diff --git a/hive-ag3nt/src/events.rs b/hive-ag3nt/src/events.rs
index 2aa32d7f..660e25d0 100644
--- a/hive-ag3nt/src/events.rs
+++ b/hive-ag3nt/src/events.rs
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ use hive_claude::TokenUsage;
 use rusqlite::{Connection, params};
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 use tokio::sync::broadcast;
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 const CHANNEL_CAPACITY: usize = 256;
 /// Max `LiveEvent`s the `Bus` returns from `history()` and keeps in
@@ -213,13 +214,6 @@ pub fn write_forge_cursor<S: std::hash::BuildHasher>(
     write_harness_json(&v);
 }
 
-fn now_unix() -> i64 {
-    std::time::SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(std::time::UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .ok()
-        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
-        .unwrap_or(0)
-}
 
 const SCHEMA: &str = "
 CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS events (
diff --git a/hive-ag3nt/src/serve_common.rs b/hive-ag3nt/src/serve_common.rs
index 4ea4b570..9958fdd6 100644
--- a/hive-ag3nt/src/serve_common.rs
+++ b/hive-ag3nt/src/serve_common.rs
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ use crate::events::Bus;
 use crate::mcp::REDELIVERY_HINT;
 use crate::turn::{TurnError, TurnOutcome};
 use crate::turn_stats::TurnStatRow;
+pub use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 /// Assemble the per-turn wake prompt string. The role/tools/etc. live in the
 /// system prompt; this is just the wake signal body. `id` is the broker row
@@ -46,13 +47,6 @@ pub fn format_wake_prompt(
 
 /// Current time as a Unix timestamp (seconds). Returns 0 on any error.
 #[must_use]
-pub fn now_unix() -> i64 {
-    std::time::SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(std::time::UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .ok()
-        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
-        .unwrap_or(0)
-}
 
 /// Field-named args for [`build_row`]. Mirrors the turn-stats row
 /// columns; `outcome` and `bus` borrow for the duration of the call.
diff --git a/hive-ag3nt/src/stats.rs b/hive-ag3nt/src/stats.rs
index eb3f6152..743e86d5 100644
--- a/hive-ag3nt/src/stats.rs
+++ b/hive-ag3nt/src/stats.rs
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ use rusqlite::{Connection, OpenFlags};
 use serde::Serialize;
 
 use hive_sh4re::ReminderStats;
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 /// Window param accepted by `/api/stats?window=`. Each maps to a
 /// total span + the bucket width used to roll up trend series.
@@ -208,7 +209,7 @@ fn default_path() -> PathBuf {
 }
 
 fn empty_snapshot(window: Window) -> Snapshot {
-    let now = now_secs();
+    let now = now_unix();
     let from = now - window.span_secs();
     let buckets = fill_buckets(from, now, window.bucket_secs(), &HashMap::new());
     Snapshot {
@@ -239,7 +240,7 @@ fn snapshot(path: &Path, window: Window) -> Result<Snapshot> {
     // matches hive-c0re's host-side reader (`hive_stats::read_agent`).
     conn.busy_timeout(std::time::Duration::from_millis(500))
         .with_context(|| format!("set busy_timeout on {}", path.display()))?;
-    let now = now_secs();
+    let now = now_unix();
     // Fixed windows look back a constant span; `all` starts at the earliest
     // recorded turn (`MIN(started_at)`, falling back to `now` on an empty
     // table) and sizes its buckets adaptively from that span.
@@ -567,11 +568,6 @@ fn u64_from_i64(v: i64) -> u64 {
     u64::try_from(v).unwrap_or(0)
 }
 
-fn now_secs() -> i64 {
-    std::time::SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(std::time::UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .map_or(0, |d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).unwrap_or(i64::MAX))
-}
 
 #[cfg(test)]
 mod tests {
@@ -638,7 +634,7 @@ mod tests {
     fn snapshot_aggregates_rows() {
         let db = tmp_db();
         let _ = std::fs::remove_file(&db);
-        let now = now_secs();
+        let now = now_unix();
         seed_db(
             &db,
             &[
@@ -727,7 +723,7 @@ mod tests {
     fn bash_breakdown_empty_without_table() {
         let db = tmp_db();
         let _ = std::fs::remove_file(&db);
-        seed_db(&db, &[(now_secs() - 100, 1000, "opus", "recv", "ok", "{}")]);
+        seed_db(&db, &[(now_unix() - 100, 1000, "opus", "recv", "ok", "{}")]);
         let s = snapshot(&db, Window::Day).unwrap();
         assert!(s.bash_breakdown.is_empty());
     }
@@ -739,7 +735,7 @@ mod tests {
         let db = tmp_db();
         let _ = std::fs::remove_file(&db);
         seed_db(&db, &[]);
-        let now = now_secs();
+        let now = now_unix();
         let conn = Connection::open(&db).unwrap();
         conn.execute_batch("CREATE TABLE bash_commands (ts INTEGER NOT NULL, head TEXT NOT NULL);")
             .unwrap();
diff --git a/hive-ag3nt/src/vacuum.rs b/hive-ag3nt/src/vacuum.rs
index 8455a371..4b1eba93 100644
--- a/hive-ag3nt/src/vacuum.rs
+++ b/hive-ag3nt/src/vacuum.rs
@@ -15,9 +15,10 @@
 //! the honest fix is to clean them up where they live.
 
 use std::path::Path;
-use std::time::{Duration, SystemTime, UNIX_EPOCH};
+use std::time::Duration;
 
 use rusqlite::{Connection, Result, params};
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 /// How often the sweep runs.
 const VACUUM_INTERVAL: Duration = Duration::from_hours(1);
@@ -131,10 +132,3 @@ fn vacuum_events(path: &Path) -> Result<u64> {
     Ok(u64::try_from(removed).unwrap_or(0))
 }
 
-fn now_unix() -> i64 {
-    SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .ok()
-        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
-        .unwrap_or(0)
-}
diff --git a/hive-c0re/src/approvals.rs b/hive-c0re/src/approvals.rs
index 2f1d4989..613d20bf 100644
--- a/hive-c0re/src/approvals.rs
+++ b/hive-c0re/src/approvals.rs
@@ -4,11 +4,11 @@
 
 use std::path::Path;
 use std::sync::Mutex;
-use std::time::{SystemTime, UNIX_EPOCH};
 
 use anyhow::{Context, Result, bail};
 use hive_sh4re::{Approval, ApprovalKind, ApprovalStatus};
 use rusqlite::{Connection, OptionalExtension, params};
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 const SCHEMA: &str = r"
 CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS approvals (
@@ -380,13 +380,6 @@ fn kind_from_str(s: &str) -> Result<ApprovalKind> {
     })
 }
 
-fn now_unix() -> i64 {
-    SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .ok()
-        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
-        .unwrap_or(0)
-}
 
 #[cfg(test)]
 mod tests {
diff --git a/hive-c0re/src/audit_log.rs b/hive-c0re/src/audit_log.rs
index d6a26153..549e5b35 100644
--- a/hive-c0re/src/audit_log.rs
+++ b/hive-c0re/src/audit_log.rs
@@ -21,13 +21,13 @@
 
 use std::path::Path;
 use std::sync::{Arc, Mutex, OnceLock};
-use std::time::{SystemTime, UNIX_EPOCH};
 
 use anyhow::{Context, Result};
 
 use chrono::{DateTime, Utc};
 use rusqlite::{Connection, params};
 use serde::Serialize;
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 /// Process-singleton handle, set once at coordinator startup. Mirrors
 /// `build_logs::GLOBAL` — lets recording sites write without threading an
@@ -148,7 +148,7 @@ impl AuditLog {
         outcome: AuditOutcome,
         detail: Option<&str>,
     ) -> Option<AuditEntry> {
-        let now = now_secs();
+        let now = now_unix();
         let conn = self.conn.lock().unwrap();
         match conn.execute(
             "INSERT INTO audit_log (ts_unix, agent, action, target, outcome, detail)
@@ -215,7 +215,7 @@ impl AuditLog {
     /// # Errors
     /// Returns an error if the `DELETE` query fails.
     pub fn vacuum(&self) -> Result<u64> {
-        let cutoff = now_secs() - KEEP_SECS;
+        let cutoff = now_unix() - KEEP_SECS;
         let conn = self.conn.lock().unwrap();
         let removed = conn.execute("DELETE FROM audit_log WHERE ts_unix < ?1", params![cutoff])?;
         Ok(u64::try_from(removed).unwrap_or(0))
@@ -259,13 +259,6 @@ fn row_to_entry(r: &rusqlite::Row) -> rusqlite::Result<AuditEntry> {
     })
 }
 
-fn now_secs() -> i64 {
-    SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .ok()
-        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
-        .unwrap_or(0)
-}
 
 #[cfg(test)]
 mod tests {
@@ -326,7 +319,7 @@ mod tests {
             let conn = db.conn.lock().unwrap();
             conn.execute(
                 "UPDATE audit_log SET ts_unix = ?1",
-                params![now_secs() - KEEP_SECS - 60],
+                params![now_unix() - KEEP_SECS - 60],
             )
             .unwrap();
         }
diff --git a/hive-c0re/src/broker.rs b/hive-c0re/src/broker.rs
index 4cc62bbb..20c13a0d 100644
--- a/hive-c0re/src/broker.rs
+++ b/hive-c0re/src/broker.rs
@@ -4,7 +4,6 @@
 use std::collections::{HashMap, HashSet};
 use std::path::Path;
 use std::sync::Mutex;
-use std::time::{SystemTime, UNIX_EPOCH};
 
 use anyhow::{Context, Result};
 
@@ -13,6 +12,7 @@ use hive_sh4re::{InboxRow, Message};
 use rusqlite::{Connection, OptionalExtension, params};
 use serde::Serialize;
 use tokio::sync::broadcast;
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 const SCHEMA: &str = r"
 CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS messages (
@@ -1136,13 +1136,6 @@ fn ensure_reminder_columns(conn: &Connection) -> Result<()> {
     )
 }
 
-fn now_unix() -> i64 {
-    SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .ok()
-        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
-        .unwrap_or(0)
-}
 
 #[cfg(test)]
 mod tests {
diff --git a/hive-c0re/src/build_logs.rs b/hive-c0re/src/build_logs.rs
index 24afa74c..67fa9ca8 100644
--- a/hive-c0re/src/build_logs.rs
+++ b/hive-c0re/src/build_logs.rs
@@ -5,12 +5,12 @@
 
 use std::path::Path;
 use std::sync::{Arc, Mutex, OnceLock};
-use std::time::{SystemTime, UNIX_EPOCH};
 
 use anyhow::{Context, Result};
 use rusqlite::{Connection, OptionalExtension, params};
 use serde::Serialize;
 use tokio::sync::broadcast;
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 /// Process-singleton handle, set once at coordinator startup. Lets
 /// the `lifecycle` module's `run` / `prebuild_toplevel` access the
@@ -169,7 +169,7 @@ impl BuildLogs {
     /// — the caller threads it through `append_stdout` / `append_stderr`
     /// while the child runs and into `finish` once it exits.
     pub fn start(&self, agent: &str, kind: &str, cmdline: &str) -> Result<i64> {
-        let now = now_secs();
+        let now = now_unix();
         let conn = self.conn.lock().unwrap();
         conn.execute(
             "INSERT INTO build_logs (agent, kind, cmdline, started_at) VALUES (?1, ?2, ?3, ?4)",
@@ -219,7 +219,7 @@ impl BuildLogs {
     /// Finalize a build attempt. Sets `finished_at` to now and
     /// `status` to the terminal state. Best-effort.
     pub fn finish(&self, id: i64, status: BuildStatus) {
-        let now = now_secs();
+        let now = now_unix();
         let conn = self.conn.lock().unwrap();
         if let Err(e) = conn.execute(
             "UPDATE build_logs SET finished_at = ?1, status = ?2 WHERE id = ?3",
@@ -374,7 +374,7 @@ impl BuildLogs {
     ///   a long-running build shouldn't disappear from its own log
     ///   viewer mid-stream.
     pub fn vacuum(&self) -> Result<u64> {
-        let now = now_secs();
+        let now = now_unix();
         let conn = self.conn.lock().unwrap();
         let fail_cutoff = now - KEEP_FAIL_SECS;
         let ok_cutoff = now - KEEP_OK_SECS;
@@ -438,13 +438,6 @@ fn row_to_header(r: &rusqlite::Row) -> rusqlite::Result<BuildLogHeader> {
     })
 }
 
-fn now_secs() -> i64 {
-    SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .ok()
-        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
-        .unwrap_or(0)
-}
 
 #[cfg(test)]
 mod tests {
@@ -533,7 +526,7 @@ mod tests {
         // stays within KEEP_FAIL_SECS so it survives; old_fail goes
         // beyond; old_ok goes past KEEP_OK_SECS but inside
         // KEEP_FAIL_SECS — proves the per-status rule.
-        let now = now_secs();
+        let now = now_unix();
         {
             let conn = db.conn.lock().unwrap();
             conn.execute(
diff --git a/hive-c0re/src/hive_stats.rs b/hive-c0re/src/hive_stats.rs
index f3bd6e2e..3558a5ea 100644
--- a/hive-c0re/src/hive_stats.rs
+++ b/hive-c0re/src/hive_stats.rs
@@ -18,12 +18,13 @@
 
 use std::collections::HashMap;
 use std::path::Path;
-use std::time::{Duration, SystemTime, UNIX_EPOCH};
+use std::time::Duration;
 
 use rusqlite::{Connection, OpenFlags};
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 
 use crate::coordinator::Coordinator;
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 /// Window accepted by `/api/stats-hive?window=`. Maps to a lookback
 /// span; the hive view is a flat rollup (no per-bucket trend — the
@@ -225,11 +226,6 @@ struct AgentAgg {
     bash: HashMap<String, u64>,
 }
 
-fn now_secs() -> i64 {
-    SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .map_or(0, |d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).unwrap_or(i64::MAX))
-}
 
 #[allow(
     clippy::cast_sign_loss,
@@ -322,7 +318,7 @@ fn read_bash_heads(conn: &Connection, from: i64) -> HashMap<String, u64> {
 /// per-agent db is skipped (logged), never fatal.
 #[must_use]
 pub fn hive_snapshot(window: Window, prices: &PriceTable) -> HiveStats {
-    let now = now_secs();
+    let now = now_unix();
     // Fixed windows look back a constant span; `all` aggregates every
     // recorded turn (`from == 0`). The hive rollup isn't time-bucketed, so
     // unlike the per-agent snapshot it needs no adaptive bucket sizing.
@@ -426,7 +422,7 @@ mod tests {
         let conn = Connection::open_in_memory().unwrap();
         conn.execute_batch("CREATE TABLE bash_commands (ts INTEGER NOT NULL, head TEXT NOT NULL);")
             .unwrap();
-        let now = now_secs();
+        let now = now_unix();
         for (ts, head) in [
             (now - 100, "cargo"),
             (now - 200, "cargo"),
diff --git a/hive-c0re/src/job_queue/mod.rs b/hive-c0re/src/job_queue/mod.rs
index 1db5d53d..133afb84 100644
--- a/hive-c0re/src/job_queue/mod.rs
+++ b/hive-c0re/src/job_queue/mod.rs
@@ -29,6 +29,7 @@ use std::collections::{HashMap, VecDeque};
 use std::sync::Mutex;
 
 use tokio::sync::Notify;
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 pub use model::{
     Dag, DagSpec, DagView, DepWhen, Node, NodeId, NodeKind, PermPayload, Source, State, Template,
@@ -566,11 +567,3 @@ impl JobQueue {
     }
 }
 
-/// Current unix timestamp in seconds.
-fn now_unix() -> i64 {
-    std::time::SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(std::time::UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .ok()
-        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
-        .unwrap_or(0)
-}
diff --git a/hive-c0re/src/loose_ends.rs b/hive-c0re/src/loose_ends.rs
index bdecc232..f73031ef 100644
--- a/hive-c0re/src/loose_ends.rs
+++ b/hive-c0re/src/loose_ends.rs
@@ -13,12 +13,12 @@
 //! the dashboard uses, so the bottleneck would be json
 //! (de)serialisation, not the read.
 
-use std::time::{SystemTime, UNIX_EPOCH};
 
 use anyhow::Result;
 use hive_sh4re::LooseEnd;
 
 use crate::coordinator::Coordinator;
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 /// Open threads pending against `agent`:
 /// - undelivered inbox messages this agent still owes itself a `recv`
@@ -143,13 +143,6 @@ fn saturating_age(now: i64, then: i64) -> u64 {
     u64::try_from(delta).unwrap_or(0)
 }
 
-fn now_unix() -> i64 {
-    SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .ok()
-        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
-        .unwrap_or(0)
-}
 
 #[cfg(test)]
 mod tests {
diff --git a/hive-c0re/src/operator_questions.rs b/hive-c0re/src/operator_questions.rs
index 945d7ae9..b9b9dd67 100644
--- a/hive-c0re/src/operator_questions.rs
+++ b/hive-c0re/src/operator_questions.rs
@@ -11,13 +11,13 @@
 
 use std::path::Path;
 use std::sync::Mutex;
-use std::time::{SystemTime, UNIX_EPOCH};
 
 use anyhow::{Context, Result, bail};
 
 use chrono::{DateTime, Utc};
 use rusqlite::{Connection, OptionalExtension, params};
 use serde::Serialize;
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 const SCHEMA: &str = r"
 CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS operator_questions (
@@ -272,10 +272,3 @@ fn row_to_question(row: &rusqlite::Row<'_>) -> rusqlite::Result<OpQuestion> {
     })
 }
 
-fn now_unix() -> i64 {
-    SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .ok()
-        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
-        .unwrap_or(0)
-}
diff --git a/hive-c0re/src/power.rs b/hive-c0re/src/power.rs
index e28ad2fb..72a8068d 100644
--- a/hive-c0re/src/power.rs
+++ b/hive-c0re/src/power.rs
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ use std::sync::Mutex;
 
 use anyhow::{Context, Result};
 use rusqlite::{Connection, OptionalExtension, params};
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 const SCHEMA: &str = "
 CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS agent_power (
@@ -128,7 +129,7 @@ impl PowerStore {
         conn.execute(
             "INSERT INTO agent_power (agent, wanted, updated_at) VALUES (?1, ?2, ?3)
              ON CONFLICT(agent) DO UPDATE SET wanted = ?2, updated_at = ?3",
-            params![agent, wanted.as_str(), now_secs()],
+            params![agent, wanted.as_str(), now_unix()],
         )
         .context("upsert agent_power")?;
         Ok(())
@@ -157,13 +158,6 @@ impl PowerStore {
     }
 }
 
-fn now_secs() -> i64 {
-    std::time::SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(std::time::UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .ok()
-        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
-        .unwrap_or(0)
-}
 
 #[cfg(test)]
 mod tests {
diff --git a/hive-c0re/src/scheduled_prompts.rs b/hive-c0re/src/scheduled_prompts.rs
index 24607782..cac39829 100644
--- a/hive-c0re/src/scheduled_prompts.rs
+++ b/hive-c0re/src/scheduled_prompts.rs
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@ use std::sync::Mutex;
 use anyhow::{Context, Result, bail};
 use rusqlite::{Connection, OptionalExtension, params};
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 /// Typed error returned by [`ScheduledPrompts::pause`] and
 /// [`ScheduledPrompts::resume`] when the target row does not exist or
@@ -674,13 +675,6 @@ fn load_targets(conn: &Connection, schedule_id: i64) -> Result<Vec<ScheduleTarge
     Ok(out)
 }
 
-fn now_unix() -> i64 {
-    std::time::SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(std::time::UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .ok()
-        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
-        .unwrap_or(0)
-}
 
 #[cfg(test)]
 mod tests {
diff --git a/hive-c0re/src/scheduled_prompts_worker.rs b/hive-c0re/src/scheduled_prompts_worker.rs
index 2bdba46b..e1fd5265 100644
--- a/hive-c0re/src/scheduled_prompts_worker.rs
+++ b/hive-c0re/src/scheduled_prompts_worker.rs
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ use hive_sh4re::Message;
 
 use crate::coordinator::Coordinator;
 use crate::scheduled_prompts::Schedule;
+use hive_sh4re::wire_time::now_unix;
 
 /// Per-tick cap. Each schedule fires once per tick at most;
 /// 100/tick × 5s tick = sustained throughput cap of ~20/sec,
@@ -236,13 +237,6 @@ fn notify_operator_missing_target(coord: &Coordinator, schedule: &Schedule, targ
     }
 }
 
-fn now_unix() -> i64 {
-    std::time::SystemTime::now()
-        .duration_since(std::time::UNIX_EPOCH)
-        .ok()
-        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
-        .unwrap_or(0)
-}
 
 /// Per-target outcome counts for one `fire_now` invocation.
 /// Returned to the operator so the dashboard can render
diff --git a/hive-sh4re/src/wire_time.rs b/hive-sh4re/src/wire_time.rs
index b246b1cf..2d952901 100644
--- a/hive-sh4re/src/wire_time.rs
+++ b/hive-sh4re/src/wire_time.rs
@@ -15,6 +15,19 @@ pub fn from_secs(secs: i64) -> DateTime<Utc> {
     DateTime::<Utc>::from_timestamp(secs, 0).unwrap_or_default()
 }
 
+/// Current unix timestamp in seconds — the single definition behind
+/// every store's `created_at` / `sent_at` / … stamp (this module owns
+/// the epoch-seconds convention; a dozen local copies of this fn used
+/// to float around both binaries). Clamps to 0 on a pre-epoch clock.
+#[must_use]
+pub fn now_unix() -> i64 {
+    std::time::SystemTime::now()
+        .duration_since(std::time::UNIX_EPOCH)
+        .ok()
+        .and_then(|d| i64::try_from(d.as_secs()).ok())
+        .unwrap_or(0)
+}
+
 #[cfg(test)]
 mod tests {
     use chrono::{DateTime, Utc};