The sovereign mesh is the application-level network overlay that connects every PointSav Private Network (PPN) fleet node. It runs over WireGuard cryptographic tunnels on a dedicated ppn0 interface and carries signed binary commands without relying on a centralized message broker. Each node communicates directly with its authorized peers; the mesh layer enforces the same authority hierarchy as the Diode Standard as a structural property, not a configuration option.

Hub-and-spoke topology

The mesh uses a hub-and-spoke arrangement. The cloud relay node sits at the center and relays packets between spoke nodes that may not have a direct path to each other.

The 10.50.0.0/24 subnet is the intended PPN address range. All mesh traffic is encapsulated inside WireGuard before leaving a node; the underlying transport — public internet, private LAN, or GCP internal network — is irrelevant to the mesh layer.

WireGuard overlay

Each node brings up a ppn0 WireGuard interface as part of its boot sequence. WireGuard provides key agreement via Noise Protocol IK handshake, with each node's long-term keypair generated and stored at first mesh join; encryption and integrity via ChaCha20-Poly1305 per packet; and peer reachability through the cloud relay as the only statically-addressed peer.

WireGuard configuration for each node is held in the local deployments directory (local-only, not tracked in any repository). Keypairs are never stored in any repository.

Command protocol

All mesh commands use a 16-byte binary packet format delivered over UDP on port 8090. The compact size is deliberate: the packet carries an intent token, a target selector, a nonce, and a truncated authority signature — sufficient to identify the command, verify its provenance, and detect replay attacks without requiring a full TLS session per command.

The command flow from operator to target node is:

Operator intent (plain language)
      ↓
F8 Terminal  —  os-network-admin  HTTP :8085
      ↓
service-slm semantic router
      ↓
16-byte binary command (authorized and signed)
      ↓
service-udp broadcast  →  ppn0  →  WireGuard tunnel
      ↓
Target node  —  UDP port 8090

Commands flow in one direction only — from os-network-admin outward to the mesh — a constraint enforced by service-pointsav-link at the application layer.

Node roles in the mesh

os-infrastructure — the bare-metal node — is a mesh peer, not a mesh controller. It listens on port 8090 for signed binary commands addressed to it and executes them; it does not initiate commands. The node joins the mesh through the Genesis Protocol join sequence.

os-network-admin owns command authority for the mesh. The F8 Terminal accepts operator intent in natural language and routes it through service-slm to produce a signed 16-byte binary command, which is then broadcast over service-udp on port 8090 to one or more mesh peers.

The GCP cloud relay relays WireGuard-encapsulated packets between spoke nodes. It does not interpret mesh commands; it is a transport layer only.

Genesis Protocol integration

A bare-metal node joins the mesh through the Genesis Protocol rather than manual WireGuard provisioning. At first boot, seL4 generates an entropy-seeded keypair; the node enters blind-boot mode and scans for the os-network-admin beacon on port 8090; if found, os-network-admin guides the node through the mesh-join handshake; if not found, the node self-geneses and awaits an admin claim.

This mechanism ensures that no node ever joins the mesh without a verified authority handshake.

Relationship to the Diode Standard

The Diode Standard defines three mesh traffic categories: authority commands, telemetry, and inter-node sync. All three flow through the sovereign mesh, but only authority commands use the 16-byte binary format on port 8090. Telemetry and sync traffic use WireGuard-encapsulated TCP or UDP on other ports.

The Diode Standard's unidirectionality constraint is implemented at the mesh layer by service-pointsav-link, a hot-pluggable adapter that enforces the flow direction without requiring WireGuard policy changes.

See also

• genesis-protocol — how bare-metal nodes join the mesh at first boot
• ppn-command-protocol — the 16-byte binary wire format for fleet commands
• service-pointsav-link — the adapter that enforces command flow direction
• diode-standard — authority hierarchy and traffic category definitions
• machine-based-auth — Noise Protocol keypair management and pairing types
• sovereign-telemetry — the zero-state telemetry architecture running over the mesh