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{{Ratings}}
{{Status|Canon}}
{{Era|FOR|H1|TF|FS}}
{{References}}
{{Center|''Are you looking for [[Halo: The Cole Protocol]], the sixth Halo novel?''}}
{{Quote|It would take ''years'' to ram this down the throats of the politicians, but as far as my battle group was concerned, it was ''law''.|Admiral Cole on his first draft of the Cole Protocol.<ref name="HWG">''[[Halo Wars: Genesis]]'', p. 8</ref>}}


The '''Cole Protocol''', otherwise known as '''United Nations Space Command Emergency Priority Order 098831A-1''' is a command enacted by [[Vice Admiral]] [[Preston Cole]] to prevent the [[Covenant]] from finding the location of [[Earth]]. Essentially, it is an order preventing Covenant retrival of data that contains the location of Earth, and forbids retreating vessels from setting course to Earth, as the Covenant is able to track [[Slipspace|Slipspace travel]] and find Earth's location. The policy also states that to prevent capture, any UNSC or Human vessel is to self destruct, after wiping all data matrixes, to prevent the advance of the Covenant.
'''Emergency Priority Order 098831A-1''', also called '''General Order 098831A-1''' and known commonly as the '''Cole Protocol''', was a [[United Nations Space Command]] directive enacted by [[Admiral]] [[Preston Cole]] to prevent the [[Covenant]] from discovering the [[human]] homeworld and [[Unified Earth Government|colonial]] capital, [[Earth]], or any other [[Inner Colonies|inner colony]] world. In practice, it was intended to prevent Covenant's retrieval of data that contained the location of Earth; it forbade retreating vessels from setting a direct [[Slipstream space|slipspace]] course toward any human population center, as the Covenant were able to track slipspace travel vectors and calculate the evacuating ship's destination. The policy also stated that to prevent capture, any military or civilian vessel, in the event of an emergency evacuation, was to self-destruct, after wiping all data matrices, to prevent the advance of the Covenant.


All UNSC personnel were commanded to read the Cole Protocol under [[NAVCOM]] [[UNSC Emergency Priority Order 098831A-1]].
All UNSC personnel were commanded to read the Cole Protocol each day "by the letter" under an [[UNSC Emergency Priority Order 098831A-1 (transmission)|emergency transmission]] issued by the [[UNSC Naval Command|Naval Command]]. The Cole Protocol ensured that in nearly twenty-seven years of interstellar warfare, the Covenant never discovered the human presence on Earth, and only found other population centers either by accident, by tracking devices left aboard ships,<ref>'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''', Chapter 23, ''page 216'' (2001 paperback); ''page 247'' (2010 paperback)</ref> or by the presence of [[Forerunner]] artifacts via [[Luminary]].<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kB5yso8d3gA ''Youtube'' - Halo 2: Anniversary Prologue Terminal 1 - Beholden]</ref> Unfortunately, the Cole Protocol ceased to be effective when, on [[2552#October|October 20, 2552]], Covenant forces invaded Earth; however, the protocol presumably remained in effect for the other remaining Inner Colonies.


==Hypodermic-FXT-J==
[[File:HGenesis-Colespear.png|thumb|250px|Preston Cole writing Hypodermic-FXT-J.]]


==The Protocol==
Hypodermic-FXT-J contained the basic instructions set in the final draft of the first articles of the Cole Protocol.{{Ref/Reuse|HWG}} The report's contents are as follows:
Excerpt from ''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'':
===Article 1===
<blockquote>'''United Nations Space Command Emergency Priority Order 098831A-1'''
'''[[Encryption Code]]:''' Red
'''Public Key:''' file/ rst light/
'''From:''' [[UNSC]]/[[NAVCOM]] Fleet [[H.T. Ward]]
'''To:''' ALL UNSC PERSONNEL
'''Subject:''' General Order 098831A-1 ("The Cole Protocol )
'''[[Transmission Classification|Classification]]:''' RESTRICTED (BGX Directive)


'''The Cole Protocol'''
[[Admiral]] [[Margaret Parangosky|Parangosky]]/Office of Naval Intelligence/Routing Sequence: Hypodermic-FXT-J<br />
To safeguard the Inner Colonies and Earth, all UNSC vessels or stations must not be captured with intact navigation databases that may lead Covenant forces to human civilian population centers.
'''CODE NAME CLASSIFIED: Pied Piper'''<br />
If ''any'' Covenant forces are detected:
(Continued from previous page)...
#Activate selective purge of databases on all ship-based and planetary data networks.
#Initiate triple-screen check to ensure all data has been erased and all backups neutralized.
#Execute viral data scavengers (Download from UNSCTTP://EPWW:COLEPROTOCOL/Virtualscav/fbr.091)
#If retreating from Covenant forces, all ships must enter [[Slipspace|Slipstream]] space with randomized vectors NOT directed toward Earth, the Inner Colonies, or any other human population center.
#In case of imminent capture by Covenant forces, all UNSC vessels MUST self-destruct.


Violation of this directive will be considered TREASON and pursuant to UNSC Military law articles [[JAG 845-P]] and [[JAG 7556-L]], such violations are punishable by life imprisonment or execution.</blockquote>
Based on the data revealed by [[Subject 386|the alien]], these new protocols must be immediately implemented:
#All UNSC and civilian ships which come in contact with alien assets must have NAV computer/AI erased—destroyed if necessary—to prevent capture of core world locations.
#ALL Human vessels fleeing from alien forces must do so on a randomly generated vector away from UNSC core world locations.
#ONI Section II to immediately begin Slipstream space attenuated broadcast of pre-recorded human carrier signals from antiquity to prevent triangulation of Earth.<ref>''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe]]'', [[The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole]], Section Six: The Covenant War: The Cole Campaigns (2525-2532 CE)</ref>


''*It should be noted that [[Lieutenant Wagner]] broke Article 1 but was later pardoned.''
==The protocol==
===Article 1===
<!-- Do not change the content of the following section, as it is written verbatim.-->
:'''United Nations Space Command Emergency Priority Order 098831A-1'''
:'''[[Encryption code|Encryption Code]]:''' Red
:'''Public Key:''' file/ First light/
:'''From:''' UNSC/NAVCOM Fleet [[H. T. Ward]]
:'''To:''' ALL UNSC PERSONNEL
:'''Subject:''' General Order 098831A-1 ("The Cole Protocol")
:'''[[Transmission classification|Classification]]:''' RESTRICTED ([[BGX Directive]])
 
:'''The Cole Protocol'''
:To safeguard and protect the Inner Colonies and Earth, all UNSC vessels or stations must not be captured with intact navigation databases that may lead Covenant forces to human civilian population centers.
:If ''any'' Covenant forces are detected:
:1. Activate selective purge of databases on all ship-based and planetary data networks.
:2. Initiate triple-screen check to ensure all data has been erased and all backups neutralized.
:3. Execute [[viral data scavengers]] (Download from [[UNSCTTP://EPWW:COLEPROTOCOL/Virtualscav/fbr.091]])
:4. If retreating from Covenant forces, all ships must enter Slipstream space with randomized vectors NOT directed toward Earth, the Inner Colonies, or any other human population center.{{Ref/Note|Following the [[Fall of Reach]], [[Wagner|Lieutenant Wagner]] defied Article 4, initiating a slipspace jump straight to Earth in order to warn HIGHCOM of Reach's fate as quickly as possible. No punitive action was taken against him.}}
:5. In case of imminent capture by Covenant forces and boarders, all UNSC ships '''MUST''' self-destruct.{{Ref/Note|During the [[Battle of Installation 04]], Captain Keyes and the ''Pillar of Autumn'' were captured by the Covenant and Monitor 343 Guilty Spark was able to obtain information about human history and the location of Earth from the ship's records.}}
:Violation of this directive will be considered an act of [[Treason|TREASON]] and pursuant to UNSC Military law articles [[JAG 845-P]] and [[JAG 7556-L]], such violations are punishable by life imprisonment or [[Capital punishment|execution]].


===Article 2===
===Article 2===
<blockquote>''Destruction or capture of a shipboard AI is absolutely unacceptable.''</blockquote>
{{Quote|Alright then. I'm initiating Cole Protocol, Article 2. We're abandoning the Autumn. That means you too, Cortana.|Captain Keyes initiating the Article 2 Protocol.<ref name="ReferenceA">''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]'', campaign level [[The Pillar of Autumn (Halo: Combat Evolved level)|The Pillar of Autumn]]</ref>}}


This article is never directly stated, though [[Captain Keyes]] uses it while his ship is crashing on [[Installation 04]]. Captain Keyes says "I'm initiating the Cole Protocol, Article 2. We're abandoning the Autumn. That means you, too, Cortana." Later saying, "Destruction or capture of a shipboard AI is absolutely unacceptable."<ref>''[[Halo: The Flood]]'', page 25</ref>
Article 2 mandates the procedure for erasing a ship's data, primarily navigation data, as well as all backups, in case of potential compromise by the Covenant. In such situations, a ship-board [[artificial intelligence]] must be secured; if extraction is not possible, the AI must be purged. It is possible that Article 2 also governs protocol in terms of abandoning a vessel giving the terms that someone need to extract the AI out of the ship for safety if possible.<ref name="ReferenceA">''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]'', campaign level [[The Pillar of Autumn (Halo: Combat Evolved level)|The Pillar of Autumn]]</ref><ref>''[[Halo: The Flood]]'', Chapter 1</ref>


This implies that Article 2 directs personnel, or at least those with sensitive information, to avoid capture. Whilst it is not apparent to what lengths UNSC personnel are to go to ensure this, apparently in the case of AI's the worst case scenario only allows them to be hidden rather than terminated. Strangely, in First Strike there does not seem to be any attempt to recover any potentially surviving AI's.
===Subsection 7===
<blockquote>''No captured Covenant craft may be taken to human controlled space without an exhaustive search for tracking systems that could lead the Covenant to Human bases.''</blockquote>


===Subsection 7===
Subsection 7 dictates that captured Covenant matériel and ships may not be taken back to human-controlled space due to concerns that they might contain tracking devices; as such, it is likely part of Article 4. Bringing a Covenant weapon back to any UNSC installation or Inner Colony is considered an act of treason.<ref>''[[Halo: The Cole Protocol]]'', Chapter 10</ref> [[SPARTAN-III program|SPARTAN-III]] [[Emile-A239]] possessed a large [[keepsake|collection]] of contraband Covenant equipment which he acquired in the field. While possessing this matériel was a gross violation of Subsection 7, his superior, [[UNSC Army]] [[Colonel]] [[Urban Holland]], refused to report the Spartan; Holland claimed that the Army does not need to follow Navy protocol. The SPARTAN-IIs had standing orders from the [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] to seize Covenant weapons and technology whenever possible.<ref>''Halo: The Fall of Reach'', Chapter 20</ref>


<blockquote>'''Subsection 7:''' No [captured] Covenant craft may be taken to human controlled space without an exhaustive search for tracking systems that could lead the Covenant to Human bases.</blockquote>
Few have even heard of Subsection 7; it was little more than a technicality before ''[[Ascendant Justice]]'' was captured by SPARTAN [[John-117]] and his team soon after the [[Battle of Installation 04]]. This was due to the chances of capturing even a severely crippled Covenant ship being minuscule, as the ship's crew would usually activate their self-destruct function before the completion of such attempts. Because ''Ascendant Justice'' could not be thoroughly searched, John-117 and ONI [[Lieutenant]] [[Elias Haverson]] instead planned to take the ship to Reach, which had already been compromised by the Covenant, and then try to return with a better prepared team.<ref>''[[Halo: First Strike]]'', Chapter 9</ref>


Few had even heard of subsection seven because it was little more than a technicality, before the Ascendant Justice was captured. Because the humans could not completely search the ship, they instead planned to take it to Reach and try to return with a more prepared team.
==Notes==
{{Ref/Notes}}


''*Note the number [[7]] in the subsection title.''
==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Cole.jpg|Admiral Preston Cole, creator of his titular protocol.
File:HGenesis-ColesInterrogationAtGreatBear.png|The interrogation that inspired the Cole Protocol.
File:HWG ColeWritingProtocol.png|Preston Cole writing Hypodermic-FXT-J, the progenitor of the Cole Protocol.
</gallery>


==Usage==
==List of appearances==
The '''Cole Protocol''' has seen a large amount of usage, due to the nature of Human and Covenant conflict. Not only has the protocol been used on spacecraft, but also on orbital slipspace monitoring stations, orbiting shipyards, bases and even planet-bound structures.
*''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'' {{1st}}
*''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]''
*''[[Halo: The Flood]]''
*''[[Halo: First Strike]]''
*''[[Halo 2]]''
**''[[Conversations from the Universe]]'' {{Im}}
*''[[Halo: The Cole Protocol]]''
*''[[Halo Wars: Genesis]]'' {{C|As Hypodermic-FXT-J}}
*''[[Halo Legends]]''
**''[[Prototype]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe]]''
**''[[The Mona Lisa]]'' {{Mo}}
**''[[The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole]]''
**''[[The Return]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo: Fall of Reach]]
**''[[Halo: Fall of Reach - Invasion|Invasion]]
*''[[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary]]''
*''[[Halo: New Blood]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo: Fleet Battles]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo Mythos]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo Infinite: Memory Agent]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo Infinite]]''
*''[[Halo: The Television Series]]
**''[[Emergence]]''
**''[[Allegiance]]'' {{Mo}}


==Sources==
==Sources==
<references/>
{{Ref/Sources}}


[[Category:UNSC Protocols]]
[[Category:UNSC protocols]]
[[Category:Files]]
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