diff --git a/tests/e2e/single/discovery_test.go b/tests/e2e/single/discovery_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..44ac96fdc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/e2e/single/discovery_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,190 @@
+//go:build e2e
+
+package single
+
+import (
+	"errors"
+	"fmt"
+	"os"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/aws/aws-sdk-go/aws"
+	"github.com/aws/aws-sdk-go/service/ec2"
+	"github.com/mulgadc/spinifex/tests/e2e/harness"
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/assert"
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
+)
+
+// phase1_Environment verifies KVM, AWS gateway TLS reachability, daemon NATS
+// readiness, and the basic region/AZ discovery calls. Maps to run-e2e.sh
+// lines ~51–93.
+func phase1_Environment(t *testing.T, fix *Fixture) {
+	harness.Phase(t, "Phase 1 — Environment")
+
+	// /dev/kvm — skip rather than fatal in local-dev to match the bash
+	// "exit 1" only when KVM is genuinely required (CI). Local devs without
+	// nested virt would otherwise be unable to even compile-run this suite.
+	harness.Step(t, "checking /dev/kvm")
+	st, err := os.Stat("/dev/kvm")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Skipf("/dev/kvm not present (%v); single-node suite needs KVM", err)
+	}
+	if st.Mode()&0o200 == 0 {
+		// Bash treated non-writable as fatal — replicate.
+		t.Fatalf("/dev/kvm exists but is not writable (mode=%v)", st.Mode())
+	}
+	harness.Detail(t, "kvm", "writable")
+
+	// AWS gateway TLS handshake. Bash does `curl -sk` so it accepts any
+	// non-zero status as success; we use HTTPSGet with a nil pool so the
+	// system trust store is used (the cert suite already validates CA
+	// installation), and treat a non-zero HTTP status as a successful
+	// handshake.
+	harness.Step(t, "waiting for AWS gateway")
+	host := "127.0.0.1"
+	if len(fix.Env.ServiceIPs) > 0 {
+		host = fix.Env.ServiceIPs[0]
+	}
+	gwURL := fmt.Sprintf("https://%s:%d/", host, fix.Env.AWSGWPort)
+	harness.Eventually(t, func() bool {
+		code, _, err := harness.HTTPSGet(gwURL, nil, fix.Env.DefaultTimeout)
+		return err == nil && code != 0
+	}, 30*time.Second, 1*time.Second, "AWS gateway not reachable at "+gwURL)
+	harness.Detail(t, "gateway", gwURL)
+
+	// Daemon NATS readiness: bash polls describe-instance-types via the
+	// AWS CLI until it returns a non-empty list. Replicate via the SDK so
+	// we exercise the same NATS subscription path.
+	harness.Step(t, "waiting for daemon NATS subscriptions")
+	harness.EventuallyErr(t, func() error {
+		out, err := fix.AWS.EC2.DescribeInstanceTypes(&ec2.DescribeInstanceTypesInput{})
+		if err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+		if len(out.InstanceTypes) == 0 {
+			return errors.New("describe-instance-types: empty result")
+		}
+		return nil
+	}, 30*time.Second, 1*time.Second)
+
+	// Region + AZ smoke calls.
+	harness.Step(t, "describe-regions / describe-availability-zones")
+	regions, err := fix.AWS.EC2.DescribeRegions(&ec2.DescribeRegionsInput{})
+	require.NoError(t, err, "describe-regions")
+	require.NotEmpty(t, regions.Regions, "no regions returned")
+
+	azOut, err := fix.AWS.EC2.DescribeAvailabilityZones(&ec2.DescribeAvailabilityZonesInput{})
+	require.NoError(t, err, "describe-availability-zones")
+	require.NotEmpty(t, azOut.AvailabilityZones, "no AZs returned")
+	fix.AZName = aws.StringValue(azOut.AvailabilityZones[0].ZoneName)
+	azState := aws.StringValue(azOut.AvailabilityZones[0].State)
+	require.Equalf(t, "available", azState, "AZ %s state %q (want available)", fix.AZName, azState)
+	harness.Detail(t, "az", fix.AZName, "region", aws.StringValue(azOut.AvailabilityZones[0].RegionName))
+
+	harness.OnFailure(t, func() {
+		harness.DumpCmd(t, fix.Artifacts, "phase1-az.txt",
+			"aws", "ec2", "describe-availability-zones")
+	})
+}
+
+// phase1b_ClusterStats exercises the spx CLI cluster surface (`get nodes`,
+// `top nodes`, `get vms`). Single-node only — multinode mode is tested by a
+// different scenario. Maps to run-e2e.sh ~95–127.
+func phase1b_ClusterStats(t *testing.T, fix *Fixture) {
+	harness.Phase(t, "Phase 1b — Cluster Stats CLI")
+	if fix.Env.Mode != harness.ModeSingle {
+		t.Skipf("Phase 1b is single-node only (mode=%s)", fix.Env.Mode)
+	}
+
+	harness.Step(t, "spx get nodes")
+	nodes := harness.SpxGetNodes(t)
+	assert.Contains(t, nodes, "Ready", "spx get nodes should report a Ready node\n%s", nodes)
+
+	harness.Step(t, "spx top nodes")
+	top := harness.SpxTopNodes(t)
+	// Bash matches `0/` in the resource stat column (e.g. "0/4 vCPU"). The
+	// presence of that fraction marker is what proves the stats column
+	// actually rendered.
+	assert.Contains(t, top, "0/", "spx top nodes should report resource stats\n%s", top)
+
+	harness.Step(t, "spx get vms (empty before any launches)")
+	vms := harness.SpxGetVMs(t)
+	assert.Contains(t, vms, "No VMs found",
+		"spx get vms should be empty before Phase 5\n%s", vms)
+}
+
+// phase2_Discovery re-asserts describe-regions / describe-availability-zones
+// (cheap but it's where the bash records them as a phase boundary) and picks
+// the nano instance type + architecture used throughout the rest of the run.
+// Maps to run-e2e.sh ~128–164.
+func phase2_Discovery(t *testing.T, fix *Fixture) {
+	harness.Phase(t, "Phase 2 — Discovery & Metadata")
+
+	regions, err := fix.AWS.EC2.DescribeRegions(&ec2.DescribeRegionsInput{})
+	require.NoError(t, err)
+	require.NotEmpty(t, regions.Regions, "describe-regions empty")
+
+	azOut, err := fix.AWS.EC2.DescribeAvailabilityZones(&ec2.DescribeAvailabilityZonesInput{})
+	require.NoError(t, err)
+	require.NotEmpty(t, azOut.AvailabilityZones, "describe-availability-zones empty")
+
+	harness.Step(t, "discovering nano instance type")
+	out, err := fix.AWS.EC2.DescribeInstanceTypes(&ec2.DescribeInstanceTypesInput{})
+	require.NoError(t, err)
+	require.NotEmpty(t, out.InstanceTypes, "describe-instance-types empty")
+
+	// Bash picks the first match for `nano` and reads the architecture out
+	// of the same row. Replicate that ordering — daemons emit types in a
+	// stable order so picking the first nano keeps parity with the bash
+	// driver.
+	for _, it := range out.InstanceTypes {
+		name := aws.StringValue(it.InstanceType)
+		if !strings.Contains(name, "nano") {
+			continue
+		}
+		fix.InstanceType = name
+		if it.ProcessorInfo != nil && len(it.ProcessorInfo.SupportedArchitectures) > 0 {
+			fix.Arch = aws.StringValue(it.ProcessorInfo.SupportedArchitectures[0])
+		}
+		break
+	}
+	if fix.InstanceType == "" {
+		t.Fatalf("no nano instance type available; saw %d types", len(out.InstanceTypes))
+	}
+	if fix.Arch == "" {
+		t.Fatalf("instance type %s missing ProcessorInfo.SupportedArchitectures", fix.InstanceType)
+	}
+	harness.Detail(t, "instance_type", fix.InstanceType, "arch", fix.Arch, "az", fix.AZName)
+}
+
+// phase2b_SerialConsole flips serial-console-access on then off and verifies
+// each transition with both the action-returned bool and a follow-up
+// get-status round-trip. Maps to run-e2e.sh ~166–202.
+func phase2b_SerialConsole(t *testing.T, fix *Fixture) {
+	harness.Phase(t, "Phase 2b — Serial Console Access")
+
+	harness.Step(t, "default state should be disabled")
+	if got := harness.GetSerialConsoleAccessEnabled(t, fix.AWS); got {
+		t.Fatalf("expected serial console default disabled, got enabled")
+	}
+
+	harness.Step(t, "enable")
+	if got := harness.EnableSerialConsoleAccess(t, fix.AWS); !got {
+		t.Fatalf("enable: action returned enabled=false")
+	}
+	if got := harness.GetSerialConsoleAccessEnabled(t, fix.AWS); !got {
+		t.Fatalf("enable: subsequent get-status returned disabled")
+	}
+	harness.Detail(t, "state", "enabled")
+
+	harness.Step(t, "disable")
+	if got := harness.DisableSerialConsoleAccess(t, fix.AWS); got {
+		t.Fatalf("disable: action returned enabled=true")
+	}
+	if got := harness.GetSerialConsoleAccessEnabled(t, fix.AWS); got {
+		t.Fatalf("disable: subsequent get-status returned enabled")
+	}
+	harness.Detail(t, "state", "disabled")
+}
diff --git a/tests/e2e/single/image_test.go b/tests/e2e/single/image_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..e2a629802
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/e2e/single/image_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,96 @@
+//go:build e2e
+
+package single
+
+import (
+	"regexp"
+	"testing"
+
+	"github.com/aws/aws-sdk-go/aws"
+	"github.com/aws/aws-sdk-go/service/ec2"
+	"github.com/mulgadc/spinifex/tests/e2e/harness"
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
+)
+
+// amiIDRE matches "ami-<hex>" anywhere in spx import output. The CLI prints
+// the new AMI ID on a "✅ Image import complete. Image-ID (AMI): ami-..."
+// line; capturing the ID alone keeps us tolerant of the surrounding format
+// changing (the bash script uses a separate describe-images call entirely
+// because it didn't trust the CLI output).
+var amiIDRE = regexp.MustCompile(`ami-[0-9a-f]+`)
+
+// phase4_Image imports (or rediscovers) the architecture-appropriate Ubuntu
+// AMI staged by bootstrap-install.sh and stashes the ID on the fixture for
+// Phase 5+. Maps to run-e2e.sh ~233–255.
+func phase4_Image(t *testing.T, fix *Fixture) {
+	harness.Phase(t, "Phase 4 — Image Management")
+	require.NotEmpty(t, fix.Arch, "Phase 2 must populate fix.Arch before Phase 4")
+
+	// Bash hard-coded the mapping to ubuntu-24.04-{x86_64,arm64}; keep
+	// parity. fix.Arch comes from DescribeInstanceTypes so it'll be the
+	// canonical AWS arch label.
+	imgName := "ubuntu-24.04-" + fix.Arch
+	harness.Detail(t, "image", imgName, "arch", fix.Arch)
+
+	harness.Step(t, "spx admin images import --name %s", imgName)
+	// wantErr=true: bootstrap-install.sh has already imported this AMI in
+	// most environments, so the import returns non-zero on duplicate. We
+	// don't care about the exit code — we care about either parsing an
+	// AMI ID out of the output or successfully filtering DescribeImages
+	// by the canonical ami-<name> tag afterwards.
+	out := harness.SpxRun(t, true, "admin", "images", "import", "--name", imgName)
+
+	// Try to parse the AMI ID directly out of the CLI's success line.
+	amiID := amiIDRE.FindString(out)
+	if amiID != "" {
+		harness.Detail(t, "spx_parsed_ami", amiID)
+	} else {
+		harness.Step(t, "spx import did not yield AMI ID; falling back to describe-images")
+	}
+
+	// Either confirm the parsed ID or look it up by name.
+	// Bash filters on `Name=name,Values=ami-${IMAGE_NAME}` — the leading
+	// `ami-` prefix is part of the AMI's *name* in spinifex (admin.go:487),
+	// not the AMI ID. Replicate exactly.
+	filterName := "ami-" + imgName
+	describeOut, err := fix.AWS.EC2.DescribeImages(&ec2.DescribeImagesInput{
+		Filters: []*ec2.Filter{
+			{Name: aws.String("name"), Values: []*string{aws.String(filterName)}},
+		},
+	})
+	require.NoErrorf(t, err, "describe-images filter name=%s", filterName)
+	require.NotEmptyf(t, describeOut.Images,
+		"no AMI matched name=%s — bootstrap-install.sh did not stage it and the import failed:\n%s",
+		filterName, truncate(out, 2000))
+
+	resolvedID := aws.StringValue(describeOut.Images[0].ImageId)
+	require.NotEmpty(t, resolvedID, "describe-images returned blank ImageId")
+
+	if amiID != "" && amiID != resolvedID {
+		// Parsed an AMI ID from spx output but it doesn't match what
+		// describe-images by name returns — surface the mismatch loudly
+		// rather than silently preferring one source over the other.
+		t.Fatalf("spx output AMI %s != describe-images AMI %s for name %s",
+			amiID, resolvedID, filterName)
+	}
+	fix.AMIID = resolvedID
+
+	harness.Step(t, "describe-images by AMI ID (verify exactly one match)")
+	byID, err := fix.AWS.EC2.DescribeImages(&ec2.DescribeImagesInput{
+		ImageIds: []*string{aws.String(fix.AMIID)},
+	})
+	require.NoErrorf(t, err, "describe-images %s", fix.AMIID)
+	require.Lenf(t, byID.Images, 1, "expected exactly 1 image for %s, got %d", fix.AMIID, len(byID.Images))
+	require.Equal(t, fix.AMIID, aws.StringValue(byID.Images[0].ImageId), "round-trip AMI ID mismatch")
+
+	harness.Detail(t, "ami", fix.AMIID, "name", aws.StringValue(byID.Images[0].Name))
+}
+
+// truncate is used to keep failure messages from dumping arbitrarily large
+// spx CLI output verbatim into the test log.
+func truncate(s string, n int) string {
+	if len(s) <= n {
+		return s
+	}
+	return s[:n] + "...[truncated]"
+}
diff --git a/tests/e2e/single/keypair_test.go b/tests/e2e/single/keypair_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..2cb53df62
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/e2e/single/keypair_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,110 @@
+//go:build e2e
+
+package single
+
+import (
+	"crypto/rand"
+	"crypto/rsa"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+
+	"github.com/aws/aws-sdk-go/aws"
+	"github.com/aws/aws-sdk-go/service/ec2"
+	"github.com/mulgadc/spinifex/tests/e2e/harness"
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/assert"
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
+	"golang.org/x/crypto/ssh"
+)
+
+// phase3_KeyPairs exercises CreateKeyPair / ImportKeyPair / DescribeKeyPairs /
+// DeleteKeyPair. test-key-1 is kept around for Phase 5 (instance launch);
+// test-key-2 is created via import then deleted within this phase. Maps to
+// run-e2e.sh ~204–231.
+func phase3_KeyPairs(t *testing.T, fix *Fixture) {
+	harness.Phase(t, "Phase 3 — SSH Key Management")
+
+	const key1 = "test-key-1"
+	const key2 = "test-key-2"
+
+	// Best-effort clean-up of leftovers from a prior failed run so this
+	// phase is idempotent — bash relies on `set -e` failing loudly, but
+	// in Go we'd rather take the deterministic path and recreate.
+	_, _ = fix.AWS.EC2.DeleteKeyPair(&ec2.DeleteKeyPairInput{KeyName: aws.String(key1)})
+	_, _ = fix.AWS.EC2.DeleteKeyPair(&ec2.DeleteKeyPairInput{KeyName: aws.String(key2)})
+
+	harness.Step(t, "create-key-pair %q", key1)
+	created, err := fix.AWS.EC2.CreateKeyPair(&ec2.CreateKeyPairInput{
+		KeyName: aws.String(key1),
+	})
+	require.NoError(t, err, "create-key-pair %s", key1)
+	material := aws.StringValue(created.KeyMaterial)
+	require.NotEmpty(t, material, "create-key-pair returned empty KeyMaterial")
+	require.True(t, strings.HasPrefix(material, "-----BEGIN"),
+		"KeyMaterial must be a PEM block (got prefix %q)", firstN(material, 32))
+
+	pemPath := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), key1+".pem")
+	require.NoError(t, os.WriteFile(pemPath, []byte(material), 0o600), "write PEM")
+	fix.KeyName = key1
+	fix.KeyPath = pemPath
+	harness.Detail(t, "key", key1, "pem", pemPath)
+
+	// TODO(stage-G): register a t.Cleanup that deletes key1 once the whole
+	// TestSingleNode test finishes. Phase 5+ still need this key, so we
+	// can't bind it to the Phase 3 subtest. Stage G's teardown_test.go
+	// will own the final cleanup.
+
+	harness.Step(t, "import-key-pair %q (local-generated RSA)", key2)
+	pubMaterial := generateImportPubKey(t)
+	_, err = fix.AWS.EC2.ImportKeyPair(&ec2.ImportKeyPairInput{
+		KeyName:           aws.String(key2),
+		PublicKeyMaterial: pubMaterial,
+	})
+	require.NoError(t, err, "import-key-pair %s", key2)
+	harness.Detail(t, "imported", key2)
+
+	harness.Step(t, "describe-key-pairs (both present)")
+	listed := describeKeyNames(t, fix)
+	assert.Contains(t, listed, key1, "describe-key-pairs missing %s (got %v)", key1, listed)
+	assert.Contains(t, listed, key2, "describe-key-pairs missing %s (got %v)", key2, listed)
+
+	harness.Step(t, "delete %q", key2)
+	_, err = fix.AWS.EC2.DeleteKeyPair(&ec2.DeleteKeyPairInput{KeyName: aws.String(key2)})
+	require.NoError(t, err, "delete-key-pair %s", key2)
+
+	harness.Step(t, "describe-key-pairs (only %s remains)", key1)
+	remaining := describeKeyNames(t, fix)
+	assert.Contains(t, remaining, key1, "describe-key-pairs lost %s after deleting %s", key1, key2)
+	assert.NotContains(t, remaining, key2, "describe-key-pairs still lists %s after delete", key2)
+}
+
+// generateImportPubKey returns an OpenSSH-formatted public key (matching the
+// `ssh-keygen -t rsa` output the bash script feeds into import-key-pair).
+// 2048-bit to match the bash key length.
+func generateImportPubKey(t *testing.T) []byte {
+	t.Helper()
+	priv, err := rsa.GenerateKey(rand.Reader, 2048)
+	require.NoError(t, err, "generate RSA key")
+	pub, err := ssh.NewPublicKey(&priv.PublicKey)
+	require.NoError(t, err, "ssh.NewPublicKey")
+	return ssh.MarshalAuthorizedKey(pub)
+}
+
+func describeKeyNames(t *testing.T, fix *Fixture) []string {
+	t.Helper()
+	out, err := fix.AWS.EC2.DescribeKeyPairs(&ec2.DescribeKeyPairsInput{})
+	require.NoError(t, err, "describe-key-pairs")
+	names := make([]string, 0, len(out.KeyPairs))
+	for _, kp := range out.KeyPairs {
+		names = append(names, aws.StringValue(kp.KeyName))
+	}
+	return names
+}
+
+func firstN(s string, n int) string {
+	if len(s) <= n {
+		return s
+	}
+	return s[:n]
+}
diff --git a/tests/e2e/single/main_test.go b/tests/e2e/single/main_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..6a2e374a9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/e2e/single/main_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,127 @@
+//go:build e2e
+
+// Package single is the Go port of run-e2e.sh — the single-node E2E suite
+// that drives the full EC2/IAM lifecycle against a locally-bootstrapped
+// Spinifex cluster. Each phase from the bash driver runs as a sequential
+// subtest under TestSingleNode against one shared Fixture; ordering is
+// contractual because Phase 5+ depend on the AMI / key pair / instance
+// staged by Phase 1–4.
+package single
+
+import (
+	"bufio"
+	"bytes"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+
+	"github.com/aws/aws-sdk-go/service/ec2"
+	"github.com/mulgadc/spinifex/tests/e2e/harness"
+)
+
+// Fixture carries state across the sequential Phase subtests of
+// TestSingleNode. Mirrors the env vars run-e2e.sh threads between phases
+// (AMI_ID, INSTANCE_ID, KEY_NAME, etc).
+type Fixture struct {
+	Env       *harness.Env
+	AWS       *harness.AWSClient
+	Artifacts string
+
+	Arch         string // x86_64 | arm64
+	AMIID        string // Phase 4
+	InstanceType string // selected nano type (Phase 2)
+	AZName       string // Phase 2
+	KeyName      string // Phase 3
+	KeyPath      string // PEM written by Phase 3
+
+	Instance        *ec2.Instance // Phase 5 primary (Stage C populates)
+	InstanceID      string
+	RootVolumeID    string
+	SSHHost         string
+	SSHPort         int
+	DefaultVPCID    string
+	DefaultSGID     string
+	DefaultSubnetID string
+
+	VolumeID        string // Phase 5b
+	SnapshotID      string // Phase 5c
+	CopySnapshotID  string // Phase 5c
+	CustomAMIID     string // Phase 5e
+	CustomAMISnapID string // Phase 5e backing
+
+	OVNAvailable bool // gates 8b-e
+	PoolMode     bool // gates 8b / 8d
+}
+
+// TestSingleNode is the Go port of run-e2e.sh. Phases run as sequential
+// subtests against a single shared Fixture — ordering matches the bash
+// driver because Phase 5+ depend on the AMI/key/instance staged by 1–4.
+func TestSingleNode(t *testing.T) {
+	env := harness.LoadEnv(t)
+	if env.Mode != harness.ModeSingle {
+		t.Skipf("TestSingleNode requires SPINIFEX_MODE=single (got %q)", env.Mode)
+	}
+
+	fix := &Fixture{
+		Env:       env,
+		AWS:       harness.NewAWSClient(t, env),
+		Artifacts: harness.ArtifactDir(t, env),
+	}
+	fix.PoolMode = detectPoolMode(env)
+
+	// Phase ordering is contractual — do not parallelise.
+	t.Run("Phase1_Environment", func(t *testing.T) { phase1_Environment(t, fix) })
+	t.Run("Phase1b_ClusterStats", func(t *testing.T) { phase1b_ClusterStats(t, fix) })
+	t.Run("Phase2_Discovery", func(t *testing.T) { phase2_Discovery(t, fix) })
+	t.Run("Phase2b_SerialConsole", func(t *testing.T) { phase2b_SerialConsole(t, fix) })
+	t.Run("Phase3_KeyPairs", func(t *testing.T) { phase3_KeyPairs(t, fix) })
+	t.Run("Phase4_Image", func(t *testing.T) { phase4_Image(t, fix) })
+
+	// Stages C–G will append more t.Run calls here.
+
+	harness.OnFailure(t, func() {
+		harness.DumpCmd(t, fix.Artifacts, "ec2-describe-instances.txt",
+			"aws", "ec2", "describe-instances")
+	})
+}
+
+// detectPoolMode reads external_mode from spinifex.toml. Defaults to false
+// (dev_networking) which is the single-node CI fixture. Mirrors the parser
+// used by lb/lb_test.go's skipIfDevNetworking but reads the positive side —
+// any non-empty external_mode value ("pool" / "nat") means external IPAM
+// is in play.
+func detectPoolMode(env *harness.Env) bool {
+	cfg := os.ExpandEnv("$HOME/spinifex/config/spinifex.toml")
+	if env.ConfigDir != "" {
+		cfg = filepath.Join(env.ConfigDir, "spinifex.toml")
+	}
+	f, err := os.Open(cfg)
+	if err != nil {
+		return false
+	}
+	defer f.Close()
+
+	scanner := bufio.NewScanner(f)
+	inNetwork := false
+	for scanner.Scan() {
+		line := strings.TrimSpace(scanner.Text())
+		if strings.HasPrefix(line, "[") {
+			inNetwork = line == "[network]"
+			continue
+		}
+		if !inNetwork {
+			continue
+		}
+		if !strings.HasPrefix(line, "external_mode") {
+			continue
+		}
+		// external_mode = "pool" — quoted value, anything non-empty == pool mode.
+		if i := bytes.IndexByte([]byte(line), '='); i >= 0 {
+			val := strings.TrimSpace(line[i+1:])
+			val = strings.Trim(val, "\"'")
+			return val != ""
+		}
+	}
+	return false
+}