diff --git a/src/lib/onboard/inference-selection-validation.test.ts b/src/lib/onboard/inference-selection-validation.test.ts
index 7d4c6ba37b5..a05e90a614f 100644
--- a/src/lib/onboard/inference-selection-validation.test.ts
+++ b/src/lib/onboard/inference-selection-validation.test.ts
@@ -160,6 +160,43 @@ describe("inference selection validation", () => {
     }
   });
 
+  it("routes an unreachable custom endpoint through transport recovery, not a silent loop (#6854)", async () => {
+    const probeOpenAiLikeEndpoint = vi.fn(() => ({ ok: true, api: "openai-completions" }));
+    let capturedRecovery: { kind?: string } | undefined;
+    const promptValidationRecovery = vi.fn(async (_label: string, recovery: { kind?: string }) => {
+      capturedRecovery = recovery;
+      return "retry" as const;
+    });
+    const error = vi.spyOn(console, "error").mockImplementation(() => {});
+    const helpers = createInferenceSelectionValidationHelpers({
+      isNonInteractive: () => false,
+      agentProductName: () => "OpenClaw",
+      getCredential: () => "test-key",
+      probeOpenAiLikeEndpoint,
+      promptValidationRecovery,
+      resolveEndpointHost: async () => {
+        throw new Error("getaddrinfo ENOTFOUND example.invalid");
+      },
+    });
+
+    try {
+      await helpers.validateCustomOpenAiLikeSelection(
+        "Custom endpoint",
+        "https://example.invalid/v1",
+        "model-a",
+        "COMPATIBLE_API_KEY",
+      );
+      // A DNS-unreachable endpoint is a transport failure: the recovery prompt
+      // receives a transport classification (DNS/VPN/URL hint + retry/back/exit),
+      // not the silent selection loop the private-IP path takes.
+      expect(promptValidationRecovery).toHaveBeenCalled();
+      expect(capturedRecovery?.kind).toBe("transport");
+      expect(probeOpenAiLikeEndpoint).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    } finally {
+      error.mockRestore();
+    }
+  });
+
   it.each([
     "http://127.0.0.1:8000/v1",
     "https://inference.local/v1",
diff --git a/src/lib/onboard/inference-selection-validation.ts b/src/lib/onboard/inference-selection-validation.ts
index 1b90fcc8c85..de86e253921 100644
--- a/src/lib/onboard/inference-selection-validation.ts
+++ b/src/lib/onboard/inference-selection-validation.ts
@@ -162,15 +162,26 @@ export function createInferenceSelectionValidationHelpers(
     // the probe could otherwise rebind to a private/internal address after this
     // public preflight (TOCTOU — cv review, #6293).
     if (preflight.ok) return { pinnedAddresses: preflight.addresses };
+    const reason = preflight.reason ?? "endpoint resolves to a private/internal address";
+    // A preflight failure because the host does not resolve (an unreachable /
+    // non-existent endpoint) is a transport failure, not an endpoint-policy
+    // rejection. Mark it with curl's "could not resolve host" status (6) so it
+    // routes through the transport recovery path — a DNS/VPN/endpoint-URL hint
+    // plus a retry/back/exit prompt — instead of silently looping back to
+    // provider selection. A private-IP SSRF block keeps status 0: it resolved
+    // fine, the address is just refused. (#6854)
+    const unresolvedHost = /cannot resolve endpoint host|did not resolve to any address/i.test(
+      reason,
+    );
     const syntheticProbe = {
       ok: false as const,
-      message: preflight.reason,
+      message: reason,
       failures: [
         {
           name: "SSRF preflight",
           httpStatus: 0,
-          curlStatus: 0,
-          message: preflight.reason ?? "endpoint resolves to a private/internal address",
+          curlStatus: unresolvedHost ? 6 : 0,
+          message: reason,
           body: "",
         },
       ],