.values(builtinSchemas)) {
+      expect(hash).toHaveLength(13);
+      expect(hash).toMatch(/^[0-9A-HJKMNP-TV-Z]{13}$/);
+    }
+
+    expect(Object.keys(builtinSchemas)).toHaveLength(24);
   });
 
-  test("node is stored and retrievable", async () => {
+  test("meta-schema node is stored and retrievable", async () => {
     const store = createMemoryStore();
-    const hash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
 
-    expect(store.has(hash)).toBe(true);
-    const node = store.get(hash);
+    expect(store.has(metaHash)).toBe(true);
+    const node = store.get(metaHash);
     expect(node).not.toBeNull();
   });
 
-  test("node is self-referencing: type === hash", async () => {
+  test("meta-schema node is self-referencing: type === hash", async () => {
     const store = createMemoryStore();
-    const hash = await bootstrap(store);
-    const node = store.get(hash) as CasNode;
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
+    const node = store.get(metaHash) as CasNode;
 
-    expect(node.type).toBe(hash);
+    expect(node.type).toBe(metaHash);
   });
 
   test("bootstrap node passes verify()", async () => {
     const store = createMemoryStore();
-    const hash = await bootstrap(store);
-    const node = store.get(hash) as CasNode;
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
+    const node = store.get(metaHash) as CasNode;
 
-    expect(await verify(hash, node)).toBe(true);
+    expect(await verify(metaHash, node)).toBe(true);
   });
 
-  test("bootstrap is idempotent: same hash on repeated calls", async () => {
+  test("bootstrap is idempotent: same hashes on repeated calls", async () => {
     const store = createMemoryStore();
     const h1 = await bootstrap(store);
     const h2 = await bootstrap(store);
 
-    expect(h1).toBe(h2);
-    expect(store.listByType(h1)).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(h1).toEqual(h2);
+    // All 24 built-in schemas should be typed by the meta-schema
+    expect(store.listByType(h1["@schema"] ?? "")).toHaveLength(24);
   });
 });

packages/json-cas/src/index.ts

@@ -2,7 +2,16 @@ export { bootstrap } from "./bootstrap.js";
 export type { BootstrapCapableStore } from "./bootstrap-capable.js";
 export { BOOTSTRAP_STORE } from "./bootstrap-capable.js";
 export { cborEncode } from "./cbor.js";
+export { type GcStats, gc } from "./gc.js";
 export { computeHash, computeSelfHash } from "./hash.js";
+export { renderWithTemplate } from "./liquid-render.js";
+export { registerOutputTemplates } from "./output-templates.js";
+export {
+  type RenderOptions,
+  render,
+  renderAsync,
+  renderDirect,
+} from "./render.js";
 export type { JSONSchema } from "./schema.js";
 export {
   getSchema,
@@ -14,13 +23,16 @@ export {
 } from "./schema.js";
 export { createMemoryStore } from "./store.js";
 export type { CasNode, Hash, Store } from "./types.js";
-export type { Variable, VariableId } from "./variable.js";
+export type { Variable } from "./variable.js";
 export {
   CasNodeNotFoundError,
   createVariableStore,
-  InvalidScopeError,
+  InvalidTagFormatError,
+  InvalidVariableNameError,
   SchemaMismatchError,
+  TagLabelConflictError,
   VariableNotFoundError,
   VariableStore,
 } from "./variable-store.js";
 export { verify } from "./verify.js";
+export { wrapEnvelope } from "./wrap-envelope.js";

packages/json-cas/src/liquid-render.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,285 @@
+import { type Context, Liquid, type TagToken } from "liquidjs";
+import type { RenderOptions } from "./render.js";
+import { putSchema } from "./schema.js";
+import type { Hash, Store } from "./types.js";
+import type { VariableStore } from "./variable-store.js";
+
+const DEFAULT_RESOLUTION = 1.0;
+const DEFAULT_DECAY = 0.5;
+const DEFAULT_EPSILON = 0.01;
+const FLOAT_TOLERANCE = 1e-10;
+
+/**
+ * Render a CAS node using LiquidJS templates with resolution-based decay.
+ * Templates are discovered via variables: @ucas/template/text/<type-hash>
+ */
+export async function renderWithTemplate(
+  store: Store,
+  varStore: VariableStore,
+  hash: Hash,
+  options?: RenderOptions,
+): Promise<string> {
+  const resolution = options?.resolution ?? DEFAULT_RESOLUTION;
+  const decay = options?.decay ?? DEFAULT_DECAY;
+  const epsilon = options?.epsilon ?? DEFAULT_EPSILON;
+
+  // Validate parameters
+  if (resolution < 0 || resolution > 1) {
+    throw new Error("resolution must be in [0, 1]");
+  }
+  if (decay <= 0 || decay > 1) {
+    throw new Error("decay must be in (0, 1]");
+  }
+  if (epsilon < 0) {
+    throw new Error("epsilon must be >= 0");
+  }
+
+  const visited = new Set<Hash>();
+
+  // Create Liquid engine
+  const engine = createLiquidEngine(store, varStore, decay);
+
+  return await renderNode(
+    engine,
+    store,
+    varStore,
+    hash,
+    resolution,
+    epsilon,
+    visited,
+  );
+}
+
+/**
+ * Create a Liquid engine instance with custom render tag
+ */
+function createLiquidEngine(
+  store: Store,
+  varStore: VariableStore,
+  globalDecay: number,
+): Liquid {
+  const engine = new Liquid({
+    strictFilters: false,
+    strictVariables: false,
+  });
+
+  // Type for storing parsed tag data
+  type RenderTagState = {
+    variable: string;
+    decay: number | undefined;
+  };
+
+  // Register custom {% render %} tag
+  // Capture store, varStore, globalDecay in closure
+  engine.registerTag("render", {
+    parse(token: TagToken) {
+      // Parse "variable" or "variable, decay: 0.7" syntax
+      const args = token.args.trim();
+      const match = args.match(/^(\S+)(?:,\s*decay:\s*([\d.]+))?$/);
+
+      if (!match) {
+        throw new Error(
+          `Invalid render tag syntax: ${args}. Expected: {% render variable %} or {% render variable, decay: 0.7 %}`,
+        );
+      }
+
+      // Store parsed values on the tag instance
+      const state = this as unknown as RenderTagState;
+      state.variable = match[1] as string;
+      state.decay = match[2] ? Number.parseFloat(match[2]) : undefined;
+
+      // Validate decay if provided
+      if (state.decay !== undefined) {
+        if (state.decay <= 0 || state.decay > 1) {
+          throw new Error("decay must be in (0, 1]");
+        }
+      }
+    },
+
+    async render(ctxLiquid: Context) {
+      // Access parsed values
+      const state = this as unknown as RenderTagState;
+      const variable = state.variable;
+      const explicitDecay = state.decay;
+
+      // Resolve the variable to a hash (split on dots for nested paths)
+      const variablePath = variable.split(".");
+      const value = ctxLiquid.get(variablePath);
+
+      // Handle null/undefined - render as empty
+      if (value === null || value === undefined) {
+        return "";
+      }
+
+      // Handle non-string values - render as empty
+      if (typeof value !== "string") {
+        return "";
+      }
+
+      const nodeHash = value as Hash;
+
+      // Get current render context
+      const currentResolution = ctxLiquid.get(["resolution"]) as number;
+      const currentEpsilon = ctxLiquid.get(["epsilon"]) as number;
+
+      // Compute child resolution using decay priority:
+      // 1. Template explicit decay (explicitDecay)
+      // 2. Global decay (from CLI/options)
+      // 3. Engine default (0.5)
+      const effectiveDecay =
+        explicitDecay !== undefined
+          ? explicitDecay
+          : (globalDecay ?? DEFAULT_DECAY);
+      const childResolution = currentResolution * effectiveDecay;
+
+      // Recursively render the referenced node
+      const visited = ctxLiquid.get(["__visited"]) as Set<Hash>;
+      const output = await renderNode(
+        engine,
+        store,
+        varStore,
+        nodeHash,
+        childResolution,
+        currentEpsilon,
+        visited,
+      );
+
+      return output;
+    },
+  });
+
+  return engine;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Render a single node with template or fallback to cas: reference
+ */
+async function renderNode(
+  engine: Liquid,
+  store: Store,
+  varStore: VariableStore,
+  hash: Hash,
+  currentResolution: number,
+  epsilon: number,
+  visited: Set<Hash>,
+): Promise<string> {
+  // Check if resolution is below threshold
+  if (currentResolution < epsilon + FLOAT_TOLERANCE) {
+    return `cas:${hash}`;
+  }
+
+  // Fetch the node
+  const node = store.get(hash);
+  if (node === null) {
+    return `cas:${hash}`;
+  }
+
+  // Cycle detection
+  if (visited.has(hash)) {
+    return `cas:${hash}`;
+  }
+  visited.add(hash);
+
+  try {
+    // Try to find a template for this node's type
+    const template = await findTemplate(store, varStore, node.type);
+
+    if (template === null) {
+      // No template found - this is handled by the caller (fallback to YAML)
+      // For now, return a simple representation
+      visited.delete(hash);
+      return renderFallback(store, node.payload);
+    }
+
+    // Render using the template
+    const context = {
+      resolution: currentResolution,
+      epsilon,
+      hash,
+      payload: node.payload,
+      type: node.type,
+      timestamp: node.timestamp,
+      __visited: visited, // Pass visited set through context
+    };
+
+    const output = await engine.parseAndRender(template, context);
+
+    visited.delete(hash);
+    return output;
+  } catch (error) {
+    visited.delete(hash);
+    throw error;
+  }
+}
+
+/**
+ * Find a template for a given type hash
+ */
+async function findTemplate(
+  store: Store,
+  varStore: VariableStore,
+  typeHash: Hash,
+): Promise<string | null> {
+  const varName = `@ucas/template/text/${typeHash}`;
+
+  try {
+    // Find the string schema hash (we need this to query variables)
+    const stringSchema = await putSchema(store, { type: "string" });
+
+    const variable = varStore.get(varName, stringSchema);
+    if (variable === null) {
+      return null;
+    }
+
+    const templateNode = store.get(variable.value);
+    if (templateNode === null) {
+      return null;
+    }
+
+    // Template should be a string
+    if (typeof templateNode.payload !== "string") {
+      return null;
+    }
+
+    return templateNode.payload;
+  } catch {
+    return null;
+  }
+}
+
+/**
+ * Fallback renderer for nodes without templates
+ */
+function renderFallback(_store: Store, payload: unknown): string {
+  // Simple YAML-like representation
+  if (payload === null) {
+    return "null\n";
+  }
+
+  if (typeof payload === "string") {
+    return `${payload}\n`;
+  }
+
+  if (typeof payload === "number" || typeof payload === "boolean") {
+    return `${payload}\n`;
+  }
+
+  if (Array.isArray(payload)) {
+    if (payload.length === 0) {
+      return "[]\n";
+    }
+    return `- ${payload.join("\n- ")}\n`;
+  }
+
+  if (typeof payload === "object") {
+    const obj = payload as Record<string, unknown>;
+    const keys = Object.keys(obj);
+    if (keys.length === 0) {
+      return "{}\n";
+    }
+    const pairs = keys.map((key) => `${key}: ${obj[key]}`);
+    return `${pairs.join("\n")}\n`;
+  }
+
+  return "null\n";
+}

packages/json-cas/src/mem-store.ts

@@ -27,6 +27,14 @@ export class MemStore implements BootstrapCapableStore {
     return this.#inner.listByType(typeHash);
   }
 
+  listAll(): Hash[] {
+    return this.#inner.listAll();
+  }
+
+  delete(hash: Hash): void {
+    this.#inner.delete(hash);
+  }
+
   [BOOTSTRAP_STORE](payload: unknown): Promise<Hash> {
     return this.#inner[BOOTSTRAP_STORE](payload);
   }

packages/json-cas/src/output-templates.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,117 @@
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, test } from "bun:test";
+import { mkdtemp, rm } from "node:fs/promises";
+import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
+import { join } from "node:path";
+import { bootstrap } from "./bootstrap.js";
+import { registerOutputTemplates } from "./output-templates.js";
+import { createMemoryStore } from "./store.js";
+import type { Store } from "./types.js";
+import type { VariableStore } from "./variable-store.js";
+import { createVariableStore } from "./variable-store.js";
+
+const OUTPUT_ALIASES = [
+  "@output/put",
+  "@output/get",
+  "@output/has",
+  "@output/hash",
+  "@output/verify",
+  "@output/refs",
+  "@output/walk",
+  "@output/list",
+  "@output/var-set",
+  "@output/var-get",
+  "@output/var-delete",
+  "@output/var-tag",
+  "@output/var-list",
+  "@output/template-set",
+  "@output/template-get",
+  "@output/template-list",
+  "@output/template-delete",
+  "@output/gc",
+] as const;
+
+describe("registerOutputTemplates", () => {
+  let store: Store;
+  let varStore: VariableStore;
+  let tempDir: string;
+
+  afterEach(async () => {
+    varStore.close();
+    await rm(tempDir, { recursive: true });
+  });
+
+  test("registers a template for every @output/* schema", async () => {
+    tempDir = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), "json-cas-tmpl-"));
+    store = createMemoryStore();
+    await bootstrap(store);
+    varStore = createVariableStore(join(tempDir, "vars.db"), store);
+
+    const registered = await registerOutputTemplates(store, varStore);
+
+    expect(Object.keys(registered)).toHaveLength(18);
+
+    for (const alias of OUTPUT_ALIASES) {
+      expect(registered).toHaveProperty(alias);
+    }
+  });
+
+  test("each template is retrievable via @ucas/template/text/<hash>", async () => {
+    tempDir = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), "json-cas-tmpl-"));
+    store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+    varStore = createVariableStore(join(tempDir, "vars.db"), store);
+
+    await registerOutputTemplates(store, varStore);
+
+    const stringHash = aliases["@string"];
+    if (!stringHash) throw new Error("@string not found");
+
+    for (const alias of OUTPUT_ALIASES) {
+      const schemaHash = aliases[alias];
+      if (!schemaHash) throw new Error(`${alias} not found`);
+
+      const varName = `@ucas/template/text/${schemaHash}`;
+      const variable = varStore.get(varName, stringHash);
+      if (variable === null) throw new Error(`Variable ${varName} not found`);
+
+      const templateNode = store.get(variable.value);
+      if (templateNode === null)
+        throw new Error(`Template node ${variable.value} not found`);
+      expect(typeof templateNode.payload).toBe("string");
+    }
+  });
+
+  test("is idempotent — safe to call multiple times", async () => {
+    tempDir = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), "json-cas-tmpl-"));
+    store = createMemoryStore();
+    await bootstrap(store);
+    varStore = createVariableStore(join(tempDir, "vars.db"), store);
+
+    const first = await registerOutputTemplates(store, varStore);
+    const second = await registerOutputTemplates(store, varStore);
+
+    expect(first).toEqual(second);
+  });
+
+  test("@output/put template contains payload reference", async () => {
+    tempDir = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), "json-cas-tmpl-"));
+    store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+    varStore = createVariableStore(join(tempDir, "vars.db"), store);
+
+    await registerOutputTemplates(store, varStore);
+
+    const putHash = aliases["@output/put"];
+    if (!putHash) throw new Error("@output/put not found");
+    const stringHash = aliases["@string"];
+    if (!stringHash) throw new Error("@string not found");
+
+    const variable = varStore.get(`@ucas/template/text/${putHash}`, stringHash);
+    if (variable === null)
+      throw new Error("@output/put template variable not found");
+
+    const templateNode = store.get(variable.value);
+    if (templateNode === null) throw new Error("Template node not found");
+    expect(templateNode.payload).toBe("{{ payload }}");
+  });
+});

packages/json-cas/src/output-templates.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,87 @@
+import { bootstrap } from "./bootstrap.js";
+import type { Hash, Store } from "./types.js";
+import type { VariableStore } from "./variable-store.js";
+
+const DEFAULT_TEMPLATES: ReadonlyArray<
+  readonly [alias: string, template: string]
+> = [
+  ["@output/put", "{{ payload }}"],
+  [
+    "@output/get",
+    "type: {{ payload.type }}\ntimestamp: {{ payload.timestamp }}",
+  ],
+  ["@output/has", "{{ payload }}"],
+  ["@output/hash", "{{ payload }}"],
+  ["@output/verify", "{{ payload }}"],
+  ["@output/refs", "{% for ref in payload %}{{ ref }}\n{% endfor %}"],
+  ["@output/walk", "{% for item in payload %}{{ item }}\n{% endfor %}"],
+  ["@output/list", "{% for item in payload %}{{ item }}\n{% endfor %}"],
+  [
+    "@output/var-set",
+    "name: {{ payload.name }}\nschema: {{ payload.schema }}\nvalue: {{ payload.value }}",
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/var-get",
+    "name: {{ payload.name }}\nschema: {{ payload.schema }}\nvalue: {{ payload.value }}",
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/var-delete",
+    "name: {{ payload.name }}\nschema: {{ payload.schema }}\nvalue: {{ payload.value }}",
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/var-tag",
+    "name: {{ payload.name }}\nschema: {{ payload.schema }}\nvalue: {{ payload.value }}",
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/var-list",
+    "{% for v in payload %}name: {{ v.name }}\nschema: {{ v.schema }}\nvalue: {{ v.value }}\n{% endfor %}",
+  ],
+  [
+    "@output/template-set",
+    "schemaHash: {{ payload.schemaHash }}\ncontentHash: {{ payload.contentHash }}",
+  ],
+  ["@output/template-get", "{{ payload }}"],
+  [
+    "@output/template-list",
+    "{% for t in payload %}schemaHash: {{ t.schemaHash }}\ncontentHash: {{ t.contentHash }}\n{% endfor %}",
+  ],
+  ["@output/template-delete", "deleted: {{ payload.deleted }}"],
+  [
+    "@output/gc",
+    "total: {{ payload.total }}\nreachable: {{ payload.reachable }}\ncollected: {{ payload.collected }}\nscanned: {{ payload.scanned }}",
+  ],
+];
+
+/**
+ * Register default LiquidJS templates for all @output/* schemas.
+ * Each template is stored as a @string CAS node and bound to
+ * the variable `@ucas/template/text/<schema-hash>`.
+ *
+ * Idempotent: safe to call multiple times.
+ */
+export async function registerOutputTemplates(
+  store: Store,
+  varStore: VariableStore,
+): Promise<Record<string, Hash>> {
+  const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+  const stringHash = aliases["@string"];
+  if (stringHash === undefined) {
+    throw new Error("@string schema not found in bootstrap result");
+  }
+
+  const registered: Record<string, Hash> = {};
+
+  for (const [alias, template] of DEFAULT_TEMPLATES) {
+    const schemaHash = aliases[alias];
+    if (schemaHash === undefined) {
+      throw new Error(`Schema alias not found: ${alias}`);
+    }
+
+    const contentHash = await store.put(stringHash, template);
+    const varName = `@ucas/template/text/${schemaHash}`;
+    varStore.set(varName, contentHash);
+    registered[alias] = contentHash;
+  }
+
+  return registered;
+}

packages/json-cas/src/render.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,343 @@
+import { renderWithTemplate } from "./liquid-render.js";
+import { collectRefs, getSchema, putSchema, refs } from "./schema.js";
+import type { Hash, Store } from "./types.js";
+import type { VariableStore } from "./variable-store.js";
+import { CasNodeNotFoundError } from "./variable-store.js";
+
+export type RenderOptions = {
+  resolution?: number; // (0, 1], default 1.0
+  decay?: number; // (0, 1], default 0.5
+  epsilon?: number; // >= 0, default 0.01
+  varStore?: VariableStore; // Optional: for template lookup
+};
+
+const DEFAULT_RESOLUTION = 1.0;
+const DEFAULT_DECAY = 0.5;
+const DEFAULT_EPSILON = 0.01;
+// Small tolerance for floating point comparison
+const FLOAT_TOLERANCE = 1e-10;
+
+/**
+ * Extract and validate resolution/decay/epsilon from options.
+ */
+function validateAndExtractOptions(
+  options:
+    | Pick<RenderOptions, "resolution" | "decay" | "epsilon">
+    | null
+    | undefined,
+): { resolution: number; decay: number; epsilon: number } {
+  const resolution = options?.resolution ?? DEFAULT_RESOLUTION;
+  const decay = options?.decay ?? DEFAULT_DECAY;
+  const epsilon = options?.epsilon ?? DEFAULT_EPSILON;
+
+  if (resolution < 0 || resolution > 1) {
+    throw new Error("resolution must be in [0, 1]");
+  }
+  if (decay <= 0 || decay > 1) {
+    throw new Error("decay must be in (0, 1]");
+  }
+  if (epsilon < 0) {
+    throw new Error("epsilon must be >= 0");
+  }
+
+  return { resolution, decay, epsilon };
+}
+
+/**
+ * Render a CAS node as YAML with resolution-based decay.
+ * When resolution ≤ epsilon, nodes are rendered as opaque `cas:<hash>` references.
+ * This is the synchronous version without template support.
+ * For template support, use renderAsync() with varStore.
+ */
+export function render(
+  store: Store,
+  hash: Hash,
+  options?: RenderOptions,
+): string {
+  const { resolution, decay, epsilon } = validateAndExtractOptions(options);
+
+  // Check if root node exists
+  if (store.get(hash) === null) {
+    throw new CasNodeNotFoundError(hash);
+  }
+
+  const visited = new Set<Hash>();
+  return renderNode(store, hash, resolution, decay, epsilon, visited);
+}
+
+/**
+ * Async render with LiquidJS template support.
+ * When resolution ≤ epsilon, nodes are rendered as opaque `cas:<hash>` references.
+ * If varStore is provided, attempts to use LiquidJS templates first, fallback to YAML.
+ */
+export async function renderAsync(
+  store: Store,
+  hash: Hash,
+  options?: RenderOptions,
+): Promise<string> {
+  const { resolution, decay, epsilon } = validateAndExtractOptions(options);
+
+  // Check if root node exists
+  if (store.get(hash) === null) {
+    throw new CasNodeNotFoundError(hash);
+  }
+
+  const varStore = options?.varStore;
+
+  // If varStore provided, try template rendering first
+  if (varStore !== undefined) {
+    try {
+      const node = store.get(hash);
+      if (node !== null) {
+        // Check if a template exists for this type
+        const templateExists = await hasTemplate(store, varStore, node.type);
+        if (templateExists) {
+          return await renderWithTemplate(store, varStore, hash, {
+            resolution,
+            decay,
+            epsilon,
+          });
+        }
+      }
+    } catch {
+      // Fall through to YAML rendering
+    }
+  }
+
+  // Fallback to YAML rendering
+  const visited = new Set<Hash>();
+  return renderNode(store, hash, resolution, decay, epsilon, visited);
+}
+
+/**
+ * Render a value directly (in-memory) without requiring it to be stored.
+ * Accepts a raw { type, value } pair. Store is optional and read-only —
+ * used only for schema lookup and expanding nested cas_ref references.
+ * No data is written to the store.
+ */
+export function renderDirect(
+  typeHash: Hash,
+  value: unknown,
+  store: Store | null,
+  options: Omit<RenderOptions, "varStore"> | null,
+): string {
+  const { resolution, decay, epsilon } = validateAndExtractOptions(options);
+
+  // Try to get schema from store to identify cas_ref fields
+  let refSet = new Set<Hash>();
+  if (store !== null) {
+    const schema = getSchema(store, typeHash);
+    if (schema !== null) {
+      refSet = new Set(collectRefs(schema, value));
+    }
+  }
+
+  const childResolution = resolution * decay;
+  const visited = new Set<Hash>();
+
+  return renderValue(
+    store ?? null,
+    value,
+    refSet,
+    childResolution,
+    decay,
+    epsilon,
+    visited,
+  );
+}
+
+/**
+ * Check if a template exists for a given type
+ */
+async function hasTemplate(
+  store: Store,
+  varStore: VariableStore,
+  typeHash: Hash,
+): Promise<boolean> {
+  const varName = `@ucas/template/text/${typeHash}`;
+  try {
+    const stringSchema = await putSchema(store, { type: "string" });
+    const variable = varStore.get(varName, stringSchema);
+    return variable !== null;
+  } catch {
+    return false;
+  }
+}
+
+function renderNode(
+  store: Store | null,
+  hash: Hash,
+  currentResolution: number,
+  decay: number,
+  epsilon: number,
+  visited: Set<Hash>,
+): string {
+  // Check if resolution is below threshold (with floating point tolerance)
+  if (currentResolution < epsilon + FLOAT_TOLERANCE) {
+    return `cas:${hash}`;
+  }
+
+  // Fetch the node
+  const node = store !== null ? store.get(hash) : null;
+  if (node === null) {
+    // Missing node - render as cas: reference
+    return `cas:${hash}`;
+  }
+
+  // Cycle detection
+  if (visited.has(hash)) {
+    return `cas:${hash}`;
+  }
+  visited.add(hash);
+
+  // Get references from this node's schema
+  const nodeRefs = store !== null ? refs(store, node) : [];
+  const refSet = new Set(nodeRefs);
+
+  // Calculate child resolution for next level
+  const childResolution = currentResolution * decay;
+
+  // Render the payload with recursive expansion of cas_ref fields
+  const rendered = renderValue(
+    store,
+    node.payload,
+    refSet,
+    childResolution,
+    decay,
+    epsilon,
+    visited,
+  );
+
+  visited.delete(hash);
+
+  return rendered;
+}
+
+function renderValue(
+  store: Store | null,
+  value: unknown,
+  refHashes: Set<Hash>,
+  childResolution: number,
+  decay: number,
+  epsilon: number,
+  visited: Set<Hash>,
+): string {
+  // Handle null
+  if (value === null) {
+    return "null\n";
+  }
+
+  // Handle primitives
+  if (typeof value === "string") {
+    // Check if this string is a cas_ref
+    if (refHashes.has(value as Hash)) {
+      // Recursively render the referenced node
+      return renderNode(
+        store,
+        value as Hash,
+        childResolution,
+        decay,
+        epsilon,
+        visited,
+      );
+    }
+    // Otherwise, render as YAML string
+    return toYamlString(value);
+  }
+
+  if (typeof value === "number" || typeof value === "boolean") {
+    return `${value}\n`;
+  }
+
+  // Handle arrays
+  if (Array.isArray(value)) {
+    if (value.length === 0) {
+      return "[]\n";
+    }
+
+    const items = value.map((item) => {
+      const itemYaml = renderValue(
+        store,
+        item,
+        refHashes,
+        childResolution,
+        decay,
+        epsilon,
+        visited,
+      );
+      return indent(itemYaml.trim(), 2);
+    });
+
+    return `- ${items.join("\n- ")}\n`;
+  }
+
+  // Handle objects
+  if (typeof value === "object") {
+    const obj = value as Record<string, unknown>;
+    const keys = Object.keys(obj);
+
+    if (keys.length === 0) {
+      return "{}\n";
+    }
+
+    const pairs = keys.map((key) => {
+      const val = obj[key];
+      const valYaml = renderValue(
+        store,
+        val,
+        refHashes,
+        childResolution,
+        decay,
+        epsilon,
+        visited,
+      );
+
+      const trimmedVal = valYaml.trim();
+
+      // If value is multiline, indent it
+      if (trimmedVal.includes("\n")) {
+        return `${key}:\n${indent(trimmedVal, 2)}`;
+      }
+
+      return `${key}: ${trimmedVal}`;
+    });
+
+    return `${pairs.join("\n")}\n`;
+  }
+
+  return "null\n";
+}
+
+function toYamlString(str: string): string {
+  // Handle special characters
+  if (
+    str.includes("\n") ||
+    str.includes(":") ||
+    str.includes("#") ||
+    str.includes("[") ||
+    str.includes("]") ||
+    str.includes("{") ||
+    str.includes("}") ||
+    str.includes("'") ||
+    str.includes('"') ||
+    str.startsWith(" ") ||
+    str.endsWith(" ")
+  ) {
+    // Use double-quoted string with escaping
+    const escaped = str
+      .replace(/\\/g, "\\\\")
+      .replace(/"/g, '\\"')
+      .replace(/\n/g, "\\n");
+    return `"${escaped}"\n`;
+  }
+
+  return `${str}\n`;
+}
+
+function indent(text: string, spaces: number): string {
+  const prefix = " ".repeat(spaces);
+  return text
+    .split("\n")
+    .map((line) => (line ? prefix + line : line))
+    .join("\n");
+}

packages/json-cas/src/schema.test.ts

@@ -29,7 +29,8 @@ describe("putSchema", () => {
 
   test("schema node type equals the meta-schema hash", async () => {
     const store = createMemoryStore();
-    const metaHash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
     const schemaHash = await putSchema(store, { type: "string" });
     const node = store.get(schemaHash) as CasNode;
 
@@ -355,7 +356,8 @@ describe("walk", () => {
 describe("bootstrap meta-schema self-reference", () => {
   test("metaNode.type === metaHash (self-referencing)", async () => {
     const store = createMemoryStore();
-    const metaHash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
     const metaNode = store.get(metaHash) as CasNode;
 
     expect(metaNode.type).toBe(metaHash);
@@ -363,7 +365,8 @@ describe("bootstrap meta-schema self-reference", () => {
 
   test("schema nodes have type === metaHash", async () => {
     const store = createMemoryStore();
-    const metaHash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
     const schemaHash = await putSchema(store, { type: "string" });
     const schemaNode = store.get(schemaHash) as CasNode;
 
@@ -372,7 +375,8 @@ describe("bootstrap meta-schema self-reference", () => {
 
   test("data nodes have type === schemaHash (not metaHash)", async () => {
     const store = createMemoryStore();
-    const metaHash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
     const schemaHash = await putSchema(store, {
       type: "object",
       properties: { val: { type: "number" } },
@@ -386,7 +390,8 @@ describe("bootstrap meta-schema self-reference", () => {
 
   test("bootstrap is idempotent across putSchema calls", async () => {
     const store = createMemoryStore();
-    const metaHash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
 
     await putSchema(store, { type: "string" });
     await putSchema(store, { type: "number" });

packages/json-cas/src/schema.ts

@@ -142,7 +142,11 @@ export async function putSchema(
   store: Store,
   jsonSchema: JSONSchema,
 ): Promise<Hash> {
-  const metaHash = await bootstrap(store);
+  const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+  const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"];
+  if (!metaHash) {
+    throw new Error("Meta-schema not found in bootstrap result");
+  }
   if (!isValidSchema(jsonSchema)) {
     throw new SchemaValidationError(
       "Invalid schema: input does not conform to the json-cas JSON Schema meta-schema",
@@ -182,7 +186,7 @@ export function validate(store: Store, node: CasNode): boolean {
  * Handles: direct format, anyOf (nullable refs), items (array refs),
  * properties (nested objects), and additionalProperties (record refs).
  */
-function collectRefs(schema: JSONSchema, value: unknown): Hash[] {
+export function collectRefs(schema: JSONSchema, value: unknown): Hash[] {
   const result: Hash[] = [];
 
   if (schema.format === "cas_ref") {

packages/json-cas/src/store.ts

@@ -52,6 +52,25 @@ export function createMemoryStore(): BootstrapCapableStore {
       return set ? [...set] : [];
     },
 
+    listAll(): Hash[] {
+      return Array.from(data.keys());
+    },
+
+    delete(hash: Hash): void {
+      const node = data.get(hash);
+      if (node) {
+        data.delete(hash);
+        // Remove from type index
+        const set = byType.get(node.type);
+        if (set) {
+          set.delete(hash);
+          if (set.size === 0) {
+            byType.delete(node.type);
+          }
+        }
+      }
+    },
+
     [BOOTSTRAP_STORE]: putSelfReferencing,
   };
 

packages/json-cas/src/types.ts

@@ -24,4 +24,6 @@ export type Store = {
   get(hash: Hash): CasNode | null;
   has(hash: Hash): boolean;
   listByType(typeHash: Hash): Hash[];
+  listAll(): Hash[];
+  delete(hash: Hash): void;
 };

packages/json-cas/src/variable-store.ts

@@ -1,18 +1,30 @@
 import { Database } from "bun:sqlite";
-import { ulid } from "ulidx";
-import type { Store } from "./types.js";
-import type { Variable, VariableId } from "./variable.js";
+import type { Hash, Store } from "./types.js";
+import type { Variable } from "./variable.js";
 
 /**
  * Custom error types for variable operations
  */
 export class VariableNotFoundError extends Error {
-  constructor(id: VariableId) {
-    super(`Variable not found: ${id}`);
+  constructor(
+    public variableName: string,
+    public variableSchema: Hash,
+  ) {
+    super(`Variable not found: name=${variableName}, schema=${variableSchema}`);
     this.name = "VariableNotFoundError";
   }
 }
 
+export class InvalidVariableNameError extends Error {
+  constructor(
+    public variableName: string,
+    public reason: string,
+  ) {
+    super(`Invalid variable name "${variableName}": ${reason}`);
+    this.name = "InvalidVariableNameError";
+  }
+}
+
 export class SchemaMismatchError extends Error {
   constructor(
     public expected: string,
@@ -23,17 +35,31 @@ export class SchemaMismatchError extends Error {
   }
 }
 
-export class InvalidScopeError extends Error {
-  constructor(scope: string) {
-    super(`Invalid scope: scope must end with / (got: ${scope})`);
-    this.name = "InvalidScopeError";
+export class CasNodeNotFoundError extends Error {
+  constructor(
+    public readonly hash: string,
+    message?: string,
+  ) {
+    super(message ?? `CAS node not found: ${hash}`);
+    this.name = "CasNodeNotFoundError";
   }
 }
 
-export class CasNodeNotFoundError extends Error {
-  constructor(hash: string) {
-    super(`CAS node not found: ${hash}`);
-    this.name = "CasNodeNotFoundError";
+export class TagLabelConflictError extends Error {
+  constructor(
+    public conflictName: string,
+    public existingType: "tag" | "label",
+    public attemptedType: "tag" | "label",
+  ) {
+    super(`Conflict: '${conflictName}' already exists as a ${existingType}`);
+    this.name = "TagLabelConflictError";
+  }
+}
+
+export class InvalidTagFormatError extends Error {
+  constructor(tag: string) {
+    super(`Invalid tag format: ${tag}`);
+    this.name = "InvalidTagFormatError";
   }
 }
 
@@ -48,32 +74,95 @@ export class VariableStore {
     private casStore: Store,
   ) {
     this.db = new Database(dbPath, { create: true });
+    // Enable foreign keys
+    this.db.exec("PRAGMA foreign_keys = ON");
     this.initDb();
   }
 
   private initDb(): void {
     this.db.exec(`
       CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS variables (
-        id TEXT PRIMARY KEY,
-        scope TEXT NOT NULL,
-        value TEXT NOT NULL,
+        name TEXT NOT NULL,
         schema TEXT NOT NULL,
+        value TEXT NOT NULL,
         created INTEGER NOT NULL,
-        updated INTEGER NOT NULL
+        updated INTEGER NOT NULL,
+        PRIMARY KEY (name, schema)
       );
 
-      CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_var_scope ON variables(scope);
+      CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_var_name ON variables(name);
       CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_var_value ON variables(value);
       CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_var_schema ON variables(schema);
+
+      CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS variable_tags (
+        variable_name TEXT NOT NULL,
+        variable_schema TEXT NOT NULL,
+        key TEXT NOT NULL,
+        value TEXT NOT NULL,
+        PRIMARY KEY (variable_name, variable_schema, key),
+        FOREIGN KEY (variable_name, variable_schema) REFERENCES variables(name, schema) ON DELETE CASCADE
+      );
+
+      CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS variable_labels (
+        variable_name TEXT NOT NULL,
+        variable_schema TEXT NOT NULL,
+        name TEXT NOT NULL,
+        PRIMARY KEY (variable_name, variable_schema, name),
+        FOREIGN KEY (variable_name, variable_schema) REFERENCES variables(name, schema) ON DELETE CASCADE
+      );
+
+      CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_var_tag_key ON variable_tags(key);
+      CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_var_tag_key_value ON variable_tags(key, value);
+      CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_var_label_name ON variable_labels(name);
     `);
   }
 
   /**
-   * Validate that scope ends with /
+   * Validate variable name format
+   * @ is allowed at the start of the first segment (system-reserved)
    */
-  private validateScope(scope: string): void {
-    if (!scope.endsWith("/")) {
-      throw new InvalidScopeError(scope);
+  private validateName(name: string): void {
+    // Rule 1: Cannot be empty
+    if (name === "") {
+      throw new InvalidVariableNameError(name, "Name cannot be empty");
+    }
+
+    // Rule 2: No leading slash
+    if (name.startsWith("/")) {
+      throw new InvalidVariableNameError(
+        name,
+        "Name cannot start with leading slash",
+      );
+    }
+
+    // Rule 3: No trailing slash
+    if (name.endsWith("/")) {
+      throw new InvalidVariableNameError(
+        name,
+        "Name cannot end with trailing slash",
+      );
+    }
+
+    // Rule 4: Each segment must match [a-zA-Z0-9._-]+ (with @ allowed at start of first segment)
+    const segments = name.split("/");
+    for (let i = 0; i < segments.length; i++) {
+      const segment = segments[i] as string;
+      if (segment === "") {
+        throw new InvalidVariableNameError(
+          name,
+          "Name contains empty segment (consecutive slashes //)",
+        );
+      }
+
+      // Check for invalid characters
+      // First segment can start with @, all segments can contain [a-zA-Z0-9._-]
+      const regex = i === 0 ? /^@?[a-zA-Z0-9._-]+$/ : /^[a-zA-Z0-9._-]+$/;
+      if (!regex.test(segment)) {
+        throw new InvalidVariableNameError(
+          name,
+          `Segment "${segment}" contains invalid characters (only ${i === 0 ? "@, " : ""}a-z, A-Z, 0-9, ., _, - allowed)`,
+        );
+      }
     }
   }
 
@@ -89,48 +178,230 @@ export class VariableStore {
   }
 
   /**
-   * Create a new variable
+   * Load tags for a variable
    */
-  create(scope: string, value: string): Variable {
-    this.validateScope(scope);
-    const schema = this.extractSchema(value);
-
-    const id = ulid();
-    const now = Date.now();
-
+  private loadTags(name: string, schema: Hash): Record<string, string> {
     const stmt = this.db.prepare(`
-      INSERT INTO variables (id, scope, value, schema, created, updated)
-      VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?)
+      SELECT key, value
+      FROM variable_tags
+      WHERE variable_name = ? AND variable_schema = ?
     `);
 
-    stmt.run(id, scope, value, schema, now, now);
+    const rows = stmt.all(name, schema) as Array<{
+      key: string;
+      value: string;
+    }>;
+    const tags: Record<string, string> = {};
+    for (const row of rows) {
+      tags[row.key] = row.value;
+    }
+    return tags;
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Load labels for a variable
+   */
+  private loadLabels(name: string, schema: Hash): string[] {
+    const stmt = this.db.prepare(`
+      SELECT name
+      FROM variable_labels
+      WHERE variable_name = ? AND variable_schema = ?
+      ORDER BY name ASC
+    `);
+
+    const rows = stmt.all(name, schema) as Array<{ name: string }>;
+    return rows.map((row) => row.name);
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Set a variable (upsert: create or update)
+   */
+  set(
+    name: string,
+    value: string,
+    options?: {
+      tags?: Record<string, string>;
+      labels?: string[];
+    },
+  ): Variable {
+    // Validate name format
+    this.validateName(name);
+
+    const schema = this.extractSchema(value);
+
+    // Check if variable exists
+    const existing = this.get(name, schema);
+
+    if (existing !== null) {
+      // Update existing variable
+      const now = Date.now();
+
+      // If options provided, use them; otherwise preserve existing
+      const tags = options?.tags ?? existing.tags;
+      const labels = options?.labels ?? existing.labels;
+
+      // Check for tag/label conflicts when updating with new options
+      if (options !== undefined) {
+        const tagKeys = Object.keys(tags);
+        for (const key of tagKeys) {
+          if (labels.includes(key)) {
+            throw new TagLabelConflictError(key, "label", "tag");
+          }
+        }
+      }
+
+      this.db.exec("BEGIN TRANSACTION");
+
+      try {
+        // Update value and timestamp
+        const updateStmt = this.db.prepare(`
+          UPDATE variables
+          SET value = ?, updated = ?
+          WHERE name = ? AND schema = ?
+        `);
+        updateStmt.run(value, now, name, schema);
+
+        // If options provided, update tags/labels
+        if (options !== undefined) {
+          // Delete existing tags and labels
+          this.db
+            .prepare(`
+            DELETE FROM variable_tags WHERE variable_name = ? AND variable_schema = ?
+          `)
+            .run(name, schema);
+
+          this.db
+            .prepare(`
+            DELETE FROM variable_labels WHERE variable_name = ? AND variable_schema = ?
+          `)
+            .run(name, schema);
+
+          // Insert new tags
+          const tagKeys = Object.keys(tags);
+          if (tagKeys.length > 0) {
+            const tagStmt = this.db.prepare(`
+              INSERT INTO variable_tags (variable_name, variable_schema, key, value)
+              VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?)
+            `);
+            for (const [key, val] of Object.entries(tags)) {
+              tagStmt.run(name, schema, key, val);
+            }
+          }
+
+          // Insert new labels
+          if (labels.length > 0) {
+            const labelStmt = this.db.prepare(`
+              INSERT INTO variable_labels (variable_name, variable_schema, name)
+              VALUES (?, ?, ?)
+            `);
+            for (const labelName of labels) {
+              labelStmt.run(name, schema, labelName);
+            }
+          }
+        }
+
+        this.db.exec("COMMIT");
+      } catch (e) {
+        this.db.exec("ROLLBACK");
+        throw e;
+      }
+
+      return {
+        name,
+        schema,
+        value,
+        created: existing.created,
+        updated: now,
+        tags,
+        labels: [...labels],
+      };
+    }
+
+    // Create new variable
+    const tags = options?.tags ?? {};
+    const labels = options?.labels ?? [];
+
+    // Check for tag/label conflicts
+    const tagKeys = Object.keys(tags);
+    for (const key of tagKeys) {
+      if (labels.includes(key)) {
+        throw new TagLabelConflictError(key, "label", "tag");
+      }
+    }
+
+    const now = Date.now();
+
+    this.db.exec("BEGIN TRANSACTION");
+
+    try {
+      const stmt = this.db.prepare(`
+        INSERT INTO variables (name, schema, value, created, updated)
+        VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?, ?)
+      `);
+
+      stmt.run(name, schema, value, now, now);
+
+      // Insert tags
+      if (tagKeys.length > 0) {
+        const tagStmt = this.db.prepare(`
+          INSERT INTO variable_tags (variable_name, variable_schema, key, value)
+          VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?)
+        `);
+        for (const [key, val] of Object.entries(tags)) {
+          tagStmt.run(name, schema, key, val);
+        }
+      }
+
+      // Insert labels
+      if (labels.length > 0) {
+        const labelStmt = this.db.prepare(`
+          INSERT INTO variable_labels (variable_name, variable_schema, name)
+          VALUES (?, ?, ?)
+        `);
+        for (const labelName of labels) {
+          labelStmt.run(name, schema, labelName);
+        }
+      }
+
+      this.db.exec("COMMIT");
+    } catch (e) {
+      this.db.exec("ROLLBACK");
+      throw e;
+    }
 
     return {
-      id,
-      scope,
-      value,
+      name,
       schema,
+      value,
       created: now,
       updated: now,
+      tags,
+      labels: [...labels],
     };
   }
 
   /**
-   * Get a variable by ID
+   * Get a variable by name, optionally with schema
    */
-  get(id: VariableId): Variable | null {
+  /**
+   * Get a variable by name and schema
+   * @param name - Variable name
+   * @param schema - Schema hash (required)
+   * @returns Variable if found, null otherwise
+   */
+  get(name: string, schema: Hash): Variable | null {
+    // Precise match with schema
     const stmt = this.db.prepare(`
-      SELECT id, scope, value, schema, created, updated
+      SELECT name, schema, value, created, updated
       FROM variables
-      WHERE id = ?
+      WHERE name = ? AND schema = ?
     `);
 
-    const row = stmt.get(id) as
+    const row = stmt.get(name, schema) as
       | {
-          id: string;
-          scope: string;
-          value: string;
+          name: string;
           schema: string;
+          value: string;
           created: number;
           updated: number;
         }
@@ -141,23 +412,30 @@ export class VariableStore {
       return null;
     }
 
+    const tags = this.loadTags(row.name, row.schema);
+    const labels = this.loadLabels(row.name, row.schema);
+
     return {
-      id: row.id,
-      scope: row.scope,
-      value: row.value,
+      name: row.name,
       schema: row.schema,
+      value: row.value,
       created: row.created,
       updated: row.updated,
+      tags,
+      labels,
     };
   }
 
   /**
    * Update a variable's value (with schema validation)
    */
-  update(id: VariableId, value: string): Variable {
-    const existing = this.get(id);
+  update(name: string, schema: Hash, value: string): Variable {
+    // Validate name format
+    this.validateName(name);
+
+    const existing = this.get(name, schema);
     if (existing === null) {
-      throw new VariableNotFoundError(id);
+      throw new VariableNotFoundError(name, schema);
     }
 
     const newSchema = this.extractSchema(value);
@@ -170,10 +448,10 @@ export class VariableStore {
     const stmt = this.db.prepare(`
       UPDATE variables
       SET value = ?, updated = ?
-      WHERE id = ?
+      WHERE name = ? AND schema = ?
     `);
 
-    stmt.run(value, now, id);
+    stmt.run(value, now, name, schema);
 
     return {
       ...existing,
@@ -183,60 +461,252 @@ export class VariableStore {
   }
 
   /**
-   * Delete a variable
+   * Remove a variable (or all variants if schema omitted)
    */
-  delete(id: VariableId): Variable {
-    const existing = this.get(id);
-    if (existing === null) {
-      throw new VariableNotFoundError(id);
+  remove(name: string): Variable[];
+  remove(name: string, schema: Hash): Variable;
+  remove(name: string, schema?: Hash): Variable | Variable[] {
+    if (schema !== undefined) {
+      // Remove specific (name, schema) variant
+      const existing = this.get(name, schema);
+      if (existing === null) {
+        throw new VariableNotFoundError(name, schema);
+      }
+
+      const stmt = this.db.prepare(`
+        DELETE FROM variables WHERE name = ? AND schema = ?
+      `);
+
+      stmt.run(name, schema);
+
+      return existing;
+    }
+
+    // Remove all schema variants for this name
+    const variants = this.list({ exactName: name });
+
+    if (variants.length === 0) {
+      return [];
     }
 
     const stmt = this.db.prepare(`
-      DELETE FROM variables WHERE id = ?
+      DELETE FROM variables WHERE name = ?
     `);
 
-    stmt.run(id);
+    stmt.run(name);
 
-    return existing;
+    return variants;
   }
 
   /**
-   * List variables matching a scope prefix
+   * List variables with optional filters
    */
-  list(options?: { scope?: string }): Variable[] {
-    const scope = options?.scope ?? "";
-
-    // Validate scope format (must end with / if non-empty)
-    if (scope !== "" && !scope.endsWith("/")) {
-      throw new InvalidScopeError(scope);
+  list(options?: {
+    namePrefix?: string;
+    exactName?: string;
+    schema?: Hash;
+    tags?: Record<string, string>;
+    labels?: string[];
+  }): Variable[] {
+    // Validate mutually exclusive options
+    if (options?.namePrefix !== undefined && options?.exactName !== undefined) {
+      throw new Error(
+        "namePrefix and exactName are mutually exclusive - cannot specify both",
+      );
     }
 
-    const stmt = this.db.prepare(`
-      SELECT id, scope, value, schema, created, updated
-      FROM variables
-      WHERE scope LIKE ? || '%'
-      ORDER BY created ASC
-    `);
+    const namePrefix = options?.namePrefix ?? "";
+    const exactName = options?.exactName;
+    const schema = options?.schema;
+    const filterTags = options?.tags ?? {};
+    const filterLabels = options?.labels ?? [];
 
-    const rows = stmt.all(scope) as Array<{
-      id: string;
-      scope: string;
-      value: string;
+    // Build query with filters
+    let query = `
+      SELECT DISTINCT v.name, v.schema, v.value, v.created, v.updated
+      FROM variables v
+    `;
+
+    const params: (string | number)[] = [];
+
+    // Tag filters (AND logic)
+    const tagKeys = Object.keys(filterTags);
+    for (let i = 0; i < tagKeys.length; i++) {
+      const key = tagKeys[i] as string;
+      const value = filterTags[key] as string;
+      query += `
+        INNER JOIN variable_tags t${i} ON v.name = t${i}.variable_name
+          AND v.schema = t${i}.variable_schema
+          AND t${i}.key = ? AND t${i}.value = ?
+      `;
+      params.push(key, value);
+    }
+
+    // Label filters (AND logic)
+    for (let i = 0; i < filterLabels.length; i++) {
+      const label = filterLabels[i] as string;
+      query += `
+        INNER JOIN variable_labels l${i} ON v.name = l${i}.variable_name
+          AND v.schema = l${i}.variable_schema
+          AND l${i}.name = ?
+      `;
+      params.push(label);
+    }
+
+    // WHERE clause for name filters and schema
+    const whereClauses: string[] = [];
+
+    if (exactName !== undefined) {
+      whereClauses.push("v.name = ?");
+      params.push(exactName);
+    } else if (namePrefix !== "") {
+      whereClauses.push("v.name LIKE ? || '%'");
+      params.push(namePrefix);
+    }
+
+    if (schema !== undefined) {
+      whereClauses.push("v.schema = ?");
+      params.push(schema);
+    }
+
+    if (whereClauses.length > 0) {
+      query += ` WHERE ${whereClauses.join(" AND ")}`;
+    }
+
+    query += " ORDER BY v.created ASC";
+
+    const stmt = this.db.prepare(query);
+    const rows = stmt.all(...params) as Array<{
+      name: string;
       schema: string;
+      value: string;
       created: number;
       updated: number;
     }>;
 
     return rows.map((row) => ({
-      id: row.id,
-      scope: row.scope,
-      value: row.value,
+      name: row.name,
       schema: row.schema,
+      value: row.value,
       created: row.created,
       updated: row.updated,
+      tags: this.loadTags(row.name, row.schema),
+      labels: this.loadLabels(row.name, row.schema),
     }));
   }
 
+  /**
+   * Add/update/delete tags and labels
+   */
+  tag(
+    name: string,
+    schema: Hash,
+    operations: {
+      add?: Record<string, string>; // tags to add/update
+      addLabels?: string[]; // labels to add
+      delete?: string[]; // tag keys or label names to delete
+    },
+  ): Variable {
+    // Validate name format
+    this.validateName(name);
+
+    const existing = this.get(name, schema);
+    if (existing === null) {
+      throw new VariableNotFoundError(name, schema);
+    }
+
+    const addTags = operations.add ?? {};
+    const addLabels = operations.addLabels ?? [];
+    const deleteNames = operations.delete ?? [];
+
+    // Check for conflicts between tags and labels
+    const newTagKeys = Object.keys(addTags);
+    for (const key of newTagKeys) {
+      // Check if this key is being added as a label in the same operation
+      if (addLabels.includes(key)) {
+        throw new TagLabelConflictError(key, "label", "tag");
+      }
+      // Check if this key already exists as a label (and not being deleted)
+      if (existing.labels.includes(key) && !deleteNames.includes(key)) {
+        throw new TagLabelConflictError(key, "label", "tag");
+      }
+    }
+
+    for (const labelName of addLabels) {
+      // Check if this name is being added as a tag in the same operation
+      if (newTagKeys.includes(labelName)) {
+        throw new TagLabelConflictError(labelName, "tag", "label");
+      }
+      // Check if this name already exists as a tag key (and not being deleted)
+      if (
+        existing.tags[labelName] !== undefined &&
+        !deleteNames.includes(labelName)
+      ) {
+        throw new TagLabelConflictError(labelName, "tag", "label");
+      }
+    }
+
+    const now = Date.now();
+
+    this.db.exec("BEGIN TRANSACTION");
+
+    try {
+      // Update timestamp
+      const updateStmt = this.db.prepare(`
+        UPDATE variables SET updated = ? WHERE name = ? AND schema = ?
+      `);
+      updateStmt.run(now, name, schema);
+
+      // Delete tags and labels
+      if (deleteNames.length > 0) {
+        const deleteTagStmt = this.db.prepare(`
+          DELETE FROM variable_tags WHERE variable_name = ? AND variable_schema = ? AND key = ?
+        `);
+        const deleteLabelStmt = this.db.prepare(`
+          DELETE FROM variable_labels WHERE variable_name = ? AND variable_schema = ? AND name = ?
+        `);
+        for (const deleteName of deleteNames) {
+          deleteTagStmt.run(name, schema, deleteName);
+          deleteLabelStmt.run(name, schema, deleteName);
+        }
+      }
+
+      // Add or update tags
+      if (newTagKeys.length > 0) {
+        const tagStmt = this.db.prepare(`
+          INSERT OR REPLACE INTO variable_tags (variable_name, variable_schema, key, value)
+          VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?)
+        `);
+        for (const [key, value] of Object.entries(addTags)) {
+          tagStmt.run(name, schema, key, value);
+        }
+      }
+
+      // Add labels (with conflict handling)
+      if (addLabels.length > 0) {
+        const labelStmt = this.db.prepare(`
+          INSERT OR IGNORE INTO variable_labels (variable_name, variable_schema, name)
+          VALUES (?, ?, ?)
+        `);
+        for (const labelName of addLabels) {
+          labelStmt.run(name, schema, labelName);
+        }
+      }
+
+      this.db.exec("COMMIT");
+    } catch (e) {
+      this.db.exec("ROLLBACK");
+      throw e;
+    }
+
+    // Return updated variable
+    const updated = this.get(name, schema);
+    if (updated === null) {
+      throw new VariableNotFoundError(name, schema);
+    }
+    return updated;
+  }
+
   /**
    * Close the database connection
    */

packages/json-cas/src/variable.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,22 @@
+import { describe, expect, test } from "bun:test";
+import type { Variable } from "./variable.js";
+
+describe("Variable Type", () => {
+  test("Variable type uses (name, schema) composite key", () => {
+    const variable: Variable = {
+      name: "config",
+      schema: "ABC123DEF4567",
+      value: "XYZ789GHI0123",
+      created: 1234567890000,
+      updated: 1234567890000,
+      tags: { env: "prod" },
+      labels: ["critical"],
+    };
+
+    expect(variable.name).toBe("config");
+    expect(variable.schema).toBe("ABC123DEF4567");
+    // id and scope should not exist
+    expect((variable as unknown as { id?: unknown }).id).toBeUndefined();
+    expect((variable as unknown as { scope?: unknown }).scope).toBeUndefined();
+  });
+});

packages/json-cas/src/variable.ts

@@ -1,18 +1,15 @@
 import type { Hash } from "./types.js";
 
-/**
- * ULID identifier (26-character Crockford Base32)
- */
-export type VariableId = string;
-
 /**
  * Variable: mutable binding to an immutable CAS node
+ * Identified by composite key (name, schema)
  */
 export type Variable = {
-  id: VariableId;
-  scope: string; // hierarchical path, must end with /
+  name: string; // variable name (unique per schema)
+  schema: Hash; // schema hash (part of composite key)
   value: Hash; // CAS node hash
-  schema: Hash; // extracted from value's CAS node.type
   created: number; // epoch ms
   updated: number; // epoch ms
+  tags: Record<string, string>; // key-value pairs
+  labels: string[]; // bare identifiers
 };

packages/json-cas/src/wrap-envelope.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,85 @@
+import { describe, expect, test } from "bun:test";
+import { bootstrap } from "./bootstrap.js";
+import { createMemoryStore } from "./store.js";
+import { wrapEnvelope } from "./wrap-envelope.js";
+
+describe("wrapEnvelope", () => {
+  test("resolves @output/put alias and returns envelope", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const envelope = await wrapEnvelope(store, "@output/put", "AAAAAAAAAAAAA");
+
+    expect(envelope.type).toBe(aliases["@output/put"]);
+    expect(envelope.value).toBe("AAAAAAAAAAAAA");
+  });
+
+  test("resolves @output/has alias with boolean value", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const envelope = await wrapEnvelope(store, "@output/has", true);
+
+    expect(envelope.type).toBe(aliases["@output/has"]);
+    expect(envelope.value).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  test("resolves @output/gc alias with object value", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const gcStats = { total: 100, reachable: 80, collected: 20, scanned: 5 };
+    const envelope = await wrapEnvelope(store, "@output/gc", gcStats);
+
+    expect(envelope.type).toBe(aliases["@output/gc"]);
+    expect(envelope.value).toEqual(gcStats);
+  });
+
+  test("resolves primitive alias @string", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const envelope = await wrapEnvelope(store, "@string", "hello");
+
+    expect(envelope.type).toBe(aliases["@string"]);
+    expect(envelope.value).toBe("hello");
+  });
+
+  test("throws for unknown alias", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    await bootstrap(store);
+
+    await expect(
+      wrapEnvelope(store, "@output/nonexistent", "value"),
+    ).rejects.toThrow("Unknown schema alias: @output/nonexistent");
+  });
+
+  test("is idempotent — same alias returns same type hash", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+
+    const first = await wrapEnvelope(store, "@output/verify", "ok");
+    const second = await wrapEnvelope(store, "@output/verify", "corrupted");
+
+    expect(first.type).toBe(second.type);
+    expect(first.value).toBe("ok");
+    expect(second.value).toBe("corrupted");
+  });
+
+  test("preserves complex object values without mutation", async () => {
+    const store = createMemoryStore();
+    await bootstrap(store);
+
+    const original = {
+      name: "test",
+      schema: "AAAAAAAAAAAAA",
+      value: "BBBBBBBBBBBBB",
+      created: 1000,
+      updated: 2000,
+      tags: { env: "prod" },
+      labels: ["stable"],
+    };
+    const envelope = await wrapEnvelope(store, "@output/var-set", original);
+
+    expect(envelope.value).toEqual(original);
+  });
+});

packages/json-cas/src/wrap-envelope.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+import { bootstrap } from "./bootstrap.js";
+import type { Hash, Store } from "./types.js";
+
+/**
+ * Resolve a schema alias (e.g. "@output/put") to its hash via bootstrap,
+ * then return a typed envelope ready for store.put() or direct rendering.
+ */
+export async function wrapEnvelope(
+  store: Store,
+  schemaAlias: string,
+  value: unknown,
+): Promise<{ type: Hash; value: unknown }> {
+  const aliases = await bootstrap(store);
+  const typeHash = aliases[schemaAlias];
+  if (typeHash === undefined) {
+    throw new Error(`Unknown schema alias: ${schemaAlias}`);
+  }
+  return { type: typeHash, value };
+}

packages/json-cas/tests/schema-validation.test.ts

@@ -15,7 +15,8 @@ import type { CasNode } from "../src/types.js";
 describe("Test Suite 1: Meta-Schema Structure and Self-Validation", () => {
   test("1.1: Meta-schema is a valid JSON Schema", async () => {
     const store = new MemStore();
-    const metaHash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
     const metaNode = store.get(metaHash);
 
     expect(metaNode).not.toBeNull();
@@ -25,7 +26,8 @@ describe("Test Suite 1: Meta-Schema Structure and Self-Validation", () => {
 
   test("1.2: Meta-schema self-validates", async () => {
     const store = new MemStore();
-    const metaHash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
     const metaNode = store.get(metaHash);
 
     expect(metaNode).not.toBeNull();
@@ -34,7 +36,8 @@ describe("Test Suite 1: Meta-Schema Structure and Self-Validation", () => {
 
   test("1.3: Meta-schema defines all supported keywords", async () => {
     const store = new MemStore();
-    const metaHash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
     const metaSchema = getSchema(store, metaHash);
 
     expect(metaSchema).not.toBeNull();
@@ -57,7 +60,8 @@ describe("Test Suite 1: Meta-Schema Structure and Self-Validation", () => {
 
   test("1.4: Meta-schema does not include unsupported keywords", async () => {
     const store = new MemStore();
-    const metaHash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
     const metaSchema = getSchema(store, metaHash);
 
     expect(metaSchema).not.toBeNull();
@@ -74,7 +78,8 @@ describe("Test Suite 1: Meta-Schema Structure and Self-Validation", () => {
 
   test("1.5: Meta-schema node type equals its own hash", async () => {
     const store = new MemStore();
-    const metaHash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
     const metaNode = store.get(metaHash);
 
     expect(metaNode).not.toBeNull();
@@ -443,7 +448,8 @@ describe("Test Suite 5: Backward Compatibility and Migration", () => {
   test("5.1: Bootstrap hash changes (breaking change)", async () => {
     // This is a documentation test - the old hash was different
     const store = new MemStore();
-    const newMetaHash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const newMetaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
 
     // The new hash should be different from the old system metadata hash
     // We just verify it's a valid hash format
@@ -585,7 +591,8 @@ describe("Test Suite 6: Integration with Existing Functionality", () => {
 describe("Test Suite 7: Meta-Schema Content Validation", () => {
   test("7.1: Meta-schema allows recursive schema definitions", async () => {
     const store = new MemStore();
-    const metaHash = await bootstrap(store);
+    const builtinSchemas = await bootstrap(store);
+    const metaHash = builtinSchemas["@schema"] ?? "";
     const metaSchema = getSchema(store, metaHash);
 
     expect(metaSchema).not.toBeNull();