> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://xerg.ai/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Collect QM snapshots

> Create and audit a bounded one-shot qm-snapshot/v1 artifact.

QM currently uses one-shot collection. Durable run, turn, usage, and model economics can cover the requested interval; tool activity covers only what remains in QM's approximately one-hour `run_activity` retention window.

```bash theme={null}
xerg collect qm --since 7d
xerg collect qm --since 24h --output ./qm-snapshot.jsonl --json
xerg audit --runtime qm --qm-snapshot ./qm-snapshot.jsonl
```

`collect qm` persists an owner-only snapshot and audits it. It never pushes. `audit --runtime qm` performs the same collection into a temporary owner-only artifact, audits it, then removes it.

Strict direct mode uses a dedicated export-view reader. Fly mode runs an operator-contained exporter inside QM core. Offline snapshot mode needs neither. The manifest makes the distinction explicit with `collectionMode`, `privilegeBoundary`, and `databaseLeastPrivilege`; Xerg never upgrades a process boundary into a database least-privilege claim.

## Snapshot guarantees

`qm-snapshot/v1` is strict JSONL with a manifest, typed sanitized records, and a required completion trailer. Xerg verifies its SHA-256 digest, record counts, duplicate IDs, one-megabyte line limit, 100,000-record limit, and 256 MiB artifact limit.

Creation is atomic and refuses overwrite. Every session, scope, run, model, activity, call, metric, harness, and deployment identifier is HMAC-pseudonymized before a byte is written. The parser rejects IDs that do not have the collector's pseudonym shape.

The database read uses a repeatable-read, read-only transaction, parameterized allowlisted queries, 1,000-row keyset pages, 15-second statement/idle timeouts, and a two-second lock timeout. Open runs are fingerprinted again after the snapshot. Xerg retries once on change, then marks the source drifted instead of claiming stability.

## Exit codes

* `1`: connection, credential, privilege, schema, contract, snapshot, or Fly failure
* `2`: no economic model observations
* `3`: an evaluable threshold was exceeded
* `5`: a monetary or detector threshold cannot be evaluated

If QM contains unpriced usage, dollar/rate gates fail with code `5`; unpriced calls are never counted as actual `$0` spend.

Continuous `collect qm --follow`, reconnect watermarks, durable capture beyond QM's activity TTL, and live Slack-triggered collection are not currently supported.