Theory

Theory: A Registry is an Object Store with Language Semantics

Container images and language packages are not Git blobs. They need retention, GC, and authn that match the forge’s principals.

Invariants

1. A digest (sha256) is the real name of an image; a tag is a moving ref.
2. Retention is a cost and a supply-chain control.
3. CI should push by digest; humans talk in tags.

git tag v1.2.0     ≠    oci image registry.example/app@sha256:…
both are names over content-addressed bytes

What can break

• Immutable tags that were mutated (latest).

How to read this chapter

Registries, language managers, retention, self-host architecture.