Document Type: Canon
Status: Canon
Version: v1.2
Authority: HeadOffice
Applies To: All MWMS Canon Domains
Parent: Governance
Last Reviewed: 2026-03-14
Purpose
This protocol exists to prevent canon drift, confusion, partial edits, silent rule mutation, and assumption-based overwrites.
Canon must remain auditable, repeatable, stable, and comparison-driven.
This document defines the required editing discipline for all canon changes across MWMS.
Scope
This canon applies to:
• all MWMS canon pages
• all canon change requests
• all canon replacement outputs
• all amendment proposals
• all version-controlled governance changes
• all structural and authority-level canon modifications
This document governs how canon may be updated.
It does not govern:
• non-canon reference pages
• ordinary brainstorming
• exploratory discussion that does not mutate canon
• runtime execution behaviour outside canon change control
Those remain governed by their own relevant standards and workflows unless a canon change is being proposed.
Definition / Rules
Canon Definition (What Counts as Canon)
Canon is any rule, boundary, interface contract, output schema, governance rule, enforcement rule, or authority rule that governs MWMS Brains or systems.
If it influences decisions, outputs, permissions, automation power, or structural boundaries, it is canon.
Canon Storage Rule
Canon must be stored as dedicated pages, not scattered across chats.
Canon pages must be:
• single-source-of-truth
• human-readable
• versioned
• dated in ISO format (YYYY-MM-DD)
Change Control Rule (Hard Rule)
Any change to an existing canon page must be delivered as:
A full replacement block containing the complete page content
Partial edits are non-compliant by default.
Fragment insertion is prohibited.
Speculative patching is prohibited.
Canonical Comparison Rule (Mandatory)
Before generating any canon replacement:
• the current live version must be provided in full
• the AI must explicitly compare the live version against the proposed version
• the AI must declare one of:
• Preserve — no change required
• Replace — full structural upgrade
• Supersede — new doctrine replaces prior model
The reason for change must be explicitly stated.
Impact and backward compatibility must be declared.
Only then may a full replacement block be produced.
Failure to perform comparison invalidates the output.
Amendment Format (Required)
Any proposed canon update must include:
• Target Canon Page Name
• Current Version
• New Version Number
• Reason for change, including failure observed or reality change
• Impact, including what it affects
• Backward compatibility note
• Full Replacement Block
Versioning Rule
Canon versions must increment as follows:
• v1.0 → v1.1 for improvements or clarifications
• v1.x → v2.0 for structural or authority-level changes
Date Rule (ISO Locked)
All canon dates must use ISO format only:
YYYY-MM-DD
No exceptions.
Authority Rule
Only MWMS HeadOffice, Martyn or delegated authority, may approve canon edits.
Other Brains or systems may:
• propose amendments
• report drift or failure modes
They may not modify canon directly.
Audit Rule
All canon changes must be:
• explicit
• logged, with revision history at minimum
• traceable to a reason
Silent changes are forbidden.
Enforcement Rule
If a canon change request violates this protocol:
The change is rejected.
Output defaults to:
Provide full replacement block with comparison.
Drift Protection
The system must prevent:
• partial canon edits
• silent mutation of governance rules
• canon updates without comparison against the live version
• fragment-only amendments
• version changes without reasoning
• authority-level changes without explicit declaration
• canon existing as scattered chat fragments instead of dedicated pages
Canon must remain explicit, complete, and auditable.
Architectural Intent
This protocol exists to ensure that canon inside MWMS evolves through disciplined comparison rather than informal editing.
Its role is to protect governance integrity by forcing every canon change to be explicit, versioned, justified, and delivered as a full replacement rather than an ambiguous patch.
Change Log
Version: v1.2
Date: 2026-03-14
Author: MWMS HeadOffice
Change: Rebuilt Canon Editing Protocol to align with MWMS document standards. Added standardised document header, introduced Purpose / Scope / Definition / Rules structure, added Parent field, normalised formatting, and preserved the original canon comparison, full-replacement, amendment, versioning, date, authority, audit, and enforcement logic.
Version: v1.1
Date: 2026-02-12
Author: HeadOffice
Change: Established comparison-driven canon editing discipline, full replacement requirement, amendment format, versioning rule, ISO date rule, authority rule, audit rule, and enforcement fallback for non-compliant canon change requests.
Version: v1.0
Date: Prior entry preserved
Author: HeadOffice
Change: Initial canon editing discipline established.
END – CANON EDITING PROTOCOL v1.2