diff --git a/create-bestax/e2e/utils/scaffold.ts b/create-bestax/e2e/utils/scaffold.ts
index 9c04cf17c..f30e10c5d 100644
--- a/create-bestax/e2e/utils/scaffold.ts
+++ b/create-bestax/e2e/utils/scaffold.ts
@@ -71,6 +71,13 @@ export async function scaffoldApp(config: ScaffoldConfig): Promise<string> {
     throw new Error(`Expected scaffold to contain ${launchJsonPath}`);
   }
 
+  // npm strips literal .gitignore from published tarballs; the CLI renames
+  // the templates' _gitignore on copy — fail loudly if that path regresses.
+  const gitignorePath = path.join(outputDir, '.gitignore');
+  if (!(await fs.pathExists(gitignorePath))) {
+    throw new Error(`Expected scaffold to contain ${gitignorePath}`);
+  }
+
   // Install dependencies in the scaffolded app with a fresh pnpm resolve.
   // --ignore-workspace: the app may live inside the monorepo tree, so treat it
   // as a standalone project rather than a workspace member.
diff --git a/create-bestax/src/__tests__/constants.test.ts b/create-bestax/src/__tests__/constants.test.ts
index e0735c596..c2305c777 100644
--- a/create-bestax/src/__tests__/constants.test.ts
+++ b/create-bestax/src/__tests__/constants.test.ts
@@ -241,6 +241,18 @@ describe('constants', () => {
       expect(content).toContain('meta tags');
       expect(content).toContain('rewrite the README');
     });
+
+    it('tells agents how to recover from a strictPort collision without moving ports', () => {
+      const content = CLAUDE_MD('my-app', {
+        bulmaFlavor: 'complete',
+        iconLibrary: 'none',
+      });
+      expect(content).toContain('--strictPort');
+      // Listener-only: a plain `lsof -ti:5173` would also match clients
+      // connected to the port (e.g. the preview browser) and kill them.
+      expect(content).toContain('lsof -tiTCP:5173 -sTCP:LISTEN | xargs kill');
+      expect(content).toMatch(/orphaned dev server/);
+    });
   });
 
   describe('CLAUDE_MD house style', () => {
diff --git a/create-bestax/src/__tests__/display.test.ts b/create-bestax/src/__tests__/display.test.ts
index 9c1845f9b..4e1906e4c 100644
--- a/create-bestax/src/__tests__/display.test.ts
+++ b/create-bestax/src/__tests__/display.test.ts
@@ -108,17 +108,46 @@ describe('display', () => {
       expect(output).toContain(projectName);
     });
 
-    it('should include pnpm commands', () => {
-      displaySuccess('my-app');
+    describe('next-steps package manager', () => {
+      const originalUserAgent = process.env.npm_config_user_agent;
 
-      const calls = (console.log as jest.MockedFunction<typeof console.log>)
-        .mock.calls;
-      const output = calls.map(call => call.join(' ')).join('\n');
+      beforeEach(() => {
+        delete process.env.npm_config_user_agent;
+      });
+
+      afterEach(() => {
+        if (originalUserAgent === undefined) {
+          delete process.env.npm_config_user_agent;
+        } else {
+          process.env.npm_config_user_agent = originalUserAgent;
+        }
+      });
+
+      it('should fall back to npm commands without an invoking package manager', () => {
+        displaySuccess('my-app');
+
+        const calls = (console.log as jest.MockedFunction<typeof console.log>)
+          .mock.calls;
+        const output = calls.map(call => call.join(' ')).join('\n');
+
+        expect(output).toContain('cd my-app');
+        expect(output).toContain('npm install');
+        expect(output).toContain('npm run dev');
+      });
+
+      it('should mirror the invoking package manager from npm_config_user_agent', () => {
+        process.env.npm_config_user_agent =
+          'pnpm/9.12.0 npm/? node/v22.0.0 darwin arm64';
+        displaySuccess('my-app');
 
-      // Check for pnpm commands
-      expect(output).toContain('cd my-app');
-      expect(output).toContain('pnpm install');
-      expect(output).toContain('pnpm dev');
+        const calls = (console.log as jest.MockedFunction<typeof console.log>)
+          .mock.calls;
+        const output = calls.map(call => call.join(' ')).join('\n');
+
+        expect(output).toContain('cd my-app');
+        expect(output).toContain('pnpm install');
+        expect(output).toContain('pnpm run dev');
+      });
     });
 
     it('should use chalk for formatting', () => {
diff --git a/create-bestax/src/__tests__/file-system.test.ts b/create-bestax/src/__tests__/file-system.test.ts
index af48be8a8..82e759062 100644
--- a/create-bestax/src/__tests__/file-system.test.ts
+++ b/create-bestax/src/__tests__/file-system.test.ts
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ jest.unstable_mockModule('fs-extra', () => ({
     emptyDir: jest.fn(),
     ensureDir: jest.fn(),
     copy: jest.fn(),
+    move: jest.fn(),
     readJson: jest.fn(),
     writeJson: jest.fn(),
     readFile: jest.fn(),
@@ -27,6 +28,7 @@ jest.unstable_mockModule('fs-extra', () => ({
   emptyDir: jest.fn(),
   ensureDir: jest.fn(),
   copy: jest.fn(),
+  move: jest.fn(),
   readJson: jest.fn(),
   writeJson: jest.fn(),
   readFile: jest.fn(),
@@ -159,6 +161,47 @@ describe('file-system', () => {
 
       expect(fs.default.copy).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
     });
+
+    it('should rename _gitignore to .gitignore when the placeholder was copied', async () => {
+      // Call 1: the source-directory existence check; call 2: the copied
+      // placeholder in the destination.
+      (fs.default.existsSync as jest.MockedFunction<typeof fs.existsSync>)
+        .mockReturnValueOnce(true)
+        .mockReturnValueOnce(true);
+
+      await copyDirectory('/source', '/target', { _gitignore: '.gitignore' });
+
+      expect(fs.default.copy).toHaveBeenCalledWith('/source', '/target');
+      expect(fs.default.move).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
+        _path.join('/target', '_gitignore'),
+        _path.join('/target', '.gitignore'),
+        { overwrite: true }
+      );
+    });
+
+    it('should skip the rename when the placeholder is absent from the destination', async () => {
+      (fs.default.existsSync as jest.MockedFunction<typeof fs.existsSync>)
+        .mockReturnValueOnce(true)
+        .mockReturnValueOnce(false);
+
+      await copyDirectory('/source', '/target', { _gitignore: '.gitignore' });
+
+      expect(fs.default.copy).toHaveBeenCalledWith('/source', '/target');
+      expect(fs.default.move).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    });
+
+    it('should not run a rename pass when renames is omitted', async () => {
+      (
+        fs.default.existsSync as jest.MockedFunction<typeof fs.existsSync>
+      ).mockReturnValue(true);
+
+      await copyDirectory('/source', '/target');
+
+      expect(fs.default.copy).toHaveBeenCalledWith('/source', '/target');
+      expect(fs.default.move).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+      // Only the source-directory check ran — no per-entry destination checks.
+      expect(fs.default.existsSync).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+    });
   });
 
   describe('updatePackageJson', () => {
diff --git a/create-bestax/src/__tests__/package-manager.test.ts b/create-bestax/src/__tests__/package-manager.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..15ef404fe
--- /dev/null
+++ b/create-bestax/src/__tests__/package-manager.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,67 @@
+import { describe, it, expect, beforeEach, afterEach } from '@jest/globals';
+import { detectPackageManager } from '../package-manager.js';
+
+describe('detectPackageManager', () => {
+  // Jest itself runs under a package manager, so npm_config_user_agent is
+  // live in this process. Clear it so every case is deterministic —
+  // an explicit `undefined` argument falls through to the env default.
+  const originalUserAgent = process.env.npm_config_user_agent;
+
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    delete process.env.npm_config_user_agent;
+  });
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    if (originalUserAgent === undefined) {
+      delete process.env.npm_config_user_agent;
+    } else {
+      process.env.npm_config_user_agent = originalUserAgent;
+    }
+  });
+
+  describe('with an explicit user agent argument', () => {
+    it('detects pnpm', () => {
+      expect(
+        detectPackageManager('pnpm/9.12.0 npm/? node/v22.0.0 darwin arm64')
+      ).toBe('pnpm');
+    });
+
+    it('detects yarn', () => {
+      expect(
+        detectPackageManager('yarn/4.5.0 npm/? node/v22.0.0 darwin arm64')
+      ).toBe('yarn');
+    });
+
+    it('detects bun', () => {
+      expect(
+        detectPackageManager('bun/1.1.30 npm/? node/v22.0.0 darwin arm64')
+      ).toBe('bun');
+    });
+
+    it('detects npm', () => {
+      expect(detectPackageManager('npm/10.9.0 node/v22.0.0 darwin arm64')).toBe(
+        'npm'
+      );
+    });
+
+    it('falls back to npm when the user agent is undefined', () => {
+      expect(detectPackageManager(undefined)).toBe('npm');
+    });
+
+    it('falls back to npm when the user agent is empty', () => {
+      expect(detectPackageManager('')).toBe('npm');
+    });
+
+    it('falls back to npm for an unknown package manager', () => {
+      expect(detectPackageManager('deno/2.0')).toBe('npm');
+    });
+  });
+
+  describe('with the default process.env source', () => {
+    it('reads npm_config_user_agent when no argument is given', () => {
+      process.env.npm_config_user_agent =
+        'pnpm/9.12.0 npm/? node/v22.0.0 darwin arm64';
+      expect(detectPackageManager()).toBe('pnpm');
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/create-bestax/src/__tests__/project-creator.test.ts b/create-bestax/src/__tests__/project-creator.test.ts
index 23ba7358c..fde034e20 100644
--- a/create-bestax/src/__tests__/project-creator.test.ts
+++ b/create-bestax/src/__tests__/project-creator.test.ts
@@ -242,7 +242,8 @@ describe('ProjectCreator', () => {
       expect(fileSystem.ensureDirectory).toHaveBeenCalledWith('/target/path');
       expect(fileSystem.copyDirectory).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
         expect.stringContaining('vite'),
-        '/target/path'
+        '/target/path',
+        { _gitignore: '.gitignore' }
       );
     });
   });
diff --git a/create-bestax/src/constants.ts b/create-bestax/src/constants.ts
index fdc22c2b7..0da648b1f 100644
--- a/create-bestax/src/constants.ts
+++ b/create-bestax/src/constants.ts
@@ -219,7 +219,9 @@ Read skill \`references/\` files with absolute paths — the shell's cwd is not
 
 \`.claude/launch.json\` declares this app's dev server for Claude Code's browser preview
 (\`npm run dev\` on port 5173, \`--strictPort\`) — start it from there rather than rediscovering
-the command.
+the command. \`--strictPort\` failing because 5173 is busy means an orphaned dev server from an
+earlier session owns the port — kill the listener (\`lsof -tiTCP:5173 -sTCP:LISTEN | xargs kill\`)
+and relaunch; don't move the app to another port.
 
 ## Docs
 
diff --git a/create-bestax/src/display.ts b/create-bestax/src/display.ts
index e1fe9b762..16de5025e 100644
--- a/create-bestax/src/display.ts
+++ b/create-bestax/src/display.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 import chalk from 'chalk';
 import figures from 'figures';
 import { MESSAGES } from './constants.js';
+import { detectPackageManager } from './package-manager.js';
 
 export function displayHeader(): void {
   console.log();
@@ -16,9 +17,12 @@ export function displaySuccess(targetDir: string): void {
   console.log();
   console.log(chalk.bold(MESSAGES.NEXT_STEPS));
   console.log();
+  // Mirror the package manager that invoked the CLI — `<pm> install` and
+  // `<pm> run dev` are valid for all four supported PMs.
+  const pm = detectPackageManager();
   console.log(chalk.cyan(`  cd ${targetDir}`));
-  console.log(chalk.cyan('  pnpm install'));
-  console.log(chalk.cyan('  pnpm dev'));
+  console.log(chalk.cyan(`  ${pm} install`));
+  console.log(chalk.cyan(`  ${pm} run dev`));
   console.log();
   console.log(
     chalk.gray('  Your app includes a beautiful logo-centric homepage')
diff --git a/create-bestax/src/file-system.ts b/create-bestax/src/file-system.ts
index 4db52ea29..8cdbe36fe 100644
--- a/create-bestax/src/file-system.ts
+++ b/create-bestax/src/file-system.ts
@@ -26,12 +26,23 @@ export async function ensureDirectory(targetPath: string): Promise<void> {
 
 export async function copyDirectory(
   source: string,
-  destination: string
+  destination: string,
+  renames?: Record<string, string>
 ): Promise<void> {
   if (!(await checkDirectoryExists(source))) {
     throw new Error(MESSAGES.TEMPLATE_NOT_FOUND(source));
   }
   await fs.copy(source, destination);
+  if (renames) {
+    for (const [from, to] of Object.entries(renames)) {
+      const copiedPath = path.join(destination, from);
+      if (fs.existsSync(copiedPath)) {
+        await fs.move(copiedPath, path.join(destination, to), {
+          overwrite: true,
+        });
+      }
+    }
+  }
 }
 
 export async function readJsonFile<T = unknown>(filePath: string): Promise<T> {
diff --git a/create-bestax/src/package-manager.ts b/create-bestax/src/package-manager.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..d26df4169
--- /dev/null
+++ b/create-bestax/src/package-manager.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+export type PackageManager = 'npm' | 'pnpm' | 'yarn' | 'bun';
+
+const KNOWN = ['npm', 'pnpm', 'yarn', 'bun'] as const;
+
+/** Detect the package manager that invoked the CLI from npm_config_user_agent
+ *  (e.g. "pnpm/9.12.0 npm/? node/v22 darwin arm64"). Falls back to npm. */
+export function detectPackageManager(
+  userAgent: string | undefined = process.env.npm_config_user_agent
+): PackageManager {
+  const name = userAgent?.split('/')[0] ?? '';
+  return (KNOWN as readonly string[]).includes(name)
+    ? (name as PackageManager)
+    : 'npm';
+}
diff --git a/create-bestax/src/project-creator.ts b/create-bestax/src/project-creator.ts
index fad7fd7e7..d8ce71532 100644
--- a/create-bestax/src/project-creator.ts
+++ b/create-bestax/src/project-creator.ts
@@ -37,6 +37,13 @@ import {
 
 const __dirname = path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
 
+// npm strips literal `.gitignore` files from published tarballs, so the
+// templates track `_gitignore` instead and the scaffolder renames it back
+// on copy — otherwise published scaffolds would ship with no .gitignore.
+const TEMPLATE_RENAMES: Record<string, string> = {
+  _gitignore: '.gitignore',
+};
+
 export interface ProjectConfig {
   projectName: string;
   template: string;
@@ -101,7 +108,7 @@ export class ProjectCreator {
   async copyTemplate(template: string, targetPath: string): Promise<void> {
     const templatePath = this.getTemplatePath(template);
     await ensureDirectory(targetPath);
-    await copyDirectory(templatePath, targetPath);
+    await copyDirectory(templatePath, targetPath, TEMPLATE_RENAMES);
   }
 
   async updateIndexHtmlTitle(
diff --git a/create-bestax/templates/vite-ts/.gitignore b/create-bestax/templates/vite-ts/_gitignore
similarity index 92%
rename from create-bestax/templates/vite-ts/.gitignore
rename to create-bestax/templates/vite-ts/_gitignore
index 54f07af58..b6cdf575d 100644
--- a/create-bestax/templates/vite-ts/.gitignore
+++ b/create-bestax/templates/vite-ts/_gitignore
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ node_modules
 dist
 dist-ssr
 *.local
+*.tsbuildinfo
 
 # Editor directories and files
 .vscode/*
@@ -21,4 +22,4 @@ dist-ssr
 *.ntvs*
 *.njsproj
 *.sln
-*.sw?
\ No newline at end of file
+*.sw?
diff --git a/create-bestax/templates/vite-ts/tsconfig.json b/create-bestax/templates/vite-ts/tsconfig.json
index 7a7611e4a..eeab595c5 100644
--- a/create-bestax/templates/vite-ts/tsconfig.json
+++ b/create-bestax/templates/vite-ts/tsconfig.json
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
     "lib": ["ES2020", "DOM", "DOM.Iterable"],
     "module": "ESNext",
     "skipLibCheck": true,
+    "tsBuildInfoFile": "./node_modules/.tmp/tsconfig.tsbuildinfo",
 
     /* Bundler mode */
     "moduleResolution": "bundler",
diff --git a/create-bestax/templates/vite/.gitignore b/create-bestax/templates/vite/_gitignore
similarity index 92%
rename from create-bestax/templates/vite/.gitignore
rename to create-bestax/templates/vite/_gitignore
index 54f07af58..b6cdf575d 100644
--- a/create-bestax/templates/vite/.gitignore
+++ b/create-bestax/templates/vite/_gitignore
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ node_modules
 dist
 dist-ssr
 *.local
+*.tsbuildinfo
 
 # Editor directories and files
 .vscode/*
@@ -21,4 +22,4 @@ dist-ssr
 *.ntvs*
 *.njsproj
 *.sln
-*.sw?
\ No newline at end of file
+*.sw?
diff --git a/docs/docs/guides/getting-started/ai-development.md b/docs/docs/guides/getting-started/ai-development.md
index ca2cd637d..b7a3b1310 100644
--- a/docs/docs/guides/getting-started/ai-development.md
+++ b/docs/docs/guides/getting-started/ai-development.md
@@ -205,4 +205,6 @@ New apps can start AI-ready too: accepting the AI-skills prompt in `npm create b
 installs the bestax Agent Skills and a `CLAUDE.md`, plus a `.claude/launch.json` that tells
 Claude Code's browser preview how to start the app's dev server (`npm run dev` on port 5173,
 with `--strictPort` so a busy port fails loudly instead of silently drifting to another port).
-See the [LLMs guide](/docs/guides/llms) for the full AI tooling story.
+If 5173 is already taken, the usual cause is an orphaned dev server from an earlier session;
+the generated CLAUDE.md tells agents to kill the listener
+(`lsof -tiTCP:5173 -sTCP:LISTEN | xargs kill`) rather than move ports. See the [LLMs guide](/docs/guides/llms) for the full AI tooling story.