diff --git a/serving/spdk/spdk-release.sh b/serving/spdk/spdk-release.sh
index 2ca3cb7..326e78a 100755
--- a/serving/spdk/spdk-release.sh
+++ b/serving/spdk/spdk-release.sh
@@ -102,6 +102,20 @@ cmd_add() {
     [ -s "$dir/rootfs.erofs" ] || die "$dir/rootfs.erofs missing/empty"
     [ -s "$dir/rootfs.hash" ]  || die "$dir/rootfs.hash missing/empty"
 
+    # Guard: the dir name must match the version inside verity.json. A mismatch
+    # means a stale/symlinked or mislabeled release dir (e.g. an old symlink into
+    # the version-pinned /artifacts that now resolves to a different build) — that
+    # would serve the wrong data/NQN/UUIDs under this name. Refuse loudly. (Legacy
+    # artifacts have no image_version field — skip the check for them.)
+    # Case-insensitive: the dir name comes from the OCI tag while verity.json's
+    # image_version comes from the build var, which can differ only in case — a
+    # benign skew. A genuine mismatch (e.g. pxe-… vs spdk-…) differs by far more.
+    local vv
+    vv=$(vfield "$v" .image_version)
+    if [ -n "$vv" ] && [ "${vv,,}" != "${v,,}" ]; then
+        die "release dir '$v' holds verity.json for version '$vv' (stale symlink / mislabeled dir). Refusing to add — remove '$dir' and re-stage."
+    fi
+
     local nqn du hu s
     nqn=$(release_nqn "$v")
     du=$(vfield "$v" .data_ns_uuid)
@@ -134,9 +148,11 @@ cmd_add() {
     rpc nvmf_subsystem_add_ns "$nqn" "rootfs_$s"   -u "$du"
     rpc nvmf_subsystem_add_ns "$nqn" "roothash_$s" -u "$hu"
     rpc nvmf_subsystem_add_listener "$nqn" -t tcp -a "$TADDR" -s "$TPORT"
-    # Register the listener on the discovery subsystem too (best-effort; older
-    # SPDK answers discovery implicitly but logs a deprecation warning).
-    rpc nvmf_subsystem_add_listener "$DISCOVERY_NQN" -t tcp -a "$TADDR" -s "$TPORT" 2>/dev/null || true
+    # Ensure the discovery subsystem has this listener too. The target already
+    # registered it at startup, so this is normally a no-op that SPDK reports as
+    # "Listener already exists" — fully suppress stdout+stderr (rpc.py prints the
+    # JSON error to STDOUT, so 2>/dev/null alone wouldn't hide it).
+    rpc nvmf_subsystem_add_listener "$DISCOVERY_NQN" -t tcp -a "$TADDR" -s "$TPORT" >/dev/null 2>&1 || true
     echo "==> release $v ONLINE (existing connections untouched)"
 }
 
diff --git a/serving/spdk/spdk-target.sh b/serving/spdk/spdk-target.sh
index e448eb5..22021a5 100755
--- a/serving/spdk/spdk-target.sh
+++ b/serving/spdk/spdk-target.sh
@@ -65,23 +65,25 @@ rpc nvmf_create_transport -t TCP -u 16384 -m 8 -c 8192 \
     || echo "WARNING: nvmf_create_transport failed (already present?)" >&2
 
 echo "==> registering discovery listener ${TADDR}:${TPORT}"
-rpc nvmf_subsystem_add_listener "$DISCOVERY_NQN" -t tcp -a "$TADDR" -s "$TPORT" 2>/dev/null || true
+rpc nvmf_subsystem_add_listener "$DISCOVERY_NQN" -t tcp -a "$TADDR" -s "$TPORT" >/dev/null 2>&1 || true
 
 # Bootstrap convenience: if a single OCI artifact image is mounted at /artifacts
 # (the simple one-version `docker compose up` flow) and that version isn't yet
 # staged under $RELEASES_DIR, stage it so the long-lived target serves it too.
-# Symlinks resolve inside the container (both are container paths); fall back to
-# a copy if linking fails.
+#
+# COPY, never symlink: /artifacts is a version-pinned image volume that CHANGES
+# when IMAGE_VERSION changes, so a symlink into it would silently re-point an
+# already-staged release dir at the new version's data on the next bump. Each
+# release dir must hold its own immutable copy. Self-heal: re-copy if the staged
+# verity.json differs from the mounted artifact (repairs a dir left stale/symlinked
+# by an older build).
 if [ -s /artifacts/verity.json ] && [ -n "${IMAGE_VERSION:-}" ]; then
     seed="$RELEASES_DIR/$IMAGE_VERSION"
-    if [ ! -e "$seed/verity.json" ]; then
-        echo "==> seeding bootstrap release $IMAGE_VERSION from /artifacts"
+    if [ ! -s "$seed/verity.json" ] || ! cmp -s /artifacts/verity.json "$seed/verity.json"; then
+        echo "==> seeding bootstrap release $IMAGE_VERSION from /artifacts (copy)"
         mkdir -p "$seed"
-        for f in rootfs.erofs rootfs.hash verity.json; do
-            ln -sf "/artifacts/$f" "$seed/$f" 2>/dev/null \
-                || cp "/artifacts/$f" "$seed/$f" 2>/dev/null \
-                || echo "WARNING: could not seed /artifacts/$f" >&2
-        done
+        cp -f /artifacts/rootfs.erofs /artifacts/rootfs.hash /artifacts/verity.json "$seed/" \
+            || echo "WARNING: failed to seed $IMAGE_VERSION from /artifacts" >&2
     fi
 fi