> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://canary-1.gitbook.io/canary/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://canary-1.gitbook.io/canary/how-it-works.md).

# How it works

The mechanics behind every Canary signature, from the enclave to the refusal.

* [The security stack](/canary/how-it-works/security-stack.md): The layered defences every message passes through before Canary signs.
* [Trusted execution](/canary/how-it-works/trusted-execution.md): What runs inside the enclave, what it guarantees, and where it is going.
* [Quorum, sources and node health](/canary/how-it-works/quorum-sources-and-node-health.md): How Canary decides what the chain actually says, without trusting any single source or node.
* [Confirmation floors](/canary/how-it-works/confirmation-floors.md): The one direction in which Canary is not configurable.
* [Cipher checks and hooks](/canary/how-it-works/cipher-checks-and-hooks.md): How the DVN consults the Cipher security engine before anything is signed.
* [Reserve accounting](/canary/how-it-works/reserve-accounting.md): The first Cipher check live in production, in detail, with real log entries.
* [Collateral Proofs verification](/canary/how-it-works/collateral-proofs-verification.md): How Canary Collateral Proofs verify an asset's backing, what each part of the framework adds, and what verification cannot establish.
* [Cosigner verification flow](/canary/how-it-works/cosigner-verification-flow.md): How a mint or redemption request moves through Canary Cosigner, from the issuer's signing workflow to a co-signature, a hold or a refusal.
* [Keys, signing and refusal](/canary/how-it-works/keys-signing-and-refusal.md): What a refusal is, mechanically, and why it cannot be overridden at runtime.
* [Performance and footprint](/canary/how-it-works/performance-and-footprint.md): The numbers behind the claim that verification depth does not cost speed.
* [Operational security](/canary/how-it-works/operational-security.md): The infrastructure baseline underneath the cryptography.