# K1651–K1655 open file lifetime after unlink

A bounded file has one name, 1300 backing bytes and three logical allocation
bits. Opening its name creates a non-copyable reader guard. Unlink removes name
visibility immediately and rejects subsequent opens. Existing readers retain the
same bytes and allocation bits. Only the final reader's drop retires the backing;
unlink with no readers retires immediately. Closing a linked file keeps its data.
Repeated unlink and undersized output buffers leave state unchanged.

Host tests compare all bytes before and after unlink, with two independent reader
guards and ownership checks after each close. A mutant that retires the backing
despite open readers must fail. Guest evidence will read 1300 source bytes from
three real read-only virtio sectors and compare SHA-256 before and after unlink.

The name and ownership state are a serialized in-memory single-file model. The
logical allocation bits do not release actual disk sectors or shared allocator
frames. This does not prove VFS integration, durable namespace/inode mutation,
concurrent access, hardlink semantics, or power-loss safety. Product release
acceptance remains open.