diff --git a/deployment/scripts/deploy.sh b/deployment/scripts/deploy.sh
index e9b1798f..8db230b5 100755
--- a/deployment/scripts/deploy.sh
+++ b/deployment/scripts/deploy.sh
@@ -121,6 +121,13 @@ docker compose $COMPOSE_FILES pull || print_warning "Failed to pull some images,
 print_info "Stopping existing containers..."
 docker compose $COMPOSE_FILES down --remove-orphans || print_warning "No existing containers to stop"
 
+# Staging: Remove named volume to ensure fresh code from image
+# This prevents stale code persisting between deployments
+if [ "$ENVIRONMENT" = "staging" ]; then
+    print_info "Removing staging code volume to ensure fresh deployment..."
+    docker volume rm staging-code 2>/dev/null || print_info "No stale staging volume to remove"
+fi
+
 # Remove any orphaned containers with conflicting names
 for container in nginx php redis scheduler queue-worker; do
     if docker ps -a --format '{{.Names}}' | grep -q "^${container}$"; then
diff --git a/docker-compose.prod.yml b/docker-compose.prod.yml
index cc903d5b..f790a1ff 100644
--- a/docker-compose.prod.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.prod.yml
@@ -147,9 +147,10 @@ services:
       - app-backend
       - app-internal
     healthcheck:
-      test: ["CMD", "php", "-v"]
-      interval: 30s
-      timeout: 10s
+      # Check if PHP-FPM is accepting connections
+      test: ["CMD-SHELL", "php-fpm-healthcheck || exit 1"]
+      interval: 15s
+      timeout: 5s
       retries: 3
       start_period: 60s
     deploy:
diff --git a/docker-compose.staging.yml b/docker-compose.staging.yml
index e466bc03..c09b30b7 100644
--- a/docker-compose.staging.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.staging.yml
@@ -170,11 +170,25 @@ services:
           echo ""
           echo "ℹ️  GIT_REPOSITORY_URL not set, using code from image"
         fi
-        
+
         echo ""
         echo "📊 Environment variables:"
         env | grep -E "DB_|APP_" | grep -v "PASSWORD|KEY|SECRET" || true
 
+        # Run database migrations
+        if [ -f /var/www/html/console.php ]; then
+          echo ""
+          echo "🗄️  Running database migrations..."
+          cd /var/www/html
+          php console.php db:migrate --force || echo "⚠️  Migration warning (may be OK if already migrated)"
+        fi
+
+        # Warm up caches
+        echo ""
+        echo "🔥 Warming up caches..."
+        cd /var/www/html
+        php console.php cache:warm 2>/dev/null || echo "ℹ️  Cache warmup skipped (command may not exist)"
+
         echo ""
         echo "🛠️ Adjusting filesystem permissions..."
         chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html/storage /var/www/html/bootstrap/cache 2>/dev/null || true
@@ -191,11 +205,13 @@ services:
         echo "REDIS_PASSWORD_FILE: ${REDIS_PASSWORD_FILE:-NOT SET}"
         exec php-fpm
     healthcheck:
-      test: ["CMD-SHELL", "php-fpm-healthcheck || true"]
-      interval: 30s
-      timeout: 10s
+      # Use HTTP liveness check via php-fpm (not via nginx)
+      # This checks if the PHP application is actually responding
+      test: ["CMD-SHELL", "php-fpm-healthcheck || exit 1"]
+      interval: 15s
+      timeout: 5s
       retries: 3
-      start_period: 40s
+      start_period: 60s
     depends_on:
       redis:
         condition: service_started
@@ -265,6 +281,26 @@ services:
           fi
         done
         
+        # Wait for PHP-FPM to be ready before starting nginx
+        # This prevents 502 Bad Gateway errors during startup
+        echo "⏳ [staging-nginx] Waiting for PHP-FPM to be ready..."
+        MAX_WAIT=30
+        WAITED=0
+        while [ $$WAITED -lt $$MAX_WAIT ]; do
+          # Check if PHP-FPM is accepting connections on port 9000
+          if nc -z php 9000 2>/dev/null; then
+            echo "✅ [staging-nginx] PHP-FPM is ready on php:9000"
+            break
+          fi
+          echo "   [staging-nginx] PHP-FPM not ready yet... ($$WAITED/$$MAX_WAIT)"
+          sleep 1
+          WAITED=$$((WAITED + 1))
+        done
+
+        if [ $$WAITED -ge $$MAX_WAIT ]; then
+          echo "⚠️  [staging-nginx] PHP-FPM did not become ready within $$MAX_WAIT seconds, starting anyway..."
+        fi
+
         # Start nginx only (no PHP-FPM, no Git clone - php container handles that)
         echo "🚀 [staging-nginx] Starting nginx..."
         exec nginx -g "daemon off;"
@@ -280,11 +316,12 @@ services:
       # Network
       - "traefik.docker.network=traefik-public"
     healthcheck:
-      test: ["CMD-SHELL", "curl -f http://127.0.0.1/health || exit 1"]
-      interval: 30s
-      timeout: 10s
+      # Use /health/live endpoint for lightweight liveness check
+      test: ["CMD-SHELL", "curl -sf http://127.0.0.1/health/live || exit 1"]
+      interval: 15s
+      timeout: 5s
       retries: 3
-      start_period: 10s
+      start_period: 30s
     depends_on:
       php:
         condition: service_started
diff --git a/docker/nginx/Dockerfile.production b/docker/nginx/Dockerfile.production
index 4ae6aa73..1e8c827a 100644
--- a/docker/nginx/Dockerfile.production
+++ b/docker/nginx/Dockerfile.production
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ RUN apk add --no-cache \
     certbot-nginx \
     su-exec \
     netcat-openbsd \
+    curl \
     openssl \
     bash
 
diff --git a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/Migrations/CreateSeedsTable.php b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/Migrations/CreateSeedsTable.php
index 01debb0f..d62d0e9f 100644
--- a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/Migrations/CreateSeedsTable.php
+++ b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/Migrations/CreateSeedsTable.php
@@ -47,4 +47,3 @@ final readonly class CreateSeedsTable implements Migration, SafelyReversible
         return 'Create seeds table for tracking executed seeders';
     }
 }
-
diff --git a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedCommand.php b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedCommand.php
index 151d9378..bb4c268f 100644
--- a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedCommand.php
+++ b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedCommand.php
@@ -24,6 +24,9 @@ final readonly class SeedCommand
         $fresh = $input->hasOption('fresh');
 
         try {
+            // Ensure seeds table exists (auto-create if missing)
+            $this->seedRepository->ensureSeedsTable();
+
             // Clear seeds table if --fresh option is provided
             if ($fresh) {
                 echo "⚠️  Clearing seeds table (--fresh option)...\n";
@@ -35,9 +38,10 @@ final readonly class SeedCommand
                 // Run specific seeder
                 echo "Running seeder: {$className}\n";
                 $seeder = $this->seedLoader->load($className);
-                
+
                 if ($seeder === null) {
                     echo "❌ Seeder '{$className}' not found or cannot be instantiated.\n";
+
                     return ExitCode::SOFTWARE_ERROR;
                 }
 
@@ -50,6 +54,7 @@ final readonly class SeedCommand
 
                 if (empty($seeders)) {
                     echo "No seeders found.\n";
+
                     return ExitCode::SUCCESS;
                 }
 
@@ -74,4 +79,3 @@ final readonly class SeedCommand
         }
     }
 }
-
diff --git a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedLoader.php b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedLoader.php
index a91097d7..a8cce96d 100644
--- a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedLoader.php
+++ b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedLoader.php
@@ -61,4 +61,3 @@ final readonly class SeedLoader
         return null;
     }
 }
-
diff --git a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedRepository.php b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedRepository.php
index c4b7bd62..a390807d 100644
--- a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedRepository.php
+++ b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedRepository.php
@@ -5,17 +5,68 @@ declare(strict_types=1);
 namespace App\Framework\Database\Seed;
 
 use App\Framework\Database\ConnectionInterface;
+use App\Framework\Database\Platform\DatabasePlatform;
 use App\Framework\Database\ValueObjects\SqlQuery;
 use App\Framework\DateTime\Clock;
 
 final readonly class SeedRepository
 {
+    private const string TABLE_NAME = 'seeds';
+
     public function __construct(
         private ConnectionInterface $connection,
+        private DatabasePlatform $platform,
         private Clock $clock
     ) {
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Ensure the seeds table exists, create it if not
+     *
+     * This method should be called before any seed operations to prevent
+     * "table does not exist" errors on fresh databases.
+     */
+    public function ensureSeedsTable(): void
+    {
+        if ($this->tableExists()) {
+            return;
+        }
+
+        $this->createSeedsTable();
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Check if the seeds table exists
+     */
+    private function tableExists(): bool
+    {
+        try {
+            $sql = $this->platform->getTableExistsSQL(self::TABLE_NAME);
+            $result = $this->connection->queryScalar(SqlQuery::create($sql));
+
+            return (bool) $result;
+        } catch (\Throwable) {
+            return false;
+        }
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Create the seeds tracking table
+     */
+    private function createSeedsTable(): void
+    {
+        $sql = <<<'SQL'
+            CREATE TABLE seeds (
+                id VARCHAR(64) PRIMARY KEY,
+                name VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL UNIQUE,
+                description TEXT,
+                executed_at TIMESTAMP NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
+            )
+            SQL;
+
+        $this->connection->execute(SqlQuery::create($sql));
+    }
+
     /**
      * Check if a seeder has already been executed
      */
@@ -60,4 +111,3 @@ final readonly class SeedRepository
         return hash('sha256', $name);
     }
 }
-
diff --git a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedRunner.php b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedRunner.php
index 2b67762f..f169aa2c 100644
--- a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedRunner.php
+++ b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedRunner.php
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@ final readonly class SeedRunner
         // Check if already executed
         if ($this->seedRepository->hasRun($name)) {
             $this->log("Skipping seeder '{$name}' - already executed", 'info');
+
             return;
         }
 
@@ -38,6 +39,7 @@ final readonly class SeedRunner
             $this->log("Seeder '{$name}' completed successfully", 'info');
         } catch (\Throwable $e) {
             $this->log("Seeder '{$name}' failed: {$e->getMessage()}", 'error');
+
             throw $e;
         }
     }
@@ -71,4 +73,3 @@ final readonly class SeedRunner
         }
     }
 }
-
diff --git a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedServicesInitializer.php b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedServicesInitializer.php
index 29c003f5..5bc13063 100644
--- a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedServicesInitializer.php
+++ b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/SeedServicesInitializer.php
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ declare(strict_types=1);
 namespace App\Framework\Database\Seed;
 
 use App\Framework\Database\ConnectionInterface;
+use App\Framework\Database\Platform\DatabasePlatform;
 use App\Framework\DateTime\Clock;
 use App\Framework\DI\Container;
 use App\Framework\DI\Initializer;
@@ -20,6 +21,7 @@ final readonly class SeedServicesInitializer
         $container->singleton(SeedRepository::class, function (Container $c) {
             return new SeedRepository(
                 $c->get(ConnectionInterface::class),
+                $c->get(DatabasePlatform::class),
                 $c->get(Clock::class)
             );
         });
@@ -27,12 +29,14 @@ final readonly class SeedServicesInitializer
         // SeedLoader
         $container->singleton(SeedLoader::class, function (Container $c) {
             $discoveryRegistry = $c->get(DiscoveryRegistry::class);
+
             return new SeedLoader($discoveryRegistry, $c);
         });
 
         // SeedRunner
         $container->singleton(SeedRunner::class, function (Container $c) {
             $logger = $c->has(Logger::class) ? $c->get(Logger::class) : null;
+
             return new SeedRunner(
                 $c->get(SeedRepository::class),
                 $logger
@@ -40,4 +44,3 @@ final readonly class SeedServicesInitializer
         });
     }
 }
-
diff --git a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/Seeder.php b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/Seeder.php
index 1feb953f..b05193ee 100644
--- a/src/Framework/Database/Seed/Seeder.php
+++ b/src/Framework/Database/Seed/Seeder.php
@@ -36,4 +36,3 @@ interface Seeder
      */
     public function getDescription(): string;
 }
-