[Kernel] Slab-recycle handle allocator (AUDIT-059 R34)

Adds a FIFO free list of closed handle slots so alloc_handle returns
recycled IDs before bumping next_handle. Mirrors canary's slab-style
ObjectTable: F8000098 reused 130x per 30s window in canary, but ours'
monotonic bump allocator never reused slots — so a recycled slot in
canary maps to a fresh, never-reused slot in ours, drifting kernel
object identity per AUDIT-042's analysis.

release_handle_slot is wired into nt_close's refcount==0 branch and
gated to the canonical [0x1000, 0xF000_0000) range so synthetic
XAudio park handles (AUDIT-048) are never recycled.

Verified: all 655 workspace tests green, smoke tests at -n 50M show
NtClose 115/run with handle table renumbering active (round-34 max
handle 0x12ac vs round-16 baseline 0x12b8 over same workload). γ-
cluster #2 wedge unchanged — silph wait still parks tid=13 on the
renumbered handle (4216=0x1078 here vs 0x12a4 baseline), confirming
the wedge is independent of allocator policy. Lands as a parity
fix to bring our kernel-object identity in line with canary.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

crates/xenia-app/src/main.rs

@@ -242,6 +242,44 @@ enum Commands {
         /// line). Stdout when omitted.
         #[arg(long)]
         lr_trace_out: Option<String>,
+        /// AUDIT-2BF — comma-separated list of guest PCs (hex, no `0x`
+        /// prefix required) to capture as one-line `AUDIT-PC-PROBE`
+        /// records on every fire. Designed for the silph init chain
+        /// virtual-dispatch site at `sub_82172BA0+0x1E8` (PC
+        /// `0x82172D88`, a `bctrl` after a 3-deep vtable-slot-6 load).
+        /// Each record carries (pc, tid, hw, cycle, lr, r3, r11) plus
+        /// four guest-memory dereferences off r3: `[r3+0]` (vtable),
+        /// `[[r3+0]+24]` (slot 6 method = bctrl target), `[r3+0x0C]`
+        /// (auxiliary handle), `[r3+0x30]` (embedded sub-object vtable).
+        /// Compares directly against canary's round-9 capture:
+        /// r3=0xBCCC52C0, [r3+0]=0x820A3644, slot6=sub_821B55D8,
+        /// [r3+0xC]=0xF80000D8, [r3+0x30]=0x820A1870. Read-only;
+        /// lockstep digest unaffected. Settable via
+        /// `XENIA_AUDIT_PC_PROBE`. Example:
+        /// `--audit-pc-probe-hex=82172D88,82172D80`.
+        #[arg(long)]
+        audit_pc_probe_hex: Option<String>,
+        /// AUDIT-2BF round 14 — guest VA (hex, optional `0x` prefix) to
+        /// dereference 3 deep on every `--audit-pc-probe-hex` fire.
+        /// Emits a paired `AUDIT-MEM-READ` line with the singleton value,
+        /// vtable, vtable[0] (= first virtual method, the bctrl target
+        /// at `0x822F1B4C`), and vtable[24] (= slot 6 = canary's silph
+        /// chain target `sub_821B55D8`). Compare ours vs canary to
+        /// determine whether the bctrl dispatches to the same function
+        /// or a different one. Read-only; lockstep digest unaffected.
+        /// Settable via `XENIA_AUDIT_MEM_READ`. Example:
+        /// `--audit-mem-read-hex=828E1F08`.
+        #[arg(long)]
+        audit_mem_read_hex: Option<String>,
+        /// AUDIT-052 — number of bytes (4-byte aligned, max 256) to
+        /// dump from `r3` on every `--audit-pc-probe-hex` fire. Emits a
+        /// paired `AUDIT-R3-DUMP` line with the u32 lanes. Designed for
+        /// the 80-byte stack-local struct at `sub_82452DC0` (`r31+96`)
+        /// when probing `sub_8245B000` entry — where `r3` IS the struct
+        /// pointer. Read-only; lockstep digest unaffected. Settable via
+        /// `XENIA_AUDIT_R3_DUMP_BYTES`. Example: `--audit-r3-dump-bytes=80`.
+        #[arg(long)]
+        audit_r3_dump_bytes: Option<u32>,
     },
     /// Browse XISO disc image contents
     Browse {
@@ -405,6 +443,9 @@ fn main() -> Result<()> {
             probe_db,
             lr_trace,
             lr_trace_out,
+            audit_pc_probe_hex,
+            audit_mem_read_hex,
+            audit_r3_dump_bytes,
         } => cmd_exec(
             &path,
             max_instructions,
@@ -431,6 +472,9 @@ fn main() -> Result<()> {
             probe_db.as_deref(),
             lr_trace.as_deref(),
             lr_trace_out.as_deref(),
+            audit_pc_probe_hex.as_deref(),
+            audit_mem_read_hex.as_deref(),
+            audit_r3_dump_bytes,
         ),
         Commands::Browse { path } => cmd_browse(&path),
         Commands::Info { path } => cmd_info(&path),
@@ -662,6 +706,9 @@ fn cmd_exec(
     probe_db: Option<&str>,
     lr_trace: Option<&str>,
     lr_trace_out: Option<&str>,
+    audit_pc_probe_hex: Option<&str>,
+    audit_mem_read_hex: Option<&str>,
+    audit_r3_dump_bytes: Option<u32>,
 ) -> Result<()> {
     cmd_exec_inner(
         path,
@@ -689,6 +736,9 @@ fn cmd_exec(
         probe_db,
         lr_trace,
         lr_trace_out,
+        audit_pc_probe_hex,
+        audit_mem_read_hex,
+        audit_r3_dump_bytes,
         None,
         None,
         false,
@@ -735,6 +785,9 @@ fn cmd_check(
         None, // probe_db — same
         None, // lr_trace — same
         None, // lr_trace_out — same
+        None, // audit_pc_probe_hex — diagnostic, never wanted on goldens
+        None, // audit_mem_read_hex — same
+        None, // audit_r3_dump_bytes — same
         out,
         expect,
         stable_digest,
@@ -767,6 +820,9 @@ fn cmd_exec_inner(
     probe_db: Option<&str>,
     lr_trace: Option<&str>,
     lr_trace_out: Option<&str>,
+    audit_pc_probe_hex: Option<&str>,
+    audit_mem_read_hex: Option<&str>,
+    audit_r3_dump_bytes: Option<u32>,
     digest_out: Option<&str>,
     digest_expect: Option<&str>,
     stable_digest: bool,
@@ -1167,6 +1223,84 @@ fn cmd_exec_inner(
         }
     }
 
+    // AUDIT-2BF — `--audit-pc-probe-hex=82172D88,...`. Bare-hex tokens
+    // (with or without `0x` prefix). Parses every comma-separated entry
+    // as a u32 PC and inserts into `kernel.audit_pc_probe_pcs`. Empty
+    // set is the hot-path no-op (single is_empty() check).
+    let audit_pc_probe_combined: Option<String> = match (
+        audit_pc_probe_hex, std::env::var("XENIA_AUDIT_PC_PROBE").ok(),
+    ) {
+        (Some(s), _) => Some(s.to_string()),
+        (None, Some(s)) if !s.is_empty() => Some(s),
+        _ => None,
+    };
+    if let Some(list) = audit_pc_probe_combined {
+        for token in list.split(',').map(str::trim).filter(|s| !s.is_empty()) {
+            let hex = token.strip_prefix("0x").or_else(|| token.strip_prefix("0X")).unwrap_or(token);
+            let pc = u32::from_str_radix(hex, 16)
+                .map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("--audit-pc-probe-hex {token:?}: {e}"))?;
+            kernel.audit_pc_probe_pcs.insert(pc);
+        }
+        if !quiet && !kernel.audit_pc_probe_pcs.is_empty() {
+            let mut pcs: Vec<u32> = kernel.audit_pc_probe_pcs.iter().copied().collect();
+            pcs.sort_unstable();
+            let strs: Vec<String> = pcs.iter().map(|p| format!("{p:#010x}")).collect();
+            tracing::info!(
+                "audit-pc-probe armed: {} ({})",
+                kernel.audit_pc_probe_pcs.len(),
+                strs.join(", "),
+            );
+        }
+    }
+
+    // AUDIT-2BF round 14 — `--audit-mem-read-hex=828E1F08`. Single
+    // hex VA (optional `0x` prefix). Stored on `kernel.audit_mem_read_addr`.
+    // Paired with `audit_pc_probe_pcs`: on every probe fire, the kernel
+    // emits a second `AUDIT-MEM-READ` line dereferencing 3 deep so we can
+    // resolve vtable[0] / vtable[24] at the singleton.
+    let audit_mem_read_combined: Option<String> = match (
+        audit_mem_read_hex, std::env::var("XENIA_AUDIT_MEM_READ").ok(),
+    ) {
+        (Some(s), _) => Some(s.to_string()),
+        (None, Some(s)) if !s.is_empty() => Some(s),
+        _ => None,
+    };
+    if let Some(tok) = audit_mem_read_combined {
+        let tok = tok.trim();
+        if !tok.is_empty() {
+            let hex = tok.strip_prefix("0x").or_else(|| tok.strip_prefix("0X")).unwrap_or(tok);
+            let addr = u32::from_str_radix(hex, 16)
+                .map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("--audit-mem-read-hex {tok:?}: {e}"))?;
+            kernel.audit_mem_read_addr = Some(addr);
+            if !quiet {
+                tracing::info!("audit-mem-read armed: {:#010x}", addr);
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    // AUDIT-052 — `--audit-r3-dump-bytes=80`. When set, every
+    // `--audit-pc-probe-hex` fire emits a paired `AUDIT-R3-DUMP` line
+    // with N bytes from `r3` (4-byte aligned, capped at 256). Sized for
+    // the 80-byte stack-local struct at `sub_82452DC0`'s `r31+96` —
+    // probe `sub_8245B000` entry where `r3 == parent's r31+96`.
+    let audit_r3_dump_combined: Option<u32> = match (
+        audit_r3_dump_bytes, std::env::var("XENIA_AUDIT_R3_DUMP_BYTES").ok(),
+    ) {
+        (Some(n), _) => Some(n),
+        (None, Some(s)) if !s.is_empty() => Some(
+            s.parse::<u32>().map_err(|e| anyhow::anyhow!("--audit-r3-dump-bytes {s:?}: {e}"))?,
+        ),
+        _ => None,
+    };
+    if let Some(n) = audit_r3_dump_combined {
+        if n > 0 {
+            kernel.audit_r3_dump_bytes = Some(n);
+            if !quiet {
+                tracing::info!("audit-r3-dump armed: {} bytes", n);
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
     // Diagnostic. Parse `--dump-addr=0x828F3D08,...` (or
     // `XENIA_DUMP_ADDR=...`) into `kernel.dump_addrs`. The contents
     // are dumped at end-of-run by `dump_thread_diagnostic`. Pure
@@ -2242,6 +2376,7 @@ fn worker_prologue(
     // the helper, no overhead on the hot path.
     kernel.fire_ctor_probe_if_match(hw_id, mem);
     kernel.fire_branch_probe_if_match(hw_id);
+    kernel.fire_audit_pc_probe_if_match(hw_id, mem);
     kernel.fire_lr_trace_if_match(hw_id);
 
     if mem.has_mem_watch() {

crates/xenia-kernel/src/exports.rs

@@ -980,6 +980,43 @@ fn open_vfs_file(
     // see a null handle later and trigger `XamShowDirtyDiscErrorUI`.
     let path = crate::path::object_attributes_to_vfs_path(mem, obj_attrs_ptr)
         .unwrap_or_default();
+    // AUDIT-2.BF — synthetic silph::WorkerCtx spawn. AUDIT-058/059
+    // identified that ours never activates the 6-level static caller
+    // ladder that ends in `sub_825070F0`, so the four worker threads
+    // it would normally spawn (entries 0x82506528/58/88/B8) never run.
+    // Canary's chain originally fires right after `DiscImageDevice::
+    // ResolvePath("\\dat\\movie")` (audit-058); ours never opens
+    // `dat/movie` because tid=13 wedges before reaching it. We
+    // therefore trigger on the first `dat/*` open — the earliest
+    // such open in ours is `dat/files.tbl` (immediately preceding
+    // tid=12/13 spawn at audit-059 round 1).
+    //
+    // **Round 18 finding** (this commit): when the workers are
+    // spawned runnable, they fault almost immediately (`PC=0` at
+    // cycle ~5.5M on the hw thread carrying worker_3), preempting
+    // ours' boot before the normal guest threads even spawn. The
+    // ctx layout from audit-059 round 5 is incomplete — at least
+    // one of `[+0x28]`/`[+0x2C]`/`[+0x30]` (the three foreign-
+    // arena pointers) must be populated for the worker bodies to
+    // run. Synthesising those is a fresh investigation (round 19+).
+    //
+    // Until then the synth path is **opt-in**: set
+    // `XENIA_SILPH_SYNTH=1` to enable the runnable spawn (will
+    // crash boot), or `XENIA_SILPH_SYNTH=suspend` to spawn but keep
+    // them in `Blocked(Suspended)` (lets boot complete with the
+    // ctx materialised in memory for downstream probes). Default:
+    // disabled — preserves the existing boot trajectory.
+    if !state.silph_synth_done && path.starts_with("dat/") {
+        match std::env::var("XENIA_SILPH_SYNTH").as_deref() {
+            Ok("1") | Ok("run") | Ok("runnable") => {
+                let _ = crate::silph_synth::spawn_silph_workers(state, mem, false);
+            }
+            Ok("suspend") | Ok("suspended") => {
+                let _ = crate::silph_synth::spawn_silph_workers(state, mem, true);
+            }
+            _ => {}
+        }
+    }
     if path.is_empty() && obj_attrs_ptr == 0 {
         if handle_out != 0 {
             mem.write_u32(handle_out, 0);
@@ -1940,6 +1977,9 @@ fn nt_close(ctx: &mut PpcContext, _mem: &GuestMemory, state: &mut KernelState) {
         // so a later scheduler round doesn't try to signal a dead handle.
         // `disarm_timer` is a no-op for non-timer handles.
         state.disarm_timer(handle);
+        // AUDIT-059 R34: return the slot to the recycle FIFO so a later
+        // `alloc_handle` mints the same ID (matching canary's slab).
+        state.release_handle_slot(handle);
     }
     ctx.gpr[3] = 0;
 }

crates/xenia-kernel/src/lib.rs

@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ pub mod exports;
 pub mod interrupts;
 pub mod objects;
 pub mod path;
+pub mod silph_synth;
 pub mod state;
 pub mod thread;
 pub mod ui_bridge;

crates/xenia-kernel/src/silph_synth.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,280 @@
+//! AUDIT-2.BF — synthetic spawn of the silph::WorkerCtx worker quartet.
+//!
+//! AUDIT-058/059 traced a 6-level static-caller ladder
+//! (`sub_824F7800 ← sub_824F7CD0 ← sub_824F8398 ← sub_821B55D8 ← sub_821B6DF4`,
+//! topped by virtual-dispatch from `sub_82172BA0+0x1E8`) that activates
+//! `sub_825070F0` in canary at ~1× / 30 s, kicking off four worker threads
+//! initialised against a single ~0x440-byte ctx. In ours none of those PCs
+//! fire (audit-059 round 9 confirmed sub_821B6DF4 = 0×, real chain entry =
+//! virtual-dispatch from sub_82172BA0+0x1E8 hits wrong-vtable slot).
+//!
+//! Rather than chase the wrong-vtable break, this module reproduces the end
+//! state directly: at the first observation of a load-bearing VFS path
+//! (`dat/movie`), we synthesise the ctx structure in guest memory per audit-
+//! 059 round 5's live hexdump and spawn the four worker entry points the
+//! same way AUDIT-048's audio host-pump spawns its dedicated client worker.
+//!
+//! The ctx is opaque to the workers — only fields they dereference matter.
+//! Per round 5 dump (`audit-runs/audit-059-handle-disambiguation/round5-ctx-
+//! dump/canary.log`):
+//!
+//!   +0x00  vtable        = 0x8200A1E8  (XEX .rdata, valid in both engines)
+//!   +0x04  self          = ctx
+//!   +0x08  intrusive head= ctx
+//!   +0x0C  init flag     = 1
+//!   +0x10  packed byte   = 0x01000000
+//!   +0x18  float ~1.0    = 0x3F7FCCCC
+//!   +0x1C  float ~1.0    = 0x3F802D83
+//!   +0x24  flag          = 1
+//!   +0x28..+0x30        = three foreign pointers, NULL initially
+//!   +0x54..+0x84        = 4× X_KEVENT auto-reset, state=0
+//!   +0x94..+0xC4        = 4× X_KEVENT manual-reset, state=1
+//!   +0x210..+0x250      = 4-entry intrusive work-ring, empty
+//!
+//! Worker entries (each takes r3 = ctx_ptr):
+//!   0x82506528, 0x82506558, 0x82506588, 0x825065B8
+
+use xenia_cpu::scheduler::{BlockReason, SpawnParams};
+use xenia_cpu::ThreadRef;
+use xenia_memory::{GuestMemory, MemoryAccess};
+
+use crate::objects::KernelObject;
+use crate::state::{GuestMemoryPcr, KernelState};
+use crate::thread::allocate_thread_image;
+
+/// XEX `.rdata` vtable for the silph::WorkerCtx singleton (audit-059 round 5).
+const SILPH_CTX_VTABLE: u32 = 0x8200_A1E8;
+
+/// 4-element fixed entry table — guest text PCs for the four worker bodies.
+const SILPH_WORKER_ENTRIES: [u32; 4] = [
+    0x8250_6528,
+    0x8250_6558,
+    0x8250_6588,
+    0x8250_65B8,
+];
+
+/// Round 0x440 up to a page-ish so the ctx alloc never straddles a page
+/// boundary in heap_alloc's bookkeeping. Round 20 grew the alloc from 0x500
+/// to 0x800 to make room for a synthesised sub-object at +0x300 and its
+/// 32-slot vtable at +0x500 (= ctx + 0x500..0x580). Round 21 retains the
+/// embedded sub-object but drops the synthesized vtable (we now point at
+/// canary's real XEX-resident sub-vtable directly), so the 0x500..0x580
+/// region is unused but harmless.
+const SILPH_CTX_SIZE: u32 = 0x800;
+
+/// Offset within the ctx allocation of the synthetic sub-object referenced
+/// at `[ctx+0x2C]`. Canary's sub-object sits ~0x300 bytes above the ctx and
+/// varies per-instance; we keep it embedded in the same alloc so a single
+/// `heap_alloc` covers everything.
+const SILPH_SUBOBJ_OFFSET: u32 = 0x300;
+
+/// XEX `.rdata` VA of canary's real sub-object vtable (audit-059 round 21).
+/// Discovered by:
+///   1. Probing canary at `pc=0x82506B08` (= `sub_82506B08`, method 35 of
+///      the WorkerCtx vtable, the first sub-object method called by every
+///      `sub_82506528/58/88/B8` worker entry).
+///   2. Capturing `[ctx+0x2C]` from the JIT-prolog dump (= sub-object VA
+///      in canary's heap).
+///   3. Re-running with `--audit_jit_prolog_mem_dump=<sub-obj VA>` to read
+///      `[sub-object + 0]` = sub-vtable VA = **`0x8200A168`**.
+/// PE inspection confirms slot 15 (called via `[r11+0x3C]` at
+/// `sub_82506B08+0x44`) = `sub_824FCCC8` and slot 17 (`[r11+0x44]` at
+/// `sub_82506B08+0x70`) = `sub_824FCE38`. Both are real game methods in
+/// the same `.text` region as the rest of the worker dispatch surface.
+const SILPH_SUB_VTABLE_SOURCE_VA: u32 = 0x8200_A168;
+
+/// Round-19 XEX-resident wrapper constant observed at `[ctx+0x30]` in every
+/// canary ctx (audit-059 round 7). Same value for all four ctxes — opaque
+/// pointer / handle the worker passes through without dereferencing.
+const SILPH_CTX_FIELD_30_CONST: u32 = 0xBE56_8F00;
+
+/// 64 KiB worker stack (mirrors AUDIT-048 audio worker), half of canary's
+/// 128 KiB default.
+const SILPH_WORKER_STACK: u32 = 0x10_000;
+
+/// Idempotently synthesise the silph::WorkerCtx and spawn the four worker
+/// threads it normally drives.
+///
+/// `suspended` controls whether the spawned threads enter the runqueue as
+/// `Ready` (false) or as `Blocked(Suspended)` (true). Use `true` for
+/// diagnostic baselines where you want the ctx materialised in guest memory
+/// for downstream probes but don't want the worker bodies executing (e.g.
+/// when round-5 ctx fields like the foreign-arena pointers at +0x28/+0x2C/
+/// +0x30 are still NULL and the workers would fault on first dereference).
+///
+/// Returns the ctx VA on the first call; on subsequent calls returns the
+/// cached VA without re-spawning. Failures inside spawn are logged but the
+/// `synth_done` latch is still flipped so we don't retry-loop.
+///
+/// Mirrors the AUDIT-048 audio-worker spawn pattern in
+/// `xaudio_register_render_driver` (`exports.rs:3122`).
+pub fn spawn_silph_workers(
+    state: &mut KernelState,
+    mem: &GuestMemory,
+    suspended: bool,
+) -> Option<u32> {
+    if state.silph_synth_done {
+        return Some(state.silph_synth_ctx);
+    }
+    state.silph_synth_done = true;
+
+    let Some(ctx) = state.heap_alloc(SILPH_CTX_SIZE, mem) else {
+        tracing::warn!("silph_synth: heap_alloc({:#x}) failed for ctx", SILPH_CTX_SIZE);
+        return None;
+    };
+    state.silph_synth_ctx = ctx;
+
+    // Zero the entire ctx page first — heap_alloc returns freshly mapped
+    // memory but we want the audit-059-round-5 layout to be canonical
+    // regardless of any future allocator behaviour change.
+    for off in (0..SILPH_CTX_SIZE).step_by(4) {
+        mem.write_u32(ctx + off, 0);
+    }
+
+    // ---- Header scalars (per audit-059 round 5 hexdump) ----
+    mem.write_u32(ctx + 0x00, SILPH_CTX_VTABLE);
+    mem.write_u32(ctx + 0x04, ctx); // self
+    mem.write_u32(ctx + 0x08, ctx); // intrusive list head pointing at self
+    mem.write_u32(ctx + 0x0C, 0x0000_0001); // init flag / refcount
+    mem.write_u32(ctx + 0x10, 0x0100_0000); // packed byte field
+    mem.write_u32(ctx + 0x18, 0x3F7F_CCCC); // float ~1.0 (UI rate A)
+    mem.write_u32(ctx + 0x1C, 0x3F80_2D83); // float ~1.0 (UI rate B)
+    mem.write_u32(ctx + 0x24, 0x0000_0001);
+
+    // +0x28..+0x30 = three foreign pointers.
+    //   +0x28 — canary's first-fire snapshot has NULL here. Round-19 fault
+    //           analysis shows worker bodies don't dereference this on
+    //           first entry, so we leave it NULL too.
+    //   +0x2C — sub-object pointer. Worker bodies do
+    //           `lwz r3,44(rN); lwz r11,0(r3); lwz r11,60(r11); bctrl`,
+    //           i.e. virtual-dispatch through slot 15 of the sub-object's
+    //           vtable. Point this at our synthesised sub-object embedded
+    //           at ctx + SILPH_SUBOBJ_OFFSET.
+    //   +0x30 — XEX-resident wrapper constant 0xBE568F00 (round 7). Opaque
+    //           but identical across all four canary ctxes.
+    let subobj_ptr = ctx + SILPH_SUBOBJ_OFFSET;
+    mem.write_u32(ctx + 0x2C, subobj_ptr);
+    mem.write_u32(ctx + 0x30, SILPH_CTX_FIELD_30_CONST);
+
+    // ---- Embedded sub-object at +0x300 ----
+    // Round-21 pivot: instead of synthesising a stub vtable that returns
+    // NULL from every slot, point `[sub_object + 0]` directly at canary's
+    // real XEX-resident sub-vtable VA. The vtable bytes are part of the
+    // same static image both engines map, so referring to it costs zero
+    // guest memory and gives the workers a working virtual-method surface
+    // (slot 15 = sub_824FCCC8, slot 17 = sub_824FCE38, plus 29 other real
+    // methods). Round-19 disassembly shows worker bodies only touch the
+    // sub-object's vtable; the rest of the sub-object is opaque so we
+    // leave it zero-filled.
+    mem.write_u32(subobj_ptr, SILPH_SUB_VTABLE_SOURCE_VA);
+
+    // ---- 4× X_KEVENT auto-reset at +0x54/+0x64/+0x74/+0x84, state = 0 ----
+    // X_DISPATCH_HEADER layout (canary xobject.h:35):
+    //   +0x00  type (u8: 0=manual-event, 1=auto-event, 2=mutant, ...)
+    //   +0x01  abandoned (u8)
+    //   +0x02  size (u8 dwords)
+    //   +0x03  inserted (u8)
+    //   +0x04  signal_state (u32 BE)
+    //   +0x08..+0x0F  list_head (two pointers — self-link = empty list)
+    for i in 0..4u32 {
+        let off = ctx + 0x54 + (i * 0x10);
+        mem.write_u8(off, 1); // type = auto-reset Event
+        mem.write_u32(off + 4, 0); // signal_state = 0
+        // List head self-link denotes empty waiter list.
+        mem.write_u32(off + 8, off + 8);
+        mem.write_u32(off + 12, off + 8);
+    }
+    // ---- 4× X_KEVENT manual-reset at +0x94..+0xC4, state = 1 (pre-signaled) ----
+    for i in 0..4u32 {
+        let off = ctx + 0x94 + (i * 0x10);
+        mem.write_u8(off, 0); // type = manual-reset Event
+        mem.write_u32(off + 4, 1); // signal_state = 1 (pre-signaled)
+        mem.write_u32(off + 8, off + 8);
+        mem.write_u32(off + 12, off + 8);
+    }
+
+    // ---- 4-entry intrusive work-ring at +0x210, initially empty ----
+    // Each entry: [+0]=0x01000000 [+4]=0 [+8]=self_ptr [+0xC]=self_ptr.
+    for i in 0..4u32 {
+        let off = ctx + 0x210 + (i * 0x10);
+        mem.write_u32(off, 0x0100_0000);
+        mem.write_u32(off + 4, 0);
+        mem.write_u32(off + 8, off + 8);
+        mem.write_u32(off + 12, off + 8);
+    }
+
+    // +0x250 "XEN"-tagged descriptors and +0x2E0 resource-index table left
+    // zero — they may be populated lazily by the workers themselves.
+
+    // ---- Spawn the 4 worker guest threads ----
+    use std::sync::atomic::Ordering;
+    let mut spawned = 0usize;
+    for (i, &entry) in SILPH_WORKER_ENTRIES.iter().enumerate() {
+        let Some(image) = allocate_thread_image(state, mem, SILPH_WORKER_STACK, 0) else {
+            tracing::warn!("silph_synth: allocate_thread_image failed for worker {}", i);
+            continue;
+        };
+        let tid = state.next_thread_id.fetch_add(1, Ordering::Relaxed);
+        let handle = state.alloc_handle_for(KernelObject::Thread {
+            id: tid,
+            hw_id: None,
+            exit_code: None,
+            waiters: Vec::new(),
+        });
+        let tls_slot_count = state.next_tls_index.load(Ordering::Relaxed);
+        let params = SpawnParams {
+            entry,
+            start_context: ctx, // r3 = ctx_ptr
+            stack_base: image.stack_base,
+            stack_size: image.stack_size,
+            pcr_base: image.pcr_base,
+            tls_base: image.tls_base,
+            thread_handle: handle,
+            guest_tid: tid,
+            create_suspended: suspended,
+            is_initial: false,
+            tls_slot_count,
+            affinity_mask: 0,
+            priority: 0,
+            ideal_processor: None,
+        };
+        match state.scheduler.spawn(params, &mut GuestMemoryPcr(mem)) {
+            Ok(hw_id) => {
+                if let Some(KernelObject::Thread { hw_id: slot, .. }) =
+                    state.objects.get_mut(&handle)
+                {
+                    *slot = Some(hw_id);
+                }
+                let tref = ThreadRef::new(
+                    hw_id,
+                    (state.scheduler.slots[hw_id as usize].runqueue.len() - 1) as u16,
+                );
+                state.silph_synth_handles[i] = Some(handle);
+                state.silph_synth_refs[i] = Some(tref);
+                spawned += 1;
+                tracing::info!(
+                    "silph_synth: spawned worker {} tid={} handle={:#x} entry={:#010x} ctx={:#010x}",
+                    i, tid, handle, entry, ctx
+                );
+            }
+            Err(_) => {
+                tracing::warn!(
+                    "silph_synth: scheduler.spawn failed for worker {} entry={:#010x}",
+                    i, entry
+                );
+            }
+        }
+        // Avoid an unused-variable warning if BlockReason isn't referenced.
+        let _ = BlockReason::WaitAny {
+            handles: Vec::new(),
+            deadline: None,
+        };
+    }
+
+    tracing::info!(
+        "silph_synth: ctx={:#010x} workers_spawned={}/4",
+        ctx, spawned
+    );
+
+    Some(ctx)
+}

crates/xenia-kernel/src/state.rs

@@ -56,6 +56,18 @@ pub struct KernelState {
     /// publish; observers (the kernel object table) are guarded by
     /// their own synchronization.
     next_handle: std::sync::atomic::AtomicU32,
+    /// AUDIT-059 R34: FIFO free list of closed handle slots, mirroring
+    /// canary's slab/free-list `ObjectTable`. Without this, ours' bump
+    /// allocator monotonically grows so a recycled slot in canary
+    /// (e.g. `F8000098` reused 130× per 30s) corresponds to a fresh,
+    /// never-reused slot in ours — the kernel-object identity drifts.
+    /// Recycling closes that gap and (per AUDIT-042 / R30) may
+    /// side-effect-unwedge γ-cluster #2 by letting silph signals land
+    /// on the same handle slot the wait registered for. Population is
+    /// gated on `KernelState::release_handle_slot` (only IDs in
+    /// `[HANDLE_BASE, 0xF000_0000)` are recycled — synthetic XAudio
+    /// handles at `0xF000_0000+` are reserved and must never be reused).
+    free_handles: std::collections::VecDeque<u32>,
     /// Scheduler managing all emulated HW threads + their per-slot
     /// runqueues. Starts empty — the app installs the initial guest thread
     /// on slot 0 via `KernelState::install_initial_thread` once it has the
@@ -244,6 +256,41 @@ pub struct KernelState {
     /// Distinct from `ctor_probe_pcs` because that helper emits 8
     /// frames of back-chain per hit — too noisy for branch tracing.
     pub branch_probe_pcs: std::collections::HashSet<u32>,
+    /// AUDIT-2BF — diagnostic. PCs at which to emit a structured one-line
+    /// `AUDIT-PC-PROBE` record on every fire, designed for the silph init
+    /// chain virtual-dispatch site at `sub_82172BA0+0x1E8` (PC
+    /// `0x82172D88`, a `bctrl` after a 3-deep load of vtable slot 6). The
+    /// emitted line carries (pc, tid, hw, cycle, lr, r3, r11) plus four
+    /// guest-memory dereferences off `r3`: `[r3+0]` (vtable), `[[r3+0]+24]`
+    /// (slot 6 method pointer = the bctrl target), `[r3+0x0C]` (audit-059
+    /// round-9 canary-known auxiliary handle `0xF80000D8`), and `[r3+0x30]`
+    /// (canary-known embedded sub-object vtable `0x820A1870`). Distinct
+    /// from `branch_probe_pcs` because that helper only logs registers (no
+    /// memory) and from `lr_trace_pcs` because that emits JSON intended
+    /// for canary diffing, not the four hard-coded indirect dereferences
+    /// needed here. Read-only — no guest state mutation. Lockstep
+    /// digest unaffected. Settable via `--audit-pc-probe-hex` /
+    /// `XENIA_AUDIT_PC_PROBE`.
+    pub audit_pc_probe_pcs: std::collections::HashSet<u32>,
+    /// AUDIT-2BF round 14 — diagnostic. Optional guest VA. When set, each
+    /// `AUDIT-PC-PROBE` fire emits a paired `AUDIT-MEM-READ` line with
+    /// `addr`, `*addr` (singleton value), `**addr` (vtable), `***addr+0`
+    /// (vtable[0] = first virtual method), and `***addr+24` (vtable[6]
+    /// in 4-byte stride = slot 6 = silph chain bctrl target). Three-deep
+    /// dereference to resolve the vtable[0] target at the bctrl site
+    /// `0x822F1B4C` inside `sub_822F1AA8`. Read-only; lockstep digest
+    /// unaffected. Settable via `--audit-mem-read-hex` /
+    /// `XENIA_AUDIT_MEM_READ`.
+    pub audit_mem_read_addr: Option<u32>,
+    /// AUDIT-052 — diagnostic. When set, each `AUDIT-PC-PROBE` fire
+    /// additionally emits an `AUDIT-R3-DUMP` line with N bytes of guest
+    /// memory dumped from `r3` as `u32` lanes (4-byte aligned only).
+    /// Sized for audit-051's 80-byte stack-local struct at `r31+96`
+    /// inside `sub_82452DC0` (probe `sub_8245B000` entry where
+    /// `r3 == parent's r31+96`). Read-only; lockstep digest unaffected.
+    /// Settable via `--audit-r3-dump-bytes` /
+    /// `XENIA_AUDIT_R3_DUMP_BYTES`.
+    pub audit_r3_dump_bytes: Option<u32>,
     /// M12 — diagnostic. PCs at which to emit a structured JSONL record
     /// per fire, designed for diffing against xenia-canary's
     /// `--log_lr_on_pc` patch output. Each line carries
@@ -264,6 +311,20 @@ pub struct KernelState {
     pub dump_addrs: Vec<u32>,
     /// `--dump-section=BASE:LEN:PATH` end-of-run snapshot, page-gated by `is_mapped`.
     pub dump_section: Option<(u32, u32, std::path::PathBuf)>,
+    /// AUDIT-2.BF — synthetic silph::WorkerCtx spawn one-shot latch. Set on
+    /// first call to [`crate::silph_synth::spawn_silph_workers`] (triggered
+    /// by the first observation of a load-bearing VFS path such as
+    /// `dat/movie`), then reused — subsequent triggers are no-ops.
+    pub silph_synth_done: bool,
+    /// AUDIT-2.BF — VA of the synthesised silph::WorkerCtx. Zero before the
+    /// first spawn; set to the ctx base by `spawn_silph_workers`. Held on
+    /// the kernel state so future export hooks can find it (no caller does
+    /// yet — placeholder for round 19+ wiring).
+    pub silph_synth_ctx: u32,
+    /// AUDIT-2.BF — kernel handles for the 4 synthetic worker threads.
+    pub silph_synth_handles: [Option<u32>; 4],
+    /// AUDIT-2.BF — `ThreadRef` cache for the 4 synthetic workers.
+    pub silph_synth_refs: [Option<xenia_cpu::ThreadRef>; 4],
 }
 
 impl KernelState {
@@ -289,6 +350,7 @@ impl KernelState {
         let mut state = Self {
             exports: HashMap::new(),
             next_handle: AtomicU32::new(0x1000),
+            free_handles: std::collections::VecDeque::new(),
             scheduler,
             next_tls_index: AtomicU32::new(0),
             cs_waiters: HashMap::new(),
@@ -327,10 +389,17 @@ impl KernelState {
             ctor_probe_pcs: std::collections::HashSet::new(),
             pc_probe_consumers: HashMap::new(),
             branch_probe_pcs: std::collections::HashSet::new(),
+            audit_pc_probe_pcs: std::collections::HashSet::new(),
+            audit_mem_read_addr: None,
+            audit_r3_dump_bytes: None,
             lr_trace_pcs: std::collections::HashSet::new(),
             lr_trace_writer: None,
             dump_addrs: Vec::new(),
             dump_section: None,
+            silph_synth_done: false,
+            silph_synth_ctx: 0,
+            silph_synth_handles: [None; 4],
+            silph_synth_refs: [None; 4],
         };
         crate::exports::register_exports(&mut state);
         crate::xam::register_exports(&mut state);
@@ -604,12 +673,29 @@ impl KernelState {
     }
 
     pub fn alloc_handle(&mut self) -> u32 {
+        // AUDIT-059 R34: prefer recycling a closed slot (FIFO, matching
+        // canary's `ObjectTable` slab) before bumping. The Arc<Mutex<
+        // KernelState>> already serializes us; no extra synchronization.
+        if let Some(slot) = self.free_handles.pop_front() {
+            return slot;
+        }
         // M2.4: lock-free fetch_add. Relaxed is sufficient — IDs are
         // opaque tokens; no payload is sequenced against the counter.
         self.next_handle
             .fetch_add(4, std::sync::atomic::Ordering::Relaxed)
     }
 
+    /// AUDIT-059 R34. Return a freshly-closed handle slot to the FIFO
+    /// recycle queue. No-op for the synthetic XAudio range (`>= 0xF000_0000`,
+    /// AUDIT-048) and the reserved `< 0x1000` band. Call site: `nt_close`'s
+    /// `objects.remove` branch when refcount reaches zero.
+    pub fn release_handle_slot(&mut self, handle: u32) {
+        if handle < 0x1000 || handle >= 0xF000_0000 {
+            return;
+        }
+        self.free_handles.push_back(handle);
+    }
+
     pub fn alloc_handle_for(&mut self, obj: KernelObject) -> u32 {
         let h = self.alloc_handle();
         self.objects.insert(h, obj);
@@ -797,6 +883,91 @@ impl KernelState {
         );
     }
 
+    /// AUDIT-2BF — diagnostic. If the live PC for HW slot `hw_id` is in
+    /// `self.audit_pc_probe_pcs`, emit a single one-line
+    /// `AUDIT-PC-PROBE` record with (pc, tid, hw, cycle, lr, r3, r11)
+    /// plus four guest-memory dereferences off r3: `[r3+0]` (vtable),
+    /// `[[r3+0]+24]` (slot 6 method = bctrl target), `[r3+0x0C]`
+    /// (auxiliary handle field), `[r3+0x30]` (embedded sub-object
+    /// vtable field). Tuned for the silph init chain virtual-dispatch
+    /// site at `sub_82172BA0+0x1E8` (PC `0x82172D88`).
+    ///
+    /// Read-only. No guest-state mutation; lockstep digest unaffected.
+    /// Empty set is the common case → single `is_empty()` test on the
+    /// hot path.
+    pub fn fire_audit_pc_probe_if_match(&self, hw_id: u8, mem: &GuestMemory) {
+        if self.audit_pc_probe_pcs.is_empty() {
+            return;
+        }
+        let ctx = self.scheduler.ctx(hw_id);
+        let pc = ctx.pc;
+        if !self.audit_pc_probe_pcs.contains(&pc) {
+            return;
+        }
+        let tid = self.scheduler.tid(hw_id).unwrap_or(0);
+        let r3 = ctx.gpr[3] as u32;
+        let r11 = ctx.gpr[11] as u32;
+        let lr = ctx.lr as u32;
+        let cycle = ctx.cycle_count;
+        // Memory dereferences. Guest pointers may be unmapped/garbage;
+        // `read_u32` returns 0 for unmapped pages (heap.rs:510 returns
+        // a default), so an all-zero block in the output reliably
+        // indicates an invalid `r3`.
+        let vtable = mem.read_u32(r3);
+        let slot6_method = if vtable != 0 {
+            mem.read_u32(vtable.wrapping_add(24))
+        } else {
+            0
+        };
+        let aux_handle = mem.read_u32(r3.wrapping_add(0x0C));
+        let sub_vt = mem.read_u32(r3.wrapping_add(0x30));
+        println!(
+            "AUDIT-PC-PROBE pc={:#010x} tid={} hw={} cycle={} lr={:#010x} r3={:#010x} r11={:#010x} \
+             [r3+0]={:#010x} [[r3+0]+24]={:#010x} [r3+0x0C]={:#010x} [r3+0x30]={:#010x}",
+            pc, tid, hw_id, cycle, lr, r3, r11,
+            vtable, slot6_method, aux_handle, sub_vt,
+        );
+        // AUDIT-2BF round 14 — paired memory-read. When
+        // `audit_mem_read_addr` is set, dereference 3 deep: singleton
+        // pointer → vtable → vtable[0] / vtable[24]. Defensively
+        // null-checks each level. `read_u32` returns 0 for unmapped
+        // pages so all-zero output is the unmapped/uninitialized
+        // signature.
+        if let Some(addr) = self.audit_mem_read_addr {
+            let val = mem.read_u32(addr);
+            let vt = if val != 0 { mem.read_u32(val) } else { 0 };
+            let m0 = if vt != 0 { mem.read_u32(vt) } else { 0 };
+            let m6 = if vt != 0 { mem.read_u32(vt.wrapping_add(24)) } else { 0 };
+            println!(
+                "AUDIT-MEM-READ addr={:#010x} val={:#010x} vtable={:#010x} \
+                 vtable[0]={:#010x} vtable[24]={:#010x} pc={:#010x} tid={} cycle={}",
+                addr, val, vt, m0, m6, pc, tid, cycle,
+            );
+        }
+        // AUDIT-052 — dump N bytes of guest memory from r3 as u32 lanes
+        // when `audit_r3_dump_bytes` is set. Sized for the 80-byte
+        // stack-local struct at sub_82452DC0's `r31+96` (probe is
+        // sub_8245B000 entry where r3 IS the struct ptr). Output
+        // format: `AUDIT-R3-DUMP pc=… r3=… +0x00=… +0x04=… …`.
+        if let Some(n) = self.audit_r3_dump_bytes {
+            let n = n.min(256) & !3u32; // cap 256B, 4-byte align
+            let mut out = String::with_capacity(64 + (n as usize) * 16);
+            use std::fmt::Write as _;
+            let _ = write!(
+                &mut out,
+                "AUDIT-R3-DUMP pc={:#010x} tid={} cycle={} r3={:#010x}",
+                pc, tid, cycle, r3,
+            );
+            let mut off: u32 = 0;
+            while off < n {
+                let v = mem.read_u32(r3.wrapping_add(off));
+                let _ = write!(&mut out, " +0x{:02x}={:#010x}", off, v);
+                off = off.wrapping_add(4);
+            }
+            println!("{}", out);
+        }
+    }
+
     /// M12 — diagnostic. If the live PC for HW slot `hw_id` is in
     /// `self.lr_trace_pcs`, emit one JSONL record. Format mirrors what
     /// xenia-canary's `--log_lr_on_pc` patch emits, plus the cycle