diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 453712d..3b4dbd3 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
 # Hermes Voice — Self-Hosted Phone AI Assistant
+docker info >/dev/null 2>&1 || echo "Docker daemon is not running"
 
 **Version:** v1.0  
 **Status:** Active Development  
diff --git a/deploy_log.txt b/deploy_log.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c6b9989
--- /dev/null
+++ b/deploy_log.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+[hermes-voice deploy attempt]
+- docker compose config validates.
+- docker compose build blocked because Docker daemon is not running on this host.
diff --git a/stack_manifest.json b/stack_manifest.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e18d879
--- /dev/null
+++ b/stack_manifest.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"runtime":"Docker Compose","build_method":"docker compose --profile freeswitch build && up","entry_point":"hermes-voice bot stack","dependencies":["docker","docker compose"],"ports":[],"deploy_steps":["cp .env.example .env","docker compose --profile freeswitch up -d --build"],"has_docker":true,"has_compose":true,"notes":"Valid compose on host; blocked by Docker daemon not running."}