diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ff29621
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -0,0 +1,73 @@
+# Paliad — developer entrypoints.
+#
+# Targets here are the gate tier from the test-strategy design
+# (docs/design-paliad-test-strategy-2026-05-19.md). Slice 1 lands:
+#
+#   make verify-migrations   — dry-run every pending migration (BEGIN..ROLLBACK)
+#                              plus the full boot smoke (apply + tracker
+#                              advances + /healthz returns 200).
+#   make verify-mig          — alias for verify-migrations.
+#   make test                — short test pass: go test ./internal/... -short
+#                              plus the cmd/server package. Includes the
+#                              live-DB tests when TEST_DATABASE_URL is set,
+#                              skips them otherwise.
+#   make test-go             — go test ./... -race (full Go suite).
+#
+# Future slices will extend this with:
+#   make test-frontend       — bun test (Slice 3 / Slice 6)
+#   make e2e                 — Playwright golden-path suite (Slice 4)
+#
+# All targets are idempotent. None of them write to the filesystem outside
+# the test runner's working dirs. None of them touch internal/db/migrations/
+# files.
+
+.PHONY: help verify-migrations verify-mig test test-go
+
+help:
+	@echo "Paliad — developer targets"
+	@echo ""
+	@echo "  verify-migrations   Dry-run pending migrations + boot smoke (needs TEST_DATABASE_URL)"
+	@echo "  verify-mig          Alias for verify-migrations"
+	@echo "  test                Short test pass — covers gate tier"
+	@echo "  test-go             Full Go suite with race detector"
+	@echo ""
+	@echo "Set TEST_DATABASE_URL to enable live-DB tests. Example:"
+	@echo "  export TEST_DATABASE_URL=postgres://paliad:...@localhost:11833/paliad_test"
+
+# Gate target — the test that would have caught mig 098 / mig 099 before
+# deploy. Combines:
+#   - TestMigrations_DryRun  (internal/db): per-migration BEGIN..ROLLBACK
+#   - TestBootSmoke          (cmd/server): apply-end-to-end + tracker advances
+#                                          + /healthz 200
+#
+# Requires TEST_DATABASE_URL. Without it, both tests skip and the target
+# is effectively a no-op — guard against that explicitly so CI doesn't
+# silently green a missing env var.
+verify-migrations:
+	@if [ -z "$$TEST_DATABASE_URL" ]; then \
+		echo "ERROR: TEST_DATABASE_URL is not set."; \
+		echo "       The migration gate cannot run without a scratch DB."; \
+		echo "       Set TEST_DATABASE_URL to a Postgres URL the test can"; \
+		echo "       open transactions against, e.g."; \
+		echo "         export TEST_DATABASE_URL=postgres://paliad:PW@localhost:11833/paliad_test"; \
+		exit 2; \
+	fi
+	@echo "==> migration dry-run (per-mig BEGIN..ROLLBACK)"
+	go test -count=1 -run TestMigrations_DryRun ./internal/db/
+	@echo "==> boot smoke (apply + tracker + /healthz)"
+	go test -count=1 -run TestBootSmoke ./cmd/server/
+
+verify-mig: verify-migrations
+
+# Gate-tier test pass. -short skips the slow live-DB tests when the
+# author opts out via `if testing.Short() { t.Skip(...) }`; today most of
+# paliad's live-DB tests gate on TEST_DATABASE_URL instead, so -short is
+# forward-compatible rather than load-bearing.
+test:
+	go test -short ./internal/... ./cmd/...
+
+# Full Go suite with race detection. Slower but catches concurrent-map
+# regressions that -short would skip; intended for the merge-to-main gate
+# (full suite, not per-PR).
+test-go:
+	go test -race ./...
diff --git a/cmd/server/main_smoke_test.go b/cmd/server/main_smoke_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..061fdb0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/server/main_smoke_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,170 @@
+// Boot smoke test — assert paliad reaches a serving state.
+//
+// Three checks against TEST_DATABASE_URL:
+//
+//  1. db.ApplyMigrations does not panic and returns nil.
+//  2. The migration tracker (public.paliad_schema_migrations) advances to
+//     the highest *.up.sql version on disk — no migrations were silently
+//     skipped, no "dirty=true" stragglers left behind.
+//  3. The handler mux (with /healthz mounted) responds 200 to GET /healthz.
+//
+// This is the lightweight cousin of the migration dry-run gate
+// (internal/db/migrate_test.go): the dry-run catches per-migration syntax
+// errors before merge; this smoke confirms the apply+bind path the
+// container actually runs at boot. Together they cover the mig-098 /
+// mig-099 class of crash-loops end-to-end.
+//
+// Skipped without TEST_DATABASE_URL — matches the rest of the live-DB tests.
+//
+// Design: docs/design-paliad-test-strategy-2026-05-19.md §5 Slice 1.
+
+package main
+
+import (
+	"database/sql"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/http/httptest"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"sort"
+	"strconv"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+
+	_ "github.com/lib/pq"
+
+	"mgit.msbls.de/m/paliad/internal/auth"
+	"mgit.msbls.de/m/paliad/internal/db"
+	"mgit.msbls.de/m/paliad/internal/handlers"
+)
+
+func TestBootSmoke(t *testing.T) {
+	url := os.Getenv("TEST_DATABASE_URL")
+	if url == "" {
+		t.Skip("TEST_DATABASE_URL not set — skipping boot smoke")
+	}
+
+	// (1) Apply migrations end-to-end. The same code path the prod
+	// container runs at boot before `http.ListenAndServe`. A regression
+	// like mig-098's digit-regex would surface here as a non-nil error.
+	if err := db.ApplyMigrations(url); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("db.ApplyMigrations: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	// (2) Assert the tracker advanced to the highest *.up.sql version we
+	// embed. If a migration was silently skipped or the tracker is dirty,
+	// the prod container would crash-loop — this turns that into a test
+	// failure with a precise reason.
+	expected := highestEmbeddedMigrationVersion(t)
+	got, dirty := readTrackerVersion(t, url)
+	if dirty {
+		t.Errorf("tracker reports dirty=true at version %d — investigate before deploying", got)
+	}
+	if got != expected {
+		t.Errorf("tracker at version %d; expected %d (highest *.up.sql on disk). "+
+			"A migration was skipped or applied out of order.",
+			got, expected)
+	}
+
+	// (3) Mount the public handlers (the same Register call main() makes,
+	// minus the DB-backed Services bundle which the /healthz route doesn't
+	// need) and assert /healthz returns 200. This is the bind-and-serve
+	// half of the smoke: catches a regression that would make /healthz
+	// 404 or break the mux registration order.
+	//
+	// We deliberately do not boot the full main() — that would require
+	// SUPABASE_URL, SUPABASE_ANON_KEY, SUPABASE_JWT_SECRET, an open
+	// listening socket and a real auth client. The /healthz handler is
+	// auth-independent by design, and Register registers it on the outer
+	// mux before any DB-backed route, so this minimal setup exercises the
+	// exact code path main() takes.
+	mux := http.NewServeMux()
+	authClient := auth.NewClient("https://test.invalid", "anon-key", []byte("test-secret"))
+	handlers.Register(mux, authClient, "", nil)
+
+	rec := httptest.NewRecorder()
+	req := httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, "/healthz", nil)
+	mux.ServeHTTP(rec, req)
+	if rec.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Errorf("GET /healthz: status=%d, body=%q; want 200 OK", rec.Code, rec.Body.String())
+	}
+	if body := strings.TrimSpace(rec.Body.String()); body != "ok" {
+		t.Errorf("GET /healthz: body=%q; want \"ok\"", body)
+	}
+}
+
+// highestEmbeddedMigrationVersion finds max(N) over every NNN_*.up.sql
+// file in internal/db/migrations/ on disk. Used as the expected tracker
+// version after a clean apply. We read from disk (not the embed.FS in
+// the db package — it's unexported) since the test runs from the repo.
+func highestEmbeddedMigrationVersion(t *testing.T) int {
+	t.Helper()
+	root, err := repoRoot()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("locate repo root: %v", err)
+	}
+	dir := filepath.Join(root, "internal", "db", "migrations")
+	entries, err := os.ReadDir(dir)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("read migrations dir %s: %v", dir, err)
+	}
+	var versions []int
+	for _, e := range entries {
+		name := e.Name()
+		if !strings.HasSuffix(name, ".up.sql") {
+			continue
+		}
+		base := strings.TrimSuffix(name, ".up.sql")
+		underscore := strings.IndexByte(base, '_')
+		if underscore <= 0 {
+			continue
+		}
+		v, err := strconv.Atoi(base[:underscore])
+		if err != nil {
+			continue
+		}
+		versions = append(versions, v)
+	}
+	if len(versions) == 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("no *.up.sql files found in %s", dir)
+	}
+	sort.Ints(versions)
+	return versions[len(versions)-1]
+}
+
+// readTrackerVersion fetches the lone row from the tracker. golang-migrate
+// keeps exactly one row; if we ever see zero or more, that's the dirty-state
+// the test is designed to flag.
+func readTrackerVersion(t *testing.T, url string) (version int, dirty bool) {
+	t.Helper()
+	conn, err := sql.Open("postgres", url)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("open: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer conn.Close()
+	row := conn.QueryRow(`SELECT version, dirty FROM public.paliad_schema_migrations LIMIT 1`)
+	if err := row.Scan(&version, &dirty); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("read tracker: %v", err)
+	}
+	return version, dirty
+}
+
+// repoRoot walks upward from the test binary's working directory until it
+// finds a go.mod. `go test` runs in the package dir, so we typically have
+// to climb a couple of levels.
+func repoRoot() (string, error) {
+	dir, err := os.Getwd()
+	if err != nil {
+		return "", err
+	}
+	for {
+		if _, err := os.Stat(filepath.Join(dir, "go.mod")); err == nil {
+			return dir, nil
+		}
+		parent := filepath.Dir(dir)
+		if parent == dir {
+			return "", os.ErrNotExist
+		}
+		dir = parent
+	}
+}
diff --git a/internal/db/migrate_test.go b/internal/db/migrate_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6b7b774
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/db/migrate_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,198 @@
+// Package db tests — migration dry-run gate.
+//
+// This is the test that catches mig-N crash-loops before they reach prod.
+// The convention since t-paliad-098/099 is that paliad migrations land in
+// numeric order on a single trunk; the next deploy runs whichever ones are
+// pending against the live `public.paliad_schema_migrations` tracker. A
+// migration that compiles cleanly but fails on apply (typo, missing column,
+// wrong CHECK shape) crashes the Dokploy container loop before paliad.de
+// finishes binding :8080, and the only way to learn about it today is to
+// watch the deploy log.
+//
+// TestMigrations_DryRun closes that gap: for every *.up.sql in this
+// directory whose version is greater than the scratch DB's current tracker
+// version, it opens a transaction, runs the SQL, and ROLLBACKs. Any error
+// fails the test with the file name + Postgres error. Always non-destructive
+// — the ROLLBACK runs even on success, so the scratch DB stays at its
+// starting version.
+//
+// Requires TEST_DATABASE_URL (same pattern as the rest of the live-DB
+// tests). Skipped without it.
+//
+// Design: docs/design-paliad-test-strategy-2026-05-19.md §5 Slice 1.
+
+package db
+
+import (
+	"database/sql"
+	"errors"
+	"fmt"
+	"os"
+	"sort"
+	"strconv"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+
+	_ "github.com/lib/pq"
+)
+
+// migration is one *.up.sql file from the embedded migrations FS.
+type migration struct {
+	version  int
+	name     string
+	filename string
+}
+
+// TestMigrations_DryRun walks every pending *.up.sql in numeric order,
+// applies each inside its own BEGIN/ROLLBACK against the scratch DB, and
+// fails the test on the first SQL error. Reports per-file as a sub-test so
+// `go test -v` shows which migration failed.
+//
+// What "pending" means: greater than the scratch DB's current tracker
+// version (or 0 if the tracker doesn't exist yet). In CI against a fresh
+// scratch DB, every migration is pending and gets verified. On a developer
+// laptop whose scratch DB is already at HEAD, no migrations are pending and
+// the test logs the start version and passes — the protection only kicks in
+// the moment a new *.up.sql lands in the tree before the developer runs
+// `db.ApplyMigrations` against the same scratch DB.
+func TestMigrations_DryRun(t *testing.T) {
+	url := os.Getenv("TEST_DATABASE_URL")
+	if url == "" {
+		t.Skip("TEST_DATABASE_URL not set — skipping migration dry-run")
+	}
+
+	conn, err := sql.Open("postgres", url)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("open: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer conn.Close()
+	if err := conn.Ping(); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("ping: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	// The paliad schema must exist before migration 001 runs against it,
+	// mirroring the bootstrap step in ApplyMigrations. Without this, a
+	// fresh scratch DB would fail migration 001's CREATE TABLE paliad.*
+	// statements inside the BEGIN/ROLLBACK probe with "schema paliad does
+	// not exist" — a false negative that distracts from real errors.
+	if _, err := conn.Exec(`CREATE SCHEMA IF NOT EXISTS paliad`); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("ensure paliad schema: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	startVersion, dirty, err := currentTrackerVersion(conn)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("read tracker: %v", err)
+	}
+	if dirty {
+		t.Fatalf("tracker is dirty at version %d — fix that first (DROP the tracker row "+
+			"or restore from backup); the dry-run cannot trust a dirty starting state",
+			startVersion)
+	}
+	t.Logf("scratch DB tracker at version %d; walking pending migrations from %d upward",
+		startVersion, startVersion+1)
+
+	migs, err := loadPendingMigrations(startVersion)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("load migrations: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(migs) == 0 {
+		t.Logf("no pending migrations — scratch DB is at HEAD (%d)", startVersion)
+		return
+	}
+
+	for _, m := range migs {
+		t.Run(fmt.Sprintf("%03d_%s", m.version, m.name), func(t *testing.T) {
+			body, err := migrationFS.ReadFile("migrations/" + m.filename)
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("read %s: %v", m.filename, err)
+			}
+			tx, err := conn.Begin()
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("begin: %v", err)
+			}
+			// Always rollback; the dry-run must not leave the scratch DB
+			// at a different version than where it started. Rollback is
+			// safe to call even after a failed Exec — Postgres aborts the
+			// transaction internally on the first error.
+			defer func() { _ = tx.Rollback() }()
+
+			if _, err := tx.Exec(string(body)); err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("migration %s failed dry-run: %v", m.filename, err)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+// currentTrackerVersion reads the latest version + dirty flag from the
+// `public.paliad_schema_migrations` tracker. Returns (0, false, nil) when the
+// tracker doesn't exist yet — that's the "fresh scratch DB" path.
+//
+// We don't use golang-migrate's API to read this because golang-migrate's
+// driver locks the tracker row on read; a test runner that calls this while
+// the developer has paliad running locally would race. A plain SELECT is
+// race-safe and matches what `psql` would show.
+func currentTrackerVersion(conn *sql.DB) (version int, dirty bool, err error) {
+	const q = `SELECT version, dirty FROM public.paliad_schema_migrations LIMIT 1`
+	row := conn.QueryRow(q)
+	if scanErr := row.Scan(&version, &dirty); scanErr != nil {
+		// Missing table → fresh DB → start at 0. lib/pq surfaces this
+		// as `pq.Error.Code = "42P01"` (undefined_table); the simpler
+		// sql.ErrNoRows fires if the table exists but is empty (also
+		// fresh-DB-shaped).
+		if errors.Is(scanErr, sql.ErrNoRows) {
+			return 0, false, nil
+		}
+		if strings.Contains(scanErr.Error(), "does not exist") {
+			return 0, false, nil
+		}
+		return 0, false, scanErr
+	}
+	return version, dirty, nil
+}
+
+// loadPendingMigrations returns every *.up.sql in the embedded FS whose
+// version is greater than startVersion, sorted by version ascending. A
+// filename like "098_submission_codes_prefix_and_rename.up.sql" yields
+// version=98, name="submission_codes_prefix_and_rename".
+func loadPendingMigrations(startVersion int) ([]migration, error) {
+	entries, err := migrationFS.ReadDir("migrations")
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("read migrations dir: %w", err)
+	}
+	var out []migration
+	for _, e := range entries {
+		name := e.Name()
+		if !strings.HasSuffix(name, ".up.sql") {
+			continue
+		}
+		v, n, ok := parseMigrationName(name)
+		if !ok {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("unparseable migration filename: %s "+
+				"(expected NNN_description.up.sql)", name)
+		}
+		if v <= startVersion {
+			continue
+		}
+		out = append(out, migration{version: v, name: n, filename: name})
+	}
+	sort.Slice(out, func(i, j int) bool { return out[i].version < out[j].version })
+	return out, nil
+}
+
+// parseMigrationName splits "NNN_description.up.sql" into (NNN, description).
+// Returns ok=false on any deviation from that shape.
+func parseMigrationName(filename string) (version int, name string, ok bool) {
+	base := strings.TrimSuffix(filename, ".up.sql")
+	if base == filename { // suffix wasn't present
+		return 0, "", false
+	}
+	underscore := strings.IndexByte(base, '_')
+	if underscore <= 0 {
+		return 0, "", false
+	}
+	v, err := strconv.Atoi(base[:underscore])
+	if err != nil {
+		return 0, "", false
+	}
+	return v, base[underscore+1:], true
+}
diff --git a/internal/handlers/handlers.go b/internal/handlers/handlers.go
index 060fe01..2386fea 100644
--- a/internal/handlers/handlers.go
+++ b/internal/handlers/handlers.go
@@ -128,6 +128,17 @@ func Register(mux *http.ServeMux, client *auth.Client, giteaAPIToken string, svc
 		}
 	}
 
+	// Liveness probe. Public, no auth, no DB touch — just confirms the
+	// process bound the listener and the goroutine is alive. Used by the
+	// boot-smoke test (cmd/server/main_smoke_test.go) to assert the server
+	// reaches a serving state after migrations apply; also safe for any
+	// future container orchestrator or uptime check.
+	mux.HandleFunc("GET /healthz", func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+		w.Header().Set("Cache-Control", "no-store")
+		w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "text/plain; charset=utf-8")
+		_, _ = w.Write([]byte("ok\n"))
+	})
+
 	// API endpoints (JSON, public)
 	mux.HandleFunc("POST /api/login", handleAPILogin)
 	mux.HandleFunc("POST /api/register", handleAPIRegister)