docs: record real forward-test lifecycle session (2026-08-27)

docs/HANDOFF.md

@@ -193,6 +193,29 @@ Implement dated dividend events and a provenance-validated PIT score provider be
 
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+## Session 2026-08-27 — Real forward-test lifecycle (verified + pushed)
+
+**Branch:** main · **HEAD:** 80c6d79 (pushed `6d9c283` + `80c6d79`)
+
+### Completed this session (verified + pushed)
+- **ForwardTestStore** `backend/app/forward_test.py`: durable, thread-safe JSON store of forward paper runs with an explicit lifecycle — `frozen` (signals snapshotted, immutable) → `executed` (fills 50/20/30 buckets at post-freeze prices) → `marked` (mark-to-market equity series) → `matured` (net_return finalised). Frozen signals are never re-readable/rewritten after creation, so later data cannot retroactively change the run's decision.
+- **API** `backend/app/__init__.py`: `GET /api/v1/forward(+<id>)`, `POST /api/v1/forward` (create+execute, `use_pit` freeze option), `POST /<id>/mark`, `POST /<id>/mature`. Store extension backed by `data/forward/runs.json` (survives restarts).
+- **Frontend** `frontend/src/App.vue`: simulation tab's Forward mode now calls the real `/api/v1/forward` lifecycle (not the cosmetic `/api/v1/simulation` with a mode string), loads runs on mount, and renders a forward panel with status badge, non-PIT tag, holdings, and Mark / Mature per run.
+
+### Verified
+- Backend full suite **280 passed** (was 273); new lifecycle tests (7).
+- compileall, `git diff --check`, static scan clean.
+- Live route probe (isolated store): create→execute (201, real holdings AWC/CRC/MINT/PTT), list, mark, mature all work; run persists across the probe.
+
+### Honest scope / known limitations
+- The score source at CREATE time may be the current board (`non_pit=true`, tagged). A PIT scorer only marks `non_pit=false` when its scores assert `pit_meta.pit=true`.
+- Paper-only; never dispatches a real MT5 order.
+
+### Exact next action
+Implement the **factor-learning validation gate** (PIT exposures + forward returns + Spearman IC + holdout/walk-forward + baseline, no auto-apply). Do not reset or stage unrelated pre-existing working-tree changes.
+
+---
+
 ## Session 2026-08-27 — PIT Siamchart vintage store (verified + pushed)
 
 **Branch:** main · **HEAD:** 887e9c9 (pushed)