diff --git a/nix/modules/hive-forge.nix b/nix/modules/hive-forge.nix
index 885acec..743834f 100644
--- a/nix/modules/hive-forge.nix
+++ b/nix/modules/hive-forge.nix
@@ -114,9 +114,15 @@ in
               log.LEVEL = "Warn";
               # F3 (federation) computes its data dir relative to the
               # forgejo binary, which lands in the read-only nix
-              # store and crashes the daemon at boot. We don't
-              # federate; turn it off.
-              "F3".ENABLED = false;
+              # store and crashes anything that touches the F3
+              # subsystem — including `forgejo admin user create`,
+              # which init-ses F3 even when ENABLED=false. Pin the
+              # path absolute alongside the disable so the init
+              # resolution succeeds before the flag is checked.
+              "F3" = {
+                ENABLED = false;
+                PATH = "/var/lib/forgejo/data/f3";
+              };
             };
           };
           environment.systemPackages = [ pkgs.forgejo ];