diff --git a/PROJECT_STATE.md b/PROJECT_STATE.md
index 0952344b..4689b78a 100644
--- a/PROJECT_STATE.md
+++ b/PROJECT_STATE.md
@@ -85,6 +85,12 @@ A later deployment does not prove every earlier acceptance item passed.
 
 ## Remaining acceptance and design gates
 
+- The first installation acceptance uses an ad hoc
+  [Chinook workspace without Evidence](docs/testing/chinook-installation-smoke.md),
+  backed by a separate local PostgreSQL test container. Its fixture import,
+  read-only credentials and offline workspace validation were verified; full
+  installation/readiness and a human-reviewed question remain pending. Evidence
+  acceptance and the three curated examples are separate later work.
 - Fresh-machine Mac, Windows/WSL2 and Linux installation acceptance, including real
   DWH/model endpoints, remains a separate operator exercise.
 - Real IdP/portal login, logout, embedded interaction and PSD semantic acceptance
diff --git a/docs/testing/chinook-installation-smoke.md b/docs/testing/chinook-installation-smoke.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..cd550d3d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/testing/chinook-installation-smoke.md
@@ -0,0 +1,112 @@
+# First installation acceptance fixture: Chinook without Evidence
+
+Decision agreed on 2026-09-28: the first installer acceptance may use one ad hoc
+workspace and a downloadable local database without Evidence. The three curated
+example databases remain a separate deferred subproject.
+
+Use [Chinook v1.4.5](https://github.com/lerocha/chinook-database/releases/tag/v1.4.5),
+the sample digital music store. The upstream PostgreSQL SQL asset contains both
+schema and data: 11 related tables for artists, albums, tracks, customers, employees,
+invoices and playlists. The source is licensed under
+[MIT](https://github.com/lerocha/chinook-database/blob/master/LICENSE.md).
+This fixture does not supply Evidence or claim that SQL schema information is Evidence.
+It uses native PostgreSQL DDL/data, so SQLite type conversion is not involved.
+
+## Prepare the independent test database
+
+Run in Ubuntu WSL2 with Docker Desktop integration, or in a Linux/macOS Bash
+terminal for a preliminary check. Docker, curl and OpenSSL must be available.
+The first formal host acceptance remains Windows/WSL2.
+
+The helper below is in the ThothII repository for maintainers/testers; it is not
+yet included in the downloadable operator bundle. It provisions only the test DWH,
+which is a separate container from the installation's PostgreSQL Metadata Catalog.
+
+```bash
+cd /path/to/ThothII
+bash scripts/prepare-chinook-test.sh "$HOME/thothii-chinook-test"
+```
+
+Use a new directory outside any workspace repository. The helper pins the upstream
+SQL version and checksum, creates private random passwords, starts PostgreSQL,
+imports schema/data, and creates `thoth_reader` with SELECT privileges. Passwords
+remain in the private directory, not in a workspace YAML or this repository.
+An existing directory or container is refused; the helper never resets it.
+An interrupted preparation leaves its private logs/container available for diagnosis.
+Do not rerun the upstream import manually against another database: its opening
+statements drop and recreate `chinook`.
+
+Default container: `thothii-test-chinook`. Host endpoint: `127.0.0.1:55432`.
+Override names/port before the command if needed:
+
+```bash
+CHINOOK_TEST_CONTAINER=my-chinook CHINOOK_TEST_PORT=55433 \
+  bash scripts/prepare-chinook-test.sh "$HOME/my-chinook-test"
+```
+
+Expected import counts: 11 tables, 3,503 tracks, 412 invoices and 2,240 invoice lines.
+The SQL download is 600,200 bytes. Its SHA-256 is
+`e3fde5c1a5b51a2a91429a702c9ca6e69ba56e6c7f5e112724d70c3d03db695e`.
+
+Stop/start retains the database:
+
+```bash
+docker stop thothii-test-chinook
+docker start thothii-test-chinook
+```
+
+Only when deliberately discarding this test database, `docker rm -f -v
+thothii-test-chinook` removes the container and its anonymous data volume. Private
+files in the preparation directory are separate and remain until removed explicitly.
+
+## Prepare the workspace documents
+
+Using the native bundle, keep `tht` beside `tht-workspace-documents` and run:
+
+```bash
+/path/to/bundle/bin/tht workspace prepare \
+  --directory "$HOME/thothii-workspaces-test" \
+  --id chinook-test --name "Chinook installation test" --language it
+/path/to/bundle/bin/tht workspace validate \
+  --directory "$HOME/thothii-workspaces-test"
+```
+
+The generated workspace has Evidence absent. Keep that configuration; no fake
+Evidence document or credential should be added merely to satisfy installation.
+
+The later installation-local binding must select PostgreSQL, database `chinook`,
+schema `public`, user `thoth_reader`, and reference the private `reader-password`
+file. Do not use the PostgreSQL administrator as the ThothII data source account.
+The host endpoint above is for host-side tools: `127.0.0.1` inside ThothII core
+would refer to core itself. At integration, configure and verify connectivity from
+both the preflight process and the core container; do not copy the host endpoint
+unchanged into a runtime binding. That integration belongs to the remaining
+installer/binding tickets and is not established by successful import here.
+
+## Acceptance scope
+
+After the remaining installer increments are available, verify prepared documents,
+non-interactive setup using published images, database connection, schema sync,
+required preprocessing/readiness and a real human-reviewed question. Then verify
+stop/start preserves application state. These checks do not validate Evidence
+ingestion, retrieval or interpretation; record those as not exercised for this fixture.
+
+Suggested practice questions, without target SQL:
+
+- Which five artists have the most tracks in the catalogue?
+- Which countries have the largest total invoice amounts?
+- Which customers bought tracks from more than three genres?
+
+These are practice prompts, not benchmark scores or a substitute for human review.
+Windows/WSL2 acceptance is followed by Omarchy and macOS in separate steps.
+
+## Preliminary verification, 2026-09-28
+
+The helper imported the pinned SQL into a fresh Linux amd64 PostgreSQL container
+on the macOS development host. Counts matched the values above. A real TCP
+connection using the generated `thoth_reader` password read the data;
+`default_transaction_read_only` was `on`, and an UPDATE without matching rows
+was still rejected with SQLSTATE `42501` even inside `BEGIN READ WRITE`.
+Native workspace preparation and JSON validation reported `ok: true` and
+`evidence: absent`, explicitly deferring Catalog binding, connectivity and runtime
+preprocessing. These are fixture checks, not Windows or full-installer acceptance.
diff --git a/scripts/prepare-chinook-test.sh b/scripts/prepare-chinook-test.sh
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..7aa55249
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/prepare-chinook-test.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,65 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+# Disposable acceptance fixture, separate from the ThothII Metadata Catalog.
+set -euo pipefail
+umask 077
+
+if [[ $# -ne 1 || "$1" != /* || -e "$1" ]]; then
+  echo 'Usage: bash scripts/prepare-chinook-test.sh /absolute/NEW-private-directory' >&2
+  exit 2
+fi
+test_dir="$1"
+container="${CHINOOK_TEST_CONTAINER:-thothii-test-chinook}"
+port="${CHINOOK_TEST_PORT:-55432}"
+[[ "$container" =~ ^[a-zA-Z0-9][a-zA-Z0-9_.-]+$ ]] || exit 2
+[[ "$port" =~ ^[1-9][0-9]{0,4}$ ]] && (( port <= 65535 )) || exit 2
+for executable in docker curl openssl; do command -v "$executable" >/dev/null; done
+docker info >/dev/null
+if docker container inspect "$container" >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+  echo "Container $container already exists; this command never resets an existing database." >&2
+  exit 2
+fi
+mkdir "$test_dir"
+test_dir="$(cd "$test_dir" && pwd -P)"
+sql="$test_dir/Chinook_PostgreSql.sql"
+curl --fail --location --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 --max-time 120 \
+  'https://github.com/lerocha/chinook-database/releases/download/v1.4.5/Chinook_PostgreSql.sql' \
+  --output "$sql"
+expected=e3fde5c1a5b51a2a91429a702c9ca6e69ba56e6c7f5e112724d70c3d03db695e
+actual="$(openssl dgst -sha256 "$sql")"
+[[ "${actual##* }" == "$expected" ]] || { echo 'Chinook checksum mismatch.' >&2; exit 1; }
+openssl rand -hex 24 > "$test_dir/reader-password"
+printf 'POSTGRES_PASSWORD=%s\n' "$(openssl rand -hex 24)" > "$test_dir/postgres.env"
+printf '%s\n' "$container" > "$test_dir/container-name"
+
+# Use the same PostgreSQL linux/amd64 image as the initial installation prerelease.
+# PostgreSQL gets its own anonymous data volume; stop/start preserves it.
+docker run --detach --name "$container" --platform linux/amd64 \
+  --publish "127.0.0.1:${port}:5432" \
+  --env-file "$test_dir/postgres.env" \
+  docker.io/library/postgres@sha256:45cd22f8d32e189d245403954882f88e7a8714301fda80dab6da90f1265b25a3 >/dev/null
+ready=false
+for ((attempt = 0; attempt < 90; attempt++)); do
+  # The entrypoint's temporary bootstrap server has only a Unix socket.
+  if docker exec "$container" pg_isready -h 127.0.0.1 -U postgres -d postgres >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+    ready=true
+    break
+  fi
+  sleep 1
+done
+[[ "$ready" == true ]] || { echo "PostgreSQL did not start. Inspect docker logs $container." >&2; exit 1; }
+# The upstream script drops/recreates chinook: it is used only in this NEW container.
+docker exec -i "$container" psql -X -U postgres -d postgres -v ON_ERROR_STOP=1 < "$sql" > "$test_dir/import.log" 2>&1
+{
+  printf "CREATE ROLE thoth_reader LOGIN PASSWORD '%s';\n" "$(cat "$test_dir/reader-password")"
+  cat <<'SQL'
+GRANT CONNECT ON DATABASE chinook TO thoth_reader;
+GRANT USAGE ON SCHEMA public TO thoth_reader;
+GRANT SELECT ON ALL TABLES IN SCHEMA public TO thoth_reader;
+ALTER ROLE thoth_reader SET default_transaction_read_only = on;
+SQL
+} | docker exec -i "$container" psql -X -U postgres -d chinook -v ON_ERROR_STOP=1 > "$test_dir/reader-setup.log" 2>&1
+docker exec "$container" psql -X -U postgres -d chinook -v ON_ERROR_STOP=1 -c \
+  "SELECT (SELECT count(*) FROM information_schema.tables WHERE table_schema='public' AND table_type='BASE TABLE') AS tables, (SELECT count(*) FROM track) AS tracks, (SELECT count(*) FROM invoice) AS invoices, (SELECT count(*) FROM invoice_line) AS invoice_lines;"
+printf '\nReady: container=%s, host=127.0.0.1, port=%s, database=chinook, schema=public, user=thoth_reader\n' "$container" "$port"
+printf 'Protected password file: %s/reader-password\n' "$test_dir"
+printf 'Use this read-only account for ThothII. Evidence is absent. No ThothII stack was started.\n'