diff --git a/docker-dev/docker-compose.yml b/docker-dev/docker-compose.yml
index b637f413..d19fe9bd 100644
--- a/docker-dev/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-dev/docker-compose.yml
@@ -133,6 +133,14 @@ services:
# host raise the VM memory or run fewer host services.
mem_limit: 2g
mem_reservation: 1g
+ # Restart supervision. A 2-node keep-oldest SBR downs the LONE survivor when the
+ # OLDEST node crashes (the survivor is "the side without the oldest" → DownReachable
+ # → run-coordinated-shutdown-when-down terminates it). Recovery is by exit-and-rejoin:
+ # the supervisor restarts the exited node and it re-forms/rejoins as a fresh
+ # incarnation (the ScadaBridge pattern). Without a restart policy the exited node
+ # stays down and the cluster looks like a total outage. Inherited by every host node
+ # via the anchor merge.
+ restart: unless-stopped
depends_on:
sql: { condition: service_healthy }
migrator: { condition: service_completed_successfully }
@@ -143,7 +151,11 @@ services:
Cluster__Hostname: "0.0.0.0"
Cluster__Port: "4053"
Cluster__PublicHostname: "central-1"
+ # Both redundancy peers are seeds (#459 / ScadaBridge parity) so a restarted node can
+ # re-join the mesh via EITHER peer, not only central-1. With restart supervision this is
+ # the 2-node keep-oldest exit-and-rejoin recovery path.
Cluster__SeedNodes__0: "akka.tcp://otopcua@central-1:4053"
+ Cluster__SeedNodes__1: "akka.tcp://otopcua@central-2:4053"
Cluster__Roles__0: "admin"
Cluster__Roles__1: "driver"
Security__Jwt__SigningKey: "docker-dev-signing-key-with-at-least-32-bytes-of-utf8-content-12345"
@@ -204,7 +216,9 @@ services:
Cluster__Hostname: "0.0.0.0"
Cluster__Port: "4053"
Cluster__PublicHostname: "central-2"
+ # Both redundancy peers are seeds (#459 / ScadaBridge parity) — see central-1.
Cluster__SeedNodes__0: "akka.tcp://otopcua@central-1:4053"
+ Cluster__SeedNodes__1: "akka.tcp://otopcua@central-2:4053"
Cluster__Roles__0: "admin"
Cluster__Roles__1: "driver"
Security__Jwt__SigningKey: "docker-dev-signing-key-with-at-least-32-bytes-of-utf8-content-12345"
diff --git a/docs/Redundancy.md b/docs/Redundancy.md
index f16e7248..19fe48b7 100644
--- a/docs/Redundancy.md
+++ b/docs/Redundancy.md
@@ -161,23 +161,46 @@ provider reads the `split-brain-resolver` HOCON block in `akka.conf`. On top of
`ServiceCollectionExtensions.BuildClusterOptions` sets the typed `ClusterOptions.SplitBrainResolver`
(`KeepOldestOption { DownIfAlone = true }`) to make the strategy **explicit in code** rather than relying on
the framework default — it is reinforcing, not the sole activator, and yields the same effective behavior. So
-the cluster is **not** running `NoDowning`; hard-crashed nodes are downed and both the cluster singletons and
-the `driver` role-leader fail over. (Only an *explicit* `NoDowning`, e.g.
+the cluster is **not** running `NoDowning`; hard-crashed nodes are downed and the cluster recovers (how it
+recovers depends on *which* node was lost — see the table below). (Only an *explicit* `NoDowning`, e.g.
`akka.cluster.downing-provider-class = ""`, would leave both redundancy sides at ServiceLevel 240
indefinitely.) The HOCON block carries the tuning: `active-strategy = keep-oldest`, `stable-after = 15s`,
`keep-oldest.down-if-alone = on`, `failure-detector.threshold = 10.0` (its `active-strategy` + `down-if-alone`
must stay consistent with the typed option; `stable-after` lives only in HOCON because the typed option can't
express it).
-`keep-oldest` is the correct strategy for a 2-node warm-redundancy pair: under a clean partition the oldest
-member (typically the long-running primary) stays up and the smaller (or younger) side downs itself within
-~`stable-after` seconds; `down-if-alone` downs a node that loses its only peer. `keep-majority`/`static-quorum`
-are wrong for two nodes (no majority in a 1-1 split). The `RedundancyStateActor` on the surviving partition
-re-computes from the post-partition `Cluster.State`, and a hard-crashed (not gracefully stopped) node
-triggers the same failover — verified by `HardKillFailoverTests` (its negative control confirms failover
-survives removing the typed option, and only breaks under an explicit `NoDowning`).
+`keep-oldest` is the correct strategy for a 2-node warm-redundancy pair (`keep-majority`/`static-quorum`
+are wrong for two nodes — no majority in a 1-1 split), but its two loss cases recover **differently**, and
+this is inherent to any 2-node cluster:
-There is no operator-driven role swap during a partition. Failover is what the cluster does automatically.
+| Node lost | What keep-oldest does | Recovery |
+|---|---|---|
+| **Younger** node (crash or partition) | The oldest is on the surviving side → it stays up and downs the younger side (`DownUnreachable`). | **In-place, fast.** The oldest keeps its singletons + `driver` role-leadership; `RedundancyStateActor` re-computes from the post-loss `Cluster.State`. |
+| **Oldest** node (crash or partition) | The lone survivor is "the side **without** the oldest" → keep-oldest downs the **survivor itself** (`DownReachable "including myself"`), and `run-coordinated-shutdown-when-down = on` terminates it. `down-if-alone` does **not** rescue a lone survivor (its rescue branch needs ≥ 2 surviving members, so it is a 3+-node feature). | **Exit-and-rejoin.** The self-downed survivor **and** the crashed oldest are both restarted by the service supervisor and re-form / rejoin. There is a brief restart-window outage; there is **no** in-place takeover. |
+
+**Recovery therefore depends on three things being in place** (the [ScadaBridge](../../ScadaBridge/CLAUDE.md)
+sister project runs the same pattern):
+
+1. **A service supervisor that restarts the process** on exit — production `Install-Services.ps1` sets
+ `sc.exe failure OtOpcUaHost … actions= restart/5000/restart/30000/restart/60000`; the docker-dev rig sets
+ `restart: unless-stopped`. Without it a downed node stays down and an oldest-crash looks like a total outage.
+2. **The recovery watchdog** `ActorSystemTerminationWatchdog` (registered in `Program.cs` after `AddAkka`) — it
+ watches `ActorSystem.WhenTerminated` and, on an unexpected self-down, calls
+ `IHostApplicationLifetime.StopApplication()` so the process exits (and the supervisor restarts it) instead of
+ idling forever with a dead actor system.
+3. **Both peers listed in `SeedNodes`** on every node, so a restarted node can re-join the mesh via either peer.
+
+> **On `HardKillFailoverTests`:** that in-process test hard-kills the oldest and asserts the survivor becomes
+> sole `driver` role-leader, and it passes — but it simulates the crash with `provider.Transport.Shutdown()`,
+> which leaves node A's `ActorSystem` **alive** (a transport partition with the oldest still running), not a
+> real process death. It is therefore **not** representative of an oldest-process crash; a real 2-container
+> `docker kill` of the oldest downs the survivor (verified 2026-07-15, see
+> `archreview/plans/artifacts/459-oldest-crash-live-finding-2026-07-15.md`). Treat the recovery guarantee for
+> the oldest as "exit-and-rejoin under supervision," not "in-place failover."
+
+There is no operator-driven role swap during a partition. Failover / recovery is what the cluster + supervisor
+do automatically. **Instant in-place takeover on *any* single-node loss requires 3+ members** (an odd cluster
+or a lightweight witness) — a deliberate future option, not the current 2-node posture.
## Primary data-plane gate (writes, acks, alerts emit)
diff --git a/src/Server/ZB.MOM.WW.OtOpcUa.Host/ActorSystemTerminationWatchdog.cs b/src/Server/ZB.MOM.WW.OtOpcUa.Host/ActorSystemTerminationWatchdog.cs
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..5662c1a4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/Server/ZB.MOM.WW.OtOpcUa.Host/ActorSystemTerminationWatchdog.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,80 @@
+using Akka.Actor;
+using Microsoft.Extensions.Hosting;
+using Microsoft.Extensions.Logging;
+
+namespace ZB.MOM.WW.OtOpcUa.Host;
+
+///
+/// Down-if-alone recovery watchdog (arch-review #459). The 2-node keep-oldest split-brain
+/// resolver downs the lone survivor when the OLDEST node crashes (the survivor is "the side
+/// without the oldest" → DownReachable), and run-coordinated-shutdown-when-down = on
+/// terminates that node's . Recovery is by exit-and-rejoin: the
+/// service supervisor (Windows sc.exe failure … restart / docker restart: unless-stopped)
+/// restarts the exited node and it re-forms / rejoins as a fresh incarnation.
+///
+/// This watchdog closes the gap where the terminates but the .NET
+/// host process keeps running with a dead actor system (idling forever, never restarted). It watches
+/// ; if the system terminates outside a normal host
+/// shutdown, it stops the application so the supervisor can restart the process. Mirrors the sister
+/// ScadaBridge project's proven pattern.
+///
+/// Registered after AddAkka so it starts after Akka's own hosted service has
+/// built the system; the is resolved lazily in
+/// (never at construction) so it can't race Akka startup. A graceful host stop is distinguished from
+/// an unexpected SBR self-down via plus
+/// , so normal shutdown never logs a false
+/// alarm or double-triggers .
+///
+public sealed class ActorSystemTerminationWatchdog : IHostedService
+{
+ private readonly Func _actorSystemAccessor;
+ private readonly IHostApplicationLifetime _lifetime;
+ private readonly ILogger _logger;
+ private volatile bool _stopRequested;
+
+ /// Constructs the watchdog over a lazy accessor and the host lifetime.
+ /// Lazy accessor (resolved in , never at construction, so it can't race Akka startup).
+ /// Host application lifetime used to stop the process on an unexpected self-down.
+ /// Logger for the critical self-down diagnostic.
+ public ActorSystemTerminationWatchdog(
+ Func actorSystemAccessor,
+ IHostApplicationLifetime lifetime,
+ ILogger logger)
+ {
+ _actorSystemAccessor = actorSystemAccessor;
+ _lifetime = lifetime;
+ _logger = logger;
+ }
+
+ /// Wires the continuation that exits the host on an unexpected self-down.
+ /// Unused; the watchdog only registers a continuation.
+ /// A completed task.
+ public Task StartAsync(CancellationToken cancellationToken)
+ {
+ var system = _actorSystemAccessor();
+ system.WhenTerminated.ContinueWith(
+ _ =>
+ {
+ // Expected shutdown: our StopAsync ran, or the host is already stopping. Stay quiet.
+ if (_stopRequested || _lifetime.ApplicationStopping.IsCancellationRequested)
+ return;
+
+ _logger.LogCritical(
+ "ActorSystem terminated outside host shutdown (SBR self-down / "
+ + "run-coordinated-shutdown-when-down). Stopping the host so the service supervisor "
+ + "restarts this node as a fresh incarnation (2-node keep-oldest exit-and-rejoin recovery).");
+ _lifetime.StopApplication();
+ },
+ TaskContinuationOptions.ExecuteSynchronously);
+ return Task.CompletedTask;
+ }
+
+ /// Marks a graceful shutdown so the termination continuation stays silent and does not re-trigger stop.
+ /// Unused.
+ /// A completed task.
+ public Task StopAsync(CancellationToken cancellationToken)
+ {
+ _stopRequested = true;
+ return Task.CompletedTask;
+ }
+}
diff --git a/src/Server/ZB.MOM.WW.OtOpcUa.Host/Program.cs b/src/Server/ZB.MOM.WW.OtOpcUa.Host/Program.cs
index a1340806..49ff37b1 100644
--- a/src/Server/ZB.MOM.WW.OtOpcUa.Host/Program.cs
+++ b/src/Server/ZB.MOM.WW.OtOpcUa.Host/Program.cs
@@ -296,6 +296,16 @@ builder.Services.AddAkka("otopcua", (ab, sp) =>
ab.WithOtOpcUaRuntimeActors();
});
+// Down-if-alone recovery watchdog (#459). Registered AFTER AddAkka so it starts after Akka's own
+// hosted service has built the ActorSystem; it resolves the system lazily (never at construction) so
+// it can't race startup. On an unexpected SBR self-down it stops the host so the service supervisor
+// (sc.exe failure / docker restart: unless-stopped) restarts this node — the 2-node keep-oldest
+// exit-and-rejoin recovery path.
+builder.Services.AddHostedService(sp => new ActorSystemTerminationWatchdog(
+ () => sp.GetRequiredService(),
+ sp.GetRequiredService(),
+ sp.GetRequiredService>()));
+
if (hasAdmin)
{
// Auth + AdminUI surface only mounted on admin-role nodes. Driver-only nodes have no UI.
diff --git a/tests/Server/ZB.MOM.WW.OtOpcUa.Host.IntegrationTests/ActorSystemTerminationWatchdogTests.cs b/tests/Server/ZB.MOM.WW.OtOpcUa.Host.IntegrationTests/ActorSystemTerminationWatchdogTests.cs
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..f4fed6ce
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/Server/ZB.MOM.WW.OtOpcUa.Host.IntegrationTests/ActorSystemTerminationWatchdogTests.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,92 @@
+using Akka.Actor;
+using Microsoft.Extensions.Hosting;
+using Microsoft.Extensions.Logging.Abstractions;
+using Shouldly;
+using Xunit;
+using ZB.MOM.WW.OtOpcUa.Host;
+
+namespace ZB.MOM.WW.OtOpcUa.Host.IntegrationTests;
+
+///
+/// Unit coverage for the #459 down-if-alone recovery watchdog: an unexpected
+/// termination (SBR self-down) must stop the host so the supervisor
+/// restarts it, while a graceful host shutdown must stay silent and not re-trigger stop.
+///
+[Trait("Category", "Unit")]
+public sealed class ActorSystemTerminationWatchdogTests
+{
+ /// An unexpected ActorSystem termination stops the host so the supervisor restarts the node.
+ [Fact]
+ public async Task Unexpected_termination_stops_the_application()
+ {
+ var system = ActorSystem.Create("watchdog-unexpected");
+ var lifetime = new FakeHostApplicationLifetime();
+ var watchdog = new ActorSystemTerminationWatchdog(
+ () => system, lifetime, NullLogger.Instance);
+
+ await watchdog.StartAsync(CancellationToken.None);
+
+ // Simulate the SBR self-down: the ActorSystem terminates while the host is still running.
+ await system.Terminate();
+
+ await WaitForAsync(() => lifetime.StopApplicationCalls > 0, TimeSpan.FromSeconds(5));
+ lifetime.StopApplicationCalls.ShouldBe(1, "an out-of-band ActorSystem termination must stop the host once");
+ }
+
+ /// A graceful host stop (StopAsync ran) leaves the termination continuation silent.
+ [Fact]
+ public async Task Graceful_stop_does_not_stop_the_application()
+ {
+ var system = ActorSystem.Create("watchdog-graceful");
+ var lifetime = new FakeHostApplicationLifetime();
+ var watchdog = new ActorSystemTerminationWatchdog(
+ () => system, lifetime, NullLogger.Instance);
+
+ await watchdog.StartAsync(CancellationToken.None);
+
+ // Host is shutting down normally: StopAsync runs, THEN the system terminates.
+ await watchdog.StopAsync(CancellationToken.None);
+ await system.Terminate();
+
+ // Give any continuation a chance to run, then assert it stayed silent.
+ await Task.Delay(500, TestContext.Current.CancellationToken);
+ lifetime.StopApplicationCalls.ShouldBe(0, "a graceful shutdown must not re-trigger StopApplication");
+ }
+
+ /// Termination while the host is already stopping (ApplicationStopping fired) stays silent.
+ [Fact]
+ public async Task Termination_while_already_stopping_stays_silent()
+ {
+ var system = ActorSystem.Create("watchdog-already-stopping");
+ var lifetime = new FakeHostApplicationLifetime();
+ var watchdog = new ActorSystemTerminationWatchdog(
+ () => system, lifetime, NullLogger.Instance);
+
+ await watchdog.StartAsync(CancellationToken.None);
+
+ lifetime.TriggerStopping(); // the host is already tearing down (ApplicationStopping cancelled)
+ await system.Terminate();
+
+ await Task.Delay(500, TestContext.Current.CancellationToken);
+ lifetime.StopApplicationCalls.ShouldBe(0, "termination during an in-progress host shutdown must stay silent");
+ }
+
+ private static async Task WaitForAsync(Func condition, TimeSpan timeout)
+ {
+ var deadline = DateTime.UtcNow + timeout;
+ while (!condition() && DateTime.UtcNow < deadline)
+ await Task.Delay(20);
+ }
+
+ /// Minimal that records calls.
+ private sealed class FakeHostApplicationLifetime : IHostApplicationLifetime
+ {
+ private readonly CancellationTokenSource _stopping = new();
+ public int StopApplicationCalls { get; private set; }
+ public CancellationToken ApplicationStarted => CancellationToken.None;
+ public CancellationToken ApplicationStopping => _stopping.Token;
+ public CancellationToken ApplicationStopped => CancellationToken.None;
+ public void StopApplication() => StopApplicationCalls++;
+ public void TriggerStopping() => _stopping.Cancel();
+ }
+}