diff --git a/ROADMAP.md b/ROADMAP.md
index 6cdc476..a732115 100644
--- a/ROADMAP.md
+++ b/ROADMAP.md
@@ -255,7 +255,7 @@ these are the corners where drift would start if it starts anywhere.
       helper). Switch the operative create onto the Plan path (the long-intended
       unification) so there's one source of VM shape. **Known unpaid debt.**
 
-- [ ] **K2 — One GitOps source-of-truth model.** git-as-source (B1–B3) was
+- [~] **K2 — One GitOps source-of-truth model.** git-as-source (B1–B3) was
       layered on top of git-as-sink (disk mirror + push), leaving overlapping
       machinery — disk mirror, push, pull, watcher, prune, drift reconciler,
       webhook — with subtle interactions (startup reconcile *re-materializes*
@@ -264,9 +264,19 @@ these are the corners where drift would start if it starts anywhere.
       is truth, git is a read-only audit mirror — no pull/prune) and **gitops**
       (the repo is truth — pull/apply/prune; the controller does NOT auto-commit
       desired specs, and startup does NOT revive missing files). One config
-      switch; only the machinery for the chosen mode runs. Write the invariants
-      down first (short design doc), then reconcile the code to them. Pairs with
-      K3 (gitops mode needs reliable `source=git`).
+      switch; only the machinery for the chosen mode runs.
+      - [x] **Design doc — SHIPPED.** [docs/gitops-modes.md](docs/gitops-modes.md)
+        fixes the invariants (exactly one mode; mirror never reads git; gitops
+        never writes desired specs / never revives files; drift reconciler is
+        mode-agnostic; prune trusts K3 provenance), the `manifests.mode:
+        mirror|gitops` config + contradictory-combo rejection, back-compat
+        (default `mirror`), a per-component code-reconciliation checklist, and a
+        test plan. The two known conflicts are resolved by the invariants.
+      - [ ] **Code reconciliation.** Implement the doc's checklist (add
+        `Manifests.Mode` + validation; branch the main.go wiring; gate
+        startup-revive + auto-commit to mirror mode; construct pull/prune/webhook
+        only in gitops mode). Best paired with real homelab validation of both
+        modes. Uses K3's `source=git` (shipped).
 
 - [x] **K3 — Make provenance explicit.** `applied_manifests` now carries a
       first-class `source` column (migration 0011). The dispatcher already
diff --git a/docs/gitops-modes.md b/docs/gitops-modes.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..85437ed
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/gitops-modes.md
@@ -0,0 +1,177 @@
+# GitOps: two source-of-truth modes (K2 design)
+
+**Status:** design (invariants agreed; code reconciliation is the follow-up).
+**Owner:** roadmap K2. Depends on K3 (provenance `source` column — shipped).
+
+## Problem
+
+openctl's git integration grew in two directions that now overlap:
+
+- **git-as-sink** (original): SQLite is the source of truth. After every apply
+  the controller *materializes* the desired spec to a disk mirror
+  (`manifests.dir`), auto-commits it (`manifests.git`), and optionally pushes.
+  On startup it *re-materializes* any missing mirror files so the audit trail
+  is complete.
+- **git-as-source** (B1–B3): the repo is the source of truth. The controller
+  *pulls* a remote (`manifests.gitops.pull`), applies changed files, *prunes*
+  resources whose file left the repo (`pull.prune`), and converges immediately
+  on a push webhook.
+
+Both sets of machinery can be enabled at once, and they interact badly:
+
+1. **Startup re-materialize fights prune.** Prune deletes resources whose file
+   was removed from the repo; startup re-materialize re-creates mirror files
+   from SQLite — so a pruned resource's file can reappear and the resource comes
+   back.
+2. **`--ff-only` pull fights auto-commit.** git-as-source pulls with
+   `--ff-only`; git-as-sink auto-commits desired specs on every apply. A local
+   auto-commit makes the next `--ff-only` pull fail (diverged history).
+3. **Ambiguous truth.** With both on, "what should exist" has two authorities
+   (SQLite and the repo) with no rule for which wins.
+
+The machinery — disk mirror, auto-commit, push, pull, watcher, prune, webhook,
+plus the always-on drift reconciler — is individually fine; the problem is that
+nothing says *which combination is coherent*.
+
+## Goal
+
+Collapse the combinations into **two explicit, non-overlapping modes**, selected
+by **one config switch**, where only the machinery for the chosen mode runs.
+Each mode has a single, unambiguous source of truth and no self-conflicting
+components.
+
+Non-goals: changing the reconcile/apply pipeline itself; changing the drift
+reconciler (it runs in both modes); a UI for switching modes.
+
+## The two modes
+
+| Aspect | **mirror** (SQLite is truth) | **gitops** (the repo is truth) |
+|---|---|---|
+| Source of truth | SQLite `applied_manifests` | the git repo (working tree in `manifests.dir`) |
+| git role | read-only **audit mirror** of what was applied | the **input** — authored externally, pulled in |
+| Materialize desired spec → disk on apply | **yes** | **no** (the file already exists in the repo) |
+| Auto-commit on apply/delete | **yes** | **no** (would fight `--ff-only` pull) |
+| Push to remote | **yes** (`onCommit`/`periodic`/`manual`) | **no** (the repo is authored upstream) |
+| Startup: re-materialize missing files | **yes** (audit completeness) | **no** (prune must be able to remove them) |
+| Pull remote → apply | **no** | **yes** (interval + webhook) |
+| Prune (repo = desired SET) | **no** | **yes** (opt-in; heavily guarded) |
+| Push webhook | **no** | **yes** (opt-in) |
+| fsnotify local file → apply | **no** | **yes** (edit a file, it applies) |
+| Drift reconciler (periodic re-apply of stored desired) | **yes** | **yes** |
+
+`mirror` is today's default behavior (one-way sink + optional push). `gitops`
+is the DriftlessAF loop.
+
+## Invariants
+
+1. **Exactly one mode is active** for a given controller. No "both."
+2. **mirror never reads from git.** No pull, no prune, no webhook, no
+   file→apply. git is written, never read as intent.
+3. **gitops never writes desired specs to git.** No auto-commit of applied
+   manifests, no push of desired state. The controller may still write
+   *operational* artifacts elsewhere (op history in SQLite), but the repo's
+   desired specs are authored by humans/CI, not the controller.
+4. **gitops does not revive files on startup.** A file absent from the working
+   tree is a signal ("this resource is no longer desired"), not a gap to fill.
+   Reviving it would resurrect a pruned resource (conflict #1) — forbidden.
+5. **The drift reconciler is mode-agnostic.** It re-applies the *stored* desired
+   state (`applied_manifests`) on drift, in both modes. In gitops mode that
+   stored state is simply whatever the last pull/apply wrote — so the reconciler
+   converges toward the repo, transitively, without a second code path.
+6. **gitops prune trusts provenance.** Prune only deletes resources whose last
+   apply was `source=gitops` (or unknown), never `cli`/`ui`. This is now a
+   durable column read (K3), not an ops-table reconstruction — so provenance
+   survives op GC and prune stays safe.
+
+## Config
+
+Add one switch; keep the existing sub-blocks but scope them to a mode.
+
+```yaml
+manifests:
+  dir: ~/.openctl/manifests
+  mode: mirror            # mirror (default) | gitops
+
+  # mirror-mode settings (ignored in gitops mode):
+  git:
+    enabled: true         # auto-commit the audit mirror
+    remote: git@github.com:me/infra-audit.git
+    pushMode: onCommit
+
+  # gitops-mode settings (ignored in mirror mode):
+  gitops:
+    remote: git@github.com:me/infra.git   # the source repo
+    pull:
+      interval: 1m
+      prune: true
+      webhook:
+        enabled: true
+        secret: { $secret: { provider: env, key: WEBHOOK_SECRET } }
+```
+
+- `mode` defaults to **`mirror`** — the current default behavior, so existing
+  configs are unchanged.
+- **Contradictory combinations are rejected at config load** with a clear
+  error, rather than silently half-working. Examples:
+  - `mode: gitops` with `git.pushMode`/`git.enabled` set → error ("gitops mode
+    does not auto-commit or push desired specs; remove `manifests.git`").
+  - `mode: mirror` with `gitops.pull` set → error ("pull/prune require
+    `mode: gitops`").
+  - `mode: gitops` with no `gitops.remote` → error.
+
+### Back-compat / migration
+
+- Absent `mode` → `mirror`. A config that only uses `manifests.git` keeps
+  working verbatim.
+- A config that currently sets `manifests.gitops.pull.enabled: true` is the one
+  breaking case: on load, if `pull` is configured without `mode: gitops`, emit
+  a one-line deprecation error telling the operator to set `mode: gitops` (and
+  drop any `manifests.git` push settings). This is deliberate — that config was
+  the ambiguous one this change exists to disambiguate.
+
+## Code reconciliation plan (the follow-up)
+
+Small, mechanical once the invariants above are fixed. Per component:
+
+1. **Config** (`internal/config`): add `Manifests.Mode` (default `mirror`); add
+   `validateManifestsMode()` rejecting the contradictory combos; move
+   `gitops.remote` alongside (today the remote lives on `manifests.git`).
+2. **Wiring** (`cmd/openctl-controller/main.go`): branch on `mode`. Wire the
+   disk-mirror auto-commit + push + startup-revive **only** in mirror mode; wire
+   the watcher + pull loop + pruner + webhook **only** in gitops mode. The
+   drift reconciler is wired unconditionally.
+3. **DiskMirror** (`internal/controller/manifests/disk.go`): gate the startup
+   re-materialize behind mirror mode (a constructor flag or a
+   `mode`-aware caller). In gitops mode the mirror dir is the *working tree*,
+   not a controller-owned output — so nothing re-materializes.
+4. **git hook** (`internal/controller/manifests/githook.go`): auto-commit only
+   in mirror mode.
+5. **Watcher / Repo / Pruner / Webhook**: unchanged internally; simply not
+   constructed in mirror mode. (They already exist and are individually tested.)
+6. **No change** to the dispatcher, drift reconciler, or `applied_manifests`
+   store — the store stays the desired-state cache in both modes; K3's `source`
+   column already distinguishes provenance.
+
+## Test plan
+
+- **Config validation**: each contradictory combination errors with the
+  documented message; each valid single-mode config loads; absent `mode`
+  resolves to `mirror`.
+- **Mode selection**: a fake wiring harness asserts that in mirror mode the
+  pull/prune/webhook components are nil and the mirror/commit ones are live, and
+  vice-versa in gitops mode.
+- **Conflict #1 gone**: in gitops mode, deleting a file + pull → the resource is
+  pruned and startup does **not** revive its file.
+- **Conflict #2 gone**: in gitops mode, an apply does **not** auto-commit, so a
+  subsequent `--ff-only` pull succeeds.
+- Existing per-component tests (mirror, watcher, pruner, webhook) continue to
+  pass unchanged.
+
+## Open question (ties to K5)
+
+Which mode is the *recommended* default is partly a product-scope question (K5:
+is openctl infra-IaC-with-bounded-workloads, or a homelab PaaS?). This doc
+fixes the *mechanism* regardless: `mirror` stays the safe default (no surprise
+deletes, no external repo required), and `gitops` is the opt-in DriftlessAF
+loop. The scope decision only changes which mode the docs lead with, not the
+invariants here.