The RECALL pipeline coordinates four schema layers. Each layer speaks to a different audience — the language itself, the component author, the data author, and the AI orchestrator. Together they answer three questions that every publishing pipeline must answer: what can I express, what do I fill in, and why does this exist.
Four layers. Each named. Three carry 1959 lineage from COBOL. One is purely AI-era. The fact that they connect without friction is the legitimacy of the architecture.
| QUESTION | LAYER |
|---|---|
| What can I express? | Language Schema, Component Manifest |
| What do I need to fill in? | Common Record Description |
| Why does any of this exist? | Pipeline Manifest |
The first two questions are answered by every publishing tool. The third is not. The Pipeline Manifest is where RECALL answers it — in machine-readable form, for AI orchestrators that have no persistent mental model.
| LAYER | COMMAND | PURPOSE | AUDIENCE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Language Schema | recall schema --json | All valid RECALL elements, PIC types, divisions, and clauses. | AI compositor, author |
| Component Manifest | recall scaffold --list --plugin | Plugin component field shapes, PIC types, and COMMENT annotations. | AI compositor, author |
| Common Record Description | recall crd <file> --against <brief> | Field agreement across inputSchema, brief JSON, and DATA DIVISION. | AI compositor, compiler |
| Pipeline Manifest | recall manifest --json | Unified entry point — assembles all four layers for AI orchestrators. | AI orchestrator |
The Common Record Description is the field agreement across three expression points: the MCP inputSchema (author-facing), the brief JSON (storage layer), and the RECALL DATA DIVISION (compiler-facing). All three encode the same contract in different syntaxes for different audiences. When they diverge, the compiler truncates silently. recall crd catches that before it happens.
Four diagnostic codes cover the four divergence modes. CRD-001: field in brief has no DATA DIVISION declaration. CRD-002: DATA field has no brief value — renders empty. CRD-003: brief value exceeds PIC X limit — will truncate. CRD-004: brief array length differs from DATA group row count.
recall crd page.rcl --against brief.json recall crd page.rcl --against brief.json --format json recall crd page.rcl --against brief.json --strict recall crd page.rcl --against brief.json --quiet
Run recall crd before every compile step to catch field divergence early. Use --strict in CI. Use --format json for machine-readable output in editor integrations.
The Pipeline Manifest is the single entry point for institutional memory. An AI orchestrator re-enters the pipeline fresh on every run — it has no persistent mental model. The manifest encodes the why in machine-readable form so the AI can reconstruct the full pipeline contract without a human in the loop.
recall manifest recall manifest --json recall manifest --layer language recall manifest --layer crd recall manifest --layer compositor recall manifest --json --plugin @stratiqx/recall-components
recall manifest --json is designed for AI orchestrators. The language schema is always inlined. Pass --plugin to populate the component list. Use --layer to inspect a single layer without the full payload.
Three of the four layers have 1959 DNA. Grace Hopper's COBOL gave us element vocabularies, COPY books, and record layouts. The Compositor Contract is purely AI-era — no 1959 precedent. The Pipeline Manifest carries the name Hopper would have given it: Program Library Directory.
| LAYER | ORIGIN | WHAT IT ENCODES |
|---|---|---|
| Language Schema | RECALL-native | What the language can express. The compiler's own vocabulary made legible. |
| Component Manifest | COPY books, 1959 | Shared definitions included at compile time. What exists to render with. |
| Common Record Description | Record layouts, 1959 | The field agreement that travels across every system that touches the same data. |
| Compositor Contract | AI-native, 2026 | The runtime protocol born from the need to let AI expand intent into structure. No 1959 precedent. |
| Pipeline Manifest | Program Library Dir., 1959 | The catalogue of what exists and what contract each entry honours. |
Three layers have 1959 COBOL precedent. Two are AI-era inventions. The fact that they connect without friction is the legitimacy of the architecture.