Identifiers
RID, RRN, and RSN
An RID says which resource. An RRN says under which registered name. An RSN says which Semantic Space. Three constructs of one identity system — each with a precise grammar and a separate job.
Every identifier on this site is illustrative
The examples follow the grammar of Document 08 exactly, and several are taken from it. None has been issued: the proposed 451 prefix is not registered and no registry is operating.
Overview
Three constructs, one identity
| Construct | Answers | Can it change? | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| RID RSM Identifier | Which exact resource? | Never. Never reused. | 451.7K4M9Q2X8D5P0R6T |
| RRN RSM Resource Name | Under which structured name was it registered? | Can be succeeded; never reassigned. | rrn:451:451labs:us-ca:wellzai:document/outcome-formation-model |
| RSN RSM Space Name | Which governed Semantic Space? | As an RRN; the space’s own RID never changes. | rrn:451:451labs:us-ca:wellzai:space/root |
RID · RSM Identifier
The permanent identifier
An RID is the permanent canonical identifier of one resource referent. It identifies one and only one referent and is never reassigned — not after deletion, archival, transfer, migration, or withdrawal.
It has two parts: a registered prefix naming the issuance namespace, and an issuer-generated random suffix. Only the complete RID identifies anything. It deliberately carries no resource type, space, bioregion, jurisdiction, owner, or location; those live in resolvable metadata, where they are free to change.
In plain terms
Think of it as a serial number that no one can reuse — not a description, not an address. It answers one question: which exact thing are we talking about?
In the specification
Canonical syntax
RID = prefix "." suffix
prefix = 1–16 decimal digits, no leading zero (except "0")
suffix = 12–32 Crockford Base32 characters, uppercase
0123456789ABCDEFGHJKMNPQRSTVWXYZ
v1.0 issuance default: 16 characters = 80 random bits
451.7K4M9Q2X8D5P0R6T
└┬┘ └──────┬───────┘
prefix suffix- RIDs are compared by exact character equality. Lower case, unsupported characters, and malformed separators are rejected.
- An interface may accept lower-case input as a convenience, but stored and exchanged RIDs are always canonical.
- The suffix comes from a cryptographically secure random generator — never a timestamp, counter, title, or hash of mutable content.
- Generating a valid candidate is not issuance. A candidate becomes an RID only when a delegated issuer commits it atomically to the registry.
Source: Doc 08 §3.1 · Doc 08 §3.3
RRN · RSM Resource Name
The registered, structured name
An RRN records the namespace and issuance context under which a resource was named. People can read it, machines can parse it, and it serves as a governance address and a lookup key. Every registered RRN maps to exactly one RID.
Its segments describe registration context — not the resource’s full meaning or current legal status. Each is a normalized lowercase identifier.
In plain terms
If the RID is the serial number, the RRN is the catalogue entry: readable, structured, and filed under the authority that issued it.
Not to be confused with
A registered URI scheme. rrn: is not registered externally; where a standard IRI is needed, the HTTPS form of the RID is used.
| Segment | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| rrn | rrn | Fixed scheme label. Not an externally registered URI scheme (§16.3). |
| realm | 451 | The registered federation namespace. |
| authority | 451labs | The registered namespace issuer. |
| jurisdiction | us-ca | The governance scope under which the name was issued. Historical; it does not move with the resource (§8.2). |
| space | wellzai | The logical Semantic Space namespace. |
| kind | document | The resource’s primary registered kind. Kind “space” makes the name an RSN. |
| resource-id | outcome-formation-model | The resource within that local namespace. |
Grammar and rules
rrn:<realm>:<authority>:<jurisdiction>:<space>:<kind>/<resource-id>
rrn:451:451labs:us-ca:wellzai:document/outcome-formation-model- Resource paths reject wildcards, traversal components, ambiguous percent-encodings, and empty elements.
- Canonical RRNs are never reconstructed from mutable application URLs.
- Two current RRNs may map to the same RID only as registered aliases or successor names. A name is never reassigned to an unrelated resource.
- Document 08 requires the grammar to be published as machine-readable ABNF with a conformance suite. Not available yet
Source: Doc 08 §4.1 · Doc 08 §4.3 · Doc 09 §2.2
Identity versus naming
One RID, names over time
A resource can move between Semantic Spaces without changing its RID. When the move needs a different namespace, the new authority may register a successor RRN through an authenticated transfer. The original name stays reserved and keeps resolving to the same RID, and the registry records which name was authoritative in each period.
Example
In the demonstration resolver, a mill’s first name is superseded but still resolves. Try it.
- RID · permanent
- — the same RID throughout every phase.
- Original RRN
- Authoritative from registration until the transfer; afterwards reserved and still resolving.
- Successor RRN
- Authoritative from the transfer onwards.
Diagram source (Mermaid)
Document 08 §4.3–4.4. Portable definition; paste it into any Mermaid renderer.
flowchart LR
RID["RID 451.7K4M9Q2X8D5P0R6T (permanent)"]
N1["rrn:451:451labs:us-ca:wellzai:document/outcome-formation-model"]
N2["rrn:451:451labs:us-ca:rsm:document/outcome-formation-model"]
N1 -- "authoritative until transfer; then reserved" --> RID
N2 -- "authoritative after approved transfer" --> RIDRSN · RSM Space Name
The name of a Semantic Space
An RSN is an RRN whose kind is space. It names a governed Semantic Space — RSM, Wellzai, and Musewoods are the proposed initial ones. The space itself has its own RID, its permanent identity, and an identity record of its own.
Because a space is a resource, it can be referenced, governed, and transferred like any other — and relocated to new infrastructure without becoming a different space. Resolve the Wellzai space or see how spaces relate to Locus.
Not to be confused with
A separate naming scheme, or the server that runs the space. An RSN is an ordinary RRN of kind space.
RSM Web Identifier
The HTTPS identifier
Each RID has a stable HTTPS representation for people, applications, and agents:
https://rmsid.org/451.7K4M9Q2X8D5P0R6T
The RID remains the identity; the URL is an entry point. A request for HTML should return an identity landing page — a description of the resource, which for a watershed is plainly not the watershed — and a request for JSON or JSON-LD should return structured metadata. Any conforming resolver may resolve the same RID under another approved host, and the prefix never names a server.
Implementation status
Proposed reference architecture
The specifications propose the host rmsid.org and forbid presenting it as operational until it is verified. It did not resolve when checked on 9 October 2026. It is not this website.
Precision
Six things that are easy to confuse
Each of these is a separate fact. None implies the next.
- A syntactically valid RIDThe string follows the grammar. Anyone can write one; it says nothing about issuance.451.AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA is valid syntax and identifies nothing.Doc 08 §3.1 · Doc 09 §2.1
- A registered, authoritative RIDIssued by a delegated authority under a registered prefix and committed atomically to the registry.None yet: the 451 prefix is not registered.Doc 08 §3.4 · Doc 08 §14.2
- An RRN mapped to an RIDA registered name whose registry record points to exactly one RID.rrn:451:451labs:us-ca:wellzai:document/outcome-formation-model → 451.7K4M9Q2X8D5P0R6TDoc 08 §4.3
- An RSN mapped to a space RIDThe name of a Semantic Space, which has its own RID.rrn:451:451labs:us-ca:wellzai:space/root → 451.SD27J6QHDVEF0DYYDoc 08 §2.4 · Doc 08 §4.5
- An HTTPS representation of an RIDA web entry point for the RID. Writing the URL does not make the host operational.https://rmsid.org/451.7K4M9Q2X8D5P0R6TDoc 08 §2.5
- A successful, authorized resolutionA conforming resolver verified prefix and authority, applied policy, and returned a permitted representation.Possible only once a registry and resolver operate.Doc 08 §6.3 · Doc 08 §14.3
Existing identifiers
Your identifiers stay. They gain a shared reference.
RSM resources may be associated with identifiers from independent systems — DOIs, ORCID iDs, ISBNs, geographic registries, institutional codes — through relationships such as sameAs, identifiedBy, or derivedFrom, subject to evidence. Those identifiers keep their own authority and meaning.
Legacy identifiers in Musewoods, Wellzai, and RSM may be kept as aliases, with explicit relationships to the new RIDs. Migration distinguishes the same continuing resource from merely related ones: similar titles, shared subjects, or common source files do not establish identity.
Sources: Doc 08 §7.5 · Doc 08 §15.2 · Doc 08 §15.3
Example
Field 42 is APN 041-220-17 to the county, parcel F-42 to the farm, and location L-88213 to the insurer. See all three on one RID.
Questions
Common questions
Does an RID replace the identifiers my systems already use?
No. Existing identifiers stay in use. They can be associated with an RID through relationships such as sameAs or identifiedBy, with evidence, and they keep their own authority. An RSM resolver never treats an external DOI, ORCID, or parcel number as an RSM-issued RID.
Is “RSM ID” the identifier?
No. RSM ID is the identity system. The identifier is the RID; RRNs and RSNs are names registered within the same system; the HTTPS URL is a web representation of the RID.
Is an RID a login or a digital identity for people?
No. An RID identifies a resource; it is not proof of possession, ownership, or authority. Authentication — who is asking — and authorization — what they may see — are separate, and they decide what resolution discloses.
Can two RIDs turn out to identify the same thing?
It can happen that independent systems registered the same real entity separately. Reconciliation keeps the evidence and requires an authorized identity-equivalence decision. Similar titles, shared subjects, or common source files never establish identity on their own.
Who can issue an RID?
Only a registered, properly delegated authority, under a registered prefix, through a registry that guarantees uniqueness. No registration process exists yet; the rules are in Document 08 §3.2 and §5.4.
Why doesn’t the RID say what kind of thing it is, or where?
Because those facts can change and the RID must not. Type, space, place, jurisdiction, and owner are kept as resolvable metadata — and the RRN records the context in which a name was issued.