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

# Connector profiles

> Documented compatibility requirements for a specific CAD system.

# Connector profiles

The Connections Platform defines one GovWorx baseline for CAD integrations. A CAD system that can
meet that baseline needs no connector profile.

A connector profile exists only when a CAD system has a real constraint that prevents it from
using the baseline as written. It is a compatibility contract for that CAD system, not a separate
product API.

## When a profile is needed

A profile can document a required difference in payload shape, authentication, acknowledgement,
reliability, field mapping, or supported update behavior. For example, a CAD system might require
one fixed field name, verify a signature over the raw body only, or be unable to retain delivery
identifiers through the baseline retry horizon.

The baseline remains the recommended integration path. A profile does not change it for other
listeners.

## What a profile declares

Each profile states:

* the baseline contract and profile version it applies to;
* the GovWorx updates and typed fields the CAD supports;
* the selected authentication, acknowledgement, and reliability behavior;
* how canonical GovWorx fields map to the CAD wire format; and
* every deviation from the baseline, including the CAD constraint, replacement behavior, security
  or operational control, and customer-facing impact.

GovWorx selects and pins the appropriate profile during provisioning. A caller does not select,
negotiate, or downgrade a profile in a request.

## Vendor documentation

When a profile is necessary, GovWorx produces a standalone contract for that CAD system. It gives
the vendor the exact wire behavior to implement while the public baseline remains vendor-neutral.

## Profile limitations

A profile can limit what one CAD system supports. It cannot silently discard a canonical value or
claim that receipt means application when the CAD cannot confirm application. The profile makes
those limitations visible before integration work begins.