Axis 3: Components
Overview
GCBoK defines six core components of the GitCover stack:
GCDMS — GitCover Document Management System
Evidence and document management system based on .v7g.md containers and metadata. Toolchain: v7g-pack, v7g-verify, v7g-sign, v7g-export.
GCPN — GitCover PrimaNota
Metadata mechanism for forming audit-proof evidence chains (predecessor/successor) for business documents. The historical term PrimaNota denotes an ordering key that assigns a unique key for coherence to a business transaction — e.g., a double-entry bookkeeping record or a multi-part booking transaction (receivable, value-added tax, cost center/cost unit allocation). GCPN transfers this principle to a UUIDv7 basis: Every document receives a time-ordered identifier (RFC 9562) and is chained to its predecessor and successor documents via Predecessor/Successor references.
The chaining occurs non-chronologically: A document captured later can be inserted as a predecessor (Predecessor-Insert) into an existing chain — crucial for GoBD Rz. 80 (progressive and retrogressive audit). Match-key fields (order number, debtor, gross amount, etc.) enable automatic chain association without manual assignment.
The .v7g.md container format combines human-readable metadata (YAML + Markdown) with machine-processable business data (embedded JSON) and is stored in Git repositories whose commit hash serves as cryptographic integrity proof.
Application areas beyond accounting: GDPR processing records (Art. 30), NIS2 incident chains, MADR architecture decisions, OIDC/OAuth token lifecycle, OSCAL Assessment Results.
Utility model protection: Az 20 2026 000 272.7 — in force. Protected subject matter: Container data structure for UUIDv7-based, audit-proof business document management with dynamic Predecessor/Successor chaining. Patent application filed (47 claims).
GCUCB — GitCover Unified Communication Bus
Shared-memory-based context bus with deterministic V7GUID addressing. Central data hub between AI agents, OPA validators, and audit systems.
The Overhead Problem
| Source | Finding |
|---|---|
| RMMAP (EuroSys 2024) | Serialization = 17-72% of workflow time |
| AgentTaxo (ICLR 2025) | 20-60% of tokens = coordination overhead |
| AgentDiet (arXiv 2025) | 39.9-59.7% of input tokens are useless |
The Solution
GCUCB eliminates repeated serialization/deserialization through typed direct access to memory-mapped file regions. AI agents receive typed, V7GUID-referenced structs directly from the bus — without huge system prompts.
OPA/Rego acts as VPRM (Verifiable Process Reward Model): Guardrails arise through deterministic rule sets, not through prompt engineering.
Delineation
| Component | Layer | Delineation from GCUCB |
|---|---|---|
| GCEP | Persistence (Git-to-Git) | Instance-to-instance; GCUCB = runtime memory bus |
| GCSYNC | Outbound (Git -> RAG) | External channel; GCUCB = internal bus |
| GCPN | Chaining logic | Evidence chains (predecessor/successor); GCUCB = transport/access |
GCEP — GitCover Exchange Protocol
Instance-to-instance exchange protocol between Git repos on different hosts. Semantically determined by OSCAL catalogs and OPA-defined hooks/callbacks.
IETF track planned (I-D, short form: gcep). Patent application: 10 2025 003 359.1.
GCAL — GitCover Advisory Lock
Distributed lock mechanism between Git repos — analogous to the PostgreSQL Advisory Lock, but at the repo level. Prerequisite for GCEP: Before two instances exchange data, a lock must ensure atomic handoff.
GCSYNC — GitCover Sync
Outbound channel from GitCover to other data storage systems. Provides data for RAG systems, MCP servers, and Nextcloud shares.
See also: Protective rights and patent status in Protective Rights. Research recognition in Research Projects.