> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.raxprotocol.xyz/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.raxprotocol.xyz/token-and-governance/guardrails.md).

# Guardrails

Guardrails define the boundaries within which governance and autonomous systems operate, preventing unilateral changes that could harm users or destabilize the protocol.

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#### Mandate Guardrails <a href="#f269849a-3c21-4c18-8b1f-ce4b3a6d8a55" id="f269849a-3c21-4c18-8b1f-ce4b3a6d8a55"></a>

The mandate system includes hard limits that governance cannot override:

* Fee caps are enforced at the smart contract level (management fee max 5%, performance fee max 30%)
* The keeper role is restricted to a single authorized address per vault
* Emergency pause is always available to the owner, regardless of governance state
* Drawdown protection activates automatically and cannot be disabled through governance

#### Governance Guardrails <a href="#c283d4e0-feb3-4298-b09b-20af379273c5" id="c283d4e0-feb3-4298-b09b-20af379273c5"></a>

When governance is active, it will include protections against governance capture:

* Minimum quorum requirements for votes to be valid
* Timelock periods between vote approval and execution
* Emergency veto capability for critical security issues
* Gradual rollout of parameter changes rather than instant application

#### System Guardrails <a href="#id-11adae6d-f49d-4b0a-8492-480a9d62f400" id="id-11adae6d-f49d-4b0a-8492-480a9d62f400"></a>

The protocol maintains several invariants:

* The vault cannot allocate to strategies not registered through `addStrategy()`
* Rebalance weights must sum to 10,000 basis points (100%)
* The keeper cannot bypass the Pausable state
* All decision records are immutable once logged

These guardrails exist to ensure that no single actor — human or automated — can compromise the system's integrity.