feat(acl): accept HAProxy -f pattern-file references with advisory warnings (v1.8.9, Issue #38)

The manual Frontend editor, wizard and visual ACL builder hard-rejected the ACL
`-f <file>` flag while bulk import accepted it. Worse, a frontend imported with
an `-f` ACL could not be edited at all (422) until the ACL was dropped.

The original guard predated the fail-safe apply flow: the agent runs `haproxy -c`
before every reload, so a missing pattern file is rejected safely and the previous
config keeps running. Pattern files are operator-managed host files — the same
policy adopted for SPOE filter configs in v1.8.8.

- models: remove the 5 `-f` hard rejects (frontend acl/redirect/use_backend
  validators + wizard string/dict-redirect guards); `$(`/backtick and X!X
  contradiction guards unchanged
- routers/frontend: `_pattern_file_warnings` helper; non-blocking warning on
  create + update responses listing referenced pattern files (empty when no
  rule uses `-f` — zero noise)
- routers/config: bulk-import preview advisory listing pattern files per
  frontend (cluster config-dir aware, next to the SPOE advisories)
- React: remove the FrontendManagement submit gate and SiteWizard step gate;
  ACLRuleBuilder renders informational notes instead of errors and re-adds
  `-f (pattern file on host)` to the flag dropdown; create path now renders
  server warnings like update
- tests: 4 reject-pins inverted to accept-pins; new test_acl_pattern_file_allow.py
  (accept/guards-kept/zero-noise/advisory); full suite green (1094 passed)

.env.template

@@ -17,6 +17,11 @@ REDIS_URL=redis://redis:6379
 # Change this to a strong random string in production
 SECRET_KEY=your-secret-key-change-this-in-production
 
+# Optional: dedicated Fernet key for encrypting VRRP secrets of HA/VIP (Issue #27).
+# If unset, it is derived from SECRET_KEY (HKDF), exactly like MFA. Set an explicit
+# key (urlsafe-base64, 32 bytes) in production if you want independent key rotation.
+# VIP_ENCRYPTION_KEY=
+
 # ============================================================================
 # PUBLIC URL CONFIGURATION
 # ============================================================================
@@ -54,6 +59,15 @@ AGENT_HEARTBEAT_TIMEOUT_SECONDS=15
 # Config sync interval in seconds
 AGENT_CONFIG_SYNC_INTERVAL_SECONDS=30
 
+# ============================================================================
+# BACKEND PERFORMANCE
+# ============================================================================
+# Number of uvicorn worker processes for the backend API (default: 1).
+# On multi-core hosts, setting this to the core count (e.g. 2) lets the API
+# use all cores. Safe to increase: background tasks are multi-replica safe
+# (the k8s deployment already runs 2+ replicas via HPA).
+UVICORN_WORKERS=1
+
 # ============================================================================
 # CORS CONFIGURATION
 # ============================================================================

.github/workflows/docker-build.yml

@@ -7,6 +7,8 @@ on:
 jobs:
   build_and_push:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    permissions:
+      contents: write
 
     steps:
       - name: checkout
@@ -19,27 +21,17 @@ jobs:
       - name: read product version
         id: prodversion
         run: |
-          VERSION=$(jq -r .version version.json)
+          VERSION=$(jq -r .version backend/version.json)
           if [ -z "$VERSION" ] || [ "$VERSION" = "null" ]; then
-            echo "Failed to read product version from version.json" >&2
+            echo "Failed to read product version from backend/version.json" >&2
             exit 1
           fi
           echo "VERSION=$VERSION" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
 
-      # The backend image is built with `context: ./backend`, so the
-      # repo-root version.json is OUTSIDE the build context and never
-      # reaches the container. Backend `main.py` falls back to a
-      # compile-time constant when /app/version.json is missing, which
-      # caused a real production drift: a redeploy of the v1.5.2 tree
-      # silently still reported "v1.5.0" in `/api/version` because the
-      # constant in main.py had been bumped but the file was not
-      # available to read. Stage version.json into the backend
-      # context here so the canonical file IS shipped and the
-      # constant only serves as a defensive fallback. The staged file
-      # is gitignored to keep `git status` clean for developers.
-      - name: stage version.json into backend build context
-        run: cp version.json backend/version.json
-
+      # version.json now lives at backend/version.json (inside the ./backend build
+      # context), so `COPY . .` bakes it into the image directly — no staging step
+      # is needed and the backend reports the correct version in every deployment,
+      # not just this workflow's builds.
       - name: set up qemu
         uses: docker/setup-qemu-action@v3
 
@@ -76,3 +68,30 @@ jobs:
             taylanbakircioglu/haproxy-openmanager-frontend:${{ steps.version.outputs.TAG }}
             taylanbakircioglu/haproxy-openmanager-frontend:${{ steps.prodversion.outputs.VERSION }}
 
+      # Keep the GitHub Releases/Tags in sync with version.json. The docker
+      # images above are tagged with the product version, but nothing here
+      # created the matching git tag, so the repo's Tags/Releases drifted
+      # behind (stuck at the last manually-created tag). After the images are
+      # pushed, cut a Release (which also creates the tag) for the current
+      # version.json, but only if one does not already exist, so re-runs
+      # without a version bump are a no-op.
+      - name: create github release from version.json
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+        run: |
+          VERSION="${{ steps.prodversion.outputs.VERSION }}"
+          TAG="v${VERSION}"
+          RELEASE_NAME=$(jq -r '.releaseName // empty' backend/version.json)
+          if gh release view "$TAG" --repo "$GITHUB_REPOSITORY" >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+            echo "Release $TAG already exists, skipping."
+          else
+            TITLE="$TAG"
+            [ -n "$RELEASE_NAME" ] && TITLE="$TAG — $RELEASE_NAME"
+            gh release create "$TAG" \
+              --repo "$GITHUB_REPOSITORY" \
+              --target "$GITHUB_SHA" \
+              --title "$TITLE" \
+              --notes "Automated release for $TAG (from version.json)."
+            echo "Created release $TAG"
+          fi
+

.gitignore

@@ -39,11 +39,6 @@ venv.bak/
 *.sqlite
 *.sqlite3
 
-# Build-time staged version.json (CI `cp version.json backend/`).
-# The canonical file lives at repo root; this path is a transient
-# copy for the backend Docker build context.
-backend/version.json
-
 # IDE
 .vscode/
 .idea/

README.md

@@ -45,6 +45,7 @@ Modern, web-based management interface for HAProxy load balancers with multi-clu
    - [ACME Auto SSL](#acme-auto-ssl---automated-certificate-management)
    - [WAF Management](#waf-management---web-application-firewall)
    - [IP Inventory](#ip-inventory---cross-cluster-ip-search--discovery)
+   - [HA / VIP Management](#ha--vip-management---keepalived-virtual-ip-failover)
    - [User Management](#user-management---access-control--authentication)
    - [Settings](#settings---system-configuration)
 6. [Getting Started - First-Time Usage](#getting-started---first-time-usage)
@@ -105,12 +106,13 @@ This architecture provides better security (no inbound connections to HAProxy se
 ✅ **Real-Time Monitoring** - Live stats, health checks, and performance dashboards  
 ✅ **SSL Certificate Management** - Centralized SSL with expiration tracking  
 ✅ **ACME Auto SSL (Let's Encrypt)** - Automated certificate issuance, renewal, and deployment via ACME protocol  
+✅ **ACME DNS-01 Challenge** *(v1.8.0)* - TXT-record validation for internal/isolated clusters (no public port 80) and wildcard certificates; pluggable DNS providers (Manual + Cloudflare), opt-in, HTTP-01 unchanged  
 ✅ **ACME Certificate Diagnostic Panel** - Automated preflight that checks agent readiness, DNS resolution, port 80 reachability, and ACME challenge ACL before issuing certificates  
 ✅ **WAF Rules** - Web Application Firewall management and deployment  
 ✅ **Agent Script Versioning** - Update agents via UI (Monaco editor) with auto-upgrade  
 ✅ **Token-Based Agent Auth** - Secure token management with revoke/renew  
 ✅ **IP Inventory** - Cross-cluster IP search to identify agents, VIPs, and backend servers by IP  
-✅ **Keepalived VRRP Detection** - Automatic MASTER/BACKUP state and VIP detection from keepalived  
+✅ **HA / VIP (Keepalived) Management** - Create virtual IPs from the UI; the agent installs & configures Keepalived (unicast VRRP) with a HAProxy health-check so the VIP fails over automatically; live MASTER/BACKUP detection per node  
 ✅ **Role-Based User Management** - Admin and user roles with granular permissions and access control  
 ✅ **User Activity Audit Logs** - Complete audit trail of all system events  
 ✅ **REST API** - Full programmatic access for automation and CI/CD integration
@@ -229,6 +231,7 @@ This architecture provides better security (no inbound connections to HAProxy se
 - **Agent Token Management**: Secure token-based agent installation with token revoke and renew capabilities
 - **Agent Script Editor**: Monaco code editor for updating agent scripts via UI (not binary) - create new versions, rollback, and auto-upgrade all agents
 - **Platform-Specific Scripts**: Auto-generated installation scripts for Linux and macOS (x86_64/ARM64)
+- **HA / VIP (Keepalived) Management**: Create a virtual IP from the UI and the agents install & configure Keepalived (VRRP) with a HAProxy health-check so the VIP fails over automatically when HAProxy drops — opt-in, with live MASTER/BACKUP per node, multi-distro install, cluster-driven config path, and Apply/Reject staging
 
 #### Version Control & Change Management
 - **Apply Management**: Centralized change tracking and deployment status monitoring across all agents
@@ -252,10 +255,11 @@ This architecture provides better security (no inbound connections to HAProxy se
 - **Stuck Order Detection** *(v1.4.0)*: Setup wizard surfaces orders that the CA has validated but not yet downloaded, with one-click `Complete` action and automatic 60-second retry
 - **Multi-Provider Support**: Configurable ACME directory URL supports Let's Encrypt, ZeroSSL, Google Trust Services, Buypass, and custom CAs
 - **HTTP-01 Challenge**: Built-in challenge responder with automatic HAProxy routing injection; reserved backend name `_acme_challenge_backend` is auto-managed and protected from manual edits / agent sync collisions
+- **DNS-01 Challenge** *(v1.8.0 — Issue #35)*: Validate via a DNS TXT record instead of HTTP on port 80, for **internal/isolated clusters with no public ingress** and for **wildcard** certificates (`*.example.com`). Pluggable per-account DNS provider (Manual + Cloudflare to start; credentials encrypted at rest and verified on save), same PENDING → APPLIED pipeline, bounded automatic retry on propagation lag, and a DNS-01 event timeline. Opt-in via a global setting; HTTP-01 behaviour is unchanged. (See the *DNS-01 Challenge* subsection under ACME Auto SSL below.)
 - **ACME Account Management**: Register, view, and deactivate ACME accounts from the UI
 - **Staging Mode**: Test certificate issuance with Let's Encrypt staging environment before production
 - **Custom Staging Endpoint** *(v1.4.0)*: Optional `staging_url_override` setting lets you point staging mode at a private ACME test CA (e.g. Pebble) without touching the production directory URL
-- **External Account Binding (EAB)**: Support for CAs that require EAB (ZeroSSL, Google Trust Services)
+- **External Account Binding (EAB)**: Support for CAs that require EAB (ZeroSSL, Google Trust Services). Enter the EAB Key ID and HMAC Key globally in Settings, or per-account in the Register Account dialog (a per-account value overrides the global setting; leave it blank to use the global one)
 - **Structured Error Diagnostics** *(v1.4.0)*: All ACME failures (challenge, finalize, download) persist structured JSON to `letsencrypt_orders.error_detail` for clear post-mortem analysis
 - **Audit Logging** *(v1.4.0)*: Every ACME operation (request, revoke, CA-chain import, account ops) is captured in `user_activity_logs` for compliance review
 - **ACME Diagnostic Panel** *(v1.5.0 — Issue #13)*: Live pre-flight + post-failure diagnostics (DNS / port-80 / routing / account / agents) and merged event timeline (`acme_order_events` + correlated `user_activity_logs`) accessible from the ACME Automation page; humanized error rendering for 11+ RFC8555 problem types with backwards-compatible fallback for legacy plain-string `error_detail`; per-user 5/min rate-limit
@@ -964,6 +968,24 @@ Understanding how HTTP-01 challenges work in a distributed HAProxy environment i
 | Behind NAT/VIP | VIP: 1.2.3.4:80 | Internal:5000 | VIP address |
 | Multi-cluster | Multiple HAProxy nodes | Central OpenManager | Each domain → respective HAProxy |
 
+#### DNS-01 Challenge — Internal/Isolated Clusters & Wildcards *(v1.8.0 — Issue #35)*
+
+The default **HTTP-01** challenge validates over **port 80**, so the domain must resolve publicly to an HAProxy node with ACME Challenge Routing enabled. **DNS-01** validates via a **DNS TXT record** (`_acme-challenge.<domain>`) instead, so it needs **no inbound port 80 and no public ingress** to the HAProxy node. Use it for:
+
+- **Internal / isolated clusters** (behind a VPN/firewall, no public port 80) where you still control the domain's DNS.
+- **Wildcard certificates** (`*.example.com`) — which can *only* be issued via DNS-01.
+
+DNS-01 is **opt-in** and fully backward compatible: it is disabled until an administrator enables it, and existing HTTP-01 certificates are completely unaffected.
+
+- **Enable it**: Settings → ACME / SSL Automation → **DNS-01 Challenge (advanced)** → turn on *Enable DNS-01 Challenge* and Save. While off, DNS-01 options are hidden and no DNS-01 orders can be created.
+- **Per-account provider**: in ACME Automation, create (or reconfigure) an ACME account with **Challenge Method = DNS-01** and a **DNS Provider**. Provider credentials are **verified before saving** and **encrypted at rest** (Fernet, mirroring the VRRP/MFA secret pattern); they are never returned by the API or written to logs.
+- **Supported providers**: **Manual** (publish the TXT record yourself in any DNS — including fully internal DNS — then click *Verify*; works everywhere but cannot auto-renew unattended) and **Cloudflare** (API token with `Zone:DNS:Edit` + `Zone:Read`; the TXT record is created and cleaned up automatically and renews unattended). The provider interface is pluggable — more providers can be added without changing the issuance flow.
+- **Same pipeline**: after validation the certificate follows the normal PENDING → APPLIED flow (assign to clusters / Apply Management) and the agent serves it — identical to HTTP-01 from finalize onward, with **zero agent or rendered-config changes** for DNS-01.
+- **Manual flow**: the order detail shows the exact `_acme-challenge.<domain>` record name + TXT value (copyable); publish it and click *I've added the records — Verify*. For Cloudflare it is automatic.
+- **Resilience**: a propagation-lag failure is recovered by a **bounded fresh-order retry chain** (1 original + 3 retries with increasing backoff, kept under Let's Encrypt's rate limits); any orphaned TXT record is cleaned up by a reconcile sweep. The order detail shows a DNS-01 event timeline (publish → validation → cleanup).
+- **Wildcards**: `*.example.com` is validated at `_acme-challenge.example.com`; it does **not** cover the apex — add `example.com` as a separate name if you need both (the providers handle the two coexisting TXT values automatically).
+- **Scope (this release)**: the Site Wizard remains HTTP-01-only; issue DNS-01 / wildcard certificates from **ACME Automation**.
+
 #### ACME Quick Start Guide
 
 Follow these steps to obtain your first Let's Encrypt certificate:
@@ -1055,6 +1077,32 @@ The IP Inventory page provides a unified view of all IP addresses across every c
 - Locate a backend server IP across multiple clusters
 - Audit all IP addresses managed by the platform
 
+### HA / VIP Management - Keepalived Virtual IP Failover
+
+The HA / VIP page manages **highly-available virtual IPs** backed by Keepalived (VRRP) directly from the UI — no SSHing into nodes to install/configure Keepalived by hand. It builds on the agent pull-architecture: you define the VIP centrally, click Apply, and the agents converge.
+
+**What it does:**
+- **VIP dashboard**: lists each virtual IP with its pool, VRID, per-node interface, and a **live MASTER / BACKUP / FAULT** column per node (refreshed every 30s from the existing keepalive-state heartbeat pipeline).
+- **Creation form**: enter the virtual IP (+ prefix), pick the pool, and select which of the pool's HAProxy nodes participate — each with a network interface (from the node's reported interfaces), a VRRP role (MASTER/BACKUP) and a priority. VRID auto-allocates per pool; an optional VRRP secret can be set.
+- **Hands-off automation**: on **Apply**, each member's `keepalived.conf` is rendered and delivered; the agent installs Keepalived if missing, writes the config + a HAProxy health-check (`vrrp_script` + `track_script`), validates with `keepalived -t`, and starts the service. When HAProxy drops on the active node, the health-check lowers VRRP priority and the **VIP fails over automatically** to a backup.
+
+**How it works (pull-based, isolated):**
+- New tables `vip_instances` + `vip_members`; the agent polls `GET /api/agents/{name}/keepalived-config` (key-authenticated, agent-bound) and converges. It is fully **isolated** from the global HAProxy apply flow — VIP changes never regenerate `haproxy.cfg`.
+- **Cluster-driven path**: the `keepalived.conf` location is a cluster setting (`keepalived_config_path`, default `/etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf`) delivered to the agent dynamically — just like the HAProxy paths — so non-standard installs are supported with zero per-node effort. The default is what the keepalived service loads on every distro; if you set a non-default path, ensure the keepalived unit is configured to load it.
+
+**Apply / Reject staging:**
+- VIP edits are staged as **PENDING** and only go live on **Apply**, which records an applied snapshot. **Reject** discards pending changes and **restores the previous applied state** (a never-applied VIP is discarded). Editing a live VIP never disrupts it until you re-Apply.
+
+**Enterprise safety:**
+- **Opt-in & backward compatible** — nodes/clusters without a VIP do nothing new.
+- **Never clobbers a hand-managed Keepalived** — if an unmanaged `keepalived.conf` exists, the agent reports "externally managed" and leaves it untouched.
+- **Multi-distro install** — Debian/Ubuntu, RHEL/CentOS/Alma/Rocky, Fedora, SUSE/openSUSE, Alpine (apt/dnf/yum/zypper/apk).
+- **Reliable detection across platforms** — MASTER/BACKUP is detected via systemd journal, syslog, and a portable interface-based check (exact-match, all VIPs).
+- **Secure** — the VRRP secret is encrypted at rest and never returned by the API; the delivery endpoint requires the node's own API key.
+- **Scope** — VRRP targets bare-metal / VMware / on-prem L2 networks; the UI clearly notes that AWS/Azure/GCP don't honor VRRP/gratuitous-ARP. macOS agents can't run Keepalived and are excluded (the UI warns if one is selected).
+
+**RBAC:** gated by the `vip` permission group (`vip.read/create/update/delete/apply`); admins bypass.
+
 ### User Management - Access Control & Authentication
 - **User Accounts**: Create, edit, and manage user accounts
 - **Role-based Access**: Admin, user, and custom role definitions
@@ -1690,6 +1738,19 @@ Add new HAProxy clusters through the web interface or directly via API:
 }
 ```
 
+### Performance Tuning *(v1.8.6)*
+
+The backend API defaults to a **single uvicorn worker process**, which uses one CPU core. Agents poll the API every 30 seconds (heartbeat, config, pending-requests, upgrade checks), so larger fleets add a constant baseline load. Two ways to scale:
+
+- **Docker Compose — worker processes**: set `UVICORN_WORKERS` in your `.env` (default `1`). On a multi-core host, matching the core count (e.g. `UVICORN_WORKERS=2` on a 2-core machine) lets the API use all cores:
+  ```bash
+  echo "UVICORN_WORKERS=2" >> .env && docker-compose up -d backend
+  ```
+- **Kubernetes/OpenShift — replicas**: the shipped manifests already include an HPA for the backend (2→10 replicas, `k8s/manifests/13-hpa.yaml`); raise `minReplicas`/`maxReplicas` as needed.
+
+Both are safe: all background tasks (ACME completion, renewals, agent monitoring) are multi-replica safe by design (atomic claims via `FOR UPDATE SKIP LOCKED`, PostgreSQL advisory locks).
+
+**Diagnosing slow requests**: every API response carries an `X-Response-Time` header, and the backend logs `Slow request detected` (WARNING) for any request taking longer than 1 second — check those log lines to pinpoint slow endpoints before tuning anything else.
 
 ## API Reference
 
@@ -2021,7 +2082,7 @@ haproxy-openmanager/
 ├── docker-compose.yml                # Docker Compose configuration
 ├── docker-compose.localtest.yml      # Local development/testing overrides
 ├── docker-compose.test.yml           # Test environment
-├── version.json                      # Application version metadata
+├── backend/version.json              # Application version metadata (single source of truth)
 ├── build-images.sh                   # Build Docker images
 ├── pytest.ini                        # Pytest configuration
 ├── README.md                         # This file
@@ -2367,6 +2428,33 @@ Developed with ❤️ for the HAProxy community
 
 ## Release Notes
 
+- **v1.8.7** (2026-07-09) — **Version reporting single-source fix**: the version shown in the UI (backend-sourced via `/api/version`) could lag behind the real release. The canonical version lived in the repo-root `version.json`, but the backend image is built from the `./backend` context, so that file did not reach the container in every pipeline; the backend then fell back to a hardcoded constant in `main.py` that had to be bumped by hand and had drifted (it reported 1.8.4 after 1.8.5/1.8.6 shipped). The version now lives in a single file, `backend/version.json`, baked into every image automatically, and `main.py` no longer carries a real version literal (its fallback is a neutral "unknown"). A new test enforces that the version stays single-source and cannot drift. No functional or API change.
+- **v1.8.6** (2026-07-06) — **Performance: opt-in API workers + heartbeat micro-optimization** (Issue #35 follow-up): the backend container can now run multiple uvicorn worker processes via the new `UVICORN_WORKERS` environment variable (default **1** — behavior unchanged unless you opt in), letting the API use all cores on multi-core hosts; background tasks were already multi-replica safe, as exercised by the Kubernetes HPA deployment. The agent heartbeat handler now reads the agent's `status`/`version`/`upgrade_status` in one query instead of three (one round-trip per heartbeat, per agent, every 30s). Added a *Performance Tuning* section to the README (worker/replica scaling and how to use the `X-Response-Time` header and `Slow request detected` logs to pinpoint slow endpoints). Zero-risk release: no schema, API, or agent changes; defaults preserve existing behavior exactly.
+- **v1.8.5** (2026-07-03) — **ACME completion-task SQL fix** (Issue #35 follow-up): the background order-completion task (`complete_pending_acme_orders`, runs every 60s) died on **every cycle** with `syntax error at or near ")"` — an extra closing parenthesis introduced in v1.8.0's bounded DNS-01 retry claim query. Because that query is the task's first database call, **no background ACME work ran at all from v1.8.0 through v1.8.4**: orders were never claimed for finalize/download, the DNS-01 TXT record was never published (so DNS-01 with an automated provider such as Cloudflare could never validate), Site Wizard staged orders never left `wizard_staged`, and DNS-01 retry/TXT-cleanup never executed. The stray parenthesis is removed and a regression test now scans all ACME modules' SQL for unbalanced parentheses (the unit suite mocks the database, which is why a raw-SQL syntax error could slip through). One-line backend query fix; no schema, API, or agent changes — fully backward compatible.
+- **v1.8.4** (2026-06-27) — **Agent installer self-kill fix** (Issue #31): the Linux/macOS agent installer could abort during "pre-installation cleanup" (terminal showed `Killing processes matching: haproxy-agent` then `Killed`) when the install script's own filename contained "haproxy-agent". The cleanup killed processes by matching the bare string "haproxy-agent" against full command lines, which also matched the running installer (and a `sudo`/PAM ancestor the self-exclusion did not cover), so the installer terminated itself. Cleanup now targets only the installed agent (the `$INSTALL_DIR/haproxy-agent` binary and the agent service), never the bare string, and the UI now names the downloaded scripts `install-agent-<platform>.sh` / `uninstall-agent-<platform>.sh`. Installer-only change; the running agent and its privilege model (it runs as root for HAProxy reload, config writes, keepalived, and self-upgrade) are unchanged.
+- **v1.8.3** (2026-06-25) — **Agent heartbeat JSON fix** (Issue #31): a self-hosted agent could fail every heartbeat with `HTTP 400 Invalid JSON: Expecting property name enclosed in double quotes` when the system-info block it collects came back empty on an unusual host, leaving a stray comma in the hand-built heartbeat JSON. The agent script now substitutes a valid placeholder when that block is empty so it can no longer emit a stray comma, and the backend heartbeat endpoint now parses valid payloads as-is and, only when a body fails to parse, tolerates that specific malformed pattern (a leading or doubled comma) so an already-deployed agent recovers on its next heartbeat after this build is deployed. Backend + agent-script only; healthy agents of every version are byte-for-byte unaffected.
+- **v1.8.2** (2026-06-25) — **ACME nonce fix** (Issue #35 follow-up): the ACME client now scopes the anti-replay nonce **per certificate authority** so a nonce issued by one CA is never sent to another. This fixes ZeroSSL/Google account registration failing with `malformed: The Replay Nonce could not be base64url-decoded` (the client previously shared one nonce across CAs and only auto-retried on `badNonce`). Account registration now always uses a fresh nonce from the target CA, and the retry covers this case too. Backend-only; HTTP-01 and Let's Encrypt are unaffected.
+- **v1.8.1** (2026-06-24) — **ACME DNS-01 fixes** (Issue #35 follow-up): Cloudflare API tokens are now sanitized so a pasted token with quotes/spaces no longer fails with "Invalid request headers"; ZeroSSL/Google **External Account Binding (EAB)** can be entered per-account in the register dialog and EAB-required failures show a clear message; and **Apply Management** now categorizes cluster ACME enable/disable changes under their own "ACME Challenge Routing" section and **Apply/Reject All** correctly process them (previously "Rejected 0 HA/VIP change(s)"), consistent with every other entity. Fully backward compatible.
+- **v1.8.0** (2026-06-23) — **ACME DNS-01 challenge support** (Issue #35): Auto SSL can now validate via a **DNS TXT record** (`_acme-challenge.<domain>`) instead of HTTP-01 on port 80, enabling certificates for **internal/isolated clusters with no public ingress** and **wildcard** certificates (`*.example.com`). Pluggable **per-account DNS provider** (Manual + Cloudflare to start; credentials verified on save and **encrypted at rest**, never returned by the API or logged), the same **PENDING → APPLIED** pipeline, a **bounded automatic retry** on propagation lag, and a **DNS-01 event timeline** in the order detail. **Opt-in** via Settings → ACME (global switch, default off); **HTTP-01 is byte-for-byte unchanged**, with **zero agent or rendered-config changes**. Manual DNS-01 certificates cannot auto-renew unattended; the UI states this and disables auto-renew for them.
+- **v1.7.8** (2026-06-07) — HA / VIP apply progress now shows **per-node** convergence: a multi-node VIP's apply popup reads "Syncing HA/VIP… 1/2 node(s) converged" (matching the HA/VIP table) instead of a coarse per-change count. Frontend-only.
+- **v1.7.7** (2026-06-07) — HA / VIP apply-progress consistency: applying a VIP change (or approving a delete) used to flash the progress popup green instantly while the HA/VIP page still showed `SYNCING (0/1)` for a couple of minutes. The popup now **keeps showing "Syncing HA/VIP… X/Y node(s) converged"** until each member node reports the VIP `ACTIVE` (create/edit) or fully torn down (delete) — exactly like the HAProxy agent-sync widget — then completes green. It's a fire-and-forget background poll (the Apply button is released immediately), bounded at ~5 min so an offline node can't spin forever (then it completes with an informational "still converging — track on the HA/VIP page"). Frontend-only; no backend/agent/schema change.
+- **v1.7.6** (2026-06-07) — HA / VIP UX + accuracy polish: (1) the on-prem/L2 cloud caveat is now a **subtle, collapsed-by-default "Network requirements" info link** instead of a prominent yellow warning. (2) The delete dialog is simplified — deletion is **always a graceful teardown** (stop & disable keepalived, remove our config, release the VIP, keep the package); the confusing "also uninstall the package" checkbox was removed (it was a no-op on any node whose keepalived predates the install marker, and package removal is better handled as a deliberate node-decommission step — the `purge_package` API remains for that). (3) The agent now reports keepalived **FAULT** state (e.g. when the chosen interface has no usable IPv4) instead of misreporting it as BACKUP, so a misconfigured VIP shows red/FAULT in the UI. (1)+(2) are frontend-only; (3) is an additive agent-script change — push it via **Agent Script Management → Reset to Defaults**, then **Upgrade**.
+- **v1.7.5** (2026-06-07) — HA / VIP "View Change" fix: editing a VIP (e.g. priority + virtual IP) now shows a **real line diff — only the lines that actually changed** — in Apply Management's View Change, instead of rendering the whole `keepalived.conf` as "added". Also fixes a doubled `+ +` prefix (the VIP diff now stores lines without a +/- prefix, matching the standard config diff). View-only; no schema, agent, apply, or render change.
+- **v1.7.4** (2026-06-06) — HAProxy config-generator robustness fix: a frontend that uses a stick counter (`track-sc<N>` or an `sc_*_rate(...)` fetch, e.g. a rate-limit `http-request deny if { sc_http_req_rate(0) gt N }`) but declares **no `stick-table`** caused HAProxy to fatally reject the whole cluster config with *"table '&lt;frontend&gt;' used but not configured"*. This happened where rate-limit directives had been baked into a frontend's stored `request_headers`/`options` (by an older version or a config import). The generator now **auto-injects a default `stick-table`** in that case. Purely additive — it only fires when a counter is used and no table exists (a config that was already invalid), so frontends that already declare a stick-table or don't rate-limit are byte-unchanged.
+- **v1.7.3** (2026-06-06) — HA / VIP backward-compat fix: the v1.7.2 deletion-tracking list now only resurfaces VIPs deleted through the **new approval flow** (gated on `last_config_status='APPLIED'`), so a VIP soft-deleted under an earlier version's immediate-delete is no longer shown as `DELETING`. Display-only; no schema or agent change.
+- **v1.7.2** (2026-06-06) — HA / VIP safety & visibility follow-up:
+  - **Approval-gated deletion (safety).** Deleting a *running* VIP from the UI no longer takes effect immediately — it is **staged for Apply Management** and the VIP **keeps running, untouched**, until you **Approve** it (Reject keeps it). The agent is told to tear keepalived down **only after approval**, so a misclick can never tear down a production VIP — an agent never deletes without an explicit human approval. The deletion is trackable through the standard Apply popup and a **DELETING** status on the HA/VIP tab. (A VIP that was never applied is removed at once — nothing is running to tear down.)
+  - **Diagnostics view** — a per-VIP search-icon modal showing each node's keepalived deploy state, the message it reported, last-ack time and live VRRP state (handy while a fresh install is SYNCING, ~30s), plus the exact node-side log commands.
+  - **Opt-in package uninstall** — the safe default keeps the keepalived package (stop & disable, remove our config, release the VIP); a default-off checkbox additionally uninstalls the package **only on nodes where OpenManager installed it** (an admin's pre-existing keepalived is never removed, tracked via an install marker).
+  - Adds additive `purge_on_teardown` + `pending_delete` columns; `SCHEMA_VERSION` 5 → 7 (idempotent; existing data/passwords unaffected). Agent script updated — push it via **Agent Script Management → Reset to Defaults**, then **Upgrade** agents.
+- **v1.7.1** (2026-06-06) — HA / VIP follow-up: a VIP can now be created on a **single node** — a Keepalived-managed floating IP **without** failover (e.g. a one-box HAProxy that wants a stable address, or before a second node is added). Add a second node anytime for real VRRP failover. A single-node VIP renders a clean **multicast** config (no bare `unicast_src_ip`, which `keepalived -t` rejects); multi-node behaviour is unchanged. The Create-VIP form now auto-selects the first chosen node as **MASTER** and shows an in-UI notice that, on Apply, Keepalived is **installed automatically from the node's OS package repositories** (apt/dnf/yum/zypper/apk — the node must reach its repos / an internal mirror), while a hand-managed Keepalived is still left untouched. No schema change.
+- **v1.7.0** (2026-06-05) — Feature (Issue #27): **HA / VIP (Keepalived) management** from the UI. A new "HA / VIP" tab lets you create a virtual IP, pick a per-node interface, and select which pool nodes participate (with MASTER/BACKUP roles + priorities); on Apply, the agent installs & configures Keepalived (unicast VRRP, cloud-safe default) with a HAProxy health-check so the VIP fails over automatically when HAProxy drops, and the tab shows live MASTER/BACKUP per node. Fully **opt-in and backward compatible** — nodes/clusters without a VIP are untouched, and a node already running a hand-managed Keepalived is detected and never overwritten (reported as "externally managed"). Pending VIP changes can be **Rejected** to fully restore the last applied state. Keepalived is installed across the major distros (Debian/Ubuntu, RHEL/CentOS/Alma/Rocky, Fedora, SUSE/openSUSE, Alpine), and live MASTER/BACKUP detection works across distros/init systems (journald + log files + portable interface-based detection). On-prem/L2 scope (VRRP); a clear in-UI notice covers the cloud caveat. Adds two new tables (`vip_instances`, `vip_members`) — `SCHEMA_VERSION` bumps to 3 (idempotent re-run; existing data and passwords unaffected). A new "HA / VIP" tab lets you create a virtual IP, pick a per-node interface, and select which pool nodes participate (with MASTER/BACKUP roles + priorities); on Apply, the agent installs & configures Keepalived (unicast VRRP, cloud-safe default) with a HAProxy health-check so the VIP fails over automatically when HAProxy drops, and the tab shows live MASTER/BACKUP per node. Fully **opt-in and backward compatible** — nodes/clusters without a VIP are untouched, and a node already running a hand-managed Keepalived is detected and never overwritten (reported as "externally managed"). Pending VIP changes can be **Rejected** to fully restore the last applied state. Keepalived is installed across the major distros (Debian/Ubuntu, RHEL/CentOS/Alma/Rocky, Fedora, SUSE/openSUSE, Alpine), and live MASTER/BACKUP detection works across distros/init systems (journald + log files + portable interface-based detection). On-prem/L2 scope (VRRP); a clear in-UI notice covers the cloud caveat. Adds two new tables (`vip_instances`, `vip_members`) — `SCHEMA_VERSION` bumps to 3 (idempotent re-run; existing data and passwords unaffected).
+- **v1.6.5** (2026-06-02) — Security: re-pinned the bundled nginx reverse-proxy image to `nginx:1.31.1-alpine` (mainline patched release) for the nginx "poolslip" advisory (fixed in mainline 1.31.1+ / stable 1.30.2+). Supersedes the v1.6.4 stable pin. No config, schema, or behavior changes.
+- **v1.6.4** (2026-06-02) — Security: pinned the bundled nginx reverse-proxy image to a patched stable release (`nginx:1.30.2-alpine`) for the nginx "poolslip" advisory (mainline ≤ 1.31.0 affected; fixed in stable 1.30.2+). The product's nginx config uses no `rewrite` capture groups, so the config-level mitigation did not apply — the fix is the version pin. No config, schema, or behavior changes.
+- **v1.6.3** (2026-06-01) — Bugfix: a backend **server** toggled OFF (`is_active=false`) disappeared from the UI with no way to reactivate it. `GET /api/backends` now honors `include_inactive` for servers (previously only backends), so disabled servers stay visible with an OFF switch + "Inactive" tag and can be re-enabled; soft-deleted (pending-delete) servers stay hidden. A Reject of a server toggle now correctly rolls back `is_active` (entity snapshot). Startup migrations are hardened for multiple replicas / rolling deploys (advisory lock + schema-version gate, so an already-current schema isn't re-migrated under a serving peer's load). Version is reported consistently across all layers. No schema changes; config generation unchanged (disabled servers stay commented out).
+- **v1.6.2** (2026-05-30) — Bugfixes: (1) agents (which authenticate with their `X-API-Key` token) could not reach `GET /api/clusters` / `/api/clusters/{id}` after the v1.5.x cluster-read hardening, breaking agent assignment ("401: Authorization header missing"); these endpoints now accept either a user JWT or an agent token (anonymous access is still rejected). (2) The uninstall-script generator returned 400 for macOS agents (which report platform `darwin`); it now normalizes the platform the same way the install generator does. No UI or schema changes.
+- **v1.6.1** (2026-05-21) — Security patch: bump `axios` to 1.16.x (prototype-pollution hardening, header-injection fix, keep-alive memory leak fix) and `fast-uri` to 3.1.2 (GHSA-v39h-62p7-jpjc). No functional changes.
+
 For full release notes and the list of features delivered in each version (v1.5.x Site Wizard + ACME Diagnostic Panel, v1.4.0 ACME stability + enterprise audit, v1.3.0, ...) see the [GitHub Releases](https://github.com/taylanbakircioglu/haproxy-openmanager/releases) page.
 
 ---

UPGRADE_GUIDE.md

@@ -1,3 +1,31 @@
+# Upgrade Notes — v1.7.0 (HA / VIP Keepalived management, Issue #27)
+
+**Backward compatible & opt-in.** Upgrading to v1.7.0 changes nothing for existing
+clusters/agents until you create a VIP:
+
+- **Schema:** `SCHEMA_VERSION` bumps to `3`, so on first start the (idempotent)
+  migration sequence re-runs once and adds two **new** tables (`vip_instances`,
+  `vip_members`) plus an additive `vip_instances.applied_snapshot` column (enables
+  rejecting a pending VIP change and restoring the previous applied state). No existing
+  table is altered. Existing rows and the **admin password
+  are not reset** (default users are create-if-missing). The only data effect is that
+  the **four built-in system roles** (`super_admin`/`operator`/`security_admin`/`viewer`)
+  are re-seeded to their canonical permission sets **plus** the new `vip.*` permissions —
+  this is the long-standing behavior of the role seeder; **custom roles are untouched**.
+- **Agents:** the agent script gains an opt-in keepalived deploy that is a **no-op** on
+  any node without an applied VIP, and it **never overwrites a hand-managed
+  `/etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf`** (it reports "externally managed" instead).
+- **Scope:** VRRP VIPs target bare-metal / VMware / on-prem L2 networks. On AWS/Azure/GCP
+  the cloud fabric doesn't honor VRRP/gratuitous-ARP; the UI surfaces this. Ensure host
+  firewalls permit VRRP (IP protocol 112).
+- **Optional env:** `VIP_ENCRYPTION_KEY` (see `.env.template`) — if unset, the VRRP secret
+  encryption key is derived from `SECRET_KEY` (like MFA).
+
+No rollback steps are required to *disable* the feature: simply don't create VIPs (or
+delete them — agents tear down their managed keepalived on the next poll).
+
+---
+
 # Agent Upgrade Guide - Dashboard Stats Fix
 
 ## Problem

backend/Dockerfile

@@ -37,5 +37,13 @@ USER appuser
 # Expose port
 EXPOSE 8000
 
-# Run the application in production mode (without --reload)
-CMD ["uvicorn", "main:app", "--host", "0.0.0.0", "--port", "8000"]
+# Run the application in production mode (without --reload).
+# UVICORN_WORKERS (default 1) opts into multiple worker processes on multi-core
+# hosts; with 1 worker uvicorn runs in-process, identical to the flagless CMD
+# this replaces. Falls back to WEB_CONCURRENCY when UVICORN_WORKERS is unset
+# because flagless uvicorn honored WEB_CONCURRENCY (uvicorn config.py) — this
+# keeps any deployment that relied on it byte-for-byte compatible. Background
+# tasks are multi-replica safe (FOR UPDATE SKIP LOCKED / advisory locks), as
+# already exercised by the k8s HPA deployment. `exec` keeps uvicorn as PID 1
+# so signal handling is unchanged.
+CMD ["sh", "-c", "exec uvicorn main:app --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8000 --workers ${UVICORN_WORKERS:-${WEB_CONCURRENCY:-1}}"]

backend/database/migrations.py

@@ -50,9 +50,62 @@ async def ensure_agents_table():
         await conn.execute("ALTER TYPE config_status ADD VALUE IF NOT EXISTS 'DELETION';")
         logger.info("Ensured REJECTED and DELETION values exist in config_status enum.")
 
-        # First, create essential tables if they don't exist
-        await create_essential_tables(conn)
-        
+        # First, create essential tables if they don't exist.
+        #
+        # Rolling-restart resilience: create_essential_tables() runs idempotent
+        # CREATE ... IF NOT EXISTS statements on every startup. Its CREATE INDEX
+        # block needs a SHARE lock that conflicts with concurrent writes (e.g.
+        # agent heartbeats updating backend_servers/agents). During a redeploy a
+        # writer can hold that lock, so the DDL blocked for the full 60s
+        # command_timeout -> TimeoutError -> startup crash -> crash-loop.
+        #
+        # Fix: fail fast on locks (lock_timeout), retry briefly, and on
+        # persistent contention SKIP the idempotent bootstrap and continue — on
+        # an established DB the objects already exist; a fresh DB has no writers
+        # so the first attempt always succeeds. lock_timeout is scoped to this
+        # call and RESET afterwards, so every other migration below keeps its
+        # original (wait-indefinitely) behavior. Non-lock errors still propagate
+        # (genuine schema problems must NOT be masked).
+        import asyncio as _asyncio
+        _lock_excs = (_asyncio.TimeoutError,)
+        try:
+            import asyncpg as _asyncpg
+            _lock_excs = _lock_excs + (
+                _asyncpg.exceptions.LockNotAvailableError,
+                _asyncpg.exceptions.QueryCanceledError,
+            )
+        except Exception:
+            pass
+        try:
+            await conn.execute("SET lock_timeout = '10s'")
+        except Exception:
+            pass
+        try:
+            for _attempt in range(1, 4):
+                try:
+                    await create_essential_tables(conn)
+                    break
+                except _lock_excs as _lock_err:
+                    if _attempt < 3:
+                        logger.warning(
+                            f"create_essential_tables: lock contention "
+                            f"(attempt {_attempt}/3), retrying in 3s "
+                            f"({type(_lock_err).__name__})"
+                        )
+                        await _asyncio.sleep(3)
+                    else:
+                        logger.warning(
+                            "create_essential_tables: persistent lock contention; "
+                            "skipping idempotent schema bootstrap and continuing "
+                            "startup (objects already exist on an established DB) "
+                            f"({type(_lock_err).__name__})"
+                        )
+        finally:
+            try:
+                await conn.execute("RESET lock_timeout")
+            except Exception:
+                pass
+
         # Ensure status column exists in config_versions table
         status_column_exists = await conn.fetchval("""
             SELECT 1 FROM information_schema.columns 
@@ -141,7 +194,14 @@ async def ensure_agents_table():
             'use_backend_rules': "ALTER TABLE frontends ADD COLUMN use_backend_rules JSONB DEFAULT '[]'::jsonb;",
             'request_headers': "ALTER TABLE frontends ADD COLUMN request_headers TEXT;",
             'response_headers': "ALTER TABLE frontends ADD COLUMN response_headers TEXT;",
-            'maxconn': "ALTER TABLE frontends ADD COLUMN maxconn INTEGER;"
+            'maxconn': "ALTER TABLE frontends ADD COLUMN maxconn INTEGER;",
+            # Issue #38: SPOE filter directives (e.g. Coraza WAF) and frontend
+            # log-format were silently dropped on bulk-import / manual edit
+            # because the parser recognised only a fixed set of directives.
+            # These nullable TEXT columns persist them verbatim (multi-line for
+            # `filters`), mirroring the request_headers/options passthrough.
+            'log_format': "ALTER TABLE frontends ADD COLUMN log_format TEXT;",
+            'filters': "ALTER TABLE frontends ADD COLUMN filters TEXT;"
         }
         
         for col, query in frontend_columns.items():
@@ -431,6 +491,7 @@ async def ensure_agents_table():
                 connection_type VARCHAR(50) DEFAULT 'agent',
                 stats_socket_path VARCHAR(500) DEFAULT '/run/haproxy/admin.sock',
                 haproxy_config_path VARCHAR(500) DEFAULT '/etc/haproxy/haproxy.cfg',
+                keepalived_config_path VARCHAR(500) DEFAULT '/etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf',
                 pool_id INTEGER REFERENCES haproxy_cluster_pools(id) ON DELETE SET NULL,
                 haproxy_user VARCHAR(255) DEFAULT 'haproxy',
                 haproxy_group VARCHAR(255) DEFAULT 'haproxy',
@@ -1298,6 +1359,7 @@ async def update_system_roles_to_enterprise_rbac():
                     'apply.read', 'apply.execute', 'apply.reject', 'apply.history', 'apply.bulk', 'apply.emergency',
                     'agents.read', 'agents.create', 'agents.update', 'agents.delete', 'agents.script', 'agents.toggle', 'agents.upgrade', 'agents.version', 'agents.logs',
                     'clusters.read', 'clusters.create', 'clusters.update', 'clusters.delete', 'clusters.switch', 'clusters.config',
+                    'vip.read', 'vip.create', 'vip.update', 'vip.delete', 'vip.apply',
                     'config.read', 'config.update', 'config.download', 'config.upload', 'config.backup', 'config.restore', 'config.history', 'config.bulk_import', 'config.view_request', 'config.download_request',
                     'users.read', 'users.create', 'users.update', 'users.delete', 'users.password', 'users.roles',
                     'roles.read', 'roles.create', 'roles.update', 'roles.delete', 'roles.permissions',
@@ -1319,6 +1381,7 @@ async def update_system_roles_to_enterprise_rbac():
                     'apply.read', 'apply.execute', 'apply.reject', 'apply.history', 'apply.bulk',
                     'agents.read', 'agents.update', 'agents.toggle', 'agents.upgrade', 'agents.version', 'agents.logs',
                     'clusters.read', 'clusters.switch', 'clusters.config',
+                    'vip.read', 'vip.create', 'vip.update', 'vip.delete', 'vip.apply',
                     'config.read', 'config.update', 'config.download', 'config.history', 'config.bulk_import', 'config.view_request', 'config.download_request',
                     'statistics.read', 'statistics.performance', 'statistics.agents', 'statistics.health',
                     'activity.read'
@@ -1336,6 +1399,7 @@ async def update_system_roles_to_enterprise_rbac():
                     'apply.read', 'apply.execute', 'apply.reject', 'apply.history',
                     'agents.read', 'agents.version', 'agents.logs',
                     'clusters.read', 'clusters.switch',
+                    'vip.read',
                     'config.read', 'config.history', 'config.view_request', 'config.download_request',
                     'statistics.read', 'statistics.performance', 'statistics.agents', 'statistics.health',
                     'activity.read', 'activity.all', 'activity.export',
@@ -1354,6 +1418,7 @@ async def update_system_roles_to_enterprise_rbac():
                     'apply.read', 'apply.history',
                     'agents.read',
                     'clusters.read', 'clusters.switch',
+                    'vip.read',
                     'config.read', 'config.history', 'config.view_request',
                     'statistics.read', 'statistics.performance', 'statistics.agents', 'statistics.health',
                     'activity.read',
@@ -1639,13 +1704,131 @@ async def ensure_agent_activity_logs_table():
             await close_database_connection(conn)
         # Don't raise - this is not critical for system operation
 
+# Schema-version gate for the migration runner.
+#
+# >>> BUMP THIS whenever you add/modify ANY step in _run_all_migrations_inner()
+# >>> that changes the schema (table/column/index/constraint) OR seeded/role data
+# >>> (e.g. update_system_roles_to_enterprise_rbac). Otherwise the new step will
+# >>> NOT run on databases already marked at the current version.
+#
+# When the DB already records >= this version, run_all_migrations() skips the
+# whole (lock-heavy) idempotent sequence, so redeploys/scale-ups issue NO DDL and
+# a concurrently-serving replica's traffic cannot block ALTER / CREATE INDEX (the
+# rolling-deploy startup crash that motivated this gate).
+#
+# Backward compatibility (the product runs at many versions across companies):
+#  - First start on this code: no marker -> applied_version is NULL -> the FULL
+#    sequence runs (upgrades any prior version), THEN the marker is written. So
+#    upgrading from any older version is unaffected.
+#  - The marker is written ONLY after _run_all_migrations_inner() completes with
+#    no exception, so an interrupted/failed migration never marks an incomplete
+#    schema as done — the next start retries.
+#  - Behavior change vs the historical "re-run every idempotent ensure_* on every
+#    start": once marked, same-version restarts no longer re-run (and therefore no
+#    longer auto-repair manual drift). To force a re-run, bump SCHEMA_VERSION or
+#    delete the schema_migrations row.
+#
+# v1.7.0 (Issue #27 — HA/VIP Keepalived management): bumped 1 -> 2 so the new
+# additive ensure_vip_tables() step (two brand-new tables) actually runs on
+# databases already marked at version 1. The whole re-run is idempotent.
+# v1.7.0 self-review: bumped 2 -> 3 so the additive `applied_snapshot` column on
+# vip_instances (enables VIP reject/restore-to-previous) lands on DBs marked at 2.
+# v1.7.0 self-review: bumped 3 -> 4 for the additive `keepalived_config_path` column on
+# haproxy_clusters (cluster-driven keepalived.conf path, like haproxy_config_path).
+# v1.7.0 self-review: bumped 4 -> 5 to drop the table-level UNIQUE on vip_instances.name
+# and replace it with a partial unique index (active rows only), so a soft-deleted VIP's
+# name is reusable — consistent with the address/VRID partial indexes. Idempotent re-run.
+# v1.7.2: bumped 5 -> 6 for the additive `purge_on_teardown` column on vip_instances
+# (opt-in "also uninstall the keepalived package on delete"; default FALSE keeps the safe
+# graceful-teardown behaviour). Additive + idempotent.
+# v1.7.2: bumped 6 -> 7 for the additive `pending_delete` column on vip_instances
+# (approval-gated VIP deletion: a delete is staged for Apply Management and the VIP keeps
+# running until APPROVED, so an agent never tears down without explicit human approval).
+# v1.8.0 (Issue #35 — ACME DNS-01 challenge support): bumped 7 -> 8 for additive DNS-01
+# columns on letsencrypt_accounts/letsencrypt_orders/acme_challenges and the brand-new
+# letsencrypt_account_dns_credentials table (ensure_letsencrypt_dns_credentials step).
+# All additive + idempotent; default challenge_type 'http-01' keeps existing flows byte-identical.
+# v1.8.8 (Issue #38 — SPOE filter + frontend log-format): bumped 8 -> 9 for the additive
+# `log_format` + `filters` TEXT columns on `frontends` (frontend_columns loop). Without this
+# bump, already-deployed databases (version >= 8) skip the whole migration run and never gain
+# the columns, so the frontends SELECT/INSERT would fail. Additive + idempotent + nullable;
+# existing rows stay NULL and render byte-identical.
+SCHEMA_VERSION = 9
+
+
 async def run_all_migrations():
-    """Run all database migrations"""
+    """Run all database migrations.
+
+    Hardened for multiple backend replicas / rolling deploys:
+    - A session-level advisory lock serializes the run so only one pod migrates
+      at a time (others wait, then hit the version gate and skip). It is
+      session-scoped, so it auto-releases if a pod dies mid-migration.
+    - A schema-version marker (schema_migrations) gates the run: when the DB is
+      already at SCHEMA_VERSION the whole idempotent sequence is skipped, so no
+      DDL is issued and a serving replica's traffic can't block it.
+    If the advisory lock or marker can't be used, we fall back to running the
+    (idempotent) migrations rather than crashing startup.
+    """
     logger.info("Starting database migrations...")
-    
+    MIGRATION_ADVISORY_LOCK_KEY = 1836016242  # single-key advisory space ("migr"); distinct from the (ns,id) locks used elsewhere
+    lock_conn = None
+    lock_acquired = False
+    try:
+        lock_conn = await get_database_connection()
+        try:
+            await lock_conn.execute("SELECT pg_advisory_lock($1)", MIGRATION_ADVISORY_LOCK_KEY)
+            lock_acquired = True
+            logger.info("Acquired migration advisory lock (migrations serialized across pods)")
+        except Exception as _lock_e:
+            logger.warning(f"Could not acquire migration advisory lock; proceeding (migrations are idempotent): {_lock_e}")
+
+        # Schema-version gate: skip the lock-heavy sequence if the DB is current.
+        applied_version = None
+        try:
+            await lock_conn.execute("""
+                CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS schema_migrations (
+                    id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY DEFAULT 1,
+                    version INTEGER NOT NULL,
+                    applied_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+                    CONSTRAINT schema_migrations_singleton CHECK (id = 1)
+                )
+            """)
+            applied_version = await lock_conn.fetchval("SELECT version FROM schema_migrations WHERE id = 1")
+        except Exception as _mk_e:
+            logger.warning(f"schema_migrations marker unavailable; running full migrations: {_mk_e}")
+            applied_version = None
+
+        if applied_version is not None and applied_version >= SCHEMA_VERSION:
+            logger.info(f"Schema already at version {applied_version} (>= {SCHEMA_VERSION}); skipping migration run.")
+            return
+
+        await _run_all_migrations_inner()
+
+        try:
+            await lock_conn.execute("""
+                INSERT INTO schema_migrations (id, version, applied_at)
+                VALUES (1, $1, CURRENT_TIMESTAMP)
+                ON CONFLICT (id) DO UPDATE SET version = EXCLUDED.version, applied_at = EXCLUDED.applied_at
+            """, SCHEMA_VERSION)
+            logger.info(f"Recorded schema version {SCHEMA_VERSION} in schema_migrations.")
+        except Exception as _wr_e:
+            logger.warning(f"Could not record schema version marker (migrations still applied): {_wr_e}")
+    finally:
+        if lock_acquired and lock_conn is not None:
+            try:
+                await lock_conn.execute("SELECT pg_advisory_unlock($1)", MIGRATION_ADVISORY_LOCK_KEY)
+            except Exception:
+                pass
+        if lock_conn is not None:
+            await close_database_connection(lock_conn)
+
+
+async def _run_all_migrations_inner():
+    """The full idempotent migration sequence. Runs under the migration advisory
+    lock and is gated by the schema-version marker in run_all_migrations()."""
     # First, ensure basic database schema exists
     await run_init_sql()
-    
+
     # Then run additional migrations
     await ensure_agents_table()
     await ensure_config_versions_metadata_column()
@@ -1684,6 +1867,9 @@ async def run_all_migrations():
     await ensure_system_settings_table()
     await ensure_acme_tables()
     await ensure_acme_columns_on_existing_tables()
+    # Issue #35 (v1.8.0 — ACME DNS-01): per-account encrypted DNS provider credentials.
+    # MUST run after ensure_acme_tables() (FK references letsencrypt_accounts).
+    await ensure_letsencrypt_dns_credentials()
     # Issue #11 cleanup: must run AFTER acme_tables/columns to ensure FK refs exist
     await cleanup_orphan_acme_challenge_backend()
     # v1.5.0 Feature A (ACME diagnostics) + Feature B (site wizard)
@@ -1703,6 +1889,10 @@ async def run_all_migrations():
     # Issue #18 — TOTP MFA (v1.6.0): additive columns + 3 new tables
     await ensure_mfa_columns()
 
+    # Issue #27 — HA/VIP Keepalived management (v1.7.0): two brand-new tables.
+    # MUST stay last: FK-references haproxy_cluster_pools/agents/users, all created above.
+    await ensure_vip_tables()
+
     logger.info("Database migrations completed successfully.")
 
 
@@ -1781,6 +1971,127 @@ async def ensure_mfa_columns():
         if conn:
             await close_database_connection(conn)
 
+async def ensure_vip_tables():
+    """Issue #27 — HA/VIP (Keepalived) management (v1.7.0). Additive only:
+    two brand-new tables (vip_instances, vip_members) + indexes. No ALTER of any
+    existing table, so the entire current fleet is byte-identical. Fully idempotent
+    (CREATE TABLE/INDEX IF NOT EXISTS). FK targets (haproxy_cluster_pools, agents,
+    users) are created earlier in the sequence — this function is registered LAST.
+
+    Backward-compat: a cluster/agent with no VIP row is unaffected; the agent
+    delivery endpoint returns 'not_configured' for every node without a membership.
+    """
+    conn = None
+    try:
+        conn = await get_database_connection()
+
+        # Cluster-driven keepalived.conf path (mirrors haproxy_config_path): additive +
+        # idempotent, with a universal default so operators need set nothing. The agent
+        # pulls this from its cluster, exactly like the HAProxy paths.
+        await conn.execute(
+            "ALTER TABLE haproxy_clusters ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS keepalived_config_path "
+            "VARCHAR(500) DEFAULT '/etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf';")
+
+        # VIP instance: one row per virtual IP (one VRRP group), anchored to a pool.
+        await conn.execute("""
+            CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS vip_instances (
+                id SERIAL PRIMARY KEY,
+                name VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
+                description TEXT,
+                pool_id INTEGER NOT NULL REFERENCES haproxy_cluster_pools(id) ON DELETE CASCADE,
+                virtual_ip VARCHAR(45) NOT NULL,
+                prefix_length INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 24,
+                virtual_router_id INTEGER NOT NULL,
+                advert_int INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 1,
+                auth_pass_encrypted TEXT,
+                use_unicast BOOLEAN NOT NULL DEFAULT TRUE,
+                track_haproxy BOOLEAN NOT NULL DEFAULT TRUE,
+                is_active BOOLEAN NOT NULL DEFAULT TRUE,
+                last_config_status VARCHAR(20) NOT NULL DEFAULT 'PENDING',
+                applied_snapshot JSONB,
+                created_by INTEGER REFERENCES users(id) ON DELETE SET NULL,
+                created_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+                updated_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+                CONSTRAINT vip_vrid_range CHECK (virtual_router_id BETWEEN 1 AND 255)
+            );
+        """)
+        # Additive (idempotent) for DBs that created vip_instances before applied_snapshot
+        # existed (v1.7.0 self-review): holds the field-level state as of the last Apply so
+        # a pending edit can be rejected and fully reverted to the previous applied state.
+        await conn.execute("ALTER TABLE vip_instances ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS applied_snapshot JSONB;")
+        # Opt-in package removal (v1.7.2): when an operator deletes a VIP and explicitly ticks
+        # "also uninstall keepalived from the node(s)", we set this flag so the teardown
+        # delivery tells the agent to purge the OS package. Default FALSE = the safe enterprise
+        # default (stop+disable+remove our config, but KEEP the package). Additive + idempotent;
+        # a node we never managed stays untouched regardless.
+        await conn.execute("ALTER TABLE vip_instances ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS purge_on_teardown BOOLEAN NOT NULL DEFAULT FALSE;")
+        # Approval-gated deletion (v1.7.2): deleting a RUNNING VIP from the UI does NOT take
+        # effect immediately — it sets pending_delete=TRUE and stages a vip-*-delete version
+        # for Apply Management. The VIP stays is_active=TRUE (agents keep serving it, NOTHING
+        # is torn down) until the operator APPROVES; only then does apply flip is_active=FALSE
+        # and the agents tear down. Reject clears the flag and the VIP keeps running untouched.
+        # This guarantees an agent never tears a VIP down without an explicit human approval —
+        # protecting production. Additive + idempotent.
+        await conn.execute("ALTER TABLE vip_instances ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS pending_delete BOOLEAN NOT NULL DEFAULT FALSE;")
+        # Uniqueness as PARTIAL indexes on active rows so a soft-deleted VIP frees its
+        # name/address/VRID for immediate reuse (a table-level UNIQUE would keep blocking it).
+        # NAME (v1.7.0 self-review): the original CREATE used a table-level UNIQUE on name,
+        # which left a soft-deleted VIP's name blocked (you couldn't re-create a VIP with the
+        # same name) — inconsistent with addr/VRID. Drop that constraint and use a partial
+        # index instead. Idempotent: no-op on a fresh table (no inline UNIQUE) and on re-run.
+        await conn.execute("ALTER TABLE vip_instances DROP CONSTRAINT IF EXISTS vip_instances_name_key;")
+        await conn.execute(
+            "CREATE UNIQUE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS uq_vip_name_active ON vip_instances(name) WHERE is_active=TRUE;"
+        )
+        await conn.execute(
+            "CREATE UNIQUE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS uq_vip_addr_active ON vip_instances(virtual_ip) WHERE is_active=TRUE;"
+        )
+        await conn.execute(
+            "CREATE UNIQUE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS uq_vip_vrid_active ON vip_instances(pool_id, virtual_router_id) WHERE is_active=TRUE;"
+        )
+
+        # Per-node membership: which agents participate + their VRRP role/priority,
+        # the applied (delivered) config snapshot, and the agent's deploy ack.
+        await conn.execute("""
+            CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS vip_members (
+                id SERIAL PRIMARY KEY,
+                vip_id INTEGER NOT NULL REFERENCES vip_instances(id) ON DELETE CASCADE,
+                agent_id INTEGER NOT NULL REFERENCES agents(id) ON DELETE CASCADE,
+                network_interface VARCHAR(64) NOT NULL,
+                role VARCHAR(10) NOT NULL DEFAULT 'BACKUP',
+                priority INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 100,
+                applied_config_content TEXT,
+                applied_config_hash VARCHAR(64),
+                last_deploy_state VARCHAR(24),
+                last_deploy_message TEXT,
+                last_deploy_hash VARCHAR(64),
+                last_deploy_at TIMESTAMP,
+                created_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+                updated_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+                CONSTRAINT vip_member_role CHECK (role IN ('MASTER','BACKUP')),
+                CONSTRAINT vip_member_priority_range CHECK (priority BETWEEN 1 AND 254),
+                CONSTRAINT vip_member_unique UNIQUE (vip_id, agent_id)
+            );
+        """)
+        # Last line of defense against split-brain: at most one MASTER per VIP.
+        await conn.execute(
+            "CREATE UNIQUE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS uq_vip_one_master ON vip_members(vip_id) WHERE role='MASTER';"
+        )
+        await conn.execute(
+            "CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_vip_members_vip ON vip_members(vip_id);"
+        )
+        await conn.execute(
+            "CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_vip_members_agent ON vip_members(agent_id);"
+        )
+
+        logger.info("✅ VIP tables ensured (Issue #27 — HA/VIP Keepalived management)")
+    except Exception as e:
+        logger.error(f"Failed to ensure VIP tables: {e}")
+        # Don't raise — follow the same defensive pattern as ensure_mfa_columns
+    finally:
+        if conn:
+            await close_database_connection(conn)
+
 async def add_ssl_certificate_id_to_backend_servers():
     """Add ssl_certificate_id column to backend_servers table for SSL certificate management"""
     conn = None
@@ -3357,6 +3668,23 @@ async def ensure_acme_columns_on_existing_tables():
             ('last_attempt_at', "ALTER TABLE acme_challenges ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS last_attempt_at TIMESTAMPTZ"),
             # Commit 3a: track auto-completion task lock/poll timestamps for atomic claim across replicas
             ('orders_updated_at_idx', "CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_letsencrypt_orders_status_updated ON letsencrypt_orders(status, updated_at) WHERE status = 'valid' AND ssl_certificate_id IS NULL"),
+            # Issue #35 (v1.8.0 — ACME DNS-01): per-account challenge method + DNS provider selection
+            ('acct_challenge_type', "ALTER TABLE letsencrypt_accounts ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS challenge_type VARCHAR(20) DEFAULT 'http-01'"),
+            ('acct_dns_provider', "ALTER TABLE letsencrypt_accounts ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS dns_provider VARCHAR(50)"),
+            # per-order challenge method + bounded DNS-01 retry chain (dns01_parent_order_id is a PLAIN INTEGER, not a FK,
+            # to avoid a self-referential cascade interacting with account/order bulk DELETEs)
+            ('order_challenge_type', "ALTER TABLE letsencrypt_orders ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS challenge_type VARCHAR(20) DEFAULT 'http-01'"),
+            ('order_dns01_attempts', "ALTER TABLE letsencrypt_orders ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS dns01_attempts INTEGER DEFAULT 0"),
+            ('order_dns01_last_attempt_at', "ALTER TABLE letsencrypt_orders ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS dns01_last_attempt_at TIMESTAMPTZ"),
+            ('order_dns01_parent_order_id', "ALTER TABLE letsencrypt_orders ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS dns01_parent_order_id INTEGER"),
+            ('order_dns01_retry_claimed', "ALTER TABLE letsencrypt_orders ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS dns01_retry_claimed BOOLEAN DEFAULT FALSE"),
+            # per-challenge DNS-01 lifecycle state
+            ('chal_challenge_type', "ALTER TABLE acme_challenges ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS challenge_type VARCHAR(20) DEFAULT 'http-01'"),
+            ('chal_dns_txt_value', "ALTER TABLE acme_challenges ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS dns_txt_value TEXT"),
+            ('chal_dns_record_published', "ALTER TABLE acme_challenges ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS dns_record_published BOOLEAN DEFAULT FALSE"),
+            ('chal_dns_record_cleaned', "ALTER TABLE acme_challenges ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS dns_record_cleaned BOOLEAN DEFAULT FALSE"),
+            ('chal_dns_published_at', "ALTER TABLE acme_challenges ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS dns_published_at TIMESTAMPTZ"),
+            ('chal_manual_confirm_deadline', "ALTER TABLE acme_challenges ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS manual_confirm_deadline TIMESTAMPTZ"),
         ]:
             try:
                 await conn.execute(sql)
@@ -3372,6 +3700,34 @@ async def ensure_acme_columns_on_existing_tables():
         logger.error(f"Error adding ACME columns: {e}")
 
 
+async def ensure_letsencrypt_dns_credentials():
+    """Issue #35 (v1.8.0 — ACME DNS-01): per-account encrypted DNS provider credentials.
+
+    Idempotent (CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS). FK to letsencrypt_accounts (created earlier by
+    ensure_acme_tables). Credentials are Fernet-encrypted at rest (backend/utils/dns_credentials.py);
+    only the provider name + timestamps are ever surfaced to the API.
+    """
+    conn = None
+    try:
+        conn = await get_database_connection()
+        await conn.execute("""
+            CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS letsencrypt_account_dns_credentials (
+                id SERIAL PRIMARY KEY,
+                account_id INTEGER NOT NULL UNIQUE REFERENCES letsencrypt_accounts(id) ON DELETE CASCADE,
+                dns_provider VARCHAR(50) NOT NULL,
+                credentials_encrypted TEXT NOT NULL,
+                created_at TIMESTAMPTZ DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+                updated_at TIMESTAMPTZ DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
+            )
+        """)
+        logger.info("Ensured letsencrypt_account_dns_credentials table")
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+    except Exception as e:
+        if conn:
+            await close_database_connection(conn)
+        logger.error(f"Error ensuring letsencrypt_account_dns_credentials: {e}")
+
+
 async def cleanup_orphan_acme_challenge_backend():
     """
     Issue #11: One-time cleanup of orphan `_acme_challenge_backend` rows that may

backend/main.py

@@ -8,8 +8,13 @@ import redis
 import asyncio
 from datetime import datetime, timedelta
 
-_version_info = {"version": "1.6.0", "releaseName": "Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)", "releaseDate": "2026-05-18"}
-for _vpath in ["/app/version.json", os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), "..", "version.json")]:
+# Single source of truth: backend/version.json, which sits next to this module and is baked into
+# every image by `COPY . .` (build context ./backend) — no pipeline staging needed. The literal
+# below is only a last-resort "file missing" marker; it is deliberately NOT a real version so it can
+# never silently drift out of sync (this exact drift showed a stale version after v1.8.5/v1.8.6).
+# Keep the canonical version ONLY in backend/version.json — test_version_consistency.py enforces it.
+_version_info = {"version": "unknown", "releaseName": "unknown", "releaseDate": ""}
+for _vpath in [os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), "version.json"), "/app/version.json"]:
     try:
         with open(_vpath) as _vf:
             _version_info = json.load(_vf)
@@ -41,6 +46,7 @@ from routers.letsencrypt import router as letsencrypt_router
 from routers.acme_diagnostics import router as acme_diagnostics_router
 from routers.site_wizard import router as site_wizard_router
 from routers.mfa import router as mfa_router
+from routers.vip import router as vip_router  # Issue #27 — HA/VIP (Keepalived) management
 
 # Production logging configuration
 from utils.logging_config import setup_production_logging
@@ -303,6 +309,21 @@ async def complete_pending_acme_orders():
                         WHERE (
                             status IN ('pending', 'processing', 'ready')
                             OR (status = 'valid' AND ssl_certificate_id IS NULL)
+                            -- Issue #35: bounded DNS-01 retry. ONLY dns-01 invalids with remaining
+                            -- budget + elapsed backoff are claimed; http-01 invalids are NEVER matched
+                            -- (their existing skip-and-log is preserved).
+                            OR (
+                                status = 'invalid' AND challenge_type = 'dns-01'
+                                AND ssl_certificate_id IS NULL
+                                AND COALESCE(dns01_retry_claimed, FALSE) = FALSE
+                                AND COALESCE(dns01_attempts, 0) < 3
+                                AND (
+                                    dns01_last_attempt_at IS NULL
+                                    OR dns01_last_attempt_at < NOW() - (
+                                        (CASE COALESCE(dns01_attempts, 0) WHEN 0 THEN 15 WHEN 1 THEN 30 ELSE 60 END)
+                                        || ' minutes')::INTERVAL
+                                )
+                            )
                         )
                         AND created_at > NOW() - INTERVAL '7 days'
                         AND (updated_at IS NULL OR updated_at < NOW() - INTERVAL '30 seconds')
@@ -336,9 +357,17 @@ async def complete_pending_acme_orders():
                 continue
 
             logger.info(f"[ACME-COMPLETE] Claimed {len(claimed_ids)} order(s) for completion: {claimed_ids}")
-            
+
+            from services.dns01_orchestrator import (
+                advance_dns01_order, retry_invalid_dns01, reconcile_dns01_cleanup,
+            )
+
             for oid in claimed_ids:
                 try:
+                    # Issue #35: advance the DNS-01 publish->confirm->respond state machine for
+                    # pending dns-01 orders (no-op for http-01 or non-pending orders).
+                    await advance_dns01_order(oid)
+
                     status_info = await acme_svc.check_order_status(oid)
                     current_status = status_info.get('status')
 
@@ -351,12 +380,21 @@ async def complete_pending_acme_orders():
                         result = await _complete_certificate(oid)
                         logger.info(f"[ACME-COMPLETE] Order {oid} completed - {result.get('message', '')}")
                     elif current_status == 'invalid':
-                        logger.warning(f"[ACME-COMPLETE] Order {oid} is invalid, skipping")
+                        # Issue #35: bounded DNS-01 fresh-order retry (no-op for http-01).
+                        await retry_invalid_dns01(oid)
+                        logger.warning(f"[ACME-COMPLETE] Order {oid} is invalid")
                     elif current_status in ('pending', 'processing'):
                         logger.info(f"[ACME-COMPLETE] Order {oid} still {current_status}, will retry next cycle")
                 except Exception as poll_err:
                     logger.error(f"[ACME-COMPLETE] Failed to complete order {oid}: {poll_err}")
 
+            # Issue #35: best-effort cleanup of TXT records left published on terminal orders
+            # (covers a failed cleanup or the kill-switch being flipped off). NOT gated by the switch.
+            try:
+                await reconcile_dns01_cleanup()
+            except Exception as rec_err:
+                logger.debug(f"[ACME-COMPLETE] DNS-01 reconcile skipped: {rec_err}")
+
             # NOTE: v1.5.0 wizard-staged processing now runs BEFORE the
             # claimed_ids early-continue above (Bulgu #2 fix), so it executes
             # every cycle regardless of pending/processing volume.
@@ -672,7 +710,9 @@ async def check_letsencrypt_renewals():
                     skip = False
                     try:
                         order = await conn2.fetchrow(
-                            "SELECT account_id, domains, cluster_ids FROM letsencrypt_orders WHERE id = $1",
+                            "SELECT o.account_id, o.domains, o.cluster_ids, o.challenge_type, a.dns_provider "
+                            "FROM letsencrypt_orders o JOIN letsencrypt_accounts a ON o.account_id = a.id "
+                            "WHERE o.id = $1",
                             order_id
                         )
                         if order:
@@ -688,15 +728,37 @@ async def check_letsencrypt_renewals():
                             if existing:
                                 logger.info(f"[ACME-RENEWAL] Skipping cert {cert['id']} - order {existing['id']} already in progress")
                                 skip = True
+                            elif (order['challenge_type'] == 'dns-01'):
+                                # Issue #35: manual DNS-01 cannot auto-renew unattended; and for an
+                                # automated provider, don't re-mint hourly if a recent retry chain already
+                                # exhausted its budget (avoids tripping the CA new-order rate limit).
+                                if (order['dns_provider'] or 'manual') == 'manual':
+                                    logger.warning(f"[ACME-RENEWAL] cert {cert['id']} uses manual DNS-01; cannot auto-renew unattended (publish the TXT and renew manually)")
+                                    skip = True
+                                else:
+                                    exhausted = await conn2.fetchrow("""
+                                        SELECT id FROM letsencrypt_orders
+                                        WHERE domains::text = $1::text AND challenge_type = 'dns-01'
+                                        AND status = 'invalid' AND COALESCE(dns01_attempts, 0) >= 3
+                                        AND created_at > NOW() - INTERVAL '24 hours'
+                                        LIMIT 1
+                                    """, json.dumps(domains))
+                                    if exhausted:
+                                        logger.warning(f"[ACME-RENEWAL] cert {cert['id']} DNS-01 renewal recently failed (check DNS); skipping re-mint for 24h")
+                                        skip = True
                     finally:
                         await close_database_connection(conn2)
 
                     if not order or skip:
                         continue
 
-                    new_order = await acme_svc.create_order(order['account_id'], domains, cluster_ids)
-                    await acme_svc.respond_to_challenges(new_order['order_id'])
-                    logger.info(f"[ACME-RENEWAL] Initiated renewal order {new_order['order_id']} for cert {cert['id']} ({cert['name']})")
+                    challenge_type = order['challenge_type'] or 'http-01'
+                    new_order = await acme_svc.create_order(order['account_id'], domains, cluster_ids, challenge_type=challenge_type)
+                    # http-01 responds immediately (token served continuously); dns-01 is driven by the
+                    # orchestrator AFTER the TXT is published (never respond before publish).
+                    if challenge_type != 'dns-01':
+                        await acme_svc.respond_to_challenges(new_order['order_id'])
+                    logger.info(f"[ACME-RENEWAL] Initiated renewal order {new_order['order_id']} ({challenge_type}) for cert {cert['id']} ({cert['name']})")
                 except Exception as cert_err:
                     logger.error(f"[ACME-RENEWAL] Failed to initiate renewal for cert {cert['id']}: {cert_err}")
 
@@ -836,6 +898,7 @@ app.include_router(settings_router)
 app.include_router(letsencrypt_router)
 app.include_router(acme_diagnostics_router)  # v1.5.0 Issue #13: ACME Diagnostic Panel
 app.include_router(site_wizard_router)  # v1.5.0 Issue #14: New Site Setup Wizard
+app.include_router(vip_router)  # v1.7.0 Issue #27: HA/VIP (Keepalived) management
 
 
 # Legacy URL alias: /api/proxied-hosts/* → 308 redirect to /api/sites/*.
@@ -1053,7 +1116,7 @@ async def serve_acme_challenge(token: str):
     try:
         conn = await get_database_connection()
         row = await conn.fetchrow(
-            "SELECT key_authorization FROM acme_challenges WHERE token = $1 AND (status IN ('pending', 'processing') OR status IS NULL) LIMIT 1",
+            "SELECT key_authorization FROM acme_challenges WHERE token = $1 AND (status IN ('pending', 'processing') OR status IS NULL) AND (challenge_type = 'http-01' OR challenge_type IS NULL) LIMIT 1",
             token
         )
         if row:

backend/models/cluster.py

@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ class HAProxyClusterCreate(BaseModel):
     stats_socket_path: str = "/run/haproxy/admin.sock"
     haproxy_config_path: str = "/etc/haproxy/haproxy.cfg"
     haproxy_bin_path: str = "/usr/sbin/haproxy"  # HAProxy binary path
+    keepalived_config_path: str = "/etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf"  # HA/VIP: keepalived.conf path (Issue #27)
     pool_id: Optional[int] = None  # Which pool this cluster belongs to
 
 class HAProxyClusterUpdate(BaseModel):
@@ -17,6 +18,7 @@ class HAProxyClusterUpdate(BaseModel):
     stats_socket_path: Optional[str] = None
     haproxy_config_path: Optional[str] = None
     haproxy_bin_path: Optional[str] = None
+    keepalived_config_path: Optional[str] = None
     pool_id: Optional[int] = None
     is_active: Optional[bool] = None
     acme_enabled: Optional[bool] = None

backend/models/frontend.py

@@ -85,6 +85,11 @@ class FrontendConfig(BaseModel):
     response_headers: Optional[str] = None
     options: Optional[str] = None
     tcp_request_rules: Optional[str] = None
+    # Issue #38: SPOE filter directives (Coraza WAF etc.) + frontend log-format.
+    # Passthrough TEXT (no validator) — SPOE `filter ... config <path>` legitimately
+    # references an operator-managed file, so the ACL `-f` guard must NOT apply here.
+    log_format: Optional[str] = None
+    filters: Optional[str] = None
     timeout_client: Optional[int] = None
     timeout_http_request: Optional[int] = None
     rate_limit: Optional[int] = None
@@ -451,26 +456,17 @@ class FrontendConfig(BaseModel):
             if any(dangerous in rule.lower() for dangerous in ['$(', '`']):
                 raise ValueError(f'ACL rule contains potentially dangerous content: "{rule}"')
 
-            # Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #12 round 3) — reject
-            # the HAProxy `-f <file>` pattern-file flag here too so the
-            # manual Frontend API mirrors the wizard's parity rule.
-            # HAProxy OpenManager does not provision pattern files
-            # onto the HAProxy node filesystem, so any `-f /path/...`
-            # reference will fail HAProxy's `-c` parse at apply time
-            # with "failed to open pattern file". Reject up-front so
-            # operators get the same actionable error from both the
-            # manual page and the wizard.
-            if re.search(r"(^|\s)-f(\s|$)", rule):
-                raise ValueError(
-                    f'ACL rule "{rule}" uses the HAProxy `-f <file>` '
-                    "pattern-file flag, which is not supported in "
-                    "HAProxy OpenManager: the product does not "
-                    "provision pattern files onto the HAProxy node "
-                    "filesystem, so the reference would fail at "
-                    "reload time. Use inline values instead "
-                    "(e.g. `src 10.0.0.0/24` rather than "
-                    "`src -f /etc/haproxy/admins.lst`)."
-                )
+            # Issue #38 follow-up — the `-f <file>` pattern-file flag
+            # is ACCEPTED here (the Bulgu #12 hard reject was removed).
+            # Pattern files are operator-managed host files, exactly
+            # like the SPOE `filter ... config <path>` reference this
+            # release started preserving: bulk import always accepted
+            # `-f`, the free-form fields (request_headers,
+            # tcp_request_rules) always accepted it, and the agent
+            # runs `haproxy -c` before every reload so a missing file
+            # fails safely (previous config keeps running). The route
+            # handlers surface a non-blocking warning listing the
+            # referenced pattern files instead.
 
             validated_rules.append(rule)
 
@@ -510,20 +506,12 @@ class FrontendConfig(BaseModel):
             if not any(rule.startswith(redirect_type) for redirect_type in valid_redirects):
                 raise ValueError(f'Invalid redirect rule: "{rule}". Must start with: location, prefix, or scheme.')
 
-            # Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #12 round 3) —
-            # mirror the wizard's `-f <file>` guard here. The
-            # `X !X` contradiction check used to live alongside
-            # this guard, but Bulgu #62 (round-22 audit) moved
-            # it into the route handler so updates can grandfather
-            # legacy rules created before the contradiction guard
-            # landed. See `routers/frontend.py::_collect_routing_rule_contradictions`.
-            if re.search(r"(^|\s)-f(\s|$)", rule):
-                raise ValueError(
-                    f'Redirect rule "{rule}" uses the HAProxy `-f <file>` '
-                    "pattern-file flag, which is not supported in "
-                    "HAProxy OpenManager: the product does not provision "
-                    "pattern files onto the HAProxy node filesystem."
-                )
+            # Issue #38 follow-up — `-f <file>` pattern-file references
+            # are ACCEPTED (Bulgu #12 hard reject removed; see
+            # validate_acl_rules for the full rationale). The `X !X`
+            # contradiction check lives in the route handler
+            # (`routers/frontend.py::_collect_routing_rule_contradictions`,
+            # Bulgu #62) and is unchanged.
 
             validated_rules.append(rule)
 
@@ -531,9 +519,12 @@ class FrontendConfig(BaseModel):
 
     @validator('use_backend_rules')
     def validate_use_backend_rules_syntax(cls, v):
-        """Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #12 round 3) — manual
-        Frontend API parity guard: reject `-f <file>` references
-        and dangerous shell patterns.
+        """Manual Frontend API guard for dangerous shell patterns.
+
+        Issue #38 follow-up — the Bulgu #12 `-f <file>` hard reject
+        was removed (see validate_acl_rules for the rationale);
+        pattern-file references are operator-managed host files and
+        are surfaced as non-blocking warnings by the route handlers.
 
         Bulgu #62 (round-22 audit) — the `X !X` contradiction check
         previously lived here but moved into the route handler so
@@ -563,13 +554,5 @@ class FrontendConfig(BaseModel):
                     f'use_backend rule contains potentially dangerous '
                     f'content: "{rule}"'
                 )
-            if re.search(r"(^|\s)-f(\s|$)", rule):
-                raise ValueError(
-                    f'use_backend rule "{rule}" uses the HAProxy '
-                    "`-f <file>` pattern-file flag, which is not "
-                    "supported in HAProxy OpenManager: the product "
-                    "does not provision pattern files onto the HAProxy "
-                    "node filesystem."
-                )
             validated_rules.append(rule)
         return validated_rules

backend/models/site_wizard.py

@@ -179,35 +179,17 @@ _MAX_RULE_STRING_LEN = 4096
 # attempts.
 _DANGEROUS_RULE_PATTERNS = ("$(", "`")
 
-# Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #12 round 3) — the HAProxy `-f
-# <file>` ACL/condition flag instructs HAProxy to load match patterns
-# from a server-side file at parse time. HAProxy OpenManager is a
-# fully-managed product: we do NOT provision pattern files onto the
-# HAProxy node's filesystem, and operators have no UI to upload one.
-# A `-f /some/path` reference therefore ALWAYS resolves to
-# "file not found" when HAProxy's real `-c` parse runs at apply
-# time, producing exactly the operator-reported failure mode:
-#   [ALERT] parsing ACL 'acl1' : failed to open pattern file </path>.
-#   [ALERT] parsing switching rule : no such ACL : 'acl1'.
-#
-# Surface this BEFORE persist by rejecting `-f` in any rule string
-# that comes through the wizard / manual frontend API. Reject ALL
-# variants (` -f `, leading `-f `, trailing `... -f`) defensively so
-# operators cannot slip the flag through with creative spacing.
-# The check is anchored to ACL/condition rule strings only; raw
-# HAProxy snippet fields (tcp_request_rules, request_headers, ...)
-# are NOT touched because those are inherently free-form and
-# advanced operators may legitimately reference pre-provisioned
-# pattern files there.
-_ACL_FILE_FLAG_PATTERN = re.compile(r"(^|\s)-f(\s|$)")
-_ACL_FILE_FLAG_MESSAGE = (
-    "pattern-file references with '-f <file>' are not supported in ACL / "
-    "use_backend / redirect rules: HAProxy OpenManager does not provision "
-    "pattern files onto the HAProxy node's filesystem, so the reference "
-    "would always fail at HAProxy reload time. Use inline values "
-    "instead (e.g. `acl is_admin src 10.0.0.0/24` rather than "
-    "`acl is_admin src -f /etc/haproxy/admins.lst`)."
-)
+# Issue #38 follow-up — the HAProxy `-f <file>` ACL/condition flag
+# loads match patterns from a file on the HAProxy host. The Bulgu #12
+# hard reject (`_ACL_FILE_FLAG_PATTERN`/`_ACL_FILE_FLAG_MESSAGE`) was
+# removed: pattern files are operator-managed host files (exactly like
+# the SPOE `filter ... config <path>` reference preserved since
+# v1.8.8), bulk import and the free-form fields (tcp_request_rules,
+# request_headers) always accepted them, and the agent runs
+# `haproxy -c` before every reload so a missing file fails safely
+# (the previous config keeps running). The manual frontend route
+# handlers emit a non-blocking warning listing referenced pattern
+# files (`routers/frontend.py::_pattern_file_warnings`).
 
 # Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #13) — detect a routing /
 # redirect rule whose condition references the SAME ACL in both
@@ -305,13 +287,10 @@ def _validate_haproxy_directive_string(
                 f"{field_label} entry contains potentially dangerous content: "
                 f"{pattern!r}"
             )
-    # Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #12 round 3) — reject the
-    # HAProxy `-f <file>` pattern-file flag because OpenManager does
-    # not manage the HAProxy node filesystem. See the module-level
-    # `_ACL_FILE_FLAG_PATTERN` docstring for the full operator-
-    # reported failure mode this guards against.
-    if _ACL_FILE_FLAG_PATTERN.search(stripped):
-        raise ValueError(f"{field_label}: {_ACL_FILE_FLAG_MESSAGE}")
+    # Issue #38 follow-up — `-f <file>` pattern-file references are
+    # ACCEPTED (Bulgu #12 hard reject removed; see the module-level
+    # `_ACL_FILE_FLAG_PATTERN` comment). The route handlers surface
+    # a non-blocking pattern-file warning instead.
     # Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #13) — for routing /
     # redirect rules (not ACL definitions themselves), reject a
     # condition that contains the same ACL in both positive and
@@ -1083,21 +1062,12 @@ class FrontendStep(BaseModel):
         normalised: List[Union[str, dict]] = []
         for el in v:
             if isinstance(el, dict):
-                # Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #12 round 3
-                # extension) — dict-shaped redirect rules emit their
-                # `condition` / `target` fields VERBATIM into the
-                # rendered HAProxy directive. A dict with
-                # `condition: "if { src -f /etc/haproxy/x.lst }"`
-                # would slip past the string-only validator above
-                # and trigger the same operator-reported "failed to
-                # open pattern file" rejection at apply time. Reject
-                # `-f` in any string-shaped value the dict carries.
-                for field_name in ("condition", "target", "type"):
-                    val = el.get(field_name)
-                    if isinstance(val, str) and _ACL_FILE_FLAG_PATTERN.search(val):
-                        raise ValueError(
-                            f"redirect_rules.{field_name}: {_ACL_FILE_FLAG_MESSAGE}"
-                        )
+                # Issue #38 follow-up — dict-shaped redirect rules may
+                # carry `-f <file>` pattern-file references in their
+                # `condition`/`target` values; these are ACCEPTED now
+                # (Bulgu #12 hard reject removed — operator-managed
+                # host files, fail-safe apply; see module-level
+                # `_ACL_FILE_FLAG_PATTERN` comment).
                 # Bulgu #13 extension — same contradiction guard
                 # for dict-shaped redirect conditions.
                 cond_val = el.get("condition")

backend/models/vip.py

@@ -0,0 +1,245 @@
+"""Issue #27 — HA/VIP (Keepalived) management (v1.7.0).
+
+Pydantic request/response models for the VIP management API. Field validation
+is strict because several values flow into a generated keepalived.conf and into
+root-run agent commands — we reuse the same FORBIDDEN-metacharacter discipline as
+models/agent.py (Bulgu #81) and validate the VIP as a real IPv4 address.
+
+Pydantic idiom: the project runs pydantic>=2.5; this module uses the v2-native
+@field_validator/@model_validator style (matching models/ssl.py).
+"""
+import ipaddress
+from typing import List, Optional
+
+from pydantic import BaseModel, field_validator, model_validator
+
+# Shell/keepalived.conf metacharacters that must never appear in a value that
+# reaches the generated config or a root-run agent command (mirrors
+# models/agent.py:202, the Bulgu #81 convention).
+_FORBIDDEN = set('$`;&|<>"\'\\\n\r\x00*?')
+
+
+def _validate_iface(v: str) -> str:
+    if not isinstance(v, str) or not v.strip():
+        raise ValueError('network_interface must be a non-empty string')
+    s = v.strip()
+    if len(s) > 64:
+        raise ValueError('network_interface too long (max 64 chars)')
+    if any(c in _FORBIDDEN for c in s):
+        raise ValueError('network_interface contains a forbidden character')
+    # Linux iface names: letters, digits, and . _ - : @ (vlans/aliases/altnames)
+    import re as _re
+    if not _re.match(r'^[A-Za-z0-9][A-Za-z0-9._:@-]{0,63}$', s):
+        raise ValueError(
+            'network_interface must start alphanumeric and contain only '
+            'letters, digits, and . _ - : @'
+        )
+    return s
+
+
+def _validate_ipv4(v: str) -> str:
+    if not isinstance(v, str) or not v.strip():
+        raise ValueError('virtual_ip must be a non-empty string')
+    s = v.strip()
+    try:
+        addr = ipaddress.ip_address(s)
+    except ValueError:
+        raise ValueError(f'virtual_ip={v!r} is not a valid IP address')
+    if addr.version != 4:
+        raise ValueError('virtual_ip must be IPv4 — IPv6 VIPs are not supported yet')
+    return s
+
+
+class VIPMemberIn(BaseModel):
+    agent_id: int
+    network_interface: str
+    role: str = 'BACKUP'
+    priority: int = 100
+
+    @field_validator('network_interface')
+    @classmethod
+    def _iface(cls, v):
+        return _validate_iface(v)
+
+    @field_validator('role')
+    @classmethod
+    def _role(cls, v):
+        u = (v or '').strip().upper()
+        if u not in ('MASTER', 'BACKUP'):
+            raise ValueError("role must be 'MASTER' or 'BACKUP'")
+        return u
+
+    @field_validator('priority')
+    @classmethod
+    def _priority(cls, v):
+        if not isinstance(v, int) or not (1 <= v <= 254):
+            raise ValueError('priority must be an integer between 1 and 254')
+        return v
+
+
+def _validate_members(members: List['VIPMemberIn']) -> List['VIPMemberIn']:
+    # >=1 node: a single-node VIP is a keepalived-managed floating IP without failover
+    # (valid, e.g. a one-box HAProxy that wants a stable VIP, or before a 2nd node is added).
+    # Two or more nodes give actual VRRP failover. The UI flags the single-node case.
+    if not members:
+        raise ValueError('a VIP needs at least 1 member node')
+    agent_ids = [m.agent_id for m in members]
+    if len(set(agent_ids)) != len(agent_ids):
+        raise ValueError('each node may appear at most once in a VIP')
+    masters = [m for m in members if m.role == 'MASTER']
+    if len(masters) != 1:
+        raise ValueError('exactly one member must be MASTER')
+    master_prio = masters[0].priority
+    if any(m.role == 'BACKUP' and m.priority >= master_prio for m in members):
+        raise ValueError('the MASTER must have a strictly higher priority than every BACKUP')
+    return members
+
+
+def _validate_auth_pass(v: Optional[str]) -> Optional[str]:
+    if v is None or v == '':
+        return None
+    # keepalived PASS auth_pass is silently truncated to 8 chars (B-3) — reject longer
+    # so MASTER/BACKUP never silently disagree.
+    if not (1 <= len(v) <= 8):
+        raise ValueError('auth_pass must be 1-8 characters (keepalived PASS limit)')
+    if any(c in _FORBIDDEN for c in v):
+        raise ValueError('auth_pass contains a forbidden character')
+    # No whitespace: keepalived PASS auth_pass is a single token, and a whitespace-containing
+    # secret would only partially redact in the masked config diff (review HIGH-2).
+    if any(c.isspace() for c in v):
+        raise ValueError('auth_pass must not contain whitespace')
+    return v
+
+
+class VIPCreate(BaseModel):
+    name: str
+    description: Optional[str] = None
+    pool_id: int
+    virtual_ip: str
+    prefix_length: int = 24
+    virtual_router_id: Optional[int] = None   # auto-allocated within the pool when omitted
+    advert_int: int = 1
+    auth_pass: Optional[str] = None           # plaintext on the wire; stored Fernet-encrypted
+    use_unicast: bool = True
+    track_haproxy: bool = True
+    members: List[VIPMemberIn]
+
+    @field_validator('name')
+    @classmethod
+    def _name(cls, v):
+        if not isinstance(v, str) or not v.strip():
+            raise ValueError('name must be a non-empty string')
+        s = v.strip()
+        if len(s) > 255:
+            raise ValueError('name too long (max 255 chars)')
+        if any(c in _FORBIDDEN for c in s):
+            raise ValueError('name contains a forbidden character')
+        return s
+
+    @field_validator('virtual_ip')
+    @classmethod
+    def _vip(cls, v):
+        return _validate_ipv4(v)
+
+    @field_validator('prefix_length')
+    @classmethod
+    def _prefix(cls, v):
+        if not isinstance(v, int) or not (1 <= v <= 32):
+            raise ValueError('prefix_length must be an integer between 1 and 32 (IPv4)')
+        return v
+
+    @field_validator('virtual_router_id')
+    @classmethod
+    def _vrid(cls, v):
+        if v is None:
+            return v
+        if not isinstance(v, int) or not (1 <= v <= 255):
+            raise ValueError('virtual_router_id must be an integer between 1 and 255')
+        return v
+
+    @field_validator('advert_int')
+    @classmethod
+    def _advert(cls, v):
+        if not isinstance(v, int) or not (1 <= v <= 255):
+            raise ValueError('advert_int must be an integer between 1 and 255 (seconds)')
+        return v
+
+    @field_validator('auth_pass')
+    @classmethod
+    def _auth(cls, v):
+        return _validate_auth_pass(v)
+
+    @model_validator(mode='after')
+    def _members_consistent(self):
+        _validate_members(self.members)
+        return self
+
+
+class VIPUpdate(BaseModel):
+    """All fields optional — only provided fields are changed. Any change sets the
+    VIP back to last_config_status='PENDING' (router-side)."""
+    name: Optional[str] = None
+    description: Optional[str] = None
+    virtual_ip: Optional[str] = None
+    prefix_length: Optional[int] = None
+    virtual_router_id: Optional[int] = None
+    advert_int: Optional[int] = None
+    auth_pass: Optional[str] = None           # provide only to rotate; omit to keep existing
+    use_unicast: Optional[bool] = None
+    track_haproxy: Optional[bool] = None
+    members: Optional[List[VIPMemberIn]] = None
+
+    @field_validator('name')
+    @classmethod
+    def _name(cls, v):
+        if v is None:
+            return v
+        if not v.strip():
+            raise ValueError('name must be a non-empty string')
+        s = v.strip()
+        if len(s) > 255 or any(c in _FORBIDDEN for c in s):
+            raise ValueError('name invalid (too long or forbidden character)')
+        return s
+
+    @field_validator('virtual_ip')
+    @classmethod
+    def _vip(cls, v):
+        return _validate_ipv4(v) if v is not None else v
+
+    @field_validator('prefix_length')
+    @classmethod
+    def _prefix(cls, v):
+        if v is None:
+            return v
+        if not (1 <= v <= 32):
+            raise ValueError('prefix_length must be 1-32 (IPv4)')
+        return v
+
+    @field_validator('virtual_router_id')
+    @classmethod
+    def _vrid(cls, v):
+        if v is None:
+            return v
+        if not (1 <= v <= 255):
+            raise ValueError('virtual_router_id must be 1-255')
+        return v
+
+    @field_validator('advert_int')
+    @classmethod
+    def _advert(cls, v):
+        if v is None:
+            return v
+        if not (1 <= v <= 255):
+            raise ValueError('advert_int must be 1-255 seconds')
+        return v
+
+    @field_validator('auth_pass')
+    @classmethod
+    def _auth(cls, v):
+        return _validate_auth_pass(v)
+
+    @model_validator(mode='after')
+    def _members_consistent(self):
+        if self.members is not None:
+            _validate_members(self.members)
+        return self

backend/routers/acme_diagnostics.py

@@ -79,7 +79,7 @@ async def _load_order(conn, order_id: int) -> dict:
             """
             SELECT id, account_id, status, domains, cluster_ids, error_detail,
                    post_completion_actions, pending_apply_version_name,
-                   wizard_staged_until, created_by
+                   wizard_staged_until, created_by, challenge_type
             FROM letsencrypt_orders
             WHERE id = $1
             """,
@@ -220,6 +220,7 @@ async def run_diagnostics(order_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
                 domains=domains,
                 cluster_ids=cluster_ids,
                 account_id=order["account_id"],
+                challenge_type=(order.get("challenge_type") or "http-01"),
             )
         except Exception as exc:  # noqa: BLE001 — diagnostic boundary
             # run_checks now wraps individual checks, but a top-level
@@ -335,6 +336,7 @@ async def rerun_diagnostic_check(
                 cluster_ids=cluster_ids,
                 account_id=order["account_id"],
                 only=[check_id],
+                challenge_type=(order.get("challenge_type") or "http-01"),
             )
         except Exception as exc:  # noqa: BLE001 — diagnostic boundary
             logger.exception(

backend/routers/agent.py

@@ -29,6 +29,40 @@ AGENT_VERSIONS = {
     "linux": "2.0.0"
 }
 
+
+def _sanitize_agent_json(body_str: str):
+    """Repair the common malformed-JSON patterns a hand-built agent heartbeat can emit.
+
+    Agents assemble their heartbeat JSON as text in bash, so an empty interpolated value can leave
+    a structurally-invalid comma (issue #31). Returns (possibly_repaired_str, was_changed). The
+    repairs are conservative and target only structural artifacts an agent produces; they never
+    alter this endpoint's legitimate string values (the agent emits no string containing ',,' —
+    haproxy_stats_csv is base64/comma-free and the rest are constrained os/kernel/ip/version text).
+    """
+    import re
+    sanitized = False
+    # Fix 1: empty value before a comma ("server_statuses": ,)
+    if re.search(r':\s*,', body_str):
+        body_str = re.sub(r':\s*,', ': null,', body_str); sanitized = True
+    # Fix 2: empty value before a closing brace ("field":})
+    if re.search(r':\s*}', body_str):
+        body_str = re.sub(r':\s*}', ': null}', body_str); sanitized = True
+    # Fix 3: trailing comma before } or ]
+    if re.search(r',(\s*[}\]])', body_str):
+        body_str = re.sub(r',(\s*[}\]])', r'\1', body_str); sanitized = True
+    # Fix 4: leading comma run right after an opening brace/bracket (issue #31): an empty
+    # $system_info as the first member collapses to '{ , "name": ...'. The ': ,' fix above cannot
+    # catch this because there is no key/colon before the comma.
+    if re.search(r'([{\[])(\s*,)+', body_str):
+        body_str = re.sub(r'([{\[])(\s*,)+', r'\1', body_str); sanitized = True
+    # Fix 5: a run of commas between members (issue #31): an empty $system_info between two fields
+    # produces '"version": "x",\n    ,\n    "haproxy_status": ...'. Runs after Fix 1/3 so only
+    # structural commas remain; collapse any comma run to a single comma.
+    if re.search(r',(\s*,)+', body_str):
+        body_str = re.sub(r',(\s*,)+', ',', body_str); sanitized = True
+    return body_str, sanitized
+
+
 def get_platform_key(agent_platform: str) -> str:
     """Convert agent platform to standardized platform key - fixed empty platform fallback"""
     platform = agent_platform.lower() if agent_platform else 'unknown'
@@ -730,14 +764,15 @@ async def generate_uninstall_script(platform: str, authorization: str = Header(N
     ```
     """
     try:
-        # Validate platform
-        platform_lower = platform.lower()
-        if platform_lower not in ['linux', 'macos']:
-            raise HTTPException(
-                status_code=400, 
-                detail=f"Invalid platform: {platform}. Must be 'linux' or 'macos'"
-            )
-        
+        # Normalize platform to a canonical key (always 'linux' or 'macos').
+        # macOS agents register with platform 'darwin' (from `uname -s`), so the
+        # strict ['linux','macos'] check used to 400 on the UI's uninstall flow
+        # (GET /generate-uninstall-script/darwin). Reuse the same get_platform_key()
+        # helper the install-script generator uses, so darwin/osx/mac and the
+        # linux distro variants all resolve correctly. Backward-compatible:
+        # 'linux'/'macos' still map to themselves.
+        platform_lower = get_platform_key(platform)
+
         # Read uninstall script from agent_scripts directory (same as install scripts)
         import os
         script_filename = f"uninstall-agent-{platform_lower}.sh"
@@ -861,7 +896,25 @@ async def delete_agent(agent_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
         # Validate cluster access if agent belongs to a cluster
         if agent['cluster_id']:
             await validate_user_cluster_access(current_user['id'], agent['cluster_id'], conn)
-        
+
+        # HA/VIP (Issue #27): block deleting a node that's still a member of an active VIP.
+        # Otherwise the CASCADE would silently drop it from the VIP (breaking the one-MASTER
+        # topology with no signal) and the still-running node would keep advertising the VIP
+        # with no way to be told to tear down (review MED-3). Make the operator remove it
+        # from the VIP first — that stages a clean PENDING change they can apply.
+        try:
+            vip_member = await conn.fetchrow(
+                "SELECT v.name FROM vip_members vm JOIN vip_instances v ON v.id = vm.vip_id "
+                "WHERE vm.agent_id = $1 AND v.is_active = TRUE LIMIT 1", agent_id)
+        except Exception:  # noqa: BLE001 — vip_* may not exist on older schemas; don't block delete
+            vip_member = None
+        if vip_member:
+            await close_database_connection(conn)
+            raise HTTPException(
+                status_code=409,
+                detail=(f"This node is a member of VIP '{vip_member['name']}'. Remove it from the "
+                        f"VIP on the HA / VIP page (and apply) before deleting the agent."))
+
         await conn.execute("DELETE FROM agents WHERE id = $1", agent_id)
         
         await close_database_connection(conn)
@@ -1436,47 +1489,33 @@ async def agent_heartbeat_by_name(
     import json
     from pydantic import ValidationError
     
-    # Read raw body and sanitize common JSON errors from agents
+    # Read raw body. Parse VALID JSON as-is (the normal case for every agent version) and only
+    # fall back to the malformed-JSON repair when the body does not parse. This guarantees a healthy
+    # heartbeat from any agent version is byte-for-byte untouched — the repair regexes can never run
+    # against a well-formed payload (issue #31; strictly safer than repairing unconditionally).
     try:
         raw_body = await request.body()
         body_str = raw_body.decode('utf-8')
-        
-        # Sanitize common malformed JSON patterns from agents
-        original_body = body_str
-        sanitized = False
-        
-        # Fix 1: Empty values before comma (most common: "server_statuses": ,)
-        if re.search(r':\s*,', body_str):
-            body_str = re.sub(r':\s*,', ': null,', body_str)
-            sanitized = True
-        
-        # Fix 2: Empty values before closing brace
-        if re.search(r':\s*}', body_str):
-            body_str = re.sub(r':\s*}', ': null}', body_str)
-            sanitized = True
-        
-        # Fix 3: Trailing commas
-        if re.search(r',(\s*[}\]])', body_str):
-            body_str = re.sub(r',(\s*[}\]])', r'\1', body_str)
-            sanitized = True
-        
-        if sanitized:
-            # Extract agent name for logging
-            agent_name = "unknown"
-            try:
-                name_match = re.search(r'"name"\s*:\s*"([^"]+)"', body_str)
-                if name_match:
-                    agent_name = name_match.group(1)
-            except:
-                pass
-            
-            logger.info(f"Sanitized malformed JSON from agent '{agent_name}' - fixed empty values and trailing commas")
-            logger.debug(f"Original JSON (preview): {original_body[:300]}")
-            logger.debug(f"Sanitized JSON (preview): {body_str[:300]}")
-        
-        # Parse sanitized JSON into Pydantic model
-        heartbeat_dict = json.loads(body_str)
-        
+
+        try:
+            heartbeat_dict = json.loads(body_str)
+        except json.JSONDecodeError:
+            # Malformed body (would otherwise be a hard 400). Attempt a conservative repair of the
+            # comma artifacts a hand-built agent heartbeat can emit, then re-parse.
+            repaired, changed = _sanitize_agent_json(body_str)
+            if changed:
+                agent_name = "unknown"
+                try:
+                    name_match = re.search(r'"name"\s*:\s*"([^"]+)"', repaired)
+                    if name_match:
+                        agent_name = name_match.group(1)
+                except Exception:
+                    pass
+                logger.info(f"Repaired malformed JSON from agent '{agent_name}' before parsing")
+                logger.debug(f"Original JSON (preview): {body_str[:300]}")
+                logger.debug(f"Repaired JSON (preview): {repaired[:300]}")
+            heartbeat_dict = json.loads(repaired)  # may still raise -> handled as 400 below
+
         # DEBUG: Log cluster_id for auto-register troubleshooting
         if heartbeat_dict.get('name'):
             logger.info(f"HEARTBEAT DEBUG: agent={heartbeat_dict.get('name')}, cluster_id={heartbeat_dict.get('cluster_id')}, has_cluster_id={bool(heartbeat_dict.get('cluster_id'))}")
@@ -1656,9 +1695,13 @@ async def agent_heartbeat_by_name(
             """, x_api_key)
 
         # Check if agent was in upgrading status and version has changed
-        current_agent_status = await conn.fetchval("SELECT status FROM agents WHERE id = $1", agent_id)
-        current_agent_version = await conn.fetchval("SELECT version FROM agents WHERE id = $1", agent_id)
-        current_upgrade_status = await conn.fetchval("SELECT upgrade_status FROM agents WHERE id = $1", agent_id)
+        # (v1.8.6: one round-trip instead of three; row is None exactly when the
+        # per-column fetchvals would each have returned None)
+        current_agent_row = await conn.fetchrow(
+            "SELECT status, version, upgrade_status FROM agents WHERE id = $1", agent_id)
+        current_agent_status = current_agent_row['status'] if current_agent_row else None
+        current_agent_version = current_agent_row['version'] if current_agent_row else None
+        current_upgrade_status = current_agent_row['upgrade_status'] if current_agent_row else None
         
         # Determine new status - preserve upgrading status unless version actually changed
         new_status = current_agent_status or 'online'
@@ -1749,9 +1792,14 @@ async def agent_heartbeat_by_name(
             heartbeat_data.operating_system, heartbeat_data.kernel_version,
             heartbeat_data.uptime, heartbeat_data.cpu_count, heartbeat_data.memory_total,
             heartbeat_data.disk_space, 
-            # Convert lists to JSON for JSONB columns
-            heartbeat_data.network_interfaces if isinstance(heartbeat_data.network_interfaces, str) else json.dumps(heartbeat_data.network_interfaces or []),
-            heartbeat_data.capabilities if isinstance(heartbeat_data.capabilities, str) else json.dumps(heartbeat_data.capabilities or []),
+            # Convert lists to JSON for JSONB columns. Don't WIPE network_interfaces/capabilities
+            # when a heartbeat omits them: send NULL so COALESCE keeps the existing value (a bare
+            # `or []` would store "[]" and erase the reported NICs / keepalived_management on every
+            # daemon heartbeat that doesn't include them — issue #27 corporate test).
+            (heartbeat_data.network_interfaces if isinstance(heartbeat_data.network_interfaces, str)
+             else (json.dumps(heartbeat_data.network_interfaces) if heartbeat_data.network_interfaces else None)),
+            (heartbeat_data.capabilities if isinstance(heartbeat_data.capabilities, str)
+             else (json.dumps(heartbeat_data.capabilities) if heartbeat_data.capabilities else None)),
             agent_ip, heartbeat_data.haproxy_status, heartbeat_data.haproxy_version,
             heartbeat_data.applied_config_version, new_status, update_applied_version,
             heartbeat_data.keepalive_state, heartbeat_data.keepalive_ip)
@@ -2180,13 +2228,171 @@ async def get_agent_ssl_certificates(agent_name: str, since: Optional[str] = Non
             logger.info(f"SSL INCREMENTAL: No certificates updated since {since}")
             
         return response_data
-        
+
     except HTTPException:
         raise
     except Exception as e:
         logger.error(f"SSL certificates retrieval failed: {e}")
         raise HTTPException(status_code=500, detail=str(e))
 
+
+@router.get("/{agent_name}/keepalived-config")
+async def get_agent_keepalived_config(agent_name: str, x_api_key: Optional[str] = Header(None)):
+    """Issue #27 (v1.7.0) — deliver this agent's APPLIED keepalived snapshot, or a
+    teardown / no-op signal.
+
+    Snapshot-based (T-1): keys off vip_instances.is_active + the member's
+    applied_config_content, NOT the live last_config_status — so a PENDING edit never
+    flips a running member to not_configured (no mid-edit teardown). Auth is MANDATORY (a
+    valid agent key is required), but — like the /config and /ssl-certificates endpoints —
+    the agent API key is a SHARED/global install token, so the config is resolved by the
+    requested agent_name and a token/name mismatch is an advisory audit log, NOT a 403
+    (a hard 403 would break every VIP member whose name isn't the one row the shared token
+    resolves to — review HIGH-1). Any unexpected error degrades to not_configured (B-7) so
+    the agent stays inert; a node with no membership row always gets not_configured.
+    """
+    conn = None
+    try:
+        # Auth FIRST and MANDATORY: a valid agent key is REQUIRED (the response carries the
+        # VRRP secret). The token is shared/global, so resolve by agent_name and only LOG a
+        # name mismatch — do not 403 (HIGH-1). Done before the agent lookup so an
+        # unauthenticated caller can't probe which agent names exist.
+        from auth_middleware import validate_agent_api_key
+        if not x_api_key:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=401, detail="Agent API key required")
+        agent_auth = await validate_agent_api_key(x_api_key)
+        if not agent_auth:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=401, detail="Invalid API key")
+        # The agent API key is a SHARED/global install token (many agent rows per token),
+        # so validate_agent_api_key resolves it to one arbitrary agent for that token. Resolve
+        # the keepalived config strictly by the requested agent_name and treat a token/name
+        # mismatch as an advisory audit log — exactly like the /config and /ssl-certificates
+        # endpoints. (A hard 403 here would reject every VIP member whose name isn't the one
+        # row the shared token happens to return, so the VIP could never converge — review HIGH-1.)
+        if agent_auth['name'] == agent_name:
+            logger.info(f"Agent '{agent_name}' fetching keepalived config using its own API key")
+        else:
+            logger.info(f"Agent '{agent_name}' fetching keepalived config using API key from agent '{agent_auth['name']}'")
+
+        conn = await get_database_connection()
+        # Resolve the agent + its cluster's keepalived.conf path (cluster-driven, like the
+        # HAProxy paths). config_path is returned in EVERY response so the agent knows where
+        # to write/own-marker-check even on not_configured/teardown.
+        agent = await conn.fetchrow("""
+            SELECT a.id, a.name, COALESCE(a.enabled, TRUE) AS enabled,
+                   hc.keepalived_config_path
+            FROM agents a
+            LEFT JOIN haproxy_clusters hc ON hc.pool_id = a.pool_id
+            WHERE a.name = $1
+        """, agent_name)
+        if not agent:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail=f"Agent '{agent_name}' not found")
+        config_path = agent['keepalived_config_path'] or '/etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf'
+        if not agent['enabled']:
+            return {"agent_name": agent_name, "status": "not_configured", "config_path": config_path, "keepalived": None}
+
+        row = await conn.fetchrow("""
+            SELECT v.id AS vip_id, v.name AS vip_name, v.is_active, v.track_haproxy,
+                   v.purge_on_teardown,
+                   m.applied_config_content, m.applied_config_hash
+            FROM vip_members m JOIN vip_instances v ON v.id = m.vip_id
+            WHERE m.agent_id = $1
+            -- Active VIP first (an agent has at most one). With NO active VIP, pick the most
+            -- RECENTLY updated inactive membership so a teardown reflects the latest delete
+            -- (incl. its purge flag) — not a stale older VIP the node was once part of.
+            ORDER BY v.is_active DESC, v.updated_at DESC, v.id DESC
+            LIMIT 1
+        """, agent['id'])
+
+        if not row:
+            return {"agent_name": agent_name, "status": "not_configured", "config_path": config_path, "keepalived": None}
+        if not row['is_active']:
+            # Soft-deleted VIP → teardown. purge carries the operator's opt-in package removal;
+            # the agent still only purges on nodes where IT installed keepalived (install marker).
+            return {"agent_name": agent_name, "status": "teardown", "vip_id": row['vip_id'],
+                    "config_path": config_path, "keepalived": None,
+                    "purge": bool(row['purge_on_teardown'])}
+        if not row['applied_config_content']:
+            return {"agent_name": agent_name, "status": "not_configured", "config_path": config_path, "keepalived": None}
+
+        from services.keepalived_config import build_haproxy_check_script
+        check_script = build_haproxy_check_script() if row['track_haproxy'] else ""
+        return {
+            "agent_name": agent_name,
+            "status": "available",
+            "config_path": config_path,
+            "keepalived": {
+                "desired_state": "enabled",
+                "install_if_missing": True,
+                "vip_id": row['vip_id'],
+                "vip_name": row['vip_name'],
+                "config_content": row['applied_config_content'],
+                "config_hash": row['applied_config_hash'],
+                "check_script": check_script,
+            },
+        }
+    except HTTPException:
+        raise
+    except Exception as e:
+        logger.error(f"keepalived-config delivery failed for '{agent_name}': {e}")
+        # Degrade to no-op rather than 500 (B-7) — keeps the fleet inert on any error.
+        return {"agent_name": agent_name, "status": "not_configured",
+                "config_path": "/etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf", "keepalived": None}
+    finally:
+        if conn:
+            await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+@router.post("/{agent_name}/keepalived-status")
+async def agent_keepalived_status(agent_name: str, status_data: dict, x_api_key: Optional[str] = Header(None)):
+    """Issue #27 (v1.7.0) — agent reports the outcome of a keepalived deploy/teardown.
+
+    Auth mirrors config-applied's post-Bulgu-#75 guard (reject a MISSING key — never the
+    `and` short-circuit that accepted no-key requests). The token is a shared/global install
+    token, so the status is recorded strictly for the requested agent_name and a token/name
+    mismatch is an advisory audit log (like /config-applied), not a 403 — review HIGH-1.
+    """
+    conn = None
+    try:
+        from auth_middleware import validate_agent_api_key
+        agent_auth = await validate_agent_api_key(x_api_key)
+        if not x_api_key or not agent_auth:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=401, detail="Invalid API key")
+        if agent_auth['name'] != agent_name:
+            logger.info(f"Agent '{agent_name}' reporting keepalived status using API key from agent '{agent_auth['name']}'")
+
+        conn = await get_database_connection()
+        agent = await conn.fetchrow("SELECT id FROM agents WHERE name = $1", agent_name)
+        if not agent:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail=f"Agent '{agent_name}' not found")
+
+        vip_id = status_data.get("vip_id")
+        state = (status_data.get("state") or "").strip()[:24]
+        config_hash = (status_data.get("config_hash") or "")[:64]
+        message = status_data.get("message")
+        if vip_id is None:
+            # No specific VIP (e.g. a teardown ack) — update all this agent's memberships.
+            await conn.execute("""
+                UPDATE vip_members SET last_deploy_state=$2, last_deploy_message=$3,
+                    last_deploy_hash=$4, last_deploy_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP, updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
+                WHERE agent_id=$1
+            """, agent['id'], state, message, config_hash)
+        else:
+            await conn.execute("""
+                UPDATE vip_members SET last_deploy_state=$3, last_deploy_message=$4,
+                    last_deploy_hash=$5, last_deploy_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP, updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
+                WHERE agent_id=$1 AND vip_id=$2
+            """, agent['id'], int(vip_id), state, message, config_hash)
+        return {"status": "ok"}
+    except HTTPException:
+        raise
+    except Exception as e:
+        logger.error(f"keepalived-status update failed for '{agent_name}': {e}")
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=500, detail="keepalived-status update failed")
+    finally:
+        if conn:
+            await close_database_connection(conn)
+
 @router.get("/script-version")
 async def get_latest_script_version(platform: str = "macos"):
     """Get the latest available agent script version for specified platform"""

backend/routers/backend.py

@@ -333,31 +333,38 @@ async def get_backends(
                 """)
         
         result = []
+        # Issue #24: servers must honor include_inactive exactly like the backend
+        # queries above. Pre-fix these sub-queries hardcoded `is_active = TRUE`
+        # (added in f34a6ee to hide soft-deleted entities), so a server toggled
+        # OFF (is_active=false) vanished from the UI with no way to reactivate it.
+        # Default callers (include_inactive=false) keep the is_active filter →
+        # byte-identical behavior; include_inactive=true now also returns inactive
+        # (disabled / soft-deleted) servers. last_config_status is selected so the
+        # frontend can tell DISABLED (re-enableable) from DELETION (pending delete).
+        server_active_filter = "" if include_inactive else "AND is_active = TRUE"
         for backend in backends:
-            # Get servers for this backend with cluster_id (ONLY show active servers)
-            # CRITICAL FIX: Add is_active = TRUE filter to prevent soft-deleted servers from appearing
             if cluster_id:
-                servers = await conn.fetch("""
+                servers = await conn.fetch(f"""
                     SELECT id, server_name, server_address, server_port, weight, maxconn,
                            check_enabled, check_port, backup_server, ssl_enabled, ssl_verify, ssl_certificate_id,
                            ssl_sni, ssl_min_ver, ssl_max_ver, ssl_ciphers,
                            cookie_value, inter, fall, rise,
-                           is_active, cluster_id,
+                           is_active, cluster_id, last_config_status,
                            haproxy_status, haproxy_status_updated_at, backend_name
-                    FROM backend_servers 
-                    WHERE backend_name = $1 AND cluster_id = $2 AND is_active = TRUE ORDER BY server_name
+                    FROM backend_servers
+                    WHERE backend_name = $1 AND cluster_id = $2 {server_active_filter} ORDER BY server_name
                 """, backend["name"], cluster_id)
             else:
-                servers = await conn.fetch("""
+                servers = await conn.fetch(f"""
                     SELECT id, server_name, server_address, server_port, weight, maxconn,
                            check_enabled, check_port, backup_server, ssl_enabled, ssl_verify, ssl_certificate_id,
                            ssl_sni, ssl_min_ver, ssl_max_ver, ssl_ciphers,
                            cookie_value, inter, fall, rise,
-                           is_active, cluster_id,
+                           is_active, cluster_id, last_config_status,
                            haproxy_status, haproxy_status_updated_at, backend_name
-                    FROM backend_servers 
-                    WHERE backend_name = $1 AND is_active = TRUE ORDER BY server_name
-                """, backend["name"]) 
+                    FROM backend_servers
+                    WHERE backend_name = $1 {server_active_filter} ORDER BY server_name
+                """, backend["name"])
             
             # Prepare server list with real-time HAProxy status from agents
             server_list = []
@@ -413,6 +420,7 @@ async def get_backends(
                     "fall": s.get("fall"),
                     "rise": s.get("rise"),
                     "is_active": s["is_active"],
+                    "last_config_status": s.get("last_config_status") or "APPLIED",  # Issue #24: lets UI distinguish DISABLED (re-enableable) from DELETION
                     "status": server_status,
                     "status_age_minutes": status_age_minutes,
                     "last_status_update": s.get("haproxy_status_updated_at").isoformat().replace('+00:00', 'Z') if s.get("haproxy_status_updated_at") else None,
@@ -1909,12 +1917,12 @@ async def toggle_server(server_id: int, request: Request, authorization: str = H
 
         conn = await get_database_connection()
         
-        # Get server info
+        # Get server info. Issue #24: fetch the FULL row (not just 5 columns) so we
+        # can snapshot the pre-toggle state for reject-rollback (see config version below).
         server = await conn.fetchrow("""
-            SELECT id, server_name, backend_name, is_active, cluster_id
-            FROM backend_servers WHERE id = $1
+            SELECT * FROM backend_servers WHERE id = $1
         """, server_id)
-        
+
         if not server:
             await close_database_connection(conn)
             raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="Server not found")
@@ -1975,22 +1983,45 @@ async def toggle_server(server_id: int, request: Request, authorization: str = H
                 
                 # Generate new HAProxy config (after database commit)
                 config_content = await generate_haproxy_config_for_cluster(cluster_id)
-                
+
                 # Create new config version
                 config_hash = hashlib.sha256(config_content.encode()).hexdigest()
                 version_name = f"server-{server_id}-toggle-{int(time.time())}"
-                
+
                 # Get system admin user ID for created_by
                 conn2 = await get_database_connection()
                 admin_user_id = await conn2.fetchval("SELECT id FROM users WHERE username = 'admin' LIMIT 1") or 1
-                
+
+                # Issue #24: persist an entity snapshot so a Reject of this toggle
+                # rolls back is_active to its pre-toggle value. Pre-fix the toggle's
+                # config version carried NO metadata, so reject only reset
+                # last_config_status and the server stayed disabled (out of sync with
+                # the still-active live config). Mirrors the server-edit snapshot path;
+                # reject's rollback_entity_from_snapshot('server') restores is_active.
+                import json
+                from utils.entity_snapshot import save_entity_snapshot
+                entity_snapshot_metadata = await save_entity_snapshot(
+                    conn=conn2,
+                    entity_type="server",
+                    entity_id=server_id,
+                    old_values=dict(server),            # full pre-toggle row
+                    new_values={"is_active": new_status},
+                    operation="UPDATE",
+                )
+                old_config = await conn2.fetchval("""
+                    SELECT config_content FROM config_versions
+                    WHERE cluster_id = $1 AND status = 'APPLIED' AND is_active = TRUE
+                    ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT 1
+                """, cluster_id)
+                metadata = {"pre_apply_snapshot": old_config or "", **entity_snapshot_metadata}
+
                 # Create PENDING config version
                 config_version_id = await conn2.fetchval("""
-                    INSERT INTO config_versions 
-                    (cluster_id, version_name, config_content, checksum, created_by, is_active, status)
-                    VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, FALSE, 'PENDING')
+                    INSERT INTO config_versions
+                    (cluster_id, version_name, config_content, checksum, created_by, is_active, status, metadata)
+                    VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, FALSE, 'PENDING', $6)
                     RETURNING id
-                """, cluster_id, version_name, config_content, config_hash, admin_user_id)
+                """, cluster_id, version_name, config_content, config_hash, admin_user_id, json.dumps(metadata))
                 
                 logger.error(f"SERVER TOGGLE DEBUG: Created PENDING config version {version_name} for cluster {cluster_id}")
                 

backend/routers/cluster.py

@@ -292,12 +292,14 @@ async def create_cluster(cluster: HAProxyClusterCreate, authorization: str = Hea
         
         # Create cluster
         cluster_id = await conn.fetchval("""
-            INSERT INTO haproxy_clusters (name, description, connection_type, is_active, 
-                                        stats_socket_path, haproxy_config_path, haproxy_bin_path, pool_id)
-            VALUES ($1, $2, $3, TRUE, $4, $5, $6, $7)
+            INSERT INTO haproxy_clusters (name, description, connection_type, is_active,
+                                        stats_socket_path, haproxy_config_path, haproxy_bin_path,
+                                        keepalived_config_path, pool_id)
+            VALUES ($1, $2, $3, TRUE, $4, $5, $6, $7, $8)
             RETURNING id
         """, cluster.name, cluster.description, cluster.connection_type,
-            cluster.stats_socket_path, cluster.haproxy_config_path, cluster.haproxy_bin_path, cluster.pool_id)
+            cluster.stats_socket_path, cluster.haproxy_config_path, cluster.haproxy_bin_path,
+            cluster.keepalived_config_path, cluster.pool_id)
         
         await close_database_connection(conn)
         
@@ -436,7 +438,12 @@ async def update_cluster(cluster_id: int, cluster: HAProxyClusterUpdate, authori
             update_fields.append(f"haproxy_bin_path = ${param_counter}")
             update_values.append(cluster.haproxy_bin_path)
             param_counter += 1
-            
+
+        if cluster.keepalived_config_path is not None:
+            update_fields.append(f"keepalived_config_path = ${param_counter}")
+            update_values.append(cluster.keepalived_config_path)
+            param_counter += 1
+
         if cluster.pool_id is not None:
             update_fields.append(f"pool_id = ${param_counter}")
             update_values.append(cluster.pool_id)
@@ -517,7 +524,7 @@ async def update_cluster(cluster_id: int, cluster: HAProxyClusterUpdate, authori
 
 
 @router.get("/{cluster_id}", summary="Get Cluster by ID", response_description="Cluster details")
-async def get_cluster(cluster_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
+async def get_cluster(cluster_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None), x_api_key: Optional[str] = Header(None)):
     """
     # Get Specific HAProxy Cluster
     
@@ -528,8 +535,12 @@ async def get_cluster(cluster_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
     
     ## Example Request
     ```bash
+    # User (UI) authentication:
     curl -X GET "{BASE_URL}/api/clusters/1" \\
       -H "Authorization: Bearer eyJhbGciOiJIUz..."
+    # Agent authentication (agent token in X-API-Key):
+    curl -X GET "{BASE_URL}/api/clusters/1" \\
+      -H "X-API-Key: hap_..."
     ```
     
     ## Example Response
@@ -554,20 +565,30 @@ async def get_cluster(cluster_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
     - **404**: Cluster not found
     - **500**: Server error
     """
-    try:
-        # R18c audit fix (round 6 final convergence): authenticate
-        # the caller before fetching cluster topology by ID. Pre-fix
-        # this sibling of GET /api/clusters was anonymous, so an
-        # attacker could iterate cluster IDs to enumerate the same
-        # info (stats socket, paths, ACME flags, pool identity) the
-        # list endpoint just locked down. Closes the asymmetry.
+    # R18c audit fix (round 6 final convergence): authenticate the caller
+    # before fetching cluster topology by ID. Pre-fix this sibling of
+    # GET /api/clusters was anonymous, so an attacker could iterate cluster
+    # IDs to enumerate the same info (stats socket, paths, ACME flags, pool
+    # identity) the list endpoint just locked down.
+    # Issue #22: agents send their token in the X-API-Key header (not a user
+    # JWT), so accept either credential — mirrors the dual-auth on
+    # POST /api/agents/generate-install-script. Anonymous is still rejected.
+    if authorization:
         from auth_middleware import get_current_user_from_token
         await get_current_user_from_token(authorization)
+    elif x_api_key:
+        from auth_middleware import validate_agent_api_key
+        if not await validate_agent_api_key(x_api_key):
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=401, detail="Invalid agent API key")
+    else:
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=401, detail="Authorization header or X-API-Key required")
+    try:
         conn = await get_database_connection()
         
         cluster = await conn.fetchrow("""
-            SELECT c.id, c.name, c.description, c.connection_type, c.is_active, 
+            SELECT c.id, c.name, c.description, c.connection_type, c.is_active,
                    c.created_at, c.stats_socket_path, c.haproxy_config_path, c.haproxy_bin_path,
+                   c.keepalived_config_path,
                    c.pool_id, c.is_default, c.acme_enabled, c.acme_backend_url,
                    p.name as pool_name
             FROM haproxy_clusters c
@@ -591,6 +612,7 @@ async def get_cluster(cluster_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
             "stats_socket_path": cluster["stats_socket_path"],
             "haproxy_config_path": cluster["haproxy_config_path"],
             "haproxy_bin_path": cluster["haproxy_bin_path"],
+            "keepalived_config_path": cluster.get("keepalived_config_path"),
             "pool_id": cluster["pool_id"],
             "pool_name": cluster["pool_name"],
             "acme_enabled": cluster.get("acme_enabled", False),
@@ -602,7 +624,7 @@ async def get_cluster(cluster_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
         raise HTTPException(status_code=500, detail=str(e))
 
 @router.get("", summary="Get All Clusters", response_description="List of all clusters")
-async def get_clusters(authorization: str = Header(None)):
+async def get_clusters(authorization: str = Header(None), x_api_key: Optional[str] = Header(None)):
     """
     # Get All HAProxy Clusters
     
@@ -610,8 +632,12 @@ async def get_clusters(authorization: str = Header(None)):
     
     ## Example Request
     ```bash
+    # User (UI) authentication:
     curl -X GET "{BASE_URL}/api/clusters" \\
       -H "Authorization: Bearer eyJhbGciOiJIUz..."
+    # Agent authentication (agent token in X-API-Key):
+    curl -X GET "{BASE_URL}/api/clusters" \\
+      -H "X-API-Key: hap_..."
     ```
     
     ## Example Response
@@ -662,23 +688,34 @@ async def get_clusters(authorization: str = Header(None)):
     ## Error Responses
     - **500**: Server error
     """
-    try:
-        # R18c audit fix (round 6 #3 — KRITIK info leak): require an
-        # authenticated caller. Pre-fix the endpoint accepted
-        # anonymous GETs and returned cluster topology including
-        # internal HAProxy paths (stats socket, config path, bin
-        # path), pool ids, ACME flags, and agent counts. This is
-        # both reconnaissance for an attacker and the spine of the
-        # cluster-scoped RBAC the rest of the platform builds on,
-        # so guarding it at the read layer is essential after R18c
-        # round 5's roster + role guards.
+    # R18c audit fix (round 6 #3 — KRITIK info leak): require an authenticated
+    # caller. Pre-fix the endpoint accepted anonymous GETs and returned cluster
+    # topology including internal HAProxy paths (stats socket, config path, bin
+    # path), pool ids, ACME flags, and agent counts. This is both reconnaissance
+    # for an attacker and the spine of the cluster-scoped RBAC the rest of the
+    # platform builds on, so guarding it at the read layer is essential.
+    # Issue #22: agents send their token in the X-API-Key header (not a user
+    # JWT), so accept either credential — mirrors the dual-auth on
+    # POST /api/agents/generate-install-script. Anonymous is still rejected.
+    # (Guard kept OUTSIDE the try below: get_clusters' broad `except Exception`
+    # re-wraps raised HTTPExceptions into 500, which produced the "500 - 401"
+    # in the issue log; raising here yields a clean 401.)
+    if authorization:
         from auth_middleware import get_current_user_from_token
         await get_current_user_from_token(authorization)
+    elif x_api_key:
+        from auth_middleware import validate_agent_api_key
+        if not await validate_agent_api_key(x_api_key):
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=401, detail="Invalid agent API key")
+    else:
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=401, detail="Authorization header or X-API-Key required")
+    try:
         conn = await get_database_connection()
         
         clusters = await conn.fetch("""
-            SELECT c.id, c.name, c.description, c.connection_type, c.is_active, 
+            SELECT c.id, c.name, c.description, c.connection_type, c.is_active,
                    c.created_at, c.stats_socket_path, c.haproxy_config_path, c.haproxy_bin_path,
+                   c.keepalived_config_path,
                    c.pool_id, c.is_default, c.acme_enabled, c.acme_backend_url,
                    p.name as pool_name,
                    COALESCE(agent_counts.total_agents, 0) as total_agents,
@@ -737,6 +774,7 @@ async def get_clusters(authorization: str = Header(None)):
                 "stats_socket_path": cluster["stats_socket_path"],
                 "haproxy_config_path": cluster["haproxy_config_path"],
                 "haproxy_bin_path": cluster["haproxy_bin_path"],
+                "keepalived_config_path": cluster.get("keepalived_config_path"),
                 "pool_id": cluster["pool_id"],
                 "pool_name": cluster["pool_name"],
                 "acme_enabled": cluster.get("acme_enabled", False),
@@ -1313,6 +1351,8 @@ async def list_cluster_config_versions(cluster_id: int, authorization: str = Hea
                 version_type = "WAF Rule"
             elif "ssl-" in version['version_name']:
                 version_type = "SSL Certificate"
+            elif "vip-" in version['version_name']:
+                version_type = "HA / VIP"
             
             # Parse validation error if present
             validation_error = version.get("validation_error")
@@ -1417,10 +1457,14 @@ async def apply_pending_changes(
         # Users will handle configuration completeness through the centralized Apply Management page
         
         # Get all pending config versions for this cluster
+        # HA/VIP (Issue #27): vip-* versions are owned by the VIP apply/reject endpoints
+        # (keepalived is not part of haproxy.cfg). Exclude them so a generic cluster apply
+        # from any entity page never marks a VIP version APPLIED without enacting it. This
+        # is a no-op for every non-VIP cluster (no vip-* rows exist).
         pending_versions = await conn.fetch("""
             SELECT id, version_name, created_at, config_content, checksum, metadata
-            FROM config_versions 
-            WHERE cluster_id = $1 AND status = 'PENDING'
+            FROM config_versions
+            WHERE cluster_id = $1 AND status = 'PENDING' AND version_name NOT LIKE 'vip-%'
             ORDER BY created_at ASC
         """, cluster_id)
         
@@ -2539,6 +2583,92 @@ async def get_config_version_diff(cluster_id: int, version_id: int, authorizatio
                     }
                 }
         
+        # HA/VIP (Issue #27): vip-{id}-{action} versions show the generated keepalived.conf
+        # each member node will deploy as the change content (VRRP secret masked). Mirrors
+        # the ssl-* special case above so VIP uses the STANDARD View Change diff modal.
+        vip_match = re.search(r'vip-(\d+)-(create|update|delete)', current_version['version_name'])
+        if vip_match:
+            vip_id = int(vip_match.group(1))
+            vip_action = vip_match.group(2)
+            rendered, vip_meta = None, None
+            old_content = ""
+            try:
+                from routers.vip import render_vip_config_masked
+                rendered, vip_meta = await render_vip_config_masked(conn, vip_id)
+                # For a create/update diff, fetch the PREVIOUS applied vip-* config for this VIP
+                # (the last-deployed keepalived.conf) so an EDIT shows ONLY the changed lines
+                # instead of the whole config as "added". Both sides are already secret-masked.
+                if vip_action != "delete":
+                    prev_applied = await conn.fetchrow(
+                        "SELECT config_content FROM config_versions WHERE version_name LIKE $1 "
+                        "AND status='APPLIED' AND cluster_id=$2 AND id < $3 ORDER BY id DESC LIMIT 1",
+                        f"vip-{vip_id}-%", cluster_id, current_version['id'])
+                    if prev_applied and prev_applied['config_content']:
+                        old_content = prev_applied['config_content']
+            except Exception as vip_err:
+                logger.warning(f"VIP DIFF: render failed for vip {vip_id}: {vip_err}")
+            await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+            changes = []
+            line_number = 1
+            if vip_action == "delete" or rendered is None:
+                title = (vip_meta or {}).get("name") or f"VIP {vip_id}"
+                for line in [f"# HA/VIP change: {title}",
+                             "# keepalived will be stopped and the virtual IP released on each member node."
+                             if vip_action == "delete" else
+                             "# (configuration is not available to render yet)"]:
+                    changes.append({"type": "context", "line": line, "line_number": line_number})
+                    line_number += 1
+                summary = {"added": 0, "removed": 1 if vip_action == "delete" else 0,
+                           "total_changes": 1 if vip_action == "delete" else 0}
+            else:
+                # Real line diff. Match the STANDARD haproxy diff format: the line is stored
+                # WITHOUT a +/- prefix (the UI adds it from `type` — the old `+ {line}` here
+                # caused the doubled "+ +"). A CREATE (no previous applied config) shows
+                # everything as added; an UPDATE shows ONLY the lines that actually changed.
+                import difflib
+                new_content = current_version['config_content'] or rendered or ""
+                added_count = 0
+                removed_count = 0
+                line_number = 0
+                if not old_content:
+                    for i, l in enumerate(new_content.split('\n')):
+                        changes.append({"type": "added", "line": l, "line_number": i + 1})
+                        added_count += 1
+                else:
+                    for dl in difflib.unified_diff(old_content.split('\n'), new_content.split('\n'),
+                                                   lineterm='', n=3):
+                        if dl.startswith('@@'):
+                            mm = re.search(r'@@ -(\d+),?\d* \+(\d+),?\d* @@', dl)
+                            if mm:
+                                line_number = int(mm.group(2))
+                            continue
+                        if dl.startswith('---') or dl.startswith('+++'):
+                            continue
+                        if dl.startswith('+'):
+                            changes.append({"type": "added", "line": dl[1:], "line_number": line_number})
+                            added_count += 1
+                            line_number += 1
+                        elif dl.startswith('-'):
+                            changes.append({"type": "removed", "line": dl[1:], "line_number": line_number})
+                            removed_count += 1
+                        elif dl.startswith(' '):
+                            changes.append({"type": "context", "line": dl[1:], "line_number": line_number})
+                            line_number += 1
+                summary = {"added": added_count, "removed": removed_count,
+                           "total_changes": added_count + removed_count}
+
+            return {
+                "current_version": {
+                    "id": current_version['id'],
+                    "version_name": current_version['version_name'],
+                    "created_at": current_version['created_at'].isoformat().replace('+00:00', 'Z')
+                },
+                "previous_version": None,
+                "changes": changes,
+                "summary": summary,
+            }
+
         # Check if current version has config content
         if not current_version['config_content']:
             # Special handling for restore versions - they might not have content yet
@@ -3566,17 +3696,19 @@ async def confirm_restore_config_version(
                     # UPDATE existing frontend (ALL 8 parsed fields)
                     # CRITICAL FIX: Include maxconn and timeout_client so UI shows restored values
                     await conn.execute("""
-                        UPDATE frontends 
-                        SET bind_address = $1, bind_port = $2, default_backend = $3, 
+                        UPDATE frontends
+                        SET bind_address = $1, bind_port = $2, default_backend = $3,
                             mode = $4, ssl_enabled = $5, ssl_port = $6,
                             maxconn = $7, timeout_client = $8,
+                            log_format = $11, filters = $12,
                             updated_at = CURRENT_TIMESTAMP, last_config_status = 'PENDING'
                         WHERE id = $9 AND cluster_id = $10
-                    """, 
+                    """,
                         parsed_fe.bind_address, parsed_fe.bind_port, parsed_fe.default_backend,
                         parsed_fe.mode, parsed_fe.ssl_enabled, parsed_fe.ssl_port,
                         parsed_fe.maxconn, parsed_fe.timeout_client,
-                        fe_id, cluster_id
+                        fe_id, cluster_id,
+                        parsed_fe.log_format, parsed_fe.filters  # Issue #38
                     )
                     changes_summary["frontends_updated"] += 1
                     logger.info(f"RESTORE: Updated frontend '{parsed_fe.name}' (SSL: {parsed_fe.ssl_enabled}, maxconn: {parsed_fe.maxconn})")
@@ -3584,16 +3716,17 @@ async def confirm_restore_config_version(
                     # CREATE new frontend (ALL 8 parsed fields)
                     # CRITICAL FIX: Include maxconn and timeout_client so UI shows restored values
                     await conn.execute("""
-                        INSERT INTO frontends 
+                        INSERT INTO frontends
                         (name, bind_address, bind_port, default_backend, mode, ssl_enabled, ssl_port,
                          maxconn, timeout_client,
-                         cluster_id, is_active, last_config_status, created_at, updated_at)
-                        VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6, $7, $8, $9, $10, TRUE, 'PENDING', CURRENT_TIMESTAMP, CURRENT_TIMESTAMP)
-                    """, 
+                         cluster_id, log_format, filters, is_active, last_config_status, created_at, updated_at)
+                        VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6, $7, $8, $9, $10, $11, $12, TRUE, 'PENDING', CURRENT_TIMESTAMP, CURRENT_TIMESTAMP)
+                    """,
                         parsed_fe.name, parsed_fe.bind_address, parsed_fe.bind_port,
                         parsed_fe.default_backend, parsed_fe.mode, parsed_fe.ssl_enabled, parsed_fe.ssl_port,
                         parsed_fe.maxconn, parsed_fe.timeout_client,
-                        cluster_id
+                        cluster_id,
+                        parsed_fe.log_format, parsed_fe.filters  # Issue #38
                     )
                     changes_summary["frontends_created"] += 1
                     logger.info(f"RESTORE: Created frontend '{parsed_fe.name}' (SSL: {parsed_fe.ssl_enabled}, maxconn: {parsed_fe.maxconn})")
@@ -4226,6 +4359,20 @@ async def undo_reject_config_version(
                 ),
             )
 
+        # HA/VIP (Issue #27): vip-* versions are owned by the VIP entity, so undo is handled
+        # by the VIP router — it re-stages the rejected change as PENDING from the version's
+        # captured pending_state (reactivating the VIP if a rejected create soft-deleted it,
+        # or re-applying a rejected edit). Returns an error string if it can't (e.g. the
+        # name/address/VRID was reused since reject) -> surface a clean 409.
+        if version_name.startswith('vip-'):
+            from routers.vip import restore_vip_from_rejected_version
+            err = await restore_vip_from_rejected_version(conn, version_id)
+            await close_database_connection(conn)
+            if err:
+                raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail=f"Cannot undo this VIP change — {err}.")
+            return {"message": "VIP change restored to PENDING — review and Apply it from Apply Management",
+                    "version_name": version_name}
+
         async with conn.transaction():
             # Mark the version as PENDING again
             await conn.execute("""
@@ -4902,9 +5049,17 @@ async def reject_all_pending_changes(cluster_id: int, authorization: str = Heade
         await validate_user_cluster_access(current_user['id'], cluster_id, conn)
 
         # Get all pending config versions for this cluster (CRITICAL: Include metadata for rollback!)
+        # HA/VIP (Issue #27): exclude vip-* versions — they are rejected/reverted by the
+        # VIP reject endpoint (which restores keepalived state), not the generic rollback.
+        # ORDER BY created_at ASC: the rollback loop dedups per entity and keeps the FIRST-processed
+        # snapshot, so the OLDEST snapshot must win — its old_values hold the true pre-change state.
+        # Critical when one entity has multiple pending versions (e.g. cluster ACME enable->disable->enable):
+        # rolling back to the oldest restores the original acme_enabled. (Matches the apply SELECT, which
+        # already orders created_at ASC.)
         pending_versions = await conn.fetch("""
             SELECT id, version_name, metadata FROM config_versions
-            WHERE cluster_id = $1 AND status = 'PENDING'
+            WHERE cluster_id = $1 AND status = 'PENDING' AND version_name NOT LIKE 'vip-%'
+            ORDER BY created_at ASC
         """, cluster_id)
         
         # CRITICAL FIX: Detect and clean orphan config versions
@@ -5116,11 +5271,12 @@ async def reject_all_pending_changes(cluster_id: int, authorization: str = Heade
         )
         
         # Mark all pending config versions as REJECTED (don't delete them)
+        # HA/VIP (Issue #27): leave vip-* versions to the VIP reject endpoint.
         rejected_count = len(pending_versions)
         await conn.execute("""
-            UPDATE config_versions 
+            UPDATE config_versions
             SET status = 'REJECTED'
-            WHERE cluster_id = $1 AND status = 'PENDING'
+            WHERE cluster_id = $1 AND status = 'PENDING' AND version_name NOT LIKE 'vip-%'
         """, cluster_id)
 
         # Update WAF rules status to APPLIED (rolled back)

backend/routers/config.py

@@ -855,6 +855,9 @@ async def parse_bulk_config(
                 "response_headers": frontend.response_headers,
                 "options": frontend.options,
                 "tcp_request_rules": frontend.tcp_request_rules,
+                # Issue #38: SPOE filters + frontend log-format
+                "log_format": frontend.log_format,
+                "filters": frontend.filters,
                 # CRITICAL: SSL Advanced Options (parsed from bind directive)
                 "ssl_alpn": frontend.ssl_alpn,
                 "ssl_npn": frontend.ssl_npn,
@@ -1089,7 +1092,69 @@ async def parse_bulk_config(
         
         # Add auto-assignment info at the beginning
         enhanced_warnings = ssl_auto_assign_info + enhanced_warnings
-        
+
+        # ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+        # Issue #38: SPOE pre-flight advisories. Surface, at preview time, the
+        # SPOE configurations that would FAIL HAProxy's `haproxy -c` at apply so
+        # the operator sees them BEFORE importing. Cluster-aware: the referenced
+        # SPOE engine config (e.g. coraza.cfg) is a sibling of the cluster's
+        # haproxy_config_path, which HAProxy OpenManager does not provision.
+        # ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+        try:
+            _cfg_path = await conn.fetchval(
+                "SELECT haproxy_config_path FROM haproxy_clusters WHERE id = $1",
+                request.cluster_id,
+            ) or "/etc/haproxy/haproxy.cfg"
+            _cfg_dir = _cfg_path.rsplit("/", 1)[0] or "/etc/haproxy"
+            for _fe in frontends_data:
+                _rh = _fe.get("request_headers") or ""
+                _filters = _fe.get("filters") or ""
+                # engines declared by `filter spoe engine <name> config <path>`
+                _declared_engines = set(re.findall(
+                    r"filter\s+spoe\s+engine\s+(\S+)", _filters, re.IGNORECASE))
+                # engines referenced by `... send-spoe-group <name> <group>`
+                _used_engines = set(re.findall(
+                    r"send-spoe-group\s+(\S+)", _rh, re.IGNORECASE))
+                _missing = _used_engines - _declared_engines
+                if _missing:
+                    enhanced_warnings.append(
+                        f"⚠️ Frontend '{_fe['name']}': 'send-spoe-group' references SPOE "
+                        f"engine(s) {', '.join(sorted(_missing))} but no matching "
+                        f"'filter spoe engine <name> ...' line was found. HAProxy will "
+                        f"reject this at apply with \"unable to find SPOE engine\". Add the "
+                        f"filter line to this frontend."
+                    )
+                for _path in re.findall(
+                        r"filter\s+spoe\s+engine\s+\S+\s+config\s+(\S+)",
+                        _filters, re.IGNORECASE):
+                    enhanced_warnings.append(
+                        f"ℹ️ Frontend '{_fe['name']}': SPOE engine config '{_path}' and its "
+                        f"SPOA backend must exist on the HAProxy host (cluster config dir: "
+                        f"{_cfg_dir}). HAProxy OpenManager preserves the filter directive but "
+                        f"does not provision these files; otherwise 'haproxy -c' fails at apply."
+                    )
+                # Issue #38 follow-up: ACL `-f <file>` pattern-file advisory.
+                # Scan only the structured rule fields (acl/use_backend) —
+                # request_headers/tcp_request_rules were always free-form and
+                # warning on them now would add new noise for existing users.
+                _pattern_paths = []
+                for _rule in (_fe.get("acl_rules") or []) + (_fe.get("use_backend_rules") or []):
+                    if isinstance(_rule, str):
+                        _pattern_paths.extend(
+                            re.findall(r"(?:^|\s)-f\s+(\S+)", _rule))
+                if _pattern_paths:
+                    _uniq = sorted(set(_pattern_paths))
+                    enhanced_warnings.append(
+                        f"ℹ️ Frontend '{_fe['name']}': ACL/routing rules reference pattern "
+                        f"file(s) {', '.join(_uniq)}. Each file must exist at that exact path "
+                        f"on every HAProxy host in the cluster (cluster config dir: {_cfg_dir}) "
+                        f"— HAProxy OpenManager does not create or distribute pattern files. "
+                        f"A missing file fails safely at 'haproxy -c' (previous config keeps "
+                        f"running)."
+                    )
+        except Exception as _spoe_adv_err:
+            logger.warning(f"SPOE advisory generation skipped: {_spoe_adv_err}")
+
         # BULK IMPORT MVP: Check existing entities for UPSERT detection
         # Mark each entity as new or update for UI display
         # CRITICAL: Only mark as UPDATE if there are actual field changes
@@ -1150,7 +1215,17 @@ async def parse_bulk_config(
                 if frontend.get("tcp_request_rules") and frontend["tcp_request_rules"] != existing["tcp_request_rules"]:
                     has_changes = True
                     changes["tcp_request_rules"] = {"old": existing["tcp_request_rules"], "new": frontend["tcp_request_rules"]}
-                
+                # Issue #38: SPOE filters + log-format change detection. REQUIRED for
+                # persistence (not just display): without it, an import that only adds
+                # a `filter`/`log-format` to an existing frontend would be flagged
+                # "no change" and the directive would never be written to the DB.
+                if frontend.get("log_format") and frontend["log_format"] != existing.get("log_format"):
+                    has_changes = True
+                    changes["log_format"] = {"old": existing.get("log_format"), "new": frontend["log_format"]}
+                if frontend.get("filters") and frontend["filters"] != existing.get("filters"):
+                    has_changes = True
+                    changes["filters"] = {"old": existing.get("filters"), "new": frontend["filters"]}
+
                 # CRITICAL: SSL Advanced Options change detection
                 if frontend.get("ssl_alpn") is not None and frontend.get("ssl_alpn") != existing.get("ssl_alpn"):
                     has_changes = True
@@ -2094,7 +2169,18 @@ async def bulk_create_entities(
                         update_fields.append(f"options = ${param_index}")
                         update_values.append(frontend_data["options"])
                         param_index += 1
-                    
+
+                    # Issue #38: SPOE filters + frontend log-format (merge strategy)
+                    if frontend_data.get("log_format") and frontend_data["log_format"] != existing_full.get("log_format"):
+                        update_fields.append(f"log_format = ${param_index}")
+                        update_values.append(frontend_data["log_format"])
+                        param_index += 1
+
+                    if frontend_data.get("filters") and frontend_data["filters"] != existing_full.get("filters"):
+                        update_fields.append(f"filters = ${param_index}")
+                        update_values.append(frontend_data["filters"])
+                        param_index += 1
+
                     # CRITICAL FIX: Update SSL advanced options (alpn, npn, ciphers, etc.)
                     # These are parsed from bind directive and should be preserved in database
                     if "ssl_alpn" in frontend_data and frontend_data.get("ssl_alpn") != existing_full.get("ssl_alpn"):
@@ -2214,9 +2300,10 @@ async def bulk_create_entities(
                             timeout_client, timeout_http_request, maxconn,
                             request_headers, response_headers, tcp_request_rules, options,
                             rate_limit, compression, log_separate, monitor_uri,
-                            cluster_id, acl_rules, use_backend_rules, redirect_rules, updated_at
-                        ) 
-                        VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6, $7, $8, $9, $10, $11, $12, $13, $14, $15, $16, $17, $18, $19, $20, $21, $22, $23, $24, $25, $26, $27, $28, $29, $30, $31, $32, $33, $34, CURRENT_TIMESTAMP) 
+                            cluster_id, acl_rules, use_backend_rules, redirect_rules,
+                            log_format, filters, updated_at
+                        )
+                        VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6, $7, $8, $9, $10, $11, $12, $13, $14, $15, $16, $17, $18, $19, $20, $21, $22, $23, $24, $25, $26, $27, $28, $29, $30, $31, $32, $33, $34, $35, $36, CURRENT_TIMESTAMP)
                         RETURNING id
                     """, 
                         frontend_data["name"],
@@ -2257,7 +2344,9 @@ async def bulk_create_entities(
                         request.cluster_id,
                         json.dumps(frontend_data.get("acl_rules", [])),  # acl_rules
                         json.dumps(frontend_data.get("use_backend_rules", [])),  # use_backend_rules
-                        json.dumps([])   # redirect_rules
+                        json.dumps([]),   # redirect_rules
+                        frontend_data.get("log_format"),  # Issue #38
+                        frontend_data.get("filters")      # Issue #38
                     )
                     
                     created_entities["frontends"].append({

backend/routers/frontend.py

@@ -117,6 +117,41 @@ def _rule_contradiction_text(rule: Any) -> Optional[str]:
     return None
 
 
+def _pattern_file_warnings(
+    acl_rules: Optional[List[Any]] = None,
+    use_backend_rules: Optional[List[Any]] = None,
+    redirect_rules: Optional[List[Any]] = None,
+) -> List[str]:
+    """Issue #38 follow-up — non-blocking `-f <file>` pattern-file
+    advisory for the manual frontend API.
+
+    The Bulgu #12 hard reject was removed from the Pydantic models:
+    pattern files are operator-managed host files (same policy as the
+    SPOE `filter ... config <path>` reference preserved since v1.8.8)
+    and the agent's pre-reload `haproxy -c` makes a missing file fail
+    safely. This helper returns one warning listing the unique file
+    paths referenced across the rule fields, or [] when no rule uses
+    `-f` — operators who don't use pattern files see no change.
+    """
+    paths: List[str] = []
+    for rules in (acl_rules, use_backend_rules, redirect_rules):
+        for rule in rules or []:
+            text = rule if isinstance(rule, str) else (
+                rule.get("condition") if isinstance(rule, dict) else None)
+            if isinstance(text, str):
+                paths.extend(re.findall(r"(?:^|\s)-f\s+(\S+)", text))
+    if not paths:
+        return []
+    uniq = sorted(set(paths))
+    return [
+        f"ACL/routing rules reference pattern file(s) {', '.join(uniq)}. "
+        f"Each file must exist at that exact path on every HAProxy host "
+        f"in the cluster — HAProxy OpenManager does not create or "
+        f"distribute pattern files. A missing file fails safely at "
+        f"'haproxy -c' (the previous config keeps running)."
+    ]
+
+
 def _collect_routing_rule_contradictions(
     rules: List[Any], origin_label: str,
 ) -> List[Tuple[str, Any]]:
@@ -408,6 +443,7 @@ async def get_frontends(
                            ssl_alpn, ssl_npn, ssl_ciphers, ssl_ciphersuites, ssl_min_ver, ssl_max_ver, ssl_strict_sni,
                            acl_rules, redirect_rules, use_backend_rules,
                            request_headers, response_headers, options, tcp_request_rules,
+                           log_format, filters,
                            timeout_client, timeout_http_request,
                            rate_limit, compression, log_separate, monitor_uri,
                            maxconn, is_active, created_at, updated_at, cluster_id, last_config_status
@@ -424,6 +460,7 @@ async def get_frontends(
                            ssl_alpn, ssl_npn, ssl_ciphers, ssl_ciphersuites, ssl_min_ver, ssl_max_ver, ssl_strict_sni,
                            acl_rules, redirect_rules, use_backend_rules,
                            request_headers, response_headers, options, tcp_request_rules,
+                           log_format, filters,
                            timeout_client, timeout_http_request,
                            rate_limit, compression, log_separate, monitor_uri,
                            maxconn, is_active, created_at, updated_at, cluster_id, last_config_status
@@ -453,6 +490,7 @@ async def get_frontends(
                                ssl_alpn, ssl_npn, ssl_ciphers, ssl_ciphersuites, ssl_min_ver, ssl_max_ver, ssl_strict_sni,
                                acl_rules, redirect_rules, use_backend_rules,
                                request_headers, response_headers, options, tcp_request_rules,
+                               log_format, filters,
                                timeout_client, timeout_http_request,
                                rate_limit, compression, log_separate, monitor_uri,
                                maxconn, is_active, created_at, updated_at, cluster_id, last_config_status
@@ -465,6 +503,7 @@ async def get_frontends(
                                ssl_alpn, ssl_npn, ssl_ciphers, ssl_ciphersuites, ssl_min_ver, ssl_max_ver, ssl_strict_sni,
                                acl_rules, redirect_rules, use_backend_rules,
                                request_headers, response_headers, options, tcp_request_rules,
+                               log_format, filters,
                                timeout_client, timeout_http_request,
                                rate_limit, compression, log_separate, monitor_uri,
                                maxconn, is_active, created_at, updated_at, cluster_id, last_config_status
@@ -480,6 +519,7 @@ async def get_frontends(
                                ssl_alpn, ssl_npn, ssl_ciphers, ssl_ciphersuites, ssl_min_ver, ssl_max_ver, ssl_strict_sni,
                                acl_rules, redirect_rules, use_backend_rules,
                                request_headers, response_headers, options, tcp_request_rules,
+                               log_format, filters,
                                timeout_client, timeout_http_request,
                                rate_limit, compression, log_separate, monitor_uri,
                                maxconn, is_active, created_at, updated_at, cluster_id, last_config_status
@@ -492,6 +532,7 @@ async def get_frontends(
                                ssl_alpn, ssl_npn, ssl_ciphers, ssl_ciphersuites, ssl_min_ver, ssl_max_ver, ssl_strict_sni,
                                acl_rules, redirect_rules, use_backend_rules,
                                request_headers, response_headers, options, tcp_request_rules,
+                               log_format, filters,
                                timeout_client, timeout_http_request,
                                rate_limit, compression, log_separate, monitor_uri,
                                maxconn, is_active, created_at, updated_at, cluster_id, last_config_status
@@ -601,6 +642,8 @@ async def get_frontends(
                     "response_headers": f.get("response_headers"),
                     "options": f.get("options"),
                     "tcp_request_rules": f.get("tcp_request_rules"),
+                    "log_format": f.get("log_format"),  # Issue #38
+                    "filters": f.get("filters"),        # Issue #38
                     "timeout_client": f.get("timeout_client"),
                     "timeout_http_request": f.get("timeout_http_request"),
                     "rate_limit": f.get("rate_limit"),
@@ -735,18 +778,18 @@ async def create_frontend(frontend: FrontendConfig, request: Request, authorizat
                 acl_rules, redirect_rules, use_backend_rules,
                 request_headers, response_headers, options, tcp_request_rules, timeout_client, timeout_http_request,
                 rate_limit, compression, log_separate, monitor_uri,
-                cluster_id, maxconn, updated_at
-            ) VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6, $7, $8, $9, $10, $11, $12, $13, $14, $15, $16, $17, $18, $19, $20, $21, $22, $23, $24, $25, $26, $27, $28, $29, $30, $31, $32, $33, $34, CURRENT_TIMESTAMP) 
+                cluster_id, maxconn, log_format, filters, updated_at
+            ) VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6, $7, $8, $9, $10, $11, $12, $13, $14, $15, $16, $17, $18, $19, $20, $21, $22, $23, $24, $25, $26, $27, $28, $29, $30, $31, $32, $33, $34, $35, $36, CURRENT_TIMESTAMP)
             RETURNING id
-        """, frontend.name, frontend.bind_address, frontend.bind_port, 
+        """, frontend.name, frontend.bind_address, frontend.bind_port,
             frontend.default_backend, frontend.mode, frontend.ssl_enabled,
             frontend.ssl_certificate_id, ssl_cert_ids_json, frontend.ssl_port, frontend.ssl_cert_path, frontend.ssl_cert, frontend.ssl_verify,
-            frontend.ssl_alpn, frontend.ssl_npn, frontend.ssl_ciphers, frontend.ssl_ciphersuites, 
+            frontend.ssl_alpn, frontend.ssl_npn, frontend.ssl_ciphers, frontend.ssl_ciphersuites,
             frontend.ssl_min_ver, frontend.ssl_max_ver, frontend.ssl_strict_sni,
             json.dumps(frontend.acl_rules or []), json.dumps(frontend.redirect_rules or []), json.dumps(frontend.use_backend_rules or []),
             frontend.request_headers, frontend.response_headers, filtered_options, frontend.tcp_request_rules, frontend.timeout_client, frontend.timeout_http_request,
             frontend.rate_limit, frontend.compression, frontend.log_separate, frontend.monitor_uri,
-            frontend.cluster_id, frontend.maxconn)
+            frontend.cluster_id, frontend.maxconn, frontend.log_format, frontend.filters)
         
         # If cluster_id provided, create new config version for agents
         sync_results = []
@@ -825,12 +868,19 @@ async def create_frontend(frontend: FrontendConfig, request: Request, authorizat
                 user_agent=request.headers.get('user-agent')
             )
         
-        return {
+        response: dict = {
             "message": f"Frontend '{frontend.name}' created successfully",
             "id": frontend_id,
             "frontend": frontend.dict(),
             "sync_results": sync_results
         }
+        # Issue #38 follow-up — non-blocking pattern-file advisory
+        # (additive field; absent when no rule references `-f`).
+        pattern_warnings = _pattern_file_warnings(
+            frontend.acl_rules, frontend.use_backend_rules, frontend.redirect_rules)
+        if pattern_warnings:
+            response["warnings"] = pattern_warnings
+        return response
     except HTTPException:
         raise
     except Exception as e:
@@ -1060,9 +1110,10 @@ async def update_frontend(frontend_id: int, frontend: FrontendConfig, request: R
                 acl_rules = $20, redirect_rules = $21, use_backend_rules = $22,
                 request_headers = $23, response_headers = $24, options = $25, tcp_request_rules = $26, timeout_client = $27, timeout_http_request = $28,
                 rate_limit = $29, compression = $30, log_separate = $31, monitor_uri = $32,
-                cluster_id = $33, maxconn = $34, updated_at = CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
-            WHERE id = $35
-        """, frontend.name, frontend.bind_address, frontend.bind_port, 
+                cluster_id = $33, maxconn = $34, log_format = $35, filters = $36,
+                updated_at = CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
+            WHERE id = $37
+        """, frontend.name, frontend.bind_address, frontend.bind_port,
             frontend.default_backend, frontend.mode, ssl_enabled,
             ssl_certificate_id, ssl_cert_ids_json, ssl_port, ssl_cert_path, ssl_cert, ssl_verify,
             frontend.ssl_alpn, frontend.ssl_npn, frontend.ssl_ciphers, frontend.ssl_ciphersuites,
@@ -1070,7 +1121,7 @@ async def update_frontend(frontend_id: int, frontend: FrontendConfig, request: R
             json.dumps(frontend.acl_rules or []), json.dumps(frontend.redirect_rules or []), json.dumps(frontend.use_backend_rules or []),
             frontend.request_headers, frontend.response_headers, filtered_options, frontend.tcp_request_rules, frontend.timeout_client, frontend.timeout_http_request,
             frontend.rate_limit, frontend.compression, frontend.log_separate, frontend.monitor_uri,
-            frontend.cluster_id, frontend.maxconn, frontend_id)
+            frontend.cluster_id, frontend.maxconn, frontend.log_format, frontend.filters, frontend_id)
             
         # Debug: Check what was actually saved
         updated_frontend = await conn.fetchrow("""
@@ -1124,6 +1175,8 @@ async def update_frontend(frontend_id: int, frontend: FrontendConfig, request: R
                     "response_headers": frontend.response_headers,
                     "options": filtered_options,
                     "tcp_request_rules": frontend.tcp_request_rules,
+                    "log_format": frontend.log_format,  # Issue #38
+                    "filters": frontend.filters,        # Issue #38
                     "timeout_client": frontend.timeout_client,
                     "timeout_http_request": frontend.timeout_http_request,
                     "rate_limit": frontend.rate_limit,
@@ -1235,8 +1288,12 @@ async def update_frontend(frontend_id: int, frontend: FrontendConfig, request: R
         # yellow toast on the next refresh. The save SUCCEEDED; the
         # warnings only flag latent legacy data the operator may
         # want to clean up at their convenience.
-        if contradiction_warnings:
-            response["warnings"] = contradiction_warnings
+        # Issue #38 follow-up — append the pattern-file advisory to
+        # the same list (additive; empty when no rule uses `-f`).
+        all_warnings = list(contradiction_warnings or []) + _pattern_file_warnings(
+            frontend.acl_rules, frontend.use_backend_rules, frontend.redirect_rules)
+        if all_warnings:
+            response["warnings"] = all_warnings
         return response
     except HTTPException:
         raise

backend/routers/letsencrypt.py

@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 from fastapi import APIRouter, HTTPException, Header
-from pydantic import BaseModel, Field, field_validator
-from typing import Optional, List
+from pydantic import BaseModel, Field, field_validator, model_validator
+from typing import Optional, List, Dict
+import base64
 import json
 import logging
 import re
@@ -10,6 +11,40 @@ from datetime import datetime
 from database.connection import get_database_connection, close_database_connection
 from services.acme_service import acme_service
 from services.haproxy_config import generate_haproxy_config_for_cluster
+from services.dns_providers import list_providers, is_supported, get_provider, DnsProviderError
+from utils.dns_credentials import encrypt_dns_credentials, decrypt_dns_credentials
+
+# Issue #35: DNS-01 challenge methods.
+_CHALLENGE_TYPES = ("http-01", "dns-01")
+
+
+async def _dns01_enabled() -> bool:
+    """Global kill-switch (system_settings acme.dns01_enabled, default False). Read via the ACME
+    settings dict so non-admins never need the admin-only /api/settings/acme endpoint."""
+    try:
+        settings = await acme_service._get_settings()
+        val = settings.get('dns01_enabled')
+        if isinstance(val, str):
+            return val.strip().lower() in ('1', 'true', 'yes', 'on')
+        return bool(val)
+    except Exception:
+        return False
+
+
+# Per-user sliding-window rate limit for the manual dns-confirm action (soft anti-abuse so a user
+# can't spam the CA via the confirm button). Per-process; sufficient for a manual UI action.
+_DNS_CONFIRM_RL: Dict[int, list] = {}
+_DNS_CONFIRM_LIMIT = 5
+_DNS_CONFIRM_WINDOW = 60.0
+
+
+async def _enforce_dns_confirm_rate_limit(user_id: int) -> None:
+    now = time.time()
+    bucket = [t for t in _DNS_CONFIRM_RL.get(user_id, []) if now - t < _DNS_CONFIRM_WINDOW]
+    if len(bucket) >= _DNS_CONFIRM_LIMIT:
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=429, detail="Rate limit exceeded: dns-confirm allowed 5 requests per minute")
+    bucket.append(now)
+    _DNS_CONFIRM_RL[user_id] = bucket
 
 logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
@@ -25,8 +60,55 @@ class AccountCreate(BaseModel):
     email: str
     directory_url: Optional[str] = None
     tos_agreed: bool = True
-    eab_kid: Optional[str] = None
-    eab_hmac_key: Optional[str] = None
+    # EAB (External Account Binding) for CAs that require it (ZeroSSL, Google). The KID is opaque
+    # (bound only); the HMAC key must be base64url so newAccount's _b64url_decode won't raise a
+    # cryptic binascii error (a common copy mistake is standard-base64 '+'/'/' vs urlsafe '-'/'_').
+    eab_kid: Optional[str] = Field(default=None, max_length=256)
+    eab_hmac_key: Optional[str] = Field(default=None, max_length=512)
+    # Issue #35: per-account default challenge method + DNS provider (for dns-01).
+    challenge_type: str = "http-01"
+    dns_provider: Optional[str] = None
+
+    @field_validator('challenge_type')
+    @classmethod
+    def _validate_challenge_type(cls, v):
+        if v not in _CHALLENGE_TYPES:
+            raise ValueError(f"challenge_type must be one of {_CHALLENGE_TYPES}")
+        return v
+
+    @field_validator('eab_hmac_key')
+    @classmethod
+    def _validate_eab_hmac_key(cls, v):
+        if not v:
+            return v
+        try:
+            base64.urlsafe_b64decode(v + '=' * (-len(v) % 4))
+        except Exception:
+            raise ValueError("eab_hmac_key is not valid base64; copy it exactly from your CA account.")
+        return v
+
+    @model_validator(mode='after')
+    def _require_provider_for_dns01(self):
+        if self.challenge_type == 'dns-01' and not (self.dns_provider or '').strip():
+            raise ValueError("dns_provider is required when challenge_type is 'dns-01'")
+        return self
+
+
+class DnsCredentialsUpsert(BaseModel):
+    dns_provider: str = Field(..., min_length=1, max_length=50)
+    credentials: Dict[str, str] = Field(default_factory=dict)
+
+    @field_validator('credentials')
+    @classmethod
+    def _validate_credentials(cls, v):
+        if len(v) > 20:
+            raise ValueError("Too many credential fields")
+        for key, val in v.items():
+            if not isinstance(key, str) or not re.match(r'^[a-zA-Z0-9_]{1,50}$', key):
+                raise ValueError(f"Invalid credential field name: {key!r}")
+            if not isinstance(val, str) or len(val) > 4000:
+                raise ValueError(f"Credential value for {key!r} is missing or too long")
+        return v
 
 
 class CertificateRequest(BaseModel):
@@ -38,6 +120,8 @@ class CertificateRequest(BaseModel):
     account_id: Optional[int] = None
     cluster_ids: List[int] = Field(default_factory=list)
     auto_renew: bool = True
+    # Issue #35: optional override; when None the account's default method is used.
+    challenge_type: Optional[str] = None
 
     @field_validator('domains')
     @classmethod
@@ -54,7 +138,30 @@ class CertificateRequest(BaseModel):
             if not _DOMAIN_REGEX.match(d_norm):
                 raise ValueError(f"Invalid domain format: '{d}'")
             normalized.append(d_norm)
-        return normalized
+        # De-duplicate (case/whitespace variants normalize to the same value) while preserving order,
+        # so we don't submit a redundant SAN to the CA or render duplicate-keyed tags in the UI.
+        return list(dict.fromkeys(normalized))
+
+    @field_validator('challenge_type')
+    @classmethod
+    def _validate_challenge_type(cls, v):
+        if v is not None and v not in _CHALLENGE_TYPES:
+            raise ValueError(f"challenge_type must be one of {_CHALLENGE_TYPES}")
+        return v
+
+    @model_validator(mode='after')
+    def _wildcard_requires_dns01(self):
+        # Static cross-field guard: a wildcard SAN can ONLY be issued via dns-01 (the CA rejects
+        # wildcard over http-01). The runtime dns01_enabled gate + provider resolution happen in the
+        # endpoint (validators can't do async/DB). When challenge_type is None here, the effective
+        # method is resolved from the account in the endpoint, which re-checks this.
+        if any((d or '').startswith('*.') for d in (self.domains or [])):
+            # Only reject when the caller EXPLICITLY chose a non-dns-01 method. When challenge_type is
+            # None, the effective method is resolved from the account in the endpoint, which re-checks
+            # wildcard-requires-dns-01 — so account-default dns-01 inheritance still works for wildcards.
+            if self.challenge_type is not None and self.challenge_type != 'dns-01':
+                raise ValueError("Wildcard certificates require challenge_type 'dns-01'")
+        return self
 
 
 # --- Account management ---
@@ -77,7 +184,7 @@ async def list_accounts(authorization: str = Header(None)):
     conn = await get_database_connection()
     try:
         rows = await conn.fetch(
-            "SELECT id, email, directory_url, account_url, status, tos_agreed, eab_kid, created_at, updated_at FROM letsencrypt_accounts ORDER BY id"
+            "SELECT id, email, directory_url, account_url, status, tos_agreed, eab_kid, created_at, updated_at, challenge_type, dns_provider FROM letsencrypt_accounts ORDER BY id"
         )
         return [dict(r) for r in rows]
     finally:
@@ -107,16 +214,36 @@ async def create_account(body: AccountCreate, authorization: str = Header(None))
         eab_kid = body.eab_kid or settings.get('eab_kid', '') or None
         eab_hmac_key = body.eab_hmac_key or settings.get('eab_hmac_key', '') or None
 
+        # Issue #35: a dns-01 account must name a supported DNS provider.
+        if body.challenge_type == 'dns-01':
+            if not await _dns01_enabled():
+                raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail="DNS-01 is disabled by an administrator (enable it in Settings).")
+            if not is_supported((body.dns_provider or '').strip()):
+                raise HTTPException(status_code=422, detail=f"Unsupported DNS provider: {body.dns_provider}")
+
         result = await acme_service.register_account(
             email=body.email,
             directory_url=directory_url,
             tos_agreed=body.tos_agreed,
             eab_kid=eab_kid,
             eab_hmac_key=eab_hmac_key,
+            challenge_type=body.challenge_type,
+            dns_provider=(body.dns_provider or None),
         )
         return result
+    except HTTPException:
+        # Preserve deliberate status codes (e.g. 409 DNS-01 disabled, 422 unsupported provider) —
+        # the broad except below would otherwise downgrade them all to 400.
+        raise
     except Exception as e:
         logger.error(f"ACME account registration failed: {e}")
+        # Humanize the common EAB-required failure (ZeroSSL/Google). The ACME error propagates as a
+        # string ("Account registration failed: {<dict>}"), so match the URN substring in str(e).
+        if 'externalaccountrequired' in str(e).lower():
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=400, detail=(
+                "This CA requires External Account Binding (EAB). Enter the EAB Key ID and HMAC Key "
+                "from your ZeroSSL/Google account and retry."
+            ))
         raise HTTPException(status_code=400, detail=str(e))
 
 
@@ -186,6 +313,147 @@ async def remove_account(account_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
         await close_database_connection(conn)
 
 
+# --- Issue #35: DNS-01 providers + per-account DNS credentials ---
+
+@router.get("/dns-providers")
+async def get_dns_providers(authorization: str = Header(None)):
+    """List supported DNS providers + their credential-field schema (for the UI). Also returns the
+    global dns01_enabled gate so a non-admin cert UI can read it without the admin-only settings API.
+    Authenticated (any user); not admin-only."""
+    from auth_middleware import get_current_user_from_token
+    await get_current_user_from_token(authorization)
+    return {"dns01_enabled": await _dns01_enabled(), "providers": list_providers()}
+
+
+@router.get("/accounts/{account_id}/dns-credentials")
+async def get_dns_credentials(account_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
+    """Masked metadata only — provider + which credential fields are set + updated_at. NEVER returns
+    the ciphertext or any plaintext token. Read-only for any authenticated user (matches list_accounts)."""
+    from auth_middleware import get_current_user_from_token
+    await get_current_user_from_token(authorization)
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        row = await conn.fetchrow(
+            "SELECT dns_provider, credentials_encrypted, updated_at FROM letsencrypt_account_dns_credentials WHERE account_id = $1",
+            account_id,
+        )
+        if not row:
+            return {"configured": False, "dns_provider": None, "credential_fields_present": [], "updated_at": None}
+        present = []
+        decrypted = decrypt_dns_credentials(row["credentials_encrypted"])
+        if isinstance(decrypted, dict):
+            present = sorted(decrypted.keys())
+        return {
+            "configured": True,
+            "dns_provider": row["dns_provider"],
+            "credential_fields_present": present,
+            "updated_at": row["updated_at"],
+        }
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+@router.put("/accounts/{account_id}/dns-credentials")
+async def upsert_dns_credentials(account_id: int, body: DnsCredentialsUpsert, authorization: str = Header(None)):
+    """Store (encrypted) DNS provider credentials for an account. Admin-only. Verifies the
+    credentials against the provider BEFORE persisting; returns a sanitized result (never the token)."""
+    from auth_middleware import get_current_user_from_token
+    current_user = await get_current_user_from_token(authorization)
+    if not current_user.get('is_admin', False):
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=403, detail="Admin access required")
+    provider_name = body.dns_provider.strip()
+    if not is_supported(provider_name):
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=422, detail=f"Unsupported DNS provider: {provider_name}")
+
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        exists = await conn.fetchval("SELECT 1 FROM letsencrypt_accounts WHERE id = $1", account_id)
+        if not exists:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="ACME account not found")
+
+        # Verify credentials synchronously; only persist on success. The detail is user-safe.
+        try:
+            provider = get_provider(provider_name, dict(body.credentials))
+            verify = await provider.verify_credentials()
+        except DnsProviderError as exc:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=422, detail=str(exc))
+        except HTTPException:
+            raise
+        except Exception:
+            # Defensive: never let a provider-internal exception string (which could echo creds in a
+            # future provider) reach the client. Always a sanitized 422.
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=422, detail="DNS provider credential verification failed")
+        if not verify.get("ok"):
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=422, detail=verify.get("detail") or "DNS provider credential verification failed")
+
+        token = encrypt_dns_credentials(dict(body.credentials))
+        await conn.execute(
+            """INSERT INTO letsencrypt_account_dns_credentials (account_id, dns_provider, credentials_encrypted, updated_at)
+               VALUES ($1, $2, $3, NOW())
+               ON CONFLICT (account_id) DO UPDATE SET
+                   dns_provider = EXCLUDED.dns_provider,
+                   credentials_encrypted = EXCLUDED.credentials_encrypted,
+                   updated_at = NOW()""",
+            account_id, provider_name, token,
+        )
+        # Keep the account's provider selection in sync.
+        await conn.execute(
+            "UPDATE letsencrypt_accounts SET dns_provider = $1, updated_at = NOW() WHERE id = $2",
+            provider_name, account_id,
+        )
+        return {"ok": True, "dns_provider": provider_name, "detail": verify.get("detail", "Credentials stored.")}
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+@router.delete("/accounts/{account_id}/dns-credentials")
+async def delete_dns_credentials(account_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
+    """Remove an account's stored DNS credentials. Admin-only."""
+    from auth_middleware import get_current_user_from_token
+    current_user = await get_current_user_from_token(authorization)
+    if not current_user.get('is_admin', False):
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=403, detail="Admin access required")
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        await conn.execute("DELETE FROM letsencrypt_account_dns_credentials WHERE account_id = $1", account_id)
+        return {"ok": True}
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+@router.post("/orders/{order_id}/dns-confirm")
+async def confirm_dns_order(order_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
+    """Manual DNS-01 only: the user asserts the TXT record is published; tell the CA to validate.
+    Requires ssl.create + a per-user rate limit; acts only on a dns-01 + manual + pending order."""
+    from auth_middleware import get_current_user_from_token, check_user_permission
+    current_user = await get_current_user_from_token(authorization)
+    has_perm = await check_user_permission(current_user['id'], 'ssl', 'create')
+    if not has_perm:
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=403, detail="Insufficient permissions: ssl.create required")
+    await _enforce_dns_confirm_rate_limit(current_user['id'])
+
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        order = await conn.fetchrow(
+            """SELECT o.id, o.status, o.challenge_type, a.dns_provider
+               FROM letsencrypt_orders o JOIN letsencrypt_accounts a ON o.account_id = a.id
+               WHERE o.id = $1""",
+            order_id,
+        )
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+    if not order:
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="Order not found")
+    if order['challenge_type'] != 'dns-01' or (order['dns_provider'] or 'manual') != 'manual':
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail="This order is not a manual DNS-01 order")
+    if order['status'] not in ('pending', 'processing'):
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail=f"Order is '{order['status']}' and cannot be confirmed")
+
+    from services.dns01_orchestrator import confirm_manual_dns01
+    await confirm_manual_dns01(order_id)
+    return {"ok": True, "message": "DNS-01 confirmation submitted; the CA will validate shortly."}
+
+
 # --- Certificate operations ---
 
 @router.post("/certificates")
@@ -222,32 +490,61 @@ async def request_certificate(body: CertificateRequest, authorization: str = Hea
         logger.info(f"ACME: Using account_id={account_id} for certificate request")
 
         warnings = []
-        # Audit Tur 5 / Commit 8c: empty cluster_ids in UI means "global certificate".
-        # Resolve to all ACME-enabled active clusters; only fail if NONE exist.
+
+        # Issue #35: resolve the effective challenge method (request override, else account default).
+        conn_acct = await get_database_connection()
+        try:
+            acct = await conn_acct.fetchrow(
+                "SELECT challenge_type, dns_provider FROM letsencrypt_accounts WHERE id = $1", account_id
+            )
+        finally:
+            await close_database_connection(conn_acct)
+        effective_challenge = (body.challenge_type or (acct['challenge_type'] if acct else None) or 'http-01')
+        dns_provider = (acct['dns_provider'] if acct else None)
+        is_dns01 = (effective_challenge == 'dns-01')
+        has_wildcard = any(d.startswith('*.') for d in body.domains)
+
+        if is_dns01:
+            if not await _dns01_enabled():
+                raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail="DNS-01 is disabled by an administrator (enable it in Settings).")
+            if not is_supported((dns_provider or '').strip()):
+                raise HTTPException(status_code=422, detail="The selected ACME account has no DNS provider configured for DNS-01.")
+            if (dns_provider or 'manual') == 'manual':
+                # Manual DNS-01 cannot be renewed unattended; auto-renew is forced off on the issued
+                # certificate (see _complete_certificate). Tell the requester so it isn't a surprise.
+                warnings.append(
+                    "Manual DNS-01 certificates cannot auto-renew unattended. Auto-renew will be disabled; "
+                    "re-publish the TXT record and request renewal before expiry."
+                )
+        elif has_wildcard:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=422, detail="Wildcard certificates require a DNS-01 account.")
+
+        # Empty cluster_ids = "global certificate". For DNS-01 no ACME Challenge Routing / port 80 is
+        # needed, so resolve to ALL active clusters; http-01 still requires acme_enabled clusters.
         if not body.cluster_ids:
             conn_resolve = await get_database_connection()
             try:
-                acme_clusters_resolved = await conn_resolve.fetch(
-                    "SELECT id FROM haproxy_clusters WHERE acme_enabled = TRUE AND is_active = TRUE"
-                )
+                if is_dns01:
+                    resolved = await conn_resolve.fetch("SELECT id FROM haproxy_clusters WHERE is_active = TRUE")
+                else:
+                    resolved = await conn_resolve.fetch("SELECT id FROM haproxy_clusters WHERE acme_enabled = TRUE AND is_active = TRUE")
             finally:
                 await close_database_connection(conn_resolve)
-            if not acme_clusters_resolved:
+            if not resolved:
+                if is_dns01:
+                    raise HTTPException(status_code=422, detail="Cannot issue certificate: no active clusters configured.")
                 raise HTTPException(
                     status_code=422,
                     detail="Cannot issue certificate: no ACME-enabled clusters configured. "
                            "Enable ACME Challenge Routing on at least one cluster in Cluster Management, "
                            "Apply the configuration change, then retry."
                 )
-            body.cluster_ids = [c['id'] for c in acme_clusters_resolved]
+            body.cluster_ids = [c['id'] for c in resolved]
             warnings.append(
-                f"No clusters specified — applied to all ACME-enabled cluster(s) ({len(body.cluster_ids)})"
+                f"No clusters specified — applied to all {'active' if is_dns01 else 'ACME-enabled'} cluster(s) ({len(body.cluster_ids)})"
             )
-            logger.warning(
-                f"ACME: Empty cluster_ids → global cert fallback to {len(body.cluster_ids)} ACME-enabled cluster(s)"
-            )
-        else:
-            # Validate that referenced clusters exist + are ACME-enabled (warn-only).
+        elif not is_dns01:
+            # http-01 only: warn if no cluster has ACME Challenge Routing enabled.
             try:
                 conn_warn = await get_database_connection()
                 try:
@@ -255,7 +552,6 @@ async def request_certificate(body: CertificateRequest, authorization: str = Hea
                         "SELECT COUNT(*) FROM haproxy_clusters WHERE acme_enabled = TRUE AND is_active = TRUE"
                     )
                     if acme_clusters == 0:
-                        logger.warning("ACME: No clusters with ACME Challenge Routing enabled - certificate validation will likely fail")
                         warnings.append(
                             "No clusters have ACME Challenge Routing enabled. "
                             "Certificate validation will fail. Enable it in Cluster Management and Apply Changes first."
@@ -269,14 +565,30 @@ async def request_certificate(body: CertificateRequest, authorization: str = Hea
             account_id=account_id,
             domains=body.domains,
             cluster_ids=body.cluster_ids,
+            challenge_type=effective_challenge,
+            created_by=current_user['id'],
         )
 
-        challenges = await acme_service.respond_to_challenges(order['order_id'])
+        # Audit trail: record who requested the certificate + the method (esp. for DNS-01/wildcard,
+        # which has a wider blast radius than http-01). Never raises into the request path.
+        try:
+            from utils.activity_log import record_event
+            await record_event(
+                order['order_id'], "acme.order.requested",
+                message=f"Certificate requested ({effective_challenge}) by user {current_user['id']}",
+                details={"user_id": current_user['id'], "challenge_type": effective_challenge,
+                         "dns_provider": dns_provider, "domains": body.domains},
+            )
+        except Exception:
+            pass
+
+        # http-01 posts the challenge response immediately (token served continuously). dns-01 is
+        # driven by the orchestrator AFTER the TXT is published (manual waits for dns-confirm), so we
+        # must NOT respond here.
+        challenges = []
+        if not is_dns01:
+            challenges = await acme_service.respond_to_challenges(order['order_id'])
 
-        # Commit 5b: re-fetch the order's *current* status from DB. The status
-        # returned by create_order() reflects the moment of creation; after
-        # respond_to_challenges() the CA may have already advanced it (e.g. to
-        # 'processing'). Surfacing stale status leads UI to under-poll.
         conn_status = await get_database_connection()
         try:
             fresh_status = await conn_status.fetchval(
@@ -287,14 +599,23 @@ async def request_certificate(body: CertificateRequest, authorization: str = Hea
             await close_database_connection(conn_status)
         effective_status = fresh_status or order['status']
 
-        logger.info(f"ACME: Order {order['order_id']} created, {len(challenges)} challenge(s) posted, status={effective_status}")
+        if is_dns01:
+            msg = ("Order created. Publish the DNS TXT record shown for each domain, then confirm."
+                   if dns_provider == 'manual'
+                   else "Order created. The DNS TXT record(s) will be published automatically; waiting for CA validation.")
+        else:
+            msg = "Order created. ACME challenges have been posted. Waiting for CA validation."
+
+        logger.info(f"ACME: Order {order['order_id']} created ({effective_challenge}), status={effective_status}")
 
         return {
             "order_id": order['order_id'],
             "status": effective_status,
             "domains": body.domains,
+            "challenge_type": effective_challenge,
+            "dns_provider": dns_provider,
             "challenges": challenges,
-            "message": "Order created. ACME challenges have been posted. Waiting for CA validation.",
+            "message": msg,
             "warnings": warnings,
         }
     except HTTPException:
@@ -316,7 +637,8 @@ async def list_orders(authorization: str = Header(None)):
         rows = await conn.fetch("""
             SELECT o.id, o.account_id, o.order_url, o.status, o.domains,
                    o.ssl_certificate_id, o.cluster_ids, o.error_detail,
-                   o.created_at, o.updated_at, a.email as account_email
+                   o.created_at, o.updated_at, o.challenge_type, a.email as account_email,
+                   a.dns_provider
             FROM letsencrypt_orders o
             JOIN letsencrypt_accounts a ON o.account_id = a.id
             ORDER BY o.created_at DESC
@@ -345,7 +667,8 @@ async def get_order(order_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
             SELECT o.id, o.account_id, o.order_url, o.status, o.domains,
                    o.certificate_url, o.finalize_url, o.expires_at,
                    o.error_detail, o.ssl_certificate_id, o.cluster_ids,
-                   o.created_at, o.updated_at, a.email as account_email
+                   o.created_at, o.updated_at, o.challenge_type, a.email as account_email,
+                   a.dns_provider
             FROM letsencrypt_orders o
             JOIN letsencrypt_accounts a ON o.account_id = a.id
             WHERE o.id = $1
@@ -353,13 +676,23 @@ async def get_order(order_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
         if not order:
             raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="Order not found")
 
+        # Issue #35: include challenge_type + dns_txt_value (PUBLIC DNS data — NOT key_authorization,
+        # NOT the API token) so the UI can render manual DNS-01 instructions. Explicit column list.
         challenges = await conn.fetch(
-            "SELECT id, order_id, domain, token, challenge_url, status, validated_at, created_at FROM acme_challenges WHERE order_id = $1 ORDER BY domain", order_id
+            "SELECT id, order_id, domain, token, challenge_url, status, validated_at, created_at, "
+            "challenge_type, dns_txt_value FROM acme_challenges WHERE order_id = $1 ORDER BY domain", order_id
         )
         result = dict(order)
         result['domains'] = json.loads(result['domains']) if isinstance(result['domains'], str) else result['domains']
         result['cluster_ids'] = json.loads(result['cluster_ids']) if isinstance(result['cluster_ids'], str) else result['cluster_ids']
-        result['challenges'] = [dict(c) for c in challenges]
+        ch_list = []
+        for c in challenges:
+            cd = dict(c)
+            if cd.get('challenge_type') == 'dns-01':
+                # Server computes the record name (wildcard *.-stripping lives server-side).
+                cd['dns_record_name'] = acme_service._challenge_dns_name(cd['domain'])
+            ch_list.append(cd)
+        result['challenges'] = ch_list
         return result
     finally:
         await close_database_connection(conn)
@@ -470,18 +803,23 @@ async def renew_order(order_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
     conn = await get_database_connection()
     try:
         order = await conn.fetchrow(
-            "SELECT account_id, domains, cluster_ids FROM letsencrypt_orders WHERE id = $1", order_id
+            "SELECT account_id, domains, cluster_ids, challenge_type FROM letsencrypt_orders WHERE id = $1", order_id
         )
         if not order:
             raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="Order not found")
         domains = json.loads(order['domains']) if isinstance(order['domains'], str) else order['domains']
         cluster_ids = json.loads(order['cluster_ids']) if isinstance(order['cluster_ids'], str) else order['cluster_ids']
+        challenge_type = order['challenge_type'] or 'http-01'
 
         new_order = await acme_service.create_order(
-            account_id=order['account_id'], domains=domains, cluster_ids=cluster_ids
+            account_id=order['account_id'], domains=domains, cluster_ids=cluster_ids,
+            challenge_type=challenge_type, created_by=current_user['id'],
         )
-        challenges = await acme_service.respond_to_challenges(new_order['order_id'])
-        return {"message": "Renewal order created", "new_order_id": new_order['order_id'], "challenges": challenges}
+        # dns-01 is driven by the orchestrator after the TXT is published; only http-01 responds here.
+        challenges = []
+        if challenge_type != 'dns-01':
+            challenges = await acme_service.respond_to_challenges(new_order['order_id'])
+        return {"message": "Renewal order created", "new_order_id": new_order['order_id'], "challenge_type": challenge_type, "challenges": challenges}
     finally:
         await close_database_connection(conn)
 
@@ -611,11 +949,17 @@ async def get_renewal_schedule(authorization: str = Header(None)):
         raise HTTPException(status_code=403, detail="Insufficient permissions: ssl.read required")
     conn = await get_database_connection()
     try:
+        # Issue #35: expose the challenge method/provider (via the originating order/account) so the
+        # UI can distinguish manual DNS-01 certs, which cannot auto-renew unattended. LEFT JOINs keep
+        # legacy certs (no order link / pre-DNS-01 columns) rendering as http-01.
         certs = await conn.fetch("""
-            SELECT id, name, primary_domain, expiry_date, auto_renew, days_until_expiry
-            FROM ssl_certificates
-            WHERE source = 'letsencrypt' AND is_active = TRUE
-            ORDER BY expiry_date ASC NULLS LAST
+            SELECT c.id, c.name, c.primary_domain, c.expiry_date, c.auto_renew, c.days_until_expiry,
+                   o.challenge_type, a.dns_provider
+            FROM ssl_certificates c
+            LEFT JOIN letsencrypt_orders o ON o.id = c.letsencrypt_order_id
+            LEFT JOIN letsencrypt_accounts a ON a.id = o.account_id
+            WHERE c.source = 'letsencrypt' AND c.is_active = TRUE
+            ORDER BY c.expiry_date ASC NULLS LAST
         """)
         return [dict(c) for c in certs]
     finally:
@@ -663,6 +1007,18 @@ async def _complete_certificate(order_id: int) -> dict:
         cluster_ids = json.loads(order['cluster_ids']) if isinstance(order['cluster_ids'], str) else order['cluster_ids']
         primary_domain = domains[0] if domains else 'unknown'
 
+        # Issue #35: a manual DNS-01 certificate cannot be auto-renewed unattended (the renewal task
+        # skips it — see main.py), so persist auto_renew=FALSE rather than storing a misleading
+        # "Enabled" that the user trusts while the cert silently expires. http-01 and automated
+        # DNS-01 (e.g. Cloudflare) keep auto_renew=TRUE, preserving existing behaviour.
+        auto_renew_value = True
+        if order.get('challenge_type') == 'dns-01':
+            acct_provider = await conn.fetchval(
+                "SELECT dns_provider FROM letsencrypt_accounts WHERE id = $1", order['account_id']
+            )
+            if (acct_provider or 'manual') == 'manual':
+                auto_renew_value = False
+
         # Commit 5g: guard against empty cert_private_key.
         # Inserting an SSL certificate row with an empty private_key would silently
         # produce an unusable certificate (HAProxy would fail to load on Apply, or
@@ -749,12 +1105,13 @@ async def _complete_certificate(order_id: int) -> dict:
                     certificate_content = $1, private_key_content = $2, chain_content = $3,
                     all_domains = $4::jsonb, expiry_date = $5, days_until_expiry = $6,
                     issuer = $7, fingerprint = $8, letsencrypt_order_id = $9,
-                    auto_renew = TRUE, is_active = TRUE, last_config_status = 'PENDING',
+                    auto_renew = $11, is_active = TRUE, last_config_status = 'PENDING',
                     updated_at = NOW()
                 WHERE id = $10
             """, cert_data['certificate_pem'], private_key_pem,
                 cert_data.get('chain_pem', ''), all_domains,
-                expiry_date, days_until_expiry, issuer, fingerprint, order_id, cert_id)
+                expiry_date, days_until_expiry, issuer, fingerprint, order_id, cert_id,
+                auto_renew_value)
             logger.info(f"ACME RENEWAL: Updated certificate {cert_id} for {primary_domain}, status=PENDING")
         else:
             cert_row = await conn.fetchrow("""
@@ -764,11 +1121,12 @@ async def _complete_certificate(order_id: int) -> dict:
                      usage_type, source, letsencrypt_order_id, auto_renew, is_active,
                      last_config_status)
                 VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6::jsonb, $7, $8, $9, $10,
-                        'frontend', 'letsencrypt', $11, TRUE, TRUE, 'PENDING')
+                        'frontend', 'letsencrypt', $11, $12, TRUE, 'PENDING')
                 RETURNING id
             """, f"le-{primary_domain}", cert_data['certificate_pem'], private_key_pem,
                 cert_data.get('chain_pem', ''), primary_domain, all_domains,
-                expiry_date, days_until_expiry, issuer, fingerprint, order_id)
+                expiry_date, days_until_expiry, issuer, fingerprint, order_id,
+                auto_renew_value)
             cert_id = cert_row['id']
 
         await conn.execute(
@@ -815,12 +1173,18 @@ async def _complete_certificate(order_id: int) -> dict:
             if mapped:
                 effective_cluster_ids = [r['cluster_id'] for r in mapped]
             else:
-                # Audit Tur 6 / Commit 5j: only fall back to ACME-enabled clusters.
-                # Applying renewal to ACME-disabled clusters could re-introduce Issue #11
-                # patterns and risks deploying certs to clusters where they can't be renewed.
-                all_clusters = await conn.fetch(
-                    "SELECT id FROM haproxy_clusters WHERE is_active = TRUE AND acme_enabled = TRUE"
+                # Audit Tur 6 / Commit 5j: http-01 only falls back to ACME-enabled clusters.
+                # Issue #35: a dns-01 cert needs NO challenge routing / port 80, so it can renew on
+                # any active cluster — resolve to all active clusters for dns-01.
+                ch_type = await conn.fetchval(
+                    "SELECT challenge_type FROM letsencrypt_orders WHERE id = $1", order_id
                 )
+                if ch_type == 'dns-01':
+                    all_clusters = await conn.fetch("SELECT id FROM haproxy_clusters WHERE is_active = TRUE")
+                else:
+                    all_clusters = await conn.fetch(
+                        "SELECT id FROM haproxy_clusters WHERE is_active = TRUE AND acme_enabled = TRUE"
+                    )
                 effective_cluster_ids = [r['id'] for r in all_clusters]
             if effective_cluster_ids:
                 logger.info(f"ACME RENEWAL: Resolved {len(effective_cluster_ids)} cluster(s) for global cert {cert_id}")

backend/routers/vip.py

@@ -0,0 +1,987 @@
+"""Issue #27 — HA/VIP (Keepalived) management API (v1.7.0).
+
+Isolated router: it owns vip_instances / vip_members only. It NEVER imports or calls
+the global HAProxy apply flow (cluster.py::apply_pending_changes) or the haproxy.cfg
+generator — VIP "Apply" is a standalone verb that renders per-node keepalived.conf
+snapshots into vip_members and flips the VIP to APPLIED.
+
+For Apply-Management consistency it ALSO stages a standard `config_versions` row per
+change (version_name `vip-{id}-{action}`, status PENDING, is_active=FALSE — exactly like
+ssl-* versions) so VIP changes appear in the right-panel Pending Versions list with the
+product's standard "View Change" diff. is_active stays FALSE so a VIP version can never
+be served to an agent as haproxy.cfg (the agent config query requires is_active=TRUE);
+cluster.py keeps vip-* versions out of the generic haproxy apply/reject (NOT LIKE 'vip-%').
+
+Every DB access is wrapped so a (pathological) missing vip_* relation degrades to an
+empty/None result instead of a 500 (B-7) — preserving the fleet-wide no-op guarantee.
+"""
+import hashlib
+import json
+import logging
+import re
+import time
+import uuid
+from typing import List, Optional
+
+from fastapi import APIRouter, Header, HTTPException, Request
+
+from auth_middleware import check_user_permission, get_current_user_from_token
+from database.connection import close_database_connection, get_database_connection
+from models.vip import VIPCreate, VIPUpdate
+from services.keepalived_config import (
+    build_haproxy_check_script,
+    decrypt_vrrp_secret,
+    encrypt_vrrp_secret,
+    render_keepalived_conf,
+)
+from utils.activity_log import log_user_activity
+
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
+router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/vip", tags=["HA / VIP"])
+
+
+def _client_ip(request: Optional[Request]) -> Optional[str]:
+    try:
+        return request.client.host if request and request.client else None
+    except Exception:  # noqa: BLE001
+        return None
+
+
+def _user_agent(request: Optional[Request]) -> Optional[str]:
+    try:
+        return request.headers.get("user-agent") if request else None
+    except Exception:  # noqa: BLE001
+        return None
+
+
+async def _require(authorization: Optional[str], action: str):
+    """Authenticate + enforce vip.<action>; returns current_user or raises 401/403."""
+    current_user = await get_current_user_from_token(authorization)
+    ok = await check_user_permission(current_user["id"], "vip", action, current_user=current_user)
+    if not ok:
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=403, detail=f"vip.{action} permission required")
+    return current_user
+
+
+async def _alloc_free_vrid(conn, pool_id: int, requested: Optional[int]) -> int:
+    """Use the requested VRID if free in the pool, else the lowest free 1..255."""
+    used = {r["virtual_router_id"] for r in await conn.fetch(
+        "SELECT virtual_router_id FROM vip_instances WHERE pool_id=$1 AND is_active=TRUE", pool_id)}
+    if requested is not None:
+        if requested in used:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail=f"VRID {requested} already used in this pool")
+        return requested
+    for cand in range(1, 256):
+        if cand not in used:
+            return cand
+    raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail="No free VRID (1-255) left in this pool")
+
+
+def _md5(text: str) -> str:
+    return hashlib.md5(text.encode("utf-8")).hexdigest()
+
+
+# The VRRP secret is rendered into keepalived.conf as `auth_pass <value>`. The "secret
+# never leaves the server in cleartext" rule means any config we hand back to the UI
+# (e.g. the version diff) must mask it — only the at-rest Fernet token and the
+# agent-delivery endpoint ever see the real value. Mask the WHOLE remainder of the line
+# (not just up to the first space) so a secret containing whitespace can't partially leak.
+_AUTH_PASS_RE = re.compile(r"(auth_pass\s+).*")
+
+
+def _redact_secret(conf: Optional[str]) -> str:
+    return _AUTH_PASS_RE.sub(r"\1********", conf or "")
+
+
+def _derive_deploy_status(last_config_status: str, members, pending_delete: bool = False,
+                          is_active: bool = True) -> tuple:
+    """Display status that reflects ACTUAL agent convergence, not just the staging flag.
+
+    Other entities only read APPLIED once their agents acknowledge the new config; the
+    VIP now mirrors that so the table never claims a VIP is live before its member nodes
+    have deployed keepalived and acked the current config hash (issue #27 follow-up).
+
+        PENDING_DELETE — a deletion is STAGED and awaiting approval in Apply Management; the
+                     VIP keeps running until approved (nothing is torn down)
+        DELETING   — deletion APPROVED; member nodes are tearing keepalived down (not yet acked)
+        PENDING    — staged (created/edited); apply from Apply Management
+        SYNCING    — applied; an ONLINE member is still converging (deploying/acking)
+        AWAITING   — applied, but the un-converged members' agents are all OFFLINE, so
+                     nothing can deploy yet (bring the node's agent online) — not a hang
+        ACTIVE     — applied AND every member deployed & acked the current config hash
+        ERROR      — a member reported a deploy error
+        ATTENTION  — a member found a hand-managed keepalived (externally_managed)
+
+    Returns (status, synced_count, total_count).
+    """
+    # Approval-gated delete: staged (still running) vs approved (tearing down).
+    if pending_delete:
+        return "PENDING_DELETE", 0, len(members)
+    if not is_active:
+        total = len(members)
+        torn = sum(1 for m in members if m["last_deploy_state"] == "disabled")
+        return ("DELETED" if total and torn == total else "DELETING"), torn, total
+    if last_config_status == "PENDING":
+        return "PENDING", 0, len(members)
+    total = len(members)
+    if total == 0:
+        return "APPLIED", 0, 0
+
+    def _in_sync(m) -> bool:
+        return (m["last_deploy_state"] == "enabled"
+                and m["applied_config_hash"] is not None
+                and m["last_deploy_hash"] == m["applied_config_hash"])
+
+    synced = sum(1 for m in members if _in_sync(m))
+    if any(m["last_deploy_state"] == "error" for m in members):
+        return "ERROR", synced, total
+    if any(m["last_deploy_state"] == "externally_managed" for m in members):
+        return "ATTENTION", synced, total
+    if synced == total:
+        return "ACTIVE", synced, total
+    # Not fully converged: distinguish "actively converging" (an online agent will deploy
+    # on its next poll) from "waiting on offline agents" (nothing will happen until the
+    # operator brings the node's agent online) — the latter must NOT read as a live spinner.
+    not_synced = [m for m in members if not _in_sync(m)]
+    if not_synced and all((m["agent_status"] or "offline") != "online" for m in not_synced):
+        return "AWAITING", synced, total
+    return "SYNCING", synced, total
+
+
+async def render_vip_config_masked(conn, vip_id: int):
+    """Render the keepalived.conf each member node would deploy, as ONE masked text block
+    (VRRP secret never in cleartext). Used by the standard config-version diff for vip-*
+    versions (cluster.py) and to populate the staged version's config_content — so VIP
+    changes show the product's standard "View Change" instead of a bespoke screen.
+
+    Returns (text, {"name": ...}) or (None, None) if the VIP is gone. Best-effort: a
+    per-node render error becomes an inline comment rather than raising.
+    """
+    v = await conn.fetchrow("SELECT * FROM vip_instances WHERE id=$1", vip_id)
+    if not v:
+        return None, None
+    members = await conn.fetch("""
+        SELECT m.agent_id, m.network_interface, m.role, m.priority,
+               a.name AS agent_name, a.ip_address
+        FROM vip_members m LEFT JOIN agents a ON a.id = m.agent_id
+        WHERE m.vip_id=$1 ORDER BY m.priority DESC
+    """, vip_id)
+    auth_plain = decrypt_vrrp_secret(v["auth_pass_encrypted"]) if v["auth_pass_encrypted"] else None
+    vip_dict = {"id": v["id"], "name": v["name"], "virtual_ip": v["virtual_ip"],
+                "prefix_length": v["prefix_length"], "virtual_router_id": v["virtual_router_id"],
+                "advert_int": v["advert_int"], "use_unicast": v["use_unicast"],
+                "track_haproxy": v["track_haproxy"]}
+    member_dicts = [{"role": m["role"], "priority": m["priority"],
+                     "network_interface": m["network_interface"], "agent_id": m["agent_id"],
+                     "ip_address": str(m["ip_address"]) if m["ip_address"] else ""} for m in members]
+    blocks = []
+    for m in members:
+        this_agent = next(d for d in member_dicts if d["agent_id"] == m["agent_id"])
+        peer_ips = [d["ip_address"] for d in member_dicts
+                    if d["agent_id"] != m["agent_id"] and d["ip_address"]]
+        try:
+            conf = render_keepalived_conf(vip=vip_dict, members=member_dicts,
+                                          this_agent=this_agent, peer_ips=peer_ips,
+                                          auth_pass_plain=auth_plain)
+        except Exception as exc:  # noqa: BLE001 — best-effort preview
+            conf = f"# cannot render this node yet: {exc}\n"
+        header = (f"# ===== node: {m['agent_name'] or m['agent_id']} "
+                  f"({m['ip_address'] or 'no IP'}) — {m['role']} priority {m['priority']} =====")
+        blocks.append(header + "\n" + _redact_secret(conf))
+    text = "\n\n".join(blocks) if blocks else "# (no participating nodes selected yet)\n"
+    return text, {"name": v["name"]}
+
+
+async def _stage_vip_version(conn, vip_id: int, action: str, created_by: Optional[int]):
+    """Stage a standard PENDING config_versions row for a VIP change so it shows in Apply
+    Management exactly like other entities. One row per cluster in the VIP's pool;
+    is_active=FALSE so it is NEVER delivered as haproxy.cfg. Best-effort — a staging
+    failure never fails the VIP operation (logged); the VIP still applies via its own flow.
+    """
+    try:
+        cluster_ids = [r["id"] for r in await conn.fetch(
+            "SELECT id FROM haproxy_clusters WHERE pool_id = "
+            "(SELECT pool_id FROM vip_instances WHERE id=$1)", vip_id)]
+        if not cluster_ids:
+            return
+        content, _meta = await render_vip_config_masked(conn, vip_id)
+        content = content or f"# VIP {vip_id} ({action})\n"
+        checksum = _md5(content)
+        # uuid suffix makes the name collision-proof even for sub-second same-action re-edits
+        # (UNIQUE(cluster_id, version_name) would otherwise reject a same-second retry; review LOW-1).
+        version_name = f"vip-{vip_id}-{action}-{int(time.time())}-{uuid.uuid4().hex[:6]}"
+        # Capture this change's PENDING state so undo-reject can faithfully re-stage it
+        # (restore the VIP — reactivating it if a rejected create soft-deleted it).
+        pending_state = await _capture_vip_pending_state(conn, vip_id)
+        metadata = json.dumps({"pending_state": pending_state}) if pending_state else None
+        for cid in cluster_ids:
+            # Collapse repeated pre-apply edits to a single PENDING row per VIP+cluster.
+            await conn.execute(
+                "DELETE FROM config_versions WHERE cluster_id=$1 AND status='PENDING' "
+                "AND version_name LIKE $2", cid, f"vip-{vip_id}-%")
+            await conn.execute("""
+                INSERT INTO config_versions
+                    (cluster_id, version_name, config_content, checksum, created_by, is_active, status, metadata)
+                VALUES ($1,$2,$3,$4,$5,FALSE,'PENDING',$6::jsonb)
+            """, cid, version_name, content, checksum, created_by, metadata)
+    except Exception as e:  # noqa: BLE001 — versioning is a UI convenience, never block the op
+        logger.warning(f"_stage_vip_version({vip_id},{action}) failed: {e}")
+
+
+async def _capture_vip_pending_state(conn, vip_id: int):
+    """Snapshot a VIP's current (pending) field + member state for undo-reject. The VRRP
+    secret travels only as its encrypted token (never plaintext)."""
+    v = await conn.fetchrow("SELECT * FROM vip_instances WHERE id=$1", vip_id)
+    if not v:
+        return None
+    members = await conn.fetch(
+        "SELECT agent_id, network_interface, role, priority FROM vip_members WHERE vip_id=$1", vip_id)
+    return {
+        "vip": {"name": v["name"], "description": v["description"], "virtual_ip": v["virtual_ip"],
+                "prefix_length": v["prefix_length"], "virtual_router_id": v["virtual_router_id"],
+                "advert_int": v["advert_int"], "use_unicast": v["use_unicast"],
+                "track_haproxy": v["track_haproxy"], "auth_pass_encrypted": v["auth_pass_encrypted"]},
+        "members": [{"agent_id": m["agent_id"], "network_interface": m["network_interface"],
+                     "role": m["role"], "priority": m["priority"]} for m in members],
+    }
+
+
+async def restore_vip_from_rejected_version(conn, version_id: int):
+    """Undo-reject for a vip-* version: re-stage the rejected change as PENDING from the
+    version's captured `pending_state`. Reactivates the VIP if a rejected create soft-deleted
+    it, or re-applies a rejected edit's members — preserving each remaining member's
+    last-applied snapshot so a running VIP is never torn down (T-1). Returns None on success
+    or a human-readable error string (e.g. the name/address/VRID was reused since reject).
+    """
+    row = await conn.fetchrow("SELECT version_name, metadata FROM config_versions WHERE id=$1", version_id)
+    if not row:
+        return "version not found"
+    m = re.match(r"vip-(\d+)-", row["version_name"] or "")
+    if not m:
+        return "not a VIP version"
+    vip_id = int(m.group(1))
+    # Undo the reject of a DELETE request → re-arm the staged deletion (the VIP keeps running
+    # until re-approved; nothing on the node changes). Requires the VIP to still be active.
+    if "-delete-" in (row["version_name"] or ""):
+        if not await conn.fetchrow("SELECT 1 FROM vip_instances WHERE id=$1 AND is_active=TRUE", vip_id):
+            return "the VIP is no longer active — nothing to re-stage for deletion"
+        await conn.execute(
+            "UPDATE vip_instances SET pending_delete=TRUE, last_config_status='PENDING', "
+            "updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP WHERE id=$1", vip_id)
+        await conn.execute(
+            "UPDATE config_versions SET status='PENDING', is_active=FALSE, updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP "
+            "WHERE version_name=$1 AND status='REJECTED'", row["version_name"])
+        return None
+    meta = row["metadata"]
+    meta = json.loads(meta) if isinstance(meta, str) else meta
+    ps = (meta or {}).get("pending_state")
+    if not ps:
+        return ("this VIP change predates undo support — re-create or re-edit the VIP "
+                "from the HA/VIP page")
+    if not await conn.fetchrow("SELECT 1 FROM vip_instances WHERE id=$1", vip_id):
+        return "the VIP no longer exists — re-create it from the HA/VIP page"
+    sv, sm = ps["vip"], ps.get("members", [])
+    # One-VIP-per-agent must STILL hold after reactivation: if a member was meanwhile added
+    # to another active VIP (while this one was rejected/soft-deleted), undoing here would
+    # create a double-membership — and since the delivery endpoint serves one VIP per agent,
+    # reactivating this (never-applied → not_configured) VIP would tear down the other live
+    # VIP on that node. Block it with a clear message (review round-3 FINDING 2).
+    member_ids = [m["agent_id"] for m in sm]
+    if member_ids:
+        dup = await conn.fetchrow(
+            "SELECT a.name AS agent_name, v.name AS vip_name FROM vip_members vm "
+            "JOIN vip_instances v ON v.id = vm.vip_id JOIN agents a ON a.id = vm.agent_id "
+            "WHERE vm.agent_id = ANY($1) AND v.is_active = TRUE AND v.id <> $2 LIMIT 1",
+            member_ids, vip_id)
+        if dup:
+            return (f"node '{dup['agent_name']}' now belongs to active VIP '{dup['vip_name']}' — "
+                    f"remove it there first, then undo")
+    # Preserve the running (applied) snapshot for members that remain, so undo of an edit
+    # never momentarily flips a live node to not_configured (T-1).
+    prev = {r["agent_id"]: r for r in await conn.fetch(
+        "SELECT agent_id, applied_config_content, applied_config_hash, last_deploy_state, "
+        "last_deploy_message, last_deploy_hash, last_deploy_at FROM vip_members WHERE vip_id=$1", vip_id)}
+    try:
+        async with conn.transaction():
+            await conn.execute("""
+                UPDATE vip_instances SET name=$2, description=$3, virtual_ip=$4, prefix_length=$5,
+                    virtual_router_id=$6, advert_int=$7, use_unicast=$8, track_haproxy=$9,
+                    auth_pass_encrypted=$10, is_active=TRUE, last_config_status='PENDING',
+                    updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
+                WHERE id=$1
+            """, vip_id, sv["name"], sv.get("description"), sv["virtual_ip"], sv["prefix_length"],
+                sv["virtual_router_id"], sv["advert_int"], sv["use_unicast"], sv["track_haproxy"],
+                sv.get("auth_pass_encrypted"))
+            await conn.execute("DELETE FROM vip_members WHERE vip_id=$1", vip_id)
+            for mm in sm:
+                o = prev.get(mm["agent_id"])
+                await conn.execute("""
+                    INSERT INTO vip_members (vip_id, agent_id, network_interface, role, priority,
+                        applied_config_content, applied_config_hash,
+                        last_deploy_state, last_deploy_message, last_deploy_hash, last_deploy_at)
+                    VALUES ($1,$2,$3,$4,$5,$6,$7,$8,$9,$10,$11)
+                """, vip_id, mm["agent_id"], mm["network_interface"], mm["role"], mm["priority"],
+                    o["applied_config_content"] if o else None, o["applied_config_hash"] if o else None,
+                    o["last_deploy_state"] if o else None, o["last_deploy_message"] if o else None,
+                    o["last_deploy_hash"] if o else None, o["last_deploy_at"] if o else None)
+            # A multi-cluster pool stages one row per cluster under the SAME version_name;
+            # flip them all back to PENDING so every affected cluster's Apply Management shows
+            # the restored change (mirrors the SSL auto-undo). is_active stays FALSE (review MED-2).
+            await conn.execute(
+                "UPDATE config_versions SET status='PENDING', is_active=FALSE, "
+                "updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP WHERE version_name=$1 AND status='REJECTED'",
+                row["version_name"])
+    except Exception as e:  # noqa: BLE001
+        if "unique" in str(e).lower() or "duplicate" in str(e).lower():
+            return "the VIP's name, address or VRID was reused after it was rejected"
+        raise
+    return None
+
+
+async def _transition_vip_versions(conn, vip_id: int, new_status: str):
+    """Move this VIP's PENDING config_versions to APPLIED/REJECTED (is_active stays FALSE).
+    Called by the VIP apply/reject endpoints so the right-panel version tracks the VIP."""
+    try:
+        await conn.execute(
+            "UPDATE config_versions SET status=$2, is_active=FALSE, updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP "
+            "WHERE status='PENDING' AND version_name LIKE $1", f"vip-{vip_id}-%", new_status)
+    except Exception as e:  # noqa: BLE001
+        logger.warning(f"_transition_vip_versions({vip_id},{new_status}) failed: {e}")
+
+
+def _jsonb_list(v):
+    """agents.capabilities/network_interfaces are JSONB; asyncpg returns them as a raw
+    JSON string (no codec). Normalize to a Python list."""
+    if isinstance(v, list):
+        return v
+    if isinstance(v, str):
+        try:
+            parsed = json.loads(v)
+            return parsed if isinstance(parsed, list) else []
+        except Exception:  # noqa: BLE001
+            return []
+    return []
+
+
+def _capable(capabilities) -> bool:
+    return "keepalived_management" in _jsonb_list(capabilities)
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# List / read
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+@router.get("")
+async def list_vips(cluster_id: Optional[int] = None, authorization: str = Header(None)):
+    """List VIPs with their members + live MASTER/BACKUP state (never the secret).
+
+    Optional cluster_id scopes to VIPs in that cluster's pool — used by the Apply
+    Management page (which is cluster-scoped) to surface pending VIP changes.
+    """
+    await _require(authorization, "read")
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        # Show active VIPs PLUS approved-but-still-tearing-down ones (is_active=FALSE with a
+        # member that hasn't acked 'disabled' yet) so the operator can TRACK a deletion through
+        # to completion; a VIP drops off only once every member has torn keepalived down.
+        # The teardown-tracking clause is gated on last_config_status='APPLIED' so it ONLY shows
+        # deletions APPROVED via the new flow — a VIP soft-deleted under the old immediate-delete
+        # (pre-1.7.2: is_active=FALSE, last_config_status='PENDING') is NOT resurfaced (backward
+        # compat). Rejected never-applied creates (also PENDING) are likewise excluded.
+        _visible = ("(v.is_active = TRUE OR (v.last_config_status = 'APPLIED' AND EXISTS ("
+                    "SELECT 1 FROM vip_members mm WHERE mm.vip_id = v.id "
+                    "AND mm.applied_config_hash IS NOT NULL "
+                    "AND mm.last_deploy_state IS DISTINCT FROM 'disabled')))")
+        if cluster_id is not None:
+            vips = await conn.fetch(f"""
+                SELECT v.id, v.name, v.description, v.pool_id, v.virtual_ip, v.prefix_length,
+                       v.virtual_router_id, v.advert_int, v.use_unicast, v.track_haproxy,
+                       v.is_active, v.last_config_status, v.pending_delete,
+                       (v.auth_pass_encrypted IS NOT NULL) AS auth_pass_set,
+                       v.created_at, v.updated_at, p.name AS pool_name
+                FROM vip_instances v
+                LEFT JOIN haproxy_cluster_pools p ON p.id = v.pool_id
+                WHERE {_visible}
+                  AND v.pool_id = (SELECT pool_id FROM haproxy_clusters WHERE id = $1)
+                ORDER BY v.name
+            """, cluster_id)
+        else:
+            vips = await conn.fetch(f"""
+                SELECT v.id, v.name, v.description, v.pool_id, v.virtual_ip, v.prefix_length,
+                       v.virtual_router_id, v.advert_int, v.use_unicast, v.track_haproxy,
+                       v.is_active, v.last_config_status, v.pending_delete,
+                       (v.auth_pass_encrypted IS NOT NULL) AS auth_pass_set,
+                       v.created_at, v.updated_at, p.name AS pool_name
+                FROM vip_instances v
+                LEFT JOIN haproxy_cluster_pools p ON p.id = v.pool_id
+                WHERE {_visible}
+                ORDER BY v.name
+            """)
+        result = []
+        for v in vips:
+            members = await conn.fetch("""
+                SELECT m.id, m.agent_id, m.network_interface, m.role, m.priority,
+                       m.applied_config_hash, m.last_deploy_state, m.last_deploy_hash, m.last_deploy_at,
+                       a.name AS agent_name, a.status AS agent_status,
+                       a.keepalive_state, a.keepalive_ip, a.capabilities,
+                       a.ip_address
+                FROM vip_members m
+                LEFT JOIN agents a ON a.id = m.agent_id
+                WHERE m.vip_id = $1
+                ORDER BY m.priority DESC
+            """, v["id"])
+            deploy_status, deploy_synced, deploy_total = _derive_deploy_status(
+                v["last_config_status"], members, v["pending_delete"], v["is_active"])
+            result.append({
+                **dict(v),
+                # Convergence-aware status for the table (issue #27 follow-up); the raw
+                # last_config_status is kept above for the PENDING gate / Apply button.
+                "deploy_status": deploy_status,
+                "deploy_synced": deploy_synced,
+                "deploy_total": deploy_total,
+                "members": [{
+                    "id": m["id"], "agent_id": m["agent_id"], "agent_name": m["agent_name"],
+                    "network_interface": m["network_interface"], "role": m["role"],
+                    "priority": m["priority"], "agent_status": m["agent_status"],
+                    "keepalive_state": m["keepalive_state"], "keepalive_ip": m["keepalive_ip"],
+                    "ip_address": str(m["ip_address"]) if m["ip_address"] else None,
+                    "keepalived_capable": _capable(m["capabilities"]),
+                    "last_deploy_state": m["last_deploy_state"],
+                    "last_deploy_at": m["last_deploy_at"].isoformat() if m["last_deploy_at"] else None,
+                } for m in members],
+            })
+        return {"vips": result}
+    except Exception as e:  # noqa: BLE001 — degrade to empty rather than 500 (B-7)
+        logger.error(f"list_vips failed: {e}")
+        return {"vips": []}
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+@router.get("/{vip_id}")
+async def get_vip(vip_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
+    await _require(authorization, "read")
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        v = await conn.fetchrow("""
+            SELECT v.id, v.name, v.description, v.pool_id, v.virtual_ip, v.prefix_length,
+                   v.virtual_router_id, v.advert_int, v.use_unicast, v.track_haproxy,
+                   v.is_active, v.last_config_status,
+                   (v.auth_pass_encrypted IS NOT NULL) AS auth_pass_set,
+                   v.created_at, v.updated_at
+            FROM vip_instances v WHERE v.id = $1 AND v.is_active = TRUE
+        """, vip_id)
+        if not v:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="VIP not found")
+        members = await conn.fetch("""
+            SELECT m.agent_id, m.network_interface, m.role, m.priority,
+                   m.last_deploy_state, m.last_deploy_at,
+                   a.name AS agent_name, a.keepalive_state, a.keepalive_ip
+            FROM vip_members m LEFT JOIN agents a ON a.id = m.agent_id
+            WHERE m.vip_id = $1 ORDER BY m.priority DESC
+        """, vip_id)
+        return {**dict(v), "members": [dict(m) for m in members]}
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Create / update / delete
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+async def _validate_members_against_pool(conn, pool_id: int, members: List, vip_virtual_ip: str,
+                                         exclude_vip_id: Optional[int] = None):
+    """Members must belong to the VIP's pool; VIP must not collide with an agent IP
+    or another live VIP (T-4/SQL-1)."""
+    # pool membership
+    for m in members:
+        row = await conn.fetchrow("SELECT pool_id FROM agents WHERE id=$1", m.agent_id)
+        if not row:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=400, detail=f"agent {m.agent_id} not found")
+        if row["pool_id"] != pool_id:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=400,
+                                detail=f"agent {m.agent_id} is not in pool {pool_id}")
+    # One active VIP per agent (v1): a node deploys a single keepalived.conf, and the
+    # delivery endpoint serves one VIP per agent — a second active membership would never
+    # converge (stuck SYNCING) instead of erroring. Reject it up front (review MED-2).
+    agent_ids = [m.agent_id for m in members]
+    if agent_ids:
+        dq = ("SELECT a.name AS agent_name, v.name AS vip_name "
+              "FROM vip_members vm JOIN vip_instances v ON v.id = vm.vip_id "
+              "JOIN agents a ON a.id = vm.agent_id "
+              "WHERE vm.agent_id = ANY($1) AND v.is_active = TRUE")
+        dparams = [agent_ids]
+        if exclude_vip_id is not None:
+            dq += " AND v.id <> $2"
+            dparams.append(exclude_vip_id)
+        dup = await conn.fetchrow(dq + " LIMIT 1", *dparams)
+        if dup:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=409,
+                                detail=f"node '{dup['agent_name']}' is already a member of VIP "
+                                       f"'{dup['vip_name']}' — a node can belong to only one VIP")
+    # VIP must not be an existing agent's primary IP (INET cast, SQL-1)
+    clash = await conn.fetchval("SELECT 1 FROM agents WHERE ip_address = $1::inet LIMIT 1", vip_virtual_ip)
+    if clash:
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail=f"{vip_virtual_ip} is already a node's IP")
+    # …or another live VIP's address
+    q = "SELECT 1 FROM vip_instances WHERE virtual_ip=$1 AND is_active=TRUE"
+    params = [vip_virtual_ip]
+    if exclude_vip_id is not None:
+        q += " AND id <> $2"
+        params.append(exclude_vip_id)
+    if await conn.fetchval(q, *params):
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail=f"{vip_virtual_ip} is already used by another VIP")
+
+
+@router.post("")
+async def create_vip(payload: VIPCreate, request: Request, authorization: str = Header(None)):
+    current_user = await _require(authorization, "create")
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        pool = await conn.fetchrow("SELECT id FROM haproxy_cluster_pools WHERE id=$1", payload.pool_id)
+        if not pool:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=400, detail=f"pool {payload.pool_id} not found")
+        await _validate_members_against_pool(conn, payload.pool_id, payload.members, payload.virtual_ip)
+
+        enc = encrypt_vrrp_secret(payload.auth_pass) if payload.auth_pass else None
+        # Allocate VRID + insert, retrying once on a unique-violation race (B-1).
+        last_err = None
+        for _attempt in range(2):
+            vrid = await _alloc_free_vrid(conn, payload.pool_id, payload.virtual_router_id)
+            try:
+                async with conn.transaction():
+                    vip_id = await conn.fetchval("""
+                        INSERT INTO vip_instances
+                          (name, description, pool_id, virtual_ip, prefix_length, virtual_router_id,
+                           advert_int, auth_pass_encrypted, use_unicast, track_haproxy,
+                           is_active, last_config_status, created_by)
+                        VALUES ($1,$2,$3,$4,$5,$6,$7,$8,$9,$10,TRUE,'PENDING',$11)
+                        RETURNING id
+                    """, payload.name, payload.description, payload.pool_id, payload.virtual_ip,
+                        payload.prefix_length, vrid, payload.advert_int, enc,
+                        payload.use_unicast, payload.track_haproxy, current_user["id"])
+                    for m in payload.members:
+                        await conn.execute("""
+                            INSERT INTO vip_members (vip_id, agent_id, network_interface, role, priority)
+                            VALUES ($1,$2,$3,$4,$5)
+                        """, vip_id, m.agent_id, m.network_interface, m.role, m.priority)
+                last_err = None
+                break
+            except Exception as ie:  # noqa: BLE001
+                if "unique" in str(ie).lower() or "duplicate" in str(ie).lower():
+                    last_err = ie
+                    if payload.virtual_router_id is not None:
+                        raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail="VIP name/address/VRID already in use")
+                    continue  # auto-VRID race → retry allocation
+                raise
+        if last_err is not None:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail="VIP create conflict (name/address/VRID)")
+
+        # Stage a standard PENDING config_version so the change shows in Apply Management.
+        await _stage_vip_version(conn, vip_id, "create", current_user["id"])
+        await log_user_activity(
+            user_id=current_user["id"], action="create", resource_type="vip",
+            resource_id=str(vip_id),
+            details={"name": payload.name, "virtual_ip": payload.virtual_ip,
+                     "pool_id": payload.pool_id, "vrid": vrid, "members": len(payload.members)},
+            ip_address=_client_ip(request), user_agent=_user_agent(request))
+        return {"id": vip_id, "message": "VIP created (PENDING — apply from Apply Management)"}
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+@router.put("/{vip_id}")
+async def update_vip(vip_id: int, payload: VIPUpdate, request: Request, authorization: str = Header(None)):
+    current_user = await _require(authorization, "update")
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        v = await conn.fetchrow("SELECT * FROM vip_instances WHERE id=$1 AND is_active=TRUE", vip_id)
+        if not v:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="VIP not found")
+        new_ip = payload.virtual_ip or v["virtual_ip"]
+        members = payload.members if payload.members is not None else None
+        if members is not None:
+            await _validate_members_against_pool(conn, v["pool_id"], members, new_ip, exclude_vip_id=vip_id)
+        elif payload.virtual_ip:
+            # Address-only change: re-check the VIP isn't a node IP or another live VIP.
+            clash = await conn.fetchval("SELECT 1 FROM agents WHERE ip_address=$1::inet LIMIT 1", new_ip)
+            if clash:
+                raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail=f"{new_ip} is already a node's IP")
+            dup = await conn.fetchval(
+                "SELECT 1 FROM vip_instances WHERE virtual_ip=$1 AND is_active=TRUE AND id<>$2", new_ip, vip_id)
+            if dup:
+                raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail=f"{new_ip} is already used by another VIP")
+
+        enc_set = payload.auth_pass is not None and payload.auth_pass != ""
+        try:
+            async with conn.transaction():
+                await conn.execute("""
+                    UPDATE vip_instances SET
+                        name = COALESCE($2, name),
+                        description = COALESCE($3, description),
+                        virtual_ip = COALESCE($4, virtual_ip),
+                        prefix_length = COALESCE($5, prefix_length),
+                        virtual_router_id = COALESCE($6, virtual_router_id),
+                        advert_int = COALESCE($7, advert_int),
+                        use_unicast = COALESCE($8, use_unicast),
+                        track_haproxy = COALESCE($9, track_haproxy),
+                        auth_pass_encrypted = CASE WHEN $10 THEN $11 ELSE auth_pass_encrypted END,
+                        last_config_status = 'PENDING',
+                        -- Editing a VIP means you are KEEPING and changing it, so it cancels any
+                        -- staged deletion (otherwise a later Apply would delete instead of applying
+                        -- the edit). The edit then becomes the pending change to approve.
+                        pending_delete = FALSE,
+                        purge_on_teardown = FALSE,
+                        updated_at = CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
+                    WHERE id = $1
+                """, vip_id, payload.name, payload.description, payload.virtual_ip,
+                    payload.prefix_length, payload.virtual_router_id, payload.advert_int,
+                    payload.use_unicast, payload.track_haproxy,
+                    enc_set, encrypt_vrrp_secret(payload.auth_pass) if enc_set else None)
+                if members is not None:
+                    # T-1: preserve the APPLIED snapshot + deploy ack for members that REMAIN,
+                    # so a pending member edit never momentarily flips a running node to
+                    # not_configured (which would self-heal-teardown a live VIP). The new
+                    # config only goes live on the next Apply. A REMOVED member loses its row
+                    # → delivery returns not_configured → marker self-heal teardown (correct:
+                    # it's no longer part of the VIP). A NEW member starts with a NULL snapshot.
+                    prev = {r["agent_id"]: r for r in await conn.fetch(
+                        "SELECT agent_id, applied_config_content, applied_config_hash, "
+                        "last_deploy_state, last_deploy_message, last_deploy_hash, last_deploy_at "
+                        "FROM vip_members WHERE vip_id=$1", vip_id)}
+                    await conn.execute("DELETE FROM vip_members WHERE vip_id=$1", vip_id)
+                    for m in members:
+                        o = prev.get(m.agent_id)
+                        await conn.execute("""
+                            INSERT INTO vip_members (vip_id, agent_id, network_interface, role, priority,
+                                applied_config_content, applied_config_hash,
+                                last_deploy_state, last_deploy_message, last_deploy_hash, last_deploy_at)
+                            VALUES ($1,$2,$3,$4,$5,$6,$7,$8,$9,$10,$11)
+                        """, vip_id, m.agent_id, m.network_interface, m.role, m.priority,
+                            o["applied_config_content"] if o else None,
+                            o["applied_config_hash"] if o else None,
+                            o["last_deploy_state"] if o else None,
+                            o["last_deploy_message"] if o else None,
+                            o["last_deploy_hash"] if o else None,
+                            o["last_deploy_at"] if o else None)
+        except HTTPException:
+            raise
+        except Exception as ie:  # noqa: BLE001
+            if "unique" in str(ie).lower() or "duplicate" in str(ie).lower():
+                raise HTTPException(status_code=409, detail="VIP name/address/VRID already in use")
+            raise
+        # Re-stage the standard PENDING config_version reflecting the edited config.
+        await _stage_vip_version(conn, vip_id, "update", current_user["id"])
+        await log_user_activity(
+            user_id=current_user["id"], action="update", resource_type="vip",
+            resource_id=str(vip_id), details={"vip_id": vip_id},
+            ip_address=_client_ip(request), user_agent=_user_agent(request))
+        return {"message": "VIP updated (PENDING — apply from Apply Management)"}
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+@router.delete("/{vip_id}")
+async def delete_vip(vip_id: int, request: Request, purge_package: bool = False,
+                     authorization: str = Header(None)):
+    """Request VIP deletion — APPROVAL-GATED for safety.
+
+    Deleting a *running* (already-applied) VIP does NOT take effect immediately: it is STAGED
+    for Apply Management (pending_delete=TRUE + a vip-*-delete version) and the VIP keeps
+    running — is_active stays TRUE, agents keep serving it, NOTHING is torn down — until the
+    operator APPROVES the deletion. Rejecting it leaves the VIP running, untouched. Only the
+    approval flips is_active=FALSE and lets the agents tear keepalived down. So a misclick can
+    never tear down a production VIP, and an agent never deletes without an explicit approval.
+
+    A VIP that was NEVER applied (not deployed to any node) is removed immediately — there is
+    nothing running to tear down. purge_package opts into uninstalling the keepalived package
+    on teardown (default keeps it) and is honoured only once the deletion is approved, and only
+    on nodes where WE installed it (the agent's install marker), never an admin's package.
+    """
+    current_user = await _require(authorization, "delete")
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        v = await conn.fetchrow(
+            "SELECT id, name, applied_snapshot FROM vip_instances WHERE id=$1 AND is_active=TRUE", vip_id)
+        if not v:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="VIP not found")
+
+        if v["applied_snapshot"] is None:
+            # Never deployed to any node — removing it affects nothing, so do it at once.
+            await conn.execute(
+                "UPDATE vip_instances SET is_active=FALSE, last_config_status='PENDING', "
+                "pending_delete=FALSE, purge_on_teardown=$2, updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP WHERE id=$1",
+                vip_id, bool(purge_package))
+            await conn.execute(
+                "DELETE FROM config_versions WHERE status='PENDING' AND version_name LIKE $1",
+                f"vip-{vip_id}-%")
+            await log_user_activity(
+                user_id=current_user["id"], action="delete", resource_type="vip",
+                resource_id=str(vip_id), details={"name": v["name"], "never_applied": True},
+                ip_address=_client_ip(request), user_agent=_user_agent(request))
+            return {"message": "VIP removed — it was never applied, so no node was affected.",
+                    "staged": False}
+
+        # Running VIP → STAGE the deletion for approval. is_active stays TRUE (no teardown yet);
+        # the agent keeps serving the VIP until the operator approves in Apply Management.
+        await conn.execute(
+            "UPDATE vip_instances SET pending_delete=TRUE, purge_on_teardown=$2, "
+            "last_config_status='PENDING', updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP WHERE id=$1",
+            vip_id, bool(purge_package))
+        await _stage_vip_version(conn, vip_id, "delete", current_user["id"])
+        await log_user_activity(
+            user_id=current_user["id"], action="delete-requested", resource_type="vip",
+            resource_id=str(vip_id), details={"name": v["name"], "purge_package": bool(purge_package)},
+            ip_address=_client_ip(request), user_agent=_user_agent(request))
+        return {"message": ("Deletion staged for approval — the VIP keeps running until you APPROVE it "
+                            "in Apply Management; reject to keep it. Nothing changes on the node until "
+                            "you approve."),
+                "staged": True, "purge_package": bool(purge_package)}
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Apply (isolated) + status
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+@router.post("/{vip_id}/apply")
+async def apply_vip(vip_id: int, request: Request, authorization: str = Header(None)):
+    current_user = await _require(authorization, "apply")
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        v = await conn.fetchrow("SELECT * FROM vip_instances WHERE id=$1 AND is_active=TRUE", vip_id)
+        if not v:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="VIP not found")
+        # APPROVED DELETION: if a deletion was staged for this VIP, approving it here performs the
+        # actual delete — flip is_active=FALSE so the agents tear keepalived down on their next
+        # poll (honouring purge_on_teardown). Until this moment the VIP kept running untouched, so
+        # the teardown happens ONLY after this explicit human approval.
+        if v["pending_delete"]:
+            async with conn.transaction():
+                await conn.execute(
+                    "UPDATE vip_instances SET is_active=FALSE, pending_delete=FALSE, "
+                    "last_config_status='APPLIED', updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP WHERE id=$1", vip_id)
+            await _transition_vip_versions(conn, vip_id, "APPLIED")
+            await log_user_activity(
+                user_id=current_user["id"], action="delete", resource_type="vip", resource_id=str(vip_id),
+                details={"name": v["name"], "approved_delete": True,
+                         "purge_package": bool(v["purge_on_teardown"])},
+                ip_address=_client_ip(request), user_agent=_user_agent(request))
+            msg = "VIP deletion approved — member nodes will stop keepalived and release the VIP on their next poll"
+            if v["purge_on_teardown"]:
+                msg += "; the keepalived package will be uninstalled on nodes where we installed it"
+            return {"message": msg, "deleted": True}
+        members = await conn.fetch("""
+            SELECT m.id, m.agent_id, m.network_interface, m.role, m.priority, a.ip_address
+            FROM vip_members m LEFT JOIN agents a ON a.id = m.agent_id
+            WHERE m.vip_id = $1
+        """, vip_id)
+        if len(members) < 1:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=400, detail="VIP needs at least 1 member")
+        masters = [m for m in members if m["role"] == "MASTER"]
+        if len(masters) != 1:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=400, detail="exactly one member must be MASTER")
+        if any(m["ip_address"] is None for m in members):
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=400,
+                                detail="every member must have a reported IP before apply (unicast peers)")
+        master_prio = masters[0]["priority"]
+        if any(m["role"] == "BACKUP" and m["priority"] >= master_prio for m in members):
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=400, detail="MASTER priority must exceed every BACKUP")
+
+        auth_plain = decrypt_vrrp_secret(v["auth_pass_encrypted"]) if v["auth_pass_encrypted"] else None
+        # If a secret is set but can't be decrypted (SECRET_KEY/VIP_ENCRYPTION_KEY rotated or
+        # drifted between pods), FAIL the apply rather than silently rendering a config with NO
+        # VRRP authentication — that would be a silent security downgrade and a guaranteed
+        # MASTER/BACKUP auth mismatch with any node still holding the old config (review MED-1).
+        if v["auth_pass_encrypted"] and not auth_plain:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=409,
+                                detail="VRRP secret could not be decrypted (encryption key changed?) — "
+                                       "re-enter the VRRP secret on the VIP, then apply again")
+        check_script = build_haproxy_check_script() if v["track_haproxy"] else ""
+        member_dicts = [{"role": m["role"], "priority": m["priority"],
+                         "network_interface": m["network_interface"],
+                         "agent_id": m["agent_id"],
+                         "ip_address": str(m["ip_address"])} for m in members]
+        vip_dict = {"id": v["id"], "name": v["name"], "virtual_ip": v["virtual_ip"],
+                    "prefix_length": v["prefix_length"], "virtual_router_id": v["virtual_router_id"],
+                    "advert_int": v["advert_int"], "use_unicast": v["use_unicast"],
+                    "track_haproxy": v["track_haproxy"]}
+
+        snapshot_members = []
+        async with conn.transaction():
+            for m in members:
+                this_agent = next(d for d in member_dicts if d["agent_id"] == m["agent_id"])
+                peer_ips = [d["ip_address"] for d in member_dicts if d["agent_id"] != m["agent_id"]]
+                conf = render_keepalived_conf(vip=vip_dict, members=member_dicts,
+                                              this_agent=this_agent, peer_ips=peer_ips,
+                                              auth_pass_plain=auth_plain)
+                chash = _md5(conf)
+                await conn.execute("""
+                    UPDATE vip_members
+                    SET applied_config_content=$2, applied_config_hash=$3, updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
+                    WHERE id=$1
+                """, m["id"], conf, chash)
+                snapshot_members.append({
+                    "agent_id": m["agent_id"], "network_interface": m["network_interface"],
+                    "role": m["role"], "priority": m["priority"],
+                    "applied_config_content": conf, "applied_config_hash": chash})
+            # Capture the field-level applied state so a later pending edit can be REJECTED
+            # and fully reverted to exactly this state (auth secret stored encrypted, never plain).
+            applied_snapshot = {
+                "vip": {"name": v["name"], "description": v["description"], "virtual_ip": v["virtual_ip"],
+                        "prefix_length": v["prefix_length"], "virtual_router_id": v["virtual_router_id"],
+                        "advert_int": v["advert_int"], "use_unicast": v["use_unicast"],
+                        "track_haproxy": v["track_haproxy"], "auth_pass_encrypted": v["auth_pass_encrypted"]},
+                "members": snapshot_members}
+            await conn.execute(
+                "UPDATE vip_instances SET last_config_status='APPLIED', "
+                "applied_snapshot=$2::jsonb, updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP WHERE id=$1",
+                vip_id, json.dumps(applied_snapshot))
+
+        # Move the standard config_version PENDING → APPLIED (stays is_active=FALSE so it is
+        # never served as haproxy.cfg). Keeps the right-panel version in lockstep with the VIP.
+        await _transition_vip_versions(conn, vip_id, "APPLIED")
+        await log_user_activity(
+            user_id=current_user["id"], action="apply", resource_type="vip",
+            resource_id=str(vip_id),
+            details={"name": v["name"], "virtual_ip": v["virtual_ip"], "members": len(members)},
+            ip_address=_client_ip(request), user_agent=_user_agent(request))
+        # check_script is rendered but not stored on the vip row; the agent gets it via
+        # the delivery endpoint (which rebuilds it). Returned here only for visibility.
+        return {"message": "VIP applied — agents will converge on next poll",
+                "members_rendered": len(members), "tracks_haproxy": bool(check_script)}
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+@router.post("/{vip_id}/reject")
+async def reject_vip(vip_id: int, request: Request, authorization: str = Header(None)):
+    """Discard a VIP's PENDING changes and fully restore the last-APPLIED state — the
+    isolated equivalent of the product's reject -> restore-to-previous. Restores both the
+    vip_instances fields and the exact member set (with their delivered config snapshots)
+    from `applied_snapshot`, so the agents keep running what they already have (no churn).
+    A never-applied PENDING VIP (no snapshot) is SOFT-deleted (is_active=FALSE) and its
+    staged version marked REJECTED — so the change is reversible from the Rejected tab
+    (undo-reject reactivates it). Never touches the global haproxy.cfg apply flow.
+    """
+    current_user = await _require(authorization, "update")
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        v = await conn.fetchrow("SELECT * FROM vip_instances WHERE id=$1 AND is_active=TRUE", vip_id)
+        if not v:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="VIP not found")
+        # REJECT A STAGED DELETION: cancel it — the VIP keeps running exactly as before (it was
+        # never touched; is_active was never flipped). Clear the delete + purge intent and mark
+        # the staged version REJECTED. This is the "nothing happened" path the operator expects.
+        if v["pending_delete"]:
+            await conn.execute(
+                "UPDATE vip_instances SET pending_delete=FALSE, purge_on_teardown=FALSE, "
+                "last_config_status='APPLIED', updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP WHERE id=$1", vip_id)
+            await _transition_vip_versions(conn, vip_id, "REJECTED")
+            await log_user_activity(
+                user_id=current_user["id"], action="reject", resource_type="vip", resource_id=str(vip_id),
+                details={"name": v["name"], "delete_cancelled": True},
+                ip_address=_client_ip(request), user_agent=_user_agent(request))
+            return {"message": "Deletion rejected — the VIP keeps running unchanged."}
+        if v["last_config_status"] != "PENDING":
+            return {"message": "Nothing to reject — no pending changes"}
+
+        snap_raw = v["applied_snapshot"]
+        snap = json.loads(snap_raw) if isinstance(snap_raw, str) else snap_raw
+        if not snap:
+            # Created but never applied -> reject SOFT-deletes the VIP (is_active=FALSE) and
+            # marks its staged version REJECTED. The row + members are kept so undo-reject can
+            # reactivate the exact VIP (no orphan). The partial unique indexes free its
+            # name/address/VRID for reuse while it's inactive.
+            await _transition_vip_versions(conn, vip_id, "REJECTED")
+            await conn.execute(
+                "UPDATE vip_instances SET is_active=FALSE, last_config_status='PENDING', "
+                "updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP WHERE id=$1", vip_id)
+            await log_user_activity(
+                user_id=current_user["id"], action="reject", resource_type="vip", resource_id=str(vip_id),
+                details={"name": v["name"], "discarded": True},
+                ip_address=_client_ip(request), user_agent=_user_agent(request))
+            return {"message": "Pending VIP rejected (undo from the Rejected tab to restore it)"}
+
+        sv = snap["vip"]
+        sm = snap.get("members", [])
+        try:
+            async with conn.transaction():
+                await conn.execute("""
+                    UPDATE vip_instances SET
+                        name=$2, description=$3, virtual_ip=$4, prefix_length=$5, virtual_router_id=$6,
+                        advert_int=$7, use_unicast=$8, track_haproxy=$9, auth_pass_encrypted=$10,
+                        last_config_status='APPLIED', updated_at=CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
+                    WHERE id=$1
+                """, vip_id, sv["name"], sv.get("description"), sv["virtual_ip"], sv["prefix_length"],
+                    sv["virtual_router_id"], sv["advert_int"], sv["use_unicast"], sv["track_haproxy"],
+                    sv.get("auth_pass_encrypted"))
+                await conn.execute("DELETE FROM vip_members WHERE vip_id=$1", vip_id)
+                for m in sm:
+                    await conn.execute("""
+                        INSERT INTO vip_members (vip_id, agent_id, network_interface, role, priority,
+                            applied_config_content, applied_config_hash)
+                        VALUES ($1,$2,$3,$4,$5,$6,$7)
+                    """, vip_id, m["agent_id"], m["network_interface"], m["role"], m["priority"],
+                        m.get("applied_config_content"), m.get("applied_config_hash"))
+        except HTTPException:
+            raise
+        except Exception as ie:  # noqa: BLE001
+            if "unique" in str(ie).lower() or "duplicate" in str(ie).lower():
+                raise HTTPException(status_code=409,
+                                    detail="Cannot restore — the previous address/VRID was taken in the meantime")
+            raise
+        # Mark the standard config_version REJECTED (history); the VIP is back to APPLIED.
+        await _transition_vip_versions(conn, vip_id, "REJECTED")
+        await log_user_activity(
+            user_id=current_user["id"], action="reject", resource_type="vip", resource_id=str(vip_id),
+            details={"name": v["name"], "restored": True},
+            ip_address=_client_ip(request), user_agent=_user_agent(request))
+        return {"message": "Pending changes rejected — VIP restored to its last applied state"}
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+@router.get("/{vip_id}/status")
+async def vip_status(vip_id: int, authorization: str = Header(None)):
+    await _require(authorization, "read")
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        v = await conn.fetchrow("SELECT id, name, is_active, last_config_status FROM vip_instances WHERE id=$1", vip_id)
+        if not v:
+            raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="VIP not found")
+        members = await conn.fetch("""
+            SELECT m.agent_id, m.role, m.priority, m.network_interface,
+                   m.last_deploy_state, m.last_deploy_message, m.last_deploy_at, m.applied_config_hash,
+                   a.name AS agent_name, a.keepalive_state, a.keepalive_ip, a.status AS agent_status,
+                   a.capabilities
+            FROM vip_members m LEFT JOIN agents a ON a.id = m.agent_id
+            WHERE m.vip_id=$1 ORDER BY m.priority DESC
+        """, vip_id)
+        out = []
+        for m in members:
+            applied = m["applied_config_hash"]
+            deploy = m["last_deploy_state"]
+            capable = _capable(m["capabilities"])
+            if applied and not deploy:
+                converge = "awaiting agent (upgrade may be required)" if not capable else "converging"
+            else:
+                converge = deploy or "pending"
+            out.append({
+                "agent_name": m["agent_name"], "role": m["role"], "priority": m["priority"],
+                "network_interface": m["network_interface"],
+                "agent_status": m["agent_status"], "keepalive_state": m["keepalive_state"],
+                "keepalive_ip": m["keepalive_ip"], "keepalived_capable": capable,
+                "deploy_state": deploy, "deploy_message": m["last_deploy_message"],
+                "deploy_at": m["last_deploy_at"].isoformat() if m["last_deploy_at"] else None,
+                "convergence": converge,
+            })
+        return {"id": v["id"], "name": v["name"], "is_active": v["is_active"],
+                "last_config_status": v["last_config_status"], "members": out}
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+# NOTE: the keepalived config preview/diff is served by the STANDARD config-version diff
+# endpoint (cluster.py get_config_version_diff, vip-* branch) via render_vip_config_masked
+# above — there is no bespoke VIP preview endpoint, so VIP changes use the product's
+# standard "View Change" like every other entity (issue #27 follow-up).

backend/services/acme_diagnostics.py

@@ -116,6 +116,10 @@ _PROBLEM_HUMANIZED: Dict[str, Dict[str, str]] = {
         "title": "HTTP-01 challenge response mismatch",
         "hint": "The CA fetched the challenge URL but received the wrong key authorization. Confirm the challenge was served from the right backend.",
     },
+    "urn:ietf:params:acme:error:externalAccountRequired": {
+        "title": "External Account Binding (EAB) required",
+        "hint": "This CA (e.g. ZeroSSL, Google) requires EAB. Enter the EAB Key ID and HMAC Key from your CA account when registering.",
+    },
     "urn:ietf:params:acme:error:invalidContact": {
         "title": "Invalid contact email",
         "hint": "The ACME account email is malformed. Update the LE account email.",
@@ -199,6 +203,23 @@ def humanize_error_detail(error_detail: Any) -> Dict[str, Any]:
     status = parsed.get("status")
     subproblems = parsed.get("subproblems") or []
 
+    # Issue #35: DNS-01 failures are recorded as {stage, reason, timestamp} (no RFC8555 "type"),
+    # so without this fallback the humanized alert would show a bare "ACME error" with no message.
+    # Surface the reason and a targeted hint so the operator knows exactly what to fix.
+    if not problem_type and parsed.get("reason"):
+        reason = str(parsed.get("reason"))
+        message = message or reason
+        title = "DNS-01 validation failed"
+        rlow = reason.lower()
+        if "decrypt" in rlow or "credential" in rlow:
+            hint = hint or "Re-enter the DNS provider credentials for this account in ACME Automation."
+        elif "zone" in rlow:
+            hint = hint or "Confirm the domain's DNS zone is managed by the configured provider and the token has access to it."
+        elif "deadline" in rlow or "expired" in rlow or "confirm" in rlow:
+            hint = hint or "The manual confirmation window passed. Create a new certificate request and publish the TXT record promptly."
+        else:
+            hint = hint or "Check the DNS TXT record and provider credentials, then retry."
+
     out = {
         "title": title,
         "message": message,
@@ -694,6 +715,7 @@ async def run_checks(
     cluster_ids: List[int],
     account_id: Optional[int],
     only: Optional[List[str]] = None,
+    challenge_type: str = "http-01",
 ) -> List[Dict[str, Any]]:
     """Execute the full pre-flight check suite. `only` lets callers re-run a
     subset (per-check rerun in the UI).
@@ -714,12 +736,29 @@ async def run_checks(
     except (TypeError, ValueError):
         safe_account_id = None
 
+    # Issue #35: DNS-01 validates via a TXT record, so the HTTP-01 reachability checks
+    # (public A record, inbound port 80, ACME Challenge Routing) do not apply — report them
+    # as `skipped` rather than failing an internal/isolated host that is actually fine.
+    is_dns01 = (challenge_type == "dns-01")
     if "dns" in selected:
-        results.append(await _safe_check("dns", "DNS resolution", check_dns(safe_domains)))
+        if is_dns01:
+            results.append(_check_result("dns", "DNS resolution", "skipped",
+                                         "DNS-01: a public A record is not required (validation is via a TXT record).",
+                                         severity="info"))
+        else:
+            results.append(await _safe_check("dns", "DNS resolution", check_dns(safe_domains)))
     if "port80" in selected:
-        results.append(await _safe_check("port80", "Port 80 reachability", check_port80(safe_domains)))
+        if is_dns01:
+            results.append(_check_result("port80", "Port 80 reachability", "skipped",
+                                         "DNS-01: inbound port 80 is not required.", severity="info"))
+        else:
+            results.append(await _safe_check("port80", "Port 80 reachability", check_port80(safe_domains)))
     if "routing" in selected:
-        results.append(await _safe_check("routing", "HAProxy routing", check_routing(conn, safe_domains, safe_cluster_ids)))
+        if is_dns01:
+            results.append(_check_result("routing", "HAProxy routing", "skipped",
+                                         "DNS-01: ACME Challenge Routing is not required.", severity="info"))
+        else:
+            results.append(await _safe_check("routing", "HAProxy routing", check_routing(conn, safe_domains, safe_cluster_ids)))
     if "account" in selected:
         results.append(await _safe_check("account", "ACME account", check_account(conn, safe_account_id)))
     if "agents" in selected:

backend/services/acme_service.py

@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ def _b64url(data: bytes) -> str:
 
 
 def _b64url_decode(s: str) -> bytes:
-    s += '=' * (4 - len(s) % 4)
+    s += '=' * (-len(s) % 4)  # pad to a multiple of 4 (0 pad when already aligned)
     return base64.urlsafe_b64decode(s)
 
 
@@ -37,7 +37,11 @@ class ACMEService:
 
     def __init__(self):
         self._directory_cache: Dict[str, dict] = {}
-        self._nonce: Optional[str] = None
+        # Anti-replay nonces are scoped PER CA (directory_url). A Replay-Nonce issued by one ACME
+        # server must never be sent in a JWS to another, or the second server rejects it (e.g. ZeroSSL
+        # "malformed: The Replay Nonce could not be base64url-decoded"). This client is a process-wide
+        # singleton shared across CAs, so a single shared nonce was leaking across them.
+        self._nonce_by_dir: Dict[str, str] = {}
 
     async def _get_settings(self) -> dict:
         conn = await get_database_connection()
@@ -71,17 +75,21 @@ class ACMEService:
                     raise Exception(f"Failed to fetch ACME directory: HTTP {resp.status}")
                 data = await resp.json()
                 if 'Replay-Nonce' in resp.headers:
-                    self._nonce = resp.headers['Replay-Nonce']
+                    self._nonce_by_dir[directory_url] = resp.headers['Replay-Nonce']
                 data['_fetched_at'] = time.time()
                 self._directory_cache[directory_url] = data
                 return data
 
     async def _get_nonce(self, directory_url: str) -> str:
-        if self._nonce:
-            nonce = self._nonce
-            self._nonce = None
-            return nonce
+        # Use a cached nonce for THIS CA only; otherwise fetch a fresh one from THIS CA's newNonce.
+        cached = self._nonce_by_dir.pop(directory_url, None)
+        if cached:
+            return cached
         directory = await self.get_directory(directory_url)
+        # get_directory may have just captured a nonce for this CA from the directory response.
+        cached = self._nonce_by_dir.pop(directory_url, None)
+        if cached:
+            return cached
         async with aiohttp.ClientSession() as session:
             async with session.head(directory['newNonce']) as resp:
                 return resp.headers['Replay-Nonce']
@@ -128,6 +136,20 @@ class ACMEService:
         digest = hashlib.sha256(ordered.encode('utf-8')).digest()
         return _b64url(digest)
 
+    @staticmethod
+    def _dns_txt_value(key_authorization: str) -> str:
+        """RFC 8555 §8.4: the DNS-01 TXT value is base64url(SHA256(key_authorization)) over the
+        RAW 32-byte digest (NOT the hexdigest)."""
+        return _b64url(hashlib.sha256(key_authorization.encode('utf-8')).digest())
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def _challenge_dns_name(identifier: str) -> str:
+        """The `_acme-challenge.<base>` record name for an ACME identifier. A leading wildcard
+        `*.` is stripped, so both `*.example.com` and bare `example.com` map to the SAME name
+        `_acme-challenge.example.com` (which is why apex+wildcard need two coexisting TXT values)."""
+        base = identifier[2:] if identifier.startswith('*.') else identifier
+        return f"_acme-challenge.{base}"
+
     def _sign_jws(self, private_key, protected: dict, payload: Any) -> dict:
         protected_b64 = _b64url(json.dumps(protected).encode('utf-8'))
         if payload == "":
@@ -174,11 +196,17 @@ class ACMEService:
                     timeout=aiohttp.ClientTimeout(total=30),
                 ) as resp:
                     if 'Replay-Nonce' in resp.headers:
-                        self._nonce = resp.headers['Replay-Nonce']
+                        self._nonce_by_dir[directory_url] = resp.headers['Replay-Nonce']
 
-                    if resp.status == 400:
+                    if resp.status == 400 and attempt < 2:
                         err = await resp.json()
-                        if err.get('type') == 'urn:ietf:params:acme:error:badNonce' and attempt < 2:
+                        etype = (err.get('type') or '')
+                        edetail = (err.get('detail') or '').lower()
+                        # Retry on badNonce, and on any nonce-related malformed rejection (e.g.
+                        # "The Replay Nonce could not be base64url-decoded") — refetch a FRESH nonce
+                        # from the target CA and resign. With per-CA scoping the cross-CA cause is gone;
+                        # this is defense-in-depth so a stale/rejected nonce always self-heals.
+                        if etype.endswith('badNonce') or 'nonce' in edetail:
                             nonce = resp.headers.get('Replay-Nonce') or await self._get_nonce(directory_url)
                             protected['nonce'] = nonce
                             body = self._sign_jws(private_key, protected, payload)
@@ -208,6 +236,8 @@ class ACMEService:
         tos_agreed: bool = True,
         eab_kid: Optional[str] = None,
         eab_hmac_key: Optional[str] = None,
+        challenge_type: str = 'http-01',
+        dns_provider: Optional[str] = None,
     ) -> dict:
         directory = await self.get_directory(directory_url)
         pem, jwk = self._generate_account_key()
@@ -250,13 +280,14 @@ class ACMEService:
         conn = await get_database_connection()
         try:
             row = await conn.fetchrow("""
-                INSERT INTO letsencrypt_accounts (email, directory_url, account_url, jwk_private_key, status, tos_agreed, eab_kid)
-                VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6, $7)
+                INSERT INTO letsencrypt_accounts (email, directory_url, account_url, jwk_private_key, status, tos_agreed, eab_kid, challenge_type, dns_provider)
+                VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6, $7, $8, $9)
                 ON CONFLICT (email, directory_url) DO UPDATE SET
-                    account_url = $3, jwk_private_key = $4, status = $5, tos_agreed = $6, updated_at = NOW()
-                RETURNING id, email, directory_url, account_url, status, tos_agreed, created_at
+                    account_url = $3, jwk_private_key = $4, status = $5, tos_agreed = $6,
+                    challenge_type = $8, dns_provider = $9, updated_at = NOW()
+                RETURNING id, email, directory_url, account_url, status, tos_agreed, created_at, challenge_type, dns_provider
             """, email, directory_url, account_url, pem,
-                data.get('status') or 'valid', tos_agreed, eab_kid)
+                data.get('status') or 'valid', tos_agreed, eab_kid, challenge_type, dns_provider)
             return dict(row)
         finally:
             await close_database_connection(conn)
@@ -302,8 +333,10 @@ class ACMEService:
         account_id: int,
         domains: List[str],
         cluster_ids: Optional[List[int]] = None,
+        challenge_type: str = 'http-01',
+        created_by: Optional[int] = None,
     ) -> dict:
-        logger.info(f"ACME: Creating order for domains={domains}, account_id={account_id}")
+        logger.info(f"ACME: Creating order for domains={domains}, account_id={account_id}, challenge_type={challenge_type}")
         conn = await get_database_connection()
         try:
             account = await conn.fetchrow(
@@ -341,12 +374,12 @@ class ACMEService:
 
             order_row = await conn.fetchrow("""
                 INSERT INTO letsencrypt_orders
-                    (account_id, order_url, status, domains, finalize_url, expires_at, cluster_ids)
-                VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6, $7)
+                    (account_id, order_url, status, domains, finalize_url, expires_at, cluster_ids, challenge_type, created_by)
+                VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6, $7, $8, $9)
                 RETURNING id
             """, account_id, order_url, data.get('status') or 'pending',
                 json.dumps(domains), data.get('finalize') or '', expires_at,
-                json.dumps(cluster_ids or []))
+                json.dumps(cluster_ids or []), challenge_type, created_by)
 
             order_id = order_row['id']
 
@@ -383,18 +416,24 @@ class ACMEService:
                 domain = (auth_data.get('identifier') or {}).get('value', '')
                 http01_for_domain = False
                 for challenge in (auth_data.get('challenges') or []):
-                    if challenge.get('type') == 'http-01':
+                    # Store only the challenge of the CHOSEN method (default 'http-01' keeps the
+                    # existing behaviour byte-identical; 'dns-01' selects the TXT challenge instead).
+                    if challenge.get('type') == challenge_type:
                         token = challenge['token']
                         jwk = self._get_jwk(private_key)
                         thumbprint = self._jwk_thumbprint(jwk)
                         key_auth = f"{token}.{thumbprint}"
+                        dns_txt = self._dns_txt_value(key_auth) if challenge_type == 'dns-01' else None
 
                         await conn.execute("""
-                            INSERT INTO acme_challenges (order_id, domain, token, key_authorization, challenge_url, status)
-                            VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6)
+                            INSERT INTO acme_challenges
+                                (order_id, domain, token, key_authorization, challenge_url, status,
+                                 challenge_type, dns_txt_value)
+                            VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6, $7, $8)
                         """, order_id, domain, token, key_auth,
-                            challenge.get('url') or '', challenge.get('status') or 'pending')
-                        logger.info(f"ACME: Challenge stored for domain={domain}, token={token[:20]}..., challenge_url={(challenge.get('url') or '')[:60]}")
+                            challenge.get('url') or '', challenge.get('status') or 'pending',
+                            challenge_type, dns_txt)
+                        logger.info(f"ACME: {challenge_type} challenge stored for domain={domain}, token={token[:20]}..., challenge_url={(challenge.get('url') or '')[:60]}")
                         http01_for_domain = True
                 if http01_for_domain and domain:
                     domains_with_http01.add(domain)
@@ -413,7 +452,7 @@ class ACMEService:
                     error_payload, order_id
                 )
                 raise Exception(
-                    f"ACME order {order_id} created but no http-01 challenges available "
+                    f"ACME order {order_id} created but no {challenge_type} challenges available "
                     f"(auth fetch failures: {len(auth_fetch_failures)}). See order.error_detail for diagnostics."
                 )
             elif auth_fetch_failures:
@@ -449,10 +488,15 @@ class ACMEService:
         try:
             # Issue #12 / Commit 5a: include 'failed' challenges so they can be retried,
             # but rate-limit per challenge: max 5 attempts in last 5 minutes.
+            # DNS-01 skip-gate (the single safe choke point): never POST a challenge response for a
+            # dns-01 row whose TXT record has not been published yet — that would make the CA validate
+            # against a missing record and burn the order. http-01 rows (challenge_type 'http-01'/NULL)
+            # are never excluded, so the existing flow is byte-identical.
             challenges = await conn.fetch(
                 """SELECT * FROM acme_challenges
                    WHERE order_id = $1
-                     AND (status IN ('pending', 'failed') OR status IS NULL)""",
+                     AND (status IN ('pending', 'failed') OR status IS NULL)
+                     AND NOT (COALESCE(challenge_type, 'http-01') = 'dns-01' AND COALESCE(dns_record_published, FALSE) = FALSE)""",
                 order_id
             )
             order = await conn.fetchrow(

backend/services/dns01_orchestrator.py

@@ -0,0 +1,321 @@
+"""Issue #35 — ACME DNS-01 (v1.8.0): non-blocking per-cycle orchestration.
+
+Driven by the existing `complete_pending_acme_orders` background task (which already claims
+in-progress orders with `FOR UPDATE SKIP LOCKED`). For a dns-01 order this module advances AT MOST
+ONE step per 60s cycle — publish TXT, then (after a short min-age) respond — so the serial claim
+loop is never blocked by a multi-minute wait, and NO DNS library is needed (the CA is the source of
+truth; a propagation-lag `invalid` is recovered by a bounded fresh-order chain).
+
+Design invariants (from the hardening review):
+- Additive at the RRset level: publish/cleanup operate on a single (name, value), so wildcard+apex
+  (two values at one name) coexist.
+- No new order-status value: a failed order stays `invalid`; a boolean `dns01_retry_claimed` does the
+  winner-only CAS + claim exclusion, so existing `status` consumers are untouched.
+- Secrets (provider API tokens) are NEVER logged or written to error_detail/events.
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import logging
+from datetime import datetime, timedelta, timezone
+from typing import Dict, List, Optional, Tuple
+
+from database.connection import get_database_connection, close_database_connection
+from services.acme_service import acme_service as acme_svc, ACMEService
+from services.dns_providers import get_provider, is_supported, DnsProviderError
+from utils.dns_credentials import decrypt_dns_credentials
+from utils.activity_log import record_event
+
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
+# Tunables (kept conservative vs Let's Encrypt rate limits: 5 failed-validations/host/hour,
+# 300 new-orders/account/3h).
+PROPAGATION_GRACE_SECONDS = 25          # min age before we tell the CA to validate
+MANUAL_CONFIRM_TTL = timedelta(hours=48)
+MAX_RETRIES = 3                          # bounded fresh-order chain (1 original + 3 retries = 4 orders)
+# Retry backoff floor (minutes) indexed by the order's current dns01_attempts: [15, 30, 60].
+# The AUTHORITATIVE implementation is the SQL CASE in main.py's claim query
+# (complete_pending_acme_orders), so the backoff is evaluated atomically with the
+# FOR UPDATE SKIP LOCKED claim. Documented here only — do not reintroduce a second copy.
+
+
+def _now() -> datetime:
+    return datetime.now(timezone.utc)
+
+
+def _aware(dt) -> Optional[datetime]:
+    if dt is None:
+        return None
+    return dt if dt.tzinfo else dt.replace(tzinfo=timezone.utc)
+
+
+async def _load_credentials(conn, account_id: int) -> Tuple[Optional[Dict[str, str]], bool]:
+    """Return (credentials_dict_or_None, row_exists). credentials None + row_exists True means the
+    stored token could not be decrypted (e.g. SECRET_KEY rotated)."""
+    row = await conn.fetchrow(
+        "SELECT credentials_encrypted FROM letsencrypt_account_dns_credentials WHERE account_id = $1",
+        account_id,
+    )
+    if not row:
+        return None, False
+    return decrypt_dns_credentials(row["credentials_encrypted"]), True
+
+
+async def _fail_order(conn, order_id: int, reason: str) -> None:
+    """Mark an order invalid with a sanitized reason (no secrets) + event."""
+    import json
+    payload = json.dumps({"stage": "dns01", "reason": reason, "timestamp": _now().isoformat()})
+    await conn.execute(
+        "UPDATE letsencrypt_orders SET status = 'invalid', error_detail = $1, updated_at = NOW() WHERE id = $2",
+        payload, order_id,
+    )
+    await record_event(order_id, "acme.dns01.validation", severity="ERROR", message=reason, conn=conn)
+
+
+async def advance_dns01_order(order_id: int) -> None:
+    """One non-blocking step for a claimed pending/processing dns-01 order. No-op for http-01 or
+    orders not in a publishable state. Safe to call every cycle (idempotent via CAS flags)."""
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        order = await conn.fetchrow(
+            """SELECT o.id, o.status, o.challenge_type, o.account_id, a.dns_provider
+               FROM letsencrypt_orders o JOIN letsencrypt_accounts a ON o.account_id = a.id
+               WHERE o.id = $1""",
+            order_id,
+        )
+        if not order or order["challenge_type"] != "dns-01":
+            return
+        if order["status"] not in ("pending", "processing"):
+            return
+
+        challenges = await conn.fetch(
+            "SELECT * FROM acme_challenges WHERE order_id = $1 AND challenge_type = 'dns-01'", order_id
+        )
+        if not challenges:
+            return
+
+        provider_name = (order["dns_provider"] or "manual").strip()
+
+        # --- Manual provider: the user publishes + confirms; we only enforce the deadline. ---
+        if provider_name == "manual" or not is_supported(provider_name):
+            deadline = _aware(challenges[0]["manual_confirm_deadline"])
+            if deadline is None:
+                new_deadline = _now() + MANUAL_CONFIRM_TTL
+                await conn.execute(
+                    "UPDATE acme_challenges SET manual_confirm_deadline = $1 WHERE order_id = $2 AND manual_confirm_deadline IS NULL",
+                    new_deadline, order_id,
+                )
+            elif _now() > deadline:
+                await _fail_order(conn, order_id,
+                                  "Manual DNS-01 confirmation deadline passed without confirmation.")
+            return  # respond happens via the dns-confirm endpoint
+
+        # --- Automated provider (e.g. Cloudflare). ---
+        creds, row_exists = await _load_credentials(conn, order["account_id"])
+        if not row_exists:
+            await _fail_order(conn, order_id,
+                              f"No DNS provider credentials configured for provider '{provider_name}'.")
+            return
+        if creds is None:
+            await _fail_order(conn, order_id,
+                              "DNS provider credentials could not be decrypted; re-enter them in Settings.")
+            return
+
+        provider = get_provider(provider_name, creds)
+
+        # Publish any not-yet-published challenge (CAS so two replicas can't double-publish).
+        for ch in challenges:
+            if ch["dns_record_published"]:
+                continue
+            flipped = await conn.fetchval(
+                """UPDATE acme_challenges SET dns_record_published = TRUE, dns_published_at = NOW()
+                   WHERE id = $1 AND dns_record_published = FALSE RETURNING id""",
+                ch["id"],
+            )
+            if not flipped:
+                continue
+            name = ACMEService._challenge_dns_name(ch["domain"])
+            try:
+                await provider.add_txt_record(name, ch["dns_txt_value"])
+                await record_event(order_id, "acme.dns01.publish",
+                                   message=f"Published TXT {name}; waiting for DNS propagation before asking the CA to validate.",
+                                   details={"name": name, "provider": provider_name}, conn=conn)
+            except DnsProviderError as exc:
+                # Revert so the next cycle retries the publish; keep the order pending. exc is sanitized.
+                await conn.execute(
+                    "UPDATE acme_challenges SET dns_record_published = FALSE, dns_published_at = NULL WHERE id = $1",
+                    ch["id"],
+                )
+                await record_event(order_id, "acme.dns01.publish", severity="WARNING",
+                                   message=f"Publish failed for {name}: {exc}",
+                                   details={"name": name, "provider": provider_name}, conn=conn)
+                return
+
+        # All published? Then respond once the min-age gate has elapsed (across cycles, no sleep).
+        rows = await conn.fetch(
+            "SELECT dns_record_published, dns_published_at FROM acme_challenges WHERE order_id = $1 AND challenge_type = 'dns-01'",
+            order_id,
+        )
+        if any(not r["dns_record_published"] for r in rows):
+            return
+        published_ats = [_aware(r["dns_published_at"]) for r in rows if r["dns_published_at"]]
+        if not published_ats:
+            return
+        if (_now() - min(published_ats)).total_seconds() < PROPAGATION_GRACE_SECONDS:
+            return  # wait one more cycle
+
+        # Only POST the challenge response if something still needs validating — avoids re-POSTing
+        # every cycle (and bumping dns01_last_attempt_at) once the CA already has them processing.
+        still_pending = await conn.fetchval(
+            """SELECT 1 FROM acme_challenges WHERE order_id = $1 AND challenge_type = 'dns-01'
+               AND (status IN ('pending', 'failed') OR status IS NULL) LIMIT 1""",
+            order_id,
+        )
+        if not still_pending:
+            return
+
+        await acme_svc.respond_to_challenges(order_id)
+        await conn.execute("UPDATE letsencrypt_orders SET dns01_last_attempt_at = NOW() WHERE id = $1", order_id)
+        await record_event(order_id, "acme.dns01.responded",
+                           message="Told the CA to validate the DNS-01 challenge(s).", conn=conn)
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+async def confirm_manual_dns01(order_id: int) -> Dict:
+    """Called by POST /orders/{id}/dns-confirm for the manual provider: mark the TXT published and
+    tell the CA to validate. Returns a small status dict."""
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        await conn.execute(
+            """UPDATE acme_challenges SET dns_record_published = TRUE, dns_published_at = COALESCE(dns_published_at, NOW())
+               WHERE order_id = $1 AND challenge_type = 'dns-01'""",
+            order_id,
+        )
+        await acme_svc.respond_to_challenges(order_id)
+        await conn.execute("UPDATE letsencrypt_orders SET dns01_last_attempt_at = NOW() WHERE id = $1", order_id)
+        await record_event(order_id, "acme.dns01.responded",
+                           message="Manual DNS-01 confirmed; told the CA to validate.", conn=conn)
+        return {"ok": True}
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+async def retry_invalid_dns01(order_id: int) -> None:
+    """Bounded fresh-order recovery for a dns-01 order that went `invalid` (e.g. propagation lag).
+    Winner-only CAS on `dns01_retry_claimed`; cleans the old TXT, mints a child order. No-op for
+    http-01 or when the budget is exhausted."""
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    child_created = False
+    try:
+        order = await conn.fetchrow(
+            """SELECT o.*, a.dns_provider FROM letsencrypt_orders o
+               JOIN letsencrypt_accounts a ON o.account_id = a.id WHERE o.id = $1""",
+            order_id,
+        )
+        if not order or order["challenge_type"] != "dns-01":
+            return
+        if (order["dns01_attempts"] or 0) >= MAX_RETRIES:
+            return  # budget exhausted; stays terminal invalid
+
+        # Winner-only claim (closes the cross-replica double-mint race).
+        claimed = await conn.fetchval(
+            """UPDATE letsencrypt_orders SET dns01_retry_claimed = TRUE, updated_at = NOW()
+               WHERE id = $1 AND status = 'invalid' AND dns01_retry_claimed = FALSE RETURNING id""",
+            order_id,
+        )
+        if not claimed:
+            return
+
+        provider_name = (order["dns_provider"] or "manual").strip()
+        # Best-effort cleanup of this order's TXT before minting the replacement.
+        if provider_name != "manual" and is_supported(provider_name):
+            creds, _exists = await _load_credentials(conn, order["account_id"])
+            if creds:
+                provider = get_provider(provider_name, creds)
+                chs = await conn.fetch(
+                    "SELECT domain, dns_txt_value FROM acme_challenges WHERE order_id = $1 AND challenge_type = 'dns-01'",
+                    order_id,
+                )
+                for ch in chs:
+                    try:
+                        await provider.remove_txt_record(ACMEService._challenge_dns_name(ch["domain"]), ch["dns_txt_value"])
+                    except DnsProviderError:
+                        pass  # tolerate; the reconcile sweep will retry
+        await conn.execute(
+            "UPDATE acme_challenges SET dns_record_cleaned = TRUE WHERE order_id = $1 AND dns_record_published = TRUE",
+            order_id,
+        )
+
+        import json
+        domains = json.loads(order["domains"]) if isinstance(order["domains"], str) else (order["domains"] or [])
+        cluster_ids = json.loads(order["cluster_ids"]) if isinstance(order["cluster_ids"], str) else (order["cluster_ids"] or [])
+        next_attempts = (order["dns01_attempts"] or 0) + 1
+        child = await acme_svc.create_order(
+            order["account_id"], domains, cluster_ids, challenge_type="dns-01",
+            created_by=order["created_by"],
+        )
+        child_created = True
+        await conn.execute(
+            """UPDATE letsencrypt_orders
+               SET dns01_attempts = $1, dns01_parent_order_id = $2, dns01_last_attempt_at = NOW()
+               WHERE id = $3""",
+            next_attempts, order_id, child["order_id"],
+        )
+        await record_event(order_id, "acme.dns01.validation", severity="WARNING",
+                           message=f"DNS-01 order invalid; minted retry #{next_attempts} (order {child['order_id']}).",
+                           details={"child_order_id": child["order_id"], "attempt": next_attempts}, conn=conn)
+    except Exception as exc:  # noqa: BLE001
+        logger.error(f"[DNS01-RETRY] order {order_id}: {exc}")
+        # A transient failure (e.g. CA rate limit) BEFORE the child was minted must NOT permanently
+        # burn the retry slot — reset the claim so the next cycle can retry. If the child was already
+        # created, leave the claim set (resetting would double-mint).
+        if not child_created:
+            try:
+                await conn.execute(
+                    "UPDATE letsencrypt_orders SET dns01_retry_claimed = FALSE WHERE id = $1 AND status = 'invalid'",
+                    order_id,
+                )
+            except Exception:
+                pass
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)
+
+
+async def reconcile_dns01_cleanup() -> None:
+    """Best-effort sweep that removes any TXT records left published for terminal orders (covers a
+    cleanup that failed, or the kill-switch being flipped off mid-flight). NOT gated by the
+    kill-switch. Runs once per completion cycle."""
+    conn = await get_database_connection()
+    try:
+        rows = await conn.fetch(
+            """SELECT c.id AS chal_id, c.order_id, c.domain, c.dns_txt_value, o.account_id, a.dns_provider
+               FROM acme_challenges c
+               JOIN letsencrypt_orders o ON c.order_id = o.id
+               JOIN letsencrypt_accounts a ON o.account_id = a.id
+               WHERE c.challenge_type = 'dns-01'
+                 AND c.dns_record_published = TRUE
+                 AND COALESCE(c.dns_record_cleaned, FALSE) = FALSE
+                 AND o.status IN ('valid', 'invalid', 'cancelled')
+               LIMIT 50""",
+        )
+        for r in rows:
+            provider_name = (r["dns_provider"] or "manual").strip()
+            if provider_name == "manual" or not is_supported(provider_name):
+                # Manual: nothing to call; mark cleaned so we stop revisiting.
+                await conn.execute("UPDATE acme_challenges SET dns_record_cleaned = TRUE WHERE id = $1", r["chal_id"])
+                continue
+            creds, _exists = await _load_credentials(conn, r["account_id"])
+            if creds is None:
+                continue  # can't clean without creds; leave for a later pass
+            provider = get_provider(provider_name, creds)
+            try:
+                await provider.remove_txt_record(ACMEService._challenge_dns_name(r["domain"]), r["dns_txt_value"])
+                await conn.execute("UPDATE acme_challenges SET dns_record_cleaned = TRUE WHERE id = $1", r["chal_id"])
+                await record_event(r["order_id"], "acme.dns01.cleanup",
+                                   message=f"Cleaned up TXT for {r['domain']}", conn=conn)
+            except DnsProviderError:
+                pass  # retry next sweep
+    except Exception as exc:  # noqa: BLE001
+        logger.debug(f"[DNS01-RECONCILE] skipped: {exc}")
+    finally:
+        await close_database_connection(conn)

backend/services/dns_providers/__init__.py

@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+"""Issue #35 — ACME DNS-01 (v1.8.0): pluggable DNS provider package.
+
+A small adapter layer so DNS-01 challenges can publish/clean up the
+`_acme-challenge.<domain>` TXT record via different DNS providers. The interface is
+additive at the RRset level (add/remove a single value by name+content, never
+overwrite-by-name) so multiple coexisting values at one name (wildcard + apex) work.
+
+MVP providers: manual (user publishes the TXT themselves) and Cloudflare. New providers
+plug in via the registry without touching the orchestration.
+"""
+from .base import DnsProvider, DnsProviderError
+from .registry import get_provider, list_providers, is_supported
+
+__all__ = ["DnsProvider", "DnsProviderError", "get_provider", "list_providers", "is_supported"]

backend/services/dns_providers/base.py

@@ -0,0 +1,53 @@
+"""Abstract DNS provider interface for ACME DNS-01 (Issue #35)."""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+from abc import ABC, abstractmethod
+from typing import Dict, List
+
+
+class DnsProviderError(Exception):
+    """A DNS provider failure with a SANITIZED, user-safe message.
+
+    The message must NEVER contain API tokens, request headers, or other secrets — it is
+    persisted to acme_order_events / order error_detail and shown in the UI. Raise this (not a
+    raw aiohttp/json error) so credentials can't leak into logs or the order timeline.
+    """
+
+
+class DnsProvider(ABC):
+    """Base class for a pluggable DNS provider.
+
+    RRset semantics are ADDITIVE: ``add_txt_record`` ensures a (name, value) TXT exists WITHOUT
+    removing other values at the same name, and ``remove_txt_record`` deletes ONLY the record
+    matching (name, value). This is required because a cert for ``example.com`` + ``*.example.com``
+    publishes two distinct values at the SAME name ``_acme-challenge.example.com``.
+    """
+
+    # Stable machine name (used in DB + API); human label; whether the provider automates publishing.
+    name: str = "base"
+    label: str = "Base"
+    automated: bool = True
+
+    # Declarative schema the UI renders to collect credentials. Each field:
+    #   {"key", "label", "type" ("text"|"password"), "required" (bool), "max_length" (int), "help" (str)}
+    credential_fields: List[Dict] = []
+
+    def __init__(self, credentials: Dict[str, str] | None = None):
+        self.credentials = credentials or {}
+
+    @abstractmethod
+    async def verify_credentials(self) -> Dict:
+        """Validate the stored credentials against the provider. Returns
+        ``{"ok": bool, "detail": str}`` (detail is user-safe). Must not raise on auth failure —
+        return ``ok=False`` with a sanitized detail; may raise DnsProviderError on transport errors.
+        """
+
+    @abstractmethod
+    async def add_txt_record(self, name: str, value: str) -> None:
+        """Ensure a TXT record (name, value) exists. Idempotent; must not remove other values
+        at the same name. Raise DnsProviderError (sanitized) on failure."""
+
+    @abstractmethod
+    async def remove_txt_record(self, name: str, value: str) -> None:
+        """Remove ONLY the TXT record matching (name, value). Tolerate 'already gone'.
+        Raise DnsProviderError (sanitized) on a real failure."""

backend/services/dns_providers/cloudflare.py

@@ -0,0 +1,179 @@
+"""Cloudflare DNS provider for ACME DNS-01 (Issue #35).
+
+Uses the Cloudflare API v4 over aiohttp (no new dependency). The base URL is a hardcoded
+constant and redirects are not followed (no user-controlled URL — only the already-validated
+domain name influences which zone is used). Errors are wrapped in DnsProviderError with a
+sanitized message so the API token never reaches logs / order events.
+
+Token scope required: Zone:DNS:Edit + Zone:Read.
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import logging
+import re
+from typing import Dict, List, Optional, Tuple
+from urllib.parse import quote
+
+import aiohttp
+
+from .base import DnsProvider, DnsProviderError
+
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
+CLOUDFLARE_API_BASE = "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4"
+_TIMEOUT = aiohttp.ClientTimeout(total=20)
+
+# Characters NOT valid in an HTTP bearer credential (RFC 6750 token68: A-Za-z0-9-._~+/=).
+# Cloudflare API tokens are a strict subset of this set, so removing anything outside it can
+# never corrupt a valid token, but it does strip the paste artifacts that make Cloudflare
+# reject the Authorization header with HTTP 400 "Invalid request headers" (CF code 6003):
+# surrounding/embedded quotes, interior spaces/tabs, zero-width/unicode chars, and CR/LF
+# (the latter would otherwise make aiohttp raise client-side before the request is even sent).
+_NON_TOKEN68 = re.compile(r"[^A-Za-z0-9._~+/=-]")
+
+
+def _strip_quotes(s: str) -> str:
+    s = (s or "").strip()
+    if len(s) >= 2 and s[0] == '"' and s[-1] == '"':
+        return s[1:-1]
+    return s
+
+
+def _sanitize_token(s: str) -> str:
+    """Strip surrounding quotes/whitespace, then drop every character outside the token68 set."""
+    return _NON_TOKEN68.sub("", _strip_quotes(s))
+
+
+class CloudflareDNSProvider(DnsProvider):
+    name = "cloudflare"
+    label = "Cloudflare"
+    automated = True
+    credential_fields: List[Dict] = [
+        {
+            "key": "api_token",
+            "label": "API Token",
+            "type": "password",
+            "required": True,
+            "max_length": 200,
+            "help": "Scoped API token with Zone:DNS:Edit and Zone:Read permissions.",
+        }
+    ]
+
+    def __init__(self, credentials: Dict[str, str] | None = None):
+        super().__init__(credentials)
+        self._raw_token = (self.credentials.get("api_token") or "").strip()
+        # Sanitize to the token68 set so a pasted token with quotes/spaces/control/unicode chars
+        # cannot produce an invalid Authorization header (CF 6003 "Invalid request headers").
+        self._token = _sanitize_token(self._raw_token)
+
+    def _headers(self) -> Dict[str, str]:
+        return {"Authorization": f"Bearer {self._token}", "Content-Type": "application/json"}
+
+    async def _request(self, session: aiohttp.ClientSession, method: str, path: str, **kwargs) -> dict:
+        """One Cloudflare API call. Returns the parsed JSON body. Raises a SANITIZED
+        DnsProviderError on transport/HTTP/API error (never echoes the token or raw headers)."""
+        url = f"{CLOUDFLARE_API_BASE}{path}"
+        try:
+            async with session.request(
+                method, url, headers=self._headers(), allow_redirects=False, **kwargs
+            ) as resp:
+                try:
+                    body = await resp.json()
+                except Exception:  # noqa: BLE001
+                    body = {}
+                if resp.status in (401, 403):
+                    raise DnsProviderError("Cloudflare rejected the API token (check it has Zone:DNS:Edit + Zone:Read).")
+                if resp.status >= 400 or not body.get("success", False):
+                    # Cloudflare returns {"errors":[{"code":..,"message":..}]} — surface only the
+                    # human message text, never the request (which carries the token header).
+                    msgs = "; ".join(
+                        str(e.get("message")) for e in (body.get("errors") or []) if e.get("message")
+                    )
+                    raise DnsProviderError(
+                        f"Cloudflare API error (HTTP {resp.status}){': ' + msgs if msgs else ''}"
+                    )
+                return body
+        except DnsProviderError:
+            raise
+        except aiohttp.ClientError as exc:
+            # Do NOT include exc verbatim everywhere; aiohttp client errors are URL/transport only
+            # (no token), but keep the message generic and stable.
+            raise DnsProviderError(f"Could not reach the Cloudflare API ({type(exc).__name__}).")
+        except Exception as exc:  # noqa: BLE001
+            raise DnsProviderError(f"Unexpected Cloudflare API failure ({type(exc).__name__}).")
+
+    async def verify_credentials(self) -> Dict:
+        if not self._token:
+            return {"ok": False, "detail": "No Cloudflare API token provided."}
+        try:
+            async with aiohttp.ClientSession(timeout=_TIMEOUT) as session:
+                body = await self._request(session, "GET", "/zones?per_page=1")
+            total = ((body.get("result_info") or {}).get("total_count"))
+            detail = "Cloudflare token valid."
+            if isinstance(total, int):
+                detail = f"Cloudflare token valid; {total} zone(s) visible."
+            return {"ok": True, "detail": detail}
+        except DnsProviderError as exc:
+            # Always surface the real Cloudflare reason (e.g. token scope). If sanitizing also changed
+            # the token, append a hint that stray characters were stripped (never echo the token).
+            detail = str(exc)
+            if self._raw_token != self._token:
+                detail += (" Note: the token contained characters that were stripped; if it still "
+                           "fails, re-copy it from Cloudflare without quotes or spaces.")
+            return {"ok": False, "detail": detail}
+        except Exception:  # noqa: BLE001 — never leak an internal/transport error verbatim
+            return {"ok": False, "detail": "Could not verify the Cloudflare token."}
+
+    async def _resolve_zone(self, session: aiohttp.ClientSession, record_name: str) -> Tuple[str, str]:
+        """Find the most-specific (longest-suffix) managed zone for a record name.
+        Returns (zone_id, zone_name). Raises DnsProviderError if no zone matches."""
+        labels = record_name.split(".")
+        # Walk suffixes from longest to shortest; a zone needs at least 2 labels.
+        for i in range(len(labels) - 1):
+            candidate = ".".join(labels[i:])
+            if candidate.count(".") < 1:
+                break
+            body = await self._request(
+                session, "GET", f"/zones?name={quote(candidate)}&status=active&per_page=50"
+            )
+            results = body.get("result") or []
+            if results:
+                return results[0]["id"], candidate
+        raise DnsProviderError(f"No managed Cloudflare zone found for {record_name}.")
+
+    async def _find_record_id(
+        self, session: aiohttp.ClientSession, zone_id: str, name: str, value: str
+    ) -> Optional[str]:
+        body = await self._request(
+            session, "GET", f"/zones/{zone_id}/dns_records?type=TXT&name={quote(name)}&per_page=100"
+        )
+        for rec in body.get("result") or []:
+            if _strip_quotes(rec.get("content", "")) == value:
+                return rec.get("id")
+        return None
+
+    async def add_txt_record(self, name: str, value: str) -> None:
+        async with aiohttp.ClientSession(timeout=_TIMEOUT) as session:
+            zone_id, _zone_name = await self._resolve_zone(session, name)
+            # Idempotent: only create if (name, value) is not already present (preserves coexisting values).
+            existing = await self._find_record_id(session, zone_id, name, value)
+            if existing:
+                return
+            await self._request(
+                session,
+                "POST",
+                f"/zones/{zone_id}/dns_records",
+                json={"type": "TXT", "name": name, "content": value, "ttl": 120},
+            )
+
+    async def remove_txt_record(self, name: str, value: str) -> None:
+        async with aiohttp.ClientSession(timeout=_TIMEOUT) as session:
+            try:
+                zone_id, _zone_name = await self._resolve_zone(session, name)
+            except DnsProviderError:
+                # Zone gone / not resolvable — nothing we can clean up.
+                return
+            record_id = await self._find_record_id(session, zone_id, name, value)
+            if not record_id:
+                return  # already gone — tolerate
+            await self._request(session, "DELETE", f"/zones/{zone_id}/dns_records/{record_id}")

backend/services/dns_providers/manual.py

@@ -0,0 +1,31 @@
+"""Manual DNS provider for ACME DNS-01 (Issue #35).
+
+The user publishes the `_acme-challenge` TXT record in their own DNS (any provider, including
+fully internal/isolated DNS that no API can reach) and then confirms via the UI. There is no API
+to call, so add/remove are no-ops and the orchestration waits for an explicit `dns-confirm`.
+CNAME delegation works implicitly here: the CA follows a CNAME, so a user who delegates
+`_acme-challenge` elsewhere just publishes the value there and confirms.
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+from typing import Dict, List
+
+from .base import DnsProvider
+
+
+class ManualDNSProvider(DnsProvider):
+    name = "manual"
+    label = "Manual (publish the TXT record yourself)"
+    automated = False
+    credential_fields: List[Dict] = []  # no credentials needed
+
+    async def verify_credentials(self) -> Dict:
+        return {"ok": True, "detail": "Manual mode needs no credentials. You will publish the TXT record yourself."}
+
+    async def add_txt_record(self, name: str, value: str) -> None:
+        # No-op: the user publishes the record and confirms via the UI.
+        return None
+
+    async def remove_txt_record(self, name: str, value: str) -> None:
+        # No-op: the user may remove the record manually after issuance.
+        return None

backend/services/dns_providers/registry.py

@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+"""DNS provider registry for ACME DNS-01 (Issue #35).
+
+Single source of truth mapping a provider name -> class. The API serves the credential-field
+schema from here (so the UI has no hardcoded provider fields) and validates inbound provider
+names against this allow-list. Adding a provider = add it here; nothing else changes.
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+from typing import Dict, List, Type
+
+from .base import DnsProvider
+from .cloudflare import CloudflareDNSProvider
+from .manual import ManualDNSProvider
+
+_PROVIDERS: Dict[str, Type[DnsProvider]] = {
+    ManualDNSProvider.name: ManualDNSProvider,
+    CloudflareDNSProvider.name: CloudflareDNSProvider,
+}
+
+
+def is_supported(name: str) -> bool:
+    return name in _PROVIDERS
+
+
+def get_provider(name: str, credentials: Dict[str, str] | None = None) -> DnsProvider:
+    cls = _PROVIDERS.get(name)
+    if cls is None:
+        raise ValueError(f"Unsupported DNS provider: {name}")
+    return cls(credentials or {})
+
+
+def list_providers() -> List[Dict]:
+    """Return the UI-facing provider catalog: name, label, automated flag, and credential schema."""
+    out: List[Dict] = []
+    for name, cls in _PROVIDERS.items():
+        out.append(
+            {
+                "name": cls.name,
+                "label": cls.label,
+                "automated": cls.automated,
+                "credential_fields": cls.credential_fields,
+            }
+        )
+    return out

backend/services/frontend_service.py

@@ -56,14 +56,14 @@ async def create_frontend_row(
             acl_rules, redirect_rules, use_backend_rules,
             request_headers, response_headers, options, tcp_request_rules, timeout_client, timeout_http_request,
             rate_limit, compression, log_separate, monitor_uri,
-            cluster_id, maxconn, updated_at
+            cluster_id, maxconn, log_format, filters, updated_at
         ) VALUES (
             $1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6, $7, $8, $9, $10, $11, $12,
             $13, $14, $15, $16, $17, $18, $19,
             $20, $21, $22,
             $23, $24, $25, $26, $27, $28,
             $29, $30, $31, $32,
-            $33, $34, CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
+            $33, $34, $35, $36, CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
         )
         RETURNING id
         """,
@@ -101,6 +101,8 @@ async def create_frontend_row(
         getattr(payload, "monitor_uri", None),
         cluster_id,
         getattr(payload, "maxconn", None),
+        getattr(payload, "log_format", None),  # Issue #38
+        getattr(payload, "filters", None),     # Issue #38
     )
 
     if mark_pending:

backend/services/haproxy_config.py

@@ -393,6 +393,12 @@ def _categorize_haproxy_directive(line: str) -> str:
         return "prelude"
     if s.startswith("acl "):
         return "acl"
+    # Issue #38: SPOE (and other) `filter` directives must be declared BEFORE
+    # the `http-request send-spoe-group` rules that use them, otherwise HAProxy
+    # fails with "unable to find SPOE engine". Own bucket, flushed right after
+    # `prelude` and before tcp_req/acl/http_req (see flush order below).
+    if s.startswith("filter "):
+        return "filter"
     if s.startswith("stick-table") or s.startswith("stick "):
         return "stick"
     if s.startswith("tcp-request"):
@@ -414,6 +420,7 @@ def _categorize_haproxy_directive(line: str) -> str:
         or s.startswith("compression ")
         or s.startswith("monitor-uri")
         or s.startswith("log ")
+        or s.startswith("log-format")  # Issue #38: log-format / log-format-sd
         or s.startswith("description ")
         or s.startswith("disabled")
         or s.startswith("enabled")
@@ -903,11 +910,18 @@ async def generate_haproxy_config_for_cluster(cluster_id: int, conn: Optional[An
             # "stick-table already declared").
             # ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
             _fe_buckets: Dict[str, List[str]] = {
-                "prelude": [], "stick": [], "tcp_req": [],
+                "prelude": [], "filter": [], "stick": [], "tcp_req": [],
                 "acl": [], "http_req": [], "http_resp": [],
                 "redirect": [], "use_be": [], "default_be": [],
             }
             _stick_table_emitted = False
+            # Whether this frontend emits ANY stick-counter usage (`track-sc<N>` or an
+            # `sc_*_rate(...)` fetch). If it does but no `stick-table` is declared, HAProxy
+            # fatally rejects the WHOLE cluster config with "table '<frontend>' used but not
+            # configured". This happens with rate-limit directives baked into a frontend's
+            # stored fields (request_headers/options) by an older version or a config import.
+            # We track it here and inject a default stick-table before flushing if needed.
+            _sc_counter_used = False
             # Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #13) — same dedup
             # contract for `http-request track-sc<N> <fetch>` lines.
             # HAProxy only NEEDS one tracking call per
@@ -931,9 +945,13 @@ async def generate_haproxy_config_for_cluster(cluster_id: int, conn: Optional[An
                 correct frontend-block bucket. Idempotent for stick-table
                 lines (R3.3 dedup) AND http-request track-sc<N> lines
                 (Bulgu #13 dedup)."""
-                nonlocal _stick_table_emitted
+                nonlocal _stick_table_emitted, _sc_counter_used
                 cat = _categorize_haproxy_directive(line)
                 stripped = line.strip()
+                # Any stick-counter usage (track-sc<N> write, or an sc_*_rate(...) fetch like
+                # sc_http_req_rate(0)) requires a stick-table in this frontend.
+                if "track-sc" in stripped or ("sc_" in stripped and "_rate(" in stripped):
+                    _sc_counter_used = True
                 if cat == "stick":
                     if _stick_table_emitted and stripped.startswith("stick-table"):
                         logger.debug(
@@ -985,6 +1003,17 @@ async def generate_haproxy_config_for_cluster(cluster_id: int, conn: Optional[An
                     if line_stripped and line_stripped not in ('[]', '{}', 'null', 'None'):
                         _emit_fe(f"    {line_stripped}")
 
+            # Issue #38: emit frontend log-format and SPOE (etc.) filter directives.
+            # `log_format` routes to the `prelude` bucket, `filters` to the `filter`
+            # bucket (both via _emit_fe → _categorize_haproxy_directive), guaranteeing
+            # `filter ...` is rendered before the `http-request send-spoe-group` rules.
+            for _fld in ('log_format', 'filters'):
+                if frontend.get(_fld):
+                    for line in frontend[_fld].split('\n'):
+                        line_stripped = line.strip()
+                        if line_stripped and line_stripped not in ('[]', '{}', 'null', 'None'):
+                            _emit_fe(f"    {line_stripped}")
+
             # CRITICAL: Validate frontend-backend mode compatibility
             if frontend.get('default_backend'):
                 default_backend_name = frontend['default_backend'].strip() if frontend['default_backend'] else ''
@@ -1188,6 +1217,22 @@ async def generate_haproxy_config_for_cluster(cluster_id: int, conn: Optional[An
                 else:
                     logger.warning(f"Config Generation: No config lines generated for WAF rule '{waf_rule['name']}' (ID: {waf_rule['id']}, Type: {waf_rule['rule_type']})")
 
+            # Robustness fix: if this frontend uses a stick counter (track-sc<N> or an
+            # sc_*_rate(...) fetch) but declared NO stick-table, inject a default one so HAProxy
+            # doesn't fatally reject the whole cluster config with "table '<frontend>' used but
+            # not configured". This rescues rate-limit directives baked into a frontend's stored
+            # request_headers/options by an older version or import. Purely additive — it only
+            # fires when a counter is used AND no table exists (a config that is invalid today),
+            # so it never changes a frontend that already has a stick-table or doesn't rate-limit.
+            if _sc_counter_used and not _stick_table_emitted:
+                _fe_buckets["stick"].insert(
+                    0, "    stick-table type ip size 100k expire 30s store http_req_rate(10s)")
+                _stick_table_emitted = True
+                logger.info(
+                    f"STICK-TABLE AUTO-INJECT: frontend '{frontend['name']}' uses a stick "
+                    f"counter (track-sc/sc_*_rate) but declared no stick-table; injected a "
+                    f"default so the config stays valid.")
+
             # ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
             # Flush the per-frontend buckets in canonical HAProxy order.
             # The order below is the single source of truth for emit
@@ -1196,6 +1241,7 @@ async def generate_haproxy_config_for_cluster(cluster_id: int, conn: Optional[An
             # ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
             for _bucket_key in (
                 "prelude",
+                "filter",
                 "stick",
                 "tcp_req",
                 "acl",

backend/services/keepalived_config.py

@@ -0,0 +1,192 @@
+"""Issue #27 — HA/VIP (Keepalived) management (v1.7.0).
+
+Standalone, DB-free renderer for a node's /etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf and the
+HAProxy health-check script, plus Fernet at-rest encryption for the VRRP secret.
+
+The router fetches DB rows and calls these pure functions; nothing here touches the
+database or logs secrets. Trivially unit-testable (see tests/test_keepalived_config.py).
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import base64
+import logging
+import os
+import re
+from typing import List, Optional
+
+from cryptography.fernet import Fernet, InvalidToken
+from cryptography.hazmat.primitives import hashes
+from cryptography.hazmat.primitives.kdf.hkdf import HKDF
+
+from config import SECRET_KEY
+
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
+# Written into every file we manage so the agent can tell "ours" from a
+# hand-maintained keepalived setup (ownership guard, B-3/T-2). Must match the
+# string the agent greps for in linux_install.sh.
+OWNERSHIP_MARKER = "# Managed by HAProxy OpenManager"
+CHECK_SCRIPT_PATH = "/etc/keepalived/check_haproxy.sh"
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# VRRP secret at rest (mirrors backend/services/mfa_service.py)
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+_fernet_instance: Optional[Fernet] = None
+
+
+def _resolve_fernet_key() -> bytes:
+    """Prefer an explicit VIP_ENCRYPTION_KEY; else derive from SECRET_KEY via HKDF
+    with a versioned info string (so the secret survives restarts, like MFA)."""
+    explicit = os.getenv("VIP_ENCRYPTION_KEY", "").strip()
+    if explicit:
+        try:
+            Fernet(explicit.encode())
+            return explicit.encode()
+        except Exception as exc:  # noqa: BLE001
+            logger.error("VIP_ENCRYPTION_KEY env var present but invalid: %s", exc)
+    hkdf = HKDF(algorithm=hashes.SHA256(), length=32, salt=None, info=b"vip-vrrp-secret-v1")
+    derived = hkdf.derive(SECRET_KEY.encode("utf-8"))
+    return base64.urlsafe_b64encode(derived)
+
+
+def _get_fernet() -> Fernet:
+    global _fernet_instance
+    if _fernet_instance is None:
+        _fernet_instance = Fernet(_resolve_fernet_key())
+    return _fernet_instance
+
+
+def reset_fernet_for_tests() -> None:
+    """Test-only hook to force re-resolution after env mutation."""
+    global _fernet_instance
+    _fernet_instance = None
+
+
+def encrypt_vrrp_secret(secret_plain: str) -> str:
+    return _get_fernet().encrypt(secret_plain.encode("utf-8")).decode("utf-8")
+
+
+def decrypt_vrrp_secret(secret_encrypted: str) -> Optional[str]:
+    try:
+        return _get_fernet().decrypt(secret_encrypted.encode("utf-8")).decode("utf-8")
+    except InvalidToken:
+        logger.warning("Failed to decrypt VRRP secret (invalid Fernet token)")
+        return None
+    except Exception as exc:  # noqa: BLE001
+        logger.error("Unexpected error decrypting VRRP secret: %s", exc)
+        return None
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Renderers
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+def build_haproxy_check_script(*, bin_path: Optional[str] = None,
+                               config_path: Optional[str] = None) -> str:
+    """Render the health-check the agent writes to CHECK_SCRIPT_PATH.
+
+    Derives the process name from the HAProxy binary basename (B-4) rather than a
+    blind hardcoded 'haproxy'. Returns non-zero when HAProxy isn't running so the
+    VRRP track_script lowers this node's priority and the VIP fails over.
+    """
+    proc = "haproxy"
+    if bin_path:
+        base = os.path.basename(bin_path.strip())
+        if re.match(r'^[A-Za-z0-9._-]{1,64}$', base):
+            proc = base
+    return (
+        "#!/bin/sh\n"
+        f"{OWNERSHIP_MARKER} — DO NOT EDIT\n"
+        "# Exits 0 while HAProxy is up; non-zero triggers VRRP failover.\n"
+        f"pidof {proc} >/dev/null 2>&1 || exit 1\n"
+        "exit 0\n"
+    )
+
+
+def _vrrp_instance_name(vip_id: int) -> str:
+    return f"VI_{int(vip_id)}"
+
+
+def _failover_weight(members: List[dict]) -> int:
+    """Negative weight so a failed MASTER drops strictly below every healthy BACKUP
+    (B-6). master_priority + weight < min(backup_priority)."""
+    master = next((m for m in members if str(m.get("role", "")).upper() == "MASTER"), None)
+    backups = [int(m["priority"]) for m in members if str(m.get("role", "")).upper() != "MASTER"]
+    if not master or not backups:
+        return -20
+    return -((int(master["priority"]) - min(backups)) + 1)
+
+
+def render_keepalived_conf(*, vip: dict, members: List[dict], this_agent: dict,
+                           peer_ips: List[str], auth_pass_plain: Optional[str]) -> str:
+    """Render one node's keepalived.conf from the VIP + member rows.
+
+    `vip` keys: id, name, virtual_ip, prefix_length, virtual_router_id, advert_int,
+                use_unicast, track_haproxy.
+    `this_agent` keys: role, priority, network_interface, ip_address (str).
+    `peer_ips`: the OTHER members' ip_address strings (already str()'d by the caller).
+    Caller must never log the returned string (it may contain auth_pass).
+    """
+    role = str(this_agent["role"]).upper()
+    iface = this_agent["network_interface"]
+    prio = int(this_agent["priority"])
+    track = bool(vip.get("track_haproxy", True))
+    use_unicast = bool(vip.get("use_unicast", True))
+    vrid = int(vip["virtual_router_id"])
+    advert = int(vip.get("advert_int", 1))
+    name = str(vip.get("name", ""))
+    inst = _vrrp_instance_name(vip["id"])
+
+    lines: List[str] = []
+    lines.append(f"{OWNERSHIP_MARKER} — DO NOT EDIT")
+    lines.append(f'# VIP "{name}" (id={vip["id"]}) — role {role}')
+    lines.append("global_defs {")
+    lines.append("    enable_script_security")
+    lines.append("    script_user root")
+    lines.append("}")
+    lines.append("")
+
+    if track:
+        weight = _failover_weight(members)
+        lines.append("vrrp_script chk_haproxy {")
+        lines.append(f'    script "{CHECK_SCRIPT_PATH}"')
+        lines.append("    interval 2")
+        lines.append("    fall 2")
+        lines.append("    rise 2")
+        lines.append(f"    weight {weight}")
+        lines.append("}")
+        lines.append("")
+
+    lines.append(f"vrrp_instance {inst} {{")
+    lines.append(f"    state {role}")
+    lines.append(f"    interface {iface}")
+    lines.append(f"    virtual_router_id {vrid}")
+    lines.append(f"    priority {prio}")
+    lines.append(f"    advert_int {advert}")
+    if auth_pass_plain:
+        lines.append("    authentication {")
+        lines.append("        auth_type PASS")
+        lines.append(f"        auth_pass {auth_pass_plain}")
+        lines.append("    }")
+    # Unicast only makes sense with at least one peer. For a single-node VIP (no peers)
+    # we deliberately omit the unicast block: keepalived treats a bare `unicast_src_ip`
+    # with no `unicast_peer` as deprecated, warns, and silently falls back to multicast —
+    # and `keepalived -t` flags it. Omitting it yields a clean multicast config that holds
+    # the VIP with no peer to talk to. Multi-node behaviour (peers present) is unchanged.
+    if use_unicast and peer_ips:
+        src = this_agent.get("ip_address")
+        if src:
+            lines.append(f"    unicast_src_ip {src}")
+        lines.append("    unicast_peer {")
+        for p in peer_ips:
+            lines.append(f"        {p}")
+        lines.append("    }")
+    lines.append("    virtual_ipaddress {")
+    lines.append(f'        {vip["virtual_ip"]}/{int(vip.get("prefix_length", 24))} dev {iface}')
+    lines.append("    }")
+    if track:
+        lines.append("    track_script {")
+        lines.append("        chk_haproxy")
+        lines.append("    }")
+    lines.append("}")
+    return "\n".join(lines) + "\n"

backend/tests/test_acl_pattern_file_allow.py

@@ -0,0 +1,190 @@
+"""Issue #38 follow-up — ACL `-f <file>` pattern-file support (v1.8.9).
+
+The Bulgu #12 hard rejects were removed: pattern files are
+operator-managed host files (same policy as the SPOE
+`filter ... config <path>` reference preserved since v1.8.8), bulk
+import always accepted `-f`, and the agent runs `haproxy -c` before
+every reload so a missing file fails safely. These tests pin:
+
+1. ACCEPT — the manual FrontendConfig model and the wizard models
+   accept `-f` in every rule field (string + dict shapes).
+2. GUARDS KEPT — `$(`/backtick shell-substitution rejects and the
+   `X !X` contradiction machinery are unchanged.
+3. WARNINGS — `_pattern_file_warnings` emits exactly one advisory
+   listing the referenced files, and NOTHING for `-f`-free rules
+   (zero-noise: existing users see no new output).
+4. ADVISORY — the bulk-import preview advisory block scans
+   acl/use_backend rules (and only those fields).
+"""
+
+import re
+import sys
+from pathlib import Path
+
+import pytest
+
+sys.path.insert(0, str(Path(__file__).resolve().parents[1]))
+
+from models.frontend import FrontendConfig  # noqa: E402
+from routers.frontend import _pattern_file_warnings  # noqa: E402
+
+
+ACL_F = "blacklisted src -f /etc/haproxy/blacklist.lst"
+UB_F = "be-secure if { src -f /etc/haproxy/allowlist.lst }"
+REDIR_F = "location /blocked if { src -f /etc/haproxy/blacklist.lst }"
+
+
+# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+# 1. ACCEPT — manual FrontendConfig model
+# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+
+def test_frontend_config_accepts_acl_file_flag():
+    fe = FrontendConfig(name="fe1", bind_port=80, mode="http", acl_rules=[ACL_F])
+    assert fe.acl_rules == [ACL_F]
+
+
+def test_frontend_config_accepts_use_backend_file_flag():
+    fe = FrontendConfig(
+        name="fe1", bind_port=80, mode="http", use_backend_rules=[UB_F])
+    assert fe.use_backend_rules == [UB_F]
+
+
+def test_frontend_config_accepts_redirect_string_file_flag():
+    fe = FrontendConfig(
+        name="fe1", bind_port=80, mode="http", redirect_rules=[REDIR_F])
+    assert fe.redirect_rules == [REDIR_F]
+
+
+def test_frontend_config_accepts_redirect_dict_file_flag():
+    rule = {"type": "scheme", "scheme": "https",
+            "condition": "if { src -f /etc/haproxy/blacklist.lst }"}
+    fe = FrontendConfig(
+        name="fe1", bind_port=80, mode="http", redirect_rules=[rule])
+    assert fe.redirect_rules == [rule]
+
+
+# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+# 2. GUARDS KEPT — dangerous-content rejects unchanged
+# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("bad_rule", [
+    "acl1 path $(rm -rf /)",
+    "acl1 path `id`",
+])
+def test_acl_shell_substitution_still_rejected(bad_rule):
+    from pydantic import ValidationError
+    with pytest.raises(ValidationError):
+        FrontendConfig(name="fe1", bind_port=80, mode="http", acl_rules=[bad_rule])
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("bad_rule", [
+    "be1 if $(whoami)",
+    "be1 if `id`",
+])
+def test_use_backend_shell_substitution_still_rejected(bad_rule):
+    from pydantic import ValidationError
+    with pytest.raises(ValidationError):
+        FrontendConfig(
+            name="fe1", bind_port=80, mode="http", use_backend_rules=[bad_rule])
+
+
+def test_contradiction_detection_still_works_on_file_flag_rules():
+    """Interaction guard: a `-f` rule with an `X !X` contradiction is
+    still caught by the handler-level contradiction machinery — the
+    `-f` relaxation must not weaken that gate."""
+    from models.frontend import _frontend_has_acl_contradiction
+    assert _frontend_has_acl_contradiction(
+        "be1 if blacklisted !blacklisted") is True
+    # And a normal -f rule is NOT a contradiction.
+    assert _frontend_has_acl_contradiction(UB_F) is False
+
+
+# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+# 3. WARNINGS — _pattern_file_warnings (zero-noise contract)
+# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+
+def test_pattern_file_warnings_lists_unique_paths():
+    warnings = _pattern_file_warnings(
+        acl_rules=[ACL_F, "other src -f /etc/haproxy/blacklist.lst"],
+        use_backend_rules=[UB_F],
+        redirect_rules=[{"condition": "if { src -f /etc/haproxy/geo.lst }"}],
+    )
+    assert len(warnings) == 1
+    w = warnings[0]
+    assert "/etc/haproxy/blacklist.lst" in w
+    assert "/etc/haproxy/allowlist.lst" in w
+    assert "/etc/haproxy/geo.lst" in w
+    # Duplicate path listed once.
+    assert w.count("/etc/haproxy/blacklist.lst") == 1
+    # Non-blocking framing: mentions fail-safe haproxy -c.
+    assert "haproxy -c" in w
+
+
+def test_pattern_file_warnings_empty_without_file_flag():
+    """Zero-noise: operators who don't use `-f` must see NO warning."""
+    assert _pattern_file_warnings(
+        acl_rules=["is_api path_beg /api", "is_admin src 10.0.0.0/24"],
+        use_backend_rules=["be-api if is_api"],
+        redirect_rules=[{"type": "scheme", "scheme": "https",
+                         "condition": "if !{ ssl_fc }"}],
+    ) == []
+    assert _pattern_file_warnings() == []
+
+
+def test_pattern_file_warnings_ignores_dash_f_substrings():
+    """`-file`/`-foo` substrings must not trigger the advisory."""
+    assert _pattern_file_warnings(
+        acl_rules=["is_self path_beg /self-config-file",
+                   "is_foo path_beg /foo -m beg"],
+    ) == []
+
+
+# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+# 4. Wizard models accept `-f` (string + dict) — parity
+# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+
+def test_wizard_models_accept_file_flag():
+    from models.site_wizard import FrontendStep
+
+    fe = FrontendStep(
+        name="fe1", mode="http", bind_address="*", bind_port=80,
+        acl_rules=[ACL_F],
+        use_backend_rules=["be-x if blacklisted"],
+        redirect_rules=[{"type": "scheme", "target": "https",
+                         "condition": "if { src -f /etc/haproxy/x.lst }"}],
+    )
+    assert fe.acl_rules == [ACL_F]
+    assert fe.redirect_rules[0]["condition"] == "if { src -f /etc/haproxy/x.lst }"
+
+
+# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+# 5. Bulk-import preview advisory — source-level pin
+# ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+
+def test_parse_bulk_advisory_scans_only_structured_rule_fields():
+    """The preview advisory scans acl_rules/use_backend_rules but NOT
+    request_headers/tcp_request_rules (always-free-form fields —
+    warning there would add new noise for existing users)."""
+    src = Path(__file__).resolve().parents[1] / "routers" / "config.py"
+    text = src.read_text()
+    block_start = text.index("pattern-file advisory")
+    block = text[block_start:block_start + 1200]
+    assert 'acl_rules' in block
+    assert 'use_backend_rules' in block
+    assert 'request_headers' not in block.split("_pattern_paths")[1], (
+        "advisory must not scan request_headers")
+
+
+def test_no_dash_f_reject_left_in_models():
+    """No model file may still hard-reject the `-f` flag."""
+    for rel in ("models/frontend.py", "models/site_wizard.py"):
+        text = (Path(__file__).resolve().parents[1] / rel).read_text()
+        for m in re.finditer(r"-f\(\\s\|\$\)", text):
+            ctx = text[max(0, m.start() - 400):m.start() + 400]
+            assert "raise ValueError" not in ctx, (
+                f"{rel}: a `-f` reject regex still sits next to a raise")

backend/tests/test_acme_humanizer.py

@@ -81,6 +81,7 @@ def test_legacy_plain_string_with_brace_but_invalid_json_falls_back():
     ("urn:ietf:params:acme:error:rejectedIdentifier", "blacklisted",    "rejected"),
     ("urn:ietf:params:acme:error:serverInternal", "internal err",       "ACME server"),
     ("urn:ietf:params:acme:error:userActionRequired", "agree to ToS",   "User action"),
+    ("urn:ietf:params:acme:error:externalAccountRequired", "EAB required", "External Account Binding"),
 ])
 def test_known_problem_types_are_humanized(problem_type, detail_text, expected_title_contains):
     payload = json.dumps({"type": problem_type, "detail": detail_text, "status": 400})

backend/tests/test_acme_pydantic_validation.py

@@ -8,7 +8,31 @@ from pydantic import ValidationError
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__))))
 
-from routers.letsencrypt import CertificateRequest
+from routers.letsencrypt import CertificateRequest, AccountCreate
+
+
+class TestAccountCreateEAB:
+    """Issue #35 follow-up: EAB HMAC key must be valid base64url; empty/None passes through
+    (falls back to global Settings) so non-EAB accounts (HTTP-01 / LE / Cloudflare) are unaffected."""
+
+    def test_no_eab_is_allowed(self):
+        acc = AccountCreate(email="a@b.com")
+        assert acc.eab_hmac_key is None and acc.eab_kid is None
+
+    def test_valid_base64url_hmac_accepted(self):
+        # urlsafe base64, unpadded and padded — both accepted.
+        AccountCreate(email="a@b.com", eab_kid="kid-1", eab_hmac_key="YWJjZGVmZ2g")
+        AccountCreate(email="a@b.com", eab_kid="kid-1", eab_hmac_key="YWJjZA==")
+
+    def test_invalid_base64_hmac_rejected(self):
+        # 5 base64 chars (count ≡ 1 mod 4) is undecodable — the exact shape that would otherwise
+        # make register_account's _b64url_decode raise a cryptic binascii error.
+        with pytest.raises(ValidationError):
+            AccountCreate(email="a@b.com", eab_kid="kid-1", eab_hmac_key="AAAAA")
+
+    def test_oversized_hmac_rejected(self):
+        with pytest.raises(ValidationError):
+            AccountCreate(email="a@b.com", eab_kid="kid-1", eab_hmac_key="A" * 600)
 
 
 class TestCertificateRequestDomains:

backend/tests/test_agent_heartbeat_sanitizer.py

@@ -0,0 +1,97 @@
+"""Issue #31 — agent heartbeat JSON sanitizer.
+
+A self-hosted agent builds its heartbeat JSON as text in bash. When a collected value is empty,
+the payload can contain a structurally-invalid comma that broke the heartbeat with
+`HTTP 400 Invalid JSON: Expecting property name enclosed in double quotes`. The backend now
+repairs that pattern in `_sanitize_agent_json` so an already-deployed agent recovers without a
+re-install. These tests pin that behaviour and prove the repair never corrupts a healthy payload.
+"""
+import json
+
+from routers.agent import _sanitize_agent_json
+
+
+def _assert_parses(raw: str) -> dict:
+    out, _ = _sanitize_agent_json(raw)
+    return json.loads(out)  # raises if the repair did not produce valid JSON
+
+
+def test_reporter_empty_system_info_bare_comma():
+    # The exact shape the reporter hit: an empty $system_info collapses '    $system_info,' to a
+    # bare comma between two members -> '"version": "x",\n    ,\n    "haproxy_status": ...'.
+    raw = (
+        '{\n'
+        '    "name": "test",\n'
+        '    "hostname": "h",\n'
+        '    "status": "online",\n'
+        '    "version": "2.0.0",\n'
+        '    ,\n'
+        '    "haproxy_status": "running",\n'
+        '    "cluster_id": 1\n'
+        '}'
+    )
+    parsed = _assert_parses(raw)
+    assert parsed["name"] == "test"
+    assert parsed["status"] == "online"
+    assert parsed["haproxy_status"] == "running"
+
+
+def test_empty_numeric_subfield_before_comma():
+    # An empty unquoted numeric ("memory_total": ,) — covered by the pre-existing Fix 1.
+    raw = '{ "name": "t", "cpu_count": , "memory_total": , "status": "online" }'
+    parsed = _assert_parses(raw)
+    assert parsed["cpu_count"] is None and parsed["memory_total"] is None
+    assert parsed["status"] == "online"
+
+
+def test_empty_value_before_closing_brace():
+    raw = '{ "name": "t", "status": "online", "applied_config_version": }'
+    parsed = _assert_parses(raw)
+    assert parsed["applied_config_version"] is None
+
+
+def test_leading_comma_first_member():
+    # Empty $system_info as the FIRST member -> '{ , "name": ... }'.
+    raw = '{\n    ,\n    "name": "t",\n    "status": "online"\n}'
+    parsed = _assert_parses(raw)
+    assert parsed["name"] == "t"
+
+
+def test_comma_run_two_empty_fields():
+    # Two empties in a row (odd-length comma run) must still collapse to valid JSON.
+    raw = '{ "a": 1,\n    ,\n    ,\n    "b": 2 }'
+    parsed = _assert_parses(raw)
+    assert parsed["a"] == 1 and parsed["b"] == 2
+
+
+def test_trailing_comma_regression():
+    # Pre-existing Fix 3 must still hold after the new fixes were added.
+    raw = '{ "name": "t", "status": "online", }'
+    parsed = _assert_parses(raw)
+    assert parsed["name"] == "t"
+
+
+def test_healthy_payload_is_untouched():
+    # A well-formed agent payload must pass through unchanged (sanitized=False) and its values —
+    # including the base64 stats CSV and the nested server_statuses — must be byte-identical.
+    payload = {
+        "name": "agent-1",
+        "status": "online",
+        "cluster_id": 1,
+        "server_statuses": {"be_app": {"s1": "UP", "s2": "DOWN"}},
+        "network_interfaces": ["eth0", "eth1"],
+        "haproxy_stats_csv": "IyBwdmJjLGJhY2tlbmQsZnJvbnRlbmQs",  # base64: contains commas only inside a quoted string is impossible (base64 has none)
+        "applied_config_version": "cluster-1-v42",
+    }
+    raw = json.dumps(payload)
+    out, changed = _sanitize_agent_json(raw)
+    assert changed is False
+    assert out == raw  # byte-identical
+    assert json.loads(out) == payload
+
+
+def test_idempotent_on_already_clean_minimal():
+    raw = '{"name": "t", "status": "online"}'
+    out, changed = _sanitize_agent_json(raw)
+    assert changed is False
+    assert out == raw

backend/tests/test_agent_script_heartbeat_json.py

@@ -0,0 +1,61 @@
+"""Issue #31 — agent-script hardening guard (static).
+
+The agent install scripts hand-build the heartbeat JSON, so if `collect_system_info` ever yields
+nothing the `$system_info,` line collapses to a bare comma and the whole heartbeat is invalid JSON
+(HTTP 400). The fix adds a guard at every fragment-form call site that substitutes a single valid
+key when system_info is empty. This static check enforces that the guard is present AND kept in
+sync across BOTH platform scripts — the project requires the two agent-script copies to stay in
+lockstep. (Empty numeric subfields like "memory_total": , are a separate, milder case already
+repaired by the backend sanitizer, so they are intentionally NOT guarded in the script — guarding
+them with a strict integer test would wrongly reject the scientific-notation that mawk emits for
+multi-GB sizes on Debian/Ubuntu.)
+"""
+import os
+
+_SCRIPT_DIR = os.path.join(
+    os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__))),  # backend/
+    "utils", "agent_scripts",
+)
+
+
+def _read(name: str) -> str:
+    with open(os.path.join(_SCRIPT_DIR, name), "r") as f:
+        return f.read()
+
+
+LINUX = _read("linux_install.sh")
+MACOS = _read("macos_install.sh")
+
+# The empty-system_info guard — present at BOTH fragment call sites (register_agent + send_heartbeat).
+_B2_GUARD = '[[ "$system_info" != *\'"\'* ]] && system_info=\'"operating_system": "unknown"\''
+
+
+def test_b2_guard_present_and_in_sync():
+    # Two fragment-form call sites per script (register_agent + send_heartbeat), identical wording.
+    assert LINUX.count(_B2_GUARD) == 2, "linux_install.sh missing/duplicated empty-system_info guard"
+    assert MACOS.count(_B2_GUARD) == 2, "macos_install.sh missing/duplicated empty-system_info guard"
+
+
+def test_b2_guard_precedes_every_fragment_system_info_use():
+    # Every '    $system_info,' fragment line (the one that breaks on an empty value) must be in a
+    # function whose system_info was guarded. We assert the count of guards matches the count of
+    # fragment-form interpolations' call sites: each script has exactly one register + one
+    # send_heartbeat fragment builder feeding those lines, both guarded above.
+    for name, script in (("linux", LINUX), ("macos", MACOS)):
+        assert script.count("    $system_info,") >= 1, f"{name}: fragment heartbeat form unexpectedly gone"
+        assert script.count(_B2_GUARD) == 2, f"{name}: each fragment call site must carry the guard"
+
+
+def test_cleanup_does_not_self_kill_via_bare_haproxy_agent_pattern():
+    # Issue #31 (v1.8.4): the pre-installation cleanup kills processes by pgrep -f "$pattern". A bare
+    # "haproxy-agent" pattern also matches the installer's OWN path (install-haproxy-agent-*.sh) and a
+    # sudo/PAM ancestor, so the installer killed itself. The kill loop must target ONLY the installed
+    # agent (binary path + service/label), never the bare string.
+    for name, script in (("linux", LINUX), ("macos", MACOS)):
+        assert 'for pattern in "haproxy-agent"' not in script, (
+            f"{name}: pre-install cleanup uses the bare 'haproxy-agent' kill pattern -> self-kill (issue #31)"
+        )
+        # The narrowed, installer-safe pattern must be present (binary path via $INSTALL_DIR).
+        assert 'for pattern in "$INSTALL_DIR/haproxy-agent"' in script, (
+            f"{name}: cleanup must match the installed binary path, not a bare substring"
+        )

backend/tests/test_dns01.py

@@ -0,0 +1,220 @@
+"""Issue #35 — ACME DNS-01: focused unit tests for the pure logic (no DB/network).
+
+Covers the TXT-value math (RFC 8555 §8.4 — raw SHA-256 digest, base64url, NOT hex),
+the _acme-challenge record-name derivation (wildcard stripping), credential encryption
+round-trip + tamper handling, and the DNS provider registry/allow-list.
+"""
+import base64
+import hashlib
+import os
+
+os.environ.setdefault("SECRET_KEY", "test-secret-key-for-dns01-unit-tests")
+
+from services.acme_service import ACMEService
+from services.dns_providers import list_providers, is_supported, get_provider, DnsProviderError
+from utils.dns_credentials import (
+    encrypt_dns_credentials, decrypt_dns_credentials, reset_fernet_for_tests,
+)
+
+
+def _b64url(b: bytes) -> str:
+    return base64.urlsafe_b64encode(b).rstrip(b"=").decode("ascii")
+
+
+def test_dns_txt_value_is_raw_sha256_base64url():
+    key_auth = "token123.thumbprintABC"
+    expected = _b64url(hashlib.sha256(key_auth.encode("utf-8")).digest())
+    assert ACMEService._dns_txt_value(key_auth) == expected
+    # Must NOT be the (classic-mistake) base64url of the HEX digest.
+    hex_based = _b64url(hashlib.sha256(key_auth.encode("utf-8")).hexdigest().encode("utf-8"))
+    assert ACMEService._dns_txt_value(key_auth) != hex_based
+
+
+def test_challenge_dns_name_derivation():
+    assert ACMEService._challenge_dns_name("example.com") == "_acme-challenge.example.com"
+    # Wildcard: the '*.' is stripped, so apex + wildcard share the SAME record name.
+    assert ACMEService._challenge_dns_name("*.example.com") == "_acme-challenge.example.com"
+    assert ACMEService._challenge_dns_name("foo.bar.example.com") == "_acme-challenge.foo.bar.example.com"
+
+
+def test_credential_encryption_roundtrip():
+    reset_fernet_for_tests()
+    creds = {"api_token": "super-secret-token-value"}
+    token = encrypt_dns_credentials(creds)
+    assert token != "super-secret-token-value"
+    assert "super-secret-token-value" not in token  # ciphertext, not plaintext
+    assert decrypt_dns_credentials(token) == creds
+
+
+def test_decrypt_invalid_token_returns_none():
+    reset_fernet_for_tests()
+    assert decrypt_dns_credentials("not-a-valid-fernet-token") is None
+
+
+def test_provider_registry_and_allow_list():
+    names = {p["name"] for p in list_providers()}
+    assert {"manual", "cloudflare"} <= names
+    assert is_supported("manual") and is_supported("cloudflare")
+    assert not is_supported("route53")  # not in MVP allow-list
+
+    assert get_provider("manual").automated is False
+    cf = get_provider("cloudflare", {"api_token": "x"})
+    assert cf.automated is True
+    assert any(f["key"] == "api_token" for f in cf.credential_fields)
+
+    raised = False
+    try:
+        get_provider("definitely-not-a-provider")
+    except ValueError:
+        raised = True
+    assert raised
+
+
+def test_cloudflare_token_sanitize():
+    # Issue #35 follow-up: a pasted token with quotes/spaces/control/unicode chars produced an
+    # invalid Authorization header (CF 6003 "Invalid request headers"). The sanitizer strips them.
+    from services.dns_providers.cloudflare import _sanitize_token, CloudflareDNSProvider
+
+    # Surrounding double quotes stripped.
+    assert _sanitize_token('"abc123-_def"') == 'abc123-_def'
+    # Interior spaces / tabs / newlines removed.
+    assert _sanitize_token('abc 123\tdef\n') == 'abc123def'
+    # A clean token68 string is unchanged (cannot corrupt a valid Cloudflare token).
+    clean = 'A1b2-_C3.d4~e5+f6/g7=='
+    assert _sanitize_token(clean) == clean
+    # Single quotes and a zero-width char removed.
+    assert _sanitize_token("'tok" + chr(0x200b) + "en'") == 'token'
+
+    # The provider constructor sanitizes into _token and keeps the raw input for diagnostics.
+    p = CloudflareDNSProvider({"api_token": '"my-token_123"'})
+    assert p._token == 'my-token_123'
+    assert p._raw_token == '"my-token_123"'
+
+
+def test_b64url_decode_padding_roundtrip():
+    # Issue #35 v1.8.2: _b64url_decode must round-trip for EVERY length, including base64url strings
+    # whose length is a multiple of 4 (the case the old padding formula '=' * (4 - len%4) over-padded).
+    from services.acme_service import _b64url as enc_fn, _b64url_decode as dec_fn
+    for n in range(0, 20):
+        data = bytes(range(n))
+        assert dec_fn(enc_fn(data)) == data, f"round-trip failed at byte length {n}"
+
+
+def test_nonce_scoped_per_directory():
+    # Issue #35 v1.8.2: a nonce cached for one CA (directory_url) must never be returned for another,
+    # and must be single-use. Both directories are pre-cached so _get_nonce returns without network.
+    import asyncio
+    svc = ACMEService()
+    svc._nonce_by_dir = {"https://a.example/dir": "NONCE_A", "https://b.example/dir": "NONCE_B"}
+    got = asyncio.run(svc._get_nonce("https://a.example/dir"))
+    assert got == "NONCE_A"                                            # returns THIS CA's nonce
+    assert svc._nonce_by_dir.get("https://a.example/dir") is None      # consumed (single-use)
+    assert svc._nonce_by_dir.get("https://b.example/dir") == "NONCE_B" # the other CA is untouched
+
+
+def _sql_paren_depth(sql: str):
+    """Parenthesis depth of a SQL string, counting only OUTSIDE '...' literals (with ''
+    escapes), `--` line comments and /* */ block comments. Single-pass state machine so a
+    `--` inside a literal or a `'` inside a comment cannot corrupt the count. Dollar-quoted
+    strings are out of scope (not used in this codebase). Returns (final_depth, min_depth).
+    """
+    depth = 0
+    min_depth = 0
+    state = "normal"
+    i, n = 0, len(sql)
+    while i < n:
+        ch = sql[i]
+        nxt = sql[i + 1] if i + 1 < n else ""
+        if state == "normal":
+            if ch == "'":
+                state = "string"
+            elif ch == "-" and nxt == "-":
+                state = "line_comment"
+                i += 1
+            elif ch == "/" and nxt == "*":
+                state = "block_comment"
+                i += 1
+            elif ch == "(":
+                depth += 1
+            elif ch == ")":
+                depth -= 1
+                min_depth = min(min_depth, depth)
+        elif state == "string":
+            if ch == "'":
+                if nxt == "'":
+                    i += 1  # escaped '' stays inside the literal
+                else:
+                    state = "normal"
+        elif state == "line_comment":
+            if ch == "\n":
+                state = "normal"
+        else:  # block_comment
+            if ch == "*" and nxt == "/":
+                state = "normal"
+                i += 1
+        i += 1
+    return depth, min_depth
+
+
+def test_acme_sql_parentheses_balanced():
+    """Issue #35 v1.8.5: the completion task's order-claim query shipped (v1.8.0-v1.8.4) with an
+    extra closing parenthesis, so EVERY 60s cycle died with `syntax error at or near ")"` and no
+    background ACME work (claim/finalize/download, DNS-01 publish, wizard-staged promotion,
+    retry, TXT cleanup) ever ran. The suite never caught it because the DB layer is mocked and
+    raw SQL never reaches a real parser. This guard scans the ACME modules' SQL string literals
+    for unbalanced parentheses.
+
+    Guard scope is deliberately conservative to avoid false positives on production changes:
+    keyword matching is case-sensitive (SQL is uppercase in this codebase; prose in docstrings
+    is not) and f-string fragments are excluded (they split at `{`, so a fragment may be
+    legitimately unbalanced).
+    """
+    import ast
+    import re
+
+    backend_dir = os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__)))
+    modules = [
+        "main.py",
+        os.path.join("services", "dns01_orchestrator.py"),
+        os.path.join("services", "acme_service.py"),
+        os.path.join("services", "letsencrypt_service.py"),
+        os.path.join("routers", "letsencrypt.py"),
+        os.path.join("routers", "acme_diagnostics.py"),
+    ]
+    problems = []
+    for rel in modules:
+        with open(os.path.join(backend_dir, rel), encoding="utf-8") as fh:
+            tree = ast.parse(fh.read())
+        fstring_parts = {
+            id(const)
+            for joined in ast.walk(tree) if isinstance(joined, ast.JoinedStr)
+            for const in ast.walk(joined) if isinstance(const, ast.Constant)
+        }
+        for node in ast.walk(tree):
+            if not (isinstance(node, ast.Constant) and isinstance(node.value, str)):
+                continue
+            if id(node) in fstring_parts:
+                continue
+            sql = node.value
+            if not re.search(r"\b(SELECT|INSERT|UPDATE|DELETE)\b", sql):
+                continue
+            if not re.search(r"\b(FROM|INTO|SET|WHERE)\b", sql):
+                continue
+            depth, min_depth = _sql_paren_depth(sql)
+            if depth != 0 or min_depth < 0:
+                problems.append(f"{rel}:{node.lineno} (paren depth {depth:+d}, min {min_depth})")
+    assert not problems, f"Unbalanced parentheses in SQL literal(s): {problems}"
+
+
+def test_sql_paren_depth_scanner():
+    # The guard's scanner itself: parens in literals/comments must not count; '' escapes and
+    # block comments handled; an extra ')' is reported via min_depth even if a later '(' would
+    # re-balance the total.
+    assert _sql_paren_depth("SELECT (1)") == (0, 0)
+    assert _sql_paren_depth("SELECT (1))") == (-1, -1)                       # the v1.8.0 bug shape
+    assert _sql_paren_depth("SELECT ')' , '((' FROM t") == (0, 0)            # literals ignored
+    assert _sql_paren_depth("SELECT 'it''s ))' FROM t") == (0, 0)            # '' escape stays inside
+    assert _sql_paren_depth("SELECT 1 -- comment ) (\nFROM t") == (0, 0)     # line comment ignored
+    assert _sql_paren_depth("SELECT 1 /* ) */ FROM t") == (0, 0)             # block comment ignored
+    assert _sql_paren_depth("SELECT 'a--b' AND (x=1\n)") == (0, 0)           # -- inside literal is data
+    assert _sql_paren_depth("WHERE x) AND (y") == (0, -1)                    # net 0 but went negative

backend/tests/test_haproxy_validator_bulgu12.py

@@ -206,41 +206,38 @@ def test_module_level_validate_haproxy_config_forwards_partial_fragment():
 
 
 # ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
-# Wizard Pydantic gate: ACL `-f` flag must be REJECTED at submit.
+# Issue #38 follow-up: ACL `-f <file>` pattern-file references are
+# ACCEPTED (the Bulgu #12 hard reject was removed — pattern files are
+# operator-managed host files, the agent's pre-reload `haproxy -c`
+# makes a missing file fail safely, and bulk import always accepted
+# `-f`). These tests pin the ACCEPT behaviour.
 # ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 
-def test_wizard_pydantic_rejects_acl_with_file_flag():
-    """Pre-fix the wizard's ACL string validator passed
-    `acl name path -i -m reg -f /path` straight through. Apply-time
-    HAProxy `-c` then failed with "failed to open pattern file".
-    Pin that the validator now rejects `-f` at submit.
+def test_wizard_pydantic_accepts_acl_with_file_flag():
+    """Issue #38 follow-up — the wizard's ACL string validator must
+    ACCEPT `-f <file>` pattern-file references (Bulgu #12 reject
+    removed). Operators with large host-managed IP blacklists rely
+    on this in production.
     """
     from models.site_wizard import FrontendStep
 
-    # Minimal valid wizard frontend kwargs — only the offending
-    # acl_rules entry should trigger the failure.
-    fe_kwargs = dict(
+    fe = FrontendStep(
         name="fe1",
         mode="http",
         bind_address="*",
         bind_port=80,
         acl_rules=["acl1 path -i -m reg -f /path"],
     )
-    from pydantic import ValidationError
-    with pytest.raises(ValidationError) as exc_info:
-        FrontendStep(**fe_kwargs)
-    msg = str(exc_info.value)
-    assert "-f" in msg or "pattern-file" in msg.lower(), (
-        f"Bulgu #12 regression: ACL -f flag must be rejected with a "
-        f"clear pattern-file error. Got: {msg}"
+    assert fe.acl_rules == ["acl1 path -i -m reg -f /path"], (
+        "ACL `-f` rule must round-trip verbatim through the wizard model"
     )
 
 
 @pytest.mark.parametrize(
     "rule",
     [
-        # Various spacing / position variants the regex must catch.
+        # Various spacing / position variants must all be accepted.
         "acl1 path -f /etc/haproxy/list",
         "acl1 path -i -f /tmp/x.lst",
         "acl1 src -f /etc/haproxy/admins.lst",
@@ -249,23 +246,19 @@ def test_wizard_pydantic_rejects_acl_with_file_flag():
         "acl1 path -f",
     ],
 )
-def test_wizard_pydantic_rejects_acl_with_file_flag_variants(rule):
-    """Every spacing / position variant the operator might type must
-    be rejected. Pinned defensively so the regex never accidentally
-    relaxes to "only matches trailing -f".
-    """
+def test_wizard_pydantic_accepts_acl_with_file_flag_variants(rule):
+    """Every spacing / position variant must be accepted verbatim
+    (Issue #38 follow-up — no `-f` shape may be rejected)."""
     from models.site_wizard import FrontendStep
-    from pydantic import ValidationError
 
-    fe_kwargs = dict(
+    fe = FrontendStep(
         name="fe1",
         mode="http",
         bind_address="*",
         bind_port=80,
         acl_rules=[rule],
     )
-    with pytest.raises(ValidationError):
-        FrontendStep(**fe_kwargs)
+    assert fe.acl_rules == [rule]
 
 
 def test_wizard_pydantic_does_not_falsely_match_dash_f_inside_token():
@@ -291,42 +284,29 @@ def test_wizard_pydantic_does_not_falsely_match_dash_f_inside_token():
     assert len(fe.acl_rules) == 3
 
 
-def test_manual_frontend_validator_rejects_acl_with_file_flag():
-    """Parity check: the manual Frontend API
-    (`models/frontend.py::validate_acl_rules`) must apply the same
-    `-f` rejection. Operators see consistent behaviour from both the
-    wizard and the per-entity frontend page.
+def test_manual_frontend_validator_accepts_acl_with_file_flag():
+    """Parity check (Issue #38 follow-up): the manual Frontend API
+    (`models/frontend.py::validate_acl_rules`) must ACCEPT `-f`
+    pattern-file references, same as the wizard and bulk import.
     """
     from models.frontend import FrontendConfig
-    from pydantic import ValidationError
 
-    with pytest.raises(ValidationError) as exc_info:
-        FrontendConfig(
-            name="fe1",
-            bind_port=80,
-            mode="http",
-            acl_rules=["acl1 path -i -m reg -f /path"],
-        )
-    msg = str(exc_info.value)
-    assert "-f" in msg or "pattern-file" in msg.lower(), (
-        f"Manual frontend API parity regression: ACL -f flag must be "
-        f"rejected. Got: {msg}"
+    fe = FrontendConfig(
+        name="fe1",
+        bind_port=80,
+        mode="http",
+        acl_rules=["acl1 path -i -m reg -f /path"],
     )
+    assert fe.acl_rules == ["acl1 path -i -m reg -f /path"]
 
 
-def test_wizard_pydantic_rejects_structured_redirect_dict_with_file_flag():
-    """Round-3 audit extension — structured redirect dicts (the
-    alternative shape that `models/site_wizard.py::_validate_redirect_rules`
-    accepts alongside legacy strings) also flow through to
-    `services/haproxy_config.py::_format_redirect_rule` and emit
-    their `condition` / `target` verbatim into the rendered HAProxy
-    directive. Without the dict-aware reject the visual builder's
-    `-f` block could be bypassed by hand-crafting a dict payload
-    against the API — recreating the same `failed to open pattern
-    file` failure at apply time.
+def test_wizard_pydantic_accepts_structured_redirect_dict_with_file_flag():
+    """Issue #38 follow-up — structured redirect dicts carrying `-f`
+    pattern-file references in `condition`/`target` are ACCEPTED
+    (the Bulgu #12 dict-aware reject was removed together with the
+    string-rule reject).
     """
-    from models.site_wizard import FrontendStep, BackendStep
-    from pydantic import ValidationError
+    from models.site_wizard import FrontendStep
 
     fe_kwargs = dict(
         name="fe1",
@@ -334,37 +314,32 @@ def test_wizard_pydantic_rejects_structured_redirect_dict_with_file_flag():
         mode="http",
     )
 
-    # `condition` carrying `-f` must be rejected.
-    with pytest.raises(ValidationError) as exc_info:
-        FrontendStep(
-            **fe_kwargs,
-            redirect_rules=[
-                {
-                    "type": "scheme",
-                    "target": "https",
-                    "condition": "if { src -f /etc/haproxy/admins.lst }",
-                }
-            ],
-        )
-    msg = str(exc_info.value)
-    assert "pattern-file" in msg.lower() or "-f" in msg, msg
+    # `condition` carrying `-f` is accepted.
+    fe = FrontendStep(
+        **fe_kwargs,
+        redirect_rules=[
+            {
+                "type": "scheme",
+                "target": "https",
+                "condition": "if { src -f /etc/haproxy/admins.lst }",
+            }
+        ],
+    )
+    assert fe.redirect_rules[0]["condition"] == "if { src -f /etc/haproxy/admins.lst }"
 
-    # `target` carrying `-f` must also be rejected (defence-in-depth
-    # for hand-crafted payloads).
-    with pytest.raises(ValidationError) as exc_info:
-        FrontendStep(
-            **fe_kwargs,
-            redirect_rules=[
-                {
-                    "type": "location",
-                    "target": "/foo -f /tmp/x.lst",
-                }
-            ],
-        )
-    msg = str(exc_info.value)
-    assert "pattern-file" in msg.lower() or "-f" in msg, msg
+    # `target` carrying `-f` is accepted too.
+    fe = FrontendStep(
+        **fe_kwargs,
+        redirect_rules=[
+            {
+                "type": "location",
+                "target": "/foo -f /tmp/x.lst",
+            }
+        ],
+    )
+    assert fe.redirect_rules[0]["target"] == "/foo -f /tmp/x.lst"
 
-    # Clean structured dict still passes — no false positive.
+    # Clean structured dict still passes.
     FrontendStep(
         **fe_kwargs,
         redirect_rules=[
@@ -667,8 +642,8 @@ def test_user_reported_wizard_config_emits_no_false_warnings():
     zero WARNINGs from the directives we expanded.
     """
     # Distilled from the user's bulk-site-create snapshot, minus the
-    # `-f` ACL (which the new Pydantic gate rejects before this
-    # validator ever runs).
+    # `-f` ACL (accepted since the Issue #38 follow-up, but irrelevant
+    # to the directive-expansion warnings this test pins).
     config = """# ─── Wizard candidate fragment (dry-run preview) ───
 frontend fe-site1
     bind *:80

backend/tests/test_keepalive_fault_state.py

@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+"""v1.7.6 — guard: the agent must surface keepalived FAULT state.
+
+A VIP whose interface has no usable IPv4 (or whose track-script fails) puts keepalived into
+FAULT — the virtual IP is NOT held. Previously get_keepalive_state only grepped (MASTER|BACKUP),
+so a FAULT'd VIP reported as BACKUP — misleading (looks healthy-ish). It must report FAULT so the
+UI shows it red. Both get_keepalive_state copies (installer + SKIP_TO_DAEMON daemon) must include
+FAULT. Pure source guard."""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import os
+
+ROOT = os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__)))
+
+
+def test_keepalive_state_detects_fault_in_both_copies():
+    with open(os.path.join(ROOT, "utils", "agent_scripts", "linux_install.sh"), encoding="utf-8") as f:
+        s = f.read()
+    # FAULT added to the state grep in both copies (installer + daemon), both detection methods.
+    assert s.count("MASTER|BACKUP|FAULT") >= 2
+    # and the misleading MASTER|BACKUP-only grep is gone.
+    assert 'grep -oE "(MASTER|BACKUP)"' not in s

backend/tests/test_keepalived_config.py

@@ -0,0 +1,129 @@
+"""Issue #27 (v1.7.0) — unit tests for the keepalived config generator + secret crypto.
+
+Pure-function tests; no DB. Validates the rendered keepalived.conf for MASTER/BACKUP,
+unicast peers, the failover weight arithmetic, the script-security requirements, the
+ownership marker, and Fernet round-trip.
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import os
+import sys
+
+sys.path.insert(0, os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__))))
+
+from services import keepalived_config as kc  # noqa: E402
+
+
+VIP = {
+    "id": 3, "name": "web-vip", "virtual_ip": "10.0.0.100", "prefix_length": 24,
+    "virtual_router_id": 51, "advert_int": 1, "use_unicast": True, "track_haproxy": True,
+}
+MEMBERS = [
+    {"role": "MASTER", "priority": 150, "network_interface": "eth0", "agent_id": 1, "ip_address": "10.0.0.11"},
+    {"role": "BACKUP", "priority": 100, "network_interface": "eth0", "agent_id": 2, "ip_address": "10.0.0.12"},
+]
+
+
+def _render(this_idx, auth="s3cr3t"):
+    this_agent = MEMBERS[this_idx]
+    peers = [m["ip_address"] for m in MEMBERS if m["agent_id"] != this_agent["agent_id"]]
+    return kc.render_keepalived_conf(vip=VIP, members=MEMBERS, this_agent=this_agent,
+                                     peer_ips=peers, auth_pass_plain=auth)
+
+
+class TestRender:
+    def test_master_state_priority_iface_vrid(self):
+        conf = _render(0)
+        assert "state MASTER" in conf
+        assert "priority 150" in conf
+        assert "interface eth0" in conf
+        assert "virtual_router_id 51" in conf
+        assert "10.0.0.100/24 dev eth0" in conf
+
+    def test_backup_state(self):
+        conf = _render(1)
+        assert "state BACKUP" in conf
+        assert "priority 100" in conf
+
+    def test_unicast_peers(self):
+        # MASTER's config lists the BACKUP as its unicast peer (and its own src ip).
+        conf = _render(0)
+        assert "unicast_src_ip 10.0.0.11" in conf
+        assert "unicast_peer" in conf
+        assert "10.0.0.12" in conf
+
+    def test_script_security_block(self):
+        conf = _render(0)
+        assert "enable_script_security" in conf
+        assert "script_user root" in conf
+
+    def test_ownership_marker(self):
+        assert kc.OWNERSHIP_MARKER in _render(0)
+
+    def test_weight_makes_failed_master_lose(self):
+        # On HAProxy failure the master's effective priority must drop below the backup.
+        conf = _render(0)
+        weight_line = [l for l in conf.splitlines() if l.strip().startswith("weight ")][0]
+        weight = int(weight_line.strip().split()[1])
+        assert 150 + weight < 100, "failed master must fall below every backup"
+        assert "track_script" in conf and "chk_haproxy" in conf
+
+    def test_track_disabled_omits_script(self):
+        vip = {**VIP, "track_haproxy": False}
+        conf = kc.render_keepalived_conf(vip=vip, members=MEMBERS, this_agent=MEMBERS[0],
+                                         peer_ips=["10.0.0.12"], auth_pass_plain=None)
+        assert "vrrp_script" not in conf
+        assert "track_script" not in conf
+
+    def test_no_auth_when_secret_absent(self):
+        conf = _render(0, auth=None)
+        assert "auth_pass" not in conf
+
+    def test_multicast_omits_unicast(self):
+        vip = {**VIP, "use_unicast": False}
+        conf = kc.render_keepalived_conf(vip=vip, members=MEMBERS, this_agent=MEMBERS[0],
+                                         peer_ips=["10.0.0.12"], auth_pass_plain="x")
+        assert "unicast_src_ip" not in conf
+        assert "unicast_peer" not in conf
+
+    def test_single_node_omits_unicast_block(self):
+        # Single-node VIP (no peers): even with use_unicast=True we must NOT emit a bare
+        # `unicast_src_ip`/`unicast_peer` — keepalived treats a unicast keyword with no peers
+        # as deprecated, warns, and falls back to multicast (and `keepalived -t` flags it).
+        # Omitting the block yields a clean multicast config that holds the VIP solo.
+        only = [{"role": "MASTER", "priority": 150, "network_interface": "eth0",
+                 "agent_id": 1, "ip_address": "10.0.0.11"}]
+        conf = kc.render_keepalived_conf(vip=VIP, members=only, this_agent=only[0],
+                                         peer_ips=[], auth_pass_plain=None)
+        assert "unicast_src_ip" not in conf
+        assert "unicast_peer" not in conf
+        assert "state MASTER" in conf
+        assert "10.0.0.100/24 dev eth0" in conf
+
+
+class TestCheckScript:
+    def test_default_process_name(self):
+        s = kc.build_haproxy_check_script()
+        assert "pidof haproxy" in s
+        assert kc.OWNERSHIP_MARKER in s
+
+    def test_process_name_from_bin_path(self):
+        s = kc.build_haproxy_check_script(bin_path="/opt/hap/sbin/haproxy-ent")
+        assert "pidof haproxy-ent" in s
+
+    def test_malicious_bin_path_falls_back(self):
+        s = kc.build_haproxy_check_script(bin_path="/x/haproxy; rm -rf /")
+        assert "rm -rf" not in s
+        assert "pidof haproxy" in s
+
+
+class TestSecretCrypto:
+    def test_roundtrip(self):
+        kc.reset_fernet_for_tests()
+        token = kc.encrypt_vrrp_secret("s3cr3t")
+        assert token != "s3cr3t"
+        assert kc.decrypt_vrrp_secret(token) == "s3cr3t"
+
+    def test_decrypt_garbage_returns_none(self):
+        kc.reset_fernet_for_tests()
+        assert kc.decrypt_vrrp_secret("not-a-fernet-token") is None

backend/tests/test_site_wizard_round11.py

@@ -276,14 +276,16 @@ def test_categorize_routes_directives_correctly():
 
 def test_emit_buckets_flushed_in_canonical_order():
     """The flush block at end of frontend processing must list buckets
-    in: prelude → stick → tcp_req → acl → http_req → http_resp →
+    in: prelude → filter → stick → tcp_req → acl → http_req → http_resp →
     redirect → use_be → default_be. Pre-fix `http-request` rules
     interleaved with `use_backend` rules in source order, producing
-    HAProxy parser warnings."""
+    HAProxy parser warnings. (Issue #38 added the `filter` bucket, flushed
+    right after `prelude` so SPOE `filter` lines precede `send-spoe-group`.)"""
     src = _gen_src()
     flush_match = re.search(
         r'for\s+_bucket_key\s+in\s+\(\s*'
         r'"prelude"\s*,\s*'
+        r'"filter"\s*,\s*'
         r'"stick"\s*,\s*'
         r'"tcp_req"\s*,\s*'
         r'"acl"\s*,\s*'

backend/tests/test_spoe_filter_import.py

@@ -0,0 +1,203 @@
+"""
+Issue #38 regression tests: HAProxy SPOE `filter` + frontend `log-format` support.
+
+Bug: the bulk-config parser recognised only a fixed set of frontend directives,
+so `filter spoe engine coraza config ...` and `log-format ...` were silently
+dropped on import / manual edit. This regenerated a config missing the SPOE
+engine definition, so HAProxy failed with
+"unable to find SPOE engine 'coraza' used by the send-spoe-group 'coraza-req'".
+
+These tests verify the end-to-end fix without requiring a database:
+1. parser captures `filter` + `log-format` into the new ParsedFrontend fields;
+2. `http-request send-spoe-group` is still preserved (regression guard);
+3. the generator's directive categoriser + bucket flush order emit `filter`
+   BEFORE the `http-request send-spoe-group` rules and keep `log-format`;
+4. reject/rollback restores the new columns;
+5. a non-SPOE frontend is completely unaffected (zero-impact).
+"""
+import os
+import re
+import sys
+
+sys.path.insert(0, os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__))))
+
+from utils.haproxy_config_parser import parse_haproxy_config, ParsedFrontend
+from services.haproxy_config import _categorize_haproxy_directive
+from models.frontend import FrontendConfig
+
+
+# The exact frontend/backend config reported in Issue #38 (Coraza-SPOA).
+ISSUE_38_CONFIG = r"""
+frontend web-frontend
+    bind *:8073
+    mode http
+        log-format "%ci:%cp\ [%t]\ %ft\ %b/%s\ %ST\ %B\ %{+Q}r\ %[var(txn.coraza.id)]\ waf-hit:\ %[var(txn.coraza.fail)]"
+        filter spoe engine coraza config /etc/haproxy/coraza.cfg
+      http-request set-var(txn.coraza.app) str(haproxy_waf)
+     http-request send-spoe-group coraza coraza-req
+    http-request deny if { var(txn.coraza.fail) -m int eq 1 }
+    default_backend web-backend
+
+backend web-backend
+    balance roundrobin
+    mode http
+    server server1 192.168.1.10:443 weight 100 ssl verify none
+
+backend coraza-spoa
+    mode tcp
+    option spop-check
+    server coraza_spoa 192.168.12.21:9000
+"""
+
+
+def _get_frontend(parse_result, name):
+    for fe in parse_result.frontends:
+        if fe.name == name:
+            return fe
+    return None
+
+
+class TestParserCapturesSpoe:
+    def test_filter_and_log_format_captured(self):
+        result = parse_haproxy_config(ISSUE_38_CONFIG)
+        fe = _get_frontend(result, "web-frontend")
+        assert fe is not None, "web-frontend should be parsed and kept"
+        assert fe.filters is not None
+        assert "filter spoe engine coraza config /etc/haproxy/coraza.cfg" in fe.filters
+        assert fe.log_format is not None
+        assert fe.log_format.startswith("log-format")
+        # the escaped/quoted format string must be preserved verbatim
+        assert "%[var(txn.coraza.fail)]" in fe.log_format
+
+    def test_send_spoe_group_still_preserved(self):
+        # Regression guard: http-request rules (incl. send-spoe-group) must
+        # still be collected into request_headers as before.
+        result = parse_haproxy_config(ISSUE_38_CONFIG)
+        fe = _get_frontend(result, "web-frontend")
+        assert fe.request_headers is not None
+        assert "send-spoe-group coraza coraza-req" in fe.request_headers
+
+    def test_multiple_filters_preserved_in_order(self):
+        cfg = """
+frontend f1
+    bind *:80
+    mode http
+    filter compression
+    filter spoe engine coraza config /etc/haproxy/coraza.cfg
+    default_backend b1
+
+backend b1
+    mode http
+    server s1 10.0.0.1:80
+"""
+        fe = _get_frontend(parse_haproxy_config(cfg), "f1")
+        lines = fe.filters.split("\n")
+        assert lines == [
+            "filter compression",
+            "filter spoe engine coraza config /etc/haproxy/coraza.cfg",
+        ]
+
+    def test_log_format_sd_variant_captured(self):
+        cfg = """
+frontend f1
+    bind *:80
+    mode http
+    log-format-sd "[exampleSDID@1234 field=value]"
+    default_backend b1
+
+backend b1
+    mode http
+    server s1 10.0.0.1:80
+"""
+        fe = _get_frontend(parse_haproxy_config(cfg), "f1")
+        assert fe.log_format is not None
+        assert fe.log_format.startswith("log-format-sd")
+
+
+class TestGeneratorOrderingContract:
+    """The generator routes directives into ordered buckets. Verify SPOE
+    correctness at the (pure) categoriser + documented flush-order level."""
+
+    def test_filter_routes_to_filter_bucket(self):
+        assert _categorize_haproxy_directive("    filter spoe engine coraza config /x.cfg") == "filter"
+
+    def test_send_spoe_group_routes_to_http_req(self):
+        assert _categorize_haproxy_directive("    http-request send-spoe-group coraza coraza-req") == "http_req"
+
+    def test_log_format_routes_to_prelude(self):
+        assert _categorize_haproxy_directive('    log-format "%ci:%cp"') == "prelude"
+        assert _categorize_haproxy_directive('    log-format-sd "[x]"') == "prelude"
+
+    def test_flush_order_places_filter_before_http_req(self):
+        # The bucket flush order is the single source of truth for emission
+        # ordering. Assert `filter` is flushed before `http_req` (and after
+        # `prelude`), guaranteeing `filter ...` renders before
+        # `http-request send-spoe-group ...`.
+        src = _read_source("services/haproxy_config.py")
+        m = re.search(r"for _bucket_key in \((.*?)\):", src, re.DOTALL)
+        assert m, "bucket flush loop not found"
+        order = re.findall(r'"(\w+)"', m.group(1))
+        assert "filter" in order, "new 'filter' bucket missing from flush order"
+        assert order.index("prelude") < order.index("filter") < order.index("http_req")
+
+
+class TestModelAndRollback:
+    def test_model_has_passthrough_fields(self):
+        fc = FrontendConfig(
+            name="f", bind_port=80,
+            filters="filter spoe engine coraza config /etc/haproxy/coraza.cfg",
+            log_format='log-format "%ci"',
+        )
+        assert fc.filters.startswith("filter spoe")
+        assert fc.log_format.startswith("log-format")
+
+    def test_dataclass_defaults_none(self):
+        fe = ParsedFrontend(name="f")
+        assert fe.filters is None
+        assert fe.log_format is None
+
+    def test_rollback_restores_new_columns(self):
+        # Reject/rollback of a frontend UPDATE must restore the new columns,
+        # otherwise the rejected (new) filters/log_format would persist.
+        src = _read_source("utils/entity_snapshot.py")
+        assert "log_format = $" in src
+        assert "filters = $" in src
+        assert "old_values.get('log_format')" in src
+        assert "old_values.get('filters')" in src
+
+
+class TestZeroImpact:
+    def test_non_spoe_frontend_unaffected(self):
+        cfg = """
+frontend plain
+    bind *:80
+    mode http
+    option httplog
+    default_backend b1
+
+backend b1
+    mode http
+    server s1 10.0.0.1:80
+"""
+        fe = _get_frontend(parse_haproxy_config(cfg), "plain")
+        # No filter / log-format present → new fields stay None (no behaviour change)
+        assert fe.filters is None
+        assert fe.log_format is None
+
+    def test_spop_check_backend_roundtrips_without_warning(self):
+        result = parse_haproxy_config(ISSUE_38_CONFIG)
+        be = next((b for b in result.backends if b.name == "coraza-spoa"), None)
+        assert be is not None, "coraza-spoa backend should import"
+        assert be.mode == "tcp"
+        assert be.options and "option spop-check" in be.options
+        # spop-check is now a known option → no spurious 'unknown option' warning
+        assert not any(
+            "coraza-spoa" in w and "spop-check" in w and "Unknown" in w
+            for w in result.warnings
+        )
+
+
+def _read_source(relpath):
+    base = os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__)))
+    with open(os.path.join(base, relpath), "r", encoding="utf-8") as fh:
+        return fh.read()

backend/tests/test_version_consistency.py

@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+"""v1.8.7: app version is single-source and cannot silently drift.
+
+The UI shows the version via GET /api/version, which returns main.py's `_version_info`. That MUST be
+sourced from the one canonical file backend/version.json (co-located with main.py so `COPY . .`
+bakes it into every image, regardless of pipeline). main.py's in-code fallback must NOT be a real
+version, otherwise it drifts when version.json is bumped but the constant is forgotten — exactly
+what left the UI reporting 1.8.4 after 1.8.5/1.8.6 shipped. These checks fail loudly on regression.
+"""
+import ast
+import json
+import os
+import re
+
+import pytest
+
+_BACKEND = os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__)))  # backend/
+_VERSION_JSON = os.path.join(_BACKEND, "version.json")
+_MAIN = os.path.join(_BACKEND, "main.py")
+_SEMVER = re.compile(r"^\d+\.\d+\.\d+$")
+
+
+def test_canonical_version_file_exists_and_valid():
+    assert os.path.exists(_VERSION_JSON), "backend/version.json (single source of truth) is missing"
+    with open(_VERSION_JSON) as f:
+        data = json.load(f)
+    assert _SEMVER.match(data.get("version", "")), \
+        f"backend/version.json version is not semver: {data.get('version')!r}"
+    assert data.get("releaseName"), "backend/version.json must have a releaseName"
+
+
+def _main_fallback_version_info():
+    """The literal dict assigned to _version_info in main.py (the in-code fallback)."""
+    with open(_MAIN) as f:
+        tree = ast.parse(f.read())
+    for node in ast.walk(tree):
+        if isinstance(node, ast.Assign) and isinstance(node.value, ast.Dict):
+            for t in node.targets:
+                if isinstance(t, ast.Name) and t.id == "_version_info":
+                    return ast.literal_eval(node.value)
+    return None
+
+
+def test_main_has_no_hardcoded_real_version():
+    fb = _main_fallback_version_info()
+    assert fb is not None, "could not find the _version_info fallback literal in main.py"
+    # Must be a neutral marker, never a real version that can drift out of sync.
+    assert not _SEMVER.match(str(fb.get("version", ""))), (
+        f"main.py hardcodes a real version {fb.get('version')!r}; it must be a neutral marker "
+        f"(e.g. 'unknown') so the version stays single-source in backend/version.json"
+    )
+
+
+def test_main_loads_the_canonical_file_first():
+    # The first candidate path main.py reads must resolve to the co-located backend/version.json,
+    # so the correct version is available in every image (not dependent on CI staging).
+    with open(_MAIN) as f:
+        src = f.read()
+    assert 'os.path.dirname(__file__), "version.json"' in src, \
+        "main.py must read version.json co-located with the module (backend/version.json)"
+
+
+def test_frontend_package_json_matches_when_present():
+    # Only meaningful in a full-repo checkout; the backend image build context (./backend) has no frontend/.
+    pkg = os.path.join(os.path.dirname(_BACKEND), "frontend", "package.json")
+    if not os.path.exists(pkg):
+        pytest.skip("frontend/package.json not in this context (e.g. backend-only image build)")
+    with open(_VERSION_JSON) as f:
+        canonical = json.load(f)["version"]
+    with open(pkg) as f:
+        fe = json.load(f)["version"]
+    assert fe == canonical, f"frontend/package.json {fe!r} != backend/version.json {canonical!r}"

backend/tests/test_vip_delete_approval.py

@@ -0,0 +1,69 @@
+"""Issue #27 safety (v1.7.2) — source-level guards for APPROVAL-GATED VIP deletion.
+
+The critical invariant: an agent must NEVER tear a VIP down without an explicit human approval.
+We enforce that by keeping the VIP is_active=TRUE (so the agent keeps serving it) when a delete
+is merely *requested*; only an APPROVE (apply) flips is_active=FALSE. These guards lock in that
+wiring so a future edit can't silently make delete immediate again. Pure (no DB)."""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import os
+
+ROOT = os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__)))
+
+
+def _read(rel: str) -> str:
+    with open(os.path.join(ROOT, rel), encoding="utf-8") as f:
+        return f.read()
+
+
+def test_delete_stages_for_approval_keeps_vip_running():
+    s = _read("routers/vip.py")
+    # A running (applied) VIP's delete sets pending_delete=TRUE and stages a delete version —
+    # it must NOT flip is_active=FALSE in delete_vip (that only happens on approval in apply_vip).
+    assert "pending_delete=TRUE" in s
+    assert '_stage_vip_version(conn, vip_id, "delete"' in s
+    # The staged-delete branch (running VIP) must not contain an is_active=FALSE soft-delete;
+    # only the "never applied" branch may remove immediately (guarded by applied_snapshot IS NULL).
+    assert 'v["applied_snapshot"] is None' in s
+
+
+def test_apply_performs_delete_only_on_approval():
+    s = _read("routers/vip.py")
+    # apply_vip short-circuits on pending_delete and only THEN flips is_active=FALSE.
+    assert 'if v["pending_delete"]:' in s
+    assert "is_active=FALSE, pending_delete=FALSE" in s
+
+
+def test_reject_cancels_delete_as_noop():
+    s = _read("routers/vip.py")
+    # reject_vip clears the staged delete + purge intent; the VIP keeps running (is_active never
+    # touched here) — the "nothing happened" path.
+    assert "pending_delete=FALSE, purge_on_teardown=FALSE" in s
+    assert "Deletion rejected" in s
+
+
+def test_agent_delivery_teardown_only_on_inactive():
+    # The agent is told to tear down ONLY when is_active=FALSE; a pending-delete VIP is still
+    # is_active=TRUE, so the delivery returns 'available' and the agent keeps serving it.
+    s = _read("routers/agent.py")
+    assert "if not row['is_active']:" in s
+    assert '"status": "teardown"' in s
+
+
+def test_migration_adds_pending_delete_and_bumps_schema():
+    import re
+    s = _read("database/migrations.py")
+    assert "pending_delete BOOLEAN NOT NULL DEFAULT FALSE" in s
+    # Schema was bumped to accommodate this column. Assert >= 7 (the version it landed in)
+    # rather than pinning an exact value, so later schema bumps don't re-break this test.
+    m = re.search(r"^SCHEMA_VERSION\s*=\s*(\d+)", s, re.MULTILINE)
+    assert m is not None and int(m.group(1)) >= 7
+
+
+def test_list_visibility_backward_compat_gates_on_applied():
+    # A VIP soft-deleted under the OLD immediate-delete (pre-1.7.2: is_active=FALSE,
+    # last_config_status='PENDING') must NOT reappear in the list as DELETING — the
+    # teardown-tracking clause is gated on last_config_status='APPLIED' (new-flow approved
+    # deletes only). Locks the backward-compat fix.
+    s = _read("routers/vip.py")
+    assert "v.last_config_status = 'APPLIED' AND EXISTS" in s

backend/tests/test_vip_diff_minimal.py

@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+"""v1.7.5 — guard for the HA/VIP "View Change" diff.
+
+Editing a VIP (e.g. priority + virtual IP) must show a REAL line diff (only the changed lines)
+against the previous applied vip-* config — not the whole keepalived.conf marked as "added", and
+without the doubled "+ +" prefix (the line must be stored WITHOUT a +/- prefix; the UI adds it
+from `type`, exactly like the standard haproxy diff). Pure source guard (the behavioural diff
+test needs a DB); locks the wiring so it can't regress."""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import os
+
+ROOT = os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__)))
+
+
+def _cluster_src() -> str:
+    with open(os.path.join(ROOT, "routers", "cluster.py"), encoding="utf-8") as f:
+        return f.read()
+
+
+def test_vip_diff_uses_real_difflib_against_previous_applied():
+    s = _cluster_src()
+    # The previous APPLIED vip-* config for this VIP is fetched as the diff baseline.
+    assert "AND status='APPLIED' AND cluster_id=$2 AND id < $3 ORDER BY id DESC LIMIT 1" in s
+    # And the diff is a real unified_diff of old vs new (not "everything added").
+    assert "difflib.unified_diff(old_content.split('\\n'), new_content.split('\\n')" in s
+
+
+def test_vip_diff_stores_lines_without_prefix():
+    s = _cluster_src()
+    # The old vip bug prepended "+ {line}", doubling the UI prefix ("+ +"). The vip diff now
+    # stores the stripped diff line (dl[1:]) — the UI adds the +/- from `type`. `dl` is unique
+    # to the vip branch (the standard haproxy diff uses `line`), so this targets the vip fix
+    # only and does not touch the (separate, out-of-scope) SSL diff branch.
+    assert '"line": dl[1:], "line_number": line_number' in s

backend/tests/test_vip_models.py

@@ -0,0 +1,91 @@
+"""Issue #27 (v1.7.0) — unit tests for VIP request-model validation (pure, no DB)."""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import os
+import sys
+
+import pytest
+
+sys.path.insert(0, os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__))))
+
+from models.vip import VIPCreate, VIPMemberIn  # noqa: E402
+
+
+def _members(master_prio=150, backup_prio=100, n_backup=1):
+    members = [{"agent_id": 1, "network_interface": "eth0", "role": "MASTER", "priority": master_prio}]
+    for i in range(n_backup):
+        members.append({"agent_id": 2 + i, "network_interface": "eth0", "role": "BACKUP", "priority": backup_prio})
+    return members
+
+
+def _create(**over):
+    base = dict(name="web-vip", pool_id=1, virtual_ip="10.0.0.100", members=_members())
+    base.update(over)
+    return VIPCreate(**base)
+
+
+class TestField:
+    def test_ok(self):
+        v = _create()
+        assert v.virtual_ip == "10.0.0.100"
+        assert v.use_unicast is True  # cloud-safe default
+
+    def test_ipv6_rejected(self):
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError):
+            _create(virtual_ip="fd00::1")
+
+    def test_bad_ip_rejected(self):
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError):
+            _create(virtual_ip="not-an-ip")
+
+    def test_auth_pass_max_8(self):
+        _create(auth_pass="12345678")
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError):
+            _create(auth_pass="123456789")
+
+    def test_interface_forbidden_char(self):
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError):
+            VIPMemberIn(agent_id=1, network_interface="eth0; rm -rf /", role="BACKUP", priority=100)
+
+    def test_priority_range(self):
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError):
+            VIPMemberIn(agent_id=1, network_interface="eth0", role="BACKUP", priority=255)
+
+    def test_role_normalized(self):
+        m = VIPMemberIn(agent_id=1, network_interface="eth0", role="master", priority=150)
+        assert m.role == "MASTER"
+
+    def test_vrid_range(self):
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError):
+            _create(virtual_router_id=300)
+
+
+class TestMembers:
+    def test_single_node_allowed(self):
+        # A single-node VIP (one MASTER, no BACKUP) is valid: a keepalived-managed floating
+        # IP without failover (Issue #27 follow-up — relaxed from >=2 members to >=1, e.g. a
+        # one-box cluster that wants a stable VIP, or before a 2nd node is added for real HA).
+        v = VIPCreate(name="x", pool_id=1, virtual_ip="10.0.0.5",
+                      members=[{"agent_id": 1, "network_interface": "eth0", "role": "MASTER", "priority": 150}])
+        assert len(v.members) == 1 and v.members[0].role == "MASTER"
+
+    def test_needs_at_least_one(self):
+        # An empty membership is still rejected — a VIP must have at least one node.
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError):
+            VIPCreate(name="x", pool_id=1, virtual_ip="10.0.0.5", members=[])
+
+    def test_exactly_one_master(self):
+        bad = [{"agent_id": 1, "network_interface": "eth0", "role": "MASTER", "priority": 150},
+               {"agent_id": 2, "network_interface": "eth0", "role": "MASTER", "priority": 140}]
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError):
+            VIPCreate(name="x", pool_id=1, virtual_ip="10.0.0.5", members=bad)
+
+    def test_master_must_be_highest(self):
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError):
+            _create(members=_members(master_prio=100, backup_prio=120))
+
+    def test_no_duplicate_agent(self):
+        dup = [{"agent_id": 1, "network_interface": "eth0", "role": "MASTER", "priority": 150},
+               {"agent_id": 1, "network_interface": "eth1", "role": "BACKUP", "priority": 100}]
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError):
+            VIPCreate(name="x", pool_id=1, virtual_ip="10.0.0.5", members=dup)

backend/tests/test_vip_purge.py

@@ -0,0 +1,51 @@
+"""Issue #27 follow-up (v1.7.2) — source-level guards for the opt-in keepalived package
+uninstall + the "we installed it" marker. Pure (no DB), mirroring the project's other
+source-assertion tests: they lock in the *safe defaults* so a future edit can't silently
+turn routine VIP deletion into a package purge, or purge a package we didn't install."""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import os
+
+ROOT = os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__)))
+
+
+def _read(rel: str) -> str:
+    with open(os.path.join(ROOT, rel), encoding="utf-8") as f:
+        return f.read()
+
+
+def test_agent_script_purge_is_optin_and_marker_guarded():
+    s = _read("utils/agent_scripts/linux_install.sh")
+    # The install marker is written only when WE install keepalived, and read by the purge
+    # guard — present in BOTH function copies (installer-mode + SKIP_TO_DAEMON).
+    assert s.count(".hom_installed") >= 4
+    # Multi-distro purge cascade exists, but ONLY inside the opt-in branch.
+    assert "apt-get purge -y -qq keepalived" in s
+    assert "apk del keepalived" in s
+    # Orphan self-heal (not_configured) must NEVER purge — graceful teardown only, both copies.
+    assert s.count('_kp_teardown "false"') >= 2
+    # Purge is honored only on an explicit teardown, parsed from the delivery response.
+    assert s.count(".purge // false") >= 2
+
+
+def test_agent_delivery_signals_purge_on_teardown():
+    s = _read("routers/agent.py")
+    assert "v.purge_on_teardown" in s
+    assert '"purge"' in s  # teardown response carries the opt-in flag
+
+
+def test_delete_endpoint_accepts_purge_package_default_off():
+    s = _read("routers/vip.py")
+    # Query param defaults to False (safe), and it sets the persisted teardown flag.
+    assert "purge_package: bool = False" in s
+    assert "purge_on_teardown=$2" in s
+
+
+def test_migration_adds_purge_column_and_bumps_schema():
+    import re
+    s = _read("database/migrations.py")
+    assert "purge_on_teardown BOOLEAN NOT NULL DEFAULT FALSE" in s
+    # Schema was bumped to accommodate this column. Assert >= 7 (the version it landed in)
+    # rather than pinning an exact value, so later schema bumps don't re-break this test.
+    m = re.search(r"^SCHEMA_VERSION\s*=\s*(\d+)", s, re.MULTILINE)
+    assert m is not None and int(m.group(1)) >= 7

backend/tests/test_waf_stick_table_autoinject.py

@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+"""v1.7.4 — guard for the stick-table auto-inject in the HAProxy config renderer.
+
+A frontend that uses a stick counter (`track-sc<N>` or an `sc_*_rate(...)` fetch) but declares
+no `stick-table` makes HAProxy fatally reject the WHOLE cluster config with "table '<frontend>'
+used but not configured". This happens with rate-limit directives baked into a frontend's stored
+request_headers/options by an older version or a config import. The renderer now injects a default
+stick-table in that case. Pure source guard (the behavioural renderer test needs a DB and is
+disabled); this locks the wiring so it can't silently regress."""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import os
+
+ROOT = os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__)))
+
+
+def _src() -> str:
+    with open(os.path.join(ROOT, "services", "haproxy_config.py"), encoding="utf-8") as f:
+        return f.read()
+
+
+def test_renderer_detects_stick_counter_usage():
+    s = _src()
+    # Detection: any track-sc<N> write OR an sc_*_rate(...) fetch flips _sc_counter_used.
+    assert "_sc_counter_used" in s
+    assert '"track-sc" in stripped or ("sc_" in stripped and "_rate(" in stripped)' in s
+
+
+def test_renderer_injects_stick_table_when_missing():
+    s = _src()
+    # Inject ONLY when a counter is used AND no stick-table was emitted (purely additive).
+    assert "if _sc_counter_used and not _stick_table_emitted:" in s
+    assert 'stick-table type ip size 100k expire 30s store http_req_rate(10s)' in s
+    # The inject must register the table so it is not added twice.
+    assert "_stick_table_emitted = True" in s

backend/utils/agent_scripts/linux_install.sh

@@ -153,7 +153,7 @@ collect_system_info() {
     "disk_space": $disk_bytes,
     "ip_address": "$ip_address",
     "network_interfaces": ["${network_interfaces//,/\",\"}"],
-    "capabilities": ["haproxy_management", "ssl_deployment", "config_reload", "systemd_service"]
+    "capabilities": ["haproxy_management", "ssl_deployment", "config_reload", "systemd_service", "keepalived_management"]
 SYSTEM_INFO_EOF
 }
 
@@ -470,7 +470,12 @@ safe_remove() {
 [[ "$QUIET_MODE" != "true" ]] && echo "Terminating existing HAProxy Agent processes..."
 KILLED_COUNT=0
 INSTALLER_PID=$$
-for pattern in "haproxy-agent" "/usr/local/bin/haproxy-agent" "haproxy-agent.service"; do
+# issue #31: match ONLY the installed agent (binary path + service), never the bare string
+# "haproxy-agent". With pgrep -f, that bare string can also match the installer's OWN command line
+# or a sudo/PAM ancestor (which the $$/$PPID guard does not fully cover), making the cleanup kill
+# the installer itself ("Killed", install aborts). The systemd service is also stopped below; the
+# "$INSTALL_DIR/haproxy-agent" path still catches any running daemon.
+for pattern in "$INSTALL_DIR/haproxy-agent" "haproxy-agent.service"; do
     PIDS=$(pgrep -f "$pattern" 2>/dev/null || true)
     if [[ -n "$PIDS" ]]; then
         FILTERED=""
@@ -635,7 +640,7 @@ if [[ "$SKIP_TO_DAEMON" != "true" ]]; then
 
     # Validate cluster exists by checking management API
     log "DEBUG" "Validating HAProxy Cluster..."
-    CLUSTER_CHECK=$("$CURL_BIN" -k -s -f "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/clusters" -H "User-Agent: haproxy-agent-installer" || echo "FAILED")
+    CLUSTER_CHECK=$("$CURL_BIN" -k -s -f "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/clusters" -H "X-API-Key: $AGENT_TOKEN" -H "User-Agent: haproxy-agent-installer" || echo "FAILED")
     if [[ "$CLUSTER_CHECK" == "FAILED" ]]; then
         log "ERROR" "Failed to connect to management API!"
         echo "   Please check your network connection and management URL."
@@ -1055,7 +1060,12 @@ register_agent() {
     local arch=$(uname -m)
     platform=$(uname -s | tr '[:upper:]' '[:lower:]')  # Remove local to make it global
     local system_info=$(collect_system_info)
-    
+    # issue #31: if collect_system_info produced no JSON content (empty on an unusual host), the
+    # '$system_info,' line below would collapse to a bare comma and break the heartbeat JSON. A
+    # valid fragment always contains a quoted key; if none is present, fall back to one. The glob
+    # '*"*' is the most portable bash test (no POSIX class / pattern-substitution), safe on bash 3.x+.
+    [[ "$system_info" != *'"'* ]] && system_info='"operating_system": "unknown"'
+
     local json_payload=$(cat <<SIMPLE_EOF
 {
     "name": "$AGENT_NAME",
@@ -1289,7 +1299,7 @@ collect_system_info() {
     "disk_space": $disk_bytes,
     "ip_address": "$ip_address",
     "network_interfaces": ["${network_interfaces//,/\",\"}"],
-    "capabilities": ["haproxy_management", "ssl_deployment", "config_reload", "systemd_service"]
+    "capabilities": ["haproxy_management", "ssl_deployment", "config_reload", "systemd_service", "keepalived_management"]
 SYSTEM_INFO_EOF
 }
 
@@ -1309,7 +1319,7 @@ get_keepalive_state() {
     # Method 1: journalctl (most reliable on RHEL/CentOS/Ubuntu with systemd)
     if command -v journalctl &>/dev/null; then
         state=$(journalctl -u keepalived -n 50 --no-pager 2>/dev/null \
-            | grep -oE "(MASTER|BACKUP)" | tail -1)
+            | grep -oE "(MASTER|BACKUP|FAULT)" | tail -1)
     fi
 
     # Method 2: Fallback to log files (for non-systemd or restricted journalctl)
@@ -1317,22 +1327,27 @@ get_keepalive_state() {
         for logfile in /var/log/messages /var/log/syslog /var/log/keepalived.log; do
             if [[ -r "$logfile" ]]; then
                 state=$(tail -200 "$logfile" 2>/dev/null \
-                    | grep -i keepalived | grep -oE "(MASTER|BACKUP)" | tail -1)
+                    | grep -i keepalived | grep -oE "(MASTER|BACKUP|FAULT)" | tail -1)
                 [[ -n "$state" ]] && break
             fi
         done
     fi
 
-    # Method 3: Check VIP presence on network interfaces (confirms MASTER)
+    # Method 3: VIP presence on local interfaces — the most portable signal, independent
+    # of logging/journald (works on any distro / init system / keepalived install type).
+    # MASTER iff ANY configured VIP is actually held locally; keepalived up but holding no
+    # VIP => BACKUP. Exact whole-line IP match (grep -Fxq) so 10.0.0.1 can't falsely match
+    # 10.0.0.10/100, and ALL configured VIPs are checked (not just the first).
     if [[ -z "$state" ]] && [[ -r /etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf ]]; then
-        local conf_vip=$(grep -A10 'virtual_ipaddress' /etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf 2>/dev/null \
-            | grep -oE '[0-9]+\.[0-9]+\.[0-9]+\.[0-9]+' | head -1)
-        if [[ -n "$conf_vip" ]]; then
-            if ip addr show 2>/dev/null | grep -q "$conf_vip"; then
-                state="MASTER"
-            else
-                state="BACKUP"
-            fi
+        local conf_vips=$(grep -A20 'virtual_ipaddress' /etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf 2>/dev/null \
+            | grep -oE '([0-9]{1,3}\.){3}[0-9]{1,3}')
+        if [[ -n "$conf_vips" ]]; then
+            local local_ips=$(ip -4 -o addr show 2>/dev/null | grep -oE 'inet ([0-9]{1,3}\.){3}[0-9]{1,3}' | awk '{print $2}')
+            state="BACKUP"
+            local _cvip
+            for _cvip in $conf_vips; do
+                if printf '%s\n' "$local_ips" | grep -Fxq "$_cvip"; then state="MASTER"; break; fi
+            done
         fi
     fi
 
@@ -1352,7 +1367,12 @@ send_heartbeat() {
     local server_statuses=$(get_server_statuses)
     local haproxy_stats_csv=$(get_haproxy_stats_csv)
     local system_info=$(collect_system_info)
-    
+    # issue #31: if collect_system_info produced no JSON content (empty on an unusual host), the
+    # '$system_info,' line below would collapse to a bare comma and break the heartbeat JSON. A
+    # valid fragment always contains a quoted key; if none is present, fall back to one. The glob
+    # '*"*' is the most portable bash test (no POSIX class / pattern-substitution), safe on bash 3.x+.
+    [[ "$system_info" != *'"'* ]] && system_info='"operating_system": "unknown"'
+
     # Get HAProxy version for heartbeat (safe extraction, fallback to "unknown")
     local haproxy_version="unknown"
     if command -v haproxy &> /dev/null; then
@@ -1665,6 +1685,163 @@ check_ssl_updates() {
 }
 
 # Reload HAProxy service (Linux specific)
+# Issue #27 (v1.7.0) — HA/VIP (Keepalived) convergence. OPT-IN and inert by default:
+# a node with no APPLIED VIP gets status=not_configured and (lacking our ownership
+# marker) does NOTHING. Never clobbers a hand-managed keepalived. Uses $AGENT_TOKEN
+# (kept in sync with the live token in both daemon loops).
+fetch_and_deploy_keepalived_config() {
+    local marker="# Managed by HAProxy OpenManager"
+    local resp status http_code we_own="false" conf chk
+
+    # Timeouts so a hung management server can never stall the daemon loop.
+    resp=$(curl -k -s --connect-timeout 10 --max-time 30 -w '\n%{http_code}' -X GET \
+        "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/agents/$AGENT_NAME/keepalived-config" \
+        -H "X-API-Key: $AGENT_TOKEN" 2>/dev/null) || return 0
+    http_code="${resp##*$'\n'}"   # last line = HTTP status
+    resp="${resp%$'\n'*}"          # everything before = JSON body
+    [[ -z "$resp" ]] && return 0
+    status=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.status // "unknown"' 2>/dev/null)
+    # A 404 means this agent was deleted server-side (node decommissioned / pool removed):
+    # self-heal teardown OUR keepalived so a removed node stops advertising the VIP. The
+    # teardown branch below is marker-guarded, so a node we don't manage stays untouched.
+    [[ "$http_code" == "404" ]] && status="teardown"
+    # Cluster-driven keepalived.conf path (delivered in every response); default is universal.
+    conf=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.config_path // empty' 2>/dev/null)
+    [[ -z "$conf" || "$conf" == "null" ]] && conf="/etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf"
+    chk="$(dirname "$conf")/check_haproxy.sh"
+    if [[ -f "$conf" ]] && grep -q "$marker" "$conf" 2>/dev/null; then we_own="true"; fi
+
+    _kp_report() {  # $1=state  $2=vip_id(or empty)  $3=hash  $4=message
+        local vid="${2:-null}"; [[ -z "$2" ]] && vid="null"
+        curl -k -s --connect-timeout 10 --max-time 30 -X POST "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/agents/$AGENT_NAME/keepalived-status" \
+            -H "X-API-Key: $AGENT_TOKEN" -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
+            -d "{\"vip_id\":${vid},\"state\":\"$1\",\"config_hash\":\"${3:-}\",\"message\":\"${4:-}\"}" \
+            >/dev/null 2>&1 || true
+    }
+    _kp_teardown() {
+        # $1=purge ("true" only on an explicit operator opt-in delete). Default: stop+disable
+        # keepalived and remove OUR config (the VIP is released) but KEEP the package — the safe
+        # enterprise default. Purge only when opted in AND we are the ones who installed it
+        # (the .hom_installed marker); never remove a package the admin pre-installed.
+        local purge="${1:-false}" marker_inst; marker_inst="$(dirname "$conf")/.hom_installed"
+        log "INFO" "KEEPALIVED: tearing down our managed VIP config (purge=$purge)"
+        systemctl stop keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+        systemctl disable keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+        rm -f "$conf" "$chk"
+        if [[ "$purge" == "true" && -f "$marker_inst" ]]; then
+            log "INFO" "KEEPALIVED: uninstalling keepalived package (operator opt-in)"
+            if command -v apt-get >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 apt-get purge -y -qq keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+            elif command -v dnf >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 dnf remove -y -q keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+            elif command -v yum >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 yum remove -y -q keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+            elif command -v zypper >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 zypper --non-interactive remove -y keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+            elif command -v apk >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 apk del keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+            fi
+            rm -f "$marker_inst"
+            if command -v keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+                _kp_report "disabled" "" "" "config removed; package uninstall attempted (still present)"
+            else
+                _kp_report "disabled" "" "" "torn down + keepalived package uninstalled"
+            fi
+        elif [[ "$purge" == "true" ]]; then
+            log "INFO" "KEEPALIVED: package was pre-existing (not installed by us) — left in place; our config removed"
+            _kp_report "disabled" "" "" "torn down (package left: pre-existing, not installed by us)"
+        else
+            _kp_report "disabled" "" "" "torn down"
+        fi
+    }
+
+    case "$status" in
+        available) : ;;  # fall through to converge
+        teardown)
+            # Explicit server-side delete. Honor the operator's opt-in package purge (.purge);
+            # marker-guarded inside _kp_teardown, and a node we don't own (no marker conf) is a no-op.
+            local _kp_purge; _kp_purge=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.purge // false' 2>/dev/null)
+            [[ "$we_own" == "true" ]] && _kp_teardown "$_kp_purge"
+            return 0 ;;
+        not_configured)
+            [[ "$we_own" == "true" ]] && _kp_teardown "false"   # T-2 orphan self-heal: graceful only, never purge
+            return 0 ;;
+        *) return 0 ;;   # unknown / auth error → no-op
+    esac
+
+    # --- status == available: converge ---
+    local vip_id new_conf check_script install_if new_hash
+    vip_id=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.keepalived.vip_id // empty' 2>/dev/null)
+    new_conf=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.keepalived.config_content // empty' 2>/dev/null)
+    new_hash=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.keepalived.config_hash // empty' 2>/dev/null)
+    check_script=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.keepalived.check_script // empty' 2>/dev/null)
+    install_if=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.keepalived.install_if_missing // false' 2>/dev/null)
+    [[ -z "$new_conf" ]] && return 0
+
+    # Ownership guard: never overwrite a keepalived.conf we don't own.
+    if [[ -f "$conf" && "$we_own" != "true" ]]; then
+        log "WARN" "KEEPALIVED: $conf is externally managed — refusing to overwrite"
+        _kp_report "externally_managed" "$vip_id" "" "pre-existing unmanaged keepalived.conf"
+        return 0
+    fi
+
+    # Hybrid install: install keepalived only if missing.
+    if ! command -v keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+        if [[ "$install_if" == "true" ]]; then
+            log "INFO" "KEEPALIVED: installing package..."
+            if command -v apt-get >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 apt-get install -y -qq keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+            elif command -v dnf >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 dnf install -y -q keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+            elif command -v yum >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 yum install -y -q keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+            elif command -v zypper >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 zypper --non-interactive install -y keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+            elif command -v apk >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 apk add --no-cache keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+            fi
+        fi
+        if ! command -v keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+            log "ERROR" "KEEPALIVED: not installed/available"
+            _kp_report "error" "$vip_id" "" "keepalived not installed"
+            return 0
+        fi
+        # We installed keepalived (it was missing) — drop a marker so an opt-in uninstall on
+        # delete removes only OUR install, never an admin's pre-existing keepalived package.
+        mkdir -p "$(dirname "$conf")" 2>/dev/null; : > "$(dirname "$conf")/.hom_installed" 2>/dev/null
+    fi
+
+    # Idempotency: skip write+reload when the on-disk content already matches.
+    if [[ -f "$conf" ]]; then
+        local cur_hash would_hash
+        cur_hash=$(md5sum "$conf" 2>/dev/null | awk '{print $1}')
+        would_hash=$(printf '%s' "$new_conf" | md5sum 2>/dev/null | awk '{print $1}')
+        if [[ -n "$cur_hash" && "$cur_hash" == "$would_hash" ]]; then
+            return 0
+        fi
+    fi
+
+    mkdir -p "$(dirname "$conf")"
+    if [[ -n "$check_script" ]]; then
+        printf '%s' "$check_script" > "$chk"
+        chown root:root "$chk" 2>/dev/null
+        chmod 0755 "$chk"   # root-owned, not world-writable — required by enable_script_security
+    fi
+    # Validate on a TEMP file and swap in only on success: a bad render must never land on
+    # $conf (it would also make the md5 idempotency guard above suppress retries forever).
+    local tmp_conf="${conf}.hom.tmp"
+    printf '%s' "$new_conf" > "$tmp_conf"
+    chmod 0644 "$tmp_conf"
+    if ! keepalived -t -f "$tmp_conf" >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+        rm -f "$tmp_conf"
+        log "ERROR" "KEEPALIVED: config validation failed (keepalived -t) — keeping current config, not (re)starting"
+        _kp_report "error" "$vip_id" "$new_hash" "keepalived -t failed"
+        return 0
+    fi
+    mv -f "$tmp_conf" "$conf"
+    chown root:root "$conf" 2>/dev/null
+    chmod 0644 "$conf"
+    systemctl enable keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+    if systemctl reload keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1 || systemctl restart keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+        log "INFO" "KEEPALIVED: applied config for VIP ${vip_id}"
+        _kp_report "enabled" "$vip_id" "$new_hash" "applied"
+    else
+        log "ERROR" "KEEPALIVED: reload/restart failed"
+        _kp_report "error" "$vip_id" "$new_hash" "reload/restart failed"
+    fi
+    return 0
+}
+
 reload_haproxy_service() {
     log "INFO" "Performing zero-downtime HAProxy configuration reload..."
     
@@ -2356,8 +2533,12 @@ run_daemon() {
         _loop_count=$((_loop_count + 1))
         if (( _loop_count % 5 == 0 )); then
             check_ssl_updates
+            # Issue #27 — HA/VIP convergence at the SSL cadence (inert for non-VIP nodes)
+            if type fetch_and_deploy_keepalived_config &>/dev/null; then
+                fetch_and_deploy_keepalived_config
+            fi
         fi
-        
+
         check_agent_upgrade
     done
     
@@ -2789,28 +2970,31 @@ SYSTEM_INFO_EOF
 
         if command -v journalctl &>/dev/null; then
             state=$(journalctl -u keepalived -n 50 --no-pager 2>/dev/null \
-                | grep -oE "(MASTER|BACKUP)" | tail -1)
+                | grep -oE "(MASTER|BACKUP|FAULT)" | tail -1)
         fi
 
         if [[ -z "$state" ]]; then
             for logfile in /var/log/messages /var/log/syslog /var/log/keepalived.log; do
                 if [[ -r "$logfile" ]]; then
                     state=$(tail -200 "$logfile" 2>/dev/null \
-                        | grep -i keepalived | grep -oE "(MASTER|BACKUP)" | tail -1)
+                        | grep -i keepalived | grep -oE "(MASTER|BACKUP|FAULT)" | tail -1)
                     [[ -n "$state" ]] && break
                 fi
             done
         fi
 
+        # Method 3: VIP presence on local interfaces — portable, logging-independent.
+        # MASTER iff ANY configured VIP is held locally (exact whole-line match, all VIPs).
         if [[ -z "$state" ]] && [[ -r /etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf ]]; then
-            local conf_vip=$(grep -A10 'virtual_ipaddress' /etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf 2>/dev/null \
-                | grep -oE '[0-9]+\.[0-9]+\.[0-9]+\.[0-9]+' | head -1)
-            if [[ -n "$conf_vip" ]]; then
-                if ip addr show 2>/dev/null | grep -q "$conf_vip"; then
-                    state="MASTER"
-                else
-                    state="BACKUP"
-                fi
+            local conf_vips=$(grep -A20 'virtual_ipaddress' /etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf 2>/dev/null \
+                | grep -oE '([0-9]{1,3}\.){3}[0-9]{1,3}')
+            if [[ -n "$conf_vips" ]]; then
+                local local_ips=$(ip -4 -o addr show 2>/dev/null | grep -oE 'inet ([0-9]{1,3}\.){3}[0-9]{1,3}' | awk '{print $2}')
+                state="BACKUP"
+                local _cvip
+                for _cvip in $conf_vips; do
+                    if printf '%s\n' "$local_ips" | grep -Fxq "$_cvip"; then state="MASTER"; break; fi
+                done
             fi
         fi
 
@@ -2849,7 +3033,15 @@ SYSTEM_INFO_EOF
         local keepalive_info=$(get_keepalive_state)
         local keepalive_state=$(echo "$keepalive_info" | cut -d'|' -f1)
         local keepalive_ip=$(echo "$keepalive_info" | cut -d'|' -f2)
-        
+
+        # Network interfaces (DAEMON) — reported so the HA/VIP create form can offer this
+        # node's real NICs. /sys/class/net is universal across distros (no iproute2 needed);
+        # exclude loopback here, and the UI further hides docker/veth/bridge interfaces. Empty
+        # -> "[]" (never "[\"\"]") so a node with no NICs doesn't surface a blank option.
+        local net_ifaces ni_json
+        net_ifaces=$(ls /sys/class/net 2>/dev/null | grep -vE '^lo$' | tr '\n' ',' | sed 's/,$//')
+        if [ -n "$net_ifaces" ]; then ni_json="[\"${net_ifaces//,/\",\"}\"]"; else ni_json="[]"; fi
+
         # Prepare heartbeat payload with all data
         local heartbeat_payload="{
             \"name\": \"$AGENT_NAME\",
@@ -2859,6 +3051,8 @@ SYSTEM_INFO_EOF
             \"platform\": \"$platform\",
             \"architecture\": \"$(uname -m)\",
             \"version\": \"{{AGENT_VERSION}}\",
+            \"capabilities\": [\"haproxy_management\", \"ssl_deployment\", \"config_reload\", \"systemd_service\", \"keepalived_management\"],
+            \"network_interfaces\": $ni_json,
             \"haproxy_status\": \"$haproxy_status\",
             \"haproxy_version\": \"$haproxy_version\",
             \"cluster_id\": $CLUSTER_ID,
@@ -3041,9 +3235,159 @@ CONFIG_RESPONSE_EOF
     HAPROXY_BIN="${HAPROXY_BIN_PATH}"
     HAPROXY_CONFIG="${HAPROXY_CONFIG_PATH}"
     log "INFO" "DAEMON: Initialized HAProxy paths - bin: $HAPROXY_BIN, config: $HAPROXY_CONFIG"
-    
+
+    # Issue #27 (v1.7.0) — HA/VIP (Keepalived) convergence (DAEMON copy). Inert by
+    # default: a node with no APPLIED VIP gets not_configured and (lacking our marker)
+    # does nothing. Never clobbers a hand-managed keepalived. $AGENT_TOKEN is synced to
+    # the live token at the top of each loop iteration below.
+    fetch_and_deploy_keepalived_config() {
+        local marker="# Managed by HAProxy OpenManager"
+        local resp status http_code we_own="false" conf chk
+
+        # Timeouts so a hung management server can never stall the daemon loop.
+        resp=$(curl -k -s --connect-timeout 10 --max-time 30 -w '\n%{http_code}' -X GET \
+            "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/agents/$AGENT_NAME/keepalived-config" \
+            -H "X-API-Key: $AGENT_TOKEN" 2>/dev/null) || return 0
+        http_code="${resp##*$'\n'}"   # last line = HTTP status
+        resp="${resp%$'\n'*}"          # everything before = JSON body
+        [[ -z "$resp" ]] && return 0
+        status=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.status // "unknown"' 2>/dev/null)
+        # A 404 means this agent was deleted server-side (node decommissioned / pool removed):
+        # self-heal teardown OUR keepalived so a removed node stops advertising the VIP. The
+        # teardown branch below is marker-guarded, so a node we don't manage stays untouched.
+        [[ "$http_code" == "404" ]] && status="teardown"
+        # Cluster-driven keepalived.conf path (delivered in every response); default is universal.
+        conf=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.config_path // empty' 2>/dev/null)
+        [[ -z "$conf" || "$conf" == "null" ]] && conf="/etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf"
+        chk="$(dirname "$conf")/check_haproxy.sh"
+        if [[ -f "$conf" ]] && grep -q "$marker" "$conf" 2>/dev/null; then we_own="true"; fi
+
+        _kp_report() {
+            local vid="${2:-null}"; [[ -z "$2" ]] && vid="null"
+            curl -k -s --connect-timeout 10 --max-time 30 -X POST "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/agents/$AGENT_NAME/keepalived-status" \
+                -H "X-API-Key: $AGENT_TOKEN" -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
+                -d "{\"vip_id\":${vid},\"state\":\"$1\",\"config_hash\":\"${3:-}\",\"message\":\"${4:-}\"}" \
+                >/dev/null 2>&1 || true
+        }
+        _kp_teardown() {
+            # $1=purge ("true" only on an explicit operator opt-in delete). Default: stop+disable
+            # keepalived and remove OUR config (VIP released) but KEEP the package. Purge only when
+            # opted in AND we installed it (.hom_installed marker) — never an admin's package.
+            local purge="${1:-false}" marker_inst; marker_inst="$(dirname "$conf")/.hom_installed"
+            log "INFO" "KEEPALIVED: tearing down our managed VIP config (purge=$purge)"
+            systemctl stop keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+            systemctl disable keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+            rm -f "$conf" "$chk"
+            if [[ "$purge" == "true" && -f "$marker_inst" ]]; then
+                log "INFO" "KEEPALIVED: uninstalling keepalived package (operator opt-in)"
+                if command -v apt-get >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 apt-get purge -y -qq keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+                elif command -v dnf >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 dnf remove -y -q keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+                elif command -v yum >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 yum remove -y -q keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+                elif command -v zypper >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 zypper --non-interactive remove -y keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+                elif command -v apk >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 apk del keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+                fi
+                rm -f "$marker_inst"
+                if command -v keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+                    _kp_report "disabled" "" "" "config removed; package uninstall attempted (still present)"
+                else
+                    _kp_report "disabled" "" "" "torn down + keepalived package uninstalled"
+                fi
+            elif [[ "$purge" == "true" ]]; then
+                log "INFO" "KEEPALIVED: package was pre-existing (not installed by us) — left in place; our config removed"
+                _kp_report "disabled" "" "" "torn down (package left: pre-existing, not installed by us)"
+            else
+                _kp_report "disabled" "" "" "torn down"
+            fi
+        }
+
+        case "$status" in
+            available) : ;;
+            teardown)
+                local _kp_purge; _kp_purge=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.purge // false' 2>/dev/null)
+                [[ "$we_own" == "true" ]] && _kp_teardown "$_kp_purge"   # explicit delete: honor opt-in purge
+                return 0 ;;
+            not_configured)
+                [[ "$we_own" == "true" ]] && _kp_teardown "false"   # T-2 orphan self-heal: graceful only
+                return 0 ;;
+            *) return 0 ;;
+        esac
+
+        local vip_id new_conf check_script install_if new_hash
+        vip_id=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.keepalived.vip_id // empty' 2>/dev/null)
+        new_conf=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.keepalived.config_content // empty' 2>/dev/null)
+        new_hash=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.keepalived.config_hash // empty' 2>/dev/null)
+        check_script=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.keepalived.check_script // empty' 2>/dev/null)
+        install_if=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.keepalived.install_if_missing // false' 2>/dev/null)
+        [[ -z "$new_conf" ]] && return 0
+
+        if [[ -f "$conf" && "$we_own" != "true" ]]; then
+            log "WARN" "KEEPALIVED: $conf is externally managed — refusing to overwrite"
+            _kp_report "externally_managed" "$vip_id" "" "pre-existing unmanaged keepalived.conf"
+            return 0
+        fi
+
+        if ! command -v keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+            if [[ "$install_if" == "true" ]]; then
+                log "INFO" "KEEPALIVED: installing package..."
+                if command -v apt-get >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 apt-get install -y -qq keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+                elif command -v dnf >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 dnf install -y -q keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+                elif command -v yum >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 yum install -y -q keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+                elif command -v zypper >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 zypper --non-interactive install -y keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+                elif command -v apk >/dev/null 2>&1; then timeout 300 apk add --no-cache keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+                fi
+            fi
+            if ! command -v keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+                log "ERROR" "KEEPALIVED: not installed/available"
+                _kp_report "error" "$vip_id" "" "keepalived not installed"
+                return 0
+            fi
+            # We installed keepalived (it was missing) — drop a marker so an opt-in uninstall on
+            # delete removes only OUR install, never an admin's pre-existing keepalived package.
+            mkdir -p "$(dirname "$conf")" 2>/dev/null; : > "$(dirname "$conf")/.hom_installed" 2>/dev/null
+        fi
+
+        if [[ -f "$conf" ]]; then
+            local cur_hash would_hash
+            cur_hash=$(md5sum "$conf" 2>/dev/null | awk '{print $1}')
+            would_hash=$(printf '%s' "$new_conf" | md5sum 2>/dev/null | awk '{print $1}')
+            if [[ -n "$cur_hash" && "$cur_hash" == "$would_hash" ]]; then
+                return 0
+            fi
+        fi
+
+        mkdir -p "$(dirname "$conf")"
+        if [[ -n "$check_script" ]]; then
+            printf '%s' "$check_script" > "$chk"
+            chown root:root "$chk" 2>/dev/null
+            chmod 0755 "$chk"
+        fi
+        # Validate on a TEMP file and swap in only on success: a bad render must never land on
+        # $conf (it would also make the md5 idempotency guard above suppress retries forever).
+        local tmp_conf="${conf}.hom.tmp"
+        printf '%s' "$new_conf" > "$tmp_conf"
+        chmod 0644 "$tmp_conf"
+        if ! keepalived -t -f "$tmp_conf" >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+            rm -f "$tmp_conf"
+            log "ERROR" "KEEPALIVED: config validation failed (keepalived -t) — keeping current config, not (re)starting"
+            _kp_report "error" "$vip_id" "$new_hash" "keepalived -t failed"
+            return 0
+        fi
+        mv -f "$tmp_conf" "$conf"
+        chown root:root "$conf" 2>/dev/null
+        chmod 0644 "$conf"
+        systemctl enable keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1
+        if systemctl reload keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1 || systemctl restart keepalived >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+            log "INFO" "KEEPALIVED: applied config for VIP ${vip_id}"
+            _kp_report "enabled" "$vip_id" "$new_hash" "applied"
+        else
+            log "ERROR" "KEEPALIVED: reload/restart failed"
+            _kp_report "error" "$vip_id" "$new_hash" "reload/restart failed"
+        fi
+        return 0
+    }
+
     log "DEBUG" "DAEMON: Starting agent monitoring loop for $AGENT_NAME"
-    
+
     # Enhanced daemon loop with upgrade capability - EXACT MacOS COPY
     while true; do
         sleep 30
@@ -3208,6 +3552,13 @@ CONFIG_RESPONSE_EOF
             fi
         fi
         
+        # Issue #27 — HA/VIP (Keepalived) convergence at the SSL cadence (~2.5 min);
+        # inert for non-VIP nodes (status=not_configured + no ownership marker).
+        _kp_loop_count=$(( ${_kp_loop_count:-0} + 1 ))
+        if (( _kp_loop_count % 5 == 0 )) && type fetch_and_deploy_keepalived_config &>/dev/null; then
+            fetch_and_deploy_keepalived_config
+        fi
+
         # Check for configuration updates with proper error handling
         config_response=$(curl -k -s -X GET "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/agents/$AGENT_NAME/config" \
             -H "X-API-Key: $CURRENT_AGENT_TOKEN" 2>/dev/null)

backend/utils/agent_scripts/macos_install.sh

@@ -318,7 +318,11 @@ safe_remove() {
 [[ "$QUIET_MODE" != "true" ]] && echo "Terminating existing HAProxy Agent processes..."
 KILLED_COUNT=0
 INSTALLER_PID=$$
-for pattern in "haproxy-agent" "/usr/local/bin/haproxy-agent" "com.haproxy.agent"; do
+# issue #31: match ONLY the installed agent (binary path + LaunchDaemon label), never the bare
+# string "haproxy-agent". With pgrep -f, that bare string can also match the installer's OWN command
+# line or a sudo ancestor (which the $$/$PPID guard does not fully cover), making the cleanup kill
+# the installer itself. The "$INSTALL_DIR/haproxy-agent" path still catches any running daemon.
+for pattern in "$INSTALL_DIR/haproxy-agent" "com.haproxy.agent"; do
     PIDS=$(pgrep -f "$pattern" 2>/dev/null || true)
     if [[ -n "$PIDS" ]]; then
         FILTERED=""
@@ -522,7 +526,7 @@ if [[ "$SKIP_TO_DAEMON" != "true" ]]; then
 
     # Validate cluster exists by checking management API
     log "DEBUG" "Validating HAProxy Cluster..."
-    CLUSTER_CHECK=$("$CURL_BIN" -k -s -f "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/clusters" -H "User-Agent: haproxy-agent-installer" || echo "FAILED")
+    CLUSTER_CHECK=$("$CURL_BIN" -k -s -f "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/clusters" -H "X-API-Key: $AGENT_TOKEN" -H "User-Agent: haproxy-agent-installer" || echo "FAILED")
     if [[ "$CLUSTER_CHECK" == "FAILED" ]]; then
         log "ERROR" "Failed to connect to management API!"
         echo "   Please check your network connection and management URL."
@@ -867,7 +871,7 @@ SSL_SYNC_TIMESTAMP_FILE="/tmp/haproxy-agent-ssl-sync-${AGENT_NAME}"
 get_cluster_paths() {
     log "DEBUG" "Fetching cluster paths from management API"
     local cluster_response=$("$CURL_BIN" -k -s -X GET "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/clusters" \
-        -H "Authorization: Bearer $AGENT_TOKEN")
+        -H "X-API-Key: $AGENT_TOKEN")
     
     if [[ $? -eq 0 ]]; then
         local _cfg _bin _sock
@@ -920,7 +924,12 @@ register_agent() {
     local arch=$(uname -m)
     platform=$(uname -s | tr '[:upper:]' '[:lower:]')  # Remove local to make it global
     local system_info=$(collect_system_info)
-    
+    # issue #31: if collect_system_info produced no JSON content (empty on an unusual host), the
+    # '$system_info,' line below would collapse to a bare comma and break the heartbeat JSON. A
+    # valid fragment always contains a quoted key; if none is present, fall back to one. The glob
+    # '*"*' is the most portable bash test (no POSIX class / pattern-substitution), safe on bash 3.x+.
+    [[ "$system_info" != *'"'* ]] && system_info='"operating_system": "unknown"'
+
     local json_payload=$(cat <<SIMPLE_EOF
 {
     "name": "$AGENT_NAME",
@@ -1164,13 +1173,39 @@ get_keepalive_state() {
     return 0
 }
 
+# Issue #27 — keepalived/VRRP is Linux-only. macOS agents cannot run keepalived, so they
+# can never be VIP members (the backend also withholds the keepalived_management capability,
+# so the UI warns at assign time). This is a safe no-op that, if a VIP is somehow mis-assigned
+# to a macOS node, reports a clear "unsupported on macOS" status instead of silently never
+# converging. It never installs/writes anything.
+fetch_and_deploy_keepalived_config() {
+    local resp status vip_id
+    resp=$(curl -k -s -X GET "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/agents/$AGENT_NAME/keepalived-config" \
+        -H "X-API-Key: $AGENT_TOKEN" 2>/dev/null) || return 0
+    [[ -z "$resp" ]] && return 0
+    status=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.status // "unknown"' 2>/dev/null)
+    if [[ "$status" == "available" ]]; then
+        vip_id=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.keepalived.vip_id // empty' 2>/dev/null)
+        log "WARN" "KEEPALIVED: a VIP is assigned to this node, but keepalived/VRRP is not supported on macOS — ignoring"
+        curl -k -s -X POST "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/agents/$AGENT_NAME/keepalived-status" \
+            -H "X-API-Key: $AGENT_TOKEN" -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
+            -d "{\"vip_id\":${vip_id:-null},\"state\":\"error\",\"message\":\"keepalived/VRRP not supported on macOS\"}" >/dev/null 2>&1 || true
+    fi
+    return 0
+}
+
 # Send heartbeat
 send_heartbeat() {
     local haproxy_status=$(get_haproxy_status)
     local server_statuses=$(get_server_statuses)
     local haproxy_stats_csv=$(get_haproxy_stats_csv)
     local system_info=$(collect_system_info)
-    
+    # issue #31: if collect_system_info produced no JSON content (empty on an unusual host), the
+    # '$system_info,' line below would collapse to a bare comma and break the heartbeat JSON. A
+    # valid fragment always contains a quoted key; if none is present, fall back to one. The glob
+    # '*"*' is the most portable bash test (no POSIX class / pattern-substitution), safe on bash 3.x+.
+    [[ "$system_info" != *'"'* ]] && system_info='"operating_system": "unknown"'
+
     # Get HAProxy version for heartbeat (safe extraction, fallback to "unknown")
     local haproxy_version="unknown"
     if command -v haproxy &> /dev/null; then
@@ -2197,8 +2232,12 @@ run_daemon() {
         _loop_count=$((_loop_count + 1))
         if (( _loop_count % 5 == 0 )); then
             check_ssl_updates
+            # Issue #27 — HA/VIP convergence (no-op on macOS; reports unsupported if assigned)
+            if type fetch_and_deploy_keepalived_config &>/dev/null; then
+                fetch_and_deploy_keepalived_config
+            fi
         fi
-        
+
         check_agent_upgrade
     done
     
@@ -2629,7 +2668,25 @@ SYSTEM_INFO_EOF
         echo "|"
         return 0
     }
-    
+
+    # Issue #27 — keepalived/VRRP is Linux-only (DAEMON version). Safe no-op that reports a
+    # clear "unsupported on macOS" status if a VIP is ever mis-assigned to a macOS node.
+    fetch_and_deploy_keepalived_config() {
+        local resp status vip_id
+        resp=$(curl -k -s -X GET "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/agents/$AGENT_NAME/keepalived-config" \
+            -H "X-API-Key: $AGENT_TOKEN" 2>/dev/null) || return 0
+        [[ -z "$resp" ]] && return 0
+        status=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.status // "unknown"' 2>/dev/null)
+        if [[ "$status" == "available" ]]; then
+            vip_id=$(echo "$resp" | jq -r '.keepalived.vip_id // empty' 2>/dev/null)
+            log "WARN" "KEEPALIVED: a VIP is assigned to this node, but keepalived/VRRP is not supported on macOS — ignoring"
+            curl -k -s -X POST "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/agents/$AGENT_NAME/keepalived-status" \
+                -H "X-API-Key: $AGENT_TOKEN" -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
+                -d "{\"vip_id\":${vip_id:-null},\"state\":\"error\",\"message\":\"keepalived/VRRP not supported on macOS\"}" >/dev/null 2>&1 || true
+        fi
+        return 0
+    }
+
     # Send heartbeat (DAEMON version - includes all stats)
     send_heartbeat() {
         local haproxy_status=$(get_haproxy_status)
@@ -3021,6 +3078,13 @@ CONFIG_RESPONSE_EOF
             fi
         fi
         
+        # Issue #27 — HA/VIP convergence at the SSL cadence (no-op on macOS; reports
+        # unsupported if a VIP is mis-assigned to this node).
+        _kp_loop_count=$(( ${_kp_loop_count:-0} + 1 ))
+        if (( _kp_loop_count % 5 == 0 )) && type fetch_and_deploy_keepalived_config &>/dev/null; then
+            fetch_and_deploy_keepalived_config
+        fi
+
         # Check for configuration updates with proper error handling
         config_response=$(curl -k -s -X GET "$MANAGEMENT_URL/api/agents/$AGENT_NAME/config" \
             -H "X-API-Key: $CURRENT_AGENT_TOKEN" 2>/dev/null)

backend/utils/dns_credentials.py

@@ -0,0 +1,88 @@
+"""Issue #35 — ACME DNS-01 (v1.8.0): at-rest encryption for per-account DNS provider credentials.
+
+Mirrors the established Fernet + HKDF(SECRET_KEY) pattern used for the VRRP secret
+(backend/services/keepalived_config.py) and TOTP secrets (backend/services/mfa_service.py):
+prefer an explicit DNS_PROVIDER_ENCRYPTION_KEY env var (enables key rotation), else derive a
+stable key from SECRET_KEY via HKDF with a versioned info string.
+
+DNS provider credentials are a small dict (e.g. {"api_token": "..."}). They are JSON-serialized,
+encrypted to a Fernet token string for storage, and only ever decrypted in-process when a DNS-01
+order needs to talk to the provider. Plaintext credentials are NEVER logged or returned by the API.
+
+NOTE on key rotation: if SECRET_KEY rotates and DNS_PROVIDER_ENCRYPTION_KEY is not set, previously
+stored credentials become undecryptable (decrypt returns None). Callers MUST treat a None result as
+"credentials unavailable — re-enter in Settings" and surface a clear error, never a silent hang.
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import base64
+import json
+import logging
+import os
+from typing import Dict, Optional
+
+from cryptography.fernet import Fernet, InvalidToken
+from cryptography.hazmat.primitives import hashes
+from cryptography.hazmat.primitives.kdf.hkdf import HKDF
+
+from config import SECRET_KEY
+
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
+_fernet_instance: Optional[Fernet] = None
+
+
+def _resolve_fernet_key() -> bytes:
+    """Prefer an explicit DNS_PROVIDER_ENCRYPTION_KEY; else derive from SECRET_KEY via HKDF
+    with a versioned info string (so credentials survive restarts)."""
+    explicit = os.getenv("DNS_PROVIDER_ENCRYPTION_KEY", "").strip()
+    if explicit:
+        try:
+            Fernet(explicit.encode())
+            return explicit.encode()
+        except Exception as exc:  # noqa: BLE001
+            logger.error("DNS_PROVIDER_ENCRYPTION_KEY env var present but invalid: %s", exc)
+    logger.warning(
+        "DNS_PROVIDER_ENCRYPTION_KEY not set; deriving the DNS-credentials encryption key from "
+        "SECRET_KEY. Set DNS_PROVIDER_ENCRYPTION_KEY to a Fernet key to enable key rotation."
+    )
+    hkdf = HKDF(algorithm=hashes.SHA256(), length=32, salt=None, info=b"dns-provider-creds-v1")
+    derived = hkdf.derive(SECRET_KEY.encode("utf-8"))
+    return base64.urlsafe_b64encode(derived)
+
+
+def _get_fernet() -> Fernet:
+    global _fernet_instance
+    if _fernet_instance is None:
+        _fernet_instance = Fernet(_resolve_fernet_key())
+    return _fernet_instance
+
+
+def reset_fernet_for_tests() -> None:
+    """Test-only hook to force re-resolution after env mutation."""
+    global _fernet_instance
+    _fernet_instance = None
+
+
+def encrypt_dns_credentials(credentials: Dict[str, str]) -> str:
+    """JSON-serialize and Fernet-encrypt a credentials dict to a storable token string."""
+    payload = json.dumps(credentials, separators=(",", ":")).encode("utf-8")
+    return _get_fernet().encrypt(payload).decode("utf-8")
+
+
+def decrypt_dns_credentials(token: str) -> Optional[Dict[str, str]]:
+    """Decrypt a stored token back to the credentials dict. Returns None if the token can't be
+    decrypted (e.g. key rotated) — callers must surface a clear 're-enter credentials' error."""
+    try:
+        plain = _get_fernet().decrypt(token.encode("utf-8")).decode("utf-8")
+        data = json.loads(plain)
+        if not isinstance(data, dict):
+            logger.error("Decrypted DNS credentials are not a JSON object")
+            return None
+        return data
+    except InvalidToken:
+        logger.warning("Failed to decrypt DNS provider credentials (invalid Fernet token)")
+        return None
+    except Exception as exc:  # noqa: BLE001
+        logger.error("Unexpected error decrypting DNS provider credentials: %s", exc)
+        return None

backend/utils/entity_snapshot.py

@@ -329,9 +329,10 @@ async def _rollback_update(
                     tcp_request_rules = $26, timeout_client = $27, timeout_http_request = $28,
                     rate_limit = $29, compression = $30, log_separate = $31,
                     monitor_uri = $32, maxconn = $33,
-                    cluster_id = $34, is_active = $35, last_config_status = $36, 
+                    cluster_id = $34, is_active = $35, last_config_status = $36,
+                    log_format = $37, filters = $38,
                     updated_at = CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
-                WHERE id = $37
+                WHERE id = $39
             """,
                 old_values.get('name'),
                 old_values.get('bind_address'),
@@ -369,6 +370,8 @@ async def _rollback_update(
                 old_values.get('cluster_id'),
                 old_values.get('is_active'),
                 old_values.get('last_config_status'),
+                old_values.get('log_format'),  # Issue #38
+                old_values.get('filters'),     # Issue #38
                 entity_id
             )
             

backend/utils/haproxy_config_parser.py

@@ -105,6 +105,11 @@ class ParsedFrontend:
     response_headers: Optional[str] = None
     options: Optional[str] = None  # HAProxy frontend options (option httplog, option forwardfor, etc.)
     tcp_request_rules: Optional[str] = None  # TCP request directives (for TCP mode)
+    # Issue #38: SPOE (and other) filter directives + frontend log-format.
+    # Stored as full directive lines; `filters` is newline-joined to preserve
+    # ordering when multiple `filter ...` lines exist.
+    log_format: Optional[str] = None  # `log-format` / `log-format-sd` line(s)
+    filters: Optional[str] = None  # `filter ...` line(s), e.g. `filter spoe engine coraza config ...`
 
 
 @dataclass
@@ -256,8 +261,23 @@ class HAProxyConfigParser:
             acl_rules_list = []
             use_backend_rules_list = []
             tcp_request_rules_list = []
+            filters_list = []
+            log_format_list = []
 
             for line in lines:
+                # Issue #38: capture `filter ...` (SPOE/Coraza etc.) and
+                # `log-format`/`log-format-sd` directives. Pre-fix these matched
+                # no branch below and were silently dropped, so an imported SPOE
+                # config lost `filter spoe engine coraza ...` (→ HAProxy fatal
+                # "unable to find SPOE engine") and the frontend log-format.
+                # `continue` isolates them from the header/option handling below.
+                if line.startswith('filter '):
+                    filters_list.append(line.strip())
+                    continue
+                if re.match(r'^log-format(-sd)?\s', line, re.IGNORECASE):
+                    log_format_list.append(line.strip())
+                    continue
+
                 # Parse bind directive
                 # IMPORTANT: Handle multiple bind lines correctly
                 # Example: bind *:1002 (HTTP) and bind *:443 ssl (HTTPS)
@@ -540,6 +560,13 @@ class HAProxyConfigParser:
             if tcp_request_rules_list:
                 frontend.tcp_request_rules = '\n'.join(tcp_request_rules_list)
 
+            # Issue #38: assign captured SPOE filters + log-format
+            if filters_list:
+                frontend.filters = '\n'.join(filters_list)
+
+            if log_format_list:
+                frontend.log_format = '\n'.join(log_format_list)
+
             self.frontends.append(frontend)
             logger.info(f"Parsed frontend: {name} -> {frontend.default_backend}")
 
@@ -666,9 +693,14 @@ class HAProxyConfigParser:
                             'transparent', 'abortonclose', 'allbackups', 'checkcache', 'clitcpka',
                             'srvtcpka', 'http-no-delay', 'socket-stats', 'tcp-smart-accept',
                             'tcp-smart-connect', 'independant-streams', 'log-separate-errors',
-                            'log-health-checks', 'accept-invalid-http-request', 'accept-invalid-http-response'
+                            'log-health-checks', 'accept-invalid-http-request', 'accept-invalid-http-response',
+                            # Issue #38: SPOP health check for SPOE agent backends
+                            # (e.g. coraza-spoa). Already collected below regardless, but
+                            # listing it suppresses the spurious "unknown option" warning
+                            # for the exact SPOE use-case.
+                            'spop-check'
                         ]
-                        
+
                         if option_name not in valid_options:
                             # Unknown/invalid option - add warning but still collect it
                             self.warnings.append(

backend/version.json

@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{
+  "version": "1.8.9",
+  "releaseName": "ACL -f pattern-file support (Issue #38 follow-up)",
+  "releaseDate": "2026-07-13"
+}

docker-compose.localtest.yml

@@ -10,7 +10,6 @@ services:
       dockerfile: Dockerfile
     volumes:
       - haproxy_configs:/etc/haproxy
-      - ./version.json:/app/version.json:ro
 
   frontend:
     image: haproxy-openmanager-frontend:localtest

docker-compose.yml

@@ -51,6 +51,9 @@ services:
       - LOG_LEVEL=INFO
       - PUBLIC_URL=http://localhost:8080
       - MANAGEMENT_BASE_URL=http://localhost:8080
+      # Empty when unset on the host: the image CMD then falls back to
+      # WEB_CONCURRENCY (uvicorn's native env) and finally to 1.
+      - UVICORN_WORKERS=${UVICORN_WORKERS:-}
     volumes:
       - haproxy_configs:/etc/haproxy
     expose:
@@ -96,7 +99,9 @@ services:
 
   # Nginx Reverse Proxy
   nginx:
-    image: nginx:alpine
+    # Pinned to a patched release for the nginx "poolslip" advisory
+    # (mainline <=1.31.0 affected; fixed in mainline 1.31.1+ / stable 1.30.2+).
+    image: nginx:1.31.1-alpine
     container_name: haproxy-openmanager-nginx
     volumes:
       - ./nginx/nginx.conf:/etc/nginx/nginx.conf:ro

docs/STANDALONE_INSTALL.md

@@ -163,6 +163,11 @@ serve -s build -l 3000
 
 Option B — copy to nginx (recommended, see next section).
 
+> **Important: use the nginx URL on port 8080 as your entry point.** The `serve` option above (port 3000) hosts
+> only the static UI; there is no `/api` backend behind it, so the login page renders but cannot actually log you
+> in. nginx (next section) serves the UI *and* proxies `/api` to the backend on a single port, so do your login and
+> everyday use at `http://<server-ip>:8080`.
+
 ### Create a systemd service for the frontend (if using `serve`)
 
 ```bash
@@ -268,10 +273,10 @@ curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" http://127.0.0.1:8080/
 # Login
 curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:8080/api/auth/login \
     -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-    -d '{"username": "admin", "password": "admin"}' | python3 -m json.tool
+    -d '{"username": "admin", "password": "admin123"}' | python3 -m json.tool
 ```
 
-> **Default credentials**: `admin` / `admin` — change the password immediately after first login.
+> **Default credentials**: `admin` / `admin123` — change the password immediately after first login.
 
 ## 9. Firewall
 
@@ -290,8 +295,8 @@ sudo ufw allow 8080/tcp
 | Service | Port | URL |
 |---------|------|-----|
 | Backend API | 8000 | `http://127.0.0.1:8000/api/health` |
-| Frontend | 3000 | `http://127.0.0.1:3000` |
-| Nginx (unified) | 8080 | `http://your-server-ip:8080` |
+| Frontend (static only) | 3000 | `http://127.0.0.1:3000` (UI only, no API; not the login URL) |
+| Nginx (unified, entry point) | 8080 | `http://your-server-ip:8080` (use this) |
 | PostgreSQL | 5432 | local |
 | Redis | 6379 | local |
 

frontend/package-lock.json

@@ -1,19 +1,19 @@
 {
   "name": "haproxy-openmanager-frontend",
-  "version": "1.6.0",
+  "version": "1.7.8",
   "lockfileVersion": 3,
   "requires": true,
   "packages": {
     "": {
       "name": "haproxy-openmanager-frontend",
-      "version": "1.6.0",
+      "version": "1.7.8",
       "license": "AGPL-3.0-or-later",
       "dependencies": {
         "@ant-design/icons": "^5.0.0",
         "@monaco-editor/react": "^4.6.0",
         "ace-builds": "^1.23.4",
         "antd": "^5.2.0",
-        "axios": "^1.3.0",
+        "axios": "^1.16.0",
         "moment": "^2.29.0",
         "monaco-editor": "^0.36.0",
         "qrcode.react": "^4.0.0",
@@ -4654,27 +4654,6 @@
         "url": "https://github.com/sponsors/gregberge"
       }
     },
-    "node_modules/@testing-library/dom": {
-      "version": "10.4.1",
-      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/@testing-library/dom/-/dom-10.4.1.tgz",
-      "integrity": "sha512-o4PXJQidqJl82ckFaXUeoAW+XysPLauYI43Abki5hABd853iMhitooc6znOnczgbTYmEP6U6/y1ZyKAIsvMKGg==",
-      "dev": true,
-      "license": "MIT",
-      "peer": true,
-      "dependencies": {
-        "@babel/code-frame": "^7.10.4",
-        "@babel/runtime": "^7.12.5",
-        "@types/aria-query": "^5.0.1",
-        "aria-query": "5.3.0",
-        "dom-accessibility-api": "^0.5.9",
-        "lz-string": "^1.5.0",
-        "picocolors": "1.1.1",
-        "pretty-format": "^27.0.2"
-      },
-      "engines": {
-        "node": ">=18"
-      }
-    },
     "node_modules/@testing-library/jest-dom": {
       "version": "5.17.0",
       "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/@testing-library/jest-dom/-/jest-dom-5.17.0.tgz",
@@ -6545,12 +6524,12 @@
       }
     },
     "node_modules/axios": {
-      "version": "1.14.0",
-      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/axios/-/axios-1.14.0.tgz",
-      "integrity": "sha512-3Y8yrqLSwjuzpXuZ0oIYZ/XGgLwUIBU3uLvbcpb0pidD9ctpShJd43KSlEEkVQg6DS0G9NKyzOvBfUtDKEyHvQ==",
+      "version": "1.16.0",
+      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/axios/-/axios-1.16.0.tgz",
+      "integrity": "sha512-6hp5CwvTPlN2A31g5dxnwAX0orzM7pmCRDLnZSX772mv8WDqICwFjowHuPs04Mc8deIld1+ejhtaMn5vp6b+1w==",
       "license": "MIT",
       "dependencies": {
-        "follow-redirects": "^1.15.11",
+        "follow-redirects": "^1.16.0",
         "form-data": "^4.0.5",
         "proxy-from-env": "^2.1.0"
       }
@@ -6924,9 +6903,9 @@
       "license": "MIT"
     },
     "node_modules/body-parser": {
-      "version": "1.20.4",
-      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/body-parser/-/body-parser-1.20.4.tgz",
-      "integrity": "sha512-ZTgYYLMOXY9qKU/57FAo8F+HA2dGX7bqGc71txDRC1rS4frdFI5R7NhluHxH6M0YItAP0sHB4uqAOcYKxO6uGA==",
+      "version": "1.20.5",
+      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/body-parser/-/body-parser-1.20.5.tgz",
+      "integrity": "sha512-3grm+/2tUOvu2cjJkvsIxrv/wVpfXQW4PsQHYm7yk4vfpu7Ekl6nEsYBoJUL6qDwZUx8wUhQ8tR2qz+ad9c9OA==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
       "dependencies": {
@@ -6938,7 +6917,7 @@
         "http-errors": "~2.0.1",
         "iconv-lite": "~0.4.24",
         "on-finished": "~2.4.1",
-        "qs": "~6.14.0",
+        "qs": "~6.15.1",
         "raw-body": "~2.5.3",
         "type-is": "~1.6.18",
         "unpipe": "~1.0.0"
@@ -10023,15 +10002,15 @@
       }
     },
     "node_modules/express": {
-      "version": "4.22.1",
-      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/express/-/express-4.22.1.tgz",
-      "integrity": "sha512-F2X8g9P1X7uCPZMA3MVf9wcTqlyNp7IhH5qPCI0izhaOIYXaW9L535tGA3qmjRzpH+bZczqq7hVKxTR4NWnu+g==",
+      "version": "4.22.2",
+      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/express/-/express-4.22.2.tgz",
+      "integrity": "sha512-IuL+Elrou2ZvCFHs18/CIzy2Nzvo25nZ1/D2eIZlz7c+QUayAcYoiM2BthCjs+EBHVpjYjcuLDAiCWgeIX3X1Q==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
       "dependencies": {
         "accepts": "~1.3.8",
         "array-flatten": "1.1.1",
-        "body-parser": "~1.20.3",
+        "body-parser": "~1.20.5",
         "content-disposition": "~0.5.4",
         "content-type": "~1.0.4",
         "cookie": "~0.7.1",
@@ -10050,7 +10029,7 @@
         "parseurl": "~1.3.3",
         "path-to-regexp": "~0.1.12",
         "proxy-addr": "~2.0.7",
-        "qs": "~6.14.0",
+        "qs": "~6.15.1",
         "range-parser": "~1.2.1",
         "safe-buffer": "5.2.1",
         "send": "~0.19.0",
@@ -10147,9 +10126,9 @@
       "license": "MIT"
     },
     "node_modules/fast-uri": {
-      "version": "3.1.0",
-      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/fast-uri/-/fast-uri-3.1.0.tgz",
-      "integrity": "sha512-iPeeDKJSWf4IEOasVVrknXpaBV0IApz/gp7S2bb7Z4Lljbl2MGJRqInZiUrQwV16cpzw/D3S5j5Julj/gT52AA==",
+      "version": "3.1.2",
+      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/fast-uri/-/fast-uri-3.1.2.tgz",
+      "integrity": "sha512-rVjf7ArG3LTk+FS6Yw81V1DLuZl1bRbNrev6Tmd/9RaroeeRRJhAt7jg/6YFxbvAQXUCavSoZhPPj6oOx+5KjQ==",
       "dev": true,
       "funding": [
         {
@@ -10414,9 +10393,9 @@
       "license": "ISC"
     },
     "node_modules/follow-redirects": {
-      "version": "1.15.11",
-      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/follow-redirects/-/follow-redirects-1.15.11.tgz",
-      "integrity": "sha512-deG2P0JfjrTxl50XGCDyfI97ZGVCxIpfKYmfyrQ54n5FO/0gfIES8C/Psl6kWVDolizcaaxZJnTS0QSMxvnsBQ==",
+      "version": "1.16.0",
+      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/follow-redirects/-/follow-redirects-1.16.0.tgz",
+      "integrity": "sha512-y5rN/uOsadFT/JfYwhxRS5R7Qce+g3zG97+JrtFZlC9klX/W5hD7iiLzScI4nZqUS7DNUdhPgw4xI8W2LuXlUw==",
       "funding": [
         {
           "type": "individual",
@@ -18249,9 +18228,9 @@
       }
     },
     "node_modules/qs": {
-      "version": "6.14.2",
-      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/qs/-/qs-6.14.2.tgz",
-      "integrity": "sha512-V/yCWTTF7VJ9hIh18Ugr2zhJMP01MY7c5kh4J870L7imm6/DIzBsNLTXzMwUA3yZ5b/KBqLx8Kp3uRvd7xSe3Q==",
+      "version": "6.15.2",
+      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/qs/-/qs-6.15.2.tgz",
+      "integrity": "sha512-Rzq0KEyX/w/tEybncDgdkZrJgVUsUMk3xjh3t5bv3S1HTAtg+uOYt72+ZfwiQwKdysThkTBdL/rTi6HDmX9Ddw==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "BSD-3-Clause",
       "dependencies": {
@@ -20368,9 +20347,9 @@
       }
     },
     "node_modules/shell-quote": {
-      "version": "1.8.3",
-      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/shell-quote/-/shell-quote-1.8.3.tgz",
-      "integrity": "sha512-ObmnIF4hXNg1BqhnHmgbDETF8dLPCggZWBjkQfhZpbszZnYur5DUljTcCHii5LC3J5E0yeO/1LIMyH+UvHQgyw==",
+      "version": "1.8.4",
+      "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/shell-quote/-/shell-quote-1.8.4.tgz",
+      "integrity": "sha512-VsC6n6vz1ihYYyZZwX7YZSF5l5x36ca17OC+a69h94YqB7X6XLwf+5MOgynYir2SLFUbl8gIYvBo8K8RoNQ6bQ==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
       "engines": {
@@ -22200,7 +22179,7 @@
       }
     },
     "node_modules/wbuf": {
-      "version": "1.7.3",
+      "version": "1.7.8",
       "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/wbuf/-/wbuf-1.7.3.tgz",
       "integrity": "sha512-O84QOnr0icsbFGLS0O3bI5FswxzRr8/gHwWkDlQFskhSPryQXvrTMxjxGP4+iWYoauLoBvfDpkrOauZ+0iZpDA==",
       "dev": true,

frontend/package.json

@@ -1,13 +1,13 @@
 {
   "name": "haproxy-openmanager-frontend",
-  "version": "1.6.0",
+  "version": "1.8.9",
   "description": "HAProxy Load Balancer Management UI",
   "license": "AGPL-3.0-or-later",
   "dependencies": {
     "react": "^18.2.0",
     "react-dom": "^18.2.0",
     "react-router-dom": "^6.8.0",
-    "axios": "^1.3.0",
+    "axios": "^1.16.0",
     "antd": "^5.2.0",
     "@ant-design/icons": "^5.0.0",
     "recharts": "^2.5.0",

frontend/src/App.js

@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import {
   DashboardOutlined,
   SettingOutlined,
   CloudServerOutlined,
+  DeploymentUnitOutlined,
   FileTextOutlined,
   GlobalOutlined,
   SafetyCertificateOutlined,
@@ -42,6 +43,7 @@ import PoolManagement from './components/PoolManagement';
 import Login from './components/Login';
 import ClusterSelector from './components/ClusterSelector';
 import ClusterManagement from './components/ClusterManagement';
+import VIPManagement from './components/VIPManagement';
 import Configuration from './components/Configuration';
 import APIDocumentation from './components/APIDocumentation';
 import IPInventory from './components/IPInventory';
@@ -156,6 +158,11 @@ const { Text } = Typography;
       icon: <CloudServerOutlined />,
       label: <Link to="/clusters">Clusters</Link>,
     },
+    {
+      key: '/ha-vip',
+      icon: <DeploymentUnitOutlined />,
+      label: <Link to="/ha-vip">HA / VIP</Link>,
+    },
     {
       key: '/pools',
       icon: <GlobalOutlined />,
@@ -466,6 +473,7 @@ function AppContent() {
               <Route path="/pools" element={<PoolManagement />} />
               <Route path="/settings" element={<Settings />} />
               <Route path="/clusters" element={<ClusterManagement />} />
+              <Route path="/ha-vip" element={<VIPManagement />} />
               <Route path="/ip-inventory" element={<IPInventory />} />
             </Routes>
           </Content>

frontend/src/components/ACLRuleBuilder.js

@@ -53,19 +53,19 @@ const MATCH_TYPE_GROUPS = [
   { label: 'Advanced', options: MATCH_TYPES.filter(m => m.category === 'Advanced') },
 ];
 
-// Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #12 round 3) — the `-f <file>`
-// flag was removed from the visual builder because HAProxy OpenManager
-// does not provision pattern files onto the HAProxy node filesystem.
-// Allowing `-f` in the visual builder produced ACL rules that passed
-// every UI / Pydantic / heuristic check but ALWAYS failed HAProxy's
-// real `-c` parse at apply time with "failed to open pattern file".
-// Operators reported a multi-page wizard run ending at the Apply
-// Management red-badge for a footgun the UI made trivial to step on.
-// The Pydantic validators on the manual API + wizard reject `-f`
-// universally; the visual builder simply removes the option from the
-// dropdown so operators cannot author the unsupported state.
+// Issue #38 follow-up — `-f <file>` is back in the visual builder:
+// the Bulgu #12 removal (and the matching Pydantic rejects) assumed a
+// missing pattern file would surprise the operator at apply time, but
+// the agent runs `haproxy -c` before every reload so a missing file
+// fails safely (previous config keeps running), and bulk import plus
+// the free-form fields always accepted `-f`. Pattern files are
+// operator-managed host files, same policy as SPOE filter configs
+// (v1.8.8). The value field carries the file path (e.g. flag `-f`
+// + value `/etc/haproxy/blacklist.lst`); an informational note is
+// rendered on rules that use it.
 const FLAGS = [
   { value: '-i', label: '-i  (case insensitive)' },
+  { value: '-f', label: '-f  (pattern file on host)' },
   { value: '-m beg', label: '-m beg  (begins with)' },
   { value: '-m end', label: '-m end  (ends with)' },
   { value: '-m sub', label: '-m sub  (contains)' },
@@ -396,25 +396,23 @@ function ACLDefinitionCard({ rule, index, onChange, onDelete }) {
   };
   const isRaw = rule.raw !== undefined;
 
-  // Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #12 round 3) — surface `-f` flag
-  // usage inline. The Pydantic validator rejects the rule server-side,
-  // but operators benefit from seeing the error AS they type / when
-  // they re-open a draft that carries a `-f`-flagged rule (e.g. from
-  // a pre-fix draft). The error message matches the Pydantic error
-  // verbatim so support flows are consistent.
+  // Issue #38 follow-up — `-f <file>` pattern-file references are
+  // ACCEPTED now (the Bulgu #12 reject was removed server-side too).
+  // We still detect them, but only to render an informational note:
+  // the referenced file is operator-managed and must exist on every
+  // HAProxy host; a missing file fails safely at the agent's
+  // pre-reload `haproxy -c`.
   const rawHasFileFlag = isRaw && typeof rule.raw === 'string' && ACL_FILE_FLAG_PATTERN.test(rule.raw);
   const structuredHasFileFlag =
     !isRaw && Array.isArray(rule.flags) && rule.flags.includes('-f');
   const hasFileFlag = rawHasFileFlag || structuredHasFileFlag;
-  const cardStyleWithError = hasFileFlag
-    ? { ...ruleCardStyle, border: `1px solid ${token.colorError}` }
-    : ruleCardStyle;
+  const cardStyleWithError = ruleCardStyle;
   const FILE_FLAG_TOOLTIP =
-    "ACL pattern-file references (-f <file>) are not supported by "
-    + "HAProxy OpenManager: the product does not provision pattern "
-    + "files onto the HAProxy node filesystem, so the reference "
-    + "would fail at HAProxy reload time. Remove '-f' and use inline "
-    + "values instead.";
+    "This rule references a pattern file (-f <file>). The file must "
+    + "exist at that exact path on every HAProxy host in the cluster — "
+    + "HAProxy OpenManager does not create or distribute pattern files. "
+    + "A missing file fails safely at 'haproxy -c' (the previous config "
+    + "keeps running).";
 
   if (isRaw) {
     return (
@@ -427,11 +425,10 @@ function ACLDefinitionCard({ rule, index, onChange, onDelete }) {
                 onChange={(e) => onChange(index, { raw: e.target.value })}
                 placeholder="Raw ACL rule (e.g. my_acl path_beg /api)"
                 prefix={<Tag color="default" style={{ marginRight: 4 }}>RAW</Tag>}
-                status={hasFileFlag ? 'error' : undefined}
               />
             </Tooltip>
             {hasFileFlag && (
-              <Text type="danger" style={{ fontSize: 11, display: 'block', marginTop: 2 }}>
+              <Text type="secondary" style={{ fontSize: 11, display: 'block', marginTop: 2 }}>
                 {FILE_FLAG_TOOLTIP}
               </Text>
             )}
@@ -549,12 +546,11 @@ function ACLDefinitionCard({ rule, index, onChange, onDelete }) {
                 onChange={(e) => onChange(index, { ...rule, value: e.target.value })}
                 placeholder={matchDef?.placeholder || 'Value'}
                 size="small"
-                status={structuredHasFileFlag ? 'error' : undefined}
               />
             );
           })()}
           {structuredHasFileFlag && (
-            <Text type="danger" style={{ fontSize: 11, display: 'block', marginTop: 2 }}>
+            <Text type="secondary" style={{ fontSize: 11, display: 'block', marginTop: 2 }}>
               {FILE_FLAG_TOOLTIP}
             </Text>
           )}
@@ -891,11 +887,11 @@ export default function ACLRuleBuilder({ aclRules = [], useBackendRules = [], re
       .map(d => d.name);
   }, [aclDefs]);
 
-  // Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #12 round 3) — count rules that
-  // still carry the unsupported `-f <file>` flag. Surfaced as a
-  // section-level Alert so operators know the section as a whole
-  // has invalid rules even if individual cards / raw text would
-  // otherwise need scrolling to find them.
+  // Issue #38 follow-up — count rules that reference a `-f <file>`
+  // pattern file. Surfaced as a section-level informational Alert
+  // (non-blocking): the file is operator-managed and must exist on
+  // every HAProxy host; a missing file fails safely at the agent's
+  // pre-reload `haproxy -c`.
   const fileFlagRuleCount = useMemo(() => {
     let count = 0;
     for (const d of aclDefs) {
@@ -1153,19 +1149,19 @@ export default function ACLRuleBuilder({ aclRules = [], useBackendRules = [], re
           Define named conditions to match incoming requests by path, header, source IP, and more.
         </Text>
 
-        {/* Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #12 round 3) — section-
-            level warning when one or more rules still carry the
-            unsupported `-f <file>` pattern-file flag. Render as a
-            blocking-style Alert so the operator notices BEFORE
-            Submit. The Pydantic validator rejects the same shape
-            server-side; this is the up-front authoring guardrail. */}
+        {/* Issue #38 follow-up — section-level informational note
+            when one or more rules reference `-f <file>` pattern
+            files. Non-blocking: pattern files are operator-managed
+            host files (the Bulgu #12 reject was removed) and a
+            missing file fails safely at the agent's pre-reload
+            `haproxy -c`. */}
         {fileFlagRuleCount > 0 && (
           <Alert
-            type="error"
+            type="info"
             showIcon
             style={{ marginBottom: 8 }}
-            message={`${fileFlagRuleCount} ACL rule${fileFlagRuleCount === 1 ? '' : 's'} use the unsupported \`-f <file>\` flag`}
-            description="HAProxy OpenManager does not provision pattern files onto the HAProxy node filesystem, so any `-f /path/...` reference would fail HAProxy reload at apply time with 'failed to open pattern file'. Remove the `-f` flag and switch to inline values (e.g. `src 10.0.0.0/24` instead of `src -f /etc/haproxy/admins.lst`)."
+            message={`${fileFlagRuleCount} ACL rule${fileFlagRuleCount === 1 ? '' : 's'} reference a \`-f <file>\` pattern file`}
+            description="The referenced file must exist at that exact path on every HAProxy host in the cluster — HAProxy OpenManager does not create or distribute pattern files. A missing file fails safely at 'haproxy -c' (the previous config keeps running)."
           />
         )}
 

frontend/src/components/ACMEAutomation.js

@@ -1,8 +1,8 @@
 import React, { useState, useEffect, useCallback, useRef } from 'react';
 import {
   Card, Table, Button, Tag, Space, Modal, Form, Input, Select, Steps,
-  message, Row, Col, Statistic, Alert, Tooltip, Switch, theme, Segmented,
-  Tabs, Timeline, Spin, Empty
+  message, Row, Col, Statistic, Alert, Tooltip, Switch, theme, Segmented, Collapse,
+  Tabs, Timeline, Spin, Empty, Typography, Divider
 } from 'antd';
 import {
   SafetyCertificateOutlined, PlusOutlined, ReloadOutlined,
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ import {
   SyncOutlined, CloseCircleOutlined,
   DeleteOutlined, EyeOutlined,
   CloudDownloadOutlined, UserOutlined, InfoCircleOutlined,
-  RocketOutlined, ExperimentOutlined
+  RocketOutlined, ExperimentOutlined, KeyOutlined
 } from '@ant-design/icons';
 import { useNavigate } from 'react-router-dom';
 import { useCluster } from '../contexts/ClusterContext';
@@ -18,8 +18,26 @@ import axios from 'axios';
 
 const { Option } = Select;
 
-const getErrorMsg = (err, fallback) =>
-  err?.response?.data?.error?.message || err?.response?.data?.detail || fallback;
+const getErrorMsg = (err, fallback) => {
+  const data = err?.response?.data;
+  // FastAPI/Pydantic 422s wrap the specific field message in error.details.validation_errors[];
+  // the top-level error.message is generic ("Validation error in request data"), so prefer the
+  // field-level message (e.g. the EAB base64 hint) when present.
+  const fieldMsg = data?.error?.details?.validation_errors?.[0]?.message;
+  return fieldMsg || data?.error?.message || data?.detail || fallback;
+};
+
+// Issue #35: humanize the dotted event_type tokens emitted for DNS-01 orders so the diagnostics
+// timeline reads as a step-by-step progress log rather than raw machine strings. Unknown types
+// fall back to the raw token.
+const EVENT_LABELS = {
+  'acme.dns01.publish': 'Published DNS TXT record',
+  'acme.dns01.responded': 'Asked the CA to validate',
+  'acme.dns01.validation': 'DNS-01 validation result',
+  'acme.dns01.cleanup': 'Removed DNS TXT record',
+  'acme.order.requested': 'Certificate requested',
+};
+const humanizeEventType = (t) => EVENT_LABELS[t] || t;
 
 // Render letsencrypt_orders.error_detail (TEXT column). Backend now writes
 // structured JSON-strings (stage / http_status / ca_response / timestamp) for
@@ -83,6 +101,25 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
   const [orderFilter, setOrderFilter] = useState('active');
   const { token } = theme.useToken();
 
+  // Issue #35: DNS-01 provider catalog + global enable flag (from GET /dns-providers).
+  const [dnsProviders, setDnsProviders] = useState([]);
+  const [dns01Enabled, setDns01Enabled] = useState(false);
+  const [confirming, setConfirming] = useState(false);
+  const regChallengeType = Form.useWatch('challenge_type', registerForm);
+  const regDnsProvider = Form.useWatch('dns_provider', registerForm);
+  const wizardAccountId = Form.useWatch('account_id', wizardForm);
+  const wizardDomains = Form.useWatch('domains', wizardForm);
+  const selectedDnsProvider = dnsProviders.find(p => p.name === regDnsProvider) || null;
+
+  // Issue #35: per-account DNS credential management (view/replace/clear after creation).
+  const [credModalVisible, setCredModalVisible] = useState(false);
+  const [credAccount, setCredAccount] = useState(null);
+  const [credMeta, setCredMeta] = useState(null);
+  const [credLoading, setCredLoading] = useState(false);
+  const [credSaving, setCredSaving] = useState(false);
+  const [credForm] = Form.useForm();
+  const credProvider = credAccount ? (dnsProviders.find(p => p.name === credAccount.dns_provider) || null) : null;
+
   // v1.5.0 Issue #13: ACME Diagnostic Panel state
   const [diagVisible, setDiagVisible] = useState(false);
   const [diagOrderId, setDiagOrderId] = useState(null);
@@ -105,18 +142,23 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
   const fetchData = useCallback(async () => {
     setLoading(true);
     try {
-      const [ordersRes, accountsRes, renewalRes, clustersRes, prereqRes] = await Promise.allSettled([
+      const [ordersRes, accountsRes, renewalRes, clustersRes, prereqRes, dnsRes] = await Promise.allSettled([
         axios.get('/api/letsencrypt/orders'),
         axios.get('/api/letsencrypt/accounts'),
         axios.get('/api/letsencrypt/renewal-schedule'),
         axios.get('/api/clusters'),
         axios.get('/api/letsencrypt/prerequisites'),
+        axios.get('/api/letsencrypt/dns-providers'),
       ]);
       if (ordersRes.status === 'fulfilled') setOrders(ordersRes.value.data || []);
       if (accountsRes.status === 'fulfilled') setAccounts(accountsRes.value.data || []);
       if (prereqRes.status === 'fulfilled') setPrerequisites(prereqRes.value.data);
       if (renewalRes.status === 'fulfilled') setRenewalSchedule(renewalRes.value.data || []);
       if (clustersRes.status === 'fulfilled') setClusters(clustersRes.value.data?.clusters || []);
+      if (dnsRes.status === 'fulfilled') {
+        setDnsProviders(dnsRes.value.data?.providers || []);
+        setDns01Enabled(!!dnsRes.value.data?.dns01_enabled);
+      }
     } catch (err) {
       console.error('Error loading ACME data:', err);
     } finally {
@@ -133,9 +175,29 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
     o.status === 'pending' || o.status === 'processing' || o.status === 'ready' ||
     (o.status === 'valid' && !o.ssl_certificate_id)
   );
+  // Track the order whose detail modal is open so the poll can refresh it WITHOUT
+  // making the interval depend on orderDetail (which would recreate it every poll).
+  const openDetailIdRef = useRef(null);
+  const detailRefetchInFlightRef = useRef(false);
+  useEffect(() => {
+    openDetailIdRef.current = (detailVisible && orderDetail?.id) ? orderDetail.id : null;
+  }, [detailVisible, orderDetail]);
   useEffect(() => {
     if (!hasInProgress) return undefined;
-    const interval = setInterval(() => { fetchData(); }, 30000);
+    const interval = setInterval(() => {
+      fetchData();
+      // Keep an open order-detail modal (e.g. a manual DNS-01 order awaiting validation)
+      // in sync so its status / TXT block / Verify button cannot go stale. Skip if a prior
+      // refetch is still in flight so slow backends don't pile up overlapping requests.
+      const oid = openDetailIdRef.current;
+      if (oid && !detailRefetchInFlightRef.current) {
+        detailRefetchInFlightRef.current = true;
+        axios.get(`/api/letsencrypt/orders/${oid}`)
+          .then((r) => setOrderDetail((prev) => (prev && prev.id === oid ? r.data : prev)))
+          .catch(() => { /* transient; the next poll retries */ })
+          .finally(() => { detailRefetchInFlightRef.current = false; });
+      }
+    }, 30000);
     return () => clearInterval(interval);
   }, [hasInProgress, fetchData]);
 
@@ -144,7 +206,10 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
     if (!expiryDate) return null;
     return Math.ceil((new Date(expiryDate) - new Date()) / (1000 * 60 * 60 * 24));
   };
-  const nextRenewal = renewalSchedule.find(c => c.auto_renew && calcDaysLeft(c.expiry_date) > 0);
+  // Manual DNS-01 certs are not auto-renewed (even a legacy row left at auto_renew=TRUE), so they
+  // must not drive the "Next Renewal" countdown, which implies an automated event.
+  const isManualDnsCert = (c) => c.challenge_type === 'dns-01' && (c.dns_provider || 'manual') === 'manual';
+  const nextRenewal = renewalSchedule.find(c => c.auto_renew && !isManualDnsCert(c) && calcDaysLeft(c.expiry_date) > 0);
   const nextRenewalDays = nextRenewal ? calcDaysLeft(nextRenewal.expiry_date) : null;
   // Issue #11/#12: an order is "in progress" if it's pre-valid OR valid-but-not-downloaded (stuck).
   // Including 'ready' here ensures the dashboard counter & UI auto-refresh react to all in-flight states.
@@ -155,6 +220,21 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
   const activeAccount = accounts.find(a => a.status === 'valid') || null;
   const acmeAccount = activeAccount || (accounts.length > 0 ? accounts[accounts.length - 1] : null);
   const acmeEnabledClusters = clusters.filter(c => c.acme_enabled && c.is_active);
+  // Issue #35: the cert wizard adapts to the selected account's challenge method.
+  const wizardAccount = accounts.find(a => a.id === wizardAccountId) || activeAccount || acmeAccount;
+  const wizardIsDns01 = (wizardAccount?.challenge_type === 'dns-01');
+  const wizardDnsManual = wizardIsDns01 && (wizardAccount?.dns_provider === 'manual');
+  // Wildcard certificates can only be issued over DNS-01. Catch this client-side so the user is
+  // told their mistake up front instead of waiting for a CA-side rejection.
+  const wizardHasWildcard = (wizardDomains || []).some(d => typeof d === 'string' && d.trim().startsWith('*.'));
+  const wizardWildcardBlocked = wizardHasWildcard && !wizardIsDns01;
+  // A DNS-01 account can exist while the global kill-switch is off (e.g. an admin disabled it later).
+  // Issuing would be rejected by the backend, so block it in the wizard with a clear reason.
+  const wizardDns01Disabled = wizardIsDns01 && !dns01Enabled;
+  // Surface a direct credentials shortcut on the dashboard card when the primary account uses an
+  // automated DNS provider (manual providers need no credentials).
+  const acmeAccountProvider = acmeAccount ? dnsProviders.find(p => p.name === acmeAccount.dns_provider) : null;
+  const acmeAccountNeedsCreds = acmeAccount?.challenge_type === 'dns-01' && (acmeAccountProvider?.credential_fields || []).length > 0;
 
   const filteredOrders = orders.filter(o => {
     if (orderFilter === 'active') return !['cancelled', 'invalid', 'valid'].includes(o.status);
@@ -170,12 +250,29 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
         message.error('At least one domain is required');
         return;
       }
+      // Defense-in-depth: the Submit button is already disabled for these, but guard here too.
+      if (wizardWildcardBlocked) {
+        message.error('Wildcard certificates require a DNS-01 account. Select a DNS-01 account or remove the wildcard domain.');
+        return;
+      }
+      if (wizardDns01Disabled) {
+        message.error('DNS-01 is disabled by an administrator. Enable it in Settings > ACME to issue this certificate.');
+        return;
+      }
       setSubmitting(true);
+      // Resolve the chosen account's challenge method so DNS-01/wildcard requests are explicit.
+      // Use the same resolution as the wizard description (wizardAccount) so what the user reviewed
+      // matches what is sent.
+      const challengeType = wizardAccount?.challenge_type;  // 'http-01' | 'dns-01' | undefined
+      // Manual DNS-01 can't auto-renew (the wizard shows the switch off+disabled). Send false to
+      // match the displayed state rather than relying only on the backend to override it.
+      const autoRenew = wizardDnsManual ? false : (values.auto_renew !== false);
       const res = await axios.post('/api/letsencrypt/certificates', {
         domains: values.domains,
         cluster_ids: values.cluster_ids || [],
-        auto_renew: values.auto_renew !== false,
+        auto_renew: autoRenew,
         account_id: values.account_id || null,
+        challenge_type: challengeType || undefined,
       });
       message.success(res.data?.message || 'Certificate request submitted');
       if (res.data?.warnings?.length > 0) {
@@ -185,6 +282,16 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
       setWizardStep(0);
       wizardForm.resetFields();
       fetchData();
+      // For a manual DNS-01 order the user must publish the TXT record(s) next, so open the
+      // order detail straight away instead of leaving them to hunt for it.
+      if (res.data?.challenge_type === 'dns-01'
+          && (res.data?.dns_provider || 'manual') === 'manual'
+          && res.data?.order_id) {
+        handleViewOrder(res.data.order_id);
+      } else if (res.data?.challenge_type === 'dns-01') {
+        // Automated DNS-01 (e.g. Cloudflare): reassure the user it is hands-off.
+        message.info('Automated DNS-01: the TXT records will be published and validated automatically. No action needed.', 6);
+      }
     } catch (err) {
       message.error(getErrorMsg(err, 'Failed to request certificate'));
     } finally {
@@ -234,7 +341,7 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
       setOrderDetail(res.data);
       setDetailVisible(true);
     } catch (err) {
-      message.error('Failed to load order details');
+      message.error(getErrorMsg(err, 'Failed to load order details'));
     }
   };
 
@@ -453,21 +560,144 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
     try {
       const values = await registerForm.validateFields();
       setRegistering(true);
+      const challengeType = dns01Enabled ? (values.challenge_type || 'http-01') : 'http-01';
+      const dnsProvider = challengeType === 'dns-01' ? (values.dns_provider || null) : null;
       const res = await axios.post('/api/letsencrypt/accounts', {
         email: values.email,
         tos_agreed: values.tos_agreed,
+        challenge_type: challengeType,
+        dns_provider: dnsProvider,
+        // EAB for CAs that require it (ZeroSSL/Google). Empty → backend falls back to global Settings.
+        eab_kid: (values.eab_kid || '').trim() || undefined,
+        eab_hmac_key: (values.eab_hmac_key || '').trim() || undefined,
       });
-      message.success(`ACME account registered: ${res.data?.email || values.email}`);
-      setRegisterVisible(false);
-      registerForm.resetFields();
+      const accountId = res.data?.id;
+      // For an automated DNS-01 provider, store the entered credentials (verified server-side).
+      const provider = dnsProviders.find(p => p.name === dnsProvider);
+      let credFailed = false;
+      if (challengeType === 'dns-01' && accountId && provider && (provider.credential_fields || []).length > 0) {
+        const creds = {};
+        (provider.credential_fields || []).forEach(f => {
+          const v = values[`cred_${f.key}`];
+          if (v != null && v !== '') creds[f.key] = v;
+        });
+        try {
+          const r2 = await axios.put(`/api/letsencrypt/accounts/${accountId}/dns-credentials`, {
+            dns_provider: dnsProvider,
+            credentials: creds,
+          });
+          message.success(r2.data?.detail || 'DNS provider credentials saved');
+        } catch (credErr) {
+          credFailed = true;
+          message.warning(getErrorMsg(credErr, `Account "${res.data?.email || values.email}" registered, but the DNS credentials could not be saved. You can fix them from the account's DNS credentials action.`), 8);
+        }
+      }
+      // Only close + reset on full success. On a credential-save failure, keep the modal open with
+      // the entered values so the user can correct the token and re-submit (the account already
+      // exists and the PUT re-verifies) — avoids discarding input, a dead-end, and a misleading
+      // success toast (Finding 7). The warning toast above explains what to fix.
+      if (!credFailed) {
+        message.success(`ACME account registered: ${res.data?.email || values.email}`);
+        setRegisterVisible(false);
+        registerForm.resetFields();
+      }
       fetchData();
     } catch (err) {
+      // Inline field-validation rejections already render under each field; don't also
+      // fire a generic error toast (mirrors handleSaveDnsCreds).
+      if (err?.errorFields) return;
       message.error(getErrorMsg(err, 'Account registration failed'));
     } finally {
       setRegistering(false);
     }
   };
 
+  // Issue #35: manual DNS-01 — user asserts the TXT records are published; tell the CA to validate.
+  const handleDnsConfirm = async (orderId) => {
+    if (confirming) return;  // guard the leading-edge double-click (loading alone does not block a synchronous re-fire)
+    try {
+      setConfirming(true);
+      const res = await axios.post(`/api/letsencrypt/orders/${orderId}/dns-confirm`);
+      message.success(res.data?.message || 'DNS-01 confirmation submitted; the CA will validate shortly.');
+      // Refresh the orders list AND the open detail modal so the user sees the new state
+      // (otherwise the modal shows a stale TXT block + an active Verify button).
+      fetchData();
+      try {
+        const fresh = await axios.get(`/api/letsencrypt/orders/${orderId}`);
+        // Only repopulate if the same order's detail is still open (the user may have
+        // closed it or navigated to another order while the request was in flight).
+        setOrderDetail((prev) => (prev && prev.id === orderId ? fresh.data : prev));
+      } catch (_e) { /* list refresh already happened; modal stays as-is */ }
+    } catch (err) {
+      message.error(getErrorMsg(err, 'Failed to confirm DNS-01'));
+    } finally {
+      setConfirming(false);
+    }
+  };
+
+  // Issue #35: view / replace / clear an account's DNS provider credentials after creation.
+  const openDnsCredsModal = async (account) => {
+    setCredAccount(account);
+    setCredMeta(null);
+    credForm.resetFields();
+    setCredModalVisible(true);
+    setCredLoading(true);
+    try {
+      const res = await axios.get(`/api/letsencrypt/accounts/${account.id}/dns-credentials`);
+      setCredMeta(res.data);
+    } catch (err) {
+      message.error(getErrorMsg(err, 'Failed to load DNS credentials'));
+    } finally {
+      setCredLoading(false);
+    }
+  };
+
+  const handleSaveDnsCreds = async () => {
+    if (!credAccount || !credProvider) return;
+    try {
+      const values = await credForm.validateFields();
+      setCredSaving(true);
+      const creds = {};
+      (credProvider.credential_fields || []).forEach(f => {
+        const v = values[`cred_${f.key}`];
+        if (v != null && v !== '') creds[f.key] = v;
+      });
+      const res = await axios.put(`/api/letsencrypt/accounts/${credAccount.id}/dns-credentials`, {
+        dns_provider: credAccount.dns_provider,
+        credentials: creds,
+      });
+      message.success(res.data?.detail || 'DNS provider credentials saved and verified');
+      setCredModalVisible(false);
+      credForm.resetFields();
+      fetchData();
+    } catch (err) {
+      if (err?.errorFields) return;  // antd validation errors shown inline
+      message.error(getErrorMsg(err, 'Failed to save DNS credentials'));
+    } finally {
+      setCredSaving(false);
+    }
+  };
+
+  const handleClearDnsCreds = () => {
+    if (!credAccount) return;
+    Modal.confirm({
+      title: 'Clear DNS credentials',
+      content: `Remove the stored DNS provider credentials for ${credAccount.email}? Automated DNS-01 issuance/renewal will stop working until you re-enter them.`,
+      okText: 'Clear',
+      okButtonProps: { danger: true },
+      onOk: async () => {
+        try {
+          await axios.delete(`/api/letsencrypt/accounts/${credAccount.id}/dns-credentials`);
+          message.success('DNS credentials cleared');
+          setCredModalVisible(false);
+          fetchData();
+        } catch (err) {
+          message.error(getErrorMsg(err, 'Failed to clear DNS credentials'));
+        }
+      },
+    });
+  };
+
   const handleDeactivateAccount = (accountId, email) => {
     Modal.confirm({
       title: 'Deactivate ACME Account',
@@ -564,7 +794,19 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
       render: (status, record) => statusTag(status, record),
     },
     {
-      title: 'Account', dataIndex: 'account_email', key: 'account_email',
+      title: 'Method', key: 'method', width: 170,
+      render: (_, record) => {
+        const ct = record.challenge_type || 'http-01';
+        if (ct !== 'dns-01') return <Tag>HTTP-01</Tag>;
+        const prov = record.dns_provider || 'manual';
+        const needsAction = prov === 'manual' && (record.status === 'pending' || record.status === 'processing');
+        return needsAction
+          ? <Tag color="warning" icon={<ExclamationCircleOutlined />}>DNS-01 (manual): action needed</Tag>
+          : <Tag>DNS-01 ({prov})</Tag>;
+      },
+    },
+    {
+      title: 'Account', dataIndex: 'account_email', key: 'account_email', ellipsis: true,
       render: (e) => e || '-',
     },
     {
@@ -630,9 +872,27 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
         return <Tag color={color}>{d} days</Tag>;
       },
     },
+    {
+      title: 'Method', key: 'method', width: 130,
+      render: (_, record) => {
+        const ct = record.challenge_type || 'http-01';
+        if (ct !== 'dns-01') return <Tag>HTTP-01</Tag>;
+        return <Tag>DNS-01 ({record.dns_provider || 'manual'})</Tag>;
+      },
+    },
     {
       title: 'Auto-Renew', dataIndex: 'auto_renew', key: 'auto_renew',
-      render: (v) => v ? <Tag color="green">Enabled</Tag> : <Tag>Disabled</Tag>,
+      render: (v, record) => {
+        const isManualDns = record.challenge_type === 'dns-01' && (record.dns_provider || 'manual') === 'manual';
+        if (isManualDns) {
+          return (
+            <Tooltip title="Manual DNS-01 cannot auto-renew unattended. Re-publish the TXT record and request renewal before expiry.">
+              <Tag color="warning" icon={<ExclamationCircleOutlined />}>Manual (re-publish TXT)</Tag>
+            </Tooltip>
+          );
+        }
+        return v ? <Tag color="green">Enabled</Tag> : <Tag>Disabled</Tag>;
+      },
     },
   ];
 
@@ -655,8 +915,19 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
           <Alert
             type="info"
             showIcon
-            message="Each domain must resolve to an HAProxy node with ACME challenge routing enabled."
+            message={wizardIsDns01
+              ? "DNS-01: validated via a DNS TXT record, so no public port 80 is needed. Wildcards (*.example.com) are supported. Note that a wildcard does not cover the bare apex (example.com); add it as a separate domain if you need both."
+              : "Each domain must resolve to an HAProxy node with ACME challenge routing enabled (HTTP-01)."}
           />
+          {wizardWildcardBlocked && (
+            <Alert
+              type="warning"
+              showIcon
+              style={{ marginTop: 12 }}
+              message="Wildcard requires a DNS-01 account"
+              description="A wildcard domain (*.example.com) can only be validated over DNS-01. The currently selected account uses HTTP-01. Choose a DNS-01 account in the next step, or remove the wildcard domain."
+            />
+          )}
         </>
       ),
     },
@@ -668,20 +939,63 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
             <Select mode="multiple" placeholder="Leave empty for global certificate" allowClear>
               {clusters.map(c => (
                 <Option key={c.id} value={c.id}>
-                  {c.name} {c.acme_enabled ? '' : '(ACME not enabled)'}
+                  {c.name} {wizardIsDns01 ? '' : (c.acme_enabled ? '' : '(ACME not enabled)')}
                 </Option>
               ))}
             </Select>
           </Form.Item>
-          <Form.Item name="auto_renew" label="Auto-Renew" valuePropName="checked" initialValue={true}>
-            <Switch defaultChecked />
-          </Form.Item>
+          {wizardIsDns01 && (
+            <Alert
+              type="info"
+              showIcon
+              style={{ marginBottom: 16 }}
+              message="DNS-01 needs no ACME Challenge Routing. Any active cluster works."
+              description={wizardDnsManual
+                ? "This account uses a manual DNS provider: after submitting, open the order and publish the shown TXT record, then confirm."
+                : "The DNS TXT record(s) will be published automatically."}
+            />
+          )}
+          {wizardDnsManual ? (
+            // Manual DNS-01 cannot auto-renew (the backend forces it off); show the control off and
+            // disabled so it matches the outcome rather than implying an automated renewal.
+            <Form.Item label="Auto-Renew">
+              <Switch checked={false} disabled />
+            </Form.Item>
+          ) : (
+            <Form.Item name="auto_renew" label="Auto-Renew" valuePropName="checked" initialValue={true}>
+              <Switch />
+            </Form.Item>
+          )}
+          {wizardDnsManual && (
+            <Alert
+              type="warning"
+              showIcon
+              style={{ marginTop: -8, marginBottom: 16 }}
+              message="Manual DNS-01 cannot auto-renew unattended. You will need to re-publish the TXT record at renewal time."
+            />
+          )}
           {accounts.length > 1 && (
-            <Form.Item name="account_id" label="ACME Account">
-              <Select placeholder="Use default account">
-                {accounts.map(a => (
-                  <Option key={a.id} value={a.id}>{a.email} ({a.directory_url})</Option>
-                ))}
+            <Form.Item
+              name="account_id"
+              label="ACME Account"
+              extra={<span style={{ fontSize: 12, color: token.colorTextSecondary }}>The validation method (HTTP-01 or DNS-01) is set by the chosen account. To use DNS-01, pick a DNS-01 account.</span>}
+            >
+              <Select placeholder="Use default account" optionLabelProp="label">
+                {accounts.map(a => {
+                  // Match the parenthesized "DNS-01 (provider)" form used in the tables and order detail.
+                  const methodLabel = a.challenge_type === 'dns-01'
+                    ? `DNS-01 (${a.dns_provider || 'manual'})`
+                    : 'HTTP-01';
+                  return (
+                    <Option key={a.id} value={a.id} label={`${a.email} · ${methodLabel}`}>
+                      <span>{a.email}{' '}
+                        <Typography.Text type="secondary" style={{ fontSize: 12 }}>
+                          {methodLabel} · {a.directory_url}
+                        </Typography.Text>
+                      </span>
+                    </Option>
+                  );
+                })}
               </Select>
             </Form.Item>
           )}
@@ -707,7 +1021,31 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
               style={{ marginBottom: 16 }}
             />
           )}
-          {acmeEnabledClusters.length === 0 && (
+          {wizardDns01Disabled && (
+            <Alert
+              type="error"
+              showIcon
+              message="DNS-01 is disabled"
+              description={
+                <span>
+                  This account uses DNS-01, but DNS-01 is currently disabled by an administrator.{' '}
+                  <Button type="link" size="small" style={{ padding: 0 }} onClick={() => navigate('/settings?tab=acme')}>Enable it in Settings &gt; ACME</Button>
+                  {' '}to issue this certificate.
+                </span>
+              }
+              style={{ marginBottom: 16 }}
+            />
+          )}
+          {wizardWildcardBlocked && (
+            <Alert
+              type="error"
+              showIcon
+              message="Wildcard requires a DNS-01 account"
+              description="Remove the wildcard domain or select a DNS-01 account in the Configuration step."
+              style={{ marginBottom: 16 }}
+            />
+          )}
+          {!wizardIsDns01 && acmeEnabledClusters.length === 0 && (
             <Alert
               type="warning"
               showIcon
@@ -723,7 +1061,7 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
               style={{ marginBottom: 16 }}
             />
           )}
-          {prerequisites?.steps?.find(s => s.key === 'config_applied' && s.ok === false) && (() => {
+          {!wizardIsDns01 && prerequisites?.steps?.find(s => s.key === 'config_applied' && s.ok === false) && (() => {
             const configStep = prerequisites.steps.find(s => s.key === 'config_applied');
             const pendingNames = (configStep?.pending_clusters || []).map(c => c.name).join(', ');
             return (
@@ -755,8 +1093,17 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
             description={
               <ul style={{ margin: 0, paddingLeft: 20 }}>
                 <li>ACME Account: {activeAccount ? <Tag color="success">Active ({activeAccount.email})</Tag> : <Tag color="error">No active account</Tag>}</li>
-                <li>ACME-enabled Clusters: {acmeEnabledClusters.length > 0 ? <Tag color="success">{acmeEnabledClusters.map(c => c.name).join(', ')}</Tag> : <Tag color="warning">None</Tag>}</li>
-                <li>Domains must resolve to HAProxy node IPs for HTTP-01 validation</li>
+                {wizardIsDns01 ? (
+                  <>
+                    <li>Challenge Method: <Tag>DNS-01</Tag> (TXT record; no port 80 / ACME routing needed)</li>
+                    <li>DNS provider: <Tag>{wizardAccount?.dns_provider || 'manual'}</Tag></li>
+                  </>
+                ) : (
+                  <>
+                    <li>ACME-enabled Clusters: {acmeEnabledClusters.length > 0 ? <Tag color="success">{acmeEnabledClusters.map(c => c.name).join(', ')}</Tag> : <Tag color="warning">None</Tag>}</li>
+                    <li>Domains must resolve to HAProxy node IPs for HTTP-01 validation</li>
+                  </>
+                )}
               </ul>
             }
           />
@@ -807,9 +1154,15 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
 
       {pendingOrders.length > 0 && (() => {
         const stuckCount = pendingOrders.filter(isOrderStuck).length;
-        const inFlightCount = pendingOrders.length - stuckCount;
+        // Manual DNS-01 orders are waiting on the USER to publish a TXT record, not on the CA —
+        // call them out separately so the action item is visible without scanning the table.
+        const manualDnsAwaiting = pendingOrders.filter(o =>
+          o.challenge_type === 'dns-01' && (o.dns_provider || 'manual') === 'manual'
+          && (o.status === 'pending' || o.status === 'processing')).length;
+        const inFlightCount = pendingOrders.length - stuckCount - manualDnsAwaiting;
         const parts = [];
         if (inFlightCount > 0) parts.push(`${inFlightCount} awaiting validation`);
+        if (manualDnsAwaiting > 0) parts.push(`${manualDnsAwaiting} manual DNS-01 awaiting your TXT record${manualDnsAwaiting > 1 ? 's' : ''}`);
         if (stuckCount > 0) parts.push(`${stuckCount} pending download (auto-retrying every 60s)`);
         return (
           <Alert
@@ -817,9 +1170,11 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
             showIcon
             icon={<ExclamationCircleOutlined />}
             message={`${pendingOrders.length} certificate order(s) in progress: ${parts.join(', ')}`}
-            description={stuckCount > 0
-              ? "Stuck orders will auto-complete via the background task. You can also click \"Complete\" to retry immediately."
-              : undefined}
+            description={manualDnsAwaiting > 0
+              ? "Open a manual DNS-01 order to see the TXT record to publish, then confirm it."
+              : stuckCount > 0
+                ? "Stuck orders will auto-complete via the background task. You can also click \"Complete\" to retry immediately."
+                : undefined}
             style={{ marginBottom: 16 }}
           />
         );
@@ -866,6 +1221,11 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
                   <InfoCircleOutlined /> Manage
                 </Button>
               )}
+              {acmeAccountNeedsCreds && (
+                <Button type="link" size="small" style={{ padding: 0 }} onClick={() => openDnsCredsModal(acmeAccount)}>
+                  <KeyOutlined /> DNS credentials
+                </Button>
+              )}
             </div>
           </Card>
         </Col>
@@ -965,7 +1325,7 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
             </Button>
           )}
           {wizardStep === wizardSteps.length - 1 && (
-            <Button type="primary" onClick={handleRequestCert} loading={submitting} disabled={!activeAccount || acmeEnabledClusters.length === 0}>
+            <Button type="primary" onClick={handleRequestCert} loading={submitting} disabled={!activeAccount || wizardWildcardBlocked || wizardDns01Disabled || (!wizardIsDns01 && acmeEnabledClusters.length === 0)}>
               Submit Request
             </Button>
           )}
@@ -994,7 +1354,7 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
                 </Tag>
               ) : orderDetail.status === 'valid' ? (
                 <Tag color="warning" icon={<ExclamationCircleOutlined />}>
-                  Pending download — auto-completion task will retry every 60s
+                  Pending download. Auto-completion task will retry every 60s
                 </Tag>
               ) : orderDetail.status === 'invalid' || orderDetail.status === 'cancelled' ? (
                 <Tag color="default">Not issued</Tag>
@@ -1010,6 +1370,71 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
                 style={{ marginBottom: 16 }}
               />
             )}
+            {orderDetail.challenge_type === 'dns-01'
+              && !(orderDetail.challenges || []).some(c => c.challenge_type === 'dns-01')
+              && (orderDetail.status === 'pending' || orderDetail.status === 'processing') && (
+              <Alert
+                type="info"
+                showIcon
+                style={{ marginBottom: 16 }}
+                message="Preparing DNS-01 challenge"
+                description="The TXT record(s) for this order are being provisioned. They will appear here shortly; this view refreshes automatically."
+              />
+            )}
+            {orderDetail.challenge_type === 'dns-01' && (orderDetail.challenges || []).some(c => c.challenge_type === 'dns-01') && (() => {
+              const dnsChallenges = (orderDetail.challenges || []).filter(c => c.challenge_type === 'dns-01');
+              const isManual = (orderDetail.dns_provider || 'manual') === 'manual';
+              const canConfirm = isManual && (orderDetail.status === 'pending' || orderDetail.status === 'processing');
+              return (
+                <Alert
+                  type={isManual ? 'warning' : 'info'}
+                  showIcon
+                  style={{ marginBottom: 16 }}
+                  message={isManual
+                    ? 'DNS-01 (manual): publish these TXT record(s), then verify'
+                    : 'DNS-01 (automated): the TXT record(s) are published for you'}
+                  description={
+                    <div>
+                      <div style={{ marginBottom: 8 }}>
+                        Add the following DNS TXT record{dnsChallenges.length > 1 ? 's' : ''} at your DNS provider:
+                      </div>
+                      <Table
+                        size="small"
+                        pagination={false}
+                        dataSource={dnsChallenges}
+                        rowKey="id"
+                        scroll={{ x: 'max-content' }}
+                        columns={[
+                          { title: 'Record name', dataIndex: 'dns_record_name', key: 'name',
+                            render: (v) => v ? <Typography.Text code copyable style={{ wordBreak: 'break-all' }}>{v}</Typography.Text> : <Typography.Text type="secondary">-</Typography.Text> },
+                          { title: 'Type', key: 'type', width: 60, render: () => 'TXT' },
+                          { title: 'Value', dataIndex: 'dns_txt_value', key: 'val',
+                            render: (v) => v ? <Typography.Text code copyable style={{ wordBreak: 'break-all' }}>{v}</Typography.Text> : <Typography.Text type="secondary">-</Typography.Text> },
+                        ]}
+                      />
+                      {canConfirm && (
+                        <>
+                          <div style={{ marginTop: 12, fontSize: 12, color: token.colorTextSecondary }}>
+                            DNS changes can take a few minutes to propagate. If verification fails,
+                            wait a short while and try again. The order keeps retrying in the background.
+                          </div>
+                          <Button
+                            type="primary"
+                            size="small"
+                            loading={confirming}
+                            disabled={confirming}
+                            style={{ marginTop: 8 }}
+                            onClick={() => handleDnsConfirm(orderDetail.id)}
+                          >
+                            I've added the record(s), verify now
+                          </Button>
+                        </>
+                      )}
+                    </div>
+                  }
+                />
+              );
+            })()}
             {orderDetail.challenges?.length > 0 && (
               <>
                 <h4>Challenges</h4>
@@ -1020,7 +1445,10 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
                   rowKey="id"
                   columns={[
                     { title: 'Domain', dataIndex: 'domain', key: 'domain' },
-                    { title: 'Token', dataIndex: 'token', key: 'token', ellipsis: true },
+                    { title: 'Method', dataIndex: 'challenge_type', key: 'method', width: 90,
+                      render: (ct) => <Tag>{(ct || 'http-01') === 'dns-01' ? 'DNS-01' : 'HTTP-01'}</Tag> },
+                    { title: 'Token', dataIndex: 'token', key: 'token', ellipsis: true,
+                      render: (t, r) => (r.challenge_type === 'dns-01') ? <Typography.Text type="secondary">TXT-based (see above)</Typography.Text> : t },
                     { title: 'Status', dataIndex: 'status', key: 'status', render: (s) => statusTag(s) },
                   ]}
                 />
@@ -1047,7 +1475,7 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
             rowKey="id"
             columns={[
               {
-                title: 'Email', dataIndex: 'email', key: 'email',
+                title: 'Email', dataIndex: 'email', key: 'email', ellipsis: true,
                 render: (email) => <strong>{email}</strong>,
               },
               {
@@ -1098,6 +1526,10 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
                                   </p>
                                 )}
                                 {record.eab_kid && <p><strong>EAB Key ID:</strong> {record.eab_kid}</p>}
+                                <p><strong>Challenge Method:</strong> {(record.challenge_type || 'http-01') === 'dns-01' ? 'DNS-01' : 'HTTP-01'}</p>
+                                {(record.challenge_type === 'dns-01') && (
+                                  <p><strong>DNS Provider:</strong> {record.dns_provider || 'manual'}</p>
+                                )}
                                 <p><strong>ToS Accepted:</strong> {record.tos_agreed ? 'Yes' : 'No'}</p>
                                 <p><strong>Registered:</strong> {record.created_at ? new Date(record.created_at).toLocaleString() : '-'}</p>
                               </div>
@@ -1106,6 +1538,16 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
                         }}
                       />
                     </Tooltip>
+                    {record.challenge_type === 'dns-01'
+                      && (dnsProviders.find(p => p.name === record.dns_provider)?.credential_fields || []).length > 0 && (
+                      <Tooltip title="DNS Provider Credentials">
+                        <Button
+                          icon={<KeyOutlined />}
+                          size="small"
+                          onClick={() => openDnsCredsModal(record)}
+                        />
+                      </Tooltip>
+                    )}
                     {record.status !== 'deactivated' ? (
                       <Tooltip title="Deactivate">
                         <Button
@@ -1154,7 +1596,7 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
           message="ACME account will be registered with the directory URL configured in Settings > ACME."
           style={{ marginBottom: 16 }}
         />
-        <Form form={registerForm} layout="vertical">
+        <Form form={registerForm} layout="vertical" preserve={false}>
           <Form.Item
             name="email"
             label="Contact Email"
@@ -1167,11 +1609,12 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
           </Form.Item>
           <Form.Item
             name="tos_agreed"
+            label="Terms of Service"
             valuePropName="checked"
             initialValue={false}
             rules={[{ validator: (_, v) => v ? Promise.resolve() : Promise.reject('You must accept the Terms of Service') }]}
           >
-            <Switch checkedChildren="Accepted" unCheckedChildren="Not Accepted" />
+            <Switch checkedChildren="Accepted" unCheckedChildren="Not Accepted" aria-label="Accept Terms of Service" />
           </Form.Item>
           <div style={{ fontSize: 12, color: token.colorTextSecondary }}>
             By accepting, you agree to the ACME CA's Terms of Service (e.g.{' '}
@@ -1179,12 +1622,194 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
               Let's Encrypt Subscriber Agreement
             </a>).
           </div>
+          {/* Issue #35: External Account Binding — required by ZeroSSL / Google Trust Services. */}
+          <Collapse
+            ghost
+            style={{ marginTop: 12 }}
+            items={[{
+              key: 'eab',
+              label: 'External Account Binding (EAB)',
+              children: (
+                <>
+                  <Alert
+                    type="info"
+                    showIcon
+                    style={{ marginBottom: 12 }}
+                    message="Required by some CAs (ZeroSSL, Google Trust Services). Copy the Key ID and HMAC Key from your CA account. Re-enter them on each registration; the HMAC key is not stored."
+                  />
+                  <Form.Item
+                    name="eab_kid"
+                    label="EAB Key ID"
+                    dependencies={['eab_hmac_key']}
+                    rules={[({ getFieldValue }) => ({
+                      validator(_, value) {
+                        const kid = (value || '').trim();
+                        const hmac = (getFieldValue('eab_hmac_key') || '').trim();
+                        if (!kid && hmac) {
+                          return Promise.reject(new Error('EAB Key ID is required when an HMAC Key is entered.'));
+                        }
+                        return Promise.resolve();
+                      },
+                    })]}
+                  >
+                    <Input placeholder="EAB Key Identifier" autoComplete="off" />
+                  </Form.Item>
+                  <Form.Item
+                    name="eab_hmac_key"
+                    label="EAB HMAC Key"
+                    dependencies={['eab_kid']}
+                    rules={[({ getFieldValue }) => ({
+                      validator(_, value) {
+                        const kid = (getFieldValue('eab_kid') || '').trim();
+                        const hmac = (value || '').trim();
+                        if (kid && !hmac) {
+                          return Promise.reject(new Error('EAB HMAC Key is required when a Key ID is entered.'));
+                        }
+                        return Promise.resolve();
+                      },
+                    })]}
+                  >
+                    <Input.Password placeholder="EAB HMAC Key (base64url)" autoComplete="new-password" />
+                  </Form.Item>
+                </>
+              ),
+            }]}
+          />
+          {dns01Enabled && (
+            <>
+              <Divider style={{ margin: '16px 0 12px' }} />
+              <Form.Item
+                name="challenge_type"
+                label="Challenge Method"
+                initialValue="http-01"
+                tooltip="HTTP-01 validates over port 80. DNS-01 validates via a DNS TXT record. It works for internal/isolated clusters (no public port 80) and supports wildcards."
+              >
+                <Select>
+                  <Option value="http-01">HTTP-01 (default)</Option>
+                  <Option value="dns-01">DNS-01 (TXT record)</Option>
+                </Select>
+              </Form.Item>
+              {regChallengeType === 'dns-01' && (
+                <>
+                  {dnsProviders.length === 0 ? (
+                    <Alert
+                      type="warning"
+                      showIcon
+                      message="No DNS providers are available"
+                      description="DNS-01 appears enabled, but no provider catalog was returned. Confirm DNS-01 is enabled in Settings and that the backend is reachable, then reopen this dialog."
+                    />
+                  ) : (
+                  <Form.Item
+                    name="dns_provider"
+                    label="DNS Provider"
+                    rules={[{ required: true, message: 'Select a DNS provider' }]}
+                  >
+                    <Select placeholder="Select a DNS provider">
+                      {dnsProviders.map(p => (
+                        <Option key={p.name} value={p.name}>{p.label}</Option>
+                      ))}
+                    </Select>
+                  </Form.Item>
+                  )}
+                  {selectedDnsProvider && (selectedDnsProvider.credential_fields || []).length > 0 && (
+                    <>
+                      <Alert
+                        type="info"
+                        showIcon
+                        style={{ marginBottom: 12 }}
+                        message="Provider credentials are encrypted at rest and verified before they are saved. The token needs permission to create and delete TXT records in your domain's DNS zone."
+                      />
+                      {(selectedDnsProvider.credential_fields || []).map(f => (
+                        <Form.Item
+                          key={f.key}
+                          name={`cred_${f.key}`}
+                          label={f.label}
+                          extra={f.help ? <span style={{ fontSize: 12, color: token.colorTextSecondary }}>{f.help}</span> : null}
+                          rules={f.required ? [{ required: true, message: `${f.label} is required` }] : []}
+                        >
+                          {f.type === 'password'
+                            ? <Input.Password placeholder={f.label} maxLength={f.max_length || undefined} />
+                            : <Input placeholder={f.label} maxLength={f.max_length || undefined} />}
+                        </Form.Item>
+                      ))}
+                    </>
+                  )}
+                  {selectedDnsProvider && !selectedDnsProvider.automated && (
+                    <Alert
+                      type="warning"
+                      showIcon
+                      message="Manual DNS provider"
+                      description="You will publish the DNS TXT record yourself and confirm it. Manual DNS-01 certificates cannot auto-renew unattended."
+                    />
+                  )}
+                </>
+              )}
+            </>
+          )}
         </Form>
       </Modal>
 
+      {/* Issue #35: DNS provider credentials for an existing DNS-01 account (view / replace / clear) */}
+      <Modal
+        title={<span><KeyOutlined /> DNS Provider Credentials{credAccount ? `: ${credAccount.email}` : ''}</span>}
+        open={credModalVisible}
+        onCancel={() => { setCredModalVisible(false); credForm.resetFields(); }}
+        width={560}
+        footer={[
+          <Button key="clear" danger onClick={handleClearDnsCreds} disabled={!credMeta?.configured || credSaving}>
+            Clear credentials
+          </Button>,
+          <Button key="cancel" onClick={() => { setCredModalVisible(false); credForm.resetFields(); }}>
+            Cancel
+          </Button>,
+          <Button key="save" type="primary" loading={credSaving} onClick={handleSaveDnsCreds}>
+            Save & verify
+          </Button>,
+        ]}
+      >
+        {credLoading ? (
+          <div style={{ textAlign: 'center', padding: 24 }}><Spin /></div>
+        ) : (
+          <>
+            <p style={{ marginBottom: 4 }}>
+              <strong>Provider:</strong> {credAccount?.dns_provider || '-'}
+            </p>
+            <p style={{ marginTop: 0, fontSize: 12, color: token.colorTextSecondary }}>
+              {credMeta?.configured
+                ? `Configured: ${(credMeta.credential_fields_present || []).join(', ') || '(none)'}${credMeta.updated_at ? ` · updated ${new Date(credMeta.updated_at).toLocaleString()}` : ''}`
+                : 'No credentials are stored yet for this account.'}
+            </p>
+            <Alert
+              type="info"
+              showIcon
+              style={{ marginBottom: 16 }}
+              message="Existing values are never shown. Enter the values to (re)store them; they are verified against the provider and encrypted at rest. The token needs permission to create and delete TXT records in your domain's DNS zone."
+            />
+            <Form form={credForm} layout="vertical">
+              {(credProvider?.credential_fields || []).map(f => (
+                <Form.Item
+                  key={f.key}
+                  name={`cred_${f.key}`}
+                  label={f.label}
+                  rules={f.required ? [{ required: true, message: `${f.label} is required` }] : []}
+                  extra={f.help ? <span style={{ fontSize: 12, color: token.colorTextSecondary }}>{f.help}</span> : null}
+                >
+                  {f.type === 'password'
+                    ? <Input.Password placeholder={f.label} maxLength={f.max_length || undefined} />
+                    : <Input placeholder={f.label} maxLength={f.max_length || undefined} />}
+                </Form.Item>
+              ))}
+              {(credProvider?.credential_fields || []).length === 0 && (
+                <Alert type="warning" showIcon message="This provider needs no credentials (manual mode)." />
+              )}
+            </Form>
+          </>
+        )}
+      </Modal>
+
       {/* v1.5.0 Issue #13: ACME Diagnostic Panel modal */}
       <Modal
-        title={diagOrderId ? `Diagnostics — Order #${diagOrderId}` : 'Diagnostics'}
+        title={diagOrderId ? `Diagnostics: Order #${diagOrderId}` : 'Diagnostics'}
         open={diagVisible}
         onCancel={closeDiagModal}
         width={920}
@@ -1266,12 +1891,21 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
                           {
                             title: 'Re-run', key: 'rerun', width: 90,
                             render: (_, record) => (
-                              <Button
-                                size="small"
-                                icon={<ReloadOutlined />}
-                                loading={diagRunningCheckId === record.id}
-                                onClick={() => handleRerunCheck(record.id)}
-                              />
+                              // A skipped check (e.g. port 80 / routing for a DNS-01 order) has no
+                              // transient cause to re-test, so re-running just reproduces "skipped".
+                              record.status === 'skipped'
+                                ? <Typography.Text type="secondary">-</Typography.Text>
+                                : (
+                                  <Tooltip title="Re-run this check">
+                                    <Button
+                                      size="small"
+                                      aria-label="Re-run this check"
+                                      icon={<ReloadOutlined />}
+                                      loading={diagRunningCheckId === record.id}
+                                      onClick={() => handleRerunCheck(record.id)}
+                                    />
+                                  </Tooltip>
+                                )
                             ),
                           },
                         ]}
@@ -1327,13 +1961,13 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
                         type="warning"
                         showIcon
                         style={{ marginBottom: 12 }}
-                        message="Event log partial — one or more sources failed"
+                        message="Event log partial: one or more sources failed"
                         description={
                           <div>
                             <ul style={{ margin: '4px 0 4px 16px' }}>
                               {diagEventsError.errors.map((err, i) => (
                                 <li key={i}>
-                                  <strong>{err.section}</strong>: {err.exception_type} — {err.message}
+                                  <strong>{err.section}</strong>: {err.exception_type}: {err.message}
                                 </li>
                               ))}
                             </ul>
@@ -1359,7 +1993,7 @@ const ACMEAutomation = () => {
                           children: (
                             <div>
                               <div style={{ fontSize: 12, color: '#888' }}>{ev.created_at} · {ev.source}</div>
-                              <div><strong>{ev.event_type}</strong></div>
+                              <div><strong>{humanizeEventType(ev.event_type)}</strong></div>
                               {ev.message && <div>{ev.message}</div>}
                             </div>
                           ),

frontend/src/components/AgentManagement.js

@@ -2378,7 +2378,7 @@ const AgentManagement = () => {
                         const element = document.createElement('a');
                         const file = new Blob([installScript], { type: 'text/plain' });
                         element.href = URL.createObjectURL(file);
-                        element.download = `install-haproxy-agent-${selectedPlatform}.sh`;
+                        element.download = `install-agent-${selectedPlatform}.sh`;
                         document.body.appendChild(element);
                         element.click();
                         document.body.removeChild(element);
@@ -2516,7 +2516,7 @@ const AgentManagement = () => {
                                     const element = document.createElement('a');
                                     const file = new Blob([uninstallScript], { type: 'text/plain' });
                                     element.href = URL.createObjectURL(file);
-                                    element.download = `uninstall-haproxy-agent-${selectedPlatform}.sh`;
+                                    element.download = `uninstall-agent-${selectedPlatform}.sh`;
                                     document.body.appendChild(element);
                                     element.click();
                                     document.body.removeChild(element);
@@ -3147,7 +3147,7 @@ const AgentManagement = () => {
                           const element = document.createElement('a');
                           const file = new Blob([deleteUninstallScript], { type: 'text/plain' });
                           element.href = URL.createObjectURL(file);
-                          element.download = `uninstall-haproxy-agent-${agentToDelete.platform || 'linux'}.sh`;
+                          element.download = `uninstall-agent-${agentToDelete.platform || 'linux'}.sh`;
                           document.body.appendChild(element);
                           element.click();
                           document.body.removeChild(element);

frontend/src/components/ApplyManagement.js

@@ -37,6 +37,7 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
     backends: [],
     waf_rules: [],
     ssl_certificates: [],
+    vips: [],
     total_count: 0
   });
   const [configVersions, setConfigVersions] = useState([]);
@@ -53,6 +54,8 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
   // Validation Error Modal state
   const [validationErrorModalVisible, setValidationErrorModalVisible] = useState(false);
   const [selectedValidationError, setSelectedValidationError] = useState(null);
+  // HA/VIP (Issue #27): VIP changes appear in the standard right-panel "Pending Versions"
+  // (vip-* config_versions) and use the standard "View Change" diff — no bespoke VIP modal.
 
   // Initial load on component mount
   useEffect(() => {
@@ -67,7 +70,7 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
   useEffect(() => {
     if (selectedCluster) {
       // CRITICAL: Clear all state immediately when cluster changes to prevent cross-cluster contamination
-      setPendingChanges({ frontends: [], backends: [], waf_rules: [], ssl_certificates: [], total_count: 0 });
+      setPendingChanges({ frontends: [], backends: [], waf_rules: [], ssl_certificates: [], vips: [], total_count: 0 });
       setConfigVersions([]);
       setAgentSync(null);
       setEntitySyncStates({});
@@ -77,7 +80,7 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
       fetchConfigVersions();
       fetchAgentSync();
     } else {
-      setPendingChanges({ frontends: [], backends: [], waf_rules: [], ssl_certificates: [], total_count: 0 });
+      setPendingChanges({ frontends: [], backends: [], waf_rules: [], ssl_certificates: [], vips: [], total_count: 0 });
       setConfigVersions([]);
       setAgentSync(null);
       setEntitySyncStates({});
@@ -125,26 +128,32 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
         'Pragma': 'no-cache'
       };
       
-      const [frontendsRes, backendsRes, wafRes, sslRes] = await Promise.all([
-        axios.get('/api/frontends', { 
+      const [frontendsRes, backendsRes, wafRes, sslRes, vipsRes] = await Promise.all([
+        axios.get('/api/frontends', {
           params: { cluster_id: selectedCluster.id, include_inactive: true },
           headers: cacheHeaders
         }).catch(() => ({ data: { frontends: [] } })),
-        
-        axios.get('/api/backends', { 
+
+        axios.get('/api/backends', {
           params: { cluster_id: selectedCluster.id, include_inactive: true },
           headers: cacheHeaders
         }).catch(() => ({ data: { backends: [] } })),
-        
-        axios.get('/api/waf/rules', { 
+
+        axios.get('/api/waf/rules', {
           params: { cluster_id: selectedCluster.id },
           headers: cacheHeaders
         }).catch(() => ({ data: { rules: [] } })),
-        
-        axios.get('/api/ssl/certificates', { 
+
+        axios.get('/api/ssl/certificates', {
           params: { cluster_id: selectedCluster.id },
           headers: cacheHeaders
-        }).catch(() => ({ data: [] }))
+        }).catch(() => ({ data: [] })),
+
+        // HA/VIP (Issue #27): pool-scoped, fetched cluster-scoped so it lists like other entities
+        axios.get('/api/vip', {
+          params: { cluster_id: selectedCluster.id },
+          headers: cacheHeaders
+        }).catch(() => ({ data: { vips: [] } }))
       ]);
 
       // DEBUG: Log raw backend data
@@ -180,14 +189,17 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
       
       const waf_rules = (wafRes.data.rules || []).filter(w => w.has_pending_config);
       const ssl_certificates = (sslRes.data.ssl_certificates || sslRes.data || []).filter(s => s.has_pending_config);
+      // VIP "pending" is its last_config_status (no has_pending_config flag).
+      const vips = (vipsRes.data.vips || []).filter(v => v.last_config_status === 'PENDING');
 
-      const total_count = frontends.length + backends.length + waf_rules.length + ssl_certificates.length;
+      const total_count = frontends.length + backends.length + waf_rules.length + ssl_certificates.length + vips.length;
 
       setPendingChanges({
         frontends,
         backends,
         waf_rules,
         ssl_certificates,
+        vips,
         total_count
       });
 
@@ -356,7 +368,7 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
       title: 'Apply All Configuration Changes',
       content: (
         <div>
-          <p>You are about to apply <strong>{effectiveTotal}</strong> pending changes:</p>
+          <p>You are about to apply <strong>{modalChangeCount}</strong> pending changes:</p>
           <ul style={{ marginTop: 10, marginBottom: 10 }}>
             {pendingChanges.frontends.length > 0 && (
               <li><strong>{pendingChanges.frontends.length}</strong> Frontend changes</li>
@@ -370,6 +382,15 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
             {pendingChanges.ssl_certificates.length > 0 && (
               <li><strong>{pendingChanges.ssl_certificates.length}</strong> SSL certificate changes</li>
             )}
+            {(pendingChanges.vips || []).length > 0 && (
+              <li><strong>{pendingChanges.vips.length}</strong> HA/VIP changes</li>
+            )}
+            {acmeVersions.length > 0 && (
+              <li><strong>{acmeVersions.length}</strong> ACME Challenge Routing changes</li>
+            )}
+            {otherConfigVersions.length > 0 && (
+              <li><strong>{otherConfigVersions.length}</strong> Other configuration changes</li>
+            )}
           </ul>
           <Alert
             message="All changes will be applied together and sent to agents"
@@ -387,6 +408,74 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
     });
   };
 
+  // HA/VIP convergence tracking (Issue #27 follow-up). VIP teardown/deploy is asynchronous —
+  // member agents converge keepalived on their next poll. Mirror the HAProxy agent-sync widget
+  // so the progress popup keeps showing "Syncing HA/VIP... X/Y" until the nodes report the VIP
+  // ACTIVE, instead of flashing green while the HA/VIP page still shows SYNCING. Fire-and-forget
+  // recursive poll exactly like checkAgentSync (applyLoading is released immediately; this runs
+  // in the background and updates the floating widget). Bounded so an offline node can't poll
+  // forever — it then completes with an informational "still converging" note.
+  const trackVipConvergence = (clusterId, vipIds, startedAt) => {
+    const token = localStorage.getItem('token');
+    const total = vipIds.length;
+    const poll = async () => {
+      let vips = [];
+      try {
+        const r = await axios.get(`/api/vip?cluster_id=${clusterId}`, { headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${token}` } });
+        vips = r.data.vips || [];
+      } catch (e) { /* transient — keep polling */ }
+      // A change has converged when the node reports the VIP ACTIVE (create/edit) OR the VIP is
+      // fully torn down (delete approval): deploy_status DELETED, or it has dropped off the list
+      // entirely once every member acked the teardown.
+      const isConverged = (vid) => {
+        const v = vips.find(x => x.id === vid);
+        if (!v) return true;                       // gone from the list → torn down / deleted
+        return v.deploy_status === 'ACTIVE' || v.deploy_status === 'DELETED';
+      };
+      const synced = vipIds.filter(isConverged).length;   // VIP-level (drives completion)
+      const errored = vips.filter(v => vipIds.includes(v.id)
+        && (v.deploy_status === 'ERROR' || v.deploy_status === 'ATTENTION')).length;
+      // Per-NODE progress: sum member acks across the tracked VIPs still present, so a multi-node
+      // VIP shows "1/2 node(s)" like the HA/VIP table — not just "1 change". Gone (torn-down) VIPs
+      // are already counted converged via isConverged.
+      let nodeTotal = 0, nodeSynced = 0;
+      for (const vid of vipIds) {
+        const v = vips.find(x => x.id === vid);
+        if (v) { nodeTotal += (v.deploy_total || 0); nodeSynced += (v.deploy_synced || 0); }
+      }
+      const label = nodeTotal > 0 ? `${nodeSynced}/${nodeTotal} node(s)` : `${synced}/${total} change(s)`;
+      const prog = Math.min(95, 60 + Math.round(35 * (nodeTotal > 0 ? nodeSynced / nodeTotal : synced / Math.max(1, total))));
+      updateEntityCounts(nodeTotal > 0 ? nodeSynced : synced, nodeTotal > 0 ? nodeTotal : total, 0, 0, 0);
+
+      if (synced === total) {
+        const msg = `${total} HA/VIP change(s) fully converged on all member node(s).`;
+        setSyncProgress({ visible: true, step: msg, progress: 100 });
+        completeProgress(msg);
+        setTimeout(() => { setSyncProgress({ visible: false, step: '', progress: 0 }); message.success(msg); }, 1500);
+        return;
+      }
+      if (errored > 0) {
+        const msg = 'HA/VIP applied, but a member node reported an issue — open Diagnostics on the HA / VIP page.';
+        setSyncProgress({ visible: true, step: msg, progress: 100 });
+        completeProgress(msg);
+        setTimeout(() => { setSyncProgress({ visible: false, step: '', progress: 0 }); message.warning(msg); }, 1800);
+        return;
+      }
+      if (Date.now() - startedAt > 300000) { // ~5 min cap (e.g. an offline member node)
+        const msg = `HA/VIP applied — ${label} converged; the rest are still converging (or a node's agent is offline). Track live status on the HA / VIP page.`;
+        setSyncProgress({ visible: true, step: msg, progress: 100 });
+        completeProgress(msg);
+        setTimeout(() => { setSyncProgress({ visible: false, step: '', progress: 0 }); message.info(msg); }, 2000);
+        return;
+      }
+      const step = `Syncing HA/VIP... ${label} converged (keepalived deploy can take a couple of minutes)`;
+      setSyncProgress({ visible: true, step, progress: prog });
+      updateProgress(step, prog, { 'Synced HA/VIP': label });
+      setTimeout(poll, 5000);
+    };
+    setTimeout(poll, 2000);
+  };
+
   const executeApplyAll = async () => {
     setApplyLoading(true);
     
@@ -429,13 +518,38 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
       
       // Detect if this is a restore operation (safe display-only check)
       const pendingVersions = configVersions.filter(v => v.status === 'PENDING');
-      const isRestoreOperation = totalEntities === 0 && pendingVersions.some(v => v.version_name.startsWith('restore-'));
-      
+      // HA/VIP (Issue #27): vip-* versions are VIP-owned and excluded from the HAProxy apply
+      // (cluster.py). Ignore them when deciding whether this apply has any HAProxy/cluster
+      // work to track — otherwise a VIP-only apply (which now stages a vip-* version) would
+      // look like it has a pending version and the agent-sync tracker would hang on 0/0.
+      const nonVipPendingVersions = pendingVersions.filter(v => !(v.version_name || '').startsWith('vip-'));
+      const isRestoreOperation = totalEntities === 0 && nonVipPendingVersions.some(v => v.version_name.startsWith('restore-'));
+      // HA/VIP-only apply: no HAProxy entity or config-version goes through the cluster-sync
+      // pipeline, so complete promptly after the isolated VIP apply (member nodes converge
+      // async on their next agent poll) instead of looping on "Entities: 0/0".
+      const vipCount = (pendingChanges.vips || []).length;
+      const isVipOnly = totalEntities === 0 && !isRestoreOperation && nonVipPendingVersions.length === 0 && vipCount > 0;
+      // Config-version-only apply (e.g. cluster ACME enable/disable): no entity rows, not a restore,
+      // but there ARE non-vip config versions to push. Without this branch it falls to the "else" and
+      // shows a misleading "Entities: 0/0" while still syncing agents.
+      const isConfigVersionOnly = totalEntities === 0 && !isRestoreOperation && vipCount === 0 && nonVipPendingVersions.length > 0;
+
       if (isRestoreOperation) {
         // Restore operation: Show "Configuration" instead of "Entities"
         setSyncProgress({ visible: true, step: `Applying configuration restore... Configuration: 0/1, Agents: ⏳`, progress: 20 });
         startProgress('apply', `Applying configuration restore... Configuration: 0/1, Agents: ⏳`);
         updateEntityCounts(0, 1, 0, totalAgents, disabledAgents); // Show 1 configuration item
+      } else if (isVipOnly) {
+        // HA/VIP-only: avoid the "Entities: 0/0" / agent-sync widget entirely.
+        setSyncProgress({ visible: true, step: `Applying ${vipCount} HA/VIP change(s)...`, progress: 20 });
+        startProgress('apply', `Applying ${vipCount} HA/VIP change(s)...`);
+        updateEntityCounts(0, vipCount, 0, 0, 0);
+      } else if (isConfigVersionOnly) {
+        // Config-version-only (ACME toggle, etc.): show "Configuration" instead of "Entities: 0/0".
+        const cfgCount = nonVipPendingVersions.length;
+        setSyncProgress({ visible: true, step: `Applying configuration change... Configuration: 0/${cfgCount}, Agents: ⏳`, progress: 20 });
+        startProgress('apply', `Applying configuration change... Configuration: 0/${cfgCount}, Agents: ⏳`);
+        updateEntityCounts(0, cfgCount, 0, totalAgents, disabledAgents);
       } else {
         // Normal operation: Show "Entities" as usual
         setSyncProgress({ visible: true, step: `Applying configuration changes... Entities: 0/${totalEntities}, Agents: ⏳`, progress: 20 });
@@ -445,16 +559,61 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
     
     try {
       const token = localStorage.getItem('token');
-      
-      const response = await axios.post(
-        `/api/clusters/${selectedCluster.id}/apply-changes`,
-        {},
-        { headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${token}` } }
-      );
-      
+
+      // HA/VIP (Issue #27): apply pending VIPs first (isolated endpoint; safe no-op for
+      // HAProxy config). Done here so VIPs apply even when there are no HAProxy changes.
+      const pendingVips = pendingChanges.vips || [];
+      for (const vip of pendingVips) {
+        try {
+          await axios.post(`/api/vip/${vip.id}/apply`, {}, { headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${token}` } });
+        } catch (vipErr) {
+          console.error(`[APPLY VIP ${vip.id}] failed:`, vipErr);
+          message.warning(`VIP "${vip.name}" apply failed: ${extractApiError(vipErr, 'error')}`);
+        }
+      }
+
+      // Apply HAProxy changes if there are entity-level changes OR any non-vip config version
+      // (cluster ACME enable/disable, restore, bulk-import). Gating only on haproxyPending used to
+      // skip the call for config-version-only states, leaving those versions stuck PENDING.
+      const haproxyPending = pendingChanges.frontends.length + pendingChanges.backends.length
+        + pendingChanges.waf_rules.length + pendingChanges.ssl_certificates.length;
+      const response = (haproxyPending > 0 || nonVipPendingVersions.length > 0)
+        ? await axios.post(
+            `/api/clusters/${selectedCluster.id}/apply-changes`,
+            {},
+            { headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${token}` } }
+          )
+        : { data: { message: `Applied ${pendingVips.length} HA/VIP change(s)`, applied_count: pendingVips.length } };
+
       // CRITICAL DEBUG: Log apply response
       console.log('[APPLY ALL RESPONSE]:', response.data);
-      
+
+      // HA/VIP-only apply (Issue #27): nothing goes through the HAProxy config-version /
+      // cluster-sync pipeline, so the agent-sync tracker below would loop forever on
+      // "Entities: 0/0". The isolated VIP apply already staged each node's snapshot; member
+      // agents install/configure keepalived and converge on their next poll — live status
+      // shows on the HA / VIP page (PENDING → SYNCING → ACTIVE). Complete now (no flash).
+      if (haproxyPending === 0 && nonVipPendingVersions.length === 0) {
+        await fetchPendingChanges();
+        await fetchConfigVersions();
+        if (pendingVips.length > 0) {
+          // Keep the popup in a "Syncing HA/VIP... X/Y" state (like every other entity) until the
+          // member nodes report the VIP ACTIVE — instead of flashing green while the HA/VIP page
+          // still shows SYNCING. The poll runs in the background (finally{} releases applyLoading).
+          const step = `Applied — syncing HA/VIP... 0/${pendingVips.length} node(s) converged`;
+          updateEntityCounts(0, pendingVips.length, 0, 0, 0);
+          setSyncProgress({ visible: true, step, progress: 60 });
+          updateProgress(step, 60);
+          trackVipConvergence(selectedCluster.id, pendingVips.map(v => v.id), Date.now());
+        } else {
+          const vmsg = 'Changes applied.';
+          setSyncProgress({ visible: true, step: vmsg, progress: 100 });
+          completeProgress(vmsg);
+          setTimeout(() => { setSyncProgress({ visible: false, step: '', progress: 0 }); message.success(vmsg); }, 1500);
+        }
+        return; // finally{} resets applyLoading; the VIP poll runs in the background (like checkAgentSync)
+      }
+
       setSyncProgress({ visible: true, step: `Configuration applied, syncing agents... Entities: ${totalEntities}/${totalEntities}, Agents: 0/${totalAgents}`, progress: 60 });
       updateProgress(`Configuration applied, syncing agents... Entities: ${totalEntities}/${totalEntities}, Agents: 0/${totalAgents}`, 60);
       updateEntityCounts(totalEntities, totalEntities, 0, totalAgents, disabledAgents);
@@ -664,7 +823,7 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
       title: 'Reject All Configuration Changes',
       content: (
         <div>
-          <p>You are about to reject <strong>{effectiveTotal}</strong> pending changes:</p>
+          <p>You are about to reject <strong>{modalChangeCount}</strong> pending changes:</p>
           <ul style={{ marginTop: 10, marginBottom: 10 }}>
             {pendingChanges.frontends.length > 0 && (
               <li><strong>{pendingChanges.frontends.length}</strong> Frontend changes</li>
@@ -678,6 +837,15 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
             {pendingChanges.ssl_certificates.length > 0 && (
               <li><strong>{pendingChanges.ssl_certificates.length}</strong> SSL certificate changes</li>
             )}
+            {(pendingChanges.vips || []).length > 0 && (
+              <li><strong>{pendingChanges.vips.length}</strong> HA/VIP changes</li>
+            )}
+            {acmeVersions.length > 0 && (
+              <li><strong>{acmeVersions.length}</strong> ACME Challenge Routing changes</li>
+            )}
+            {otherConfigVersions.length > 0 && (
+              <li><strong>{otherConfigVersions.length}</strong> Other configuration changes</li>
+            )}
           </ul>
           <Alert
             message="All pending changes will be permanently discarded"
@@ -718,12 +886,34 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
     
     try {
       const token = localStorage.getItem('token');
-      
-      const response = await axios.delete(
-        `/api/clusters/${selectedCluster.id}/pending-changes`,
-        { headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${token}` } }
+
+      // HA/VIP (Issue #27): reject pending VIPs (isolated endpoint; restores last applied state).
+      const pendingVips = pendingChanges.vips || [];
+      for (const vip of pendingVips) {
+        try {
+          await axios.post(`/api/vip/${vip.id}/reject`, {}, { headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${token}` } });
+        } catch (vipErr) {
+          console.error(`[REJECT VIP ${vip.id}] failed:`, vipErr);
+          message.warning(`VIP "${vip.name}" reject failed: ${extractApiError(vipErr, 'error')}`);
+        }
+      }
+
+      // Reject HAProxy changes if there are entity-level changes OR any non-vip config version
+      // (e.g. cluster ACME enable/disable, restore, bulk-import) — the backend DELETE rejects all
+      // non-vip PENDING versions and rolls back their snapshots. Gating only on haproxyPending used
+      // to skip the call for config-version-only states, returning the misleading "Rejected 0 HA/VIP".
+      const haproxyPending = pendingChanges.frontends.length + pendingChanges.backends.length
+        + pendingChanges.waf_rules.length + pendingChanges.ssl_certificates.length;
+      const nonVipPendingVersions = configVersions.filter(
+        v => v.status === 'PENDING' && !(v.version_name || '').startsWith('vip-')
       );
-      
+      const response = (haproxyPending > 0 || nonVipPendingVersions.length > 0)
+        ? await axios.delete(
+            `/api/clusters/${selectedCluster.id}/pending-changes`,
+            { headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${token}` } }
+          )
+        : { data: { message: `Rejected ${pendingVips.length} HA/VIP change(s)` } };
+
       // CRITICAL DEBUG: Log reject response
       console.log('[REJECT ALL RESPONSE]:', response.data);
       
@@ -797,6 +987,23 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
   const appliedVersions = configVersions.filter(v => v.status === 'APPLIED');
   const rejectedVersions = configVersions.filter(v => v.status === 'REJECTED');
   const effectiveTotal = pendingChanges.total_count > 0 ? pendingChanges.total_count : pendingVersions.length;
+  // Issue #35: cluster ACME enable/disable produce `cluster-<id>-acme-<enable|disable>-<ts>` config
+  // versions that have NO entity-level pending flag, so they were neither categorized nor counted.
+  const ACME_VERSION_RE = /^cluster-\d+-acme-(enable|disable)-/;
+  const ENTITY_VERSION_PREFIXES = ['frontend-', 'backend-', 'server-', 'ssl-', 'waf-'];
+  const acmeVersions = pendingVersions.filter(v => ACME_VERSION_RE.test(v.version_name || ''));
+  // "Other" config versions for the confirm modal = non-vip, non-acme, non-entity-backed (i.e.
+  // restore-*/bulk-import-*/other cluster-level) — entity-backed versions are already counted via
+  // total_count, and vips are listed separately, so excluding them avoids double-counting.
+  const otherConfigVersions = pendingVersions.filter(v => {
+    const n = v.version_name || '';
+    if (n.startsWith('vip-') || ACME_VERSION_RE.test(n)) return false;
+    return !ENTITY_VERSION_PREFIXES.some(p => n.startsWith(p));
+  });
+  // Confirm-modal header count: entities+VIPs (total_count) + ACME + other config versions, so the
+  // header equals the sum of the listed <li> items in every state. The button-enable gate keeps
+  // using effectiveTotal (unchanged) so entity-only button/Alert behavior is byte-identical.
+  const modalChangeCount = (pendingChanges.total_count || 0) + acmeVersions.length + otherConfigVersions.length;
 
   const renderPendingItem = (item, type, icon) => {
     // For PENDING items, don't show sync status since they haven't been applied yet
@@ -1133,12 +1340,67 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
                     </div>
                   )}
 
-                  {pendingChanges.frontends.length === 0 && pendingChanges.backends.length === 0 && pendingChanges.waf_rules.length === 0 && pendingChanges.ssl_certificates.length === 0 && pendingVersions.length > 0 && (
+                  {/* HA/VIP Changes (Issue #27) */}
+                  {(pendingChanges.vips || []).length > 0 && (
+                    <div style={{ marginBottom: 16 }}>
+                      <Title level={5}>
+                        <CloudServerOutlined style={{ marginRight: 8, color: '#13c2c2' }} />
+                        HA / VIP Changes ({pendingChanges.vips.length})
+                      </Title>
+                      {pendingChanges.vips.map(item => (
+                        <div key={`vip-${item.id}`} style={{ display: 'flex', alignItems: 'center', gap: 8, padding: '8px 12px', marginBottom: 6, border: item.pending_delete ? '1px solid #ffccc7' : '1px solid #f0f0f0', borderRadius: 6, background: item.pending_delete ? '#fff1f0' : undefined }}>
+                          <CloudServerOutlined style={{ color: item.pending_delete ? '#cf1322' : '#13c2c2' }} />
+                          <span style={{ fontWeight: 500 }}>{item.name}</span>
+                          <Tag>{item.virtual_ip}/{item.prefix_length}</Tag>
+                          {item.pool_name && <Tag color="blue">{item.pool_name}</Tag>}
+                          {item.pending_delete
+                            ? <Tag color="red">DELETION — approve to tear down, reject to keep</Tag>
+                            : <Tag color="orange">PENDING</Tag>}
+                        </div>
+                      ))}
+                    </div>
+                  )}
+
+                  {/* Issue #35: ACME Challenge Routing (cluster-<id>-acme-*) versions have no entity
+                      flag. Render them in their own section REGARDLESS of whether entity sections are
+                      present, so a co-pending ACME toggle is never hidden in the left panel. */}
+                  {acmeVersions.length > 0 && (
+                    <div style={{ marginTop: 8, marginBottom: 8 }}>
+                      <Title level={5}>
+                        <SafetyCertificateOutlined style={{ marginRight: 8, color: '#1890ff' }} />
+                        ACME Challenge Routing ({acmeVersions.length})
+                      </Title>
+                      {acmeVersions.map(v => {
+                        const isEnable = /^cluster-\d+-acme-enable-/.test(v.version_name);
+                        return (
+                          <div key={v.id} style={{
+                            padding: 10, border: '1px dashed #1890ff', borderRadius: 6, marginBottom: 8,
+                            display: 'flex', alignItems: 'center', justifyContent: 'space-between', backgroundColor: '#f0f8ff'
+                          }}>
+                            <span style={{ fontFamily: 'monospace' }}>{v.version_name}</span>
+                            <span>
+                              <Tag color={isEnable ? 'green' : 'default'}>{isEnable ? 'ENABLE' : 'DISABLE'}</Tag>
+                              <Tag color="orange">PENDING</Tag>
+                            </span>
+                          </div>
+                        );
+                      })}
+                      <div style={{ fontSize: 12, color: token.colorTextSecondary, marginTop: 4 }}>
+                        ACME challenge routing change. Apply to push the updated HAProxy config to the agents.
+                      </div>
+                    </div>
+                  )}
+
+                  {pendingChanges.frontends.length === 0 && pendingChanges.backends.length === 0 && pendingChanges.waf_rules.length === 0 && pendingChanges.ssl_certificates.length === 0 && (pendingChanges.vips || []).length === 0 && pendingVersions.length > 0 && (
                     <div style={{ marginTop: 8 }}>
                       {(() => {
                         const restoreVersions = pendingVersions.filter(v => v.version_name.startsWith('restore-'));
                         const bulkImportVersions = pendingVersions.filter(v => v.version_name.startsWith('bulk-import-'));
-                        const otherVersions = pendingVersions.filter(v => !v.version_name.startsWith('restore-') && !v.version_name.startsWith('bulk-import-'));
+                        // Exclude restore-/bulk-import- (own sections), vip-* (VIP section), and acme-*
+                        // (the dedicated ACME section above) so they aren't duplicated in "Other".
+                        const otherVersions = pendingVersions.filter(v =>
+                          !v.version_name.startsWith('restore-') && !v.version_name.startsWith('bulk-import-')
+                          && !v.version_name.startsWith('vip-') && !ACME_VERSION_RE.test(v.version_name));
                         
                         return (
                           <>
@@ -1401,6 +1663,10 @@ const ApplyManagement = () => {
                                     confusing error post-click. */}
                                 {(() => {
                                   const vn = version?.version_name || '';
+                                  // vip-* versions ARE undoable (Issue #27): the VIP router
+                                  // re-stages the rejected change as PENDING (reactivating a
+                                  // rejected create, or re-applying a rejected edit), so they
+                                  // use the normal Undo button below — not this disabled case.
                                   const destructive = (
                                     vn.startsWith('bulk-site-create-')
                                     || vn.startsWith('bulk-import-')

frontend/src/components/BackendServers.js

@@ -172,11 +172,13 @@ const BackendServers = () => {
     
     setLoading(true);
     try {
-      const params = { cluster_id: selectedCluster.id };
-      
+      // Issue #24: request inactive entities so DISABLED (toggled-OFF) servers
+      // are returned and can be reactivated from the UI (mirrors ApplyManagement).
+      const params = { cluster_id: selectedCluster.id, include_inactive: true };
+
       // CRITICAL FIX: Add cache busting to prevent stale data from appearing
       // Browser/axios may cache GET requests, causing deleted backends to reappear
-      const response = await axios.get('/api/backends', { 
+      const response = await axios.get('/api/backends', {
         params,
         headers: {
           'Cache-Control': 'no-cache, no-store, must-revalidate',
@@ -184,7 +186,21 @@ const BackendServers = () => {
           'Expires': '0'
         }
       });
-      const fetchedBackends = response.data.backends || [];
+      // Issue #24: we now request include_inactive=true so DISABLED servers come
+      // back. That ALSO returns soft-deleted (is_active=false) BACKENDS, which the
+      // pre-change default (include_inactive=false -> WHERE is_active=TRUE) hid.
+      // Restore that filter here so soft-deleted backends don't reappear in the
+      // normal view (preserve commit f34a6ee), while still keeping inactive
+      // SERVERS inside active backends. Then hide ONLY soft-deleted-pending
+      // servers (last_config_status==='DELETION'); DISABLED servers (toggled
+      // OFF — status PENDING/APPLIED) stay visible so operators can re-enable
+      // them. Single chokepoint covers counts, expanded rows, and All Servers tab.
+      const fetchedBackends = (response.data.backends || [])
+        .filter(b => b.is_active !== false)
+        .map(b => ({
+          ...b,
+          servers: (b.servers || []).filter(s => s.last_config_status !== 'DELETION'),
+        }));
       setBackends(fetchedBackends);
       // CRITICAL FIX: Apply status filters after fetching to maintain filter state
       // This prevents backends from disappearing when updated (e.g., APPLIED → PENDING)
@@ -1289,6 +1305,7 @@ const BackendServers = () => {
           />
           <strong>{text}</strong>
           {record.backup_server && <Tag color="orange">Backup</Tag>}
+          {!record.is_active && <Tag color="red">Inactive</Tag>}
         </Space>
       ),
     },

frontend/src/components/BulkConfigImport.js

@@ -458,6 +458,8 @@ backend web-backend
           {record.request_headers && <Tag color="blue">Req Headers</Tag>}
           {record.response_headers && <Tag color="green">Resp Headers</Tag>}
           {record.tcp_request_rules && <Tag color="purple">TCP Rules</Tag>}
+          {record.filters && <Tag color="magenta">Filters</Tag>}
+          {record.log_format && <Tag color="geekblue">Log Format</Tag>}
           {record.acl_rules && record.acl_rules.length > 0 && <Tag color="orange">{record.acl_rules.length} ACLs</Tag>}
           {record.use_backend_rules && record.use_backend_rules.length > 0 && <Tag color="cyan">{record.use_backend_rules.length} Routes</Tag>}
         </Space>
@@ -1076,8 +1078,9 @@ backend web-backend
                         size="small"
                         expandable={{
                           expandedRowRender: (frontend) => {
-                            const hasDetails = frontend.request_headers || frontend.response_headers || 
-                                             frontend.options || frontend.tcp_request_rules || 
+                            const hasDetails = frontend.request_headers || frontend.response_headers ||
+                                             frontend.options || frontend.tcp_request_rules ||
+                                             frontend.filters || frontend.log_format ||
                                              (frontend.acl_rules && frontend.acl_rules.length > 0) ||
                                              (frontend.use_backend_rules && frontend.use_backend_rules.length > 0);
                             
@@ -1157,12 +1160,52 @@ backend web-backend
                                         </span>
                                       }
                                     >
-                                      <MultiLineDiffRenderer 
+                                      <MultiLineDiffRenderer
                                         value={frontend.tcp_request_rules}
                                         changeInfo={frontend._changes?.tcp_request_rules}
                                       />
                                     </Descriptions.Item>
                                   )}
+                                  {/* Issue #38: SPOE filters */}
+                                  {frontend.filters && (
+                                    <Descriptions.Item
+                                      label={
+                                        <span>
+                                          Filters (SPOE/WAF)
+                                          {frontend._changes?.filters && (
+                                            <Tag color="green" style={{ marginLeft: 8, fontSize: '10px' }}>
+                                              {frontend._changes.filters.old ? 'CHANGED' : 'NEW'}
+                                            </Tag>
+                                          )}
+                                        </span>
+                                      }
+                                    >
+                                      <MultiLineDiffRenderer
+                                        value={frontend.filters}
+                                        changeInfo={frontend._changes?.filters}
+                                      />
+                                    </Descriptions.Item>
+                                  )}
+                                  {/* Issue #38: frontend log-format */}
+                                  {frontend.log_format && (
+                                    <Descriptions.Item
+                                      label={
+                                        <span>
+                                          Log Format
+                                          {frontend._changes?.log_format && (
+                                            <Tag color="green" style={{ marginLeft: 8, fontSize: '10px' }}>
+                                              {frontend._changes.log_format.old ? 'CHANGED' : 'NEW'}
+                                            </Tag>
+                                          )}
+                                        </span>
+                                      }
+                                    >
+                                      <MultiLineDiffRenderer
+                                        value={frontend.log_format}
+                                        changeInfo={frontend._changes?.log_format}
+                                      />
+                                    </Descriptions.Item>
+                                  )}
                                   {frontend.acl_rules && frontend.acl_rules.length > 0 && (
                                     <Descriptions.Item label={`ACL Rules (${frontend.acl_rules.length})`}>
                                       {frontend.acl_rules.map((acl, idx) => (

frontend/src/components/ClusterManagement.js

@@ -156,6 +156,7 @@ const ClusterManagement = () => {
       stats_socket_path: cluster.stats_socket_path || '/run/haproxy/admin.sock',
       haproxy_config_path: cluster.haproxy_config_path || '/etc/haproxy/haproxy.cfg',
       haproxy_bin_path: cluster.haproxy_bin_path,
+      keepalived_config_path: cluster.keepalived_config_path || '/etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf',
       agent_pool_id: cluster.pool_id || undefined,
       haproxy_user: cluster.haproxy_user || '',
       haproxy_group: cluster.haproxy_group || '',
@@ -197,6 +198,7 @@ const ClusterManagement = () => {
         stats_socket_path: values.stats_socket_path,
         haproxy_config_path: values.haproxy_config_path,
         haproxy_bin_path: values.haproxy_bin_path,
+        keepalived_config_path: values.keepalived_config_path,
         pool_id: values.agent_pool_id || null,
         haproxy_user: values.haproxy_user || null,
         haproxy_group: values.haproxy_group || null,
@@ -748,6 +750,14 @@ const ClusterManagement = () => {
             <Input placeholder="/usr/sbin/haproxy" />
           </Form.Item>
 
+          <Form.Item
+            label="Keepalived Config Path"
+            name="keepalived_config_path"
+            tooltip="Where the agent writes keepalived.conf for this cluster's HA/VIPs. The default (/etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf) is what the keepalived service loads on every distro — leave it unless you run a non-standard install AND have configured the keepalived service/unit to load this exact path."
+          >
+            <Input placeholder="/etc/keepalived/keepalived.conf" />
+          </Form.Item>
+
           <Form.Item
             label="ACME Challenge Routing"
             name="acme_enabled"

frontend/src/components/FrontendManagement.js

@@ -642,7 +642,11 @@ const FrontendManagement = () => {
       // Explicitly set options field to handle null/undefined case (NEW field)
       options: frontend.options || '',
       // BUGFIX: Explicitly set tcp_request_rules field to handle null/undefined case
-      tcp_request_rules: frontend.tcp_request_rules || ''
+      tcp_request_rules: frontend.tcp_request_rules || '',
+      // Issue #38: SPOE filters + frontend log-format (null → '' so the
+      // TextAreas populate on edit and round-trip on save, preventing null-wipe)
+      log_format: frontend.log_format || '',
+      filters: frontend.filters || ''
     });
     
     // Update SSL field visibility after setting values
@@ -862,31 +866,13 @@ const FrontendManagement = () => {
       return;
     }
 
-    // Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #12 round 3) — hard-gate any
-    // ACL / use_backend / redirect rule that carries the unsupported
-    // HAProxy `-f <file>` pattern-file flag. The Pydantic validator
-    // on the backend (`models/frontend.py::validate_acl_rules`)
-    // rejects the same shape; blocking here surfaces the error
-    // immediately at the manual frontend form and matches the wizard
-    // gate so operators see consistent behaviour between the two
-    // entry points.
-    const FILE_FLAG_RE = /(?:^|\s)-f(?:\s|$)/;
-    const aclRulesAll = [
-      ...(aclBuilderData.aclRules || []),
-      ...(aclBuilderData.useBackendRules || []),
-      ...(aclBuilderData.redirectRules || []).map(
-        (r) => (typeof r === 'string' ? r : ''),
-      ),
-    ];
-    if (aclRulesAll.some((r) => typeof r === 'string' && FILE_FLAG_RE.test(r))) {
-      message.error(
-        'One or more ACL / routing / redirect rules use the unsupported HAProxy ' +
-        '`-f <file>` pattern-file flag. HAProxy OpenManager does not provision ' +
-        'pattern files onto the HAProxy node filesystem, so the reference would ' +
-        'fail at reload time. Remove the `-f` flag and use inline values instead.'
-      );
-      return;
-    }
+    // Issue #38 follow-up — the Bulgu #12 client-side hard gate for
+    // the ACL `-f <file>` pattern-file flag was removed together with
+    // the server-side Pydantic rejects: pattern files are operator-
+    // managed host files (same policy as SPOE filter configs since
+    // v1.8.8) and the agent's pre-reload `haproxy -c` makes a missing
+    // file fail safely. The server response now carries a non-blocking
+    // warning listing the referenced files (rendered below).
 
     // Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #13) — gate for
     // self-contradictory routing / redirect conditions (`X !X`).
@@ -1178,8 +1164,31 @@ const FrontendManagement = () => {
         } else {
           message.success('Frontend created successfully');
         }
+
+        // Issue #38 follow-up — surface server-emitted warnings on
+        // CREATE too (e.g. the `-f <file>` pattern-file advisory).
+        // Mirrors the update-branch rendering above.
+        const createWarnings = Array.isArray(response.data?.warnings)
+          ? response.data.warnings
+          : [];
+        if (createWarnings.length > 0) {
+          message.warning(
+            <div>
+              <div><strong>Frontend saved, but the server flagged {createWarnings.length} rule warning(s):</strong></div>
+              <div style={{ marginTop: 6, fontSize: '12px', fontFamily: 'monospace' }}>
+                {createWarnings.slice(0, 5).map((w, i) => (
+                  <div key={i}>• {w.length > 240 ? `${w.slice(0, 237)}...` : w}</div>
+                ))}
+                {createWarnings.length > 5 && (
+                  <div>(+{createWarnings.length - 5} more)</div>
+                )}
+              </div>
+            </div>,
+            10,
+          );
+        }
       }
-      
+
       setModalVisible(false);
       fetchFrontends();
       fetchSSLCertificates(); // Refresh SSL certificates after frontend update
@@ -2250,6 +2259,40 @@ tcp-request connection reject if { src -f /etc/haproxy/blacklist.lst }`}
                   </Form.Item>
                 </Col>
               </Row>
+
+              {/* Issue #38: SPOE filters + frontend log-format */}
+              <Row gutter={16}>
+                <Col span={24}>
+                  <Form.Item
+                    name="filters"
+                    label="Filters (SPOE / WAF)"
+                    extra="HAProxy filter directives (one per line). Emitted before send-spoe-group rules."
+                    tooltip="e.g. Coraza WAF via SPOE. The referenced engine config file and its SPOA backend must exist on the HAProxy host."
+                  >
+                    <TextArea
+                      rows={3}
+                      placeholder={`Examples:
+filter spoe engine coraza config /etc/haproxy/coraza.cfg`}
+                    />
+                  </Form.Item>
+                </Col>
+              </Row>
+
+              <Row gutter={16}>
+                <Col span={24}>
+                  <Form.Item
+                    name="log_format"
+                    label="Custom Log Format"
+                    extra="HAProxy log-format / log-format-sd directive (kept verbatim)"
+                    tooltip="Overrides option httplog/tcplog. Use the full directive including the quoted format string."
+                  >
+                    <TextArea
+                      rows={3}
+                      placeholder={'log-format "%ci:%cp [%t] %ft %b/%s %ST %B %{+Q}r"'}
+                    />
+                  </Form.Item>
+                </Col>
+              </Row>
             </Panel>
           </Collapse>
 

frontend/src/components/Settings.js

@@ -212,6 +212,7 @@ const Settings = () => {
                 eab_kid: '',
                 eab_hmac_key: '',
                 challenge_backend_url: '',
+                dns01_enabled: false,
               }}
             >
               <Form.Item name="provider" label="ACME Provider">
@@ -308,6 +309,36 @@ const Settings = () => {
                 }]}
               />
 
+              {/* Issue #35: DNS-01 challenge support (global kill-switch). Per-account DNS provider
+                  credentials are configured on each ACME account in ACME Automation. */}
+              <Collapse
+                ghost
+                style={{ marginTop: 16 }}
+                items={[{
+                  key: 'dns01',
+                  label: 'DNS-01 Challenge (Advanced)',
+                  children: (
+                    <>
+                      <Alert
+                        type="info"
+                        showIcon
+                        style={{ marginBottom: 16 }}
+                        message="DNS-01 validates certificates via a DNS TXT record instead of HTTP on port 80."
+                        description="Use it for internal/isolated clusters with no public inbound port 80, or for wildcard certificates. When enabled, choose DNS-01 and a DNS provider per ACME account in ACME Automation. Leaving this off keeps the default HTTP-01 behavior unchanged."
+                      />
+                      <Form.Item
+                        name="dns01_enabled"
+                        label="Enable DNS-01 Challenge"
+                        valuePropName="checked"
+                        tooltip="Master switch. While off, DNS-01 options are hidden and no DNS-01 orders can be created."
+                      >
+                        <Switch />
+                      </Form.Item>
+                    </>
+                  ),
+                }]}
+              />
+
               <div style={{ marginTop: 24, display: 'flex', gap: 12 }}>
                 <Button type="primary" htmlType="submit" loading={acmeSaving}>
                   Save ACME Settings

frontend/src/components/SiteWizard.js

@@ -3177,36 +3177,15 @@ const SiteWizard = () => {
                     );
                     return;
                   }
-                  // Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #12 round 3) —
-                  // hard-gate the Step 2 → Step 3 advance on any ACL
-                  // rule that carries the unsupported `-f <file>`
-                  // pattern-file flag. The Pydantic validator rejects
-                  // the same shape at submit, but blocking the Next
-                  // button here surfaces the error immediately at
-                  // its source step (the ACL builder is right above)
-                  // instead of bouncing the operator from Step 4's
-                  // dry-run card back to Step 2 with a less-specific
-                  // jumpback button. The ACLRuleBuilder ALSO renders
-                  // a section-level red Alert when this state is
-                  // active so the operator already sees what to fix.
-                  const FILE_FLAG_RE = /(?:^|\s)-f(?:\s|$)/;
-                  const aclRulesAll = [
-                    ...(aclBuilderData.aclRules || []),
-                    ...(aclBuilderData.useBackendRules || []),
-                    ...(aclBuilderData.redirectRules || []).map(
-                      (r) => (typeof r === 'string' ? r : ''),
-                    ),
-                  ];
-                  if (aclRulesAll.some((r) => typeof r === 'string' && FILE_FLAG_RE.test(r))) {
-                    message.error(
-                      'One or more rules use the unsupported HAProxy `-f <file>` ' +
-                      'pattern-file flag. HAProxy OpenManager does not provision ' +
-                      'pattern files onto the HAProxy node filesystem, so the ' +
-                      'reference would fail at reload time. Remove the `-f` flag ' +
-                      'and use inline values instead before continuing.'
-                    );
-                    return;
-                  }
+                  // Issue #38 follow-up — the Bulgu #12 Step 2 → 3
+                  // hard gate for the ACL `-f <file>` pattern-file
+                  // flag was removed together with the server-side
+                  // Pydantic rejects: pattern files are operator-
+                  // managed host files (same policy as SPOE filter
+                  // configs since v1.8.8) and the agent's pre-reload
+                  // `haproxy -c` makes a missing file fail safely.
+                  // The ACLRuleBuilder renders an informational note
+                  // on `-f` rules instead of a blocking error.
                   // Phase K Phase D follow-up (Bulgu #13) — block
                   // advance when any routing / redirect rule has a
                   // self-contradictory condition (`acl1 !acl1`).

frontend/src/components/UserManagement.js

@@ -146,6 +146,17 @@ const PERMISSION_TREE = [
       { title: 'View Cluster Config', key: 'clusters.config' }
     ]
   },
+  {
+    title: '🛰️ HA / VIP Management',
+    key: 'vip',
+    children: [
+      { title: 'View VIPs', key: 'vip.read' },
+      { title: 'Create VIP', key: 'vip.create' },
+      { title: 'Edit VIP', key: 'vip.update' },
+      { title: 'Delete VIP', key: 'vip.delete' },
+      { title: 'Apply / Deploy VIP', key: 'vip.apply' }
+    ]
+  },
   {
     title: '📝 Configuration',
     key: 'config',

frontend/src/components/VIPManagement.js

@@ -0,0 +1,583 @@
+import React, { useState, useEffect, useCallback } from 'react';
+import {
+  Table, Button, Space, Modal, Form, Input, InputNumber, Select, Tag, message,
+  Switch, Typography, Card, Alert, Tooltip, Spin
+} from 'antd';
+import {
+  PlusOutlined, EditOutlined, DeleteOutlined, ReloadOutlined, WarningOutlined,
+  PlayCircleOutlined, SyncOutlined, CrownOutlined, ClockCircleOutlined, FileSearchOutlined,
+  InfoCircleOutlined
+} from '@ant-design/icons';
+import { useCluster } from '../contexts/ClusterContext';
+import { extractApiError } from '../utils/apiError';
+
+const { Option } = Select;
+const { Title, Text } = Typography;
+
+// Interfaces that are never sensible VIP carriers — hidden from the dropdown.
+const IFACE_HIDE = /^(lo|docker|veth|br-|cni|flannel|kube|virbr)/i;
+
+const authHeaders = () => ({
+  'Content-Type': 'application/json',
+  'Authorization': `Bearer ${localStorage.getItem('authToken') || ''}`,
+});
+
+// Convergence-aware status (issue #27 follow-up): like other entities, a VIP only reads
+// "live" once its member agents have actually deployed & acked — never the instant Apply
+// is clicked. Backend returns deploy_status; we fall back to last_config_status.
+const DEPLOY_STATUS = {
+  PENDING:   { color: 'orange',     label: 'PENDING',  tip: 'Staged change — review and Apply (or Reject) it from the Apply Management page.' },
+  PENDING_DELETE: { color: 'volcano', label: 'PENDING DELETE', tip: 'Deletion staged for approval — the VIP keeps running untouched until you APPROVE it in Apply Management. Reject to keep it. The node is not changed until approval.' },
+  DELETING:  { color: 'processing', label: 'DELETING', tip: 'Deletion approved — member node(s) are stopping keepalived and releasing the VIP. Disappears once every node has torn down.' },
+  DELETED:   { color: 'default',    label: 'DELETED',  tip: 'All member nodes have torn keepalived down.' },
+  SYNCING:   { color: 'processing', label: 'SYNCING',  tip: 'Applied — an online member node is installing/configuring keepalived and will acknowledge on its next poll (~2–3 min).' },
+  AWAITING:  { color: 'gold',       label: 'AWAITING AGENT', tip: 'Applied, but the member node(s) that still need it are OFFLINE, so nothing can deploy yet. Bring the node\'s agent online — it converges on its next poll. (Not a hang.)' },
+  ACTIVE:    { color: 'green',      label: 'ACTIVE',   tip: 'Applied and every member node has deployed keepalived and acknowledged the current config.' },
+  ERROR:     { color: 'red',        label: 'ERROR',    tip: 'A member node failed to deploy keepalived — see Members / Live state for the node, then check that agent.' },
+  ATTENTION: { color: 'gold',       label: 'ATTENTION',tip: 'A member already runs a hand-managed keepalived; the agent left it untouched (externally managed). Resolve it on that node or remove it from the VIP.' },
+  APPLIED:   { color: 'green',      label: 'APPLIED',  tip: 'Applied.' },
+};
+
+// agents.capabilities / network_interfaces come from the API as JSONB → a JSON string
+// (asyncpg has no jsonb codec). Mirror AgentManagement.js and JSON.parse when needed.
+const parseArr = (v) => {
+  if (Array.isArray(v)) return v;
+  if (typeof v === 'string') { try { const p = JSON.parse(v); return Array.isArray(p) ? p : []; } catch { return []; } }
+  return [];
+};
+
+// This component uses raw fetch(), but extractApiError expects an axios-shaped error
+// (err.response.data). Read the fetch Response body and reuse the envelope-aware extractor
+// so backend messages — e.g. the 409 "node already in VIP X" — actually reach the user.
+const fetchApiError = async (res, fallback) => {
+  try { const data = await res.json(); return extractApiError({ response: { data } }, fallback); }
+  catch { return fallback; }
+};
+
+const VIPManagement = () => {
+  const { clusters } = useCluster();
+  const [vips, setVips] = useState([]);
+  const [loading, setLoading] = useState(false);
+  const [modalVisible, setModalVisible] = useState(false);
+  const [editing, setEditing] = useState(null);
+  const [selectedPoolId, setSelectedPoolId] = useState(null);
+  // One row per agent in the selected pool — the user toggles which participate.
+  const [memberRows, setMemberRows] = useState([]);
+  const [form] = Form.useForm();
+  // Delete confirmation (with opt-in package uninstall) + diagnostics modal state.
+  const [deleteTarget, setDeleteTarget] = useState(null);
+  const [showL2Note, setShowL2Note] = useState(false);
+  const [diagVip, setDiagVip] = useState(null);
+  const [diagData, setDiagData] = useState(null);
+  const [diagLoading, setDiagLoading] = useState(false);
+
+  // Distinct pools derived from the cluster list (cluster -> pool_id).
+  const pools = React.useMemo(() => {
+    const seen = new Map();
+    (clusters || []).forEach((c) => {
+      if (c.pool_id && !seen.has(c.pool_id)) seen.set(c.pool_id, c.name || `pool ${c.pool_id}`);
+    });
+    return Array.from(seen, ([id, name]) => ({ id, name }));
+  }, [clusters]);
+
+  const fetchVips = useCallback(async () => {
+    setLoading(true);
+    try {
+      const res = await fetch('/api/vip', { headers: authHeaders() });
+      if (res.ok) {
+        const data = await res.json();
+        setVips(data.vips || []);
+      } else if (res.status === 403) {
+        message.warning('You do not have permission to view VIPs (vip.read).');
+        setVips([]);
+      }
+    } catch (e) {
+      console.error('fetchVips failed', e);
+    } finally {
+      setLoading(false);
+    }
+  }, []);
+
+  useEffect(() => {
+    fetchVips();
+    const t = setInterval(fetchVips, 30000); // live MASTER/BACKUP via existing detection pipeline
+    return () => clearInterval(t);
+  }, [fetchVips]);
+
+  // Build the participating-nodes table from the pool's EXISTING agents (installed via the
+  // standard Agent Management process). On edit, pre-select the VIP's current members.
+  const buildMemberRows = (agents, existing) => {
+    const ex = {};
+    (existing || []).forEach((m) => { ex[m.agent_id] = m; });
+    return (agents || [])
+      .filter((a) => !String(a.name).startsWith('token_'))
+      .map((a) => {
+        const interfaces = parseArr(a.network_interfaces).filter((n) => !IFACE_HIDE.test(n));
+        const e = ex[a.id];
+        return {
+          agent_id: a.id,
+          agent_name: a.name,
+          ip_address: a.ip_address,
+          capable: parseArr(a.capabilities).includes('keepalived_management'),
+          interfaces,
+          participate: !!e,
+          role: e ? e.role : 'BACKUP',
+          priority: e ? e.priority : 100,
+          network_interface: e ? e.network_interface : (interfaces[0] || ''),
+        };
+      });
+  };
+
+  const loadPoolMembers = useCallback(async (poolId, existing) => {
+    if (!poolId) { setMemberRows([]); return; }
+    try {
+      const res = await fetch(`/api/agents?pool_id=${poolId}`, { headers: authHeaders() });
+      const data = res.ok ? await res.json() : { agents: [] };
+      setMemberRows(buildMemberRows(data.agents || [], existing));
+    } catch (e) {
+      console.error('loadPoolMembers failed', e);
+      setMemberRows([]);
+    }
+  }, []);
+
+  const setRow = (agentId, patch) =>
+    setMemberRows((rows) => rows.map((r) => (r.agent_id === agentId ? { ...r, ...patch } : r)));
+
+  // Toggling a node into the VIP: if no other participating node is MASTER yet, make this
+  // one the MASTER. This makes the single-node case work without the operator having to flip
+  // the role by hand (a one-node VIP's only node IS the master), and gives a sensible default
+  // for multi-node (first picked = master, the rest backup). Editing keeps stored roles.
+  const toggleParticipate = (agentId, on) =>
+    setMemberRows((rows) => {
+      const otherMaster = rows.some((r) => r.agent_id !== agentId && r.participate && r.role === 'MASTER');
+      return rows.map((r) => {
+        if (r.agent_id !== agentId) return r;
+        if (on && !otherMaster) return { ...r, participate: true, role: 'MASTER', priority: 150 };
+        return { ...r, participate: on };
+      });
+    });
+
+  const openCreate = () => {
+    setEditing(null);
+    setSelectedPoolId(null);
+    setMemberRows([]);
+    form.resetFields();
+    form.setFieldsValue({ prefix_length: 24, advert_int: 1, use_unicast: true, track_haproxy: true });
+    setModalVisible(true);
+  };
+
+  const openEdit = (vip) => {
+    setEditing(vip);
+    setSelectedPoolId(vip.pool_id);
+    loadPoolMembers(vip.pool_id, vip.members);
+    form.resetFields();
+    form.setFieldsValue({
+      name: vip.name, description: vip.description, pool_id: vip.pool_id,
+      virtual_ip: vip.virtual_ip, prefix_length: vip.prefix_length,
+      virtual_router_id: vip.virtual_router_id, advert_int: vip.advert_int,
+      use_unicast: vip.use_unicast, track_haproxy: vip.track_haproxy,
+    });
+    setModalVisible(true);
+  };
+
+  const submit = async () => {
+    let values;
+    try { values = await form.validateFields(); }
+    catch { return; }
+
+    const chosen = memberRows.filter((r) => r.participate);
+    if (chosen.length < 1) { message.error('Select at least 1 participating node.'); return; }
+    const masters = chosen.filter((r) => r.role === 'MASTER');
+    if (masters.length !== 1) { message.error('Exactly one participating node must be MASTER.'); return; }
+    if (chosen.some((r) => !r.network_interface)) { message.error('Pick a network interface for every participating node.'); return; }
+    const maxBackup = Math.max(...chosen.filter((r) => r.role === 'BACKUP').map((r) => r.priority));
+    if (masters[0].priority <= maxBackup) { message.error('The MASTER must have a higher priority than every BACKUP.'); return; }
+
+    const body = {
+      ...values,
+      members: chosen.map((r) => ({
+        agent_id: r.agent_id, network_interface: r.network_interface, role: r.role, priority: r.priority,
+      })),
+    };
+    if (!body.auth_pass) delete body.auth_pass; // omit to keep existing on edit
+    try {
+      const url = editing ? `/api/vip/${editing.id}` : '/api/vip';
+      const res = await fetch(url, { method: editing ? 'PUT' : 'POST', headers: authHeaders(), body: JSON.stringify(body) });
+      if (res.ok) {
+        message.success(editing
+          ? 'VIP updated (PENDING) — apply it from the Apply Management page'
+          : 'VIP created (PENDING) — apply it from the Apply Management page');
+        setModalVisible(false);
+        fetchVips();
+      } else {
+        message.error(await fetchApiError(res, 'Failed to save VIP'));
+      }
+    } catch (e) {
+      message.error('Failed to save VIP: ' + e.message);
+    }
+  };
+
+  const deleteVip = async (vip, purge) => {
+    try {
+      const res = await fetch(`/api/vip/${vip.id}${purge ? '?purge_package=true' : ''}`,
+        { method: 'DELETE', headers: authHeaders() });
+      if (res.ok) {
+        let body = {};
+        try { body = await res.json(); } catch (_) { /* ignore */ }
+        // Backend returns staged=true (approval required, VIP still running) or staged=false
+        // (never-applied VIP removed at once). Surface its exact message either way.
+        (body.staged ? message.info : message.success)(
+          body.message || 'Deletion requested.');
+        setDeleteTarget(null); fetchVips();
+      } else message.error(await fetchApiError(res, 'Delete failed'));
+    } catch (e) { message.error('Delete failed: ' + e.message); }
+  };
+
+  // Diagnostics: per-member deploy state/ack from GET /api/vip/{id}/status — the live view
+  // of what each node reported (installing/applied/error/externally-managed), most useful
+  // while a freshly-applied VIP is SYNCING (keepalived install can take ~30s).
+  const openDiagnostics = async (vip) => {
+    setDiagVip(vip); setDiagData(null); setDiagLoading(true);
+    try {
+      const res = await fetch(`/api/vip/${vip.id}/status`, { headers: authHeaders() });
+      if (res.ok) setDiagData(await res.json());
+      else message.error(await fetchApiError(res, 'Failed to load diagnostics'));
+    } catch (e) { message.error('Diagnostics failed: ' + e.message); }
+    finally { setDiagLoading(false); }
+  };
+
+  // Colorful, IP-Inventory/Agent-consistent state: live VRRP MASTER (green, crowned) /
+  // BACKUP (orange) / FAULT (red); when the agent hasn't reported a live state yet, show
+  // the configured role as a dashed outline tag (same color) so it's clearly "intended,
+  // not yet observed". A node whose agent is too old gets an "awaiting agent" flag.
+  const renderMembers = (_, vip) => (
+    <Space direction="vertical" size={4}>
+      {(vip.members || []).map((m) => {
+        const live = m.keepalive_state && m.keepalive_state !== 'NONE' ? m.keepalive_state : null;
+        const roleColor = m.role === 'MASTER' ? 'green' : 'orange';
+        const awaiting = !live && !m.keepalived_capable;
+        return (
+          <Space key={m.agent_id} size={6}>
+            <Text style={{ fontSize: 12 }}>{m.agent_name || `agent ${m.agent_id}`}</Text>
+            {live ? (
+              <Tooltip title={`Live VRRP state: ${live}`}>
+                <Tag
+                  color={live === 'MASTER' ? 'green' : live === 'BACKUP' ? 'orange' : 'red'}
+                  icon={live === 'MASTER' ? <CrownOutlined /> : undefined}
+                  style={{ marginInlineEnd: 0, fontWeight: 600 }}
+                >
+                  {live}
+                </Tag>
+              </Tooltip>
+            ) : (
+              <Tooltip title="Configured role — live VRRP state not observed yet (agent offline or still converging).">
+                <Tag color={roleColor} style={{ marginInlineEnd: 0, borderStyle: 'dashed', opacity: 0.85 }}>
+                  {m.role}
+                </Tag>
+              </Tooltip>
+            )}
+            {awaiting && (
+              <Tooltip title="This node's agent does not advertise keepalived_management — upgrade the agent.">
+                <Tag color="gold" icon={<WarningOutlined />} style={{ marginInlineEnd: 0 }}>awaiting agent</Tag>
+              </Tooltip>
+            )}
+          </Space>
+        );
+      })}
+    </Space>
+  );
+
+  const columns = [
+    { title: 'Name', dataIndex: 'name', key: 'name' },
+    { title: 'Virtual IP', key: 'vip', render: (_, v) => <Text code>{v.virtual_ip}/{v.prefix_length}</Text> },
+    { title: 'Pool', dataIndex: 'pool_name', key: 'pool' },
+    { title: 'VRID', dataIndex: 'virtual_router_id', key: 'vrid' },
+    { title: 'Members / Live state', key: 'members', render: renderMembers },
+    {
+      title: 'Status', key: 'status', render: (_, v) => {
+        const s = v.deploy_status || v.last_config_status;
+        const d = DEPLOY_STATUS[s] || { color: 'default', label: s, tip: '' };
+        const count = (s === 'SYNCING' || s === 'AWAITING' || s === 'ACTIVE' || s === 'DELETING' || s === 'DELETED') && v.deploy_total
+          ? ` (${v.deploy_synced}/${v.deploy_total})` : '';
+        return (
+          <Tooltip title={d.tip}>
+            <Tag color={d.color} icon={(s === 'SYNCING' || s === 'DELETING') ? <SyncOutlined spin /> : s === 'AWAITING' ? <ClockCircleOutlined /> : undefined}>
+              {(d.label || s)}{count}
+            </Tag>
+          </Tooltip>
+        );
+      },
+    },
+    {
+      title: 'Actions', key: 'actions', render: (_, v) => (
+        <Space>
+          {v.last_config_status === 'PENDING' && (
+            <Tooltip title="Apply pending configuration changes">
+              <Button type="primary" size="small" icon={<PlayCircleOutlined />}
+                onClick={() => { window.location.href = '/apply-management'; }}
+                style={{ backgroundColor: '#1890ff', borderColor: '#1890ff' }}>
+                Apply
+              </Button>
+            </Tooltip>
+          )}
+          <Tooltip title="Edit VIP (changes become PENDING; apply from Apply Management)">
+            <Button size="small" icon={<EditOutlined />} onClick={() => openEdit(v)} />
+          </Tooltip>
+          <Tooltip title="Diagnostics — per-node keepalived deploy status & logs">
+            <Button size="small" icon={<FileSearchOutlined />} onClick={() => openDiagnostics(v)} />
+          </Tooltip>
+          <Tooltip title="Delete VIP">
+            <Button size="small" danger icon={<DeleteOutlined />}
+              onClick={() => setDeleteTarget(v)} />
+          </Tooltip>
+        </Space>
+      ),
+    },
+  ];
+
+  // Member-selection table inside the modal — the pool's installed agents (nodes).
+  const memberColumns = [
+    {
+      title: 'Node (agent)', key: 'node', render: (_, r) => (
+        <span>
+          <Text strong>{r.agent_name}</Text>{' '}
+          <Text type="secondary" style={{ fontSize: 12 }}>{r.ip_address ? `(${r.ip_address})` : '(no IP yet)'}</Text>
+          {!r.capable && (
+            <Tooltip title="This agent doesn't advertise keepalived_management — upgrade it or this node won't deploy.">
+              {' '}<Tag color="gold" icon={<WarningOutlined />}>agent too old</Tag>
+            </Tooltip>
+          )}
+        </span>
+      ),
+    },
+    {
+      title: 'Participate', key: 'participate', width: 100, render: (_, r) => (
+        <Switch checked={r.participate} onChange={(c) => toggleParticipate(r.agent_id, c)} />
+      ),
+    },
+    {
+      title: 'Role', key: 'role', width: 130, render: (_, r) => (
+        <Select size="small" style={{ width: 110 }} value={r.role} disabled={!r.participate}
+          onChange={(val) => setRow(r.agent_id, { role: val, priority: val === 'MASTER' ? 150 : 100 })}>
+          <Option value="MASTER">MASTER</Option>
+          <Option value="BACKUP">BACKUP</Option>
+        </Select>
+      ),
+    },
+    {
+      title: 'Priority', key: 'priority', width: 110, render: (_, r) => (
+        <InputNumber size="small" min={1} max={254} value={r.priority} disabled={!r.participate}
+          onChange={(val) => setRow(r.agent_id, { priority: val })} />
+      ),
+    },
+    {
+      title: 'Interface', key: 'iface', width: 160, render: (_, r) => (
+        <Select size="small" style={{ width: 140 }} value={r.network_interface || undefined}
+          placeholder="interface" disabled={!r.participate} showSearch
+          onChange={(val) => setRow(r.agent_id, { network_interface: val })}
+          notFoundContent="no interfaces reported"
+          options={(r.interfaces || []).map((n) => ({ label: n, value: n }))}
+          {...((r.interfaces || []).length === 0 ? { mode: 'tags' } : {})} />
+      ),
+    },
+  ];
+
+  return (
+    <div>
+      <Card>
+        <div style={{ display: 'flex', justifyContent: 'space-between', alignItems: 'center', marginBottom: 16 }}>
+          <Title level={2} style={{ margin: 0 }}>HA / VIP (Keepalived)</Title>
+          <Space>
+            <Button icon={<ReloadOutlined />} onClick={fetchVips}>Refresh</Button>
+            <Button type="primary" icon={<PlusOutlined />} onClick={openCreate}>Create VIP</Button>
+          </Space>
+        </div>
+        {/* The cloud caveat is rarely relevant for the on-prem target audience, so it's a
+            subtle, collapsed-by-default info note (not a prominent yellow warning). */}
+        <div style={{ marginBottom: 12 }}>
+          <Button type="link" size="small" icon={<InfoCircleOutlined />} style={{ paddingLeft: 0 }}
+            onClick={() => setShowL2Note((v) => !v)}>
+            Network requirements (on-prem / L2)
+          </Button>
+          {showL2Note && (
+            <Alert
+              type="info" showIcon style={{ marginTop: 4 }}
+              message="On-prem / L2 networks"
+              description="VRRP-based VIP failover targets bare-metal / VMware / on-prem L2 segments. On AWS/Azure/GCP, cloud fabrics don't honor VRRP/gratuitous-ARP, so VIPs won't move. Ensure VRRP (IP protocol 112) is permitted by host firewalls."
+            />
+          )}
+        </div>
+        <Table rowKey="id" columns={columns} dataSource={vips} loading={loading} pagination={{ pageSize: 10 }} />
+      </Card>
+
+      <Modal
+        title={editing ? `Edit VIP — ${editing.name}` : 'Create VIP'}
+        open={modalVisible}
+        onCancel={() => setModalVisible(false)}
+        onOk={submit}
+        okText={editing ? 'Save (PENDING)' : 'Create (PENDING)'}
+        width={880}
+        destroyOnClose
+      >
+        <Form form={form} layout="vertical">
+          <Form.Item name="name" label="Name" rules={[{ required: true }]}>
+            <Input placeholder="web-vip" disabled={!!editing} />
+          </Form.Item>
+          <Form.Item name="description" label="Description">
+            <Input placeholder="optional" />
+          </Form.Item>
+          {!editing && (
+            <Form.Item name="pool_id" label="Pool" rules={[{ required: true }]}
+              tooltip="The VIP's nodes are the HAProxy servers (agents) already enrolled in this pool.">
+              <Select placeholder="Select a pool" onChange={(pid) => { setSelectedPoolId(pid); loadPoolMembers(pid); }}>
+                {pools.map((p) => <Option key={p.id} value={p.id}>{p.name}</Option>)}
+              </Select>
+            </Form.Item>
+          )}
+          <Space size="large" style={{ display: 'flex' }}>
+            <Form.Item name="virtual_ip" label="Virtual IP (IPv4)" rules={[{ required: true }]}>
+              <Input placeholder="10.0.0.100" />
+            </Form.Item>
+            <Form.Item name="prefix_length" label="Prefix" rules={[{ required: true }]}>
+              <InputNumber min={1} max={32} />
+            </Form.Item>
+            <Form.Item name="virtual_router_id" label="VRID (blank = auto)">
+              <InputNumber min={1} max={255} placeholder="auto" />
+            </Form.Item>
+            <Form.Item name="advert_int" label="Advert int (s)">
+              <InputNumber min={1} max={255} />
+            </Form.Item>
+          </Space>
+          <Space size="large">
+            <Form.Item name="use_unicast" label="Unicast VRRP" valuePropName="checked" tooltip="Recommended; works where multicast is blocked.">
+              <Switch />
+            </Form.Item>
+            <Form.Item name="track_haproxy" label="Fail over when HAProxy drops" valuePropName="checked">
+              <Switch />
+            </Form.Item>
+            <Form.Item name="auth_pass" label="VRRP secret (≤8 chars)">
+              <Input.Password placeholder={editing ? '•••• (unchanged)' : 'optional'} maxLength={8} />
+            </Form.Item>
+          </Space>
+
+          <Text strong>Participating nodes</Text>
+          <div style={{ color: '#888', fontSize: 12, marginBottom: 8 }}>
+            These are the HAProxy servers (agents) already enrolled in this pool — toggle which join the VIP.
+            Pick <b>exactly one MASTER</b> (highest priority); the rest are BACKUP. A <b>single node</b> is allowed
+            (a keepalived-managed VIP <i>without</i> failover) — add a second node for real HA. Add new servers from
+            the standard Agent Management install flow.
+          </div>
+          <Alert
+            type="info" showIcon style={{ marginBottom: 8 }}
+            message="keepalived is installed automatically on Apply"
+            description={<>On Apply, any participating node that doesn’t already run keepalived will <b>install it from the node’s OS package repositories</b> (apt/dnf/yum/zypper/apk) — make sure the node can reach its repos (internet or an internal mirror). A node already running a <b>hand-managed</b> keepalived is left untouched (reported as “externally managed”).</>}
+          />
+          <Table
+            rowKey="agent_id"
+            size="small"
+            columns={memberColumns}
+            dataSource={memberRows}
+            pagination={false}
+            locale={{ emptyText: selectedPoolId ? 'No agents in this pool — install agents from Agent Management first.' : 'Select a pool to list its nodes.' }}
+          />
+        </Form>
+      </Modal>
+
+      {/* Delete confirmation with opt-in package uninstall. Enterprise-safe DEFAULT keeps the
+          package (just stop/disable + remove our config + release the VIP). */}
+      <Modal
+        title="Delete VIP — requires approval"
+        open={!!deleteTarget}
+        onCancel={() => setDeleteTarget(null)}
+        onOk={() => deleteVip(deleteTarget, false)}
+        okText="Stage deletion for approval"
+        okButtonProps={{ danger: true }}
+      >
+        {deleteTarget && (
+          <Space direction="vertical" size={12} style={{ width: '100%' }}>
+            <Alert
+              type="warning"
+              showIcon
+              message="This does NOT delete the VIP immediately"
+              description={<>It stages the deletion for approval. The VIP <b>keeps running, untouched</b>, on its
+                member node(s) until you <b>Approve</b> it on the <b>Apply Management</b> page — and you can
+                <b> Reject</b> it there to keep it. The node is changed <b>only after approval</b>, so an
+                accidental click can't tear down a production VIP.</>}
+            />
+            <Text>
+              Stage deletion of <Text strong>{deleteTarget.name}</Text> ({deleteTarget.virtual_ip}/{deleteTarget.prefix_length})?
+              When approved, the member node(s) <b>stop &amp; disable keepalived, remove the config we manage, and release the VIP</b>. The keepalived package itself is left installed, so re-adding a VIP later is instant.
+            </Text>
+          </Space>
+        )}
+      </Modal>
+
+      {/* Per-node keepalived deploy diagnostics + node-side log commands (esp. during SYNCING). */}
+      <Modal
+        title={diagVip ? `Diagnostics — ${diagVip.name}` : 'Diagnostics'}
+        open={!!diagVip}
+        onCancel={() => { setDiagVip(null); setDiagData(null); }}
+        width={780}
+        footer={[
+          <Button key="refresh" icon={<ReloadOutlined />} onClick={() => diagVip && openDiagnostics(diagVip)}>Refresh</Button>,
+          <Button key="close" type="primary" onClick={() => { setDiagVip(null); setDiagData(null); }}>Close</Button>,
+        ]}
+      >
+        {diagLoading && <div style={{ textAlign: 'center', padding: 24 }}><Spin /></div>}
+        {!diagLoading && diagData && (
+          <Space direction="vertical" size={12} style={{ width: '100%' }}>
+            <Text type="secondary">
+              Staging <Tag>{diagData.last_config_status}</Tag> — each node reports its deploy state after every poll; a fresh keepalived install can take ~30s.
+            </Text>
+            <Table
+              size="small" rowKey={(m) => m.agent_name} pagination={false}
+              dataSource={diagData.members || []}
+              columns={[
+                { title: 'Node', key: 'node', render: (_, m) => (
+                  <Space size={4}>
+                    <Text style={{ fontSize: 12 }}>{m.agent_name}</Text>
+                    {m.role === 'MASTER'
+                      ? <Tag color="green" icon={<CrownOutlined />} style={{ marginInlineEnd: 0 }}>MASTER</Tag>
+                      : <Tag color="orange" style={{ marginInlineEnd: 0 }}>BACKUP</Tag>}
+                  </Space>) },
+                { title: 'Agent', dataIndex: 'agent_status', key: 'agent',
+                  render: (s) => <Tag color={s === 'online' ? 'green' : 'red'}>{s || 'offline'}</Tag> },
+                { title: 'Live VRRP', dataIndex: 'keepalive_state', key: 'live',
+                  render: (s) => (s && s !== 'NONE')
+                    ? <Tag color={s === 'MASTER' ? 'green' : s === 'BACKUP' ? 'orange' : 'red'}>{s}</Tag>
+                    : <Text type="secondary">—</Text> },
+                { title: 'Deploy', key: 'deploy', render: (_, m) => {
+                    const st = m.deploy_state;
+                    const color = st === 'enabled' ? 'green' : st === 'error' ? 'red'
+                      : st === 'externally_managed' ? 'gold' : 'blue';
+                    return <Tooltip title={m.deploy_message || ''}><Tag color={color}>{m.convergence || st || 'pending'}</Tag></Tooltip>;
+                  } },
+                { title: 'Last ack', dataIndex: 'deploy_at', key: 'ack',
+                  render: (t) => t ? <Text style={{ fontSize: 11 }}>{new Date(t).toLocaleString()}</Text> : <Text type="secondary">—</Text> },
+              ]}
+            />
+            {(diagData.members || []).some((m) => m.deploy_message) && (
+              <Card size="small" title="Latest node messages" bodyStyle={{ padding: 8 }}>
+                {(diagData.members || []).filter((m) => m.deploy_message).map((m) => (
+                  <div key={m.agent_name} style={{ fontSize: 12 }}><Text strong>{m.agent_name}:</Text> {m.deploy_message}</div>
+                ))}
+              </Card>
+            )}
+            <Alert
+              type="info" showIcon
+              message="See the live install / VRRP logs on the node"
+              description={
+                <pre style={{ margin: 0, fontSize: 11, whiteSpace: 'pre-wrap' }}>{`systemctl status keepalived --no-pager
+journalctl -u keepalived --no-pager -n 50
+tail -n 100 /var/log/haproxy-agent/agent.log | grep -i keepalived`}</pre>
+              }
+            />
+          </Space>
+        )}
+        {!diagLoading && !diagData && <Text type="secondary">No diagnostics available.</Text>}
+      </Modal>
+    </div>
+  );
+};
+
+export default VIPManagement;

k8s/manifests/10-nginx.yaml

@@ -22,7 +22,9 @@ spec:
       serviceAccountName: haproxy-openmanager-nginx
       containers:
       - name: nginx
-        image: nginx:alpine
+        # Pinned to a patched release for the nginx "poolslip" advisory
+        # (mainline <=1.31.0 affected; fixed in mainline 1.31.1+ / stable 1.30.2+).
+        image: nginx:1.31.1-alpine
         ports:
         - containerPort: 8080
           name: http

version.json

@@ -1,5 +0,0 @@
-{
-  "version": "1.6.0",
-  "releaseName": "Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)",
-  "releaseDate": "2026-05-18"
-}