diff --git a/src/server/runtime-handler/index.ts b/src/server/runtime-handler/index.ts
index 9cd6610293..21474e9b6e 100644
--- a/src/server/runtime-handler/index.ts
+++ b/src/server/runtime-handler/index.ts
@@ -86,7 +86,12 @@ import { localProjectCache } from "./local-project-discovery.ts";
 import { resolveEnvironment } from "./environment-resolution.ts";
 import { buildHandlerContext, buildMinimalContext } from "./handler-context-builder.ts";
 import { handleProjectsRequest, shouldHandleProjectsUI } from "./projects-handler.ts";
-import { HTTP_GATEWAY_TIMEOUT, isLightweightPath, isMonitoringPath } from "./request-utils.ts";
+import {
+  HTTP_GATEWAY_TIMEOUT,
+  isLightweightPath,
+  isMonitoringPath,
+  isWebSocketPath,
+} from "./request-utils.ts";
 import { withRequestTimeout } from "./timeout-manager.ts";
 import {
   EnvironmentVariableCache,
@@ -309,7 +314,7 @@ export function createVeryfrontHandler(
         // Early validation: in proxy mode, required context headers must be present.
         // Without these, the server cannot authenticate or resolve the project, and
         // proceeding would cause cryptic 500s deep in the rendering pipeline.
-        if (isProxyMode && !isLightweightPath(url.pathname)) {
+        if (isProxyMode && !isLightweightPath(url.pathname) && !isWebSocketPath(url.pathname)) {
           const token = req.headers.get("x-token");
           if (!headers.projectSlug) {
             logger.error("Missing required x-project-slug header in proxy mode", {
diff --git a/src/server/runtime-handler/request-tracker.ts b/src/server/runtime-handler/request-tracker.ts
index ceb4b7503b..12b30a4a12 100644
--- a/src/server/runtime-handler/request-tracker.ts
+++ b/src/server/runtime-handler/request-tracker.ts
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@
 
 import { serverLogger } from "#veryfront/utils";
 import { unrefTimer } from "#veryfront/compat/process.ts";
+import { isWebSocketPath } from "./request-utils.ts";
 
 const logger = serverLogger.component("request-tracker");
 
@@ -90,31 +91,34 @@ class RequestTracker {
       releaseId,
     };
 
-    tracked.slowTimer = setTimeout(() => {
-      const elapsedMs = Math.round(performance.now() - startTime);
-      logger.warn("Slow request detected", {
-        requestId,
-        projectSlug,
-        path,
-        method,
-        elapsedMs,
-        inFlightCount: this.inFlight.size,
-      });
-
+    // WebSocket connections are long-lived by design — don't flag them as stuck.
+    if (!isWebSocketPath(path)) {
       tracked.slowTimer = setTimeout(() => {
-        const verySlowElapsedMs = Math.round(performance.now() - startTime);
-        logger.error("Very slow request - likely stuck", {
+        const elapsedMs = Math.round(performance.now() - startTime);
+        logger.warn("Slow request detected", {
           requestId,
           projectSlug,
           path,
           method,
-          elapsedMs: verySlowElapsedMs,
+          elapsedMs,
           inFlightCount: this.inFlight.size,
         });
-      }, VERY_SLOW_REQUEST_THRESHOLD_MS - SLOW_REQUEST_THRESHOLD_MS);
+
+        tracked.slowTimer = setTimeout(() => {
+          const verySlowElapsedMs = Math.round(performance.now() - startTime);
+          logger.error("Very slow request - likely stuck", {
+            requestId,
+            projectSlug,
+            path,
+            method,
+            elapsedMs: verySlowElapsedMs,
+            inFlightCount: this.inFlight.size,
+          });
+        }, VERY_SLOW_REQUEST_THRESHOLD_MS - SLOW_REQUEST_THRESHOLD_MS);
+        if (tracked.slowTimer) unrefTimer(tracked.slowTimer);
+      }, SLOW_REQUEST_THRESHOLD_MS);
       if (tracked.slowTimer) unrefTimer(tracked.slowTimer);
-    }, SLOW_REQUEST_THRESHOLD_MS);
-    if (tracked.slowTimer) unrefTimer(tracked.slowTimer);
+    }
 
     this.inFlight.set(requestId, tracked);
 
diff --git a/src/server/runtime-handler/request-utils.test.ts b/src/server/runtime-handler/request-utils.test.ts
index 66ef386e8b..eb0213378b 100644
--- a/src/server/runtime-handler/request-utils.test.ts
+++ b/src/server/runtime-handler/request-utils.test.ts
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import {
   isInternalHost,
   isLightweightPath,
   isMonitoringPath,
+  isWebSocketPath,
   LIGHTWEIGHT_PATH_PREFIXES,
   MONITORING_PATHS,
   TIMEOUT_SENTINEL,
@@ -112,4 +113,16 @@ describe("request-utils", () => {
       assertEquals(isLightweightPath("/api/users"), false);
     });
   });
+
+  describe("isWebSocketPath", () => {
+    it("returns true for /_ws", () => {
+      assertEquals(isWebSocketPath("/_ws"), true);
+    });
+
+    it("returns false for other paths", () => {
+      assertEquals(isWebSocketPath("/"), false);
+      assertEquals(isWebSocketPath("/_ws/sub"), false);
+      assertEquals(isWebSocketPath("/_wss"), false);
+    });
+  });
 });
diff --git a/src/server/runtime-handler/request-utils.ts b/src/server/runtime-handler/request-utils.ts
index a72f333ab0..7510ec1d42 100644
--- a/src/server/runtime-handler/request-utils.ts
+++ b/src/server/runtime-handler/request-utils.ts
@@ -69,3 +69,8 @@ export const LIGHTWEIGHT_PATH_PREFIXES = [
 export function isLightweightPath(pathname: string): boolean {
   return LIGHTWEIGHT_PATH_PREFIXES.some((prefix) => pathname.startsWith(prefix));
 }
+
+/** Check if path is the WebSocket endpoint (long-lived, handled by HMR handler) */
+export function isWebSocketPath(pathname: string): boolean {
+  return pathname === "/_ws";
+}