Terminology

Use these nouns when reading the guides, APIs, command output, and export format. The concept pages introduce them through worked examples.

Product objects

Term	Meaning
Notebook result	A Python value, rendered output, or complete cell produced by the notebook before export.
Producer	The Python environment that inspects a notebook, executes selected states, and creates portable results.
Consumer	A Python reader, browser reader, agent, or custom implementation that reads a completed notebook export.
Notebook export	One canonical index.json and the content-addressed assets declared by that index. Use export after the full noun is clear.
Export identity	The lowercase SHA-256 digest of the exact canonical index.json bytes. Python and browser readers expose it as NotebookExport.identity.
Provenance	Records that identify the source notebook, producer implementation, selected state, output representation, and asset bytes.

States and inputs

Term	Meaning
Definition	A name created by a notebook cell. Planning inspects definitions to find output sources and eligible inputs.
Input	A definition whose value can vary between exported states. The ExportSpec omits an inputs field because planning infers the input names.
Captured baseline	The complete values of inferred inputs before an authored state row is applied. It comes from the initial autorun or selected live session. An alias named baseline has no special behavior.
State row	The sparse object written under one state name in an ExportSpec. Omitted inputs keep their captured-baseline values.
State space	A finite declaration of explicit state rows, a Cartesian input matrix, or both. StateSpace can be composed with an application-owned output plan.
Complete input vector	One value for every inferred input, produced by completing and normalizing a state row.
Exported state	One complete input vector, its aliases, and the named outputs stored for that vector.
State-output relation	The finite table that pairs each complete exported state with the same named output set.
State alias	An authored state name that selects one state fingerprint. Several aliases can select the same state.
Default alias	The authored alias named by StateSpace.default_state or ExportSpec.default_state.
Default state fingerprint	The fingerprint stored in index.json.default_state.
Default exported state	The ExportState returned by Python NotebookExport.default_state or browser NotebookExport.defaultState.
State fingerprint	The lowercase SHA-256 digest of the canonical portable JSON for one complete input vector.
Observation	One successful input vector, complete for its recorded input-name relation, retained as authoring evidence. Planning can project a broader relation to its inferred inputs. Observations remain repository history until an author writes chosen rows into an ExportSpec.
Observation revision	The monotonically increasing repository revision for a producer's observations. Hosts can use it to detect new authoring evidence.
Initial autorun	marimo's first dependency execution after opening a notebook. Planning uses it to inspect definitions and capture baseline input values.
Dependency closure	A selected notebook result and every definition required to compute it. Planning uses this closure to infer inputs.
Input mode	The inspection field that reports whether a state row replaces a complete input value or applies a sparse AnyWidget patch.
Sensitive input	A marimo UI root that contains a password control. Planning excludes sensitive inputs from exported states.

Outputs and storage

Term	Meaning
Output	One published name and representation available for every exported state.
Output source	The json, native, export, output, or cell selection declared by an output spec.
Selector	A path from one Python definition through supported attribute or item steps to a selected notebook result.
Exporter	A producer-side converter that returns a BlobAsset for one selected value.
Output plan	The complete set of authored output declarations. Its identity changes when an output source, exporter, option, or declared dependency changes.
Output representation	The codec and media type that define how one output is stored and decoded. One output name keeps the same representation across every state.
Codec	A versioned identifier for the native storage envelope, such as marimo.json.v1 or numpy.npy.v1.
Media type	The standard content label for data inside a BlobAsset envelope. Custom representations should use a versioned media type.
Output descriptor	The index.json record that declares an output's representation, provenance, and inline value or asset reference.
Rendered-output snapshot	An inert marimo.output.v1 record containing formatted output and replay resources for one selected result.
Complete-cell snapshot	An inert marimo.cell.v1 record containing cell identity, outcome, terminal output, console records, and replay resources.
BlobAsset	Representation bytes with a media type, optional portable filename, and portable JSON metadata.
Asset	A content-addressed file referenced by an output descriptor. Its path follows from its codec and SHA-256 digest.
Asset reference	The SHA-256 and byte size recorded for one asset. Python names this record AssetRef. TypeScript names it AssetDescriptor.
Asset closure	The distinct set of assets declared by every output descriptor in a notebook export.
Repository artifact	A prepared-state or export-generation directory managed by the export repository. A repository artifact can contain several output assets.
Projection	The isolated output-specific capture used to produce one planned output. Projection-scoped identifiers prevent resources from separate outputs from colliding.
Control binding	A durable mapping from one projection-scoped UI object ID to an exported input and a typed path within that input. PreparedStateController uses it to route accepted control values.
Output loader	A consumer-side decoder selected explicitly for an output's codec and media type. A browser loader receives verified data and returns inert data or a mountable value.
Mount	The browser lifecycle that attaches a mountable value to a document element and returns a disposable view.

Planning and preparation

Term	Meaning
ExportSpec	The authored declaration of one default state alias, sparse named state rows, and named output specs.
ExportPlan	The immutable result of planning. It contains identities, inferred inputs, normalized states, outputs, observations, and reusable or missing state fingerprints.
Plan	Resolve an ExportSpec against a producer and repository to expose normalized states, reusable work, and missing work.
Prepare	Start a saved notebook when needed, execute missing states, and return a leased PreparedExport.
Capture	Prepare through one named live marimo session while leaving that session active.
Build	Prepare from a saved notebook, write the notebook export, verify it, and close the preparation handle.
Write	Copy a PreparedExport to a destination, verify the staged files, and commit the complete directory.
Prepared state	A reusable portable result for one producer identity, output-plan identity, and state fingerprint.
Prepared export	A leased immutable export generation for one exact ExportSpec. The Python PreparedExport handle exposes it.
Export generation	One immutable prepared-export directory retained by the export repository.
Export repository	Private local storage for observations, prepared states, export generations, leases, and retention metadata.
Artifact lease	A live ownership record that protects one prepared state or export generation from retention. A detached prepared asset owns a generation lease.
Staging lease	A live ownership record that protects an incomplete repository staging directory.
Preparation reservation	A fenced claim that gives one producer operation commit authority for a repository identity.
Exact prepared-export reuse	Reuse of a prepared export whose producer, output plan, and complete ExportSpec identities all match. It can avoid notebook startup.
Producer identity	The SHA-256 identity that binds the notebook document, relevant source and installed environment, runtime facts, and producer implementation.
Output-plan identity	The SHA-256 identity of the complete authored outputs declaration.
ExportSpec identity	The spec_sha256 digest of the exact canonical ExportSpec.
Repository identity	The digest that combines producer, output-plan, and ExportSpec identities for exact repository lookup. ExportPlan.identity exposes it.
Prepared asset	A file-scoped handle to one declared file in a PreparedExport, backed by an independently owned lease that protects the complete export generation.
Repository retention	The bounded policy that selects unleased prepared states and export generations for pruning. Active leases protect their artifacts.

Reading and publication

Term	Meaning
Open	Parse and validate index.json, construct immutable reader objects, and leave assets lazy.
Resolve	Select a state already present in the notebook export by alias, complete input vector, or sparse patch from an existing state.
Load	Verify one output asset when present, then decode its representation through an explicit browser loader.
Prepared manifest	A bounded marimo-export.prepared.v1 JSON record that names one notebook export identity, export URL, complete input vector, state fingerprint, and optional refresh interval.
Prepared publication in Python	A controller-owned PreparedExport and application metadata selected for one application key.
Prepared publication in the browser	The value that joins a validated prepared manifest, its opened notebook export, and its selected state.
Prepared publication controller	The Python coordinator that keeps the last successful prepared export available while application inputs or observations change.
Prepared state controller	The browser coordinator that applies semantic input changes, cancels stale transitions, and retains the last committed publication after a rejected transition.
Publication refresh	The browser lifecycle that fetches prepared manifests, reuses an already opened export when possible, and replaces the controller's publication.
Transition generation	The browser controller's monotonic sequence value for superseding stale application work. It is distinct from a repository export generation.

Integrity and trust

Term	Meaning
Canonical JSON	JSON encoded under one closed set of ordering, number, string, and tag rules so the same supported value has one byte representation.
Portable JSON	Null, booleans, Unicode strings, JavaScript-safe finite numbers, arrays, and string-keyed objects accepted with matching Python and JavaScript semantics.
Verification	Validation of the canonical index and every declared asset against sizes, SHA-256 digests, framing, representation invariants, and descriptor agreement.
Integrity root	The loaded canonical index.json whose declarations determine the files and identities that verification checks.
Authentication	Evidence supplied by a delivery channel or another trust system that establishes who published the integrity root. Export verification establishes consistency with that root.
marimo computation cache	marimo-owned storage for notebook cell results, invalidation, restoration, serialization, signing, and cache stores. It is separate from the export repository.

Read States, Outputs, Reuse, and Verification and trust for worked explanations.