diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index e10da7d..e036d45 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -1,4 +1,32 @@
-## Unreleased (2026-10-19) — two texts made true after 0.160.0; no behaviour change
+## Unreleased (2026-10-19) — three fixes for the next release (R-921, R-1070, R-1010); two texts made true after 0.160.0
+
+Not released (the night brief of 2026-10-19: agent code + tests + commit only; the release is the operator's word). No
+sudoers, wrapper or config-bundle change.
+
+- **R-921 — `GET /backup/status` says when the host is busy.** New field `host_busy` (`{busy, what}`): whether the
+  host-wide heavy-operation gate is held right now (another guest's backup, the restore test, a night OS step, the
+  stale-lock sweep, a power-off) — the state that makes a `POST /backup` answer 409. Served on every request; absent
+  when the gate is not wired. Controller ≥ 0.335.0 reads it before it stops the household's apps for a tier, so a
+  refused tier costs no stop (the measured case of 2026-10-08: the night OS step, all 15 apps stopped for a refusal).
+  A read, never a reservation. No new route. Test `TestBackupStatus_R921_HostBusy`, red-proved (assignment removed →
+  `free gate: host_busy = <nil>`).
+- **R-1070 — a box with no tunnel set up no longer fails its host OS update.** Docker 29 prints „error: no such
+  object" in lower case, so the tunnel probe's case-sensitive match fell through to `unknown` („could not ask the
+  guest"), and the host health rule failed every box without a cloudflared container (Tester4, 2026-10-15,
+  `os_update_health_failed`). Now the match ignores case and a missing container is a new state, **`absent`** („no
+  tunnel set up on this box"); the host rule reads it as not applicable only when the reading from before the update
+  (Docker answered) also had no cloudflared container. A tunnel that is down, gone or unreadable still fails. The hub
+  alarms only on `not_running`, so `absent` never mails. Tests `TestHostHealthVerdict_R1070_NoTunnelSetUp` (7 rows) and
+  three `TestClassifyTunnel` rows (Docker 29's wording measured on demo-hp), red-proved both ways.
+- **R-1010 — the stale-lock janitor clears a half-removed `vzdump` snapshot.** When the delete fails ONLY with
+  „Failed to find logical volume …_vzdump" (one disk's snapshot already gone — demo-hp 2026-10-14 after a backup ran
+  out of space), it retries once with Proxmox's own `force=1` on the same API call (`DeleteSnapshotForce`; the same
+  token privilege, no sudoers line, no root command — `pvesh usage … -command delete` lists `--force`). Any other error
+  is returned unchanged; a failed forced delete is returned, never a second force. Tests
+  `TestStaleLock_R1010_ForcesOnceOnlyWhenTheVolumeIsGone` (6 rows) and `TestDeleteSnapshotForce_R1010`, red-proved
+  (single plain delete → `calls [plain], want [plain force]`).
+
+### Earlier on 2026-10-19 (texts only)
 
 - The ceremony-complete log line now says the package uploads at the claim **or at the typed-back confirm** (R-1151);
   it read „package uploads at the claim" for both orders (seen in demo-hp's journal, 2026-10-19 01:47 UTC).
diff --git a/internal/hub/cloudflared.go b/internal/hub/cloudflared.go
index 94c0f99..b976d72 100644
--- a/internal/hub/cloudflared.go
+++ b/internal/hub/cloudflared.go
@@ -14,6 +14,13 @@ const (
 	TunnelRunning    = "running"     // the cloudflared container runs AND its readiness check says CONNECTED
 	TunnelNotRunning = "not_running" // stopped / exited / absent, or running but NOT connected (Detail says which)
 	TunnelUnknown    = "unknown"     // the probe could not ask (guest down, pct/sudo error, health still starting)
+	// TunnelAbsent (R-1070, agent Unreleased 2026-10-19): the guest answered and has NO cloudflared container — the
+	// controller makes none when no tunnel token is configured (a LAN-only or test box). Not a failure by itself: the
+	// hub never alarms on it, and the OS-update host rule reads it as „not applicable" only when the container was
+	// also absent before the update (HostHealthVerdict). Docker 29 prints „error: no such object" in lower case, so
+	// before this state existed the case-sensitive match fell through to `unknown` — which failed the host rule on
+	// every box without a tunnel (Tester4, 2026-10-15).
+	TunnelAbsent = "absent"
 )
 
 // CloudflaredProber reports the box's tunnel. Injectable so tests use a fake and never exec.
@@ -53,7 +60,7 @@ func (p GuestTunnelProber) Status(ctx context.Context) (string, string) {
 		return TunnelUnknown, "no running customer guest"
 	}
 	worst, wdetail := "", ""
-	rank := map[string]int{TunnelRunning: 0, TunnelUnknown: 1, TunnelNotRunning: 2}
+	rank := map[string]int{TunnelRunning: 0, TunnelAbsent: 1, TunnelUnknown: 2, TunnelNotRunning: 3}
 	for _, v := range vmids {
 		out, errOut, err := p.Runner.Run(ctx, "/usr/sbin/pct", "exec", fmt.Sprint(v), "--", "docker", "inspect", "-f", tunnelInspect, "cloudflared")
 		st, d := ClassifyTunnel(string(out), string(errOut), err)
@@ -71,8 +78,8 @@ func (p GuestTunnelProber) Status(ctx context.Context) (string, string) {
 func ClassifyTunnel(stdout, stderr string, err error) (string, string) {
 	out := strings.TrimSpace(stdout)
 	if err != nil || out == "" {
-		if strings.Contains(stderr, "No such object") || strings.Contains(stderr, "No such container") {
-			return TunnelNotRunning, "no cloudflared container in the guest"
+		if e := strings.ToLower(stderr); strings.Contains(e, "no such object") || strings.Contains(e, "no such container") {
+			return TunnelAbsent, "no cloudflared container in the guest (no tunnel set up on this box)"
 		}
 		return TunnelUnknown, "could not ask the guest: " + firstLine(stderr, err)
 	}
diff --git a/internal/hub/cloudflared_test.go b/internal/hub/cloudflared_test.go
index 261f775..4e3f781 100644
--- a/internal/hub/cloudflared_test.go
+++ b/internal/hub/cloudflared_test.go
@@ -20,7 +20,10 @@ func TestClassifyTunnel(t *testing.T) {
 		{"connected", "running|0|healthy\n", "", nil, TunnelRunning, "connected"},
 		{"running but not connected", "running|0|unhealthy\n", "", nil, TunnelNotRunning, "NOT connected"},
 		{"stopped", "exited|137|unhealthy\n", "", nil, TunnelNotRunning, "exit code 137"},
-		{"absent", "", "Error: No such object: cloudflared", errors.New("exit status 1"), TunnelNotRunning, "no cloudflared container"},
+		{"absent", "", "Error: No such object: cloudflared", errors.New("exit status 1"), TunnelAbsent, "no cloudflared container"},
+		// R-1070: Docker 29's wording, measured on demo-hp 2026-10-19 (`docker inspect` of a missing name).
+		{"absent, docker 29", "", "error: no such object: cloudflared", errors.New("exit status 1"), TunnelAbsent, "no tunnel set up"},
+		{"absent, no such container", "", "Error response from daemon: No such container: cloudflared", errors.New("exit status 1"), TunnelAbsent, "no cloudflared container"},
 		{"still starting", "running|0|starting\n", "", nil, TunnelUnknown, "starting"},
 		{"no health check (older controller)", "running|0|none\n", "", nil, TunnelRunning, "connection not checked"},
 		{"guest not running", "", "CT 9201 not running", errors.New("exit status 255"), TunnelUnknown, "could not ask"},
diff --git a/internal/hub/report.go b/internal/hub/report.go
index 6235715..8a9258f 100644
--- a/internal/hub/report.go
+++ b/internal/hub/report.go
@@ -359,7 +359,7 @@ type GuestSpec struct {
 
 // Cloudflared is the box's tunnel (R-841, agent v0.141.0): the cloudflared container in the customer guest.
 type Cloudflared struct {
-	Status string `json:"status"`           // running | not_running | unknown (TunnelRunning …)
+	Status string `json:"status"`           // running | not_running | unknown | absent (TunnelRunning …; absent since R-1070)
 	Detail string `json:"detail,omitempty"` // why not_running / unknown, or "connected"
 }
 
diff --git a/internal/localapi/server.go b/internal/localapi/server.go
index ea72190..da55318 100644
--- a/internal/localapi/server.go
+++ b/internal/localapi/server.go
@@ -1343,6 +1343,20 @@ type BackupStatusResponse struct {
 	// presence. Served on the UNTARGETED request only; additive, so an older controller reads the
 	// response exactly as before.
 	Tiers []TierBackupState `json:"tiers,omitempty"`
+	// HostBusy (R-921, agent Unreleased 2026-10-19) says whether the host-wide heavy-operation gate is held RIGHT NOW
+	// (another guest's backup, the restore test, a night OS step, the stale-lock sweep, a power-off) — a POST /backup
+	// would then be refused with 409. The controller reads it BEFORE it stops the household's apps, so a refused tier
+	// costs no stop. Served on every request; ABSENT (nil) = an older agent, or the gate is not wired — the controller
+	// then keeps its old order (stop, ask, resume at once on 409). A read, never a reservation: the gate can be taken
+	// between this answer and the POST, and that race keeps the old order. Pinned by TestBackupStatus_R921_HostBusy.
+	HostBusy *HostBusyState `json:"host_busy,omitempty"`
+}
+
+// HostBusyState is GET /backup/status's host_busy (R-921). What names the holder ("backup:local", "restore-test",
+// "os-pve-step" …), empty when Busy is false.
+type HostBusyState struct {
+	Busy bool   `json:"busy"`
+	What string `json:"what,omitempty"`
 }
 
 func (s *Server) handleBackupStatus(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request, vmid int) {
@@ -1362,6 +1376,10 @@ func (s *Server) handleBackupStatus(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request, vmid
 		resp.JobID = job.JobID
 		resp.Error = job.Error
 	}
+	if s.inFlight != nil {
+		what := s.inFlight.Busy()
+		resp.HostBusy = &HostBusyState{Busy: what != "", What: what}
+	}
 	writeOK(w, resp)
 }
 
diff --git a/internal/localapi/server_test.go b/internal/localapi/server_test.go
index 2a77c28..d0f2b4a 100644
--- a/internal/localapi/server_test.go
+++ b/internal/localapi/server_test.go
@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ import (
 	"testing"
 	"time"
 
+	"gitea.dooplex.hu/admin/felhom-agent/internal/backup"
 	"gitea.dooplex.hu/admin/felhom-agent/internal/hub"
 	"gitea.dooplex.hu/admin/felhom-agent/internal/proxmox"
 )
@@ -514,3 +515,47 @@ func TestBackupStatus_FiltersToThisGuest(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Fatalf("status not scoped to this guest / not latest: %s", w.Body.String())
 	}
 }
+
+// R-921: GET /backup/status says when the host-wide heavy-operation gate is held, so the controller can skip the app
+// stop for a tier the POST would refuse. Free → busy false; held → busy true with the holder's name; the gate not wired
+// → no field at all (the controller's „older agent" reading, never „free").
+//
+// COMPANION RED-PROOF (observed 2026-10-19): with the `resp.HostBusy = …` assignment removed, the held case fails with
+//
+//	server_test.go: free gate: host_busy = <nil>, want busy=false
+//
+// Restored.
+func TestBackupStatus_R921_HostBusy(t *testing.T) {
+	read := func(h http.Handler) *HostBusyState {
+		w := do(t, h, "GET", "/backup/status", "A", "")
+		var resp struct {
+			Data BackupStatusResponse `json:"data"`
+		}
+		if err := json.Unmarshal(w.Body.Bytes(), &resp); err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("status body: %v (%s)", err, w.Body.String())
+		}
+		return resp.Data.HostBusy
+	}
+	srv := newTestServerS(t, &fakeGuests{}, &fakeBackups{}, &fakeStore{}, nil)
+	if got := read(srv.Handler()); got != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("gate not wired: host_busy = %+v, want absent", got)
+	}
+	gate := &backup.InFlight{}
+	srv.inFlight = gate
+	h := srv.Handler()
+	if got := read(h); got == nil || got.Busy || got.What != "" {
+		t.Fatalf("free gate: host_busy = %+v, want busy=false", got)
+	}
+	release, _, ok := gate.TryAcquire("os-pve-step")
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatal("could not take the gate")
+	}
+	if got := read(h); got == nil || !got.Busy || got.What != "os-pve-step" {
+		t.Fatalf("held gate: host_busy = %+v, want busy=true what=\"os-pve-step\"", got)
+	}
+	// The read never takes the gate: a POST after the holder lets go is accepted.
+	release()
+	if got := read(h); got == nil || got.Busy {
+		t.Fatalf("released gate: host_busy = %+v, want busy=false", got)
+	}
+}
diff --git a/internal/localapi/stalelock.go b/internal/localapi/stalelock.go
index 332931e..c1c521b 100644
--- a/internal/localapi/stalelock.go
+++ b/internal/localapi/stalelock.go
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ package localapi
 
 import (
 	"context"
+	"errors"
 	"fmt"
 	"log/slog"
 	"os"
@@ -160,6 +161,7 @@ type staleLockAPI interface {
 	ListSnapshots(ctx context.Context, vmid int) ([]proxmox.Snapshot, error)
 	ListRunningTasks(ctx context.Context) ([]proxmox.TaskStatus, error)
 	DeleteSnapshot(ctx context.Context, vmid int, snapname string) (string, error)
+	DeleteSnapshotForce(ctx context.Context, vmid int, snapname string) (string, error)
 	Start(ctx context.Context, vmid int) (string, error)
 	WaitTask(ctx context.Context, upid string, opts proxmox.WaitOptions) (proxmox.TaskStatus, error)
 }
@@ -334,8 +336,34 @@ func (c *staleLockController) Unlock(ctx context.Context, vmid int) error {
 	return nil
 }
 
+// DeleteVzdumpSnapshot removes the dangling `vzdump` snapshot. R-1010: when the delete fails ONLY because one disk's
+// snapshot volume is already gone („Failed to find logical volume pve/snap_vm-9201-disk-0_vzdump" — a backup that ran
+// out of space, 2026-10-14), Proxmox stops at that volume and keeps the entry and the other volumes' snapshots, and a
+// plain retry fails the same way every sweep, forever. Then it retries ONCE with Proxmox's force (the hand fix that
+// day was `pct delsnapshot 9201 vzdump --force`): the remaining volumes' snapshots are removed and the entry goes. Any
+// other error is returned as it is — never a force on an error that might mean a volume still holds data (a full
+// LVM metadata area, a busy volume). Pinned by TestStaleLock_R1010_*.
 func (c *staleLockController) DeleteVzdumpSnapshot(ctx context.Context, vmid int) error {
-	upid, err := c.px.DeleteSnapshot(ctx, vmid, vzdumpSnapshotName)
+	err := c.deleteSnap(ctx, vmid, false)
+	if err == nil || !snapshotVolumeAlreadyGone(err) {
+		return err
+	}
+	if c.logger != nil {
+		c.logger.Warn("stale-lock: a disk's vzdump snapshot volume is already gone — retrying the delete once with force (R-1010)",
+			"vmid", vmid, "err", err)
+	}
+	if ferr := c.deleteSnap(ctx, vmid, true); ferr != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("forced snapshot delete after %q also failed: %w", err.Error(), ferr)
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+func (c *staleLockController) deleteSnap(ctx context.Context, vmid int, force bool) error {
+	del := c.px.DeleteSnapshot
+	if force {
+		del = c.px.DeleteSnapshotForce
+	}
+	upid, err := del(ctx, vmid, vzdumpSnapshotName)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
@@ -346,6 +374,23 @@ func (c *staleLockController) DeleteVzdumpSnapshot(ctx context.Context, vmid int
 	return err
 }
 
+// snapshotVolumeAlreadyGone: the error is Proxmox's „Failed to find logical volume …_vzdump" from a snapshot delete
+// (in the task's exit status, its log tail, or the API error text). Narrow on purpose: the force is safe only when the
+// volume it cannot remove does not exist.
+func snapshotVolumeAlreadyGone(err error) bool {
+	text := err.Error()
+	var te *proxmox.TaskError
+	if errors.As(err, &te) {
+		text += "\n" + te.ExitStatus + "\n" + strings.Join(te.LogTail, "\n")
+	}
+	for _, l := range strings.Split(text, "\n") {
+		if strings.Contains(strings.ToLower(l), "failed to find logical volume") && strings.Contains(l, "_"+vzdumpSnapshotName) {
+			return true
+		}
+	}
+	return false
+}
+
 func (c *staleLockController) Start(ctx context.Context, vmid int) error {
 	upid, err := c.px.Start(ctx, vmid)
 	if err != nil {
diff --git a/internal/localapi/stalelock_pool_test.go b/internal/localapi/stalelock_pool_test.go
index 4ed8096..fbe09e8 100644
--- a/internal/localapi/stalelock_pool_test.go
+++ b/internal/localapi/stalelock_pool_test.go
@@ -30,6 +30,9 @@ type fakeStaleLockAPI struct {
 
 	delsnap []int
 	started []int
+	// R-1010: scripted delete answers, consumed in order (plain and forced share the list); calls records "plain"/"force".
+	delErrs  []error
+	delCalls []string
 }
 
 func (f *fakeStaleLockAPI) ListLXC(context.Context) ([]proxmox.Guest, error) { return f.lxc, nil }
@@ -55,7 +58,22 @@ func (f *fakeStaleLockAPI) ListRunningTasks(context.Context) ([]proxmox.TaskStat
 
 func (f *fakeStaleLockAPI) DeleteSnapshot(_ context.Context, vmid int, snapname string) (string, error) {
 	f.delsnap = append(f.delsnap, vmid)
-	return "", nil // synchronous — no WaitTask
+	return "", f.nextDelErr("plain") // synchronous — no WaitTask
+}
+
+func (f *fakeStaleLockAPI) DeleteSnapshotForce(_ context.Context, vmid int, snapname string) (string, error) {
+	f.delsnap = append(f.delsnap, vmid)
+	return "", f.nextDelErr("force")
+}
+
+func (f *fakeStaleLockAPI) nextDelErr(kind string) error {
+	f.delCalls = append(f.delCalls, kind)
+	if len(f.delErrs) == 0 {
+		return nil
+	}
+	e := f.delErrs[0]
+	f.delErrs = f.delErrs[1:]
+	return e
 }
 
 func (f *fakeStaleLockAPI) Start(_ context.Context, vmid int) (string, error) {
diff --git a/internal/localapi/stalelock_r1010_test.go b/internal/localapi/stalelock_r1010_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4728fdc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/localapi/stalelock_r1010_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,59 @@
+package localapi
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"errors"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+
+	"gitea.dooplex.hu/admin/felhom-agent/internal/proxmox"
+)
+
+// R-1010: a half-removed vzdump snapshot. The error text is the one demo-hp's task printed on 2026-10-14
+// (`audits/power-cut-fixes-2026-10-14/C4/hand-fix.txt`).
+const r1010MissingLV = `lvremove snapshot 'pve/snap_vm-9201-disk-0_vzdump' error:   Failed to find logical volume "pve/snap_vm-9201-disk-0_vzdump"`
+
+func r1010TaskErr(exit string) error {
+	return &proxmox.TaskError{UPID: "UPID:demo-hp:0001:0002:0003:vzdelsnapshot:9201:root@pam:", ExitStatus: exit,
+		LogTail: []string{exit}}
+}
+
+// COMPANION RED-PROOF (observed 2026-10-19): with DeleteVzdumpSnapshot back to the single plain delete, the first case
+// fails with
+//
+//	stalelock_r1010_test.go: missing volume: calls [plain], want [plain force]; err = proxmox: task … failed: exitstatus "lvremove snapshot …"
+//
+// Restored.
+func TestStaleLock_R1010_ForcesOnceOnlyWhenTheVolumeIsGone(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := []struct {
+		name      string
+		errs      []error
+		wantCalls []string
+		wantErr   string
+	}{
+		{"missing volume", []error{r1010TaskErr(r1010MissingLV)}, []string{"plain", "force"}, ""},
+		{"missing volume, named only in the log tail", []error{&proxmox.TaskError{UPID: "x", ExitStatus: "command 'lvremove' failed: exit code 5",
+			LogTail: []string{r1010MissingLV}}}, []string{"plain", "force"}, ""},
+		{"the plain delete works", nil, []string{"plain"}, ""},
+		{"another error: no force", []error{r1010TaskErr("lvremove snapshot 'pve/snap_vm-9201-disk-0_vzdump' error: Failed to update pool pve/data.")},
+			[]string{"plain"}, "Failed to update pool"},
+		{"a missing volume of ANOTHER snapshot: no force", []error{r1010TaskErr(`Failed to find logical volume "pve/snap_vm-9201-disk-0_mine"`)},
+			[]string{"plain"}, "_mine"},
+		{"the forced delete fails too: returned, never a second force", []error{r1010TaskErr(r1010MissingLV), errors.New("still broken")},
+			[]string{"plain", "force"}, "still broken"},
+	}
+	for _, c := range cases {
+		api := &fakeStaleLockAPI{delErrs: c.errs}
+		ctrl := NewStaleLockController(api, &recordingRunner{}, "felhom", nil)
+		err := ctrl.DeleteVzdumpSnapshot(context.Background(), 9201)
+		if strings.Join(api.delCalls, " ") != strings.Join(c.wantCalls, " ") {
+			t.Errorf("%s: calls %v, want %v; err = %v", c.name, api.delCalls, c.wantCalls, err)
+		}
+		switch {
+		case c.wantErr == "" && err != nil:
+			t.Errorf("%s: err = %v, want nil", c.name, err)
+		case c.wantErr != "" && (err == nil || !strings.Contains(err.Error(), c.wantErr)):
+			t.Errorf("%s: err = %v, want one naming %q", c.name, err, c.wantErr)
+		}
+	}
+}
diff --git a/internal/osupdate/leg.go b/internal/osupdate/leg.go
index 318979b..80116f0 100644
--- a/internal/osupdate/leg.go
+++ b/internal/osupdate/leg.go
@@ -370,7 +370,8 @@ func HealthVerdict(before, after *Health) (bool, string) {
 
 // HostHealthVerdict is THE host health rule (`11` §8.2; pinned by TestHostHealthVerdict): the Proxmox daemons and the
 // agent are active, the customer guest still runs, the guest's own rule still passes against the start of the pass,
-// and the tunnel is `running` (R-841).
+// and the tunnel is `running` (R-841) — or `absent` both now and before the update: a box with no tunnel set up
+// (R-1070; pinned by TestHostHealthVerdict_R1070_NoTunnelSetUp).
 func HostHealthVerdict(before, after *Health, tunnel string) (bool, string) {
 	if after == nil {
 		return false, "no health reading"
@@ -398,12 +399,28 @@ func HostHealthVerdict(before, after *Health, tunnel string) (bool, string) {
 	if ok, why := HealthVerdict(gb, after.Guest); !ok {
 		return false, "guest: " + why
 	}
-	if tunnel != hub.TunnelRunning {
+	switch {
+	case tunnel == hub.TunnelRunning:
+	case tunnel == hub.TunnelAbsent && noTunnelBefore(before):
+		// R-1070: no cloudflared container before the update and none after — the box has no tunnel to check.
+	case tunnel == hub.TunnelAbsent:
+		return false, "the tunnel is absent (no cloudflared container now, and the reading from before the update does not show it was absent then)"
+	default:
 		return false, "the tunnel is " + tunnel
 	}
 	return true, ""
 }
 
+// noTunnelBefore: the reading from the start of the pass shows the guest's Docker answered and listed NO cloudflared
+// container. A missing or failed reading is not „no tunnel" (an empty list from a failed `docker ps` must not pass).
+func noTunnelBefore(before *Health) bool {
+	if before == nil || before.Guest == nil || !before.Guest.DockerOK {
+		return false
+	}
+	_, had := before.Guest.Containers["cloudflared"]
+	return !had
+}
+
 // EngineOf is the engine version `docker version` prints for a docker-ce package version: "5:29.8.2-1~debian.13~trixie"
 // → "29.8.2" (no epoch, no Debian revision).
 func EngineOf(pkgVersion string) string {
diff --git a/internal/osupdate/leg_test.go b/internal/osupdate/leg_test.go
index 6703635..d4b1490 100644
--- a/internal/osupdate/leg_test.go
+++ b/internal/osupdate/leg_test.go
@@ -568,3 +568,42 @@ func TestDocker_OOMCheckReachesTheHubUnchanged(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Fatalf("no docker report posted: %s", calls(w))
 	}
 }
+
+// R-1070: a box with no tunnel set up (no cloudflared container before the update and none after) passes the host
+// rule; a box WITH a tunnel that is down, gone, or unreadable still fails it.
+//
+// COMPANION RED-PROOF (observed 2026-10-19): with the „not applicable" branch switched off (only `running` passes, the
+// pre-fix rule) the first case fails with
+//
+//	leg_test.go: no tunnel before, none after: got false (the tunnel is absent (no cloudflared container now, …)), want true
+//
+// and with the pre-fix case-sensitive match TestClassifyTunnel's Docker 29 row reads `unknown` („could not ask the
+// guest"), the state Tester4 failed on.
+// Restored.
+func TestHostHealthVerdict_R1070_NoTunnelSetUp(t *testing.T) {
+	withTunnel := hostOK()
+	withTunnel.Guest.Containers["cloudflared"] = Container{State: "running", Health: "healthy"}
+	dockerFailed := hostOK()
+	dockerFailed.Guest = &Health{DockerOK: false, Containers: map[string]Container{}}
+	cases := []struct {
+		name   string
+		before *Health
+		tunnel string
+		want   bool
+		why    string
+	}{
+		{"no tunnel before, none after", hostOK(), hub.TunnelAbsent, true, ""},
+		{"a tunnel before, gone after", withTunnel, hub.TunnelAbsent, false, "cloudflared was running"},
+		{"a tunnel before, down after", withTunnel, hub.TunnelNotRunning, false, "cloudflared was running"},
+		{"no tunnel before, a stopped one after", hostOK(), hub.TunnelNotRunning, false, "not_running"},
+		{"no tunnel before, the probe could not ask after", hostOK(), hub.TunnelUnknown, false, "unknown"},
+		{"no reading from before", nil, hub.TunnelAbsent, false, "absent"},
+		{"docker failed before (an empty list is not proof of none)", dockerFailed, hub.TunnelAbsent, false, "absent"},
+	}
+	for _, c := range cases {
+		got, why := HostHealthVerdict(c.before, hostOK(), c.tunnel)
+		if got != c.want || !strings.Contains(why, c.why) {
+			t.Errorf("%s: got %v (%s), want %v (…%s…)", c.name, got, why, c.want, c.why)
+		}
+	}
+}
diff --git a/internal/proxmox/mutate.go b/internal/proxmox/mutate.go
index d05d6a1..d2f6c18 100644
--- a/internal/proxmox/mutate.go
+++ b/internal/proxmox/mutate.go
@@ -180,6 +180,18 @@ func (c *Client) DeleteSnapshot(ctx context.Context, vmid int, snapname string)
 	return c.dataString(ctx, http.MethodDelete, path, nil)
 }
 
+// DeleteSnapshotForce is DeleteSnapshot with Proxmox's own `force=1` („remove from the config file, even if removing
+// disk snapshots fails"): the API's flag, so the same token privilege (VM.Snapshot) and no new root command. Used by
+// the stale-lock janitor ONLY after a delete failed because one disk's snapshot volume is already gone (R-1010). The
+// flag rides the query string, where pveproxy reads a DELETE's parameters. Pinned by TestDeleteSnapshotForce_R1010.
+func (c *Client) DeleteSnapshotForce(ctx context.Context, vmid int, snapname string) (string, error) {
+	if vmid == 0 || snapname == "" {
+		return "", fmt.Errorf("proxmox: DeleteSnapshotForce needs vmid and snapname")
+	}
+	path := fmt.Sprintf("/nodes/%s/lxc/%d/snapshot/%s?force=1", c.node, vmid, url.PathEscape(snapname))
+	return c.dataString(ctx, http.MethodDelete, path, nil)
+}
+
 // SetConfig applies config changes via PUT /nodes/{node}/lxc/{vmid}/config
 // (e.g. memory, cores, net0, mpN with a backup flag). PVE may apply this
 // synchronously (no UPID) — the returned string is empty in that case, and "" is
diff --git a/internal/proxmox/scratch_destroy_test.go b/internal/proxmox/scratch_destroy_test.go
index 9621123..e94b623 100644
--- a/internal/proxmox/scratch_destroy_test.go
+++ b/internal/proxmox/scratch_destroy_test.go
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ package proxmox
 import (
 	"context"
 	"io"
+	"net/http"
 	"strings"
 	"testing"
 )
@@ -99,3 +100,24 @@ func TestDestroyScratchLXC_RefusesUnconfiguredBand(t *testing.T) {
 		}
 	}
 }
+
+// R-1010: the forced snapshot delete is the API's own flag on the same DELETE (no new root command).
+func TestDeleteSnapshotForce_R1010(t *testing.T) {
+	var got *http.Request
+	d := &mockDoer{fn: func(r *http.Request) (*http.Response, error) {
+		got = r
+		return jsonResp(200, `{"data":"UPID:demo-felhom:0001:0002:0003:vzdelsnapshot:9201:u@pve!t:"}`), nil
+	}}
+	upid, err := newTestClient(d).DeleteSnapshotForce(context.Background(), 9201, "vzdump")
+	if err != nil || upid == "" {
+		t.Fatalf("DeleteSnapshotForce: upid %q err %v", upid, err)
+	}
+	if got.Method != http.MethodDelete || got.URL.Path != "/api2/json/nodes/demo-felhom/lxc/9201/snapshot/vzdump" ||
+		got.URL.Query().Get("force") != "1" {
+		t.Fatalf("request = %s %s, want DELETE …/lxc/9201/snapshot/vzdump?force=1", got.Method, got.URL.String())
+	}
+	d.fn = func(r *http.Request) (*http.Response, error) { got = r; return jsonResp(200, `{"data":null}`), nil }
+	if _, err := newTestClient(d).DeleteSnapshot(context.Background(), 9201, "vzdump"); err != nil || got.URL.RawQuery != "" {
+		t.Fatalf("the plain delete must carry no force: %s (err %v)", got.URL.String(), err)
+	}
+}