diff --git a/scripts/Deploy-Brass.ps1 b/scripts/Deploy-Brass.ps1
index 9567975..fe8c589 100644
--- a/scripts/Deploy-Brass.ps1
+++ b/scripts/Deploy-Brass.ps1
@@ -52,7 +52,10 @@ if (-not (Test-Path $cfgPath)) {
 . $cfgPath
 
 # Sanity-check required vars actually got set (template ships with CHANGE_ME).
-foreach ($v in 'DeployShare','ServerSshHost','ServerSshKey','ServerBinaryRemote') {
+# $ServerSshKey is only required for SSH-mode deploys; skip it when ServerSshHost = 'local'.
+$requiredVars = @('DeployShare','ServerSshHost','ServerBinaryRemote')
+if ($ServerSshHost -ne 'local') { $requiredVars += 'ServerSshKey' }
+foreach ($v in $requiredVars) {
     $val = Get-Variable -Name $v -ValueOnly -ErrorAction Stop
     if ($val -match 'CHANGE_ME' -or [string]::IsNullOrWhiteSpace($val)) {
         throw "deploy.config.ps1 has placeholder/empty `$$v. Fill it in."
@@ -120,14 +123,26 @@ if (($shouldRunPack -or $shouldRunLauncher) -and -not $DryRun -and -not $Force)
 # actually broken -- the atomic swap is safe with the daemon running). But
 # knowing the state up front lets us tailor the final "next steps" message
 # so a deploy success doesn't silently leave you on the old code.
+# Set $ServerSshHost = 'local' in deploy.config.ps1 to skip SSH entirely
+# and copy/inspect the server binary on the local filesystem. Use when the
+# deploy machine IS the server (e.g. running Deploy-Brass.ps1 on glados).
+$isLocalDeploy = ($ServerSshHost -eq 'local')
+
 $daemonWasRunning = $false
 if ($shouldRunServer) {
-    Write-Host "Pre-flight: checking daemon state on $ServerSshHost..." -ForegroundColor DarkGray
-    # Single-quoted PS string so PowerShell doesn't try to interpret the
-    # bash-side metacharacters. The remote shell sees the literal pgrep
-    # command; the trailing $ anchors so we don't match run.sh wrappers.
-    $remoteCmd = 'pgrep -f /brass-sigil-server$ 2>/dev/null'
-    $pgrepOut = & ssh -i $ServerSshKey -o ConnectTimeout=5 -o BatchMode=yes $ServerSshHost $remoteCmd 2>$null
+    if ($isLocalDeploy) {
+        Write-Host "Pre-flight: checking daemon state locally..." -ForegroundColor DarkGray
+        $pgrepOut = & pgrep -f '/brass-sigil-server($| )' 2>$null
+    } else {
+        Write-Host "Pre-flight: checking daemon state on $ServerSshHost..." -ForegroundColor DarkGray
+        # Single-quoted PS string so PowerShell doesn't try to interpret the
+        # bash-side metacharacters. Match the binary path followed by either
+        # end-of-line OR a space, so we catch `brass-sigil-server run` (the
+        # actual invocation) without matching the `/brass-sigil-server/...`
+        # directory path that appears in the run.sh wrapper's argv.
+        $remoteCmd = 'pgrep -f /brass-sigil-server($| ) 2>/dev/null'
+        $pgrepOut = & ssh -i $ServerSshKey -o ConnectTimeout=5 -o BatchMode=yes $ServerSshHost $remoteCmd 2>$null
+    }
     $daemonWasRunning = -not [string]::IsNullOrWhiteSpace($pgrepOut)
     if ($daemonWasRunning) {
         Write-Host "  Daemon is RUNNING. Atomic swap is safe -- but you'll need to" -ForegroundColor Yellow
@@ -224,15 +239,27 @@ if ($shouldRunPack) {
     }
 }
 
-# ─── Stage 6: scp + atomic swap server binary ──────────────────────────────
+# ─── Stage 6: copy + atomic swap server binary ─────────────────────────────
 if ($shouldRunServer) {
-    Step "scp server binary -> $ServerSshHost`:$ServerBinaryRemote (atomic swap)" {
-        $remoteNew = "$ServerBinaryRemote.new"
-        & scp -i $ServerSshKey -o ConnectTimeout=15 $serverExe "$ServerSshHost`:$remoteNew"
-        if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) { throw "scp failed with exit $LASTEXITCODE" }
-        $cmd = "chmod +x '$remoteNew' && mv '$remoteNew' '$ServerBinaryRemote' && md5sum '$ServerBinaryRemote'"
-        & ssh -i $ServerSshKey -o ConnectTimeout=10 $ServerSshHost $cmd
-        if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) { throw "ssh swap failed with exit $LASTEXITCODE" }
+    if ($isLocalDeploy) {
+        Step "Copy server binary -> $ServerBinaryRemote (local atomic swap)" {
+            $localNew = "$ServerBinaryRemote.new"
+            Copy-Item $serverExe $localNew -Force
+            & chmod +x $localNew
+            if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) { throw "chmod failed with exit $LASTEXITCODE" }
+            Move-Item $localNew $ServerBinaryRemote -Force
+            $md5 = (& md5sum $ServerBinaryRemote) -split '\s+' | Select-Object -First 1
+            Write-Host "      md5: $md5" -ForegroundColor DarkGray
+        }
+    } else {
+        Step "scp server binary -> $ServerSshHost`:$ServerBinaryRemote (atomic swap)" {
+            $remoteNew = "$ServerBinaryRemote.new"
+            & scp -i $ServerSshKey -o ConnectTimeout=15 $serverExe "$ServerSshHost`:$remoteNew"
+            if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) { throw "scp failed with exit $LASTEXITCODE" }
+            $cmd = "chmod +x '$remoteNew' && mv '$remoteNew' '$ServerBinaryRemote' && md5sum '$ServerBinaryRemote'"
+            & ssh -i $ServerSshKey -o ConnectTimeout=10 $ServerSshHost $cmd
+            if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) { throw "ssh swap failed with exit $LASTEXITCODE" }
+        }
     }
     Write-Host ""
     if ($daemonWasRunning) {
diff --git a/scripts/deploy.config.template.ps1 b/scripts/deploy.config.template.ps1
index 205922c..28c1d64 100644
--- a/scripts/deploy.config.template.ps1
+++ b/scripts/deploy.config.template.ps1
@@ -19,13 +19,20 @@ $ManifestPublicUrl = 'https://CHANGE_ME/pack/manifest.json'
 
 # ─── Server (brass-sigil-server daemon host) ───────────────────────────────
 # user@host for the Linux box running the daemon.
+#
+# Set to the literal string 'local' if Deploy-Brass.ps1 is being run on the
+# server itself (e.g. on glados over the Telegram bridge). In local mode the
+# script skips scp/ssh and copies the binary directly to $ServerBinaryRemote
+# with an in-place atomic rename; $ServerSshKey is ignored.
 $ServerSshHost     = 'user@CHANGE_ME'
 
 # Path to the local SSH private key authorised on the server.
+# Ignored when $ServerSshHost = 'local'.
 $ServerSshKey      = "$env:USERPROFILE\.ssh\id_ed25519"
 
-# Absolute path on the Linux box where the brass-sigil-server binary lives.
-# `Deploy-Brass.ps1` uploads to "<this>.new" then `mv` over for atomic swap.
+# Absolute path where the brass-sigil-server binary lives -- on the remote
+# host in SSH mode, on the local filesystem in 'local' mode.
+# `Deploy-Brass.ps1` writes to "<this>.new" then renames over for atomic swap.
 $ServerBinaryRemote = '/home/user/brass-sigil-server/brass-sigil-server'
 
 # ─── Build outputs (don't normally need to change) ─────────────────────────