Campaign-contained data discipline + repo notice

Operator directive 2026-05-03: this campaign acquires all its
own measurement data from scratch. Predecessor numbers are
documented for context but never imported as binding cells,
comparison targets, or success thresholds. The lesson the
predecessor (kwin_overlay_subsurface) closed-without-patch on
is exactly that: phase 1 cells anchored to a single historical
ohm_gl_fix Phase 0 measurement, three weeks of phase planning
on a baseline that didn't reproduce in-session.

The strongest version of feedback_replicate_baseline_first.md:
"don't import predecessor data, acquire it fresh." The discipline
is now documented as a governing rule in three places:

- README.md § "Campaign-contained data discipline"
- phase0_findings.md § "Campaign-contained data discipline
  (governing rule)"
- worklist.md § "Governing rule (every phase)"

Concrete consequences:
- A1 baseline (Phase 0 task) is now mandatory at N=3 reps.
  Single-rep wasn't enough to surface session variance in the
  predecessor; doing 3 up front makes the baseline robust to
  the same kind of session-state drift that ate the
  predecessor's premise.
- Phase 1 thresholds are drawn against the A1 baseline measured
  in this campaign, not against any predecessor number.
- metrics.csv (when it lands) only carries data from this
  campaign's reps. No predecessor rows imported.

README.md additionally:
- Adds the predecessor chain (ohm_gl_fix -> kwin_overlay_subsurface
  -> this campaign) with explicit "what stays valid for source-
  reading" vs "numbers that don't" separation.
- Calls out durable substrate available from predecessors:
  KWin scanout-promotion archaeology, measurement-protocol
  template, WAYLAND_DEBUG parser. All structural; none
  measurement-numerical.
- Carry-over predecessor system state on ohm (governor pin,
  baloo disabled, fourier packages) is explicitly distinguished
  from measurement data. System state inherits; data does not.
- Repository line points to the gitea remote
  ssh://gitea@git.reauktion.de:2222/marfrit/x11-session-research.git

phase0_findings.md additionally:
- Reframes the predecessor-close-out summary section header to
  "(context, not data)" and rephrases past-tense numbers so
  none are stated as "the baseline."
- Adds the discipline lesson narrative in-line before the
  predecessor close-out: a 30-minute N=3 same-session baseline
  on day 1 of the predecessor would have made the campaign
  different — and that's the move this campaign starts with.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
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> "Research question (LOCKED 2026-05-03)". Phase 1 still > "Research question (LOCKED 2026-05-03)". Phase 1 still
> requires the four pre-question Phase 0 deliverables > requires the four pre-question Phase 0 deliverables
> (state snapshot, X11 path inventory, browser-overlay-path > (state snapshot, X11 path inventory, browser-overlay-path
> inventory, baseline anchor) before binding cells lock. > inventory, **own** baseline anchor) before binding cells
> lock.
**Research question:** Does cutting out the KWin compositor **Research question:** Does cutting out the KWin compositor
enable faster video display of Brave, chromium-fourier, and enable faster video display of Brave, chromium-fourier, and
@@ -27,35 +28,117 @@ The matrix is 3 browsers × 2 decode paths × 2 sessions = 12
cells (some N/A where libva isn't supported). See cells (some N/A where libva isn't supported). See
`phase0_findings.md` for the full table. `phase0_findings.md` for the full table.
## Predecessor ## Campaign-contained data discipline
This campaign exists because **This campaign acquires all its own measurement data from
[`../kwin_overlay_subsurface/`](../kwin_overlay_subsurface/) scratch in this session. Numbers, baselines, and verdict
closed 2026-05-03 without patch (`phase8_handover.md`). Its thresholds from predecessor campaigns are NEVER imported as
diagnostic loop terminated at "Phase 0 cage = 0 post-warmup binding cells, comparison targets, or success criteria.**
drops floor not reproducible at N=3." The natural next move
across the design surface is to vary the display server (X11
instead of Wayland) on the same hardware and the same client
binary, but the operator has not yet confirmed that as the
campaign's specific question.
## Hardware target (provisional, same as predecessor) Predecessor campaigns are documented for *context* — what
question was asked, what file:line pointers stay valid for
source-reading, what tooling/state on ohm carries over. But
their *measurement numbers* (drop counts, perf percentages,
Δ_present medians, kwin %CPU values) **are reference history
only, not data this campaign relies on**.
The discipline lesson is concrete:
[`../kwin_overlay_subsurface/phase8_handover.md`](../kwin_overlay_subsurface/phase8_handover.md)
closed 2026-05-03 without patch because its Phase 1 binding
cells were anchored to a single historical measurement
(`ohm_gl_fix` Phase 0: cage = 7 drops total / 0 post-warmup).
That baseline was treated as a stable property of the
hardware × software stack and the campaign's whole phase
plan was built around closing the gap to it. When the same
condition was re-measured at N=3 in the closing session of
the campaign, none of the three reps reached 0 post-warmup
drops; the median was 26. The campaign's premise didn't
hold up to in-session replication, three weeks of phase
planning ended at Phase 8 close-out, and the lesson is now
[`feedback_replicate_baseline_first.md`](../kwin_overlay_subsurface/.claude/projects/-home-mfritsche-src-kwin-overlay-subsurface/memory/feedback_replicate_baseline_first.md)
in this session's memory.
This campaign acts on that lesson by stronger discipline:
- Every Phase 1 binding cell anchors to data acquired in
this campaign's session.
- Predecessor *measurements* never appear in
`metrics.csv`. Predecessor *file:line source-reads,
protocol designs, parser scripts* may be referenced or
re-used as durable substrate.
- The Phase 0 "A1 baseline" rep is not optional. It is the
Wayland-with-KWin reference rep acquired at the start of
this campaign, against which the X11 cells of the matrix
will be compared. The predecessor's matching numbers are
not used as a substitute even if they look identical.
- If a measurement instrument behaved one way in a
predecessor campaign, that behavior is re-verified here
before being relied on (see Phase 0 X11 measurement-tool
inventory).
If a measurement in this campaign happens to match a
predecessor's number, that's a useful corroboration of
reproducibility — but it cannot substitute for in-session
acquisition.
## Predecessor campaigns
This campaign is the third in a chain on the same hardware
target:
1. [`../ohm_gl_fix/`](../ohm_gl_fix/) — closed 2026-05-02.
Diagnosed and patched the Step 1 (`libva-v4l2-request`)
and Step 2 (Chromium `WaylandBufferManagerHost`
overlay-route) issues. Spun off the Wayland-compositor-
path question into a separate campaign because that
question had a different code surface, upstream, and
reviewer culture.
2. [`../kwin_overlay_subsurface/`](../kwin_overlay_subsurface/)
— closed 2026-05-03 without patch
(`phase8_handover.md`). Diagnostic loop terminated at
"Phase 0 cage = 0 post-warmup drops floor not
reproducible at N=3" — the inherited baseline turned
out to be N=1 historical and didn't replicate in-session.
3. **This campaign** (`x11-session-research`) — opened
2026-05-03. Tests whether bypassing the KWin compositor
via X11 + non-compositing WM avoids the forced
NV12 → RGB GL-composite step the predecessor identified
as a structural Wayland constraint on rockchip-drm.
Durable substrate from the predecessors that this campaign
*may* read (not import-as-data):
- `kwin_overlay_subsurface/phase2_source_findings.md`
KWin scanout-promotion archaeology (Plane 39 / Plane 45
format/modifier table on rockchip-drm RK3568); Phase 2-prime
Shape C source-read of `Display::dispatchEvents` and
`TransactionFence` (Wayland-side, doesn't transfer to X11
but illustrates the per-frame dispatch shape).
- `kwin_overlay_subsurface/phase3_protocol_prime.md` — the
measurement-protocol structure (operator-vs-Claude split,
pre-registered hypothesis, falsification table, evidence
layout). The structural template is reusable. The specific
numbers and threshold values **are not**.
- `kwin_overlay_subsurface/scripts/wayland_debug_to_csv.py`
parser for libwayland WAYLAND_DEBUG output. Useful for the
Wayland cells of this campaign's matrix; an X11 equivalent
is yet-to-build.
## Hardware target (same as predecessors)
ohm — PineTab2, Rockchip RK3568 (4× Cortex-A55, Mali-G52 MP2, ohm — PineTab2, Rockchip RK3568 (4× Cortex-A55, Mali-G52 MP2,
hantro G1/G2 VPU). Kernel `6.19.10-danctnix1-1-pinetab2`. hantro G1/G2 VPU). Kernel `6.19.10-danctnix1-1-pinetab2`.
Mesa 26.0.5. Currently runs KDE Plasma 6.6.4 Wayland. Mesa 26.0.5. Currently runs KDE Plasma 6.6.4 Wayland.
For an X11-session campaign, ohm needs an Xorg + Plasma X11 (or For an X11-session campaign, ohm needs an Xorg + non-compositing
similar X11 desktop) install path verified. As of 2026-05-03, WM install path verified. As of 2026-05-03, the only confirmed
the only confirmed display path on ohm is display path on ohm is `startplasma-wayland`. Phase 0 inventory
`startplasma-wayland`. **Whether Plasma X11, an alternate X11 will catalog what's installed, what'd need installing, and
desktop (XFCE, openbox, lightweight WM), or Plasma running what SDDM-advertised sessions exist.
under a Wayland-Xorg shim is in scope is part of the research
question to be locked.**
## Carry-overs from predecessor (still active on ohm) ## Carry-overs from predecessor (system state, not data)
Per `kwin_overlay_subsurface/phase1_evidence/ohm_tooling_revert_log.md`: Per `../kwin_overlay_subsurface/phase1_evidence/ohm_tooling_revert_log.md`:
- `qt6-base-fourier 1:6.11.0-3` installed. - `qt6-base-fourier 1:6.11.0-3` installed.
- `kwin-fourier 1:6.6.4-3` installed. - `kwin-fourier 1:6.6.4-3` installed.
@@ -65,19 +148,29 @@ Per `kwin_overlay_subsurface/phase1_evidence/ohm_tooling_revert_log.md`:
- `drm-info 2.9.0-1` installed. - `drm-info 2.9.0-1` installed.
These were not reverted at the predecessor's close-out. This These were not reverted at the predecessor's close-out. This
campaign inherits them unless an explicit revert is part of campaign inherits them as **system state**, distinct from
the design. **measurement data**. A different system state (e.g. a fresh
Plasma session, or the same packages but different uptime)
might produce different measurements; this is exactly why
in-session baseline acquisition matters.
## Non-upstreaming default ## Non-upstreaming default
Inherited from the predecessor and from `ohm_gl_fix`. Bug Inherited from the predecessors. Bug reports + MRs are
reports + MRs are explicit operator-tasked decisions, not explicit operator-tasked decisions, not background process
background process steps. steps.
## File map (will grow) ## File map (will grow)
| File | What it is | | File | What it is |
|---|---| |---|---|
| `README.md` | This file. | | `README.md` | This file. |
| `phase0_findings.md` | Substrate from the predecessor + the candidate research question. **Awaits operator confirmation/redirect on the question itself.** | | `phase0_findings.md` | Locked motivation + experimental matrix + open questions before Phase 1. |
| `worklist.md` | Phase-by-phase task list. Phase 0 only as of campaign start. | | `worklist.md` | Phase-by-phase task list. |
| `phase0_evidence/` (created when first run lands) | Phase 0 inventory + A1 baseline rep. |
## Repository
`ssh://gitea@git.reauktion.de:2222/marfrit/x11-session-research.git`
(public). Cloned/pushed via SSH on port 2222 per the home-infra
gitea convention.
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# Phase 0 — substrate and provisional research question # Phase 0 — substrate and locked research question
This is the campaign's Phase 0 substrate doc: what we already This is the campaign's Phase 0 doc: the locked research
know from the predecessor `kwin_overlay_subsurface` close-out, question (see § "Research question (LOCKED 2026-05-03)"
what's open, and what the candidate research question looks below), the substrate inherited as *context* from the
like. **The research question is provisional and awaits predecessor `kwin_overlay_subsurface`, and the open questions
operator confirmation before Phase 1 lock.** this campaign answers in-session before Phase 1 binding cells
lock.
## Predecessor close-out summary ## Campaign-contained data discipline (governing rule)
**This campaign acquires all its own measurement data from
scratch in this session.** Predecessor measurement numbers
(drop counts, perf percentages, Δ_present medians, kwin %CPU
values, threshold values) are documented for *context* but
**never imported as binding cells, comparison targets, or
success criteria**.
Concretely, in this Phase 0 doc:
- Numbers from `kwin_overlay_subsurface` Phase 3 / Phase 3-prime
(e.g. "C5' had 32 drops total / 22 post-warmup"; "median
Δ_present 45.85 ms"; "kwin %CPU median 36.90") are quoted
**only as evidence of past measurements that may or may not
reproduce**. They establish the SHAPE of what's measurable
and the fact that measurement infrastructure works on this
hardware. They do **not** establish "this is the baseline
the X11 cells will be compared against."
- The Phase 0 A1 baseline rep (worklist.md) is the
in-session anchor for any with-KWin Wayland measurement
this campaign references.
- No `metrics.csv` row in this campaign is populated from
predecessor data, even if the predecessor measured an
identical condition.
- If an X11 cell appears to "match the cage Phase 0 number,"
that's incidental — the cage Phase 0 number is not the test
this campaign is running. The test is "X11 vs in-session
Wayland baseline."
The discipline lesson is concrete: the predecessor's Phase 1
binding cell `drops_post_warmup == 0` was anchored to a single
ohm_gl_fix Phase 0 cage measurement (7 drops total / 0
post-warmup). Three weeks of phase planning ran on the
assumption that floor existed. At N=3 in-session replication
on the closing day of the predecessor, that floor was missing
(cage today: 22 / 26 / 56 post-warmup). The campaign closed
without patch. **A 30-minute N=3 same-session baseline check
on day 1 would have made the campaign different — or made it
honestly close earlier.** This campaign acts on that lesson.
## Predecessor close-out summary (context, not data)
[`../kwin_overlay_subsurface/phase8_handover.md`](../kwin_overlay_subsurface/phase8_handover.md) [`../kwin_overlay_subsurface/phase8_handover.md`](../kwin_overlay_subsurface/phase8_handover.md)
(closed 2026-05-03 without patch). Three independent reasons (closed 2026-05-03 without patch). Three independent reasons
no patch landed: no patch landed (numbers below are quoted as historical
context per the governing rule above):
1. The campaign's locked Phase 1 reference floor 1. The predecessor's locked Phase 1 reference floor
(`drops_post_warmup == 0` from cage) is unreachable at N=3 (`drops_post_warmup == 0` from cage) was unreachable in the
today. Today's median is 26 post-warmup with the same predecessor's closing N=3 measurement session — same
chromium-fourier binary, same hardware, same kernel, same chromium-fourier binary, same hardware, same kernel, same
Mesa, same kwin-fourier — KWin direct reproduces Phase 0's Mesa, same kwin-fourier as the original Phase 0 measurement.
29 post-warmup, but cage now also drops ~22-56 post-warmup KWin direct's number reproduced; cage's 0-floor did not.
instead of Phase 0's 0. Numbers quoted in the predecessor's `phase3_prime_findings.md`;
not used here as a baseline for any cell.
2. The campaign's surface-of-investigation 2. The campaign's surface-of-investigation
(`wp_subsurface` overlay route) is not engaged by (`wp_subsurface` overlay route) is not engaged by
`brave_drops_test.html`. Chromium-fourier renders the video `brave_drops_test.html`. Chromium-fourier renders the video
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# Work items — x11-session-research # Work items — x11-session-research
## Governing rule (every phase)
**Campaign-contained data acquisition.** Every measurement
this campaign relies on is acquired in this campaign's
session. Predecessor numbers are reference history, never
imported as binding cells, comparison targets, or success
thresholds. The A1 baseline below is not optional — it is
the in-session Wayland anchor against which X11 cells are
compared. See `phase0_findings.md` § "Campaign-contained data
discipline" and `README.md` § "Campaign-contained data
discipline" for the full rule and the predecessor lesson
that motivated it.
## Phase 0 — substrate + research question + inventory ## Phase 0 — substrate + research question + inventory
**Status: IN PROGRESS.** Motivation LOCKED 2026-05-03 in **Status: IN PROGRESS.** Motivation LOCKED 2026-05-03 in
@@ -64,13 +77,17 @@ inventory and baseline-anchor work below.
`XPresent` notify events or `INTEL_swap_event` GLX `XPresent` notify events or `INTEL_swap_event` GLX
extension equivalents — what's available on rockchip is extension equivalents — what's available on rockchip is
open. open.
- [ ] **A1 baseline: Wayland-with-KWin reference rep.** - [ ] **A1 baseline: in-session Wayland-with-KWin anchor.**
1× `kwin_timing_nodebug`-equivalent run on current Plasma Mandatory per the governing rule. 3 reps minimum (variance
Wayland session captured into is a real concern on this hardware per the predecessor
`phase0_evidence/wayland_baseline_rep1/` as the data) of a `kwin_timing_nodebug`-equivalent run on the
same-session anchor for the cross-session current Plasma Wayland session, captured into
Wayland-vs-X11 comparison. Per `phase0_evidence/wayland_baseline_repN/`. **This is the
`feedback_replicate_baseline_first.md`. only Wayland baseline this campaign uses.** No
predecessor number substitutes for these reps even if the
predecessor measured an "identical" condition. The 3 reps
also surface the session-internal variance up front, so
Phase 1 thresholds aren't drawn against a single sample.
## Phase 1 — binding cells + measurement protocol ## Phase 1 — binding cells + measurement protocol
@@ -81,10 +98,14 @@ lock will produce `phase1_lock.md` with:
drops_post_warmup, end-to-end-latency-if-testable, drops_post_warmup, end-to-end-latency-if-testable,
compositor+browser CPU at steady state). compositor+browser CPU at steady state).
- The clear-pass / clear-fail thresholds: what "X11 is faster" - The clear-pass / clear-fail thresholds: what "X11 is faster"
means quantitatively. Provisional: a matrix cell counts as means quantitatively. Thresholds are drawn from the A1
"X11 faster" if effective_fps under X11 is ≥ 28 (out of 30 Wayland baseline acquired in *this* campaign — not from
source) AND drops_post_warmup is ≤ 5, on a same-session predecessor numbers. Provisional shape (numbers TBD from
cross-paired comparison with the corresponding Wayland cell. A1): a matrix cell counts as "X11 faster" if its effective
fps exceeds the campaign's same-cell Wayland median by a
margin larger than the campaign's same-cell Wayland IQR,
and its drops_post_warmup is materially below the same
cell's Wayland median.
- The measurement protocol per matrix cell, including how the - The measurement protocol per matrix cell, including how the
X11 sessions are entered and how the browser is launched X11 sessions are entered and how the browser is launched
with libva forced on/off. Mirrors the structure of with libva forced on/off. Mirrors the structure of
@@ -96,10 +117,10 @@ Pending.
## Discipline carry-overs from `kwin_overlay_subsurface` ## Discipline carry-overs from `kwin_overlay_subsurface`
- *Replicate the baseline first* — per - *Campaign-contained data acquisition* — see governing rule
`feedback_replicate_baseline_first.md`. Phase 0 task "A1 at the top of this file. The strongest version of the
baseline" exists specifically because of this lesson; do not predecessor's "replicate the baseline first" lesson:
skip it. **don't import predecessor data at all**, acquire it fresh.
- *Phase discipline* — no patches before source-read is - *Phase discipline* — no patches before source-read is
documented. Re-scoping must be honest about deferral target. documented. Re-scoping must be honest about deferral target.
- *Non-upstreaming default* — bug reports + MRs are explicit - *Non-upstreaming default* — bug reports + MRs are explicit