diff --git a/machine-docs/REVIEW-settings.md b/machine-docs/REVIEW-settings.md
index d293686..098e8ce 100644
--- a/machine-docs/REVIEW-settings.md
+++ b/machine-docs/REVIEW-settings.md
@@ -35,4 +35,44 @@ Cold-read of the code I'll be verifying against (no anchoring — code + plan on
 - [ ] loader cannot crash the harness on a bad/absent file.
 
 ## Verdicts
-(none yet)
+
+### M1: PASS @2026-06-17T17:00Z (claim fed2678 / code cd19c1b) — cold-verified
+
+Verified from my own clone, fresh shell, against plan §2/§3/§5 + the code — not the Builder's
+narrative. Read JOURNAL only AFTER writing this verdict (contextualization only).
+
+**Tests (re-run cold):**
+- `test_upgrade_base.py` + `test_settings.py` → **32 passed**.
+- Full unit suite → **315 passed** (no regression).
+- ruff check → `All checks passed!`; ruff format → `4 files already formatted`.
+
+**Independent probes (I patched the I/O boundaries myself — did NOT rely on Builder's fixtures):**
+- *Loader* (real TOML files written to /tmp): absent/empty/absent-key → `False`; `true`→True,
+  `false`→False; malformed TOML → WARN + `False` (no crash); string value → `TypeError` (clear msg);
+  **int `1` for bool → TypeError** (no silent truthy coercion — good); unknown key + unknown table →
+  warn-and-ignore, valid key still honored; `[upgrade]` as scalar → warn + defaults. `$CCCI_SETTINGS`
+  path override honored. Real `get()` with no `/etc/cc-ci/settings.toml` (absent on host) → `False`.
+- *Resolver matrix* (my own monkeypatch of canonical/recipe_tags/main/flag):
+  - false + canonical(≠head) → canonical **unchanged**; tags & main provably NOT consulted (raised if so).
+  - false + no canonical → **newest release tag < head** (`10.7.1+26.6.2`), main NOT consulted.
+  - false + no canonical + only-head tag → main-tip. false + nothing → skip.
+  - **true + canonical present → BYPASS → release tag `10.7.1`, NOT canonical `10.5.0`.**
+  - true + canonical + no older tag → routes full chain → main-tip.
+
+**Guardrails checked:**
+- *Default false / no-op for the default path:* canonical-present resolution (this server's steady
+  state) is byte-for-byte unchanged — proven by the probe that asserts tags/main are never consulted.
+  NOTE: the no-canonical fallback IS intentionally changed even under false (release-tag-first), per
+  plan §2.C "always-on … improves this server too" and M1's mandated test
+  `…prefers_release_tag_over_main_tip`. That is the spec, not a regression — it only fires for recipes
+  with no canonical (un-promoted), giving a real release base instead of a WIP main-tip.
+- *Reuses samever helper:* fallback calls `warm_reconcile.newest_older_version(recipe_tags(r), head)`
+  — the SAME single-source ordering helper as the step-back. No divergent version ordering.
+- *Narrow scope:* `skip_canonicals` is read ONLY at `run_recipe_ci.py:154` in `resolve_upgrade_base`.
+  `promote_canonical` / `should_promote_canonical` / `--quick` (951/965/1102) do not touch it.
+- *Stdlib only:* loader imports `os, sys, tomllib, dataclasses` — no third-party.
+- *No secrets:* `settings.toml.example` is config + docs only, default `false`, explicit "NO SECRETS".
+- *Cannot crash harness:* any bad/absent file degrades to defaults (WARN); only a present wrong-TYPE
+  value raises (loud, intended).
+
+No defects. No VETO. M1 cold-PASS. → M2 (live server) may be claimed.