docs: slim v0.6.0

docs/.index

@@ -12,4 +12,5 @@ nav:
   - Agent Workflow Server: agws
   - Agent Manifest: manifest
   - How-To Guides: how-to-guides
+  - Glossary: glossary.md
   - How to Contribute: contributing.md

docs/glossary.md

@@ -0,0 +1,349 @@
+# SLIM Messaging Glossary
+
+This glossary defines technical terms referenced across the SLIM messaging documentation: core concepts, naming, sessions, routing, configuration, security, integrations (SLIMRPC, A2A, MCP), and deployment tooling. Terms are alphabetized.
+
+---
+
+## A
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Ack (Acknowledgment)**
+
+    ---
+
+    A confirmation—explicit or implicit—that a sent message was delivered or processed. In reliable modes, missing acks trigger retries until `max_retries` is reached or a timeout fires.
+
+-   **Anycast**
+
+    ---
+
+    Routing mode where a message addressed to a 3-component name (`org/namespace/service`) is delivered to exactly one currently reachable instance. Each message may choose a different instance. Used in the discovery phase of point-to-point and group sessions.
+
+</div>
+
+---
+
+## C
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Channel (Group Channel)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Logical group namespace: the first three SLIM name components (`org/namespace/service`) without the client hash. All joined participants receive each message. Also referred to as a Group.
+
+-   **Channel Moderator**
+
+    ---
+
+    Manager of a group channel that invites/removes participants and coordinates MLS state.
+
+-   **Client (Application Client)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Runtime endpoint connected to a SLIM node. Identified by full four-component name: `org/namespace/service/clientHash`.
+
+-   **Client Instance ID (Client Hash)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Fourth name component, derived from identity material (e.g., hash of public key). Ensures unique, routable unicast identity per instance.
+
+-   **Connection (Routing Connection)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Configured link (endpoint + parameters) enabling a SLIM node to route traffic to another SLIM node.
+
+-   **Controller (SLIM Controller)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Central orchestration service offering northbound (administrative) and southbound (node) gRPC interfaces for configuration, topology, and group/channel operations.
+
+</div>
+
+---
+
+## D
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Data Plane (Messaging Layer)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Operational pipeline for message routing, delivery, encryption (MLS), and session state, implemented in SLIM nodes. It can be used synonymously with "SLIM Node".
+
+-   **Discovery (Service Discovery)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Initial interaction where packets can be sent to any available instance. This is used at the beginning of a point-to-point session and when a new invite is sent in a group session.
+
+</div>
+
+---
+
+## E
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Endpoint**
+
+    ---
+
+    Host:port (and scheme) on which a server listens or a client connects. Note that in the configuration the client needs to specify the protocol (e.g. http://localhost:46357), but not the server (e.g. localhost:46357)
+
+</div>
+
+---
+
+## G
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Group**
+
+    ---
+
+    Set of participants joined to a channel. Shares message distribution and optionally an MLS security context. See also: Channel.
+
+</div>
+
+---
+
+## I
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Identity**
+
+    ---
+
+    Cryptographic or token-based representation of a workload (shared secret, JWT, SPIFFE SVID) determining trust and naming uniqueness.
+
+-   **Invitation (Group Invitation)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Control message enabling a client to join an existing group.
+
+</div>
+
+---
+
+## L
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Local Name**
+
+    ---
+
+    The fully qualified SLIM name representing the current application endpoint. See Client (Application Client)
+
+</div>
+
+---
+
+## M
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Max Retries (Session Config)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Upper limit on retransmission attempts for a single message lacking timely acknowledgment.
+
+-   **MLS (Message Layer Security)**
+
+    ---
+
+    End-to-end group key agreement and encryption protocol (RFC 9420) providing confidentiality and integrity beyond hop-level TLS termination.
+
+-   **Moderator**
+
+    ---
+
+    Alias of Channel Moderator.
+
+-   **Group Session**
+
+    ---
+
+    Session type enabling many-to-many distribution; every message is delivered to all participants in the channel.
+
+</div>
+
+---
+
+## N
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Name (SLIM Name)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Structured routing identifier: `organization/namespace/service/clientHash` (full) or the first three components for channel addressing. The first component, `organization`, usually represents the top-level administrative or tenant boundary; the second component, `namespace`, can be used to encode environment, region, or an organizational partition; the third component, `service`, specifies the service exposed by the client. When multiple instances of the same service are deployed (such as several pods in a Kubernetes cluster), these first three components remain the same for all instances. The last component, `clientHash`, is generated by SLIM from the client's identity material (e.g., a hash of the public key) and uniquely identifies each specific client instance.
+
+-   **Node (SLIM Node)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Runtime process implementing the data plane: message routing, session handling, MLS operations, optional control endpoints.
+
+</div>
+
+---
+
+## P
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Participant (Group Participant)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Client that has accepted an invitation and joined a group, receiving all channel traffic.
+
+</div>
+
+---
+
+## R
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Retry**
+
+    ---
+
+    Re-attempt of sending a message after a timeout window, capped by `max_retries`.
+
+-   **Route (Routing Entry)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Controller-managed mapping directing messages for a particular name (or prefix) through a specific connection.
+
+</div>
+
+---
+
+## S
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Session**
+
+    ---
+
+    Abstraction for interaction context (Point-to-Point, Group). Manages encryption (if MLS enabled), retries, and sequencing.
+
+-   **Session Configuration**
+
+    ---
+
+    Per-session parameters selected at creation (e.g., mode, `mls_enabled`, metadata). In Python bindings: `PySessionConfiguration.PointToPoint(...)`, etc.
+
+-   **Session Layer**
+
+    ---
+
+    Middleware that abstracts encryption, invitations, routing resolution, and reliability, offering simple send/receive primitives.
+
+-   **Shared Secret Identity**
+
+    ---
+
+    Simplest identity bootstrap (common secret) for demos/tests before stronger mechanisms (e.g., JWT) are deployed.
+
+-   **Slimctl**
+
+    ---
+
+    Command-line tool managing routes, connections, subscriptions, and nodes via Controller or direct node endpoints.
+
+-   **SLIM (Secure Low-Latency Interactive Messaging)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Framework delivering secure, scalable, low-latency messaging with unified naming, session semantics, encryption, and extensibility.
+
+-   **SLIMA2A**
+
+    ---
+
+    Integration of A2A agent protocol over SLIM using SLIMRPC-generated stubs.
+
+-   **SLIM Controller**
+
+    ---
+
+    See Controller.
+
+-   **SLIMRPC**
+
+    ---
+
+    Protobuf-based RPC framework operating over SLIM transport (unary and streaming patterns). Analogous to gRPC but using SLIM naming and channels.
+
+-   **SLIMRPC Compiler (protoc-slimrpc-plugin)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Protoc plugin generating Python stubs and servicers for SLIMRPC services defined in `.proto` files.
+
+-   **Subscription**
+
+    ---
+
+    Binding between a routed name/prefix and a connection so messages destined to that name traverse the appropriate path.
+
+-   **Publish**
+
+    ---
+
+    Operation that sends a message on a session (context: point-to-point/group). May await acknowledgment depending on reliability mode. In Python bindings: `session.publish(...)` or `session.publish_to(ctx, ...)`.
+
+-   **Message Context**
+
+    ---
+
+    Metadata accompanying a received message (e.g., routing info). Used to reply (`publish_to`) preserving addressing.
+
+</div>
+
+---
+
+## T
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Timeout (Request / Session Timeout)**
+
+    ---
+
+    Upper bound for waiting on acknowledgments or RPC responses before retry/failure escalation.
+
+</div>
+
+---
+
+## U
+
+<div class="grid cards" markdown>
+
+-   **Point-to-Point Session**
+
+    ---
+
+    Session mode for communication with a specific client instance. Ensures message affinity to a single endpoint.
+
+</div>

docs/messaging/.index

@@ -3,14 +3,17 @@ nav:
  - Getting Started with SLIM:
     - Getting Started: slim-howto.md
     - Configuration Reference: slim-data-plane-config.md
- - SLIM Messaging Layer: slim-data-plane.md
+ - SLIM Messaging Layer:
+     - Overview: slim-data-plane.md
+     - SLIM Sessions: slim-session.md
+     - SLIM Authentication: slim-authentication.md
  - SLIM Controller: slim-controller.md
- - SLIM Group Management: slim-group.md
- - SLIM Group Communication Tutorial: slim-group-tutorial.md
+ - SLIM Groups:
+    - Group Creation and Management: slim-group.md
+    - Group Communication Tutorial: slim-group-tutorial.md
  - SLIM Integrations:
     - SLIMRPC:
         - Overview: slim-rpc.md
         - Protoc Plugin: slim-slimrpc-compiler.md
     - SLIM A2A: slim-a2a.md
     - MCP over SLIM: slim-mcp.md
-