diff --git a/.gitea/workflows/build-iso.yml b/.gitea/workflows/build-iso.yml
index 3ad437c2..6638e5b6 100644
--- a/.gitea/workflows/build-iso.yml
+++ b/.gitea/workflows/build-iso.yml
@@ -19,22 +19,16 @@ jobs:
         run: |
           source $HOME/.cargo/env 2>/dev/null || true
           cargo build --release --manifest-path core/Cargo.toml
-          sudo rm -f /usr/local/bin/archipelago
-          sudo cp core/target/release/archipelago /usr/local/bin/archipelago
-          sudo systemctl restart archipelago 2>/dev/null || true
 
       - name: Build frontend
-        run: |
-          echo "PWD: $(pwd)"
-          ls -la neode-ui/package.json || echo "neode-ui/package.json NOT FOUND"
-          cd neode-ui
-          npm ci
-          npm run build
+        run: cd neode-ui && npm ci && npm run build
 
       - name: Build unbundled ISO
         run: |
           cd image-recipe
-          sudo UNBUNDLED=1 DEV_SERVER=localhost BUILD_FROM_SOURCE=0 ./build-auto-installer-iso.sh
+          sudo UNBUNDLED=1 DEV_SERVER=localhost BUILD_FROM_SOURCE=0 \
+            ARCHIPELAGO_BIN=../core/target/release/archipelago \
+            ./build-auto-installer-iso.sh
 
       - name: Copy to Builds
         run: |
diff --git a/image-recipe/build-auto-installer-iso.sh b/image-recipe/build-auto-installer-iso.sh
index 8b3406c7..d42a61df 100755
--- a/image-recipe/build-auto-installer-iso.sh
+++ b/image-recipe/build-auto-installer-iso.sh
@@ -508,9 +508,10 @@ fi
 # Try to get from live server first (unless BUILD_FROM_SOURCE=1)
 BACKEND_CAPTURED=0
 if [ "$BUILD_FROM_SOURCE" != "1" ]; then
-    # Direct copy from local filesystem (when running on target with sudo)
-    if [ -f "/usr/local/bin/archipelago" ]; then
-        cp "/usr/local/bin/archipelago" "$ARCH_DIR/bin/archipelago"
+    # Direct copy from ARCHIPELAGO_BIN env, local install, or remote
+    local BIN="${ARCHIPELAGO_BIN:-/usr/local/bin/archipelago}"
+    if [ -f "$BIN" ]; then
+        cp "$BIN" "$ARCH_DIR/bin/archipelago"
         chmod +x "$ARCH_DIR/bin/archipelago"
         echo "   ✅ Backend captured from local system ($(du -h "$ARCH_DIR/bin/archipelago" | cut -f1))"
         BACKEND_CAPTURED=1