diff --git a/docs/src/design/orchestrator/orchestrator-platform.md b/docs/src/design/orchestrator/orchestrator-platform.md
index ddc9e3b5..251d99e1 100644
--- a/docs/src/design/orchestrator/orchestrator-platform.md
+++ b/docs/src/design/orchestrator/orchestrator-platform.md
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ Two rules follow:
 - **Protection survives its crash.** The SPI monitor filters flash traffic
   in hardware, on its own; the orchestrator only loads its rules at
   boot and is not in the data path, and the hardware write filter stays
-  armed until the device's first fetch, closing the
+  enabled until the device's first fetch, closing the
   time-of-check/time-of-use window. Busy or crashed, the orchestrator
   cannot be bypassed — there is nothing to bypass.
 
diff --git a/services/orchestrator/adapters/hal/src/gpio_boot_monitor.rs b/services/orchestrator/adapters/hal/src/gpio_boot_monitor.rs
index 3591d2b8..fa195e0d 100644
--- a/services/orchestrator/adapters/hal/src/gpio_boot_monitor.rs
+++ b/services/orchestrator/adapters/hal/src/gpio_boot_monitor.rs
@@ -89,7 +89,7 @@ impl<E: GpioError> From<E> for MonitorError<E> {
 /// device re-enters reset (typically by wiring the latch's clear to the
 /// device's reset line) — [`BootStatus`] requires that evidence from a
 /// previous boot never reads as [`BootStatus::Booted`], and this reader only
-/// reads the line, it cannot re-arm it.
+/// reads the line, it cannot clear the latch.
 ///
 /// [`HalBootControl`]: crate::HalBootControl
 pub struct GpioBootMonitor<'a, P: GpioPort> {
diff --git a/services/orchestrator/adapters/walk/src/walk.rs b/services/orchestrator/adapters/walk/src/walk.rs
index 0d1a762e..d55a9df8 100644
--- a/services/orchestrator/adapters/walk/src/walk.rs
+++ b/services/orchestrator/adapters/walk/src/walk.rs
@@ -13,8 +13,9 @@ use orchestrator_config::{BootCheckpoint, DeviceConfig};
 /// (`Booting`), so a transient bus glitch does not kill a healthy boot.
 /// A lapsed window is a timeout with no final read: a device that has not
 /// reported cannot be judged on a race. Each checkpoint's deadline
-/// starts from the first poll after arm, not from the arm call, so
-/// time between arming and polling does not count against the window.
+/// starts from the first poll after the start call, not from the call
+/// itself, so time between starting and polling does not count against
+/// the window.
 /// An unarmed or post-terminal poll
 /// returns `Waiting { deadline_millis: u64::MAX }` (no deadline).
 pub struct CheckpointWalk<R, P: 'static> {
@@ -25,7 +26,7 @@ pub struct CheckpointWalk<R, P: 'static> {
 
 enum Phase {
     Idle,
-    Armed,
+    Started,
     Walking { cursor: usize, deadline_millis: u64 },
 }
 
@@ -48,12 +49,12 @@ impl<R, P> CheckpointWalk<R, P> {
 }
 
 impl<R: EvidenceReader<P>, P> BootWatch for CheckpointWalk<R, P> {
-    fn arm(&mut self) {
-        self.phase = Phase::Armed;
+    fn start(&mut self) {
+        self.phase = Phase::Started;
     }
 
     fn poll(&mut self, now_millis: u64) -> WalkVerdict {
-        if let Phase::Armed = self.phase {
+        if let Phase::Started = self.phase {
             let timeout_millis = self.checkpoints[0].timeout().as_millis() as u64;
             let deadline = now_millis.saturating_add(timeout_millis);
             self.phase = Phase::Walking {
@@ -201,7 +202,7 @@ mod tests {
     fn two_checkpoint_walk_completes_when_both_pass() {
         let mut w = walk();
         w.reader_mut().level = 2;
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
 
         let v = w.poll(0);
         assert_eq!(
@@ -220,7 +221,7 @@ mod tests {
     fn single_checkpoint_walk_completes_in_one_poll() {
         let mut w = CheckpointWalk::new(ProgressReader::new(), &ONE_CP_DEVICE);
         w.reader_mut().level = 1;
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
 
         assert_eq!(w.poll(0), WalkVerdict::Complete);
     }
@@ -228,7 +229,7 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn progress_between_polls_advances_the_walk() {
         let mut w = walk();
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
 
         let v = w.poll(0);
         assert_eq!(
@@ -258,7 +259,7 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn first_checkpoint_times_out_when_device_is_silent() {
         let mut w = walk();
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
 
         let v = w.poll(0);
         assert_eq!(
@@ -281,7 +282,7 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn second_checkpoint_times_out_after_first_passes() {
         let mut w = walk();
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
 
         w.reader_mut().level = 1;
         let v = w.poll(0);
@@ -307,7 +308,7 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn retriable_failure_ends_the_walk_early() {
         let mut w = walk();
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
         w.reader_mut().fault = Some(BootStatus::FailedRetriable);
 
         let v = w.poll(0);
@@ -323,7 +324,7 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn fatal_failure_ends_the_walk_early() {
         let mut w = walk();
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
         w.reader_mut().fault = Some(BootStatus::FailedFatal);
 
         let v = w.poll(0);
@@ -341,7 +342,7 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn read_error_treated_as_silence() {
         let mut w = walk();
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
         w.reader_mut().fail_read = true;
 
         let v = w.poll(0);
@@ -366,13 +367,13 @@ mod tests {
         assert_eq!(w.poll(10), WalkVerdict::Complete);
     }
 
-    // ── arm() rewinds ───────────────────────────────────────────────────
+    // ── start() rewinds ─────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
     #[test]
     fn arm_rewinds_to_the_first_checkpoint() {
         let mut w = walk();
         w.reader_mut().level = 2;
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
         assert_eq!(
             w.poll(0),
             WalkVerdict::Waiting {
@@ -381,16 +382,16 @@ mod tests {
         );
         assert_eq!(w.poll(0), WalkVerdict::Complete);
 
-        // Re-arm: back to checkpoint 0.
+        // Started again: back to checkpoint 0.
         w.reader_mut().level = 0;
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
         let v = w.poll(1000);
         assert_eq!(
             v,
             WalkVerdict::Waiting {
                 deadline_millis: 1100
             },
-            "fresh deadline from the re-arm"
+            "fresh deadline from the restart"
         );
     }
 
@@ -398,10 +399,10 @@ mod tests {
     fn arm_mid_walk_restarts_from_the_beginning() {
         let mut w = walk();
         w.reader_mut().level = 1;
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
         w.poll(0); // passes bl1, now at kernel
 
-        w.arm(); // restart
+        w.start(); // from the top
         w.reader_mut().level = 0;
         let v = w.poll(500);
         assert_eq!(
@@ -429,8 +430,8 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn idle_after_terminal_waits_indefinitely() {
         let mut w = walk();
-        w.arm();
-        w.poll(0); // Armed -> Walking, deadline = 100
+        w.start();
+        w.poll(0); // Started -> Walking, deadline = 100
         let v = w.poll(100); // now >= deadline -> TimedOut
         assert!(matches!(v, WalkVerdict::Failed { .. }));
 
@@ -447,7 +448,7 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn deadline_is_relative_to_first_poll_not_arm() {
         let mut w = walk();
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
         // First poll at t=1000: deadline should be 1000 + 100, not 0 + 100.
         let v = w.poll(1000);
         assert_eq!(
@@ -462,7 +463,7 @@ mod tests {
     fn next_checkpoint_deadline_is_relative_to_the_passing_poll() {
         let mut w = walk();
         w.reader_mut().level = 1;
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
 
         // bl1 passes at t=50, kernel deadline = 50 + 200.
         let v = w.poll(50);
@@ -479,8 +480,8 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn booted_at_expiry_is_still_timeout() {
         let mut w = walk();
-        w.arm();
-        w.poll(0); // Armed -> Walking, deadline = 100
+        w.start();
+        w.poll(0); // Started -> Walking, deadline = 100
 
         w.reader_mut().level = 1;
         let v = w.poll(100); // device ready, but window already lapsed
@@ -500,7 +501,7 @@ mod tests {
     fn device_fault_at_second_checkpoint_names_it() {
         let mut w = walk();
         w.reader_mut().level = 1;
-        w.arm();
+        w.start();
         w.poll(0); // bl1 passes, now at kernel
 
         w.reader_mut().fault = Some(BootStatus::FailedFatal);
diff --git a/services/orchestrator/capabilities/src/boot_watch.rs b/services/orchestrator/capabilities/src/boot_watch.rs
index 66c703c9..9e86933b 100644
--- a/services/orchestrator/capabilities/src/boot_watch.rs
+++ b/services/orchestrator/capabilities/src/boot_watch.rs
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ pub trait BootWatch {
     /// every reset release, retries included. Takes no timestamp — reset
     /// actuation has no clock; the attempt starts at the next
     /// [`poll`](BootWatch::poll)'s `now_millis`.
-    fn arm(&mut self);
+    fn start(&mut self);
 
     /// Judges the walk at `now_millis` (monotonic). Never sleeps — time is
     /// injected, so every decision is host-testable.
@@ -93,7 +93,7 @@ mod tests {
     }
 
     impl BootWatch for ScriptedWalk {
-        fn arm(&mut self) {
+        fn start(&mut self) {
             self.next = 0;
         }
 
diff --git a/services/orchestrator/capabilities/src/device_trial_boot.rs b/services/orchestrator/capabilities/src/device_trial_boot.rs
index 6f93e3ea..5ba3a35e 100644
--- a/services/orchestrator/capabilities/src/device_trial_boot.rs
+++ b/services/orchestrator/capabilities/src/device_trial_boot.rs
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@
 //! has to read what the previous one left behind. That needs durable state
 //! this trait deliberately does not carry, and the verdict is the
 //! orchestrator's own supervised boot coming up, not a call from the image
-//! that armed the trial.
+//! that set the trial pending.
 //!
 //! A board that wants one gate for both can implement this trait over its
 //! [`SelfUpdate`] session; nothing here forbids it. What does not work is one
@@ -49,11 +49,11 @@
 /// plus the state a verdict reached after a reset needs.
 ///
 /// `confirm` and `revert` take no arguments. A device has at most one trial
-/// open at a time, the one the last activation armed, so there is nothing to
+/// open at a time, the one the last activation set pending, so there is nothing to
 /// name. Which slot is which stays behind the seam, as it does in
 /// `Updatable`.
 ///
-/// The arming counts for the next boot only, but the record of the trial
+/// The record counts for the next boot only, but the trial
 /// outlives it. An image that hangs, or an eRoT that loses power during the
 /// trial, boots the confirmed slot again without anyone calling anything.
 /// What makes that happen (a boot-select register the boot ROM clears, or
@@ -74,7 +74,7 @@
 /// anything; they only move slot metadata. Restarting the device is
 /// [`BootControl`](crate::BootControl).
 ///
-/// `is_pending` is a yes or no. It does not say whether the armed image has
+/// `is_pending` is a yes or no. It does not say whether the pending image has
 /// booted, and this trait cannot tell a `confirm` that came after a watched
 /// boot from one that did not. Nothing needs that difference: a half-done
 /// update is rerun from the start, not picked up where it left off.
@@ -135,7 +135,7 @@ mod tests {
     }
 
     /// The one flow both implementations go through: apply the verdict to
-    /// whatever the last activation armed, then check the record came out
+    /// whatever the last activation set pending, then check the record came out
     /// clear. A record left open means a later boot finds a trial nobody
     /// owns. Generic over `DeviceTrialBoot`, so every device runs the same code
     /// whether the orchestrator held the instance all along or built it
@@ -152,7 +152,7 @@ mod tests {
         Ok(())
     }
 
-    /// A slot-selection record whose arming counts for the next boot only,
+    /// A slot-selection record that counts for the next boot only,
     /// the way a device's eRoT-held store behaves.
     struct SlotRecord {
         confirmed_slot: u8,
@@ -176,7 +176,7 @@ mod tests {
         }
 
         /// Boots the device and returns the slot it ran: the trial slot if
-        /// the next boot is still armed, the confirmed slot otherwise.
+        /// the next boot is still pending, the confirmed slot otherwise.
         fn boot(&mut self) -> u8 {
             match self.trial_slot {
                 Some(slot) if self.next_boot_armed => {
@@ -270,7 +270,7 @@ mod tests {
         assert_eq!(
             device.record.boot(),
             0,
-            "the arming is one-shot: no confirm, no second trial boot"
+            "the record is one-shot: no confirm, no second trial boot"
         );
         assert_eq!(
             device.is_pending(),
@@ -286,8 +286,8 @@ mod tests {
         let mut record = SlotRecord::new(0);
         record.activate(1);
 
-        // The boot that arming triggered. The armed image is now running,
-        // and the orchestrator that armed it has since restarted.
+        // The boot the record triggered. The pending image is now running,
+        // and the orchestrator that set it has since restarted.
         assert_eq!(record.boot(), 1);
 
         let mut trial = TrialRecord::from(&mut record);
diff --git a/services/orchestrator/capabilities/src/lib.rs b/services/orchestrator/capabilities/src/lib.rs
index 7f1b83f2..fcdad523 100644
--- a/services/orchestrator/capabilities/src/lib.rs
+++ b/services/orchestrator/capabilities/src/lib.rs
@@ -33,8 +33,8 @@
 //! outlives the judge: the eRoT resets into the candidate, so the verdict is
 //! reached by a boot that has to read what the previous one left behind. It is
 //! one durable session, one at a time, carrying the state and the verified SVN
-//! together, so the next boot can tell a session that was never armed from a
-//! confirmed trial whose floor advance had not run yet. Downstream devices
+//! together, so the next boot can tell a session whose trial never started
+//! from a confirmed trial whose floor advance had not run yet. Downstream devices
 //! need no session: a reset loses the observation that would judge them, so
 //! abandoning at boot gets the same result with no storage.
 //!
diff --git a/services/orchestrator/driver/README.md b/services/orchestrator/driver/README.md
index cf2ef4d5..1bde9121 100644
--- a/services/orchestrator/driver/README.md
+++ b/services/orchestrator/driver/README.md
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ Everything device-specific arrives through the seams in `board.rs`
 Synchronous results (the verification verdict) return through `execute` and
 settle within the same dispatch run — there is no driver-side event queue.
 
-Boot-walk verdicts are the one asynchronous read. `ReleaseReset` arms the
+Boot-walk verdicts are the one asynchronous read. `ReleaseReset` starts the
 component's walk; the run loop polls and dispatches until quiet, then sleeps
 until the earliest walk deadline:
 
@@ -31,6 +31,6 @@ loop {
 ```
 
 Implemented executors: `ReadFirmware`, `VerifyFirmware`, `ReleaseReset`
-(arms the boot walk), `AssertReset` (stops it). Everything else fails secure
+(starts the boot walk), `AssertReset` (stops it). Everything else fails secure
 until its pillar lands (recovery, update path, attestation, reporting,
 lockdown latch).
diff --git a/services/orchestrator/driver/src/driver.rs b/services/orchestrator/driver/src/driver.rs
index 09d5d03f..a5f7c371 100644
--- a/services/orchestrator/driver/src/driver.rs
+++ b/services/orchestrator/driver/src/driver.rs
@@ -506,9 +506,9 @@ impl<B: BoardCapabilities, const N: usize> PlatformDriver<B, N> {
             .ok_or(DriverError::UnknownComponent)
     }
 
-    /// Release `id` from reset and arm its boot walk;
+    /// Release `id` from reset and start its boot walk;
     /// [`poll_boot_walks`](Self::poll_boot_walks) feeds the verdict back
-    /// as `ComponentReady(id)`/`Booted(id)`/`BootFailed { id, .. }`. Arms on every
+    /// as `ComponentReady(id)`/`Booted(id)`/`BootFailed { id, .. }`. Starts on every
     /// release: a retry re-release starts a fresh walk.
     pub fn release_reset(&mut self, id: ComponentId) -> Result<(), DriverError> {
         self.boot_control(id)?
@@ -516,7 +516,7 @@ impl<B: BoardCapabilities, const N: usize> PlatformDriver<B, N> {
             .map_err(|_| DriverError::BootControlFault)?;
         let idx = id.get() as usize;
         // In bounds: boot_control(id) above already rejected unknown ids.
-        self.board.boot_watches[idx].arm();
+        self.board.boot_watches[idx].start();
         self.watching[idx] = true;
         Ok(())
     }
diff --git a/services/orchestrator/driver/src/tests.rs b/services/orchestrator/driver/src/tests.rs
index 332a82ed..61bb13e5 100644
--- a/services/orchestrator/driver/src/tests.rs
+++ b/services/orchestrator/driver/src/tests.rs
@@ -203,9 +203,9 @@ impl orchestrator_capabilities::BootControl for MockReset {
 }
 
 /// Boot walk without a device; scripted verdicts. An exhausted script
-/// holds its last verdict; an empty script waits forever. `arm` rewinds
+/// holds its last verdict; an empty script waits forever. `start` rewinds
 /// to the script start, so a fresh attempt is observable from the
-/// verdicts alone — no poll or arm counters needed.
+/// verdicts alone — no poll or start counters needed.
 struct MockWalk {
     verdicts: std::vec::Vec<WalkVerdict>,
     next: usize,
@@ -225,7 +225,7 @@ impl MockWalk {
 }
 
 impl BootWatch for MockWalk {
-    fn arm(&mut self) {
+    fn start(&mut self) {
         self.next = 0;
     }
 
@@ -1092,7 +1092,7 @@ fn only_released_components_are_watched() {
     assert_eq!(driver.poll_boot_walks(0).event, Some(Event::Booted(C0)));
 }
 
-// Every release re-arms the walk: a retry judges a new attempt from the
+// Every release starts the walk again: a retry judges a new attempt from
 // first checkpoint, not the failed one resumed. With a script of
 // [Failed, Complete], a resumed walk would report Complete on the second
 // attempt; a fresh one reports Failed again.
diff --git a/target/ast10x0/board/src/bmc.rs b/target/ast10x0/board/src/bmc.rs
index 48b5d172..6a7bc414 100644
--- a/target/ast10x0/board/src/bmc.rs
+++ b/target/ast10x0/board/src/bmc.rs
@@ -290,7 +290,7 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn a_booted_bmc_completes_the_walk_on_the_first_poll() {
         let mut walk = walk(ReadyLine::booted());
-        walk.arm();
+        walk.start();
 
         assert_eq!(walk.poll(0), WalkVerdict::Complete);
     }
@@ -298,7 +298,7 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn a_bmc_still_booting_holds_the_walk_until_its_line_rises() {
         let mut walk = walk(ReadyLine::late(2));
-        walk.arm();
+        walk.start();
 
         let waiting = WalkVerdict::Waiting {
             deadline_millis: READY_WINDOW.as_millis() as u64,
@@ -312,7 +312,7 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn a_bmc_that_never_reports_ready_times_out() {
         let mut walk = walk(ReadyLine::hung());
-        walk.arm();
+        walk.start();
 
         let deadline = READY_WINDOW.as_millis() as u64;
         assert_eq!(
diff --git a/target/ast10x0/tests/orchestrator/runtime/main.rs b/target/ast10x0/tests/orchestrator/runtime/main.rs
index 741c2913..3238d8a9 100644
--- a/target/ast10x0/tests/orchestrator/runtime/main.rs
+++ b/target/ast10x0/tests/orchestrator/runtime/main.rs
@@ -241,7 +241,7 @@ fn walk_device(
     id: ComponentId,
     behavior: DeviceBehavior,
 ) -> Result<Event> {
-    walk.arm();
+    walk.start();
     let mut k = 0usize;
 
     loop {