astrid-runtime/astrid · error

capsule manifest changed after authority decision

Error message

capsule manifest changed after authority decision

What it means

`authority_for_install_source` recomputes the digest of `Capsule.toml` (`digest_manifest`, a domain-separated blake3 hash) and compares it to `approved.manifest_digest`. This error is thrown when the manifest file's bytes changed after the authority decision — even if name/version look the same, any manifest edit (comments, fields, formatting) invalidates the approval.

Source

Thrown at crates/astrid-capsule-install/src/authority.rs:937

    if let Some(approved) = approved {
        if approved.content_digest != content_digest {
            bail!(
                "capsule content changed after authority decision (approved {}, found {})",
                approved.content_digest,
                content_digest
            );
        }
        if approved.signer != signer || approved.signature != signature {
            bail!("capsule provenance changed after authority decision");
        }
        if approved.capsule_id != manifest.package.name
            || approved.version != manifest.package.version
        {
            bail!("capsule identity or version changed after authority decision");
        }
        if approved.manifest_digest != manifest_digest {
            bail!("capsule manifest changed after authority decision");
        }
        if approved.approved_capabilities != manifest.capabilities {
            bail!("capsule capabilities changed after authority decision");
        }
        return Ok(approved);
    }

    // Calling the legacy library install API is itself an operator-authority
    // action. User-facing CLI and daemon entry points use explicit decisions;
    // this path preserves the existing trusted embedding API while recording
    // the same exact content and capability ceiling.
    Ok(InstalledAuthority {
        schema_version: 1,
        source: AuthoritySource::OperatorDistribution,
        capsule_id: manifest.package.name.clone(),
        version: manifest.package.version.clone(),
        content_digest,
        manifest_digest,

View on GitHub (pinned to affd8760f4)

Solutions

  1. Re-run the authority approval on the current manifest so a receipt with the new manifest_digest is issued
  2. Restore Capsule.toml to its exact approved bytes (git checkout the reviewed version) and retry the install
  3. Check for tools (formatters, build scripts) that touch Capsule.toml and exclude it from automatic rewriting

Example fix

// before
bail!("capsule manifest changed after authority decision");
// after
// git checkout -- Capsule.toml   # restore approved bytes
// install_from_local_path_internal(source_dir, Some(approved))
Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

// Compare manifest digest against the approved decision before install
let bytes = std::fs::read(source_dir.join("Capsule.toml"))?;
let digest = digest_manifest(&bytes);
assert_eq!(approved.manifest_digest, digest, "Capsule.toml changed since approval");

Type guard

fn manifest_unchanged(approved: &InstalledAuthority, manifest_bytes: &[u8]) -> bool {
    approved.manifest_digest == digest_manifest(manifest_bytes)
}

Try / catch

match authority_for_install_source(source_dir, &manifest, Some(approved)) {
    Err(e) if e.to_string().contains("manifest changed") => restore_manifest_and_retry(),
    other => other.map(install),
}

Prevention

When it happens

Trigger: Calling `install_from_local_path_internal` with an approved `InstalledAuthority` whose `manifest_digest` differs from the digest of the current `source_dir/Capsule.toml` — any byte-level modification of the manifest between approval and install.

Common situations: A formatter or codegen tool rewriting Capsule.toml after review; adding/removing a capability or metadata field post-approval; manually editing the manifest (even whitespace) before installing.

Understand the failure class

Background: Checksum mismatch errors: "checksum verification failed", "digest mismatch", "expected vs actual checksum" — what they mean and how to fix them — this error's family across 41 libraries.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of astrid-runtime/astrid@affd8760f4 (2026-09-09). Data as JSON: /api/errors/5ca05bc8c9b0a604. Report an issue: GitHub.