diff --git a/hive-c0re/src/workers/auto_update.rs b/hive-c0re/src/workers/auto_update.rs
index 7c0affa8..30ec32cf 100644
--- a/hive-c0re/src/workers/auto_update.rs
+++ b/hive-c0re/src/workers/auto_update.rs
@@ -263,34 +263,36 @@ pub async fn run(coord: Arc<Coordinator>) -> Result<()> {
     for name in &logical_names {
         let running = lifecycle::is_running(name).await;
         let wanted = match coord.power.get_or_seed(name, running) {
-            Ok(w) => w,
+            Ok(w) => Some(w),
             Err(e) => {
-                tracing::warn!(%name, error = ?e, "agent_power read failed — assuming observed");
-                crate::power::Wanted::from_running(running)
+                tracing::warn!(%name, error = ?e, "agent_power read failed — reconciling so it surfaces");
+                None
             }
         };
         let fresh = current_rev.as_ref().is_some_and(|rev| {
             std::fs::read_to_string(crate::paths::applied_rev_marker(name))
                 .is_ok_and(|stored| stored == rev.as_str())
         });
-        if fresh {
-            n_skipped += 1;
-        } else {
-            any_stale = true;
-            if wanted == crate::power::Wanted::Up {
-                // Rebuild against the post-bump lock; the DAG's tail
-                // Reconcile brings the agent (back) up — covering both
-                // the running-stale and stopped-but-wanted-up cases.
+        match boot_action(wanted, fresh, running) {
+            BootAction::Rebuild => {
+                any_stale = true;
                 fanout.push((name.clone(), running));
-                continue;
             }
-            // Stale but wanted offline: no boot-time nix work — the
-            // start submit path upgrades a stale start to a rebuild.
-            n_deferred += 1;
-            tracing::debug!(%name, "boot reconcile: stale but offline — deferring rebuild to on-start");
-        }
-        if crate::power::reconcile_action(wanted, running) != crate::power::ReconcileAction::Noop {
-            drifted.push(name.clone());
+            BootAction::Defer { reconcile } => {
+                any_stale = true;
+                n_deferred += 1;
+                tracing::debug!(%name, "boot reconcile: stale but offline — deferring rebuild to on-start");
+                if reconcile {
+                    drifted.push(name.clone());
+                }
+            }
+            BootAction::Skip { reconcile } => {
+                n_skipped += 1;
+                if reconcile {
+                    drifted.push(name.clone());
+                }
+            }
+            BootAction::Unreadable => drifted.push(name.clone()),
         }
     }
 
@@ -317,6 +319,45 @@ pub async fn run(coord: Arc<Coordinator>) -> Result<()> {
     Ok(())
 }
 
+/// What the boot sweep does with one agent.
+#[derive(Debug, PartialEq, Eq)]
+enum BootAction {
+    /// Stale ∧ wanted up: rebuild against the post-bump lock. The DAG's
+    /// tail `Reconcile` brings the agent (back) up, covering both the
+    /// running-stale and stopped-but-wanted-up cases.
+    Rebuild,
+    /// Stale ∧ wanted offline: no boot-time nix work — the start submit
+    /// path upgrades a stale start to a rebuild.
+    Defer { reconcile: bool },
+    /// Already on the current rev.
+    Skip { reconcile: bool },
+    /// The intent could not be read.
+    Unreadable,
+}
+
+/// `wanted` is `None` when the store could not answer for this agent.
+///
+/// That case has no neutral stand-in, which is why it is a variant rather
+/// than a fallback value: `Wanted::from_running(running)` is precisely the
+/// value for which `reconcile_action` returns `Noop`, so guessing it here
+/// puts the agent beyond every check below — a corrupt row then leaves one
+/// `warn!` per boot and no other trace. The queued reconcile's own
+/// `get_or_seed` fails as a per-agent node instead.
+fn boot_action(wanted: Option<crate::power::Wanted>, fresh: bool, running: bool) -> BootAction {
+    let Some(wanted) = wanted else {
+        return BootAction::Unreadable;
+    };
+    let reconcile =
+        crate::power::reconcile_action(wanted, running) != crate::power::ReconcileAction::Noop;
+    if fresh {
+        BootAction::Skip { reconcile }
+    } else if wanted == crate::power::Wanted::Up {
+        BootAction::Rebuild
+    } else {
+        BootAction::Defer { reconcile }
+    }
+}
+
 /// Submit the boot-time forge/matrix/webhook/knowledge/wanted-state sweeps as
 /// DAG nodes — `ForgeSweep`, `MatrixSweep`, `WebhookRegister`,
 /// `KnowledgePull`, `WantedPull`. Unlike
@@ -431,3 +472,73 @@ fn submit_boot_tree(
     }
     coord.emit_rebuild_queue_snapshot();
 }
+
+#[cfg(test)]
+mod tests {
+    use super::{BootAction, boot_action};
+    use crate::power::Wanted;
+
+    // The regression the `Unreadable` variant exists for: the arm used to
+    // substitute `from_running(running)`, which is `Noop` against BOTH
+    // observations — so no combination of inputs could reach a reconcile.
+    #[test]
+    fn an_unreadable_intent_is_never_settled_whatever_the_agent_is_doing() {
+        for fresh in [true, false] {
+            for running in [true, false] {
+                assert_eq!(
+                    boot_action(None, fresh, running),
+                    BootAction::Unreadable,
+                    "fresh={fresh} running={running}"
+                );
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn a_fresh_agent_doing_what_it_should_is_skipped_without_a_reconcile() {
+        assert_eq!(
+            boot_action(Some(Wanted::Up), true, true),
+            BootAction::Skip { reconcile: false }
+        );
+        assert_eq!(
+            boot_action(Some(Wanted::Offline), true, false),
+            BootAction::Skip { reconcile: false }
+        );
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn a_fresh_agent_that_drifted_from_its_intent_is_reconciled() {
+        assert_eq!(
+            boot_action(Some(Wanted::Up), true, false),
+            BootAction::Skip { reconcile: true }
+        );
+        assert_eq!(
+            boot_action(Some(Wanted::Offline), true, true),
+            BootAction::Skip { reconcile: true }
+        );
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn a_stale_agent_wanted_up_is_rebuilt_running_or_not() {
+        assert_eq!(
+            boot_action(Some(Wanted::Up), false, true),
+            BootAction::Rebuild
+        );
+        assert_eq!(
+            boot_action(Some(Wanted::Up), false, false),
+            BootAction::Rebuild
+        );
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn a_stale_agent_wanted_offline_defers_and_still_reports_drift() {
+        assert_eq!(
+            boot_action(Some(Wanted::Offline), false, false),
+            BootAction::Defer { reconcile: false }
+        );
+        assert_eq!(
+            boot_action(Some(Wanted::Offline), false, true),
+            BootAction::Defer { reconcile: true }
+        );
+    }
+}