diff --git a/src/domain/degradation.ts b/src/domain/degradation.ts
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+/**
+ * Graceful Degradation Framework
+ *
+ * Provides a standardized pattern for services that depend on external
+ * systems (Redis, vector databases, SSH, external APIs) to degrade
+ * capability instead of failing completely.
+ *
+ * Hierarchy: Full → Reduced → Minimal → Safe Default
+ *
+ * Each service wraps its external calls with withDegradation(), which
+ * tries the primary path, falls back to a secondary, and ultimately
+ * returns a safe default if all backends are unavailable.
+ */
+
+/** Degradation levels from best to worst */
+export type DegradationLevel = "full" | "reduced" | "minimal" | "default";
+
+/** Status report for a degraded service */
+export interface DegradationStatus {
+  /** Current operational level */
+  level: DegradationLevel;
+  /** Name of the feature/service */
+  feature: string;
+  /** Human-readable description of current capability */
+  capability: string;
+  /** Why the service is degraded (empty string if full) */
+  reason: string;
+  /** Timestamp of last status change */
+  since: string;
+}
+
+/** Result wrapper that includes degradation info */
+export interface DegradedResult<T> {
+  /** The actual result (from primary, fallback, or default) */
+  result: T;
+  /** Degradation status */
+  status: DegradationStatus;
+}
+
+// ── Global degradation registry ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+const registry = new Map<string, DegradationStatus>();
+
+/**
+ * Execute an operation with graceful degradation.
+ *
+ * Tries the primary function first. If it fails, tries the fallback.
+ * If both fail, returns the safe default. All transitions are tracked
+ * in the global registry for dashboard visibility.
+ *
+ * @param feature - Name of the feature (e.g., "rate-limiting", "semantic-search")
+ * @param primary - Primary implementation (full capability)
+ * @param fallback - Fallback implementation (reduced capability)
+ * @param safeDefault - Safe default value (minimal/no capability)
+ * @param options - Optional configuration
+ * @returns Result with degradation status
+ *
+ * @example
+ * ```typescript
+ * const { result, status } = await withDegradation(
+ *   'rate-limiting',
+ *   () => redisRateLimit(key, limit),       // Full: distributed
+ *   () => memoryRateLimit(key, limit),       // Reduced: single-instance
+ *   { allowed: true, remaining: Infinity },  // Default: permissive
+ * );
+ * ```
+ */
+export async function withDegradation<T>(
+  feature: string,
+  primary: () => T | Promise<T>,
+  fallback: () => T | Promise<T>,
+  safeDefault: T,
+  options?: {
+    /** Description of full capability */
+    fullCapability?: string;
+    /** Description of reduced capability */
+    reducedCapability?: string;
+    /** Description of default capability */
+    defaultCapability?: string;
+    /** Log function for degradation events */
+    onDegrade?: (status: DegradationStatus) => void;
+  }
+): Promise<DegradedResult<T>> {
+  const now = new Date().toISOString();
+
+  // Try primary
+  try {
+    const result = await primary();
+    const status: DegradationStatus = {
+      level: "full",
+      feature,
+      capability: options?.fullCapability ?? "Full capability",
+      reason: "",
+      since: now,
+    };
+    updateRegistry(feature, status);
+    return { result, status };
+  } catch (primaryError) {
+    // Primary failed, try fallback
+    try {
+      const result = await fallback();
+      const status: DegradationStatus = {
+        level: "reduced",
+        feature,
+        capability: options?.reducedCapability ?? "Reduced capability (fallback active)",
+        reason: primaryError instanceof Error ? primaryError.message : String(primaryError),
+        since: now,
+      };
+      updateRegistry(feature, status);
+      options?.onDegrade?.(status);
+      return { result, status };
+    } catch (fallbackError) {
+      // Both failed, return safe default
+      const reason = [
+        primaryError instanceof Error ? primaryError.message : String(primaryError),
+        fallbackError instanceof Error ? fallbackError.message : String(fallbackError),
+      ].join(" → ");
+
+      const status: DegradationStatus = {
+        level: "default",
+        feature,
+        capability: options?.defaultCapability ?? "Safe default (all backends unavailable)",
+        reason,
+        since: now,
+      };
+      updateRegistry(feature, status);
+      options?.onDegrade?.(status);
+      return { result: safeDefault, status };
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+/**
+ * Synchronous version for non-async code paths.
+ */
+export function withDegradationSync<T>(
+  feature: string,
+  primary: () => T,
+  fallback: () => T,
+  safeDefault: T,
+  options?: {
+    fullCapability?: string;
+    reducedCapability?: string;
+    defaultCapability?: string;
+    onDegrade?: (status: DegradationStatus) => void;
+  }
+): DegradedResult<T> {
+  const now = new Date().toISOString();
+
+  try {
+    const result = primary();
+    const status: DegradationStatus = {
+      level: "full",
+      feature,
+      capability: options?.fullCapability ?? "Full capability",
+      reason: "",
+      since: now,
+    };
+    updateRegistry(feature, status);
+    return { result, status };
+  } catch (primaryError) {
+    try {
+      const result = fallback();
+      const status: DegradationStatus = {
+        level: "reduced",
+        feature,
+        capability: options?.reducedCapability ?? "Reduced capability",
+        reason: primaryError instanceof Error ? primaryError.message : String(primaryError),
+        since: now,
+      };
+      updateRegistry(feature, status);
+      options?.onDegrade?.(status);
+      return { result, status };
+    } catch (fallbackError) {
+      const status: DegradationStatus = {
+        level: "default",
+        feature,
+        capability: options?.defaultCapability ?? "Safe default",
+        reason: `${primaryError} → ${fallbackError}`,
+        since: now,
+      };
+      updateRegistry(feature, status);
+      options?.onDegrade?.(status);
+      return { result: safeDefault, status };
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+// ── Registry management ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+function updateRegistry(feature: string, status: DegradationStatus): void {
+  const existing = registry.get(feature);
+  // Only update 'since' if level actually changed
+  if (existing && existing.level === status.level) {
+    status.since = existing.since;
+  }
+  registry.set(feature, status);
+}
+
+/**
+ * Get degradation status for all tracked features.
+ */
+export function getDegradationReport(): DegradationStatus[] {
+  return Array.from(registry.values()).sort((a, b) => {
+    const order: Record<DegradationLevel, number> = {
+      default: 0,
+      minimal: 1,
+      reduced: 2,
+      full: 3,
+    };
+    return (order[a.level] ?? 4) - (order[b.level] ?? 4);
+  });
+}
+
+/**
+ * Get status for a specific feature.
+ */
+export function getFeatureStatus(feature: string): DegradationStatus | null {
+  return registry.get(feature) ?? null;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Check if any feature is degraded.
+ */
+export function hasAnyDegradation(): boolean {
+  for (const status of registry.values()) {
+    if (status.level !== "full") return true;
+  }
+  return false;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Get count of features at each degradation level.
+ */
+export function getDegradationSummary(): Record<DegradationLevel, number> {
+  const summary: Record<DegradationLevel, number> = {
+    full: 0,
+    reduced: 0,
+    minimal: 0,
+    default: 0,
+  };
+  for (const status of registry.values()) {
+    summary[status.level]++;
+  }
+  return summary;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Reset the registry. Useful for testing.
+ */
+export function resetDegradationRegistry(): void {
+  registry.clear();
+}