diff --git a/.dockerignore b/.dockerignore
index 6fe18bc..cb8f2b4 100644
--- a/.dockerignore
+++ b/.dockerignore
@@ -1,4 +1,6 @@
 target
+models
+*.cmf
 .git
 .github
 docs
diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
index f3fbf3a..35d2e2b 100644
--- a/Dockerfile
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 # ---- build stage ------------------------------------------------------------
-FROM rust:1-slim AS builder
+# pin builder and runtime to the same Debian release — a floating `rust:1-slim`
+# drifts to a newer glibc than the runtime image and the binary refuses to start
+FROM rust:1-slim-trixie AS builder
 WORKDIR /app
 # the admin SPA (web/) is embedded at compile time via rust-embed, so it must be present
 COPY Cargo.toml Cargo.lock ./
@@ -8,18 +10,24 @@ COPY web ./web
 RUN cargo build --release
 
 # ---- runtime stage ----------------------------------------------------------
-FROM debian:bookworm-slim
+FROM debian:trixie-slim
+# curl is required at runtime — model imports download ready .cmf files with it
 RUN apt-get update \
-    && apt-get install -y --no-install-recommends ca-certificates \
+    && apt-get install -y --no-install-recommends ca-certificates curl \
     && rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/* \
     && useradd -r -u 10001 cortiq \
-    && mkdir -p /app/config
+    && mkdir -p /app/config /app/data/models
 COPY --from=builder /app/target/release/cortiq-gateway /usr/local/bin/cortiq-gateway
 # ship the example as the default config so `docker run` works out of the box
 COPY config/gateway.example.toml /app/config/gateway.toml
 RUN chown -R 10001:10001 /app
 WORKDIR /app
-USER cortiq
+# all gateway state (downloaded models, stats, secrets) lives under /app/data —
+# mount a volume there to keep it across container recreates
+ENV CORTIQ_GATEWAY_HOME=/app/data
+# runs as root so writes to bind-mounted host folders (Docker Desktop on
+# Windows/macOS) don't fail with permission errors (curl exit code 23);
+# add `--user 10001` to docker run to harden when not using host bind mounts
 EXPOSE 9000
 ENTRYPOINT ["cortiq-gateway"]
 CMD ["--config", "/app/config/gateway.toml"]
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 475439d..f801fae 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -54,7 +54,8 @@ One OpenAI-compatible endpoint → automatic model selection from your pool
 ```bash
 # Docker (GitHub Container Registry)
 docker run -p 9000:9000 -e CORTIQ_ADMIN_TOKEN=secret \
-  -v "$PWD/config:/app/config" ghcr.io/infosave2007/cortiq-gateway:latest
+  -v "$PWD/config:/app/config" -v cortiq-data:/app/data \
+  ghcr.io/infosave2007/cortiq-gateway:latest
 # → admin console at http://localhost:9000/admin
 
 # from crates.io
@@ -67,7 +68,10 @@ cargo build --release   # ./target/release/cortiq-gateway
 ```
 
 The image ships a default config and runs out of the box; mount `/app/config` (with a
-`gateway.toml`) to use your own. Tags: `:latest`, `:X.Y.Z`, `:edge` (linux/amd64 + arm64).
+`gateway.toml`) to use your own. Downloaded models and stats live in `/app/data` — mount
+a volume there so they survive container recreates (a host folder works too, e.g.
+`-v "$PWD/models:/app/data/models"`). Tags: `:latest`, `:X.Y.Z`, `:edge`
+(linux/amd64 + arm64).
 
 **Docker Compose** — gateway + a local Ollama model in one command:
 
diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index 82e60ae..e040d62 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -17,6 +17,10 @@ services:
       CORTIQ_ROUTER_KEY: ${CORTIQ_ROUTER_KEY:-}
     volumes:
       - ./config/gateway.compose.toml:/app/config/gateway.toml:ro
+      # downloaded .cmf models + stats persist here across recreates; swap the
+      # named volume for a host folder (e.g. ./models:/app/data/models) if you
+      # want the files visible next to the compose file
+      - cortiq-data:/app/data
     depends_on:
       - ollama
     restart: unless-stopped
@@ -30,4 +34,5 @@ services:
     restart: unless-stopped
 
 volumes:
+  cortiq-data:
   ollama:
diff --git a/src/import.rs b/src/import.rs
index fb97cf4..0317c47 100644
--- a/src/import.rs
+++ b/src/import.rs
@@ -406,7 +406,13 @@ async fn download_cmf_repo(
                 }
                 Ok(status) => {
                     cleanup_output(&output_abs);
-                    store.push_line(&id, format!("✗ download failed: exit code {:?}", status.code()));
+                    // curl 23 = write error: almost always a non-writable models dir
+                    let hint = match status.code() {
+                        Some(23) => " (write error — is the models dir writable?)",
+                        Some(22) => " (HTTP error — repo/file not found or auth required)",
+                        _ => "",
+                    };
+                    store.push_line(&id, format!("✗ download failed: exit code {:?}{hint}", status.code()));
                     store.finish(&id, false);
                 }
                 Err(e) => {
@@ -471,7 +477,13 @@ pub fn start_import(store: Arc<JobStore>, cfg: &CmfCfg, p: ImportParams) -> Resu
             }
         }
     }
-    let _ = std::fs::create_dir_all(&cfg.models_dir);
+    std::fs::create_dir_all(&cfg.models_dir).map_err(|e| {
+        format!(
+            "cannot create models dir {}: {e} — check that the gateway has write \
+             access (in Docker, mount a writable volume at the models path)",
+            cfg.models_dir
+        )
+    })?;
     let base = if p.name.trim().is_empty() {
         sanitize(p.repo.rsplit('/').next().unwrap_or(&p.repo))
     } else {