diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
index 125ad43e98..f7484deb33 100644
--- a/.env.example
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -187,14 +187,27 @@ GITEA_ALLOWED_USERS=
 # Archon Directory Configuration
 # ============================================
 # All Archon-managed files go in ~/.archon/ by default
-# Override with ARCHON_HOME to use a custom location
+# Override with ARCHON_HOME to use a custom location.
+# Docker: IGNORED. The container always uses /.archon regardless of this value
+# (the variable still leaks into the container env via env_file but has no effect).
 # ARCHON_HOME=~/.archon
 
 # Docker data directory (host path where Archon stores workspaces, worktrees, artifacts, etc.)
 # Default: Docker-managed volume (archon_data)
 # Set to an absolute path on the host for full control over data location:
+# Docker: host-only. Used by docker-compose to choose the bind-mount source for /.archon.
+# NOT read by Archon source code — the container always sees data at /.archon.
 # ARCHON_DATA=/opt/archon-data
 
+# Docker user-home directory (host path for /home/appuser inside the container).
+# /home/appuser is persisted by default so Claude Code skills/commands/agents/hooks,
+# Codex/Pi auth state, ~/.gitconfig, and shell history survive container rebuilds.
+# Default: Docker-managed volume (archon_user_home)
+# Set to an absolute path on the host to bind-mount instead (must be writable by UID 1001):
+# Docker: host-only. Used by docker-compose to choose the bind-mount source for /home/appuser.
+# NOT read by Archon source code.
+# ARCHON_USER_HOME=/opt/archon-user-home
+
 # Logging (optional)
 # Set log level: fatal | error | warn | info | debug | trace
 # Default: info
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index e1b90c77b9..c6f67b17a2 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -7,6 +7,20 @@ and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0
 
 ## [Unreleased]
 
+### Added
+
+- Docker: `/home/appuser` is now persisted by default via the `archon_user_home` named volume, so user-installed Claude Code skills/commands/agents/hooks, Codex/Pi auth, `~/.gitconfig`, and shell history survive container rebuilds. Set `ARCHON_USER_HOME=/host/path` in `.env` to bind-mount a host path instead (#1517, #1518).
+
+### Changed
+
+- Claude provider default `settingSources` changed from `['project']` to `['project', 'user']`, so skills, commands, agents, and `CLAUDE.md` from `~/.claude/` are now loaded by default in all environments — not just Docker. Without this, the new `/home/appuser` persistence would not actually surface user-installed Claude resources. Set `assistants.claude.settingSources: ['project']` in `.archon/config.yaml` to restore the previous project-only behavior (#1518).
+- `.env.example`, `docker-compose.yml`, `deploy/docker-compose.yml`, and `reference/configuration.md` now document that `ARCHON_HOME` is silently overridden inside Docker and `ARCHON_DATA` is a Compose-only host token never read by source. The Docker entrypoint emits a one-line stderr warning when either is set in the container env (#1517).
+
+### Fixed
+
+- Docker: `git config --global --add safe.directory` in the entrypoint now de-duplicates entries before adding, preventing unbounded growth of `~/.gitconfig` now that `/home/appuser` is persisted (#1518).
+- Docker: `setup-auth` now warns at startup when `CODEX_*` env vars are absent but a persisted `~/.codex/auth.json` from a previous run still exists, so operators don't accidentally use stale or revoked credentials (#1518).
+
 ## [0.3.10] - 2026-04-29
 
 Maintainer workflow suite, loop output variables, and broad workflow engine fixes
diff --git a/CLAUDE.md b/CLAUDE.md
index 75ec512975..81ac7f9de3 100644
--- a/CLAUDE.md
+++ b/CLAUDE.md
@@ -479,9 +479,9 @@ The system supports configuring default models and options per assistant in `.ar
 assistants:
   claude:
     model: sonnet  # or 'opus', 'haiku', 'claude-*', 'inherit'
-    settingSources:  # Controls which CLAUDE.md files Claude SDK loads
-      - project      # Default: only project-level CLAUDE.md
-      - user         # Optional: also load ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md
+    settingSources:  # Controls which CLAUDE.md, skills, commands, and agents the SDK loads
+      - project      # Project-level <cwd>/.claude/ (included in default)
+      - user         # User-level ~/.claude/ (included in default; omit both to restrict to project-only)
     claudeBinaryPath: /absolute/path/to/claude  # Optional: Claude Code executable.
                                                 # Native binary (curl installer at
                                                 # ~/.local/bin/claude) or npm cli.js.
diff --git a/deploy/docker-compose.yml b/deploy/docker-compose.yml
index 6529d6c2e9..3153af0696 100644
--- a/deploy/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/deploy/docker-compose.yml
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ services:
       - "${PORT:-3000}:${PORT:-3000}"
     volumes:
       - ${ARCHON_DATA:-archon_data}:/.archon
+      - ${ARCHON_USER_HOME:-archon_user_home}:/home/appuser
     healthcheck:
       test: ["CMD", "curl", "-f", "http://localhost:${PORT:-3000}/api/health"]
       interval: 30s
@@ -46,4 +47,5 @@ services:
 
 volumes:
   archon_data:
+  archon_user_home:
   # postgres_data:
diff --git a/docker-compose.override.example.yml b/docker-compose.override.example.yml
index 545b121644..aa2760cf41 100644
--- a/docker-compose.override.example.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.override.example.yml
@@ -14,3 +14,8 @@ services:
     build:
       context: .
       dockerfile: Dockerfile.user
+
+# /home/appuser (Claude/Codex/Pi config, gitconfig, shell history) is already
+# persisted by default via the archon_user_home named volume in the base compose.
+# To bind-mount a host path instead, set ARCHON_USER_HOME=/your/host/path in .env
+# (the host path must be writable by UID 1001). No override-file edit needed.
diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index e1b4290e3c..45a24a4dd7 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -19,6 +19,13 @@
 #     ARCHON_DATA=/opt/archon-data    # Any absolute path on the host
 #   Default: Docker-managed volume (archon_data)
 #
+# User home (Claude/Codex/Pi config, gitconfig, shell history):
+#   /home/appuser is persisted by default to the archon_user_home named volume so
+#   user-installed Claude Code skills/commands/agents/hooks, Codex/Pi auth state,
+#   and ~/.gitconfig survive container rebuilds. To use a host path instead:
+#     ARCHON_USER_HOME=/opt/archon-user-home    # Any absolute path on the host
+#   Default: Docker-managed volume (archon_user_home)
+#
 # Cloud (HTTPS):
 #   1. Set DOMAIN=archon.example.com in .env
 #   2. Point DNS A record to your server
@@ -39,6 +46,7 @@ services:
       - "${PORT:-3000}:${PORT:-3000}"
     volumes:
       - ${ARCHON_DATA:-archon_data}:/.archon
+      - ${ARCHON_USER_HOME:-archon_user_home}:/home/appuser
     networks:
       - archon-network
     restart: unless-stopped
@@ -122,6 +130,7 @@ services:
 
 volumes:
   archon_data:
+  archon_user_home:
   postgres_data:
   caddy_data:
   caddy_config:
diff --git a/docker-entrypoint.sh b/docker-entrypoint.sh
index 26b9aee024..1dc4dd234c 100644
--- a/docker-entrypoint.sh
+++ b/docker-entrypoint.sh
@@ -13,12 +13,30 @@ if [ "$(id -u)" = "0" ]; then
     echo "ERROR: Failed to fix ownership of /.archon — volume may be read-only or mounted with incompatible options" >&2
     exit 1
   fi
+  # /home/appuser is persisted to a named volume (or bind-mounted via
+  # ARCHON_USER_HOME) so Claude/Codex/Pi config, ~/.gitconfig, shell history,
+  # and other user-specific state survive rebuilds. On bind mounts, host UIDs
+  # don't map to appuser (1001), so fix ownership the same way we do /.archon.
+  if ! chown -Rh appuser:appuser /home/appuser 2>/dev/null; then
+    echo "ERROR: Failed to fix ownership of /home/appuser — volume may be read-only or mounted with incompatible options" >&2
+    exit 1
+  fi
   RUNNER="gosu appuser"
 else
   # Already running as non-root (e.g., --user flag or Kubernetes)
   RUNNER=""
 fi
 
+# Warn if vars known to be ignored inside the container were set via env_file: .env.
+# These leak in but have no effect (ARCHON_HOME is overridden to /.archon by source;
+# ARCHON_DATA is a host-side compose substitution token, never read by the container).
+if [ -n "${ARCHON_HOME:-}" ]; then
+  echo "[archon] ARCHON_HOME=${ARCHON_HOME} ignored in Docker (container home is fixed at /.archon)" >&2
+fi
+if [ -n "${ARCHON_DATA:-}" ]; then
+  echo "[archon] ARCHON_DATA=${ARCHON_DATA} is a host-side compose token; not read inside the container" >&2
+fi
+
 # Register all git repositories under /.archon as safe directories.
 # Git 2.35.2+ (CVE-2022-24765) rejects repos owned by a different UID.
 # On macOS bind mounts (VirtioFS), host UIDs don't map to appuser (1001),
@@ -26,8 +44,14 @@ fi
 # The Dockerfile RUN-layer registers fixed paths, but that gitconfig lives
 # in the image layer — bind mounts don't inherit it on restart, and
 # worktrees are nested at arbitrary depths unknown at build time.
+# With /home/appuser now persisted, ~/.gitconfig survives across restarts —
+# so we must check before --add or duplicate safe.directory lines accumulate
+# every boot.
 find /.archon -name ".git" -prune -print 2>/dev/null | while IFS= read -r git_dir; do
-  $RUNNER git config --global --add safe.directory "$(dirname "$git_dir")"
+  repo_dir="$(dirname "$git_dir")"
+  if ! $RUNNER git config --global --get-all safe.directory 2>/dev/null | grep -qxF "$repo_dir"; then
+    $RUNNER git config --global --add safe.directory "$repo_dir"
+  fi
 done
 
 # Configure git to use GH_TOKEN for HTTPS clones via credential helper
diff --git a/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/deployment/docker.md b/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/deployment/docker.md
index e1caf127a7..3897f6ef38 100644
--- a/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/deployment/docker.md
+++ b/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/deployment/docker.md
@@ -452,6 +452,10 @@ By default this is a Docker-managed volume. To store data at a specific location
 ARCHON_DATA=/opt/archon-data
 ```
 
+:::note
+`ARCHON_HOME` from `.env.example` is **ignored inside Docker** — the container always uses `/.archon`. Use `ARCHON_DATA` (host-side bind-mount source) to control *where on the host* `/.archon` lives. Both `ARCHON_HOME` and `ARCHON_DATA` leak into the container env via `env_file: .env`, which is harmless but expected.
+:::
+
 The directory is created automatically. Make sure the path is writable by UID 1001 (the container user):
 
 ```bash
@@ -461,6 +465,40 @@ sudo chown -R 1001:1001 /opt/archon-data
 
 If `ARCHON_DATA` is not set, Docker manages the volume automatically (`archon_data`) — data persists across restarts and rebuilds but lives inside Docker's storage.
 
+### User Home Directory (Persisted)
+
+The container runs as `appuser` with `$HOME=/home/appuser`. The base compose mounts `/home/appuser` as a named volume (`archon_user_home`) by default, so user-specific state survives container rebuilds without any operator action:
+
+| Path | What it persists |
+|------|------------------|
+| `~/.claude/` | Claude Code skills, commands, agents, hooks, MCP config, projects (conversation history), memory, OAuth state, keybindings, file-history |
+| `~/.codex/` | Codex auth (`auth.json` from interactive `codex login`; the env-var path via `setup-auth` overwrites this on every container start) |
+| `~/.pi/agent/` | Pi `auth.json` from interactive `pi /login` (Archon's Pi adapter reads this on every request) |
+| `~/.gitconfig` | Author identity, signing config, custom aliases, plus the `safe.directory` entries baked into the image |
+| `~/.bash_history` | Shell history when you `docker compose exec app bash` |
+| `~/.config/gh/` | GitHub CLI auth from interactive `gh auth login` (the `GH_TOKEN` env-var path works without it) |
+
+To bind-mount a host path instead of the default named volume, set `ARCHON_USER_HOME` in `.env`:
+
+```ini
+ARCHON_USER_HOME=/opt/archon-user-home
+```
+
+The host path must be writable by UID 1001 — chown it once before first start:
+
+```bash
+mkdir -p /opt/archon-user-home
+sudo chown -R 1001:1001 /opt/archon-user-home
+```
+
+The entrypoint re-applies ownership on every container start, so subsequent rebuilds work without re-running `chown`.
+
+:::caution
+Bind-mount paths do **not** inherit the image's baked `~/.gitconfig` (Docker only copies image content into named volumes on first creation, never into bind mounts). The entrypoint still registers git `safe.directory` entries for `/.archon/workspaces` and `/.archon/worktrees` repos at runtime, so functionality is preserved — but a bind-mounted `~/.gitconfig` starts empty and any author identity / signing config you want must be set explicitly with `git config --global` inside the container.
+:::
+
+If `ARCHON_USER_HOME` is not set, Docker manages the volume automatically (`archon_user_home`) — config persists across restarts and rebuilds but lives inside Docker's storage. To wipe it: `docker compose down && docker volume rm archon_archon_user_home`.
+
 ### GitHub CLI Authentication
 
 `GH_TOKEN` from `.env` is picked up automatically. Alternatively:
diff --git a/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/getting-started/ai-assistants.md b/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/getting-started/ai-assistants.md
index de4004a6ba..cbd9d35d5d 100644
--- a/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/getting-started/ai-assistants.md
+++ b/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/getting-started/ai-assistants.md
@@ -127,7 +127,7 @@ assistants:
     # claudeBinaryPath: /absolute/path/to/claude
 ```
 
-The `settingSources` option controls which `CLAUDE.md` files the Claude Code SDK loads. By default, only the project-level `CLAUDE.md` is loaded. Add `user` to also load your personal `~/.claude/CLAUDE.md`.
+The `settingSources` option controls which `CLAUDE.md`, skill, command, and agent files the Claude Code SDK loads. The default is `['project', 'user']`, which loads both the project-level `<cwd>/.claude/` and your personal `~/.claude/`. Set it to `['project']` if you want to scope a workflow to project-only resources.
 
 ### Set as Default (Optional)
 
diff --git a/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/guides/skills.md b/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/guides/skills.md
index 667f88562f..40e8ef32eb 100644
--- a/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/guides/skills.md
+++ b/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/guides/skills.md
@@ -123,14 +123,17 @@ Step-by-step content here. The agent loads this when the skill activates.
 
 ## Skill Discovery
 
-Skills are discovered from these locations (via `settingSources: ['project']`
-set in ClaudeProvider):
+Skills are discovered from these locations (via the default
+`settingSources: ['project', 'user']` set in ClaudeProvider):
 
 | Location | Scope |
 |----------|-------|
 | `.claude/skills/` (in cwd) | Project-level |
 | `~/.claude/skills/` | User-level (all projects) |
 
+Set `assistants.claude.settingSources: ['project']` in `.archon/config.yaml`
+to scope a workflow to project-level skills only.
+
 Skills installed via `npx skills add` land in `.claude/skills/` by default.
 Use `-g` for global installation to `~/.claude/skills/`.
 
diff --git a/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/reference/configuration.md b/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/reference/configuration.md
index d312c734a2..1800c69e84 100644
--- a/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/reference/configuration.md
+++ b/packages/docs-web/src/content/docs/reference/configuration.md
@@ -62,9 +62,9 @@ defaultAssistant: claude # must match a registered provider (e.g. claude, codex)
 assistants:
   claude:
     model: sonnet
-    settingSources:   # Which CLAUDE.md files the SDK loads (default: ['project'])
-      - project       # Project-level CLAUDE.md (always recommended)
-      - user          # Also load ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md (global preferences)
+    settingSources:   # Which sources the Claude SDK loads (default: ['project', 'user'])
+      - project       # Project-level <cwd>/.claude/ (CLAUDE.md, skills, commands, agents)
+      - user          # User-level ~/.claude/ (CLAUDE.md, skills, commands, agents)
     # Optional: absolute path to the Claude Code executable.
     # Required in compiled Archon binaries when CLAUDE_BIN_PATH is not set.
     # Accepts the native binary (~/.local/bin/claude from the curl installer)
@@ -153,25 +153,25 @@ defaults:
 
 ### Claude settingSources
 
-Controls which `CLAUDE.md` files the Claude Agent SDK loads during sessions:
+Controls which sources the Claude Agent SDK loads during sessions — `CLAUDE.md`, skills, commands, agents, and hooks:
 
 | Value | Description |
 |-------|-------------|
-| `project` | Load the project's `CLAUDE.md` (default, always included) |
-| `user` | Also load `~/.claude/CLAUDE.md` (user's global preferences) |
+| `project` | Load project-level `<cwd>/.claude/` (CLAUDE.md, skills, commands, agents) |
+| `user` | Load user-level `~/.claude/` (CLAUDE.md, skills, commands, agents) |
 
-**Default**: `['project']` -- only project-level instructions are loaded.
+**Default**: `['project', 'user']` — both project-level and user-level sources are loaded.
+
+To restrict a project to project-level resources only (e.g. CI, shared environments, or when `~/.claude/` contains personal commands you don't want surfacing in workflows):
 
-Set in global or repo config:
 ```yaml
 assistants:
   claude:
     settingSources:
       - project
-      - user
 ```
 
-This is useful when you maintain coding style or identity preferences in `~/.claude/CLAUDE.md` and want Archon sessions to respect them.
+Set in `~/.archon/config.yaml` (global) or `.archon/config.yaml` (repo-specific).
 
 ### Worktree file copying (`worktree.copyFiles`)
 
@@ -223,7 +223,7 @@ Environment variables override all other configuration. They are organized by ca
 
 | Variable | Description | Default |
 | --- | --- | --- |
-| `ARCHON_HOME` | Base directory for all Archon-managed files | `~/.archon` |
+| `ARCHON_HOME` | Base directory for all Archon-managed files. **Ignored in Docker** — the container always uses `/.archon`. | `~/.archon` |
 | `PORT` | HTTP server listen port | `3090` (auto-allocated in worktrees) |
 | `LOG_LEVEL` | Logging verbosity (`fatal`, `error`, `warn`, `info`, `debug`, `trace`) | `info` |
 | `BOT_DISPLAY_NAME` | Bot name shown in batch-mode "starting" messages | `Archon` |
@@ -323,7 +323,8 @@ When `CLAUDE_USE_GLOBAL_AUTH` is unset, Archon auto-detects: it uses explicit to
 
 | Variable | Description | Default |
 | --- | --- | --- |
-| `ARCHON_DATA` | Host path for Archon data (workspaces, worktrees, artifacts) | Docker-managed volume |
+| `ARCHON_DATA` | Host path for Archon data (workspaces, worktrees, artifacts). Compose-only — read by `docker-compose.yml` to choose the bind-mount source for `/.archon`; not read by Archon source code. | Docker-managed volume |
+| `ARCHON_USER_HOME` | Host path for `/home/appuser` (Claude/Codex/Pi config, `~/.gitconfig`, shell history). Compose-only — read by `docker-compose.yml` to choose the bind-mount source for `/home/appuser`; not read by Archon source code. Persisted by default to a Docker-managed volume so user state survives rebuilds. | Docker-managed volume |
 | `DOMAIN` | Public domain for Caddy reverse proxy (TLS auto-provisioned) | -- |
 | `CADDY_BASIC_AUTH` | Caddy basicauth directive to protect Web UI and API | Disabled |
 | `AUTH_USERNAME` | Username for form-based auth (Caddy forward_auth) | -- |
diff --git a/packages/providers/src/claude/provider.test.ts b/packages/providers/src/claude/provider.test.ts
index 123d687989..c8b618d7ef 100644
--- a/packages/providers/src/claude/provider.test.ts
+++ b/packages/providers/src/claude/provider.test.ts
@@ -726,7 +726,7 @@ describe('ClaudeProvider', () => {
       expect(callArgs.options.settingSources).toEqual(['project', 'user']);
     });
 
-    test('defaults settingSources to project when not provided', async () => {
+    test('defaults settingSources to project + user when not provided', async () => {
       mockQuery.mockImplementation(async function* () {
         yield { type: 'result', session_id: 'test-session' };
       });
@@ -735,6 +735,26 @@ describe('ClaudeProvider', () => {
         // consume
       }
 
+      expect(mockQuery).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+      const callArgs = mockQuery.mock.calls[0][0] as { options: Record<string, unknown> };
+      expect(callArgs.options.settingSources).toEqual(['project', 'user']);
+    });
+
+    test("honors explicit settingSources: ['project'] to opt out of user scope", async () => {
+      // Locks in the contract: setting settingSources: ['project'] in
+      // .archon/config.yaml must NOT be silently widened to the new default.
+      // A future refactor that drops the `?? ['project', 'user']` guard would
+      // expand skill/command/agent scope for every project-only deployment.
+      mockQuery.mockImplementation(async function* () {
+        yield { type: 'result', session_id: 'test-session' };
+      });
+
+      for await (const _ of client.sendQuery('test', '/tmp', undefined, {
+        assistantConfig: { settingSources: ['project'] },
+      })) {
+        // consume
+      }
+
       expect(mockQuery).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
       const callArgs = mockQuery.mock.calls[0][0] as { options: Record<string, unknown> };
       expect(callArgs.options.settingSources).toEqual(['project']);
diff --git a/packages/providers/src/claude/provider.ts b/packages/providers/src/claude/provider.ts
index 1e55c00b93..5609156fad 100644
--- a/packages/providers/src/claude/provider.ts
+++ b/packages/providers/src/claude/provider.ts
@@ -622,7 +622,7 @@ function buildBaseClaudeOptions(
     permissionMode: 'bypassPermissions',
     allowDangerouslySkipPermissions: true,
     systemPrompt: requestOptions?.systemPrompt ?? { type: 'preset', preset: 'claude_code' },
-    settingSources: assistantDefaults.settingSources ?? ['project'],
+    settingSources: assistantDefaults.settingSources ?? ['project', 'user'],
     hooks: buildToolCaptureHooks(toolResultQueue),
     stderr: (data: string): void => {
       const output = data.trim();
diff --git a/packages/providers/src/types.ts b/packages/providers/src/types.ts
index fe47eff6c4..e259f86abd 100644
--- a/packages/providers/src/types.ts
+++ b/packages/providers/src/types.ts
@@ -9,8 +9,12 @@
 export interface ClaudeProviderDefaults {
   [key: string]: unknown;
   model?: string;
-  /** Claude Code settingSources — controls which CLAUDE.md files are loaded.
-   *  @default ['project']
+  /** Claude Code settingSources — controls which sources the SDK loads:
+   *  CLAUDE.md, skills, commands, agents, and hooks. Both project-level
+   *  (`<cwd>/.claude/`) and user-level (`~/.claude/`) are loaded by default.
+   *  Set explicitly to `['project']` to scope a workflow to project-only
+   *  resources (e.g. CI, shared environments).
+   *  @default ['project', 'user']
    */
   settingSources?: ('project' | 'user')[];
   /** Absolute path to the Claude Code SDK's `cli.js`. Required in compiled
diff --git a/packages/server/src/scripts/setup-auth.ts b/packages/server/src/scripts/setup-auth.ts
index 40031d5173..12a725c931 100644
--- a/packages/server/src/scripts/setup-auth.ts
+++ b/packages/server/src/scripts/setup-auth.ts
@@ -27,8 +27,25 @@ function setupAuth(): void {
   const refreshToken = process.env.CODEX_REFRESH_TOKEN;
   const accountId = process.env.CODEX_ACCOUNT_ID;
 
-  // Skip if Codex credentials not provided
+  // No CODEX_* env vars provided: warn if a persisted auth.json already
+  // exists on the volume (may be stale), otherwise skip with "unavailable".
   if (!idToken || !accessToken || !refreshToken || !accountId) {
+    // /home/appuser is now persisted across restarts in Docker, so a stale
+    // auth.json from a previous run with creds is not automatically wiped.
+    // Surface this so operators don't end up with Codex silently using old/revoked tokens.
+    const persistedAuthPath = path.join(os.homedir(), '.codex', 'auth.json');
+    if (fs.existsSync(persistedAuthPath)) {
+      console.warn(
+        `⚠️  CODEX_* env vars not set, but persisted ${persistedAuthPath} exists from a previous run`
+      );
+      console.warn(
+        '    Codex will attempt to use those credentials. If they are stale or revoked,'
+      );
+      console.warn(
+        '    delete the file inside the container or wipe the archon_user_home volume to reset.'
+      );
+      return;
+    }
     console.log('⏭️  Skipping Codex auth setup - credentials not provided');
     console.log('   Codex assistant will be unavailable');
     return;