diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 73e5dd6..7a096e2 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -1,8 +1,12 @@
 # Private, composed deployment configuration. Install into /etc/orchestra/
 # only after all environment-specific values have been filled in.
 .orchestra-config/
-clients/
+
+# Built binaries (never commit — a stale committed binary is a deployment-
+# confusion hazard). `clients/` is deliberately NOT ignored: it holds the
+# still-deployed Design A herdr bridge, and deployed code must be tracked.
 /orchestra
+/orchestra-worker
 
 # Web UI build inputs/outputs. node_modules in particular ships vendored Go
 # packages (e.g. flatted/golang), so leaving it merely untracked is not
diff --git a/AGENTS.md b/AGENTS.md
index fb53ea8..438087c 100644
--- a/AGENTS.md
+++ b/AGENTS.md
@@ -14,10 +14,10 @@ continuity,federation,delivery,authz,operations,admin}` + `cmd/orchestra/main.go
 This repo has a documented history of code that *looks* wired but isn't —
 packages with tests that pass in isolation while the live call path silently
 no-ops (bare `continue` on error, discarded return values). See `AUDIT.md`
-for the full audit and `progress.md` for a running log. **Before trusting a
-claim in progress.md that something "works" or "is fixed," check the actual
-call site** — the file is written by past sessions of this same assistant and
-has previously overstated completion.
+for the full audit; it is also the running log (there is no separate log
+file). **Before trusting a claim in `AUDIT.md` that something "works"
+or "is fixed," check the actual call site** — the file is written by past
+sessions of this same assistant and has previously overstated completion.
 
 The single most reliable way to verify herdr-adapter code is right: don't
 read `internal/herdr/adapter.go` and assume the method names are real. Ping
@@ -80,20 +80,26 @@ the live herdr instance and check.
   unstick an already-orphaned pane; that needs a manual kill/restart once the
   release path is trustworthy.
 
-## The federation fork — read before touching anything cross-machine
+## Federation — Design B is the live design (as of 2026-07-30)
 
-Two incompatible designs coexist. **Design A** ("drive the remote socket",
-currently deployed via `clients/herdr-bridge.go`) has homesrv call
-`worktree.create`/`agent.start` etc. directly on workpc's herdr over TCP as
-if it were local — meaning anchor validation (`git rev-parse HEAD`) run by
-the coordinator executes on the *wrong machine* relative to the actual
-checkout. **Design B** ("workers pull tasks", `/v1/federation/*`) is fully
-built server-side but has zero clients — no worker binary exists. Decision
-(AUDIT.md, 2026-07-27): keep Design A through Phase 5, commit to Design B in
-Phase 6, with two guardrails landed immediately (refuse to rotate/cleanup a
-lease held by a non-local herdr rather than validate against the wrong
-checkout). Don't build on top of Design A's cross-machine calls without
-reading that section first.
+**Design B** ("workers pull tasks", `/v1/federation/*`) is the live design and
+has a real client: `cmd/orchestra-worker/main.go` (~1,131 lines, with tests in
+`cmd/orchestra-worker/main_test.go`) is the deployed worker — the workpc
+OpenCode worker runs it. Build new cross-machine work on Design B.
+
+The **Design A guardrail has landed**: `Coordinator.adapterFor`
+(`internal/orchestrator/orchestrator.go`, the `LocalHerdr` check) refuses to
+resolve an adapter for a session owned by a non-local herdr, returning
+`session %s is owned by non-local herdr %s` instead of validating a git anchor
+(`git rev-parse HEAD`) against the wrong machine's checkout. Rotation/cleanup
+therefore no longer act on remote leases.
+
+**Design A is retained, not dead.** `clients/herdr-bridge.go` ("drive the
+remote socket": homesrv calling `worktree.create`/`agent.start` directly on
+workpc's herdr over TCP as if it were local) is kept through Phase 5 per the
+standing AUDIT.md decision of 2026-07-27; deletion of Design A and `clients/`
+is deferred to the Phase 6 cutover. Do not delete it early, and do not add new
+cross-machine call paths to it.
 
 ## Working conventions
 
diff --git a/AUDIT.md b/AUDIT.md
index 5e367ef..7b040b1 100644
--- a/AUDIT.md
+++ b/AUDIT.md
@@ -22,6 +22,25 @@ QA matrix has passed for all three harnesses.
   restarted at 2026-07-30 16:07 +04, has emitted no federation failures since,
   and its configured Unix-socket herdr answered `ping` with protocol `17`.
 
+## Federation design status (updated 2026-07-30)
+
+Design B ("workers pull tasks", `/v1/federation/*`) is the **live** design. It
+is no longer clientless: `cmd/orchestra-worker/main.go` (~1,131 lines, tests in
+`cmd/orchestra-worker/main_test.go`) is the deployed worker, and the workpc
+OpenCode worker runs it. Any earlier statement here or in `CLAUDE.md` that
+Design B "has zero clients — no worker binary exists" is obsolete.
+
+The Design A guardrail from the 2026-07-27 decision has landed:
+`Coordinator.adapterFor` (`internal/orchestrator/orchestrator.go`) refuses to
+resolve an adapter for a session owned by a non-local herdr, so rotation and
+cleanup can no longer validate a git anchor against the wrong machine's
+checkout.
+
+Design A itself is **retained through Phase 5** per that same decision.
+`clients/herdr-bridge.go` is now tracked in git (deployed code must be in
+version control); deleting Design A and `clients/` is deferred to the Phase 6
+cutover.
+
 ## Remaining release blockers
 
 - **Only OpenCode capacity is ready.** Workpc's `workpc-opencode` worker has
diff --git a/CLAUDE.md b/CLAUDE.md
index ad4f807..167209f 100644
--- a/CLAUDE.md
+++ b/CLAUDE.md
@@ -14,10 +14,10 @@ continuity,federation,delivery,authz,operations,admin}` + `cmd/orchestra/main.go
 This repo has a documented history of code that *looks* wired but isn't —
 packages with tests that pass in isolation while the live call path silently
 no-ops (bare `continue` on error, discarded return values). See `AUDIT.md`
-for the full audit and `progress.md` for a running log. **Before trusting a
-claim in progress.md that something "works" or "is fixed," check the actual
-call site** — the file is written by past sessions of this same assistant and
-has previously overstated completion.
+for the full audit; it is also the running log (there is no separate log
+file). **Before trusting a claim in `AUDIT.md` that something "works"
+or "is fixed," check the actual call site** — the file is written by past
+sessions of this same assistant and has previously overstated completion.
 
 The single most reliable way to verify herdr-adapter code is right: don't
 read `internal/herdr/adapter.go` and assume the method names are real. Ping
@@ -93,20 +93,26 @@ the live herdr instance and check.
   unstick an already-orphaned pane; that needs a manual kill/restart once the
   release path is trustworthy.
 
-## The federation fork — read before touching anything cross-machine
+## Federation — Design B is the live design (as of 2026-07-30)
 
-Two incompatible designs coexist. **Design A** ("drive the remote socket",
-currently deployed via `clients/herdr-bridge.go`) has homesrv call
-`worktree.create`/`agent.start` etc. directly on workpc's herdr over TCP as
-if it were local — meaning anchor validation (`git rev-parse HEAD`) run by
-the coordinator executes on the *wrong machine* relative to the actual
-checkout. **Design B** ("workers pull tasks", `/v1/federation/*`) is fully
-built server-side but has zero clients — no worker binary exists. Decision
-(AUDIT.md, 2026-07-27): keep Design A through Phase 5, commit to Design B in
-Phase 6, with two guardrails landed immediately (refuse to rotate/cleanup a
-lease held by a non-local herdr rather than validate against the wrong
-checkout). Don't build on top of Design A's cross-machine calls without
-reading that section first.
+**Design B** ("workers pull tasks", `/v1/federation/*`) is the live design and
+has a real client: `cmd/orchestra-worker/main.go` (~1,131 lines, with tests in
+`cmd/orchestra-worker/main_test.go`) is the deployed worker — the workpc
+OpenCode worker runs it. Build new cross-machine work on Design B.
+
+The **Design A guardrail has landed**: `Coordinator.adapterFor`
+(`internal/orchestrator/orchestrator.go`, the `LocalHerdr` check) refuses to
+resolve an adapter for a session owned by a non-local herdr, returning
+`session %s is owned by non-local herdr %s` instead of validating a git anchor
+(`git rev-parse HEAD`) against the wrong machine's checkout. Rotation/cleanup
+therefore no longer act on remote leases.
+
+**Design A is retained, not dead.** `clients/herdr-bridge.go` ("drive the
+remote socket": homesrv calling `worktree.create`/`agent.start` directly on
+workpc's herdr over TCP as if it were local) is kept through Phase 5 per the
+standing AUDIT.md decision of 2026-07-27; deletion of Design A and `clients/`
+is deferred to the Phase 6 cutover. Do not delete it early, and do not add new
+cross-machine call paths to it.
 
 ## Working conventions
 
diff --git a/clients/README.md b/clients/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..80ed090
--- /dev/null
+++ b/clients/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+# workpc herdr TCP bridges
+
+These files are intentionally local and gitignored. The workpc herdr exposes
+one local Unix socket; Orchestra reaches it over the LAN through three bound
+TCP bridges:
+
+| machine | listen | herdr socket |
+|---|---|---|
+| workpc | 192.168.1.105:9245 | ~/.config/herdr/herdr.sock |
+
+The bridge is a byte-preserving proxy for the newline-delimited JSON protocol.
+It does not interpret or authenticate requests; restrict the ports with the
+LAN firewall/WireGuard policy.
+
+## Not a federation worker
+
+`herdr-bridge` deliberately does **not** own a checkout. It cannot write
+`TASK.md`, inspect Git `HEAD`/branch/dirty hashes, make a scratch commit, or
+publish a canonical continuity handoff. Treat it as Design A compatibility
+only, not the cross-machine protocol described by Orchestra's spec.
+
+`cmd/orchestra-worker` is the worker-side client. It registers and
+heartbeats as the configured herdr id, consumes only router-issued
+`TaskLeased` events for that id, creates/validates the local checkout, drives
+the local herdr, and seals/pushes a canonical handoff locally before calling
+the federation handoff endpoint. It deliberately has no task-claim operation:
+homesrv's router is the only scheduler.
+
+Install `deploy/orchestra-worker.service` on the worker host and configure
+the federation variables in `deploy/orchestra.env.example`. Set
+`ORCHESTRA_MACHINE_ID` on homesrv; that prevents its coordinator from ever
+opening, validating, rotating, or cleaning up a workpc checkout.
diff --git a/clients/herdr-bridge.go b/clients/herdr-bridge.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5c90c23
--- /dev/null
+++ b/clients/herdr-bridge.go
@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"flag"
+	"io"
+	"log"
+	"net"
+	"os"
+)
+
+func main() {
+	listen := flag.String("listen", "192.168.1.105:9245", "TCP address to expose")
+	socket := flag.String("socket", os.Getenv("HOME")+"/.config/herdr/herdr.sock", "herdr Unix socket")
+	flag.Parse()
+	ln, err := net.Listen("tcp", *listen)
+	if err != nil {
+		log.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	log.Printf("herdr bridge listening on %s -> unix:%s", *listen, *socket)
+	for {
+		c, err := ln.Accept()
+		if err != nil {
+			log.Printf("accept: %v", err)
+			continue
+		}
+		go proxy(c, *socket)
+	}
+}
+
+func proxy(c net.Conn, socket string) {
+	defer c.Close()
+	u, err := net.Dial("unix", socket)
+	if err != nil {
+		log.Printf("dial herdr: %v", err)
+		return
+	}
+	defer u.Close()
+	done := make(chan struct{}, 2)
+	go func() { _, _ = io.Copy(u, c); _ = u.Close(); done <- struct{}{} }()
+	go func() { _, _ = io.Copy(c, u); _ = c.Close(); done <- struct{}{} }()
+	<-done
+}
diff --git a/clients/herdr-bridge.service b/clients/herdr-bridge.service
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..759d9b4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/clients/herdr-bridge.service
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+[Unit]
+Description=Herdr LAN bridge for Orchestra
+After=network-online.target herdr.service
+
+[Service]
+ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/herdr-bridge -listen 192.168.1.105:9245 -socket %h/.config/herdr/herdr.sock
+Restart=on-failure
+NoNewPrivileges=true
+
+[Install]
+WantedBy=default.target
diff --git a/cmd/orchestra/main.go b/cmd/orchestra/main.go
index 843bc81..237ab32 100644
--- a/cmd/orchestra/main.go
+++ b/cmd/orchestra/main.go
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ package main
 
 import (
 	"context"
+	"crypto/subtle"
 	"encoding/json"
 	"errors"
 	"fmt"
@@ -136,7 +137,7 @@ func (h harnessCompletion) ServeHTTP(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 		http.Error(w, "method not allowed", http.StatusMethodNotAllowed)
 		return
 	}
-	if h.token != "" && r.Header.Get("Authorization") != "Bearer "+h.token {
+	if h.token != "" && subtle.ConstantTimeCompare([]byte(r.Header.Get("Authorization")), []byte("Bearer "+h.token)) != 1 {
 		http.Error(w, "unauthorized", http.StatusUnauthorized)
 		return
 	}
@@ -567,8 +568,9 @@ func main() {
 	})
 	// /v1/harness/turn is the unified turn-decision endpoint (AUDIT.md Phase
 	// 2 items 1-2): the Face-B stop hook posts here on every ordinary turn
-	// boundary (report marker absent — /v1/harness/complete covers task
-	// completion separately) and gets back exactly one of continue /
+	// boundary (task completion is not handled here — it goes through the
+	// authenticated worker completion endpoint, since the retired
+	// /v1/harness/complete had no fencing epoch) and gets back continue /
 	// prepare_handoff / rotate_now / refuse, per spec §5.3. This replaces
 	// what would otherwise be separate ad-hoc marker-file conventions per
 	// decision.
@@ -577,7 +579,7 @@ func main() {
 			http.Error(w, "method not allowed", http.StatusMethodNotAllowed)
 			return
 		}
-		if harnessToken != "" && r.Header.Get("Authorization") != "Bearer "+harnessToken {
+		if harnessToken != "" && subtle.ConstantTimeCompare([]byte(r.Header.Get("Authorization")), []byte("Bearer "+harnessToken)) != 1 {
 			http.Error(w, "unauthorized", http.StatusUnauthorized)
 			return
 		}
diff --git a/deploy/hooks/orchestra-codex-poll.sh b/deploy/hooks/orchestra-codex-poll.sh
index 39512dc..c213cdb 100755
--- a/deploy/hooks/orchestra-codex-poll.sh
+++ b/deploy/hooks/orchestra-codex-poll.sh
@@ -3,8 +3,8 @@
 #
 # Unlike Claude Code, Codex has no native Stop hook — nothing calls out at a
 # turn boundary. This script is meant to run as a background loop inside the
-# pane alongside the codex process (AUDIT.md Phase 2 item 4 / progress.md's
-# "Not done: Codex/opencode Stop-hook-equivalent scripts"), polling the same
+# pane alongside the codex process (AUDIT.md Phase 2 item 4, "Not done:
+# Codex/opencode Stop-hook-equivalent scripts"), polling the same
 # two endpoints the Claude Stop hook (orchestra-stop.sh) calls on every turn:
 #   - completion: if the agent has written .orchestra-report.md, POST
 #     /v1/harness/complete with harness=codex and the newest active rollout
diff --git a/internal/orchestrator/orchestrator.go b/internal/orchestrator/orchestrator.go
index 615b7a8..6bb6156 100644
--- a/internal/orchestrator/orchestrator.go
+++ b/internal/orchestrator/orchestrator.go
@@ -287,6 +287,11 @@ type SessionHealth struct {
 	// silently treated as "not time to rotate yet" by a bare continue.
 	Occupancy      float64 `json:"occupancy,omitempty"`
 	OccupancyError string  `json:"occupancy_error,omitempty"`
+	// Observed distinguishes a health entry this coordinator actually read
+	// from a live adapter this pass from one it could not reach (remote-owned
+	// session, unresolvable adapter) or has merely seeded at lease time. A
+	// consumer must not read Status as current unless Observed is true.
+	Observed bool `json:"observed"`
 }
 
 // adapterFor resolves the herdr adapter for a session. Session.HerdrID (the
@@ -356,9 +361,25 @@ func (c *Coordinator) refreshSessionHealth(ctx context.Context) {
 	for taskID, session := range sessions {
 		a, err := c.adapterFor(taskID, session)
 		if err != nil {
+			// Adapter resolution failing is the normal case for a session
+			// owned by a remote worker's herdr, and the abnormal case for a
+			// misregistered local one. Either way the previous entry — often
+			// the Status:"running" rememberSession writes at lease time — must
+			// not be left standing as if it were freshly observed, or
+			// /v1/tasks/<id>/health reports a dead pane as running forever.
+			// Record the resolution failure so it is observable, per the
+			// contract SessionHealth documents.
+			c.healthMu.Lock()
+			prev := c.health.Sessions[taskID]
+			prev.LastError = err.Error()
+			prev.UpdatedAt = time.Now().UTC()
+			prev.Observed = false
+			c.health.Sessions[taskID] = prev
+			c.healthMu.Unlock()
 			continue
 		}
 		var h SessionHealth
+		h.Observed = true
 		h.UpdatedAt = time.Now().UTC()
 		if occ, occErr := a.Occupancy(session); occErr != nil {
 			h.OccupancyError = occErr.Error()
@@ -993,6 +1014,8 @@ func (c *Coordinator) Start(ctx context.Context, e domain.Event) error {
 	if c.health.Sessions == nil {
 		c.health.Sessions = map[string]SessionHealth{}
 	}
+	// Seeded at lease time, not observed from the harness: Observed stays
+	// false until refreshSessionHealth reads a live adapter.
 	c.health.Sessions[t.ID] = SessionHealth{Status: "running", UpdatedAt: time.Now().UTC()}
 	c.healthMu.Unlock()
 	return err
diff --git a/internal/orchestrator/rotation_test.go b/internal/orchestrator/rotation_test.go
index 7483768..e3c873c 100644
--- a/internal/orchestrator/rotation_test.go
+++ b/internal/orchestrator/rotation_test.go
@@ -174,7 +174,7 @@ func TestCoordinatorRefusesRemoteHerdrOperations(t *testing.T) {
 }
 
 // TestRotationEmitsValidReleaseWithAnchorSHA guards the highest-priority spec
-// defect noted in progress.md: automated rotation must emit a TaskReleased
+// defect noted in AUDIT.md: automated rotation must emit a TaskReleased
 // event that satisfies domain.ValidatePayload (handoff_ref + anchor_sha), not
 // a payload missing anchor_sha that silently fails to append.
 func TestRotationEmitsValidReleaseWithAnchorSHA(t *testing.T) {
@@ -1041,3 +1041,55 @@ func TestConventionsDriftNotifiesActiveSession(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Fatal("session was never notified of the conventions-doc update")
 	}
 }
+
+// TestUnresolvableAdapterRecordsObservableSessionHealth pins the fix for the
+// recurring silent-continue pattern this repo keeps regrowing (CLAUDE.md,
+// AUDIT.md P1 "Observability"): refreshSessionHealth used to `continue` on an
+// adapter-resolution failure, discarding the reason entirely. The operator
+// endpoint /v1/tasks/<id>/health then 404s with no way to tell "no such task"
+// from "this coordinator cannot see the harness that owns it", and any health
+// already seeded at lease time is left standing as if freshly observed.
+func TestUnresolvableAdapterRecordsObservableSessionHealth(t *testing.T) {
+	s, err := store.Open(t.TempDir())
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	if err := s.Append(domain.Event{ID: domain.NewID(), Type: "TaskCreated", TaskID: "handover", Surface: string(authz.System), Payload: mustJSON(map[string]any{
+		"source": "qa", "external_id": "handover", "project": "p",
+	})}); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	lease, err := s.Lease("handover", "local", time.Minute)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	statePath := t.TempDir() + "/sessions.json"
+	a := &fakeAdapter{}
+	owner := &orchestrator.Coordinator{Store: s, Worktrees: worktrees{path: t.TempDir()}, Adapters: adapters{a}, StatePath: statePath,
+		LocalHerdr: func(id string) bool { return id == "local" }}
+	if err := owner.Start(context.Background(), lease); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	if h, ok := owner.MonitorHealth().Sessions["handover"]; !ok || h.Observed {
+		t.Fatalf("lease-time seeded health = %+v, present=%v; want present and Observed=false", h, ok)
+	}
+
+	// Same durable session mapping, but this coordinator no longer owns that
+	// herdr — the live federated case, and the case where a registry change
+	// leaves a persisted HerdrID unresolvable.
+	foreign := &orchestrator.Coordinator{Store: s, Worktrees: worktrees{path: t.TempDir()}, Adapters: adapters{a}, StatePath: statePath,
+		LocalHerdr: func(id string) bool { return false }}
+	if err := foreign.Reconcile(context.Background()); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	h, ok := foreign.MonitorHealth().Sessions["handover"]
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatal("unresolvable session recorded no health at all; the resolution failure was swallowed")
+	}
+	if h.Observed {
+		t.Fatalf("health = %+v; want Observed=false for a session this coordinator cannot read", h)
+	}
+	if h.LastError == "" {
+		t.Fatalf("health = %+v; want the adapter-resolution error recorded in LastError", h)
+	}
+}
diff --git a/orchestra-worker b/orchestra-worker
deleted file mode 100755
index 3193a7e..0000000
Binary files a/orchestra-worker and /dev/null differ
diff --git a/web/go.mod b/web/go.mod
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5988413
--- /dev/null
+++ b/web/go.mod
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+// This directory is the web UI (Vite/TypeScript); it contains no Go code of
+// our own. This file exists solely to make web/ a separate Go module so the
+// parent module's package graph stops at the directory boundary.
+//
+// Without it, `go list ./...` / `go build ./...` / `go test ./...` walk into
+// web/node_modules and compile Go packages vendored inside npm dependencies
+// (e.g. flatted/golang/pkg/flatted). Any npm dep shipping non-compiling Go
+// would then break the entire Orchestra build. A build tag cannot fix this:
+// the offending package is already in the module's package list before any
+// tag is evaluated, and we do not control third-party sources anyway.
+//
+// Nothing imports this module and nothing should. Do not add Go code here.
+// The web UI is built by web/Dockerfile (npm) and vite emits into
+// ../internal/webui/assets for the Go embed; neither is affected by this file.
+module orchestra/web
+
+go 1.22