diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index e74a02db3..d190de3e6 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 # DeerFlow - Unified Development Environment
 
-.PHONY: help config config-upgrade check install dev dev-daemon start stop up down clean docker-init docker-start docker-stop docker-logs docker-logs-frontend docker-logs-gateway
+.PHONY: help config config-upgrade check install dev dev-pro dev-daemon dev-daemon-pro start start-pro start-daemon start-daemon-pro stop up up-pro down clean docker-init docker-start docker-start-pro docker-stop docker-logs docker-logs-frontend docker-logs-gateway
 
 BASH ?= bash
 
@@ -20,18 +20,25 @@ help:
 	@echo "  make install         - Install all dependencies (frontend + backend)"
 	@echo "  make setup-sandbox   - Pre-pull sandbox container image (recommended)"
 	@echo "  make dev             - Start all services in development mode (with hot-reloading)"
-	@echo "  make dev-daemon      - Start all services in background (daemon mode)"
+	@echo "  make dev-pro         - Start in dev + Gateway mode (experimental, no LangGraph server)"
+	@echo "  make dev-daemon      - Start dev services in background (daemon mode)"
+	@echo "  make dev-daemon-pro  - Start dev daemon + Gateway mode (experimental)"
 	@echo "  make start           - Start all services in production mode (optimized, no hot-reloading)"
+	@echo "  make start-pro       - Start in prod + Gateway mode (experimental)"
+	@echo "  make start-daemon    - Start prod services in background (daemon mode)"
+	@echo "  make start-daemon-pro - Start prod daemon + Gateway mode (experimental)"
 	@echo "  make stop            - Stop all running services"
 	@echo "  make clean           - Clean up processes and temporary files"
 	@echo ""
 	@echo "Docker Production Commands:"
 	@echo "  make up              - Build and start production Docker services (localhost:2026)"
+	@echo "  make up-pro          - Build and start production Docker in Gateway mode (experimental)"
 	@echo "  make down            - Stop and remove production Docker containers"
 	@echo ""
 	@echo "Docker Development Commands:"
 	@echo "  make docker-init     - Pull the sandbox image"
 	@echo "  make docker-start    - Start Docker services (mode-aware from config.yaml, localhost:2026)"
+	@echo "  make docker-start-pro - Start Docker in Gateway mode (experimental, no LangGraph container)"
 	@echo "  make docker-stop     - Stop Docker development services"
 	@echo "  make docker-logs     - View Docker development logs"
 	@echo "  make docker-logs-frontend - View Docker frontend logs"
@@ -105,6 +112,15 @@ else
 	@./scripts/serve.sh --dev
 endif
 
+# Start all services in dev + Gateway mode (experimental: agent runtime embedded in Gateway)
+dev-pro:
+	@$(PYTHON) ./scripts/check.py
+ifeq ($(OS),Windows_NT)
+	@call scripts\run-with-git-bash.cmd ./scripts/serve.sh --dev --gateway
+else
+	@./scripts/serve.sh --dev --gateway
+endif
+
 # Start all services in production mode (with optimizations)
 start:
 	@$(PYTHON) ./scripts/check.py
@@ -114,30 +130,54 @@ else
 	@./scripts/serve.sh --prod
 endif
 
+# Start all services in prod + Gateway mode (experimental)
+start-pro:
+	@$(PYTHON) ./scripts/check.py
+ifeq ($(OS),Windows_NT)
+	@call scripts\run-with-git-bash.cmd ./scripts/serve.sh --prod --gateway
+else
+	@./scripts/serve.sh --prod --gateway
+endif
+
 # Start all services in daemon mode (background)
 dev-daemon:
 	@$(PYTHON) ./scripts/check.py
 ifeq ($(OS),Windows_NT)
-	@call scripts\run-with-git-bash.cmd ./scripts/start-daemon.sh
+	@call scripts\run-with-git-bash.cmd ./scripts/serve.sh --dev --daemon
 else
-	@./scripts/start-daemon.sh
+	@./scripts/serve.sh --dev --daemon
+endif
+
+# Start daemon + Gateway mode (experimental)
+dev-daemon-pro:
+	@$(PYTHON) ./scripts/check.py
+ifeq ($(OS),Windows_NT)
+	@call scripts\run-with-git-bash.cmd ./scripts/serve.sh --dev --gateway --daemon
+else
+	@./scripts/serve.sh --dev --gateway --daemon
+endif
+
+# Start prod services in daemon mode (background)
+start-daemon:
+	@$(PYTHON) ./scripts/check.py
+ifeq ($(OS),Windows_NT)
+	@call scripts\run-with-git-bash.cmd ./scripts/serve.sh --prod --daemon
+else
+	@./scripts/serve.sh --prod --daemon
+endif
+
+# Start prod daemon + Gateway mode (experimental)
+start-daemon-pro:
+	@$(PYTHON) ./scripts/check.py
+ifeq ($(OS),Windows_NT)
+	@call scripts\run-with-git-bash.cmd ./scripts/serve.sh --prod --gateway --daemon
+else
+	@./scripts/serve.sh --prod --gateway --daemon
 endif
 
 # Stop all services
 stop:
-	@echo "Stopping all services..."
-	@-pkill -f "langgraph dev" 2>/dev/null || true
-	@-pkill -f "uvicorn app.gateway.app:app" 2>/dev/null || true
-	@-pkill -f "next dev" 2>/dev/null || true
-	@-pkill -f "next start" 2>/dev/null || true
-	@-pkill -f "next-server" 2>/dev/null || true
-	@-pkill -f "next-server" 2>/dev/null || true
-	@-nginx -c $(PWD)/docker/nginx/nginx.local.conf -p $(PWD) -s quit 2>/dev/null || true
-	@sleep 1
-	@-pkill -9 nginx 2>/dev/null || true
-	@echo "Cleaning up sandbox containers..."
-	@-./scripts/cleanup-containers.sh deer-flow-sandbox 2>/dev/null || true
-	@echo "✓ All services stopped"
+	@./scripts/serve.sh --stop
 
 # Clean up
 clean: stop
@@ -159,6 +199,10 @@ docker-init:
 docker-start:
 	@./scripts/docker.sh start
 
+# Start Docker in Gateway mode (experimental)
+docker-start-pro:
+	@./scripts/docker.sh start --gateway
+
 # Stop Docker development environment
 docker-stop:
 	@./scripts/docker.sh stop
@@ -181,6 +225,10 @@ docker-logs-gateway:
 up:
 	@./scripts/deploy.sh
 
+# Build and start production services in Gateway mode
+up-pro:
+	@./scripts/deploy.sh --gateway
+
 # Stop and remove production containers
 down:
 	@./scripts/deploy.sh down
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 1c1f6dcdf..14aec9fc6 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -280,6 +280,60 @@ On Windows, run the local development flow from Git Bash. Native `cmd.exe` and P
 
 6. **Access**: http://localhost:2026
 
+#### Startup Modes
+
+DeerFlow supports multiple startup modes across two dimensions:
+
+- **Dev / Prod** — dev enables hot-reload; prod uses pre-built frontend
+- **Standard / Gateway** — standard uses a separate LangGraph server (4 processes); Gateway mode (experimental) embeds the agent runtime in the Gateway API (3 processes)
+
+| | **Local Foreground** | **Local Daemon** | **Docker Dev** | **Docker Prod** |
+|---|---|---|---|---|
+| **Dev** | `./scripts/serve.sh --dev`<br/>`make dev` | `./scripts/serve.sh --dev --daemon`<br/>`make dev-daemon` | `./scripts/docker.sh start`<br/>`make docker-start` | — |
+| **Dev + Gateway** | `./scripts/serve.sh --dev --gateway`<br/>`make dev-pro` | `./scripts/serve.sh --dev --gateway --daemon`<br/>`make dev-daemon-pro` | `./scripts/docker.sh start --gateway`<br/>`make docker-start-pro` | — |
+| **Prod** | `./scripts/serve.sh --prod`<br/>`make start` | `./scripts/serve.sh --prod --daemon`<br/>`make start-daemon` | — | `./scripts/deploy.sh`<br/>`make up` |
+| **Prod + Gateway** | `./scripts/serve.sh --prod --gateway`<br/>`make start-pro` | `./scripts/serve.sh --prod --gateway --daemon`<br/>`make start-daemon-pro` | — | `./scripts/deploy.sh --gateway`<br/>`make up-pro` |
+
+| Action | Local | Docker Dev | Docker Prod |
+|---|---|---|---|
+| **Stop** | `./scripts/serve.sh --stop`<br/>`make stop` | `./scripts/docker.sh stop`<br/>`make docker-stop` | `./scripts/deploy.sh down`<br/>`make down` |
+| **Restart** | `./scripts/serve.sh --restart [flags]` | `./scripts/docker.sh restart` | — |
+
+> **Gateway mode** eliminates the LangGraph server process — the Gateway API handles agent execution directly via async tasks, managing its own concurrency.
+
+#### Why Gateway Mode?
+
+In standard mode, DeerFlow runs a dedicated [LangGraph Platform](https://langchain-ai.github.io/langgraph/) server alongside the Gateway API. This architecture works well but has trade-offs:
+
+| | Standard Mode | Gateway Mode |
+|---|---|---|
+| **Architecture** | Gateway (REST API) + LangGraph (agent runtime) | Gateway embeds agent runtime |
+| **Concurrency** | `--n-jobs-per-worker` per worker (requires license) | `--workers` × async tasks (no per-worker cap) |
+| **Containers / Processes** | 4 (frontend, gateway, langgraph, nginx) | 3 (frontend, gateway, nginx) |
+| **Resource usage** | Higher (two Python runtimes) | Lower (single Python runtime) |
+| **LangGraph Platform license** | Required for production images | Not required |
+| **Cold start** | Slower (two services to initialize) | Faster |
+
+Both modes are functionally equivalent — the same agents, tools, and skills work in either mode.
+
+#### Docker Production Deployment
+
+`deploy.sh` supports building and starting separately. Images are mode-agnostic — runtime mode is selected at start time:
+
+```bash
+# One-step (build + start)
+deploy.sh                    # standard mode (default)
+deploy.sh --gateway          # gateway mode
+
+# Two-step (build once, start with any mode)
+deploy.sh build              # build all images
+deploy.sh start              # start in standard mode
+deploy.sh start --gateway    # start in gateway mode
+
+# Stop
+deploy.sh down
+```
+
 ### Advanced
 #### Sandbox Mode
 
diff --git a/backend/CLAUDE.md b/backend/CLAUDE.md
index a45b14253..846429e40 100644
--- a/backend/CLAUDE.md
+++ b/backend/CLAUDE.md
@@ -13,6 +13,10 @@ DeerFlow is a LangGraph-based AI super agent system with a full-stack architectu
 - **Nginx** (port 2026): Unified reverse proxy entry point
 - **Provisioner** (port 8002, optional in Docker dev): Started only when sandbox is configured for provisioner/Kubernetes mode
 
+**Runtime Modes**:
+- **Standard mode** (`make dev`): LangGraph Server handles agent execution as a separate process. 4 processes total.
+- **Gateway mode** (`make dev-pro`, experimental): Agent runtime embedded in Gateway via `RunManager` + `run_agent()` + `StreamBridge` (`packages/harness/deerflow/runtime/`). Service manages its own concurrency via async tasks. 3 processes total, no LangGraph Server.
+
 **Project Structure**:
 ```
 deer-flow/
@@ -80,6 +84,8 @@ When making code changes, you MUST update the relevant documentation:
 make check      # Check system requirements
 make install    # Install all dependencies (frontend + backend)
 make dev        # Start all services (LangGraph + Gateway + Frontend + Nginx), with config.yaml preflight
+make dev-pro    # Gateway mode (experimental): skip LangGraph, agent runtime embedded in Gateway
+make start-pro  # Production + Gateway mode (experimental)
 make stop       # Stop all services
 ```
 
@@ -436,8 +442,25 @@ make dev
 
 This starts all services and makes the application available at `http://localhost:2026`.
 
+**All startup modes:**
+
+| | **Local Foreground** | **Local Daemon** | **Docker Dev** | **Docker Prod** |
+|---|---|---|---|---|
+| **Dev** | `./scripts/serve.sh --dev`<br/>`make dev` | `./scripts/serve.sh --dev --daemon`<br/>`make dev-daemon` | `./scripts/docker.sh start`<br/>`make docker-start` | — |
+| **Dev + Gateway** | `./scripts/serve.sh --dev --gateway`<br/>`make dev-pro` | `./scripts/serve.sh --dev --gateway --daemon`<br/>`make dev-daemon-pro` | `./scripts/docker.sh start --gateway`<br/>`make docker-start-pro` | — |
+| **Prod** | `./scripts/serve.sh --prod`<br/>`make start` | `./scripts/serve.sh --prod --daemon`<br/>`make start-daemon` | — | `./scripts/deploy.sh`<br/>`make up` |
+| **Prod + Gateway** | `./scripts/serve.sh --prod --gateway`<br/>`make start-pro` | `./scripts/serve.sh --prod --gateway --daemon`<br/>`make start-daemon-pro` | — | `./scripts/deploy.sh --gateway`<br/>`make up-pro` |
+
+| Action | Local | Docker Dev | Docker Prod |
+|---|---|---|---|
+| **Stop** | `./scripts/serve.sh --stop`<br/>`make stop` | `./scripts/docker.sh stop`<br/>`make docker-stop` | `./scripts/deploy.sh down`<br/>`make down` |
+| **Restart** | `./scripts/serve.sh --restart [flags]` | `./scripts/docker.sh restart` | — |
+
+Gateway mode embeds the agent runtime in Gateway, no LangGraph server.
+
 **Nginx routing**:
-- `/api/langgraph/*` → LangGraph Server (2024)
+- Standard mode: `/api/langgraph/*` → LangGraph Server (2024)
+- Gateway mode: `/api/langgraph/*` → Gateway embedded runtime (8001) (via envsubst)
 - `/api/*` (other) → Gateway API (8001)
 - `/` (non-API) → Frontend (3000)
 
diff --git a/docker/docker-compose-dev.yaml b/docker/docker-compose-dev.yaml
index c0749ba9d..53dcb80b2 100644
--- a/docker/docker-compose-dev.yaml
+++ b/docker/docker-compose-dev.yaml
@@ -19,8 +19,6 @@ services:
   # cluster via the K8s API.
   # Backend accesses sandboxes directly via host.docker.internal:{NodePort}.
   provisioner:
-    profiles:
-      - provisioner
     build:
       context: ./provisioner
       dockerfile: Dockerfile
@@ -59,20 +57,25 @@ services:
 
   # ── Reverse Proxy ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────
   # Routes API traffic to gateway/langgraph and (optionally) provisioner.
-  # Select nginx config via NGINX_CONF:
-  # - nginx.local.conf (default): no provisioner route (local/aio modes)
-  # - nginx.conf: includes provisioner route (provisioner mode)
+  # LANGGRAPH_UPSTREAM and LANGGRAPH_REWRITE control gateway vs standard
+  # routing (processed by envsubst at container start).
   nginx:
     image: nginx:alpine
     container_name: deer-flow-nginx
     ports:
       - "2026:2026"
     volumes:
-      - ./nginx/${NGINX_CONF:-nginx.conf}:/etc/nginx/nginx.conf:ro
+      - ./nginx/nginx.conf:/etc/nginx/nginx.conf.template:ro
+    environment:
+      - LANGGRAPH_UPSTREAM=${LANGGRAPH_UPSTREAM:-langgraph:2024}
+      - LANGGRAPH_REWRITE=${LANGGRAPH_REWRITE:-/}
+    command: >
+      sh -c "envsubst '$$LANGGRAPH_UPSTREAM $$LANGGRAPH_REWRITE'
+      < /etc/nginx/nginx.conf.template > /etc/nginx/nginx.conf
+      && nginx -g 'daemon off;'"
     depends_on:
       - frontend
       - gateway
-      - langgraph
     networks:
       - deer-flow-dev
     restart: unless-stopped
diff --git a/docker/docker-compose.yaml b/docker/docker-compose.yaml
index 98d549878..8c1432da7 100644
--- a/docker/docker-compose.yaml
+++ b/docker/docker-compose.yaml
@@ -29,11 +29,17 @@ services:
     ports:
       - "${PORT:-2026}:2026"
     volumes:
-      - ./nginx/${NGINX_CONF:-nginx.conf}:/etc/nginx/nginx.conf:ro
+      - ./nginx/nginx.conf:/etc/nginx/nginx.conf.template:ro
+    environment:
+      - LANGGRAPH_UPSTREAM=${LANGGRAPH_UPSTREAM:-langgraph:2024}
+      - LANGGRAPH_REWRITE=${LANGGRAPH_REWRITE:-/}
+    command: >
+      sh -c "envsubst '$$LANGGRAPH_UPSTREAM $$LANGGRAPH_REWRITE'
+      < /etc/nginx/nginx.conf.template > /etc/nginx/nginx.conf
+      && nginx -g 'daemon off;'"
     depends_on:
       - frontend
       - gateway
-      - langgraph
     networks:
       - deer-flow
     restart: unless-stopped
@@ -68,7 +74,7 @@ services:
         UV_IMAGE: ${UV_IMAGE:-ghcr.io/astral-sh/uv:0.7.20}
         UV_INDEX_URL: ${UV_INDEX_URL:-https://pypi.org/simple}
     container_name: deer-flow-gateway
-    command: sh -c "cd backend && PYTHONPATH=. uv run uvicorn app.gateway.app:app --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8001 --workers 2"
+    command: sh -c "cd backend && PYTHONPATH=. uv run uvicorn app.gateway.app:app --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8001 --workers ${GATEWAY_WORKERS:-4}"
     volumes:
       - ${DEER_FLOW_CONFIG_PATH}:/app/backend/config.yaml:ro
       - ${DEER_FLOW_EXTENSIONS_CONFIG_PATH}:/app/backend/extensions_config.json:ro
@@ -160,13 +166,12 @@ services:
 
   # ── Sandbox Provisioner (optional, Kubernetes mode) ────────────────────────
   provisioner:
-    profiles:
-      - provisioner
     build:
       context: ./provisioner
       dockerfile: Dockerfile
       args:
         APT_MIRROR: ${APT_MIRROR:-}
+        PIP_INDEX_URL: ${PIP_INDEX_URL:-}
     container_name: deer-flow-provisioner
     volumes:
       - ~/.kube/config:/root/.kube/config:ro
diff --git a/docker/nginx/nginx.conf b/docker/nginx/nginx.conf
index da570f709..c9a7be32b 100644
--- a/docker/nginx/nginx.conf
+++ b/docker/nginx/nginx.conf
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ http {
     }
 
     upstream langgraph {
-        server langgraph:2024;
+        server ${LANGGRAPH_UPSTREAM};
     }
 
     upstream frontend {
@@ -57,9 +57,11 @@ http {
         }
 
         # LangGraph API routes
-        # Rewrites /api/langgraph/* to /* before proxying
+        # In standard mode: /api/langgraph/* → langgraph:2024 (rewrite to /*)
+        # In gateway mode:  /api/langgraph/* → gateway:8001  (rewrite to /api/*)
+        # Controlled by LANGGRAPH_UPSTREAM and LANGGRAPH_REWRITE env vars.
         location /api/langgraph/ {
-            rewrite ^/api/langgraph/(.*) /$1 break;
+            rewrite ^/api/langgraph/(.*) ${LANGGRAPH_REWRITE}$1 break;
             proxy_pass http://langgraph;
             proxy_http_version 1.1;
 
@@ -84,34 +86,6 @@ http {
             chunked_transfer_encoding on;
         }
 
-        # Experimental: Gateway-backed LangGraph-compatible API
-        # Frontend can opt-in via NEXT_PUBLIC_LANGGRAPH_BASE_URL=/api/langgraph-compat
-        location /api/langgraph-compat/ {
-            rewrite ^/api/langgraph-compat/(.*) /api/$1 break;
-            proxy_pass http://gateway;
-            proxy_http_version 1.1;
-
-            # Headers
-            proxy_set_header Host $host;
-            proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
-            proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
-            proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
-            proxy_set_header Connection '';
-
-            # SSE/Streaming support
-            proxy_buffering off;
-            proxy_cache off;
-            proxy_set_header X-Accel-Buffering no;
-
-            # Timeouts for long-running requests
-            proxy_connect_timeout 600s;
-            proxy_send_timeout 600s;
-            proxy_read_timeout 600s;
-
-            # Chunked transfer encoding
-            chunked_transfer_encoding on;
-        }
-
         # Custom API: Models endpoint
         location /api/models {
             proxy_pass http://gateway;
diff --git a/docker/provisioner/Dockerfile b/docker/provisioner/Dockerfile
index 6f30e778d..96ef93156 100644
--- a/docker/provisioner/Dockerfile
+++ b/docker/provisioner/Dockerfile
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 FROM python:3.12-slim-bookworm
 
 ARG APT_MIRROR
+ARG PIP_INDEX_URL
 
 # Optionally override apt mirror for restricted networks (e.g. APT_MIRROR=mirrors.aliyun.com)
 RUN if [ -n "${APT_MIRROR}" ]; then \
@@ -15,6 +16,7 @@ RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y --no-install-recommends \
 
 # Install Python dependencies
 RUN pip install --no-cache-dir \
+    ${PIP_INDEX_URL:+--index-url "$PIP_INDEX_URL"} \
     fastapi \
     "uvicorn[standard]" \
     kubernetes
diff --git a/scripts/deploy.sh b/scripts/deploy.sh
index 66df240ef..26cb3bc29 100755
--- a/scripts/deploy.sh
+++ b/scripts/deploy.sh
@@ -1,16 +1,57 @@
 #!/usr/bin/env bash
 #
-# deploy.sh - Build and start (or stop) DeerFlow production services
+# deploy.sh - Build, start, or stop DeerFlow production services
 #
-# Usage:
-#   deploy.sh [up]   — build images and start containers (default)
-#   deploy.sh down   — stop and remove containers
+# Commands:
+#   deploy.sh [--MODE]           — build + start (default: --standard)
+#   deploy.sh build              — build all images (mode-agnostic)
+#   deploy.sh start [--MODE]     — start from pre-built images (default: --standard)
+#   deploy.sh down               — stop and remove containers
+#
+# Runtime modes:
+#   --standard  (default)  All services including LangGraph server.
+#   --gateway              No LangGraph container; nginx routes /api/langgraph/*
+#                          to the Gateway compat API instead.
+#
+# Sandbox mode (local / aio / provisioner) is auto-detected from config.yaml.
+#
+# Examples:
+#   deploy.sh                    # build + start in standard mode
+#   deploy.sh --gateway          # build + start in gateway mode
+#   deploy.sh build              # build all images
+#   deploy.sh start --gateway    # start pre-built images in gateway mode
+#   deploy.sh down               # stop and remove containers
 #
 # Must be run from the repo root directory.
 
 set -e
 
-CMD="${1:-up}"
+RUNTIME_MODE="standard"
+
+case "${1:-}" in
+    build|start|down)
+        CMD="$1"
+        if [ -n "${2:-}" ]; then
+            case "$2" in
+                --standard) RUNTIME_MODE="standard" ;;
+                --gateway)  RUNTIME_MODE="gateway" ;;
+                *) echo "Unknown mode: $2"; echo "Usage: deploy.sh [build|start|down] [--standard|--gateway]"; exit 1 ;;
+            esac
+        fi
+        ;;
+    --standard|--gateway)
+        CMD=""
+        RUNTIME_MODE="${1#--}"
+        ;;
+    "")
+        CMD=""
+        ;;
+    *)
+        echo "Unknown argument: $1"
+        echo "Usage: deploy.sh [build|start|down] [--standard|--gateway]"
+        exit 1
+        ;;
+esac
 
 REPO_ROOT="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")/.." && pwd)"
 cd "$REPO_ROOT"
@@ -150,6 +191,32 @@ if [ "$CMD" = "down" ]; then
     exit 0
 fi
 
+# ── build ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+# Build produces mode-agnostic images. No --gateway or sandbox detection needed.
+
+if [ "$CMD" = "build" ]; then
+    echo "=========================================="
+    echo "  DeerFlow — Building Images"
+    echo "=========================================="
+    echo ""
+
+    # Docker socket is needed for compose to parse volume specs
+    if [ -z "$DEER_FLOW_DOCKER_SOCKET" ]; then
+        export DEER_FLOW_DOCKER_SOCKET="/var/run/docker.sock"
+    fi
+
+    "${COMPOSE_CMD[@]}" build
+
+    echo ""
+    echo "=========================================="
+    echo "  ✓ Images built successfully"
+    echo "=========================================="
+    echo ""
+    echo "  Next: deploy.sh start [--gateway]"
+    echo ""
+    exit 0
+fi
+
 # ── Banner ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 echo "=========================================="
@@ -157,19 +224,28 @@ echo "  DeerFlow Production Deployment"
 echo "=========================================="
 echo ""
 
-# ── Step 1: Detect sandbox mode ──────────────────────────────────────────────
+# ── Detect runtime configuration ────────────────────────────────────────────
+# Only needed for start / up — determines which containers to launch.
 
 sandbox_mode="$(detect_sandbox_mode)"
 echo -e "${BLUE}Sandbox mode: $sandbox_mode${NC}"
 
-if [ "$sandbox_mode" = "provisioner" ]; then
-    services=""
-    extra_args="--profile provisioner"
-else
-    services="frontend gateway langgraph nginx"
-    extra_args=""
-fi
+echo -e "${BLUE}Runtime mode: $RUNTIME_MODE${NC}"
 
+case "$RUNTIME_MODE" in
+    gateway)
+        export LANGGRAPH_UPSTREAM=gateway:8001
+        export LANGGRAPH_REWRITE=/api/
+        services="frontend gateway nginx"
+        ;;
+    standard)
+        services="frontend gateway langgraph nginx"
+        ;;
+esac
+
+if [ "$sandbox_mode" = "provisioner" ]; then
+    services="$services provisioner"
+fi
 
 # ── DEER_FLOW_DOCKER_SOCKET ───────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
@@ -189,22 +265,34 @@ fi
 
 echo ""
 
-# ── Step 2: Build and start ───────────────────────────────────────────────────
+# ── Start / Up ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
-echo "Building images and starting containers..."
-echo ""
-
-# shellcheck disable=SC2086
-"${COMPOSE_CMD[@]}" $extra_args up --build -d --remove-orphans $services
+if [ "$CMD" = "start" ]; then
+    echo "Starting containers (no rebuild)..."
+    echo ""
+    # shellcheck disable=SC2086
+    "${COMPOSE_CMD[@]}" up -d --remove-orphans $services
+else
+    # Default: build + start
+    echo "Building images and starting containers..."
+    echo ""
+    # shellcheck disable=SC2086
+    "${COMPOSE_CMD[@]}" up --build -d --remove-orphans $services
+fi
 
 echo ""
 echo "=========================================="
-echo "  DeerFlow is running!"
+echo "  DeerFlow is running! ($RUNTIME_MODE mode)"
 echo "=========================================="
 echo ""
 echo "  🌐 Application: http://localhost:${PORT:-2026}"
 echo "  📡 API Gateway: http://localhost:${PORT:-2026}/api/*"
-echo "  🤖 LangGraph:   http://localhost:${PORT:-2026}/api/langgraph/*"
+if [ "$RUNTIME_MODE" = "gateway" ]; then
+    echo "  🤖 Runtime:     Gateway embedded"
+    echo "  API:            /api/langgraph/* → Gateway (compat)"
+else
+    echo "  🤖 LangGraph:   http://localhost:${PORT:-2026}/api/langgraph/*"
+fi
 echo ""
 echo "  Manage:"
 echo "    make down        — stop and remove containers"
diff --git a/scripts/docker.sh b/scripts/docker.sh
index bc20d4177..0ef1896fe 100755
--- a/scripts/docker.sh
+++ b/scripts/docker.sh
@@ -148,9 +148,18 @@ init() {
 }
 
 # Start Docker development environment
+# Usage: start [--gateway]
 start() {
     local sandbox_mode
     local services
+    local gateway_mode=false
+
+    # Check for --gateway flag
+    for arg in "$@"; do
+        if [ "$arg" = "--gateway" ]; then
+            gateway_mode=true
+        fi
+    done
 
     echo "=========================================="
     echo "  Starting DeerFlow Docker Development"
@@ -159,12 +168,21 @@ start() {
 
     sandbox_mode="$(detect_sandbox_mode)"
 
-    if [ "$sandbox_mode" = "provisioner" ]; then
-        services="frontend gateway langgraph provisioner nginx"
+    if $gateway_mode; then
+        services="frontend gateway nginx"
+        if [ "$sandbox_mode" = "provisioner" ]; then
+            services="frontend gateway provisioner nginx"
+        fi
     else
         services="frontend gateway langgraph nginx"
+        if [ "$sandbox_mode" = "provisioner" ]; then
+            services="frontend gateway langgraph provisioner nginx"
+        fi
     fi
 
+    if $gateway_mode; then
+        echo -e "${BLUE}Runtime: Gateway mode (experimental) — no LangGraph container${NC}"
+    fi
     echo -e "${BLUE}Detected sandbox mode: $sandbox_mode${NC}"
     if [ "$sandbox_mode" = "provisioner" ]; then
         echo -e "${BLUE}Provisioner enabled (Kubernetes mode).${NC}"
@@ -213,6 +231,12 @@ start() {
         fi
     fi
 
+    # Set nginx routing for gateway mode (envsubst in nginx container)
+    if $gateway_mode; then
+        export LANGGRAPH_UPSTREAM=gateway:8001
+        export LANGGRAPH_REWRITE=/api/
+    fi
+
     echo "Building and starting containers..."
     cd "$DOCKER_DIR" && $COMPOSE_CMD up --build -d --remove-orphans $services
     echo ""
@@ -222,7 +246,12 @@ start() {
     echo ""
     echo "  🌐 Application: http://localhost:2026"
     echo "  📡 API Gateway: http://localhost:2026/api/*"
-    echo "  🤖 LangGraph:   http://localhost:2026/api/langgraph/*"
+    if $gateway_mode; then
+        echo "  🤖 Runtime:     Gateway embedded"
+        echo "  API:            /api/langgraph/* → Gateway (compat)"
+    else
+        echo "  🤖 LangGraph:   http://localhost:2026/api/langgraph/*"
+    fi
     echo ""
     echo "  📋 View logs: make docker-logs"
     echo "  🛑 Stop:      make docker-stop"
@@ -300,9 +329,10 @@ help() {
     echo "Usage: $0 <command> [options]"
     echo ""
     echo "Commands:"
-    echo "  init          - Pull the sandbox image (speeds up first Pod startup)"
-    echo "  start         - Start Docker services (auto-detects sandbox mode from config.yaml)"
-    echo "  restart       - Restart all running Docker services"
+    echo "  init              - Pull the sandbox image (speeds up first Pod startup)"
+    echo "  start             - Start Docker services (auto-detects sandbox mode from config.yaml)"
+    echo "  start --gateway   - Start without LangGraph container (Gateway mode, experimental)"
+    echo "  restart           - Restart all running Docker services"
     echo "  logs [option] - View Docker development logs"
     echo "                  --frontend   View frontend logs only"
     echo "                  --gateway    View gateway logs only"
@@ -320,7 +350,8 @@ main() {
             init
             ;;
         start)
-            start
+            shift
+            start "$@"
             ;;
         restart)
             restart
diff --git a/scripts/serve.sh b/scripts/serve.sh
index fe1556a91..bd810e05e 100755
--- a/scripts/serve.sh
+++ b/scripts/serve.sh
@@ -1,15 +1,40 @@
 #!/usr/bin/env bash
 #
-# start.sh - Start all DeerFlow development services
+# serve.sh — Unified DeerFlow service launcher
+#
+# Usage:
+#   ./scripts/serve.sh [--dev|--prod] [--gateway] [--daemon] [--stop|--restart]
+#
+# Modes:
+#   --dev       Development mode with hot-reload (default)
+#   --prod      Production mode, pre-built frontend, no hot-reload
+#   --gateway   Gateway mode (experimental): skip LangGraph server,
+#               agent runtime embedded in Gateway API
+#   --daemon    Run all services in background (nohup), exit after startup
+#
+# Actions:
+#   --skip-install  Skip dependency installation (faster restart)
+#   --stop      Stop all running services and exit
+#   --restart   Stop all services, then start with the given mode flags
+#
+# Examples:
+#   ./scripts/serve.sh --dev                 # Standard dev (4 processes)
+#   ./scripts/serve.sh --dev --gateway       # Gateway dev  (3 processes)
+#   ./scripts/serve.sh --prod --gateway      # Gateway prod (3 processes)
+#   ./scripts/serve.sh --dev --daemon        # Standard dev, background
+#   ./scripts/serve.sh --dev --gateway --daemon  # Gateway dev, background
+#   ./scripts/serve.sh --stop                # Stop all services
+#   ./scripts/serve.sh --restart --dev --gateway # Restart in gateway mode
 #
 # Must be run from the repo root directory.
 
 set -e
 
-REPO_ROOT="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")/.." && pwd)"
+REPO_ROOT="$(builtin cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")/.." >/dev/null 2>&1 && pwd -P)"
 cd "$REPO_ROOT"
 
-# ── Load environment variables from .env ──────────────────────────────────────
+# ── Load .env ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
 if [ -f "$REPO_ROOT/.env" ]; then
     set -a
     source "$REPO_ROOT/.env"
@@ -19,14 +44,80 @@ fi
 # ── Argument parsing ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 DEV_MODE=true
+GATEWAY_MODE=false
+DAEMON_MODE=false
+SKIP_INSTALL=false
+ACTION="start"   # start | stop | restart
+
 for arg in "$@"; do
     case "$arg" in
-        --dev)  DEV_MODE=true ;;
-        --prod) DEV_MODE=false ;;
-        *) echo "Unknown argument: $arg"; echo "Usage: $0 [--dev|--prod]"; exit 1 ;;
+        --dev)     DEV_MODE=true ;;
+        --prod)    DEV_MODE=false ;;
+        --gateway) GATEWAY_MODE=true ;;
+        --daemon)  DAEMON_MODE=true ;;
+        --skip-install) SKIP_INSTALL=true ;;
+        --stop)    ACTION="stop" ;;
+        --restart) ACTION="restart" ;;
+        *)
+            echo "Unknown argument: $arg"
+            echo "Usage: $0 [--dev|--prod] [--gateway] [--daemon] [--skip-install] [--stop|--restart]"
+            exit 1
+            ;;
     esac
 done
 
+# ── Stop helper ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+stop_all() {
+    echo "Stopping all services..."
+    pkill -f "langgraph dev" 2>/dev/null || true
+    pkill -f "uvicorn app.gateway.app:app" 2>/dev/null || true
+    pkill -f "next dev" 2>/dev/null || true
+    pkill -f "next start" 2>/dev/null || true
+    pkill -f "next-server" 2>/dev/null || true
+    nginx -c "$REPO_ROOT/docker/nginx/nginx.local.conf" -p "$REPO_ROOT" -s quit 2>/dev/null || true
+    sleep 1
+    pkill -9 nginx 2>/dev/null || true
+    ./scripts/cleanup-containers.sh deer-flow-sandbox 2>/dev/null || true
+    echo "✓ All services stopped"
+}
+
+# ── Action routing ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+if [ "$ACTION" = "stop" ]; then
+    stop_all
+    exit 0
+fi
+
+ALREADY_STOPPED=false
+if [ "$ACTION" = "restart" ]; then
+    stop_all
+    sleep 1
+    ALREADY_STOPPED=true
+fi
+
+# ── Derive runtime flags ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+if $GATEWAY_MODE; then
+    export SKIP_LANGGRAPH_SERVER=1
+fi
+
+# Mode label for banner
+if $DEV_MODE && $GATEWAY_MODE; then
+    MODE_LABEL="DEV + GATEWAY (experimental)"
+elif $DEV_MODE; then
+    MODE_LABEL="DEV (hot-reload enabled)"
+elif $GATEWAY_MODE; then
+    MODE_LABEL="PROD + GATEWAY (experimental)"
+else
+    MODE_LABEL="PROD (optimized)"
+fi
+
+if $DAEMON_MODE; then
+    MODE_LABEL="$MODE_LABEL [daemon]"
+fi
+
+# Frontend command
 if $DEV_MODE; then
     FRONTEND_CMD="pnpm run dev"
 else
@@ -35,46 +126,26 @@ else
     elif command -v python >/dev/null 2>&1; then
         PYTHON_BIN="python"
     else
-        echo "Python is required to generate BETTER_AUTH_SECRET, but neither python3 nor python was found."
+        echo "Python is required to generate BETTER_AUTH_SECRET."
         exit 1
     fi
     FRONTEND_CMD="env BETTER_AUTH_SECRET=$($PYTHON_BIN -c 'import secrets; print(secrets.token_hex(16))') pnpm run preview"
 fi
 
-# ── Stop existing services ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
-
-echo "Stopping existing services if any..."
-pkill -f "langgraph dev" 2>/dev/null || true
-pkill -f "uvicorn app.gateway.app:app" 2>/dev/null || true
-pkill -f "next dev" 2>/dev/null || true
-pkill -f "next-server" 2>/dev/null || true
-nginx -c "$REPO_ROOT/docker/nginx/nginx.local.conf" -p "$REPO_ROOT" -s quit 2>/dev/null || true
-sleep 1
-pkill -9 nginx 2>/dev/null || true
-killall -9 nginx 2>/dev/null || true
-./scripts/cleanup-containers.sh deer-flow-sandbox 2>/dev/null || true
-sleep 1
-
-# ── Banner ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
-
-echo ""
-echo "=========================================="
-echo "  Starting DeerFlow Development Server"
-echo "=========================================="
-echo ""
-if $DEV_MODE; then
-    echo "  Mode: DEV  (hot-reload enabled)"
-    echo "  Tip:  run \`make start\` in production mode"
+# Extra flags for uvicorn/langgraph
+LANGGRAPH_EXTRA_FLAGS="--no-reload"
+if $DEV_MODE && ! $DAEMON_MODE; then
+    GATEWAY_EXTRA_FLAGS="--reload --reload-include='*.yaml' --reload-include='.env' --reload-exclude='*.pyc' --reload-exclude='__pycache__' --reload-exclude='sandbox/' --reload-exclude='.deer-flow/'"
 else
-    echo "  Mode: PROD (hot-reload disabled)"
-    echo "  Tip:  run \`make dev\` to start in development mode"
+    GATEWAY_EXTRA_FLAGS=""
+fi
+
+# ── Stop existing services (skip if restart already did it) ──────────────────
+
+if ! $ALREADY_STOPPED; then
+    stop_all
+    sleep 1
 fi
-echo ""
-echo "Services starting up..."
-echo "  → Backend: LangGraph + Gateway"
-echo "  → Frontend: Next.js"
-echo "  → Nginx: Reverse Proxy"
-echo ""
 
 # ── Config check ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
@@ -84,64 +155,108 @@ if ! { \
         [ -f config.yaml ]; \
     }; then
     echo "✗ No DeerFlow config file found."
-    echo "  Checked these locations:"
-    echo "    - $DEER_FLOW_CONFIG_PATH (when DEER_FLOW_CONFIG_PATH is set)"
-    echo "    - backend/config.yaml"
-    echo "    - ./config.yaml"
-    echo ""
-    echo "  Run 'make config' from the repo root to generate ./config.yaml, then set required model API keys in .env or your config file."
+    echo "  Run 'make config' to generate config.yaml."
     exit 1
 fi
 
-# ── Auto-upgrade config ──────────────────────────────────────────────────
-
 "$REPO_ROOT/scripts/config-upgrade.sh"
 
-# ── Cleanup trap ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+# ── Install dependencies ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+if ! $SKIP_INSTALL; then
+    echo "Syncing dependencies..."
+    (cd backend && uv sync --quiet) || { echo "✗ Backend dependency install failed"; exit 1; }
+    (cd frontend && pnpm install --silent) || { echo "✗ Frontend dependency install failed"; exit 1; }
+    echo "✓ Dependencies synced"
+else
+    echo "⏩ Skipping dependency install (--skip-install)"
+fi
+
+# ── Sync frontend .env.local ─────────────────────────────────────────────────
+# Next.js .env.local takes precedence over process env vars.
+# The script manages the NEXT_PUBLIC_LANGGRAPH_BASE_URL line to ensure
+# the frontend routes match the active backend mode.
+
+FRONTEND_ENV_LOCAL="$REPO_ROOT/frontend/.env.local"
+ENV_KEY="NEXT_PUBLIC_LANGGRAPH_BASE_URL"
+
+sync_frontend_env() {
+    if $GATEWAY_MODE; then
+        # Point frontend to Gateway's compat API
+        if [ -f "$FRONTEND_ENV_LOCAL" ] && grep -q "^${ENV_KEY}=" "$FRONTEND_ENV_LOCAL"; then
+            sed -i.bak "s|^${ENV_KEY}=.*|${ENV_KEY}=/api/langgraph-compat|" "$FRONTEND_ENV_LOCAL" && rm -f "${FRONTEND_ENV_LOCAL}.bak"
+        else
+            echo "${ENV_KEY}=/api/langgraph-compat" >> "$FRONTEND_ENV_LOCAL"
+        fi
+    else
+        # Remove override — frontend falls back to /api/langgraph (standard)
+        if [ -f "$FRONTEND_ENV_LOCAL" ] && grep -q "^${ENV_KEY}=" "$FRONTEND_ENV_LOCAL"; then
+            sed -i.bak "/^${ENV_KEY}=/d" "$FRONTEND_ENV_LOCAL" && rm -f "${FRONTEND_ENV_LOCAL}.bak"
+        fi
+    fi
+}
+
+sync_frontend_env
+
+# ── Banner ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+echo ""
+echo "=========================================="
+echo "  Starting DeerFlow"
+echo "=========================================="
+echo ""
+echo "  Mode: $MODE_LABEL"
+echo ""
+echo "  Services:"
+if ! $GATEWAY_MODE; then
+    echo "    LangGraph   → localhost:2024  (agent runtime)"
+fi
+echo "    Gateway     → localhost:8001  (REST API$(if $GATEWAY_MODE; then echo " + agent runtime"; fi))"
+echo "    Frontend    → localhost:3000  (Next.js)"
+echo "    Nginx       → localhost:2026  (reverse proxy)"
+echo ""
+
+# ── Cleanup handler ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 cleanup() {
     trap - INT TERM
     echo ""
-    echo "Shutting down services..."
-    if [ "${SKIP_LANGGRAPH_SERVER:-0}" != "1" ]; then
-        pkill -f "langgraph dev" 2>/dev/null || true
-    fi
-    pkill -f "uvicorn app.gateway.app:app" 2>/dev/null || true
-    pkill -f "next dev" 2>/dev/null || true
-    pkill -f "next start" 2>/dev/null || true
-    pkill -f "next-server" 2>/dev/null || true
-    # Kill nginx using the captured PID first (most reliable),
-    # then fall back to pkill/killall for any stray nginx workers.
-    if [ -n "${NGINX_PID:-}" ] && kill -0 "$NGINX_PID" 2>/dev/null; then
-        kill -TERM "$NGINX_PID" 2>/dev/null || true
-        sleep 1
-        kill -9 "$NGINX_PID" 2>/dev/null || true
-    fi
-    pkill -9 nginx 2>/dev/null || true
-    killall -9 nginx 2>/dev/null || true
-    echo "Cleaning up sandbox containers..."
-    ./scripts/cleanup-containers.sh deer-flow-sandbox 2>/dev/null || true
-    echo "✓ All services stopped"
+    stop_all
     exit 0
 }
+
 trap cleanup INT TERM
 
-# ── Start services ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+# ── Helper: start a service ──────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+# run_service NAME COMMAND PORT TIMEOUT
+# In daemon mode, wraps with nohup. Waits for port to be ready.
+run_service() {
+    local name="$1" cmd="$2" port="$3" timeout="$4"
+
+    echo "Starting $name..."
+    if $DAEMON_MODE; then
+        nohup sh -c "$cmd" > /dev/null 2>&1 &
+    else
+        sh -c "$cmd" &
+    fi
+
+    ./scripts/wait-for-port.sh "$port" "$timeout" "$name" || {
+        local logfile="logs/$(echo "$name" | tr '[:upper:]' '[:lower:]' | tr ' ' '-').log"
+        echo "✗ $name failed to start."
+        [ -f "$logfile" ] && tail -20 "$logfile"
+        cleanup
+    }
+    echo "✓ $name started on localhost:$port"
+}
+
+# ── Start services ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 mkdir -p logs
 mkdir -p temp/client_body_temp temp/proxy_temp temp/fastcgi_temp temp/uwsgi_temp temp/scgi_temp
 
-if $DEV_MODE; then
-    LANGGRAPH_EXTRA_FLAGS="--no-reload"
-    GATEWAY_EXTRA_FLAGS="--reload --reload-include='*.yaml' --reload-include='.env' --reload-exclude='*.pyc' --reload-exclude='__pycache__' --reload-exclude='sandbox/' --reload-exclude='.deer-flow/'"
-else
-    LANGGRAPH_EXTRA_FLAGS="--no-reload"
-    GATEWAY_EXTRA_FLAGS=""
-fi
-
-if [ "${SKIP_LANGGRAPH_SERVER:-0}" != "1" ]; then
-    echo "Starting LangGraph server..."
-    # Read log_level from config.yaml, fallback to env var, then to "info"
+# 1. LangGraph (skip in gateway mode)
+if ! $GATEWAY_MODE; then
     CONFIG_LOG_LEVEL=$(grep -m1 '^log_level:' config.yaml 2>/dev/null | awk '{print $2}' | tr -d ' ')
     LANGGRAPH_LOG_LEVEL="${LANGGRAPH_LOG_LEVEL:-${CONFIG_LOG_LEVEL:-info}}"
     LANGGRAPH_JOBS_PER_WORKER="${LANGGRAPH_JOBS_PER_WORKER:-10}"
@@ -150,85 +265,54 @@ if [ "${SKIP_LANGGRAPH_SERVER:-0}" != "1" ]; then
     if [ "$LANGGRAPH_ALLOW_BLOCKING" = "1" ]; then
         LANGGRAPH_ALLOW_BLOCKING_FLAG="--allow-blocking"
     fi
-    (cd backend && NO_COLOR=1 uv run langgraph dev --no-browser $LANGGRAPH_ALLOW_BLOCKING_FLAG --n-jobs-per-worker "$LANGGRAPH_JOBS_PER_WORKER" --server-log-level $LANGGRAPH_LOG_LEVEL $LANGGRAPH_EXTRA_FLAGS > ../logs/langgraph.log 2>&1) &
-    ./scripts/wait-for-port.sh 2024 60 "LangGraph" || {
-        echo "  See logs/langgraph.log for details"
-        tail -20 logs/langgraph.log
-        if grep -qE "config_version|outdated|Environment variable .* not found|KeyError|ValidationError|config\.yaml" logs/langgraph.log 2>/dev/null; then
-            echo ""
-            echo "  Hint: This may be a configuration issue. Try running 'make config-upgrade' to update your config.yaml."
-        fi
-        cleanup
-    }
-    echo "✓ LangGraph server started on localhost:2024"
+    run_service "LangGraph" \
+        "cd backend && NO_COLOR=1 uv run langgraph dev --no-browser $LANGGRAPH_ALLOW_BLOCKING_FLAG --n-jobs-per-worker $LANGGRAPH_JOBS_PER_WORKER --server-log-level $LANGGRAPH_LOG_LEVEL $LANGGRAPH_EXTRA_FLAGS > ../logs/langgraph.log 2>&1" \
+        2024 60
 else
-    echo "⏩ Skipping LangGraph server (SKIP_LANGGRAPH_SERVER=1)"
-    echo "   Use /api/langgraph-compat/* via Gateway instead"
+    echo "⏩ Skipping LangGraph (Gateway mode — runtime embedded in Gateway)"
 fi
 
-echo "Starting Gateway API..."
-(cd backend && PYTHONPATH=. uv run uvicorn app.gateway.app:app --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8001 $GATEWAY_EXTRA_FLAGS > ../logs/gateway.log 2>&1) &
-./scripts/wait-for-port.sh 8001 30 "Gateway API" || {
-    echo "✗ Gateway API failed to start. Last log output:"
-    tail -60 logs/gateway.log
-    echo ""
-    echo "Likely configuration errors:"
-    grep -E "Failed to load configuration|Environment variable .* not found|config\.yaml.*not found" logs/gateway.log | tail -5 || true
-    echo ""
-    echo "  Hint: Try running 'make config-upgrade' to update your config.yaml with the latest fields."
-    cleanup
-}
-echo "✓ Gateway API started on localhost:8001"
+# 2. Gateway API
+run_service "Gateway" \
+    "cd backend && PYTHONPATH=. uv run uvicorn app.gateway.app:app --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8001 $GATEWAY_EXTRA_FLAGS > ../logs/gateway.log 2>&1" \
+    8001 30
 
-echo "Starting Frontend..."
-(cd frontend && $FRONTEND_CMD > ../logs/frontend.log 2>&1) &
-./scripts/wait-for-port.sh 3000 120 "Frontend" || {
-    echo "  See logs/frontend.log for details"
-    tail -20 logs/frontend.log
-    cleanup
-}
-echo "✓ Frontend started on localhost:3000"
+# 3. Frontend
+run_service "Frontend" \
+    "cd frontend && $FRONTEND_CMD > ../logs/frontend.log 2>&1" \
+    3000 120
 
-echo "Starting Nginx reverse proxy..."
-nginx -g 'daemon off;' -c "$REPO_ROOT/docker/nginx/nginx.local.conf" -p "$REPO_ROOT" > logs/nginx.log 2>&1 &
-NGINX_PID=$!
-./scripts/wait-for-port.sh 2026 10 "Nginx" || {
-    echo "  See logs/nginx.log for details"
-    tail -10 logs/nginx.log
-    cleanup
-}
-echo "✓ Nginx started on localhost:2026"
+# 4. Nginx
+run_service "Nginx" \
+    "nginx -g 'daemon off;' -c '$REPO_ROOT/docker/nginx/nginx.local.conf' -p '$REPO_ROOT' > logs/nginx.log 2>&1" \
+    2026 10
 
-# ── Ready ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+# ── Ready ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 echo ""
 echo "=========================================="
-if $DEV_MODE; then
-    echo "  ✓ DeerFlow development server is running!"
-else
-    echo "  ✓ DeerFlow production server is running!"
-fi
+echo "  ✓ DeerFlow is running!  [$MODE_LABEL]"
 echo "=========================================="
 echo ""
-echo "  🌐 Application: http://localhost:2026"
-echo "  📡 API Gateway: http://localhost:2026/api/*"
-if [ "${SKIP_LANGGRAPH_SERVER:-0}" = "1" ]; then
-    echo "  🤖 LangGraph: skipped (SKIP_LANGGRAPH_SERVER=1)"
+echo "  🌐 http://localhost:2026"
+echo ""
+if $GATEWAY_MODE; then
+    echo "  Routing: Frontend → Nginx → Gateway (embedded runtime)"
+    echo "  API:     /api/langgraph-compat/*  →  Gateway agent runtime"
 else
-    echo "  🤖 LangGraph: http://localhost:2026/api/langgraph/* (served by langgraph dev)"
-fi
-echo "  🧪 LangGraph Compat (experimental): http://localhost:2026/api/langgraph-compat/* (served by Gateway)"
-if [ "${SKIP_LANGGRAPH_SERVER:-0}" = "1" ]; then
-    echo ""
-    echo "  💡 Set NEXT_PUBLIC_LANGGRAPH_BASE_URL=/api/langgraph-compat in frontend/.env.local"
+    echo "  Routing: Frontend → Nginx → LangGraph + Gateway"
+    echo "  API:     /api/langgraph/*  →  LangGraph server (2024)"
 fi
+echo "           /api/*              →  Gateway REST API (8001)"
 echo ""
-echo "  📋 Logs:"
-echo "     - LangGraph: logs/langgraph.log"
-echo "     - Gateway:   logs/gateway.log"
-echo "     - Frontend:  logs/frontend.log"
-echo "     - Nginx:     logs/nginx.log"
+echo "  📋 Logs: logs/{langgraph,gateway,frontend,nginx}.log"
 echo ""
-echo "Press Ctrl+C to stop all services"
 
-wait
+if $DAEMON_MODE; then
+    echo "  🛑 Stop: make stop"
+    # Detach — trap is no longer needed
+    trap - INT TERM
+else
+    echo "  Press Ctrl+C to stop all services"
+    wait
+fi
diff --git a/scripts/start-daemon.sh b/scripts/start-daemon.sh
index cce8c65bb..8822b73a0 100755
--- a/scripts/start-daemon.sh
+++ b/scripts/start-daemon.sh
@@ -1,146 +1,9 @@
 #!/usr/bin/env bash
 #
-# start-daemon.sh - Start all DeerFlow development services in daemon mode
+# start-daemon.sh — Start DeerFlow in daemon (background) mode
 #
-# This script starts DeerFlow services in the background without keeping
-# the terminal connection. Logs are written to separate files.
-#
-# Must be run from the repo root directory.
-
-set -e
+# Thin wrapper around serve.sh --daemon.
+# Kept for backward compatibility.
 
 REPO_ROOT="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")/.." && pwd)"
-cd "$REPO_ROOT"
-
-# ── Stop existing services ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
-
-echo "Stopping existing services if any..."
-pkill -f "langgraph dev" 2>/dev/null || true
-pkill -f "uvicorn app.gateway.app:app" 2>/dev/null || true
-pkill -f "next dev" 2>/dev/null || true
-nginx -c "$REPO_ROOT/docker/nginx/nginx.local.conf" -p "$REPO_ROOT" -s quit 2>/dev/null || true
-sleep 1
-pkill -9 nginx 2>/dev/null || true
-./scripts/cleanup-containers.sh deer-flow-sandbox 2>/dev/null || true
-sleep 1
-
-# ── Banner ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
-
-echo ""
-echo "=========================================="
-echo " Starting DeerFlow in Daemon Mode"
-echo "=========================================="
-echo ""
-
-# ── Config check ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
-
-if ! { \
-        [ -n "$DEER_FLOW_CONFIG_PATH" ] && [ -f "$DEER_FLOW_CONFIG_PATH" ] || \
-        [ -f backend/config.yaml ] || \
-        [ -f config.yaml ]; \
-    }; then
-    echo "✗ No DeerFlow config file found."
-    echo "  Checked these locations:"
-    echo "    - $DEER_FLOW_CONFIG_PATH (when DEER_FLOW_CONFIG_PATH is set)"
-    echo "    - backend/config.yaml"
-    echo "    - ./config.yaml"
-    echo ""
-    echo "  Run 'make config' from the repo root to generate ./config.yaml, then set required model API keys in .env or your config file."
-    exit 1
-fi
-
-# ── Auto-upgrade config ──────────────────────────────────────────────────
-
-"$REPO_ROOT/scripts/config-upgrade.sh"
-
-# ── Cleanup on failure ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
-
-cleanup_on_failure() {
-    echo "Failed to start services, cleaning up..."
-    pkill -f "langgraph dev" 2>/dev/null || true
-    pkill -f "uvicorn app.gateway.app:app" 2>/dev/null || true
-    pkill -f "next dev" 2>/dev/null || true
-    nginx -c "$REPO_ROOT/docker/nginx/nginx.local.conf" -p "$REPO_ROOT" -s quit 2>/dev/null || true
-    sleep 1
-    pkill -9 nginx 2>/dev/null || true
-    echo "✓ Cleanup complete"
-}
-
-trap cleanup_on_failure INT TERM
-
-# ── Start services ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
-
-mkdir -p logs
-mkdir -p temp/client_body_temp temp/proxy_temp temp/fastcgi_temp temp/uwsgi_temp temp/scgi_temp
-
-echo "Starting LangGraph server..."
-LANGGRAPH_JOBS_PER_WORKER="${LANGGRAPH_JOBS_PER_WORKER:-10}"
-LANGGRAPH_ALLOW_BLOCKING="${LANGGRAPH_ALLOW_BLOCKING:-0}"
-LANGGRAPH_ALLOW_BLOCKING_FLAG=""
-if [ "$LANGGRAPH_ALLOW_BLOCKING" = "1" ]; then
-    LANGGRAPH_ALLOW_BLOCKING_FLAG="--allow-blocking"
-fi
-nohup sh -c "cd backend && NO_COLOR=1 uv run langgraph dev --no-browser ${LANGGRAPH_ALLOW_BLOCKING_FLAG} --no-reload --n-jobs-per-worker ${LANGGRAPH_JOBS_PER_WORKER} > ../logs/langgraph.log 2>&1" &
-./scripts/wait-for-port.sh 2024 60 "LangGraph" || {
-    echo "✗ LangGraph failed to start. Last log output:"
-    tail -60 logs/langgraph.log
-    if grep -qE "config_version|outdated|Environment variable .* not found|KeyError|ValidationError|config\.yaml" logs/langgraph.log 2>/dev/null; then
-        echo ""
-        echo "  Hint: This may be a configuration issue. Try running 'make config-upgrade' to update your config.yaml."
-    fi
-    cleanup_on_failure
-    exit 1
-}
-echo "✓ LangGraph server started on localhost:2024"
-
-echo "Starting Gateway API..."
-nohup sh -c 'cd backend && PYTHONPATH=. uv run uvicorn app.gateway.app:app --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8001 > ../logs/gateway.log 2>&1' &
-./scripts/wait-for-port.sh 8001 30 "Gateway API" || {
-    echo "✗ Gateway API failed to start. Last log output:"
-    tail -60 logs/gateway.log
-    echo ""
-    echo "  Hint: Try running 'make config-upgrade' to update your config.yaml with the latest fields."
-    cleanup_on_failure
-    exit 1
-}
-echo "✓ Gateway API started on localhost:8001"
-
-echo "Starting Frontend..."
-nohup sh -c 'cd frontend && pnpm run dev > ../logs/frontend.log 2>&1' &
-./scripts/wait-for-port.sh 3000 120 "Frontend" || {
-    echo "✗ Frontend failed to start. Last log output:"
-    tail -60 logs/frontend.log
-    cleanup_on_failure
-    exit 1
-}
-echo "✓ Frontend started on localhost:3000"
-
-echo "Starting Nginx reverse proxy..."
-nohup sh -c 'nginx -g "daemon off;" -c "$1/docker/nginx/nginx.local.conf" -p "$1" > logs/nginx.log 2>&1' _ "$REPO_ROOT" &
-./scripts/wait-for-port.sh 2026 10 "Nginx" || {
-    echo "✗ Nginx failed to start. Last log output:"
-    tail -60 logs/nginx.log
-    cleanup_on_failure
-    exit 1
-}
-echo "✓ Nginx started on localhost:2026"
-
-# ── Ready ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
-
-echo ""
-echo "=========================================="
-echo " DeerFlow is running in daemon mode!"
-echo "=========================================="
-echo ""
-echo " 🌐 Application: http://localhost:2026"
-echo " 📡 API Gateway: http://localhost:2026/api/*"
-echo " 🤖 LangGraph: http://localhost:2026/api/langgraph/*"
-echo ""
-echo " 📋 Logs:"
-echo " - LangGraph: logs/langgraph.log"
-echo " - Gateway: logs/gateway.log"
-echo " - Frontend: logs/frontend.log"
-echo " - Nginx: logs/nginx.log"
-echo ""
-echo " 🛑 Stop daemon: make stop"
-echo ""
+exec "$REPO_ROOT/scripts/serve.sh" --dev --daemon "$@"