diff --git a/src/lib/onboard.ts b/src/lib/onboard.ts
index 2fca8bfeac7..104359340fb 100644
--- a/src/lib/onboard.ts
+++ b/src/lib/onboard.ts
@@ -66,6 +66,9 @@ const {
 const {
   getSelectionDrift,
 }: typeof import("./onboard/selection-drift") = require("./onboard/selection-drift");
+const {
+  syncPresetSelection,
+}: typeof import("./onboard/policy-preset-sync") = require("./onboard/policy-preset-sync");
 const crypto = require("node:crypto");
 const fs = require("fs");
 const os = require("os");
@@ -9280,51 +9283,6 @@ async function setupPoliciesWithSelection(
   return interactiveChoice;
 }
 
-/**
- * Reconcile the sandbox's currently-applied preset list with the user's
- * target selection:
- *   - remove presets in `applied` but not in `target` (narrow)
- *   - apply presets in `target` but not in `applied` (widen)
- *   - leave unchanged presets untouched (no wasteful re-apply)
- *
- * Shared between the interactive and non-interactive paths so "narrow the
- * selection" works identically in both. Fixes #2177 (non-interactive path
- * was apply-only, so deselected presets lingered).
- *
- * @param {string} sandboxName  Target sandbox.
- * @param {string[]} applied    Preset names currently applied to the sandbox.
- * @param {string[]} target     Preset names the user wants applied after this call.
- * @param {Object<string, string>|null} [accessByName=null]
- *   Optional map of preset name → access mode ("read" | "read-write").
- *   When provided, applyPreset receives the mode per preset so the gateway
- *   can distinguish read vs read-write installs.
- * @returns {void}
- */
-function syncPresetSelection(
-  sandboxName: string,
-  applied: string[],
-  target: string[],
-  accessByName: Record<string, string> | null = null,
-): void {
-  const targetSet = new Set(target);
-  const appliedSet = new Set(applied);
-  const deselected = applied.filter((name) => !targetSet.has(name));
-  const newlySelected = target.filter((name) => !appliedSet.has(name));
-
-  for (const name of deselected) {
-    waitForPolicyMutation(`removePreset(${name})`, () =>
-      policies.removePreset(sandboxName, name),
-    );
-  }
-
-  for (const name of newlySelected) {
-    const options = accessByName ? { access: accessByName[name] } : undefined;
-    waitForPolicyMutation(`applyPreset(${name})`, () =>
-      policies.applyPreset(sandboxName, name, options),
-    );
-  }
-}
-
 // ── Dashboard ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 const CONTROL_UI_PORT = DASHBOARD_PORT;
diff --git a/src/lib/onboard/policy-preset-sync.ts b/src/lib/onboard/policy-preset-sync.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..0fa87d320e3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/lib/onboard/policy-preset-sync.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,80 @@
+// SPDX-FileCopyrightText: Copyright (c) 2026 NVIDIA CORPORATION & AFFILIATES. All rights reserved.
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
+
+const policies: typeof import("../policy") = require("../policy");
+const { waitUntil }: typeof import("../core/wait") = require("../core/wait");
+
+function waitForPolicyMutation(description: string, mutate: () => boolean | void): void {
+  let lastError: Error | null = null;
+  const success = waitUntil(() => {
+    try {
+      const result = mutate();
+      if (result === false) {
+        lastError = new Error(`${description} returned false`);
+        return false;
+      }
+      return true;
+    } catch (err) {
+      const error = err instanceof Error ? err : new Error(String(err));
+      lastError = error;
+      if (!error.message.includes("sandbox not found")) {
+        throw err;
+      }
+      return false;
+    }
+  }, 10, 2000);
+
+  if (!success) {
+    throw lastError || new Error(`${description} timed out`);
+  }
+}
+
+/**
+ * Reconcile the sandbox's currently-applied preset list with the user's
+ * target selection:
+ *   - remove presets in `applied` but not in `target` (narrow)
+ *   - apply presets in `target` but not in `applied` (widen)
+ *   - leave unchanged presets untouched (no wasteful re-apply)
+ */
+function syncPresetSelection(
+  sandboxName: string,
+  applied: string[],
+  target: string[],
+  accessByName: Record<string, string> | null = null,
+): void {
+  const targetSet = new Set(target);
+  const appliedSet = new Set(applied);
+  const deselected = applied.filter((name) => !targetSet.has(name));
+  const newlySelected = target.filter((name) => !appliedSet.has(name));
+
+  for (const name of deselected) {
+    waitForPolicyMutation(`removePreset(${name})`, () => policies.removePreset(sandboxName, name));
+  }
+
+  if (!accessByName) {
+    const builtInPresetNames = new Set(policies.listPresets().map((preset) => preset.name));
+    const builtInNewlySelected = newlySelected.filter((name) => builtInPresetNames.has(name));
+    const remainingNewlySelected = newlySelected.filter((name) => !builtInPresetNames.has(name));
+
+    if (builtInNewlySelected.length > 0 && remainingNewlySelected.length === 0) {
+      waitForPolicyMutation(`applyPresets(${builtInNewlySelected.join(",")})`, () =>
+        policies.applyPresets(sandboxName, builtInNewlySelected),
+      );
+      return;
+    }
+
+    for (const name of newlySelected) {
+      waitForPolicyMutation(`applyPreset(${name})`, () => policies.applyPreset(sandboxName, name));
+    }
+    return;
+  }
+
+  for (const name of newlySelected) {
+    const options = { access: accessByName[name] };
+    waitForPolicyMutation(`applyPreset(${name})`, () =>
+      policies.applyPreset(sandboxName, name, options),
+    );
+  }
+}
+
+export { syncPresetSelection, waitForPolicyMutation };
diff --git a/src/lib/policy/index.ts b/src/lib/policy/index.ts
index b2f58fac012..cee3472eeef 100644
--- a/src/lib/policy/index.ts
+++ b/src/lib/policy/index.ts
@@ -668,6 +668,95 @@ function applyPreset(
   return applyPresetContent(sandboxName, presetName, presetContent, options);
 }
 
+/**
+ * Apply multiple built-in presets to a running sandbox with a single gateway
+ * policy mutation. This preserves final policy/registry state from applying
+ * presets one-by-one, while avoiding one `openshell policy set --wait` per
+ * preset during onboarding.
+ */
+function applyPresets(sandboxName: string, presetNames: string[]): boolean {
+  const isRfc1123Label = /^[a-z0-9]([a-z0-9-]*[a-z0-9])?$/.test(sandboxName);
+  if (!sandboxName || sandboxName.length > 63 || !isRfc1123Label) {
+    throw new Error(
+      `Invalid or truncated sandbox name: '${sandboxName}'. ` +
+        `Names must be 1-63 chars, lowercase alphanumeric, with optional internal hyphens.`,
+    );
+  }
+
+  const uniquePresetNames = [...new Set(presetNames)].filter(Boolean);
+  if (uniquePresetNames.length === 0) return true;
+
+  let rawPolicy = "";
+  try {
+    rawPolicy = runCapture(buildPolicyGetCommand(sandboxName), { ignoreError: true });
+  } catch {
+    /* ignored */
+  }
+
+  let merged = parseCurrentPolicy(rawPolicy);
+  const endpointLogs: string[][] = [];
+
+  for (const presetName of uniquePresetNames) {
+    const presetContent = loadPreset(presetName);
+    if (!presetContent) {
+      console.error(`  Cannot load preset: ${presetName}`);
+      return false;
+    }
+
+    const presetEntries = extractPresetEntries(presetContent);
+    if (!presetEntries) {
+      console.error(`  Preset ${presetName} has no network_policies section.`);
+      return false;
+    }
+
+    const endpoints = getPresetEndpoints(presetContent);
+    endpointLogs.push(endpoints);
+    merged = mergePresetIntoPolicy(merged, presetEntries);
+  }
+
+  for (const endpoints of endpointLogs) {
+    if (endpoints.length > 0) {
+      console.log(`  Widening sandbox egress — adding: ${endpoints.join(", ")}`);
+    }
+  }
+
+  const tmpDir = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), "nemoclaw-policy-"));
+  const tmpFile = path.join(tmpDir, "policy.yaml");
+  fs.writeFileSync(tmpFile, merged, { encoding: "utf-8", mode: 0o600 });
+
+  try {
+    run(buildPolicySetCommand(tmpFile, sandboxName));
+
+    for (const presetName of uniquePresetNames) {
+      console.log(`  Applied preset: ${presetName}`);
+    }
+  } finally {
+    try {
+      fs.unlinkSync(tmpFile);
+    } catch {
+      /* ignored */
+    }
+    try {
+      fs.rmdirSync(tmpDir);
+    } catch {
+      /* ignored */
+    }
+  }
+
+  const sandbox = registry.getSandbox(sandboxName);
+  if (sandbox) {
+    const pols = sandbox.policies || [];
+    for (const presetName of uniquePresetNames) {
+      if (!pols.includes(presetName)) {
+        pols.push(presetName);
+      }
+    }
+    registry.updateSandbox(sandboxName, { policies: pols });
+  }
+
+  return true;
+}
+
 /**
  * Load a user-authored preset YAML from an arbitrary path on disk, validate
  * its shape, and return `{ presetName, content }` for use with
@@ -992,6 +1081,7 @@ export {
   mergePresetNamesIntoPolicy,
   removePresetFromPolicy,
   applyPreset,
+  applyPresets,
   applyPresetContent,
   loadPresetFromFile,
   removePreset,
diff --git a/test/install-preflight.test.ts b/test/install-preflight.test.ts
index 8d684da7c3c..1634e4dd644 100644
--- a/test/install-preflight.test.ts
+++ b/test/install-preflight.test.ts
@@ -989,7 +989,12 @@ exit 0
       path.join(fakeBin, "docker"),
       `#!/usr/bin/env bash
 if [ "$1" = "info" ]; then
-  exit 1
+  # Let the installer's early ensure_docker gate pass, then simulate Docker
+  # becoming unavailable for the shared host preflight after the CLI is linked.
+  if [ -x "$NPM_PREFIX/bin/nemoclaw" ]; then
+    exit 1
+  fi
+  exit 0
 fi
 exit 0
 `,
diff --git a/test/onboard-preset-diff.test.ts b/test/onboard-preset-diff.test.ts
index a187a916f90..9e3aec75873 100644
--- a/test/onboard-preset-diff.test.ts
+++ b/test/onboard-preset-diff.test.ts
@@ -95,6 +95,13 @@ policies.applyPreset = (_name, preset) => {
   // and false on recoverable errors (unknown preset, malformed YAML, etc).
   return true;
 };
+policies.applyPresets = (_name, presets) => {
+  for (const preset of presets) {
+    appliedCalls.push(preset);
+    if (!appliedState.includes(preset)) appliedState.push(preset);
+  }
+  return true;
+};
 policies.removePreset = (_name, preset) => {
   removedCalls.push(preset);
   appliedState = appliedState.filter((p) => p !== preset);
diff --git a/test/policies.test.ts b/test/policies.test.ts
index 7a136f6ced9..81a89f2db21 100644
--- a/test/policies.test.ts
+++ b/test/policies.test.ts
@@ -282,6 +282,82 @@ describe("policies", () => {
     });
   });
 
+  describe("applyPresets", () => {
+    it("merges built-in presets and submits one policy update", () => {
+      const tmpDir = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), "nemoclaw-policy-batch-"));
+      const fakeOpenshell = path.join(tmpDir, "openshell");
+      const callsPath = path.join(tmpDir, "calls.log");
+      const policyOut = path.join(tmpDir, "policy.yaml");
+      const script = String.raw`
+const fs = require("node:fs");
+const registry = require(${REGISTRY_PATH});
+const policies = require(${POLICIES_PATH});
+registry.registerSandbox({ name: "test-sandbox", policies: [] });
+const result = policies.applyPresets("test-sandbox", ["npm", "pypi"]);
+process.stdout.write("\n__RESULT__" + JSON.stringify({
+  result,
+  calls: fs.readFileSync(process.env.CALLS_PATH, "utf-8").trim().split("\n").filter(Boolean),
+  policy: fs.readFileSync(process.env.POLICY_OUT, "utf-8"),
+  registry: registry.getSandbox("test-sandbox"),
+}));
+`;
+      fs.writeFileSync(
+        fakeOpenshell,
+        `#!/usr/bin/env bash
+set -euo pipefail
+printf '%s\n' "$*" >> ${JSON.stringify(callsPath)}
+if [ "$1 $2" = "policy get" ]; then
+  printf 'Version: 1\nHash: test\n---\nversion: 1\n\nnetwork_policies: {}\n'
+  exit 0
+fi
+if [ "$1 $2" = "policy set" ]; then
+  policy_file=""
+  while [ "$#" -gt 0 ]; do
+    if [ "$1" = "--policy" ]; then
+      policy_file="$2"
+      break
+    fi
+    shift
+  done
+  cp "$policy_file" ${JSON.stringify(policyOut)}
+  printf 'Policy version 2 submitted\nPolicy version 2 loaded\n'
+  exit 0
+fi
+exit 1
+`,
+        { mode: 0o755 },
+      );
+
+      try {
+        const result = spawnSync(process.execPath, ["-e", script], {
+          cwd: REPO_ROOT,
+          encoding: "utf-8",
+          env: {
+            ...process.env,
+            HOME: tmpDir,
+            NEMOCLAW_OPENSHELL_BIN: fakeOpenshell,
+            CALLS_PATH: callsPath,
+            POLICY_OUT: policyOut,
+          },
+        });
+
+        expect(result.status).toBe(0);
+        const marker = "__RESULT__";
+        const markerIndex = result.stdout.indexOf(marker);
+        expect(markerIndex).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(0);
+        const payload = JSON.parse(result.stdout.slice(markerIndex + marker.length));
+        expect(payload.result).toBe(true);
+        expect(payload.calls.filter((call: string) => call.startsWith("policy get "))).toHaveLength(1);
+        expect(payload.calls.filter((call: string) => call.startsWith("policy set "))).toHaveLength(1);
+        expect(payload.policy).toContain("npm_yarn:");
+        expect(payload.policy).toContain("pypi:");
+        expect(payload.registry.policies).toEqual(["npm", "pypi"]);
+      } finally {
+        fs.rmSync(tmpDir, { recursive: true, force: true });
+      }
+    });
+  });
+
   describe("applyPreset disclosure logging", () => {
     it("logs egress endpoints before applying", () => {
       const logSpy = vi.spyOn(console, "log").mockImplementation(() => {});
diff --git a/test/policy-preset-sync.test.ts b/test/policy-preset-sync.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..23680cb3c31
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/policy-preset-sync.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,59 @@
+// SPDX-FileCopyrightText: Copyright (c) 2026 NVIDIA CORPORATION & AFFILIATES. All rights reserved.
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
+
+import assert from "node:assert/strict";
+import { spawnSync, type SpawnSyncReturns } from "node:child_process";
+import fs from "node:fs";
+import os from "node:os";
+import path from "node:path";
+import { describe, it } from "vitest";
+
+const repoRoot = path.join(import.meta.dirname, "..");
+
+function runScript(scriptBody: string): SpawnSyncReturns<string> {
+  const tmpDir = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), "nemoclaw-policy-sync-"));
+  const scriptPath = path.join(tmpDir, "script.js");
+  fs.writeFileSync(scriptPath, scriptBody);
+  const result = spawnSync(process.execPath, [scriptPath], {
+    cwd: repoRoot,
+    encoding: "utf-8",
+    env: {
+      ...process.env,
+      HOME: tmpDir,
+    },
+    timeout: 15000,
+  });
+  fs.rmSync(tmpDir, { recursive: true, force: true });
+  return result;
+}
+
+describe("policy preset sync", () => {
+  it("batches only all-built-in additions and preserves mixed preset order", () => {
+    const policiesPath = JSON.stringify(path.join(repoRoot, "dist", "lib", "policy", "index.js"));
+    const syncPath = JSON.stringify(
+      path.join(repoRoot, "dist", "lib", "onboard", "policy-preset-sync.js"),
+    );
+    const script = String.raw`
+const policies = require(${policiesPath});
+const calls = [];
+policies.listPresets = () => [{ name: "npm" }, { name: "pypi" }];
+policies.applyPreset = (_sandbox, name) => { calls.push("single:" + name); return true; };
+policies.applyPresets = (_sandbox, names) => { calls.push("batch:" + names.join(",")); return true; };
+policies.removePreset = (_sandbox, name) => { calls.push("remove:" + name); return true; };
+
+const { syncPresetSelection } = require(${syncPath});
+syncPresetSelection("test-sb", [], ["npm", "pypi"]);
+syncPresetSelection("test-sb", [], ["npm", "custom", "pypi"]);
+process.stdout.write(JSON.stringify(calls) + "\n");
+`;
+
+    const result = runScript(script);
+    assert.equal(result.status, 0, result.stderr);
+    assert.deepEqual(JSON.parse(result.stdout.trim()), [
+      "batch:npm,pypi",
+      "single:npm",
+      "single:custom",
+      "single:pypi",
+    ]);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/test/policy-tiers-onboard.test.ts b/test/policy-tiers-onboard.test.ts
index 84576cc5421..45fb4905924 100644
--- a/test/policy-tiers-onboard.test.ts
+++ b/test/policy-tiers-onboard.test.ts
@@ -262,6 +262,7 @@ console.log = (...args) => lines.push(args.join(" "));
       String.raw`
 const policies = require(${policiesPath});
 policies.applyPreset = () => {};
+policies.applyPresets = () => true;
 policies.getAppliedPresets = () => [];
 
 const lines = [];
@@ -307,6 +308,7 @@ console.log = (...args) => lines.push(args.join(" "));
 const policies = require(${policiesPath});
 const appliedCalls = [];
 policies.applyPreset = (_sandbox, name) => { appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
+policies.applyPresets = (_sandbox, names) => { for (const name of names) appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
 policies.getAppliedPresets = () => [];
 
 console.log = () => {};
@@ -349,6 +351,7 @@ const policies = require(${policiesPath});
 const appliedCalls = [];
 const removedCalls = [];
 policies.applyPreset = (_sandbox, name) => { appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
+policies.applyPresets = (_sandbox, names) => { for (const name of names) appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
 policies.removePreset = (_sandbox, name) => { removedCalls.push(name); return true; };
 policies.getAppliedPresets = () => ["brave", "npm"];
 
@@ -395,6 +398,7 @@ const policies = require(${policiesPath});
 const appliedCalls = [];
 const removedCalls = [];
 policies.applyPreset = (_sandbox, name) => { appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
+policies.applyPresets = (_sandbox, names) => { for (const name of names) appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
 policies.removePreset = (_sandbox, name) => { removedCalls.push(name); return true; };
 policies.getAppliedPresets = () => ["brave"];
 
@@ -435,6 +439,7 @@ const policies = require(${policiesPath});
 const appliedCalls = [];
 const removedCalls = [];
 policies.applyPreset = (_sandbox, name) => { appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
+policies.applyPresets = (_sandbox, names) => { for (const name of names) appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
 policies.removePreset = (_sandbox, name) => { removedCalls.push(name); return true; };
 policies.getAppliedPresets = () => ["brave"];
 
@@ -475,6 +480,7 @@ const policies = require(${policiesPath});
 const appliedCalls = [];
 const removedCalls = [];
 policies.applyPreset = (_sandbox, name) => { appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
+policies.applyPresets = (_sandbox, names) => { for (const name of names) appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
 policies.removePreset = (_sandbox, name) => { removedCalls.push(name); return true; };
 policies.getAppliedPresets = () => ["brave"];
 policies.listCustomPresets = () => [{ name: "brave", description: "custom preset" }];
@@ -516,6 +522,7 @@ const policies = require(${policiesPath});
 const appliedCalls = [];
 const removedCalls = [];
 policies.applyPreset = (_sandbox, name) => { appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
+policies.applyPresets = (_sandbox, names) => { for (const name of names) appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
 policies.removePreset = (_sandbox, name) => { removedCalls.push(name); return true; };
 policies.getAppliedPresets = () => ["brave"];
 policies.listCustomPresets = () => [{ name: "brave", description: "custom preset" }];
@@ -564,6 +571,7 @@ console.log = () => {};
 const policies = require(${policiesPath});
 const appliedCalls = [];
 policies.applyPreset = (sandbox, name) => { appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
+policies.applyPresets = (sandbox, names) => { for (const name of names) appliedCalls.push(name); return true; };
 policies.getAppliedPresets = () => [];
 
 // Silence onboard's note()/console.log so stdout is pure JSON.
@@ -606,6 +614,7 @@ console.log = () => {};
       String.raw`
 const policies = require(${policiesPath});
 policies.applyPreset = () => true;
+policies.applyPresets = () => true;
 policies.getAppliedPresets = () => [];
 
 console.log = () => {};