diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index d6b368d..0813de8 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -1,5 +1,28 @@
 ## Changelog
 
+### v0.175.0 — R-82: a tier that overruns the quiesce bound defers the rest (2026-07-26)
+
+Operator ruling 2026-07-26: *"let the first backup run as long as needed; other backups shouldn't
+start until finished."*
+
+A first FULL offsite snapshot legitimately runs for **hours** — far past `max_quiesce`. When that
+bound elapses the app resumes (correct, and unchanged), but `quiesceAndPollTiers` then moved on and
+started the NEXT tier while the first was still uploading. That is now a `break`: the remaining tiers
+are deferred to a later poll.
+
+Why it matters: vzdump still holds the guest lock, so the second start would be **refused by the
+agent (409, v0.99.0)** or fail on the lock — and a failed backup never satisfies a cadence, so the
+tier would stay permanently due and retry into the same wall every poll.
+
+`pollTier` now returns `(phase, stillRunning, err)`; `stillRunning` means the bound elapsed with the
+backup still going. Nothing else changed — the app still resumes exactly once, on the same guard.
+
+**Tests:** `TestTierOverrunsQuiesceBound_RemainingTiersDeferred`. Red-proof observed: dropping the
+`break` starts the second tier and the test fails with
+`the second tier MUST NOT start while the first is still running; started=[local felhom-pbs]`.
+Restored; full suite green.
+
+
 ### v0.174.0 — R-82 Slice B: one quiesce window, two backup tiers (2026-07-26)
 
 **MinAgent UNCHANGED — deliberately.** This release degrades gracefully against ANY older agent; it
diff --git a/controller/internal/quiesce/quiesce.go b/controller/internal/quiesce/quiesce.go
index 9b520b3..9e9e22a 100644
--- a/controller/internal/quiesce/quiesce.go
+++ b/controller/internal/quiesce/quiesce.go
@@ -354,16 +354,24 @@ func (l *Loop) quiesceAndPollTiers(ctx context.Context, tiers []dueTier) error {
 		_ = l.writeMarker(marker) // best-effort: record the CURRENT tier's job id for diagnosis
 		l.logger.Printf("[INFO] [quiesce] tier %s: backup job %s started — polling", label, jobID)
 
-		phase, perr := l.pollTier(ctx, t.target, jobID, label, deadline, last, &unquiesced, unquiesce)
+		phase, stillRunning, perr := l.pollTier(ctx, t.target, jobID, label, deadline, last, &unquiesced, unquiesce)
 		if perr != nil && firstErr == nil {
 			firstErr = perr
 		}
 		if phase == phaseFailed {
 			l.logger.Printf("[WARN] [quiesce] tier %s: backup job %s failed", label, jobID)
 		}
-		// The max-quiesce guard already unquiesced; keep going so the remaining tiers still run
-		// (the app is up — the backups simply continue without the quiesce guarantee, which is
-		// strictly better than skipping the DR tier entirely).
+		if stillRunning {
+			// The max-quiesce guard fired while THIS tier's backup is still going (a first full
+			// offsite snapshot legitimately runs for hours). The app is already back up. We must
+			// NOT start the next tier: ONE BACKUP AT A TIME PER GUEST (operator ruling
+			// 2026-07-26) — vzdump still holds the guest lock, so a second start would be refused
+			// by the agent (409) or fail on the lock and record a spurious failure. The remaining
+			// tiers simply run on a later poll, once this one has finished.
+			l.logger.Printf("[INFO] [quiesce] tier %s still running past the quiesce bound — deferring %d remaining tier(s) to a later cycle",
+				label, len(tiers)-i-1)
+			break
+		}
 	}
 
 	// Belt: if every tier failed to start, nothing above unquiesced. The deferred call covers it,
@@ -378,19 +386,21 @@ func (l *Loop) quiesceAndPollTiers(ctx context.Context, tiers []dueTier) error {
 // app-consistent while still costing exactly one stop/start pair. For a non-last tier the loop
 // waits for a TERMINAL phase (done/failed), because vzdump holds the guest lock and the next tier
 // cannot start until this one truly finishes.
+// Returns (phase, stillRunning, err). stillRunning=true means the quiesce bound elapsed while the
+// backup is STILL going — the caller must not start another tier (one backup at a time per guest).
 func (l *Loop) pollTier(ctx context.Context, target, jobID, label string, deadline time.Time,
-	last bool, unquiesced *bool, unquiesce func(string)) (string, error) {
+	last bool, unquiesced *bool, unquiesce func(string)) (string, bool, error) {
 	for {
 		if !l.now().Before(deadline) {
 			l.logger.Printf("[WARN] [quiesce] max-quiesce-duration (%s) exceeded on tier %s (job %s) — unquiescing while the backup continues on the agent",
 				l.maxQuiesce, label, jobID)
 			unquiesce("max-quiesce guard")
-			return "", nil
+			return "", true, nil
 		}
 		phase, err := l.backupStatusOn(ctx, target)
 		if err != nil {
 			unquiesce("status poll failed")
-			return "", fmt.Errorf("poll backup status on %s: %w", label, err)
+			return "", false, fmt.Errorf("poll backup status on %s: %w", label, err)
 		}
 		switch phase {
 		case phaseSnapshotted:
@@ -408,17 +418,17 @@ func (l *Loop) pollTier(ctx context.Context, target, jobID, label string, deadli
 			} else {
 				l.logger.Printf("[INFO] [quiesce] tier %s: backup job %s done — next tier may start (app still quiesced)", label, jobID)
 			}
-			return phaseDone, nil
+			return phaseDone, false, nil
 		case phaseFailed:
 			if last {
 				unquiesce("backup failed")
 			}
-			return phaseFailed, nil
+			return phaseFailed, false, nil
 		}
 		select {
 		case <-ctx.Done():
 			unquiesce("controller shutting down")
-			return "", ctx.Err()
+			return "", false, ctx.Err()
 		case <-time.After(l.statusPoll):
 		}
 	}
diff --git a/controller/internal/quiesce/tiers_test.go b/controller/internal/quiesce/tiers_test.go
index ad07d65..6f67cea 100644
--- a/controller/internal/quiesce/tiers_test.go
+++ b/controller/internal/quiesce/tiers_test.go
@@ -397,3 +397,45 @@ func TestOldestAge(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Fatalf("empty → nil, got %v", *got)
 	}
 }
+
+// Operator ruling 2026-07-26: "let the first backup run as long as needed; other backups shouldn't
+// start until finished." A first FULL offsite snapshot legitimately runs for hours — far past the
+// quiesce bound. When that bound elapses the app resumes (correct), but the remaining tiers must
+// NOT start: vzdump still holds the guest lock, so a second start would be refused by the agent
+// (409) or fail on the lock and record a spurious failure that leaves the tier permanently due.
+//
+// COMPANION RED-PROOF (observed): drop the `break` on stillRunning → the second tier starts while
+// the first is still going and this fails with
+// "the second tier MUST NOT start while the first is still running; started=[local felhom-pbs]".
+// Restored.
+func TestTierOverrunsQuiesceBound_RemainingTiersDeferred(t *testing.T) {
+	be := newTierBackend()
+	be.tiers = []BackupTier{{Target: "local", Primary: true}, {Target: "felhom-pbs"}}
+	be.dueSet["local"] = true
+	be.dueSet["felhom-pbs"] = true
+	// The local tier never reaches a terminal phase — it just keeps running, like a long upload.
+	be.phases["local"] = []string{phaseRunningForever}
+
+	st := &fakeStacks{running: []string{"immich"}}
+	l := New(Options{
+		Backend: be, Stacks: st,
+		MarkerPath: filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "q.json"),
+		StatusPoll: time.Millisecond,
+		MaxQuiesce: 20 * time.Millisecond, // bound elapses almost immediately
+		Logger:     log.New(io.Discard, "", 0),
+	})
+	if err := l.runOnce(context.Background()); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("an overrun is not an error: %v", err)
+	}
+	got := be.startedTargets()
+	if len(got) != 1 || got[0] != "local" {
+		t.Fatalf("the second tier MUST NOT start while the first is still running; started=%v", got)
+	}
+	// The app must still have come back exactly once (the max-quiesce guard).
+	if stops, starts := len(st.stoppedNames()), len(st.startedNames()); stops != 1 || starts != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("the app must resume exactly once on the quiesce bound; got %d/%d", stops, starts)
+	}
+}
+
+// phaseRunningForever is a non-terminal phase the fake returns indefinitely.
+const phaseRunningForever = "running"