> ## Documentation Index
>
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://lithi.ai/llms.txt
>
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

---
title: "Data and processing boundaries"
description: "What a free preview inspects and sends, which data Compute refuses, where a data category is processed or stored, and how long it is retained."
route: "/trust/data"
page_id: "trust-data"
last_updated: "2026-09-03"
reading_time: "4 min read"
audience: "Security, privacy, and procurement reviewers"
voice: A
source_locale: en-US
source_status: APPROVED
source_version: "trust-data-en-us-2026-09-03-fifteen-route-v1"
robots: noindex
---

# Data and processing boundaries

Data handling depends on the product, the stage of work, the data category, and the current commercial terms. This page separates what a free preview inspects, what Compute refuses to accept, and where a named data category is processed, stored, or retained. One answer does not settle every category or path.

## What the free assessment inspects and sends

A free Compute preview needs no account. It accepts at most three bounded candidates, and it does not require, read, or transmit customer content, a filename, a file path, source code, a prompt, a transcript, personal data, a secret, or a provider credential. The preview is idempotent and rate-limited, is non-authorizing, reserves no budget or capacity, creates no receivable, and cannot start a run or a batch on its own.

A preview response carries the current price, service, and Trust digests it relied on, and it expires. Where current evidence does not support a price, the preview returns a typed unavailable state rather than an invented number.

## What data is refused

Compute does not accept a task outside its approved capability set, and does not accept a task that fails a required policy or safety check. A refused task is recorded as a non-success outcome with a typed reason, not silently dropped or reattempted as something else.

## Where a category is processed or stored

Data residency depends on the product, data category, customer configuration, service path, provider, and current commercial terms; one region cannot be assumed for every Lithi workflow. Separate private task content, account records, connection data, diagnostic material, support context, and billing information before asking a residency question, then ask where each named category is stored, processed, backed up, and transferred.

Use current contract and provider material for the exact account. An old region label, roadmap statement, or hosting location does not establish the complete path.

## Retention

Retention windows depend on the data category and product. A local working file used for accepted work is eligible for cleanup under the applicable storage policy; a signed receipt, invoice, or allocation record is retained under its own record-keeping requirement. Ask about a specific data category and account when a retention answer needs to be exact.

## What this review covers

| Field | Record |
|---|---|
| Scope | One named product, data category, service path, provider, and account. |
| Status | Scope-specific review guidance; no universal region or retention window is established here. |
| Owner | Lithi trust team |
| Evidence | Current architecture material, provider records, contract terms, and account configuration. |
| Last reviewed | 2026-09-03 |
| Limitation | This page does not prove storage, processing, backup, support, billing, or transfer location for every path. |

## Limits

Regions, refusal criteria, and provider terms can change, and a customer-selected location may not control every supporting service. Data residency is not the same as access control, legal transfer authority, or deletion. Any unresolved question should name the data category, workflow, account, required region, and evidence period.

## Primary action

[Ask a scoped data or residency question](/contact)

## Related links

- [Review Compute security](/trust/security)
- [Review privacy and your choices](/trust/privacy)
- [See the subprocessor register](/trust/subprocessors)