Plain-language explanations of technical terms used in this project. Entries are sorted alphabetically by letter, then by term name.

A way to scramble data so it stays secret and comes with a built-in seal that proves nothing was changed or corrupted in transit.

A computer that is not connected to the internet or other networks, so secrets are less likely to leak out electronically.

A slow, memory-heavy way to turn a password (like a PIN) into a fixed fingerprint for storage. It is meant to resist guessing attacks.

The small program that runs when you are putting the split pieces back together: it asks for drives or tokens, checks PINs, rebuilds the data, and writes it to the target disk.

Proving you are allowed to use something; here, usually you have the drive, you know the PIN, and sometimes your eye matches what was enrolled.

The hardware chip family used by the Galdralag security token in this design.

A body measurement used like a password; here, an iris or eye scan, so only the intended person can unlock their piece.

A fast way to compute a short fingerprint (hash) of data so you can check that nothing changed.

Storage seen by the computer as raw sectors (like a whole disk or USB stick) rather than as files inside a folder.

Software that runs first when a PC starts from a USB stick and loads the operating system (here, a minimal Linux setup).

A family of mathematical curves used for key agreement (agreeing on a secret over an open channel). The spec prefers these over some common NIST curves.

Whatever holds one share: a USB drive or a Galdralag token (sometimes with an SD card).

A standard USB way to talk to smart cards and similar security devices, so the host does not need special vendor drivers.

A common combination: ChaCha20 hides the data; Poly1305 tags it so tampering is detected.

A small record on the target disk of how far writing got. If power fails, the process can continue from there instead of starting over.

A defined set of approved cryptographic building blocks and rules this project aims to follow (conformance).

Pre-quantum-era techniques; here, contrasted with post-quantum add-ons for long-term safety.

Data in readable form, not scrambled.

Design so a person with one piece honestly cannot answer questions like how many others exist, because the system never told them.

A text-based program you run by typing commands and flags rather than using a graphical wizard.

Programming discipline so checking secrets does not accidentally leak hints through timing.

Rust's name for a library or package of code.

A source of randomness suitable for keys and secrets, not like casual randomness in a game.

Reversing encryption to recover the original content when you have the right keys.

A file that is a byte-for-byte copy of a disk's contents, treated like a virtual drive.

A full rehearsal that checks the math and data without relying on assumptions; here, rebuilding and hashing before you are allowed to destroy the original.

Recognizing the same physical drive inserted twice so progress does not count it twice.

A way for two parties to agree on a shared secret over an untrusted channel using elliptic-curve math.

Software built to run in a minimal environment (here, early boot from a USB) with few dependencies.

Scrambling data so it is useless without the right key.

The one-time setup on a trusted machine where the original is read, split, PINs are set, and carriers are prepared.

Splitting data into pieces with extra repair information so you only need k out of n pieces to rebuild (similar in spirit to redundant storage schemes).

If some members or drives are missing, the scheme still works as long as enough pieces (k) are present.

Past messages stay protected even if long-term keys leak later; relevant for token sessions in the spec.

A post-quantum key-exchange candidate; in the spec it is optional and feature-gated.

A hardware security token platform in this design; it can hold a key share and data chunk instead of a separate USB share.

Optional standard for encrypting a session key for specific recipients' keys.

A modern style of partition table on a disk (how slices of the drive are laid out).

A common bootloader used to start Linux from the EFI partition.

A measure of how two bit-patterns differ; used to decide if a new scan matches the stored template within tolerance.

A random-number generator inside hardware, used where the spec wants strong physical randomness.

A short fingerprint of data. If the fingerprint matches, the data is almost certainly unchanged.

A disk area not meant to look like a normal user-visible drive; it stores sensitive material.

A standard way to stretch a shared secret into proper cryptographic keys of the right length.

People holding shares are not told their position, k, n, or what the content is.

Combining classical and post-quantum pieces so you get both established practice and future resistance.

A small filesystem loaded into memory at boot, before the main system; here it contains splitdisk-assemble.

Confidence that data was not altered; often checked with hashes before trusting a rebuild.

USB eye scanner hardware mentioned for optional biometrics.

A standard format for iris biometric templates.

You split something into n pieces; any k pieces are enough to recover it (like needing a minimum number of keys to open a vault).

Turns passwords or shared secrets into proper encryption keys.

A modern way to wrap a random key for someone using public-key techniques.

The core of the Linux operating system; the spec bundles a minimal one for bootable USB shares.

Extra data about the split (indexes, parameters); here it is kept encrypted so casual inspection does not reveal the scheme.

Some members use USB shares and others use Galdralag tokens in the same k-of-n setup.

A compact C library used for static Linux binaries that should run without extra shared libraries on the stick.

A one-time value used with encryption so the same key never scrambles two blocks identically.

US standards body; the spec deliberately avoids some NIST-only curves for policy reasons.

Rust code that can run without the full standard library, useful for tiny embedded builds.

Extra bytes Reed-Solomon adds so missing pieces can still be reconstructed; roughly spare capacity for repair.

A labeled section of a disk (for example EFI versus data).

A background service on Linux that speaks CCID to smart cards and tokens.

Drives look like opaque blobs; no helpful filenames or labels that explain the secret sharing.

A short secret the holder types, combined with possession of the carrier.

A MAC (authenticator) often paired with ciphers in AEAD modes.

Algorithms meant to resist attacks by future large quantum computers; optional here.

The user interface shows how many shares succeeded, which can hint at k to someone watching; total n stays hidden.

A unique ID for a volume so drives do not look linked by shared serials.

Putting chunks and key shares back together to recover the original encrypted content, then decrypting and writing it out.

See erasure coding: splits data with redundancy so k of n chunks suffice.

Non-volatile memory on the token used for small, sensitive material like key shares.

The programming language targeted for implementation.

Random data mixed into password hashing so two identical PINs do not produce the same stored fingerprint.

Removable card in a Galdralag token for the larger chunk of data.

Alternative bulk ciphers in the design; they can be layered in cascade modes.

The main random key used to encrypt the disk image for one enrollment run; it is split across members.

A mathematical way to split a secret into n pieces where any k reassemble it; fewer pieces reveal nothing useful.

One participant's piece: encrypted data chunk plus protected key share and authentication.

Overwriting the original disk or file with random data so the plaintext should not remain on that media.

A chip card or token that can do crypto operations; CCID is how the PC talks to it.

The tool run once on the enrollment machine to build all carriers from a source.

Builds the bootable USB layout (partitions, kernel, initramfs) without relying on external shell toolchains for that assembly.

The program is bundled with what it needs so it runs in a bare initramfs without missing libraries.

A numeric label for which exact cipher combination was used; in Mode A it is hidden inside the outer encryption.

The minimum number of shares needed to rebuild; the k in k-of-n.

True random number generator: physical randomness, not just math.

Fullscreen terminal interface (here using ratatui) for assembly, without a full desktop.

A USB stick that looks like a normal external drive to the computer.

Rebuilding and checking against a hash before the operator is allowed to erase the original, so mistakes are caught early.

Human or machine identifiers for a partition; the spec avoids revealing labels and randomizes UUIDs.

Securely wiping secrets from memory, or destroying token contents after too many failed PIN attempts on hardware.