diff --git a/ct/trek.sh b/ct/trek.sh
index a11b3275..647dc533 100644
--- a/ct/trek.sh
+++ b/ct/trek.sh
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ function update_script() {
   check_container_storage
   check_container_resources
 
-  if [[ ! -f ~/.trek ]]; then
+  if [[ ! -d /opt/trek ]]; then
     msg_error "No ${APP} Installation Found!"
     exit
   fi
@@ -53,13 +53,14 @@ function update_script() {
 
     msg_info "Installing Server Dependencies"
     cd /opt/trek/server
-    $STD npm ci --production
+    $STD npm ci
     msg_ok "Installed Server Dependencies"
 
     mv /opt/trek-data.bak /opt/trek/data
     mv /opt/trek-uploads.bak /opt/trek/uploads
-    ln -sf /opt/trek/data /opt/trek/server/data
-    ln -sf /opt/trek/uploads /opt/trek/server/uploads
+    rm -rf /opt/trek/server/data /opt/trek/server/uploads
+    ln -s /opt/trek/data /opt/trek/server/data
+    ln -s /opt/trek/uploads /opt/trek/server/uploads
     cp /opt/trek.env.bak /opt/trek/server/.env
     rm -f /opt/trek.env.bak
 
diff --git a/install/trek-install.sh b/install/trek-install.sh
index c3e7e18b..d8dc323f 100644
--- a/install/trek-install.sh
+++ b/install/trek-install.sh
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ msg_info "Installing Dependencies"
 $STD apt install -y build-essential
 msg_ok "Installed Dependencies"
 
-NODE_VERSION="24" setup_nodejs
+NODE_VERSION="22" setup_nodejs
 
 fetch_and_deploy_gh_release "trek" "mauriceboe/TREK" "tarball"
 
@@ -34,19 +34,24 @@ mkdir -p /opt/trek/server/public
 cp -r /opt/trek/client/dist/* /opt/trek/server/public/
 cp -r /opt/trek/client/public/fonts /opt/trek/server/public/fonts 2>/dev/null || true
 mkdir -p /opt/trek/{data/logs,uploads/{files,covers,avatars,photos}}
-ln -sf /opt/trek/data /opt/trek/server/data
-ln -sf /opt/trek/uploads /opt/trek/server/uploads
+rm -rf /opt/trek/server/data /opt/trek/server/uploads
+ln -s /opt/trek/data /opt/trek/server/data
+ln -s /opt/trek/uploads /opt/trek/server/uploads
 ENCRYPTION_KEY=$(openssl rand -hex 32)
+ADMIN_EMAIL="admin@trek.local"
 ADMIN_PASSWORD=$(openssl rand -base64 18 | tr -dc 'A-Za-z0-9' | head -c 16)
 cat <<EOF >/opt/trek/server/.env
 NODE_ENV=production
 PORT=3000
 ENCRYPTION_KEY=${ENCRYPTION_KEY}
+ADMIN_EMAIL=${ADMIN_EMAIL}
+ADMIN_PASSWORD=${ADMIN_PASSWORD}
 COOKIE_SECURE=false
 FORCE_HTTPS=false
 LOG_LEVEL=info
 TZ=UTC
 EOF
+chmod 600 /opt/trek/server/.env
 msg_ok "Set up Server"
 
 msg_info "Creating Service"
@@ -77,24 +82,16 @@ for i in $(seq 1 30); do
   fi
   sleep 1
 done
-cd /opt/trek/server
-$STD node -e "
-const Database = require('better-sqlite3');
-const bcrypt = require('bcryptjs');
-const db = new Database('./data/travel.db');
-const hash = bcrypt.hashSync('${ADMIN_PASSWORD}', 12);
-db.prepare('UPDATE users SET password_hash = ?, must_change_password = 0 WHERE email = ?').run(hash, 'admin@trek.local');
-db.close();
-"
-{
-  echo ""
-  echo "TREK Admin Credentials"
-  echo "Email:    admin@trek.local"
-  echo "Password: ${ADMIN_PASSWORD}"
-  echo ""
-} >>~/trek.creds
+if ! curl -sf http://localhost:3000/api/health >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+  msg_error "TREK failed to initialize"
+  exit
+fi
+sed -i '/^ADMIN_EMAIL=/d;/^ADMIN_PASSWORD=/d' /opt/trek/server/.env
 msg_ok "TREK initialized"
-msg_ok "Created Service"
+
+echo -e "${INFO}${YW} Default Admin Account:${CL}"
+echo -e "${TAB}${GATEWAY}${BGN}Email: ${ADMIN_EMAIL}${CL}"
+echo -e "${TAB}${GATEWAY}${BGN}Password: ${ADMIN_PASSWORD}${CL}"
 
 motd_ssh
 customize
diff --git a/json/trek.json b/json/trek.json
index 2631a616..9255c1db 100644
--- a/json/trek.json
+++ b/json/trek.json
@@ -28,17 +28,21 @@
     }
   ],
   "default_credentials": {
-    "username": null,
+    "username": "admin@trek.local",
     "password": null
   },
   "notes": [
     {
-      "text": "The first user to register becomes the admin.",
+      "text": "A default admin account is seeded during setup with the email admin@trek.local.",
       "type": "info"
     },
     {
-      "text": "ENCRYPTION_KEY is auto-generated during setup. See `/opt/trek/server/.env`.",
+      "text": "ENCRYPTION_KEY is auto-generated during setup and stored in `/opt/trek/server/.env`.",
+      "type": "info"
+    },
+    {
+      "text": "Set APP_URL in `/opt/trek/server/.env` if you plan to use OIDC or email-based features.",
       "type": "info"
     }
   ]
-}
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/misc/k3s-argocd-bootstrap.sh b/misc/k3s-argocd-bootstrap.sh
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..106c6fef
--- /dev/null
+++ b/misc/k3s-argocd-bootstrap.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,103 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+
+set -euo pipefail
+
+# Quick homelab bootstrap for a single-node management VM
+# - Installs K3s (if missing)
+# - Installs Argo CD (optional)
+# - Waits for core components to become ready
+#
+# Usage examples:
+#   sudo bash k3s-argocd-bootstrap.sh
+#   sudo INSTALL_ARGOCD=false bash k3s-argocd-bootstrap.sh
+#   sudo K3S_VERSION="v1.34.1+k3s1" bash k3s-argocd-bootstrap.sh
+
+K3S_VERSION="${K3S_VERSION:-v1.34.1+k3s1}"
+INSTALL_ARGOCD="${INSTALL_ARGOCD:-true}"
+ARGOCD_NAMESPACE="${ARGOCD_NAMESPACE:-argocd}"
+ARGOCD_MANIFEST_URL="${ARGOCD_MANIFEST_URL:-https://raw.githubusercontent.com/argoproj/argo-cd/stable/manifests/install.yaml}"
+
+log() {
+  echo "[INFO] $*"
+}
+
+ok() {
+  echo "[OK] $*"
+}
+
+fail() {
+  echo "[ERROR] $*" >&2
+  exit 1
+}
+
+require_root() {
+  if [[ "${EUID}" -ne 0 ]]; then
+    fail "Run as root (sudo)."
+  fi
+}
+
+install_k3s_if_missing() {
+  if command -v k3s >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+    ok "K3s is already installed: $(k3s --version | head -n1)"
+    return
+  fi
+
+  log "Installing K3s (${K3S_VERSION})"
+  curl -sfL https://get.k3s.io | INSTALL_K3S_VERSION="${K3S_VERSION}" sh -
+  ln -sf /usr/local/bin/k3s /usr/local/bin/kubectl
+  ok "K3s installed"
+}
+
+wait_for_k3s() {
+  log "Waiting for K3s node readiness"
+  export KUBECONFIG=/etc/rancher/k3s/k3s.yaml
+  for _ in $(seq 1 90); do
+    if kubectl get nodes >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+      if kubectl get nodes --no-headers 2>/dev/null | grep -q " Ready "; then
+        ok "K3s node is Ready"
+        return
+      fi
+    fi
+    sleep 2
+  done
+  fail "K3s did not become Ready in time"
+}
+
+install_argocd() {
+  if [[ "${INSTALL_ARGOCD}" != "true" ]]; then
+    log "Skipping ArgoCD installation (INSTALL_ARGOCD=${INSTALL_ARGOCD})"
+    return
+  fi
+
+  log "Installing ArgoCD into namespace ${ARGOCD_NAMESPACE}"
+  kubectl create namespace "${ARGOCD_NAMESPACE}" --dry-run=client -o yaml | kubectl apply -f -
+  kubectl apply -n "${ARGOCD_NAMESPACE}" -f "${ARGOCD_MANIFEST_URL}"
+
+  log "Waiting for ArgoCD server deployment"
+  kubectl -n "${ARGOCD_NAMESPACE}" rollout status deploy/argocd-server --timeout=10m
+  ok "ArgoCD installed"
+}
+
+print_next_steps() {
+  echo
+  echo "---"
+  echo "KUBECONFIG path: /etc/rancher/k3s/k3s.yaml"
+  if [[ "${INSTALL_ARGOCD}" == "true" ]]; then
+    echo "ArgoCD initial admin secret:"
+    echo "  kubectl -n ${ARGOCD_NAMESPACE} get secret argocd-initial-admin-secret -o jsonpath='{.data.password}' | base64 -d; echo"
+    echo "Port-forward UI:"
+    echo "  kubectl -n ${ARGOCD_NAMESPACE} port-forward svc/argocd-server 8080:443"
+  fi
+  echo "Cluster check:"
+  echo "  kubectl get nodes -o wide"
+}
+
+main() {
+  require_root
+  install_k3s_if_missing
+  wait_for_k3s
+  install_argocd
+  print_next_steps
+}
+
+main "$@"
diff --git a/tools/pve/lxc-prehook.sh b/tools/pve/lxc-prehook.sh
index a4203114..9a6dfcf5 100644
--- a/tools/pve/lxc-prehook.sh
+++ b/tools/pve/lxc-prehook.sh
@@ -395,10 +395,12 @@ append_unique_line_in_ct() {
   local target_file="$1"
   local line="$2"
 
-  retry_pct_exec bash -c "
-    touch '$target_file'
-    grep -Fqx -- \"$line\" '$target_file' || echo \"$line\" >> '$target_file'
-  "
+  retry_pct_exec bash -c '
+    target_file="$1"
+    line="$2"
+    touch "$target_file"
+    grep -Fqx -- "$line" "$target_file" || echo "$line" >> "$target_file"
+  ' _ "$target_file" "$line"
 }
 
 resolve_requested_packages() {
diff --git a/vm/k3s-vm.sh b/vm/k3s-vm.sh
index f5548b85..63b4e79e 100644
--- a/vm/k3s-vm.sh
+++ b/vm/k3s-vm.sh
@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@ METHOD=""
 NSAPP="Debian 12 VM"
 var_os="debian"
 var_version="12"
+INSTALL_ARGOCD_BOOTSTRAP="${INSTALL_ARGOCD_BOOTSTRAP:-1}"
 
 THIN="discard=on,ssd=1,"
 set -e
@@ -380,6 +381,57 @@ virt-customize -q -a "${FILE}" \
 
 msg_ok "Added in Image K3s, Helm & k9s"
 
+if [[ "$INSTALL_ARGOCD_BOOTSTRAP" == "1" ]]; then
+  msg_info "Add in Image ArgoCD Bootstrap"
+  virt-customize -q -a "${FILE}" \
+    --run-command 'mkdir -p /usr/local/sbin /etc/systemd/system /var/lib' \
+    --run-command 'cat <<"EOF" >/usr/local/sbin/bootstrap-argocd.sh
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+set -euo pipefail
+
+export KUBECONFIG=/etc/rancher/k3s/k3s.yaml
+
+for _ in $(seq 1 120); do
+  if kubectl get nodes --no-headers 2>/dev/null | grep -q " Ready "; then
+    break
+  fi
+  sleep 2
+done
+
+if ! kubectl get nodes --no-headers 2>/dev/null | grep -q " Ready "; then
+  echo "K3s is not ready yet"
+  exit 1
+fi
+
+kubectl create namespace argocd --dry-run=client -o yaml | kubectl apply -f -
+kubectl apply -n argocd -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/argoproj/argo-cd/stable/manifests/install.yaml
+kubectl -n argocd rollout status deploy/argocd-server --timeout=10m
+
+touch /var/lib/argocd-bootstrap.done
+EOF' \
+    --run-command 'chmod +x /usr/local/sbin/bootstrap-argocd.sh' \
+    --run-command 'cat <<"EOF" >/etc/systemd/system/argocd-bootstrap.service
+[Unit]
+Description=ArgoCD Bootstrap
+After=network-online.target k3s.service
+Wants=network-online.target
+ConditionPathExists=!/var/lib/argocd-bootstrap.done
+
+[Service]
+Type=oneshot
+ExecStart=/usr/local/sbin/bootstrap-argocd.sh
+RemainAfterExit=yes
+
+[Install]
+WantedBy=multi-user.target
+EOF' \
+    --run-command 'systemctl enable argocd-bootstrap.service' >/dev/null
+
+  msg_ok "Added in Image ArgoCD Bootstrap"
+else
+  msg_info "Skipping ArgoCD Bootstrap (INSTALL_ARGOCD_BOOTSTRAP=$INSTALL_ARGOCD_BOOTSTRAP)"
+fi
+
 msg_ok "Created a Debian 12 VM ${CL}${BL}(${HN})"
 if [ "$START_VM" == "yes" ]; then
   msg_info "Starting Debian 12 VM"