Update future roadmap document with ideas for new feature developments

docs/config.md

@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ other than **version** is optional.
 | Field | Type | Default | Rules |
 | --- | --- | --- | --- |
 | **version** | integer | none | Required; must be 4. |
-| **promptkit** | object | none | Profile source configuration. |
+| **promptkit** | object | none | Profile source and optional local-backend configuration. |
 | **pipelines** | map | empty | Maps pipeline IDs to pipeline definitions. |
 | **concurrency** | object | see below | Global LLM and extraction limits. |
 | **output** | object | see below | Published output settings. |
@@ -71,27 +71,58 @@ per-user root. An explicit empty output or debug directory is invalid.
 
 ## PromptKit Profiles
 
-The optional **promptkit** object selects one source of profile definitions:
+The optional **promptkit** object selects one source of profile definitions and
+may register one conventional local OpenAI-compatible backend:
 
 ~~~yaml
 version: 4
+
 promptkit:
-  profile_dir: /path/to/profiles
+  profile_dir: ./profiles
-  # profile_file: /path/to/profiles.yml
+  # profile_file: ./profiles.yml
+  local_backend:
+    endpoint: http://localhost:8000/v1
+    concurrency_limit: 2
 ~~~
 
 | Field | Type | Rules |
 | --- | --- | --- |
 | **profile_dir** | string | Non-empty directory containing profile files. |
 | **profile_file** | string | Non-empty profile file. |
+| **local_backend** | object | Optional registration for the conventional PromptKit backend ID **local**. |
+| **local_backend.endpoint** | string | Required when **local_backend** is present; absolute HTTP or HTTPS URL with a host. |
+| **local_backend.concurrency_limit** | integer | Optional non-negative limit; defaults to 0. |
 
-Set at most one of these fields. Profile IDs used by a binding must be available
+Set at most one of **profile_dir** and **profile_file**. Profile IDs used by a
-from the selected PromptKit profile source when the pipeline is resolved.
+binding must be available from the selected PromptKit profile source when the
-Keep credentials out of this file: configure a profile to read its credential
+pipeline is resolved. The optional local registration may coexist with either
-from an environment variable, then set that environment variable only in the
+profile source or with PromptKit's built-in profiles.
-run environment. PromptKit owns the profile-file format; see the
+
-[PromptKit upstream boundary](integrations/pkg-promptkit.md) for the pinned
+When **local_backend** is present, its endpoint is trimmed and must use HTTP or
-package and canonical format reference.
+HTTPS case-insensitively, be absolute, and have a non-empty host. URL paths are
+allowed. User information, queries, and fragments are rejected. A zero
+**concurrency_limit** leaves the local backend unrestricted inside PromptKit;
+a positive value limits simultaneous local generations. The application-wide
+**concurrency.total_llm** limit still applies in both cases. Neither local
+backend field has an environment override. Omitting **local_backend** registers
+nothing and preserves existing built-in and endpoint-only profile behavior.
+
+A file-backed PromptKit profile selects the registration by its case-sensitive
+backend ID:
+
+~~~yaml
+id: local-summary
+backend: local
+model: example-model
+~~~
+
+Keep credentials out of the local-backend object. A PromptKit profile may name
+its credential environment variable through `api_key_env`; set that variable
+only in the run environment. PromptKit owns the
+[pinned profile-file format](https://gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit/src/tag/v0.3.0/docs/formats.md).
+The [PromptKit upstream boundary](integrations/pkg-promptkit.md) identifies the
+supported package API, and [Operations](operations.md#operational-limits)
+describes the effective concurrency layers.
 
 ## Migrating Version 3 Configuration
 

docs/integrations/pkg-promptkit.md

@@ -1,11 +1,11 @@
 # PromptKit Integration
 
 Notarius pins
-[`gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit` v0.2.0](https://gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit/src/tag/v0.2.0)
+[`gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit` v0.3.0](https://gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit/src/tag/v0.3.0)
 as its in-process prompt engine. The upstream
-[Go package consumer guide](https://gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit/src/tag/v0.2.0/docs/consumers/pkg-promptkit.md)
+[Go package consumer guide](https://gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit/src/tag/v0.3.0/docs/consumers/pkg-promptkit.md)
 owns the public engine API, and the upstream
-[format reference](https://gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit/src/tag/v0.2.0/docs/formats.md)
+[format reference](https://gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit/src/tag/v0.3.0/docs/formats.md)
 owns prompt, profile, and schema file contracts.
 
 ## Supported Boundary
@@ -18,10 +18,16 @@ Notarius relies on the root `promptkit` package to:
   a direct session ID, prompt identity, and profile selection;
 - return rendered debug material, validated structured output, selected
   profile, backend, effective model metadata, and token usage;
+- register the optional conventional `local` backend through `BackendLocal`,
+  `LocalBackend`, and `WithBackend`;
 - distinguish structured-output validation failure from execution failure; and
 - identify a missing explicit profile through `ErrProfileNotFound` and backend
   admission exhaustion through `ErrCapacityExceeded`.
 
+The pinned
+[`BackendLocal`, `LocalBackend`, and `WithBackend` API](https://gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit/src/tag/v0.3.0/backends.go)
+owns the registration and backend-capacity contract.
+
 Notarius does not use PromptKit's optional `ArtifactReader`. It materializes
 source and reference content itself and supplies owned inline artifacts at the
 adapter boundary. It also retains responsibility for pipeline retries,
@@ -38,8 +44,9 @@ Notarius records PromptKit's selected backend ID and effective reasoning
 setting as optional run-manifest provenance. Endpoint-only profiles have no
 backend ID. Debug prompt material also retains the selected backend ID and
 PromptKit's stable lower-case `effective_model_params` JSON, which may include
-`backend_id`. Notarius production configuration does not expose user-defined
+`backend_id`. Notarius production configuration exposes one optional
-PromptKit backend registration.
+conventional `local` registration. It does not expose a general user-defined
+PromptKit backend registry. Endpoint-only profiles remain supported unchanged.
 
 Notarius retains its application-wide scheduled client around the PromptKit
 adapter. PromptKit may apply a narrower limit for the selected backend;
@@ -55,7 +62,8 @@ module assets, maps its transport-neutral completion contract, prepares and
 executes requests, validates output, records provenance, captures debug
 material, redacts errors, and preserves timeout ownership.
 [Configuration](../config.md#promptkit-profiles) defines how a Notarius
-configuration selects one PromptKit profile source.
+configuration selects one PromptKit profile source and optionally registers
+the conventional local backend.
 
 PromptKit API or format changes outside this boundary are not implicitly
 supported. Updating the pinned version requires reviewing the adapter and

docs/internal/configuration.md

@@ -39,14 +39,20 @@ This establishes the public precedence order without giving environment input a
 second file schema. Loading and application reject malformed YAML, unsupported
 file versions, unknown fields, invalid values, and identifiers that are empty
 or collide after whitespace normalization. The file application also makes the
-effective extraction-worker default follow the effective LLM limit.
+effective extraction-worker default follow the effective LLM limit. A present
+PromptKit local-backend object requires and trims its endpoint, defaults its
+omitted concurrency limit to zero, and is copied so the parsed file model
+cannot alias the populated **Config**.
 
 **Config.Validate** checks configuration-only invariants before resolution. It
 rejects incompatible profile sources, invalid state-surface values, unsupported
 concurrency settings, malformed bindings and references, invalid retries, and
-invalid pipeline, step, or lane structure. Its errors retain the closest known
+invalid pipeline, step, or lane structure. PromptKit local-backend validation
-pipeline, lane, and binding context. It deliberately does not require modules
+accepts only an absolute HTTP or HTTPS endpoint with a host and no user
-to be registered: that requires a catalog and belongs to resolution.
+information, query, or fragment, and rejects a negative local concurrency
+limit. Its errors retain the closest known pipeline, lane, and binding context.
+It deliberately does not require modules to be registered: that requires a
+catalog and belongs to resolution.
 
 The exact user-selectable values and validation rules are defined in
 [Configuration](../config.md). Keep additions to the file model, an
@@ -71,7 +77,8 @@ options, and returns the fixed ordered pipeline shape. The resulting
 changes, a clone of the input configuration, and the resolved pipeline.
 Callers may therefore retain or modify their input slices and maps without
 changing the resolved result, and later consumers cannot mutate the original
-configuration through the effective value.
+configuration through the effective value. This ownership includes the nested
+PromptKit local-backend value.
 
 Resolution failures stop before module construction and source parsing. They
 include an error path for an unconfigured pipeline, missing module, missing
@@ -94,9 +101,12 @@ Configuration summaries must use **Redacted**, **RedactedSummaryPayload**, or
 Those methods copy every binding and nested option container, replace values
 whose key is credential-shaped with **[REDACTED]**, and omit materialized
 reference content while retaining safe binding and reference provenance. The
-payload must not alias the source configuration or resolved pipeline. This
+payload must not alias the source configuration or resolved pipeline.
-redaction is deliberately narrow: it protects configuration summaries and does
+PromptKit's local endpoint and concurrency limit are preserved as non-secret
-not authorize recording arbitrary environment values or provider requests.
+configuration metadata in the independently owned summary; the object contains
+no credential value. This redaction is deliberately narrow: it protects
+configuration summaries and does not authorize recording arbitrary environment
+values or provider requests.
 
 ## Invariants To Preserve
 

docs/internal/llm.md

@@ -56,6 +56,13 @@ distinct and deterministically ordered. Endpoint-only profiles retain an empty
 backend ID, which the published JSON omits. Successful completion responses and
 recorded profile manifests identify the adapter provider as `promptkit`.
 
+The CLI's preparation-only engine and the production adapter use the same
+conversion helper to register the optional conventional `local` backend.
+Preflight therefore resolves the same backend membership as runtime without
+performing generation. When the registration is absent, a profile selecting
+`backend: local` fails preparation instead of falling back to a built-in or
+endpoint-only target.
+
 Before execution, the adapter also contributes a non-secret checkpoint
 fingerprint for the effective PromptKit profile source. It combines the
 identity of PromptKit's compiled-in profile catalog with a deterministic digest
@@ -65,7 +72,11 @@ paths. It covers both explicit binding profiles and prompt-selected defaults,
 so changing a model or other profile setting cannot reuse checkpoints created
 under the prior profile source. This cache identity is independent of durable
 profile provenance: run manifests continue to list only profiles actually
-observed during LLM calls.
+observed during LLM calls. When the local backend is registered, a second
+fingerprint hashes its trimmed endpoint behind a stable marker. Changing that
+semantic execution target invalidates checkpoint reuse. The raw endpoint is not
+stored in checkpoint identity, and the local concurrency limit is excluded
+because it changes scheduling rather than execution semantics.
 
 ## Shared Provider-Call Limit
 
@@ -85,8 +96,10 @@ PromptKit applies a second, independent admission limit when the selected
 profile names a limited backend. It sits beneath the Notarius scheduled client,
 so it may narrow but cannot expand the application-wide limit. Built-in
 OpenRouter profiles select PromptKit's reserved backend and its upstream
-capacity policy. Endpoint-only profiles do not select a PromptKit backend and
+capacity policy. A positive configured local-backend limit bounds active local
-remain limited only by the Notarius scheduler.
+generations inside PromptKit; zero leaves that backend unlimited there.
+Endpoint-only profiles do not select a PromptKit backend and remain limited
+only by the Notarius scheduler.
 
 ## Prompt And Schema Assets
 

docs/operations.md

@@ -118,8 +118,10 @@ disabled. Without **--resume**, a recording-enabled run executes normally and
 does not load checkpoint state. Compatibility includes the resolved pipeline,
 input, selected lanes, runtime overrides, reference provenance, LLM-profile
 provenance, the effective PromptKit profile-source fingerprint, and
-prepared-component fingerprints. Changing profile content causes a cold miss
+prepared-component fingerprints. When a local PromptKit backend is configured,
-even when its profile ID is unchanged. A changed identity produces a cold miss;
+compatibility also includes a non-secret fingerprint of its endpoint. Changing
+profile content or the local endpoint causes a cold miss; changing only the
+local concurrency limit does not. A changed identity produces a cold miss;
 Notarius does not migrate, rewrite, or delete older checkpoint directories.
 Reasoning-effort inheritance, replacement, and explicit clearing are distinct
 runtime identities, so checkpoints created under one state are not reused by
@@ -217,7 +219,7 @@ Provider execution settings and the generation timeout come from the selected
 PromptKit profile. The invocation-only **--reasoning-effort** and
 **--clear-reasoning-effort** controls may replace or clear that profile setting
 for all LLM-backed calls in one run without changing the profile. PromptKit
-v0.2.0 does not add a provider retry loop. Notarius binding retries rerun the
+v0.3.0 does not add a provider retry loop. Notarius binding retries rerun the
 complete module operation and validation chain as defined by
 [module bindings](config.md#module-bindings-and-validators).
 
@@ -234,13 +236,19 @@ and validators. PromptKit may impose a narrower admission limit for the
 selected backend. The effective active-generation bound is the intersection of
 both limits and can therefore be lower than **total_llm**. Built-in OpenRouter
 profiles use PromptKit's upstream backend limit; endpoint-only profiles have no
-PromptKit backend limit and remain bounded by Notarius.
+PromptKit backend limit and remain bounded by Notarius. For the configured
+local backend, a zero **concurrency_limit** leaves only the Notarius scheduler
+as a call limit. A positive value makes the effective active local-generation
+bound the smaller of **total_llm** and that local limit.
 
-When a PromptKit backend has admitted all active and queued work, a new call
+For a positive local limit, PromptKit owns its default waiting capacity and
-fails as capacity exhaustion before generation. The adapter does not retry it.
+admission behavior. When a PromptKit backend has admitted all active and queued
-The calling stage's configured retry policy applies normally, and the run fails
+work, a new call fails as capacity exhaustion before generation. The adapter
-if those attempts are exhausted. Caller cancellation remains authoritative.
+maps that failure to Notarius's existing provider-neutral capacity error and
-Configuration contracts are documented under
+does not retry it. The calling stage's configured retry policy applies
+normally, and the run fails if those attempts are exhausted. Caller
+cancellation remains authoritative. Configuration contracts are documented
+under [PromptKit profiles](config.md#promptkit-profiles) and
 [concurrency](config.md#concurrency-output-cache-and-debug). Extract-worker
 limits and actual provider-call limits are independent. Notarius writes local
 filesystem state only; remote storage, archival, and retention automation are

docs/roadmap/future.md

@@ -53,6 +53,120 @@ not as committed release dates.
   spell, combat, interaction, and scene-description lanes after real-world use.
   Add more complex chunking only in response to demonstrated failures.
 
+## Cross-Cutting LLM Runtime
+
+### Deterministic Prompt Session Identity
+
+- Replace the source-document-ID default for prompt sessions with one
+  predictable, procedurally generated session ID for the complete
+  source-processing workload.
+- Preserve an explicit non-empty `--session-id` as the highest-precedence
+  override. Otherwise, derive the default only from the effective input module
+  identity and the exact raw input bytes.
+- Use a versioned, bounded representation such as
+  `notarius:v1:<sha256(input-module + NUL + raw-input)>`. The exact encoding
+  must fit PromptKit's session length contract and must not embed source
+  content.
+- Keep the derived session stable across runs, pipelines, selected lanes,
+  ordered steps, retries, resume, recomputation, LLM profiles, reasoning
+  overrides, and output, debug, or cache settings.
+- Do not include file-backed references, generated references, reference
+  contents, or the composition of a reference bundle in session derivation.
+  References may change between prompt calls within one pipeline without
+  changing routing affinity.
+- Resolve the authoritative session before checkpoint construction and use the
+  same value for checkpoint runtime identity, every prompt-facing module,
+  PromptKit's direct session field, the compatibility `session_id` prompt
+  variable, run-manifest metadata, and debug metadata.
+- Keep routing identity separate from cache and checkpoint content identity.
+  Exact prompt prefixes, reference contents, model settings, and other
+  generation-affecting inputs must continue to participate in their existing
+  hashes and checkpoint fingerprints even though they do not change the
+  session.
+- Treat the generated value as a provider-visible, stable pseudonymous
+  correlation identifier. Do not introduce an installation-specific HMAC or
+  secret unless a concrete multi-tenant or privacy requirement justifies
+  sacrificing deterministic identity across installations.
+
+### Pipeline-Level LLM Profile Defaults
+
+- Add an optional pipeline-level `llm_profile` default so an operator can
+  select one PromptKit execution policy for the pipeline without repeating the
+  same profile ID on every LLM-backed module binding.
+- Apply the following precedence consistently: an explicit run-wide
+  `--llm-profile` override, then a binding-specific `llm_profile`, then the
+  pipeline-level default, then the prompt definition's embedded
+  `default_profile`.
+- Apply inheritance only to bindings whose resolved modules are LLM-backed,
+  including applicable chunk, extraction, merge, normalization, and validation
+  bindings. Do not attach an inherited profile to deterministic modules or
+  weaken existing validation that rejects profiles where generation is not
+  supported.
+- Resolve inherited profiles before effective-pipeline validation, digest and
+  checkpoint construction, execution, and provenance capture. Validate every
+  resulting explicit profile ID against the selected PromptKit profile source,
+  and ensure manifests and debug output report the profile actually selected
+  for each generation target.
+- Preserve binding-specific profiles as intentional exceptions for modules
+  that require a different quality, latency, cost, provider, or reasoning
+  policy. Preserve `--llm-profile` as the convenient highest-precedence
+  experiment or incident-response override for an entire run.
+- Treat PromptKit profiles as execution-policy configuration and prefer stable,
+  workload-oriented IDs such as `dnd-extraction` over model names. A pipeline
+  should express the kind of work it performs rather than encode a particular
+  provider, model, or deployment environment.
+- Establish deployment-managed PromptKit profile files as the recommended
+  environment-specific configuration mechanism. Production, development, and
+  local deployments may each define the same logical `dnd-extraction` ID with
+  different model and generation settings, while retaining one unchanged
+  Notarius pipeline definition.
+- Keep deployment profiles distinct from both Notarius prompt assets embedded
+  in the application binary and PromptKit's built-in profile catalog. Document
+  that `promptkit.profile_dir` or `promptkit.profile_file` selects an external
+  filesystem source whose definitions overlay PromptKit built-ins, and
+  recommend application-owned IDs rather than silently replacing built-in
+  profile IDs.
+- Document an operator-friendly layout in which the Notarius configuration and
+  a profile subdirectory are deployed together. Until profile paths are
+  explicitly resolved relative to the configuration file, clearly state that
+  relative paths use the process working directory and recommend absolute
+  paths for services and containers.
+- Update the configuration reference, operations guide, PromptKit integration
+  boundary, relevant internal configuration and pipeline documentation, and
+  maintained D&D examples together. Include one concrete external-profile
+  example and explain the profile precedence and environment-neutral pipeline
+  pattern without duplicating PromptKit's complete profile-format reference.
+
+### Raise The Default Application-Wide LLM Limit
+
+- Raise the default `concurrency.total_llm` value from 1 to 16 so ordinary
+  single-backend runs can use PromptKit's expected OpenRouter capacity and
+  lower-capacity local backends without an unnecessarily narrower Notarius
+  limit.
+- Keep the Notarius application-wide scheduler mandatory and require
+  `total_llm` to remain a positive integer. Do not make the default unlimited:
+  endpoint-only profiles, an unrestricted local backend, injected clients, and
+  aggregate work across several backends may have no narrower PromptKit limit.
+- Continue defaulting `concurrency.stage_workers.extract` to the effective
+  `total_llm`, making its default 16 as part of the same change. Preserve an
+  explicit lower extract-worker setting when an operator wants less queued or
+  concurrent extraction work.
+- Define effective provider concurrency as the intersection of the Notarius
+  application-wide limit, the selected PromptKit backend limit when present,
+  and the work made available by stage execution. A Notarius limit of 16 does
+  not narrow a backend already limited to 16, while a local backend limited to
+  4 remains bounded at 4.
+- Treat the default as an application-wide safety ceiling across profiles,
+  backends, modules, retries, and validators. A run that intentionally needs
+  the combined capacity of several backends may configure a higher
+  `total_llm` and an appropriate extract-worker count explicitly.
+- Retain the existing configuration and environment override surfaces. Update
+  canonical configuration, operations, and internal documentation together
+  when the default changes.
+- Reconsider decoupling the extract-worker default from `total_llm` only after
+  mixed-backend workloads demonstrate a need for a high global emergency
+  ceiling with a lower default work-production rate.
+
 ## Shared Normalization And Quality Work
 
 ### Generic LLM-Assisted Deduplication

go.mod

@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ module gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/notarius
 go 1.25.5
 
 require (
-	gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit v0.2.0
+	gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit v0.3.0
 	github.com/santhosh-tekuri/jsonschema/v6 v6.0.2
 	gopkg.in/yaml.v3 v3.0.1
 )

go.sum

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
-gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit v0.2.0 h1:6bUATKnVgLlHSbKjGb8EnCt2r7jV5Xw6t+pX7G9S/lU=
+gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit v0.3.0 h1:P5/GJ6fVIVsBLJx8NxoaGV34ZWeAkU8lm4Ht6aVMOFg=
-gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit v0.2.0/go.mod h1:R95NM6fbMDGDC0/UomgnSBP6ui2ns+8SZb8bESNvrDQ=
+gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit v0.3.0/go.mod h1:R95NM6fbMDGDC0/UomgnSBP6ui2ns+8SZb8bESNvrDQ=
 github.com/dlclark/regexp2 v1.11.0 h1:G/nrcoOa7ZXlpoa/91N3X7mM3r8eIlMBBJZvsz/mxKI=
 github.com/dlclark/regexp2 v1.11.0/go.mod h1:DHkYz0B9wPfa6wondMfaivmHpzrQ3v9q8cnmRbL6yW8=
 github.com/santhosh-tekuri/jsonschema/v6 v6.0.2 h1:KRzFb2m7YtdldCEkzs6KqmJw4nqEVZGK7IN2kJkjTuQ=

internal/cli/catalog.go

@@ -171,6 +171,7 @@ func buildProductionLLMClient(ctx context.Context, cfg config.Config, profileID
 	client, err := llm.NewPromptKitClient(llm.PromptKitClientConfig{
 		ProfileDir:      cfg.PromptKit.ProfileDir,
 		ProfileFile:     cfg.PromptKit.ProfileFile,
+		LocalBackend:    mapPromptKitLocalBackend(cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend),
 		Assets:          assets,
 		Recorder:        recorder,
 		ReasoningEffort: overrides.ReasoningEffort,

internal/cli/production_contract_test.go

@@ -6,6 +6,8 @@ import (
 	"errors"
 	"fmt"
 	"io/fs"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/http/httptest"
 	"os"
 	"path/filepath"
 	"reflect"
@@ -13,7 +15,9 @@ import (
 	"sort"
 	"strings"
 	"sync"
+	"sync/atomic"
 	"testing"
+	"testing/fstest"
 	"time"
 
 	"gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/notarius/internal/core/artifacts"
@@ -34,6 +38,7 @@ import (
 	itemeventnormalize "gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/notarius/internal/modules/dnd/normalize/itemevents"
 	spellnormalize "gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/notarius/internal/modules/dnd/normalize/spells"
 	"gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/notarius/internal/modules/generic/normalize/noop"
+	"gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit"
 )
 
 func TestProductionCatalogCoversMaintainedConfigurations(t *testing.T) {
@@ -406,6 +411,89 @@ func TestProductionLLMClientFactoriesBuildOfflineRuntime(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+func TestProductionLLMClientFactoryUsesConfiguredLocalBackend(t *testing.T) {
+	var providerCalls atomic.Int32
+	server := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+		providerCalls.Add(1)
+		if r.URL.Path != "/v1/chat/completions" {
+			t.Errorf("provider path = %q, want /v1/chat/completions", r.URL.Path)
+		}
+		w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
+		_, _ = w.Write([]byte(`{
+			"choices": [{"message": {"role": "assistant", "content": "{\"ok\":true}"}}],
+			"usage": {"prompt_tokens": 3, "completion_tokens": 4, "total_tokens": 7}
+		}`))
+	}))
+	defer server.Close()
+
+	profilePath := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "profiles.yml")
+	if err := os.WriteFile(profilePath, []byte(`id: local-profile
+backend: local
+model: local-model
+`), 0o600); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	assets := llm.NewAssetRegistry()
+	if err := assets.RegisterPromptFS(fstest.MapFS{
+		"production.local.yaml": {Data: []byte(`id: production.local
+version: "v1"
+inputs:
+  - name: transcript
+    required: true
+messages:
+  - role: user
+    content: '{{ input "transcript" }}'
+output:
+  format: json
+  validation_mode: json
+`)},
+	}, "."); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("register prompt assets: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	cfg := config.Default()
+	cfg.PromptKit.ProfileFile = profilePath
+	cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend = &config.PromptKitLocalBackendConfig{
+		Endpoint:         server.URL + "/v1",
+		ConcurrencyLimit: 2,
+	}
+	client, manifests, err := productionLLMClientFactoryWithAssets(assets)(
+		context.Background(),
+		cfg,
+		"local-profile",
+		LLMRuntimeOverrides{},
+	)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("build production LLM runtime: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(manifests) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("eager profile manifests = %#v, want none", manifests)
+	}
+
+	var out map[string]any
+	_, err = client.CompleteStructured(context.Background(), contracts.StructuredCompletionRequest{
+		PromptID:  "production.local",
+		ProfileID: "local-profile",
+		Inputs: contracts.LLMInputSet{
+			"transcript": contracts.NewLLMInputMaterial("transcript", "text/plain", []byte("local request"), "", ""),
+		},
+	}, &out)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("CompleteStructured() error = %v, want nil", err)
+	}
+	if providerCalls.Load() != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("provider calls = %d, want 1", providerCalls.Load())
+	}
+	provider, ok := client.(contracts.LLMProfileManifestProvider)
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("production client %T does not provide profile manifests", client)
+	}
+	recorded := provider.LLMProfileManifests()
+	if len(recorded) != 1 || recorded[0].BackendID != promptkit.BackendLocal {
+		t.Fatalf("production profile manifests = %#v, want local backend", recorded)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestProductionLLMClientFactoriesRejectInvalidConstruction(t *testing.T) {
 	t.Run("canceled context", func(t *testing.T) {
 		ctx, cancel := context.WithCancel(context.Background())

internal/cli/promptkit_profiles.go

@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import (
 	"testing/fstest"
 
 	"gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/notarius/internal/core/config"
+	"gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/notarius/internal/framework/llm"
 	"gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit"
 )
 
@@ -61,8 +62,21 @@ func newProfileValidationEngine(cfg config.Config) (*promptkit.Engine, error) {
 	if cfg.PromptKit.ProfileFile != "" {
 		opts = append(opts, promptkit.WithProfileFile(cfg.PromptKit.ProfileFile))
 	}
+	if localBackend := mapPromptKitLocalBackend(cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend); localBackend != nil {
+		opts = append(opts, llm.PromptKitLocalBackendOption(*localBackend))
+	}
 	return promptkit.NewEngine(promptkit.Config{
 		PromptDir:  "unused",
 		ProfileDir: cfg.PromptKit.ProfileDir,
 	}, opts...)
 }
+
+func mapPromptKitLocalBackend(cfg *config.PromptKitLocalBackendConfig) *llm.PromptKitLocalBackendConfig {
+	if cfg == nil {
+		return nil
+	}
+	return &llm.PromptKitLocalBackendConfig{
+		Endpoint:         cfg.Endpoint,
+		ConcurrencyLimit: cfg.ConcurrencyLimit,
+	}
+}

internal/cli/promptkit_profiles_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+package cli
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/http/httptest"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
+	"sync/atomic"
+	"testing"
+
+	"gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/notarius/internal/core/config"
+	"gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/promptkit"
+)
+
+func TestExplicitPromptKitProfileValidationUsesConfiguredLocalBackendWithoutGeneration(t *testing.T) {
+	var providerCalls atomic.Int32
+	server := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(func(http.ResponseWriter, *http.Request) {
+		providerCalls.Add(1)
+	}))
+	defer server.Close()
+
+	profilePath := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "profiles.yml")
+	if err := os.WriteFile(profilePath, []byte(`id: local-profile
+backend: local
+model: local-model
+`), 0o600); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	cfg := config.Default()
+	cfg.PromptKit.ProfileFile = profilePath
+	cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend = &config.PromptKitLocalBackendConfig{
+		Endpoint:         server.URL + "/v1",
+		ConcurrencyLimit: 2,
+	}
+	if err := validateExplicitPromptKitProfiles(context.Background(), cfg, []string{"local-profile"}); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("validateExplicitPromptKitProfiles() error = %v, want nil", err)
+	}
+	if providerCalls.Load() != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("provider calls during configured profile validation = %d, want 0", providerCalls.Load())
+	}
+
+	cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend = nil
+	err := validateExplicitPromptKitProfiles(context.Background(), cfg, []string{"local-profile"})
+	if err == nil ||
+		!strings.Contains(err.Error(), `validate PromptKit profile "local-profile"`) ||
+		!strings.Contains(err.Error(), promptkit.BackendLocal) {
+		t.Fatalf("validation without registration error = %v, want profile and local backend context", err)
+	}
+	if providerCalls.Load() != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("provider calls after missing-registration validation = %d, want 0", providerCalls.Load())
+	}
+}

internal/core/config/config.go

@@ -18,6 +18,12 @@ type Config struct {
 type PromptKitConfig struct {
 	ProfileDir   string                       `json:"profile_dir,omitempty"`
 	ProfileFile  string                       `json:"profile_file,omitempty"`
+	LocalBackend *PromptKitLocalBackendConfig `json:"local_backend,omitempty"`
+}
+
+type PromptKitLocalBackendConfig struct {
+	Endpoint         string `json:"endpoint"`
+	ConcurrencyLimit int    `json:"concurrency_limit"`
 }
 
 type ConcurrencyConfig struct {
@@ -66,6 +72,10 @@ func Default() Config {
 
 func cloneConfig(in Config) Config {
 	out := in
+	if in.PromptKit.LocalBackend != nil {
+		localBackend := *in.PromptKit.LocalBackend
+		out.PromptKit.LocalBackend = &localBackend
+	}
 	out.Concurrency.StageWorkers = cloneIntMap(in.Concurrency.StageWorkers)
 	out.Pipelines = make(map[string]pipeline.PipelineProfile, len(in.Pipelines))
 	for key, profile := range in.Pipelines {

internal/core/config/effective_config_contract_test.go

@@ -107,6 +107,33 @@ func TestEffectiveConfigPreservesPromptKitProfileSource(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+func TestEffectiveConfigOwnsPromptKitLocalBackend(t *testing.T) {
+	cfg := configForEffectiveTests(t, effectiveProfile())
+	cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend = &PromptKitLocalBackendConfig{
+		Endpoint:         "http://localhost:8000/v1",
+		ConcurrencyLimit: 2,
+	}
+	effective, err := cfg.Resolve(ResolveInput{PipelineID: "main", Catalog: effectiveCatalog(t)})
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Resolve() error = %v", err)
+	}
+	if effective.Config.PromptKit.LocalBackend == nil {
+		t.Fatal("effective local backend = nil")
+	}
+	if effective.Config.PromptKit.LocalBackend == cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend {
+		t.Fatal("effective local backend aliases input config")
+	}
+
+	cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend.Endpoint = "http://changed-input.example/v1"
+	if effective.Config.PromptKit.LocalBackend.Endpoint != "http://localhost:8000/v1" {
+		t.Fatalf("input mutation changed effective config: %#v", effective.Config.PromptKit.LocalBackend)
+	}
+	effective.Config.PromptKit.LocalBackend.ConcurrencyLimit = 9
+	if cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend.ConcurrencyLimit != 2 {
+		t.Fatalf("effective mutation changed input config: %#v", cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestEffectiveConfigResolutionFailuresRetainContext(t *testing.T) {
 	tests := []struct {
 		name   string

internal/core/config/file_config.go

@@ -25,6 +25,12 @@ type FileConfig struct {
 type FilePromptKitConfig struct {
 	ProfileDir   *string                          `yaml:"profile_dir,omitempty"`
 	ProfileFile  *string                          `yaml:"profile_file,omitempty"`
+	LocalBackend *FilePromptKitLocalBackendConfig `yaml:"local_backend,omitempty"`
+}
+
+type FilePromptKitLocalBackendConfig struct {
+	Endpoint         *string `yaml:"endpoint,omitempty"`
+	ConcurrencyLimit *int    `yaml:"concurrency_limit,omitempty"`
 }
 
 type FilePipelineProfile struct {
@@ -468,6 +474,20 @@ func (c *Config) applyFileConfigWithLookup(fileCfg FileConfig, lookup func(strin
 			}
 			c.PromptKit.ProfileFile = value
 		}
+		if fileCfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend != nil {
+			if fileCfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend.Endpoint == nil {
+				return fmt.Errorf("promptkit.local_backend.endpoint must not be empty when set")
+			}
+			endpoint := strings.TrimSpace(*fileCfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend.Endpoint)
+			if endpoint == "" {
+				return fmt.Errorf("promptkit.local_backend.endpoint must not be empty when set")
+			}
+			localBackend := PromptKitLocalBackendConfig{Endpoint: endpoint}
+			if fileCfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend.ConcurrencyLimit != nil {
+				localBackend.ConcurrencyLimit = *fileCfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend.ConcurrencyLimit
+			}
+			c.PromptKit.LocalBackend = &localBackend
+		}
 	}
 
 	for _, pipelineID := range pipelineIDs {

internal/core/config/file_config_contract_test.go

@@ -97,6 +97,100 @@ func TestFilePromptKitProfileSourcesSurviveConfigBoundaries(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+func TestFilePromptKitLocalBackendSurvivesConfigBoundaries(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		name            string
+		concurrencyYAML string
+		wantConcurrency int
+	}{
+		{name: "omitted concurrency defaults to zero"},
+		{name: "positive concurrency is preserved", concurrencyYAML: "    concurrency_limit: 2\n", wantConcurrency: 2},
+	}
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			file := parseFileConfig(t, "version: 4\npromptkit:\n  local_backend:\n    endpoint: ' http://localhost:8000/v1 '\n"+tt.concurrencyYAML)
+			cfg := Default()
+			if err := cfg.ApplyFileConfig(file); err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("ApplyFileConfig() error = %v", err)
+			}
+			want := PromptKitLocalBackendConfig{
+				Endpoint:         "http://localhost:8000/v1",
+				ConcurrencyLimit: tt.wantConcurrency,
+			}
+			if cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend == nil || *cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend != want {
+				t.Fatalf("local backend config = %#v, want %#v", cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend, want)
+			}
+
+			*file.PromptKit.LocalBackend.Endpoint = "http://changed.example/v1"
+			if file.PromptKit.LocalBackend.ConcurrencyLimit != nil {
+				*file.PromptKit.LocalBackend.ConcurrencyLimit = 99
+			}
+			if *cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend != want {
+				t.Fatalf("effective config aliases parsed file model: %#v", cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend)
+			}
+
+			cloned := cloneConfig(cfg)
+			if cloned.PromptKit.LocalBackend == cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend || *cloned.PromptKit.LocalBackend != want {
+				t.Fatalf("cloned local backend = %#v, want detached %#v", cloned.PromptKit.LocalBackend, want)
+			}
+			cloned.PromptKit.LocalBackend.Endpoint = "http://clone.example/v1"
+			if *cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend != want {
+				t.Fatalf("mutating clone changed source config: %#v", cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend)
+			}
+
+			redacted := cfg.Redacted()
+			if redacted.PromptKit.LocalBackend == cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend || *redacted.PromptKit.LocalBackend != want {
+				t.Fatalf("redacted local backend = %#v, want detached %#v", redacted.PromptKit.LocalBackend, want)
+			}
+
+			data, err := json.Marshal(cfg)
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("json.Marshal() error = %v", err)
+			}
+			var payload struct {
+				PromptKit map[string]json.RawMessage `json:"promptkit"`
+			}
+			if err := json.Unmarshal(data, &payload); err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("json.Unmarshal() error = %v", err)
+			}
+			localJSON, ok := payload.PromptKit["local_backend"]
+			if !ok {
+				t.Fatalf("runtime PromptKit JSON keys = %v, want local_backend", payload.PromptKit)
+			}
+			var localPayload map[string]json.RawMessage
+			if err := json.Unmarshal(localJSON, &localPayload); err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("unmarshal local_backend JSON: %v", err)
+			}
+			if _, ok := localPayload["endpoint"]; !ok {
+				t.Fatalf("runtime local_backend JSON keys = %v, want endpoint", localPayload)
+			}
+			if _, ok := localPayload["concurrency_limit"]; !ok {
+				t.Fatalf("runtime local_backend JSON keys = %v, want concurrency_limit", localPayload)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+func TestFilePromptKitLocalBackendRequiresEndpoint(t *testing.T) {
+	for _, tt := range []struct {
+		name string
+		yaml string
+	}{
+		{name: "missing", yaml: "version: 4\npromptkit:\n  local_backend: {}\n"},
+		{name: "empty", yaml: "version: 4\npromptkit:\n  local_backend:\n    endpoint: ''\n"},
+		{name: "blank", yaml: "version: 4\npromptkit:\n  local_backend:\n    endpoint: '   '\n"},
+	} {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			file := parseFileConfig(t, tt.yaml)
+			cfg := Default()
+			err := cfg.ApplyFileConfig(file)
+			if err == nil || !strings.Contains(err.Error(), "promptkit.local_backend.endpoint") {
+				t.Fatalf("ApplyFileConfig() error = %v, want endpoint field context", err)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
 func TestFilePromptKitExplicitEmptyProfileSourcesAreRejected(t *testing.T) {
 	for _, field := range []string{"profile_dir", "profile_file"} {
 		t.Run(field, func(t *testing.T) {
@@ -188,6 +282,11 @@ func TestFileConfigRejectsUnknownCurrentAndRemovedFields(t *testing.T) {
 			yaml: "version: 4\ncache:\n  checkpoints:\n    enabled: definitely\n",
 			want: "cannot unmarshal",
 		},
+		{
+			name: "local backend field",
+			yaml: "version: 4\npromptkit:\n  local_backend:\n    endpoint: http://localhost:8000/v1\n    unknown: true\n",
+			want: "field unknown not found",
+		},
 	}
 	for _, tt := range tests {
 		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {

internal/core/config/validation.go

@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ package config
 
 import (
 	"fmt"
+	"net/url"
 	"sort"
 	"strings"
 
@@ -53,6 +54,27 @@ func validatePromptKit(cfg PromptKitConfig) error {
 	if strings.TrimSpace(cfg.ProfileDir) != "" && strings.TrimSpace(cfg.ProfileFile) != "" {
 		return fmt.Errorf("promptkit profile_dir and profile_file are mutually exclusive")
 	}
+	if cfg.LocalBackend == nil {
+		return nil
+	}
+	endpoint := strings.TrimSpace(cfg.LocalBackend.Endpoint)
+	if endpoint == "" {
+		return fmt.Errorf("promptkit.local_backend.endpoint must not be empty when set")
+	}
+	parsed, err := url.Parse(endpoint)
+	if err != nil ||
+		(!strings.EqualFold(parsed.Scheme, "http") && !strings.EqualFold(parsed.Scheme, "https")) ||
+		!parsed.IsAbs() ||
+		parsed.Hostname() == "" ||
+		parsed.User != nil ||
+		parsed.RawQuery != "" ||
+		parsed.ForceQuery ||
+		strings.Contains(endpoint, "#") {
+		return fmt.Errorf("promptkit.local_backend.endpoint must be an absolute HTTP or HTTPS URL with a host and no user information, query, or fragment")
+	}
+	if cfg.LocalBackend.ConcurrencyLimit < 0 {
+		return fmt.Errorf("promptkit.local_backend.concurrency_limit must not be negative")
+	}
 	return nil
 }
 

internal/core/config/validation_contract_test.go

@@ -93,6 +93,73 @@ func TestValidatePromptKitSourcesAreMutuallyExclusive(t *testing.T) {
 	assertValidationContains(t, cfg, "promptkit profile_dir and profile_file are mutually exclusive")
 }
 
+func TestValidatePromptKitLocalBackendEndpoints(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		name          string
+		endpoint      string
+		profileSource PromptKitConfig
+	}{
+		{
+			name:          "HTTP endpoint with path and profile directory",
+			endpoint:      "http://localhost:8000/v1",
+			profileSource: PromptKitConfig{ProfileDir: "./profiles"},
+		},
+		{
+			name:          "case-insensitive HTTPS endpoint and profile file",
+			endpoint:      "HTTPS://inference.example.test/api",
+			profileSource: PromptKitConfig{ProfileFile: "./profiles.yml"},
+		},
+	}
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			cfg := Default()
+			cfg.PromptKit = tt.profileSource
+			cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend = &PromptKitLocalBackendConfig{
+				Endpoint:         tt.endpoint,
+				ConcurrencyLimit: 2,
+			}
+			if err := cfg.Validate(); err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("Validate() error = %v", err)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+func TestValidatePromptKitLocalBackendRejectsInvalidValues(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		name             string
+		endpoint         string
+		concurrencyLimit int
+		want             string
+	}{
+		{name: "blank endpoint", endpoint: "   ", want: "promptkit.local_backend.endpoint"},
+		{name: "relative URL", endpoint: "localhost:8000/v1", want: "promptkit.local_backend.endpoint"},
+		{name: "unsupported scheme", endpoint: "ftp://localhost/model", want: "promptkit.local_backend.endpoint"},
+		{name: "missing host", endpoint: "http:///v1", want: "promptkit.local_backend.endpoint"},
+		{name: "user information", endpoint: "http://user:secret@localhost/v1", want: "promptkit.local_backend.endpoint"},
+		{name: "query", endpoint: "http://localhost/v1?model=example", want: "promptkit.local_backend.endpoint"},
+		{name: "empty query", endpoint: "http://localhost/v1?", want: "promptkit.local_backend.endpoint"},
+		{name: "fragment", endpoint: "http://localhost/v1#model", want: "promptkit.local_backend.endpoint"},
+		{name: "empty fragment", endpoint: "http://localhost/v1#", want: "promptkit.local_backend.endpoint"},
+		{
+			name:             "negative concurrency",
+			endpoint:         "http://localhost:8000/v1",
+			concurrencyLimit: -1,
+			want:             "promptkit.local_backend.concurrency_limit",
+		},
+	}
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			cfg := Default()
+			cfg.PromptKit.LocalBackend = &PromptKitLocalBackendConfig{
+				Endpoint:         tt.endpoint,
+				ConcurrencyLimit: tt.concurrencyLimit,
+			}
+			assertValidationContains(t, cfg, tt.want)
+		})
+	}
+}
+
 func TestValidateStateSurfaceRules(t *testing.T) {
 	tests := []struct {
 		name  string

internal/framework/llm/promptkit_client.go

@@ -19,9 +19,15 @@ import (
 
 const promptKitProviderName = "promptkit"
 
+type PromptKitLocalBackendConfig struct {
+	Endpoint         string
+	ConcurrencyLimit int
+}
+
 type PromptKitClientConfig struct {
 	ProfileDir      string
 	ProfileFile     string
+	LocalBackend    *PromptKitLocalBackendConfig
 	Assets          *AssetRegistry
 	Timeout         time.Duration
 	HTTPClient      *http.Client
@@ -35,6 +41,7 @@ type PromptKitClient struct {
 	recorder        *LLMProfileRecorder
 	profileDir      string
 	profileFile     string
+	localEndpoint   string
 	reasoningEffort *string
 }
 
@@ -46,6 +53,10 @@ type LLMProfileRecorder struct {
 var _ contracts.StructuredLLMClient = (*PromptKitClient)(nil)
 var _ contracts.LLMProfileManifestProvider = (*PromptKitClient)(nil)
 
+func PromptKitLocalBackendOption(cfg PromptKitLocalBackendConfig) promptkit.Option {
+	return promptkit.WithBackend(promptkit.LocalBackend(cfg.Endpoint, cfg.ConcurrencyLimit))
+}
+
 func NewPromptKitClient(cfg PromptKitClientConfig) (*PromptKitClient, error) {
 	if cfg.Assets == nil {
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("PromptKit client assets must not be nil")
@@ -60,6 +71,13 @@ func NewPromptKitClient(cfg PromptKitClientConfig) (*PromptKitClient, error) {
 	if profileFile := strings.TrimSpace(cfg.ProfileFile); profileFile != "" {
 		options = append(options, promptkit.WithProfileFile(profileFile))
 	}
+	var localEndpoint string
+	if cfg.LocalBackend != nil {
+		localBackend := *cfg.LocalBackend
+		localBackend.Endpoint = strings.TrimSpace(localBackend.Endpoint)
+		localEndpoint = localBackend.Endpoint
+		options = append(options, PromptKitLocalBackendOption(localBackend))
+	}
 	options = append(options, cfg.EngineOptions...)
 
 	engine, err := promptkit.NewEngine(promptkit.Config{
@@ -84,6 +102,7 @@ func NewPromptKitClient(cfg PromptKitClientConfig) (*PromptKitClient, error) {
 		recorder:        recorder,
 		profileDir:      strings.TrimSpace(cfg.ProfileDir),
 		profileFile:     strings.TrimSpace(cfg.ProfileFile),
+		localEndpoint:   localEndpoint,
 		reasoningEffort: reasoningEffort,
 	}, nil
 }
@@ -302,7 +321,11 @@ func (c *PromptKitClient) LLMCheckpointFingerprints() ([]CheckpointFingerprint,
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, err
 	}
-	return []CheckpointFingerprint{fingerprint}, nil
+	fingerprints := []CheckpointFingerprint{fingerprint}
+	if c.localEndpoint != "" {
+		fingerprints = append(fingerprints, promptKitLocalBackendFingerprint(c.localEndpoint))
+	}
+	return fingerprints, nil
 }
 
 func NewLLMProfileRecorder() *LLMProfileRecorder {

internal/framework/llm/promptkit_client_test.go

@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import (
 	"errors"
 	"io"
 	"net/http"
+	"net/http/httptest"
 	"os"
 	"path/filepath"
 	"reflect"
@@ -305,12 +306,89 @@ func TestPromptKitClientCheckpointFingerprintTracksProfileSource(t *testing.T) {
 	if fresh[0].Value == "mutated" {
 		t.Fatal("LLMCheckpointFingerprints exposed mutable backing storage")
 	}
-	const wantBuiltinFingerprint = "sha256:4b48cd1ef010b587cd8d56bc13b73a0cdd84da1414a8de9f9a2adc695dfcf0a7"
+	const wantBuiltinFingerprint = "sha256:5218b1dec48f5fdd46836826e0b25906c33efbdf943c5f18085b8d82467e0276"
 	if fresh[0].Value != wantBuiltinFingerprint {
 		t.Fatalf("built-in profile fingerprint = %q, want %q", fresh[0].Value, wantBuiltinFingerprint)
 	}
 }
 
+func TestPromptKitClientCheckpointFingerprintTracksLocalBackendTarget(t *testing.T) {
+	const (
+		firstEndpoint  = "http://localhost:8000/v1"
+		secondEndpoint = "https://inference.example.test/v1"
+	)
+	fingerprintsFor := func(endpoint string, concurrencyLimit int) []CheckpointFingerprint {
+		t.Helper()
+		client, err := NewPromptKitClient(PromptKitClientConfig{
+			Assets: newTestPromptKitAssets(t),
+			LocalBackend: &PromptKitLocalBackendConfig{
+				Endpoint:         endpoint,
+				ConcurrencyLimit: concurrencyLimit,
+			},
+		})
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatal(err)
+		}
+		values, err := client.LLMCheckpointFingerprints()
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatal(err)
+		}
+		return values
+	}
+
+	baseline := fingerprintsFor(firstEndpoint, 0)
+	if len(baseline) != 2 ||
+		baseline[0].Name != promptKitProfileFingerprintName ||
+		baseline[1].Name != promptKitLocalBackendFingerprintName {
+		t.Fatalf("checkpoint fingerprints = %#v, want profile source then local backend target", baseline)
+	}
+	endpointChanged := fingerprintsFor(secondEndpoint, 0)
+	if baseline[0] != endpointChanged[0] || baseline[1] == endpointChanged[1] {
+		t.Fatalf("endpoint fingerprints = %#v and %#v, want only local target to change", baseline, endpointChanged)
+	}
+	concurrencyChanged := fingerprintsFor(firstEndpoint, 4)
+	if !reflect.DeepEqual(baseline, concurrencyChanged) {
+		t.Fatalf("concurrency fingerprints = %#v, want %#v", concurrencyChanged, baseline)
+	}
+	for _, values := range [][]CheckpointFingerprint{baseline, endpointChanged} {
+		for _, fingerprint := range values {
+			if strings.Contains(fingerprint.Value, firstEndpoint) ||
+				strings.Contains(fingerprint.Value, secondEndpoint) {
+				t.Fatalf("checkpoint fingerprint exposes endpoint: %#v", fingerprint)
+			}
+		}
+	}
+
+	localBackend := &PromptKitLocalBackendConfig{
+		Endpoint:         " " + firstEndpoint + " ",
+		ConcurrencyLimit: 0,
+	}
+	client, err := NewPromptKitClient(PromptKitClientConfig{
+		Assets:       newTestPromptKitAssets(t),
+		LocalBackend: localBackend,
+	})
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	localBackend.Endpoint = secondEndpoint
+	copy, err := client.LLMCheckpointFingerprints()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	if !reflect.DeepEqual(copy, baseline) {
+		t.Fatalf("fingerprints after input mutation = %#v, want retained target %#v", copy, baseline)
+	}
+	copy[0].Value = "mutated-profile"
+	copy[1].Value = "mutated-target"
+	fresh, err := client.LLMCheckpointFingerprints()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	if !reflect.DeepEqual(fresh, baseline) {
+		t.Fatalf("fingerprints after returned-slice mutation = %#v, want %#v", fresh, baseline)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestPromptKitClientUsesPromptDefaultProfileWhenRequestProfileEmpty(t *testing.T) {
 	fake := &fakePromptKitLLM{content: `{"ok":true}`}
 	client := newTestPromptKitClient(t, fake)
@@ -334,6 +412,88 @@ func TestPromptKitClientUsesPromptDefaultProfileWhenRequestProfileEmpty(t *testi
 	}
 }
 
+func TestPromptKitClientUsesConfiguredLocalBackend(t *testing.T) {
+	var providerCalls atomic.Int32
+	server := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+		providerCalls.Add(1)
+		if r.URL.Path != "/v1/chat/completions" {
+			t.Errorf("provider path = %q, want /v1/chat/completions", r.URL.Path)
+		}
+		w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
+		_, _ = w.Write([]byte(`{
+			"choices": [{"message": {"role": "assistant", "content": "{\"ok\":true}"}}],
+			"usage": {"prompt_tokens": 3, "completion_tokens": 4, "total_tokens": 7}
+		}`))
+	}))
+	defer server.Close()
+
+	profilePath := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "profiles.yml")
+	if err := os.WriteFile(profilePath, []byte(`id: local-profile
+backend: local
+model: local-model
+`), 0o600); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	localBackend := &PromptKitLocalBackendConfig{
+		Endpoint:         " " + server.URL + "/v1 ",
+		ConcurrencyLimit: 2,
+	}
+	client, err := NewPromptKitClient(PromptKitClientConfig{
+		Assets:       newTestPromptKitAssets(t),
+		ProfileFile:  profilePath,
+		LocalBackend: localBackend,
+	})
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("NewPromptKitClient() error = %v, want nil", err)
+	}
+	localBackend.Endpoint = "http://127.0.0.1:1/v1"
+
+	request := contracts.StructuredCompletionRequest{
+		PromptID:  "adapter.direct-session",
+		ProfileID: "local-profile",
+		Inputs: contracts.LLMInputSet{
+			"transcript": contracts.NewLLMInputMaterial("transcript", "application/json", []byte(`{"source":true}`), "", ""),
+		},
+		Vars: map[string]any{"custom": "value"},
+	}
+	var out map[string]any
+	response, err := client.CompleteStructured(context.Background(), request, &out)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("CompleteStructured() error = %v, want nil", err)
+	}
+	if providerCalls.Load() != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("provider calls = %d, want 1", providerCalls.Load())
+	}
+	if response.ProfileID != "local-profile" || response.Model != "local-model" {
+		t.Fatalf("response metadata = %#v", response)
+	}
+	if response.Debug == nil || response.Debug.Prompt == nil ||
+		response.Debug.Prompt.SelectedBackendID != promptkit.BackendLocal {
+		t.Fatalf("response debug prompt = %#v, want local backend", response.Debug)
+	}
+	manifests := client.LLMProfileManifests()
+	if len(manifests) != 1 || manifests[0].BackendID != promptkit.BackendLocal {
+		t.Fatalf("profile manifests = %#v, want local backend", manifests)
+	}
+
+	clientWithoutRegistration, err := NewPromptKitClient(PromptKitClientConfig{
+		Assets:      newTestPromptKitAssets(t),
+		ProfileFile: profilePath,
+	})
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("NewPromptKitClient() without local registration error = %v, want nil", err)
+	}
+	_, err = clientWithoutRegistration.CompleteStructured(context.Background(), request, &out)
+	if err == nil ||
+		!strings.Contains(err.Error(), "prepare PromptKit prompt") ||
+		!strings.Contains(err.Error(), promptkit.BackendLocal) {
+		t.Fatalf("CompleteStructured() without registration error = %v, want preparation failure with local backend context", err)
+	}
+	if providerCalls.Load() != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("provider calls after missing-registration failure = %d, want 1", providerCalls.Load())
+	}
+}
+
 func TestLLMProfileRecorderDistinguishesEffectiveTargets(t *testing.T) {
 	recorder := NewLLMProfileRecorder()
 	for _, profile := range []artifacts.LLMProfileManifest{

internal/framework/llm/promptkit_profile_fingerprint.go

@@ -13,9 +13,11 @@ import (
 
 const (
 	promptKitProfileFingerprintName      = "promptkit_profile_source"
+	promptKitLocalBackendFingerprintName = "promptkit_local_backend_target"
+	promptKitLocalBackendMarker          = "notarius:promptkit-local-backend:v1"
 	// The built-in profile catalog is compiled into this pinned PromptKit
 	// release. Update this identity when the dependency is upgraded.
-	promptKitBuiltinProfileCatalogID = "promptkit:v0.2.0:builtin-profiles"
+	promptKitBuiltinProfileCatalogID = "promptkit:v0.3.0:builtin-profiles"
 )
 
 func promptKitProfileFingerprint(profileDir, profileFile string) (CheckpointFingerprint, error) {
@@ -45,6 +47,16 @@ func promptKitProfileFingerprint(profileDir, profileFile string) (CheckpointFing
 	}, nil
 }
 
+func promptKitLocalBackendFingerprint(endpoint string) CheckpointFingerprint {
+	hasher := sha256.New()
+	writeFingerprintPart(hasher, []byte(promptKitLocalBackendMarker))
+	writeFingerprintPart(hasher, []byte(strings.TrimSpace(endpoint)))
+	return CheckpointFingerprint{
+		Name:  promptKitLocalBackendFingerprintName,
+		Value: "sha256:" + hex.EncodeToString(hasher.Sum(nil)),
+	}
+}
+
 func promptKitProfileFileDigests(root string) ([][]byte, error) {
 	var digests [][]byte
 	err := filepath.WalkDir(root, func(name string, entry fs.DirEntry, walkErr error) error {

internal/framework/llm/scheduled_client_test.go

@@ -81,7 +81,10 @@ func TestScheduledClientPreservesCheckpointFingerprints(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Fatal(err)
 	}
 	inner := &fingerprintedStructuredClient{
-		fingerprints: []CheckpointFingerprint{{Name: "profile_source", Value: "sha256:one"}},
+		fingerprints: []CheckpointFingerprint{
+			{Name: "profile_source", Value: "sha256:one"},
+			{Name: "backend_target", Value: "sha256:two"},
+		},
 	}
 	client := NewScheduledClient(inner, scheduler)
 	provider, ok := client.(CheckpointFingerprintProvider)
@@ -92,7 +95,9 @@ func TestScheduledClientPreservesCheckpointFingerprints(t *testing.T) {
 	if err != nil {
 		t.Fatal(err)
 	}
-	if len(got) != 1 || got[0] != inner.fingerprints[0] {
+	if len(got) != len(inner.fingerprints) ||
+		got[0] != inner.fingerprints[0] ||
+		got[1] != inner.fingerprints[1] {
 		t.Fatalf("checkpoint fingerprints = %#v, want %#v", got, inner.fingerprints)
 	}
 }