---
title: A rule is a document
description: How Vythos ties a rule to the file it came from, what it keeps, and why nothing becomes a rule on its own.
---

<span class="vy-eyebrow">Core concepts</span>

# A rule is a document

In Vythos a rule isn't text you typed into a box. It's a document you already
have, that someone pointed at.

That has three consequences worth understanding, because they explain most of
how the product behaves.

## 1. The rule points at the file, not at a copy

When you add a rule, Vythos records *which file* it is — the Google Drive file
ID, the Notion page ID, or the name of the file you uploaded. Not the folder
path, not a copy.

So:

- **Renaming the file changes nothing.** The rule still follows it.
- **Moving it to another folder changes nothing.**
- **Editing it updates the rule** — see [Update a rule](/using-vythos/update-a-rule).
- **A different file is a different rule.** Saving "Rate Card 2026" as a new
  file beside the old one doesn't update anything. Add the new file and tick
  *replaces* on the old one.

## 2. Vythos keeps the text it read

Vythos reads the document and keeps that text with the rule. It has to: an
answer, a comparison or a draft check that had to open your Drive every time
would be slow, and would break the moment you were offline or the file was
briefly unavailable.

What this means in practice:

- Your original file never moves and is never stored as a file. Vythos holds
  the text, not the document.
- The text is what a tool sees. Open a rule and you can read exactly what was
  taken from the file — tables included, formatting simplified.
- If the file becomes unreadable, the rule keeps working from the text it last
  read, and says so.

## 3. Nothing becomes a rule by itself

Connect Google Drive and a hundred documents flow into memory. None of them
becomes a rule. Ask a question, log an outcome from an agent, upload a folder
of contracts — still no rules.

A rule exists because a person with the right access named a document. That's
the only way in.

::: tip Why it works this way
Software can guess which documents look like rules. It cannot know which ones
your agency actually stands behind — and a governance layer that guesses wrong
is worse than none, because everything downstream inherits the mistake with
full confidence. So Vythos doesn't guess. One click by the person who knows is
both faster and correct.
:::

## What can be a rule

| Source | Can be a rule | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Google Drive file | Yes | Including Google Docs, Sheets and Slides |
| Notion page | Yes | |
| A file you upload | Yes | Upload it first, then add it from *Your uploads* |
| Website, GitHub, Gmail | No | These feed [memory](/concepts/memory) only |
| Something an AI tool reported | No | Agent output is evidence, never governance |

Readable formats are listed in [File formats](/reference/file-formats). A
folder is not a document: pick the file inside it.

## How a rule gets its name

From the document's first heading if it has one, otherwise from the file's own
name. So a Google Doc starting with "Rate Card 2026" becomes a rule called
*Rate Card 2026*, and a file called `terms-of-business.pdf` with no heading
becomes *Terms of business*.

If a rule's name reads badly in the list, the fix is in the document: give it a
heading, or rename the file.

## What Vythos does with the document

1. **Reads it** with your access, at the moment you add it. If you can't open
   it, neither can Vythos, and it says so rather than adding an empty rule.
2. **Files it** under the category you chose, for every client or one client.
3. **Reads any values** it recognises — figures like payment terms or a day
   rate. You decide whether they're right. See [Values](/concepts/values).
4. **Watches it** from then on: a light check about every ten minutes, and a
   proper read only when the document has actually changed.

Next: [Categories](/concepts/categories).