Rendered from docs/FIRST_RECEIPT.md at build time without changing its status. The repository source controls if this presentation differs.

Your first receipt#

This walkthrough uses the Verifier Standard (VSTD) generic-run example: a small word-frequency computation with declared input and output files. It requires Git and the released package installation.

Get the matching example#

Use the example from the same release as the installed package:

git clone --branch v1.5.0 --depth 1 https://github.com/TimeLordRaps/verifier.git verifier-example
cd verifier-example

This checkout is a release snapshot, not a development branch. The example lives under examples/generic_run/. Its manifest names the command, inputs, outputs, claim scope, limitations, and falsification conditions.

Inspect the plan#

The command-line interface (CLI) can resolve the manifest without executing its command. The optional output below uses JavaScript Object Notation (JSON).

vstd plan examples/generic_run/manifest.json --json

Read the resolved command and working directory. Inspect compute.py and input.txt in the example directory. Confirm that the output paths are the ones you expect. Planning is side-effect free; run executes the manifest command and is not a sandbox. Use an appropriate operating-system or container isolation boundary for code you do not trust.

Capture the run#

From the checkout root, use a fresh output directory:

vstd run examples/generic_run/manifest.json --output receipt-demo
vstd inspect receipt-demo

The example computation writes its declared outputs in its own working directory. The receipt bundle is written to receipt-demo. The inspection report presents the captured claim and evidence surface; inspect the generated files as well.

Validate the receipt#

vstd validate receipt-demo

For the bundled generic-run profile, validation checks receipt structure and recomputes the stable-payload digest. It does not rehash the declared artifacts, verify external evaluation evidence, or prove the claim true. Schema-shaped data and semantic correctness are different propositions.

Reproduce the declared outputs#

vstd reproduce receipt-demo --rerun

This executes the recorded command again and compares declared outputs. Agreement supports byte-level reproducibility for that rerun and those outputs. A mismatch refutes that bounded statement. Missing evidence or capability must remain UNKNOWN, rather than becoming success.

Follow the evidence boundary#

The example declares limitations and refutation conditions so a result stays tied to its actual scope. Keep those boundaries when adapting it to your own work.

Continue with claims and limits, then the conformance architecture to trace each check to its owner.