diff --git a/core/archipelago/src/api/rpc/package/install.rs b/core/archipelago/src/api/rpc/package/install.rs
index 70570b0a..90c21901 100644
--- a/core/archipelago/src/api/rpc/package/install.rs
+++ b/core/archipelago/src/api/rpc/package/install.rs
@@ -24,6 +24,12 @@ const IMAGE_INSPECT_TIMEOUT: Duration = Duration::from_secs(10);
 /// Append a timestamped line to the persistent install log.
 pub(in crate::api::rpc) async fn install_log(msg: &str) {
     use tokio::io::AsyncWriteExt;
+    // Always mirror to tracing/journald: the file append below has been
+    // silently failing under the service sandbox (ProtectSystem=strict
+    // leaves /var/log/archipelago read-only — container-installs.log has
+    // been 0 bytes since April 2026), and these lifecycle breadcrumbs are
+    // the primary forensic trail for gate failures.
+    info!(target: "install_log", "{msg}");
     let ts = chrono::Utc::now().format("%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S UTC");
     let line = format!("[{}] {}\n", ts, msg);
     if let Ok(mut f) = tokio::fs::OpenOptions::new()