diff --git a/.changeset/22150-scaffold-dockerfile-lockfile.md b/.changeset/22150-scaffold-dockerfile-lockfile.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..eb87e04edb3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changeset/22150-scaffold-dockerfile-lockfile.md
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+---
+"create-objectstack": patch
+---
+
+fix(create-objectstack): the scaffolded Dockerfile installs from the lockfile the project carries
+
+Clause-②: no
+
+Where pnpm is on PATH, `create-objectstack` installs with pnpm and the project gets `pnpm-lock.yaml` and no `package-lock.json`. The `Dockerfile` it wrote copied `package*.json` and ran `npm ci`, so `docker build` stopped with `EUSAGE` before `os build` ran.
+
+- The build stage now copies `package.json` and whichever of `pnpm-lock.yaml`, `pnpm-workspace.yaml` and `package-lock.json` exist, then installs from the lockfile: `corepack pnpm@10 install --frozen-lockfile` for `pnpm-lock.yaml`, `npm ci` for `package-lock.json`. With neither, the build stops and says to install once and commit the lockfile.
+- pnpm is pinned to major 10, the major the template's `.github/workflows/ci.yml` installs with. An unpinned Corepack takes the registry's newest pnpm, which the Corepack bundled with Node 22 could not run when this was measured.
+- Unchanged: `os build` in the image, the runtime stage and its pinned image tag.
+- A project scaffolded before this release keeps its own `Dockerfile`. To fix one, replace its `COPY package*.json ./` and `RUN npm ci` lines with the build stage shown in the self-hosting guide.
diff --git a/content/docs/deployment/self-hosting.mdx b/content/docs/deployment/self-hosting.mdx
index 4c0ac7e5345..e4262a0a00c 100644
--- a/content/docs/deployment/self-hosting.mdx
+++ b/content/docs/deployment/self-hosting.mdx
@@ -138,8 +138,14 @@ in the project scaffold —
 # ── Build stage: compile TypeScript metadata to the artifact ─────────
 FROM node:22-slim AS build
 WORKDIR /app
-COPY package*.json ./
-RUN npm ci
+# Installs from the lockfile this project carries, so commit it: scaffolding
+# writes pnpm-lock.yaml when it installs with pnpm, package-lock.json with npm.
+# pnpm runs through Corepack at the major .github/workflows/ci.yml pins; keep
+# the two in step (unpinned, Corepack takes the registry's newest major).
+COPY package.json pnpm-lock.yaml* pnpm-workspace.yaml* package-lock.json* ./
+RUN if [ -f pnpm-lock.yaml ]; then corepack pnpm@10 install --frozen-lockfile; \
+    elif [ -f package-lock.json ]; then npm ci; \
+    else echo "No lockfile: run pnpm install or npm install, then commit it." >&2; exit 1; fi
 COPY . .
 RUN npx os build              # → dist/objectstack.json
 
diff --git a/packages/create-objectstack/src/dockerfile-build-stage.test.ts b/packages/create-objectstack/src/dockerfile-build-stage.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..011ed10290d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/create-objectstack/src/dockerfile-build-stage.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,329 @@
+// Copyright (c) 2026 ObjectStack contributors. Apache-2.0 license.
+//
+// The scaffolded Dockerfile's build stage must install from the lockfile the
+// scaffolded project actually carries.
+//
+// ## The defect
+//
+// The stage was `COPY package*.json ./` + `RUN npm ci`. Where pnpm is on PATH
+// the scaffolder installs with pnpm and writes `pnpm-lock.yaml` and no
+// `package-lock.json`, so `npm ci` exited 1 with EUSAGE and `docker build`
+// stopped before `os build` ran: the README's "Ship it" step failed for every
+// project scaffolded that way.
+//
+// ## What is pinned here, and why by RUNNING the stage
+//
+// A grep for `pnpm install` in the file would stay green against a stage that
+// copies the wrong files, which is the shape the defect had. So each leg reads
+// the stage out of SCAFFOLDED output (`copyDir`, as `runtime-image.test.ts`
+// does), emulates its `COPY` into an empty directory (no `node_modules`, only
+// what the stage names), and runs its `RUN` line under `/bin/sh`, which is
+// dash in `node:22-slim` and here. A leg passes only if the real install
+// command succeeds from that clean copy.
+//
+// ## Hermetic by construction
+//
+// The real stage downloads from the registry, and Corepack fetches pnpm.
+// Neither may decide this file's verdict (`scaffold-next-steps-pm.test.ts`
+// records the merge-queue red an ambient pnpm outside the repo once caused).
+// So:
+//
+//   - the fixture is the scaffolded project with its registry dependencies
+//     replaced by ONE local-directory dependency. A project with no
+//     dependencies would not do: `pnpm install --frozen-lockfile` answers
+//     "Already up to date" for it even with NO lockfile. With one dependency
+//     both package managers refuse a missing or drifted lockfile, offline.
+//     pnpm spells it `link:`, npm `file:`; each creates a symlink, and the
+//     stage's COPY leaves its target behind, as Docker would.
+//   - `corepack` is a stub that runs this repository's own pinned pnpm
+//     against the stage's directory, and refuses when that pnpm is outside
+//     the major the Dockerfile asks for, so a substitute never stands in
+//     silently. pnpm itself is not on the stage's PATH.
+//   - every install runs with `npm_config_offline=true`.
+//
+// What only the registry and a real Corepack can answer was measured once,
+// when this stage landed, against projects scaffolded for real: both package
+// managers' projects built their artifact through this stage, and an UNPINNED
+// Corepack resolved the registry's newest pnpm, which the Corepack bundled
+// with Node 22 could not run. That is why the stage pins a major, and why the
+// last block below holds it to the one the template's CI workflow pins.
+
+import { describe, it, expect, beforeAll, afterAll } from 'vitest';
+import { execFileSync, spawnSync } from 'node:child_process';
+import fs from 'node:fs';
+import os from 'node:os';
+import path from 'node:path';
+import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
+import { parse as parseYaml } from 'yaml';
+
+import { copyDir } from './template-copy.js';
+
+const HERE = path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
+const PKG_ROOT = path.resolve(HERE, '..');
+const BLANK = path.join(PKG_ROOT, 'src', 'templates', 'blank');
+const CI_WORKFLOW = path.join(BLANK, '.github', 'workflows', 'ci.yml');
+const DOCS_PAGE = path.resolve(HERE, '..', '..', '..', 'content', 'docs', 'deployment', 'self-hosting.mdx');
+
+/** The build stage's dependency install: the COPY ahead of it and its RUN line. */
+interface InstallStep {
+  copySources: string[];
+  run: string;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Read the install step out of a Dockerfile: the first `COPY` after the
+ * `FROM node:… AS build` line and the first `RUN` after that `COPY`, with
+ * backslash continuations joined. Throws on any other shape, so a reshaped
+ * stage fails here by name instead of passing over nothing.
+ */
+function readInstallStep(dockerfile: string): InstallStep {
+  const instructions: string[] = [];
+  let pending = '';
+  for (const line of dockerfile.split('\n')) {
+    if (pending === '' && /^\s*(#|$)/.test(line)) continue;
+    if (line.endsWith('\\')) {
+      pending += line.slice(0, -1);
+      continue;
+    }
+    instructions.push((pending + line).trim());
+    pending = '';
+  }
+  const from = instructions.findIndex((i) => /^FROM node:\S+ AS build$/.test(i));
+  const copy = instructions.findIndex((i, n) => n > from && i.startsWith('COPY '));
+  const run = instructions.findIndex((i, n) => n > copy && i.startsWith('RUN '));
+  if (from === -1 || copy === -1 || run === -1) {
+    throw new Error('Dockerfile has no `FROM node:… AS build` stage with a COPY followed by a RUN');
+  }
+  const words = instructions[copy].split(/\s+/).slice(1);
+  if (words.length < 2 || words.some((w) => w.startsWith('--'))) {
+    throw new Error(`unexpected COPY shape in the build stage: ${instructions[copy]}`);
+  }
+  return { copySources: words.slice(0, -1), run: instructions[run].slice('RUN '.length) };
+}
+
+/**
+ * Docker's COPY of top-level sources into an empty directory: a literal
+ * source that is missing fails the build; a wildcard may match nothing.
+ * Returns the names copied.
+ */
+function dockerCopy(fromDir: string, toDir: string, sources: string[]): string[] {
+  const copied: string[] = [];
+  const entries = fs.readdirSync(fromDir);
+  for (const source of sources) {
+    if (!source.includes('*')) {
+      if (!entries.includes(source)) throw new Error(`COPY failed: ${source} not found`);
+      fs.copyFileSync(path.join(fromDir, source), path.join(toDir, source));
+      copied.push(source);
+      continue;
+    }
+    const re = new RegExp(
+      `^${source.split('*').map((s) => s.replace(/[.+?^${}()|[\]\\]/g, '\\$&')).join('.*')}$`,
+    );
+    for (const name of entries.filter((e) => re.test(e))) {
+      fs.copyFileSync(path.join(fromDir, name), path.join(toDir, name));
+      copied.push(name);
+    }
+  }
+  return copied.sort();
+}
+
+/** POSIX single-quoting for a value baked into a shell script. */
+const shq = (s: string): string => `'${s.replace(/'/g, `'\\''`)}'`;
+
+function which(cmd: string): string {
+  try {
+    return execFileSync('sh', ['-c', `command -v ${cmd}`], { encoding: 'utf8' }).trim();
+  } catch {
+    throw new Error(`\`${cmd}\` is not on PATH; this test runs the stage's real ${cmd}`);
+  }
+}
+
+/** Offline, and nothing else changed: the env every install below runs under. */
+const OFFLINE = { ...process.env, npm_config_offline: 'true' };
+
+let work: string;
+let bin: string;
+let corepackLog: string;
+
+beforeAll(() => {
+  work = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'create-objectstack-build-stage-'));
+  bin = path.join(work, 'bin');
+  corepackLog = path.join(work, 'corepack.log');
+  fs.mkdirSync(bin);
+  // The stage's PATH: node and npm, a stub corepack, and no pnpm.
+  fs.symlinkSync(which('node'), path.join(bin, 'node'));
+  fs.symlinkSync(which('npm'), path.join(bin, 'npm'));
+  const pnpm = which('pnpm');
+  fs.writeFileSync(
+    path.join(bin, 'corepack'),
+    [
+      '#!/bin/sh',
+      `printf '%s\\n' "$*" >> ${shq(corepackLog)}`,
+      'case "$1" in',
+      '  pnpm@*) want="${1#pnpm@}"; shift ;;',
+      '  *) echo "corepack stub: unexpected invocation: corepack $*" >&2; exit 64 ;;',
+      'esac',
+      'dir=$PWD',
+      // From inside this package, Corepack resolves the repository's pinned
+      // pnpm, which CI has already materialised: no fetch, no ambient default.
+      `cd ${shq(PKG_ROOT)} || exit 70`,
+      `PATH=${shq(process.env.PATH ?? '')}; export PATH`,
+      `have=$(${shq(pnpm)} -C "$dir" --version) || exit 71`,
+      'case "$have" in',
+      '  "$want"|"$want".*) ;;',
+      '  *) echo "corepack stub: the stage asks for pnpm@$want; the pnpm standing in for it is $have" >&2; exit 65 ;;',
+      'esac',
+      `exec ${shq(pnpm)} -C "$dir" "$@"`,
+      '',
+    ].join('\n'),
+    { mode: 0o755 },
+  );
+});
+
+afterAll(() => {
+  fs.rmSync(work, { recursive: true, force: true });
+});
+
+/**
+ * Scaffold the blank template into `name`, swap its registry dependencies for
+ * one local-directory dependency (see the header), and run `install` there.
+ */
+function scaffoldFixture(name: string, spec: 'link:' | 'file:', install: string[] | null): string {
+  const dir = path.join(work, name);
+  copyDir(BLANK, dir, []);
+  const pkgPath = path.join(dir, 'package.json');
+  const pkg = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(pkgPath, 'utf8'));
+  delete pkg.devDependencies;
+  pkg.dependencies = { 'local-dep': `${spec}./local-dep` };
+  fs.writeFileSync(pkgPath, JSON.stringify(pkg, null, 2) + '\n');
+  fs.mkdirSync(path.join(dir, 'local-dep'));
+  fs.writeFileSync(
+    path.join(dir, 'local-dep', 'package.json'),
+    JSON.stringify({ name: 'local-dep', version: '1.0.0' }) + '\n',
+  );
+  if (install) {
+    const [cmd, ...args] = install;
+    // pnpm runs from inside this package for the same reason the stub does.
+    const cwd = cmd === 'pnpm' ? PKG_ROOT : dir;
+    const argv = cmd === 'pnpm' ? ['-C', dir, ...args] : args;
+    execFileSync(which(cmd), argv, { cwd, env: OFFLINE, stdio: 'pipe' });
+  }
+  return dir;
+}
+
+interface StageRun {
+  status: number | null;
+  output: string;
+  copied: string[];
+  corepackCalls: string[];
+  app: string;
+}
+
+/** Run the scaffolded Dockerfile's install step against `project`, from a clean copy. */
+function runInstallStep(project: string): StageRun {
+  const step = readInstallStep(fs.readFileSync(path.join(project, 'Dockerfile'), 'utf8'));
+  const app = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(work, 'app-'));
+  const copied = dockerCopy(project, app, step.copySources);
+  fs.rmSync(corepackLog, { force: true });
+  const result = spawnSync('/bin/sh', ['-c', step.run], {
+    cwd: app,
+    env: { ...OFFLINE, PATH: `${bin}:/usr/bin:/bin` },
+    encoding: 'utf8',
+  });
+  const corepackCalls = fs.existsSync(corepackLog)
+    ? fs.readFileSync(corepackLog, 'utf8').trim().split('\n')
+    : [];
+  return {
+    status: result.status,
+    output: `${result.stdout}${result.stderr}`,
+    copied,
+    corepackCalls,
+    app,
+  };
+}
+
+/** The dependency link an install leaves behind; its target is absent by design. */
+const installedLink = (app: string): boolean =>
+  fs.lstatSync(path.join(app, 'node_modules', 'local-dep'), { throwIfNoEntry: false })?.isSymbolicLink() ??
+  false;
+
+describe('scaffolded Dockerfile build stage installs from the project lockfile', () => {
+  it('a pnpm-installed project: the stage takes pnpm-lock.yaml and runs a frozen pnpm install', () => {
+    const project = scaffoldFixture('pnpm-project', 'link:', ['pnpm', 'install']);
+    expect(fs.existsSync(path.join(project, 'pnpm-lock.yaml'))).toBe(true);
+    expect(fs.existsSync(path.join(project, 'package-lock.json'))).toBe(false);
+
+    const run = runInstallStep(project);
+    expect(run.status, `the stage's install failed for a pnpm project:\n${run.output}`).toBe(0);
+    expect(run.copied).toEqual(['package.json', 'pnpm-lock.yaml', 'pnpm-workspace.yaml']);
+    expect(run.corepackCalls).toEqual([expect.stringMatching(/^pnpm@\d+ install --frozen-lockfile$/)]);
+    expect(installedLink(run.app), 'no install ran: node_modules/local-dep is missing').toBe(true);
+  }, 30_000);
+
+  it('an npm-installed project: the stage takes package-lock.json and runs npm ci', () => {
+    const project = scaffoldFixture('npm-project', 'file:', ['npm', 'install', '--no-audit', '--no-fund']);
+    expect(fs.existsSync(path.join(project, 'package-lock.json'))).toBe(true);
+    expect(fs.existsSync(path.join(project, 'pnpm-lock.yaml'))).toBe(false);
+
+    const run = runInstallStep(project);
+    expect(run.status, `the stage's install failed for an npm project:\n${run.output}`).toBe(0);
+    expect(run.copied).toEqual(expect.arrayContaining(['package-lock.json', 'package.json']));
+    expect(run.copied).not.toContain('pnpm-lock.yaml');
+    expect(run.corepackCalls).toEqual([]);
+    expect(installedLink(run.app), 'no install ran: node_modules/local-dep is missing').toBe(true);
+  }, 30_000);
+
+  // The leg that proves the two above can fail: with no lockfile there is
+  // nothing to install from, and the stage has to say so rather than install
+  // something unpinned.
+  it('a project with no lockfile: the stage stops and names the remedy', () => {
+    const project = scaffoldFixture('no-lockfile', 'file:', null);
+
+    const run = runInstallStep(project);
+    expect(run.status).not.toBe(0);
+    expect(run.output).toMatch(/lockfile/i);
+    expect(run.corepackCalls).toEqual([]);
+    expect(installedLink(run.app)).toBe(false);
+  }, 30_000);
+});
+
+describe('the build stage has one source', () => {
+  const buildStage = (text: string): string => {
+    const lines = text.split('\n');
+    const start = lines.findIndex((l) => l.startsWith('# ── Build stage'));
+    const end = lines.findIndex((l, n) => n > start && l.startsWith('RUN npx os build'));
+    if (start === -1 || end === -1) throw new Error('no build stage found');
+    return lines.slice(start, end + 1).join('\n');
+  };
+
+  // The docs page repeated the broken stage; this keeps it showing the file
+  // the scaffolder writes. The runtime stage is not compared: the page pins a
+  // release tag, the template a tag the scaffolder resolves.
+  it('the self-hosting guide shows the same build stage the template ships', () => {
+    const page = fs.readFileSync(DOCS_PAGE, 'utf8');
+    const fence = /```dockerfile title="Dockerfile"\n([\s\S]*?)```/.exec(page);
+    expect(fence, 'self-hosting.mdx has no ```dockerfile title="Dockerfile" block').not.toBeNull();
+    expect(
+      buildStage(fence![1]),
+      'content/docs/deployment/self-hosting.mdx shows a build stage the scaffolder does not write',
+    ).toBe(buildStage(fs.readFileSync(path.join(BLANK, 'Dockerfile'), 'utf8')));
+  });
+
+  it('pins the same pnpm major as the template CI workflow', () => {
+    const run = readInstallStep(fs.readFileSync(path.join(BLANK, 'Dockerfile'), 'utf8')).run;
+    const dockerMajor = /\bcorepack pnpm@(\d+)\b/.exec(run)?.[1];
+    expect(dockerMajor, 'the build stage no longer runs pnpm through `corepack pnpm@MAJOR`').toBeDefined();
+
+    const doc = parseYaml(fs.readFileSync(CI_WORKFLOW, 'utf8')) as {
+      jobs: Record<string, { steps?: Array<{ uses?: string; with?: { version?: unknown } }> }>;
+    };
+    const setup = Object.values(doc.jobs)
+      .flatMap((job) => job.steps ?? [])
+      .find((step) => step.uses?.startsWith('pnpm/action-setup'));
+    const ciMajor = String(setup?.with?.version ?? '').split('.')[0];
+    expect(
+      dockerMajor,
+      'the Dockerfile and .github/workflows/ci.yml install with different pnpm majors',
+    ).toBe(ciMajor);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/packages/create-objectstack/src/templates/blank/Dockerfile b/packages/create-objectstack/src/templates/blank/Dockerfile
index 04316706900..ce699d28904 100644
--- a/packages/create-objectstack/src/templates/blank/Dockerfile
+++ b/packages/create-objectstack/src/templates/blank/Dockerfile
@@ -12,8 +12,14 @@
 # ── Build stage: compile TypeScript metadata to the artifact ─────────
 FROM node:22-slim AS build
 WORKDIR /app
-COPY package*.json ./
-RUN npm ci
+# Installs from the lockfile this project carries, so commit it: scaffolding
+# writes pnpm-lock.yaml when it installs with pnpm, package-lock.json with npm.
+# pnpm runs through Corepack at the major .github/workflows/ci.yml pins; keep
+# the two in step (unpinned, Corepack takes the registry's newest major).
+COPY package.json pnpm-lock.yaml* pnpm-workspace.yaml* package-lock.json* ./
+RUN if [ -f pnpm-lock.yaml ]; then corepack pnpm@10 install --frozen-lockfile; \
+    elif [ -f package-lock.json ]; then npm ci; \
+    else echo "No lockfile: run pnpm install or npm install, then commit it." >&2; exit 1; fi
 COPY . .
 RUN npx os build              # → dist/objectstack.json