A content-lifecycle management system (CLMS) intercepts a request to perform an action upon a data object in a domain of a multi-domain computing environment during a certain phase of the object's lifecycle. The CLMS retrieves data and rules from a cross-domain distributed ledger that is accessible throughout the multi-domain environment. The retrieved information includes content-lifecycle management policies that control which actors can perform certain types of actions upon specific data objects during various lifecycle phases. The ledger also describes and classifies actors, dependency relationships between storage and infrastructure components of the environment, and the results of past requests. If the CLMS, using the ledger information, determines that performing the requested action would neither disrupt access to the data object nor be prohibited by the policies, the CLMS directs an appropriate content-management technology to perform the action, updates the ledger, and reports any rejected requests to other lifecycle-management components.