diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 2ad83ab..0c15e09 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -2,8 +2,10 @@
 /node-lookup
 /pburl
 /pblastreport
+/pdbmux
 # cross-compiled release artifacts (e.g. node-lookup-linux-amd64)
 /node-lookup-*
 /pburl-*
 /pblastreport-*
+/pdbmux-*
 dist/
diff --git a/.woodpecker/docker.yaml b/.woodpecker/docker.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e40c74d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.woodpecker/docker.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+# Build and push the pdbmux container image on a v* tag. pdbmux is a k8s-only
+# daemon (deployed via argocd-apps), so it ships as an image rather than in the
+# RPM. Mirrors the estate convention (encapi's docker.yaml): the
+# woodpeckerci/plugin-docker-buildx plugin pushes to the Gitea registry using
+# the droneci / DRONECI_PASSWORD credentials.
+when:
+  - event: tag
+    ref: refs/tags/v*
+
+steps:
+  - name: docker-pdbmux
+    image: woodpeckerci/plugin-docker-buildx
+    settings:
+      registry: git.unkin.net
+      repo: git.unkin.net/unkin/pdbmux
+      dockerfile: Dockerfile.pdbmux
+      build_args:
+        VERSION: ${CI_COMMIT_TAG}
+      username: droneci
+      password:
+        from_secret: DRONECI_PASSWORD
+      tags:
+        - ${CI_COMMIT_TAG}
+        - latest
+    backend_options:
+      kubernetes:
+        serviceAccountName: default
+        resources:
+          requests:
+            memory: 1Gi
+            cpu: 1
+          limits:
+            memory: 2Gi
+            cpu: 2
diff --git a/.woodpecker/release.yaml b/.woodpecker/release.yaml
index 47b7826..3043916 100644
--- a/.woodpecker/release.yaml
+++ b/.woodpecker/release.yaml
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ steps:
       # for the shell instead of substituting them (as pipeline vars) at parse
       # time. ${CI_COMMIT_TAG} is a real Woodpecker var and stays single-$.
       - |
-        for entry in "node-lookup:." "pburl:./cmd/pburl" "pblastreport:./cmd/pblastreport"; do
+        for entry in "node-lookup:." "pburl:./cmd/pburl" "pblastreport:./cmd/pblastreport" "pdbmux:./cmd/pdbmux"; do
           name="$${entry%%:*}"; pkg="$${entry##*:}"
           for osarch in linux/amd64 linux/arm64 darwin/amd64 darwin/arm64; do
             os="$${osarch%/*}"; arch="$${osarch#*/}"
@@ -133,6 +133,10 @@ steps:
           pblastreport-linux-arm64 \
           pblastreport-darwin-amd64 \
           pblastreport-darwin-arm64 \
+          pdbmux-linux-amd64 \
+          pdbmux-linux-arm64 \
+          pdbmux-darwin-amd64 \
+          pdbmux-darwin-arm64 \
           --login gitea --repo "${CI_REPO}"
     depends_on: [upload-rpm]
     backend_options:
diff --git a/AGENTS.md b/AGENTS.md
index 57321bf..d7673b9 100644
--- a/AGENTS.md
+++ b/AGENTS.md
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 
 ## Project Overview
 
-This repo ships three related Puppet CLIs in one RPM:
+This repo ships four related Puppet tools in one RPM:
 
 - **`node-lookup`** — queries the PuppetDB API to retrieve and filter node facts.
 - **`pburl`** — prints the Puppetboard node-page URL for each host (reads hosts
@@ -10,10 +10,16 @@ This repo ships three related Puppet CLIs in one RPM:
 - **`pblastreport`** — prints each host's last Puppet report time and its
   Puppetboard URL. Output: `<host>\t<time>\t<url>`. Supports `--relative`/`-r`
   (relative age) and `--timezone`/`-z <IANA>` (default: local timezone).
+- **`pdbmux`** — a long-running HTTP daemon that presents a single merged
+  PuppetDB v4 query surface over the old (Consul) and new (k8s) PuppetDBs during
+  the VM→k8s migration. Merges `/pdb/query/v4/{nodes,facts}`, transparently
+  proxies other v4 paths to the primary, and exposes `/healthz`. See README.md
+  for full config/merge semantics.
 
-`node-lookup` is the module root; `pburl` and `pblastreport` live under `cmd/`
-and share the `internal/puppet` package (config, PuppetDB `nodes` queries,
-Puppetboard URL construction, stdin host reading).
+`node-lookup` is the module root; `pburl`, `pblastreport` and `pdbmux` live
+under `cmd/`. The three CLI tools share the `internal/puppet` package (config,
+PuppetDB `nodes` queries, Puppetboard URL construction, stdin host reading);
+`pdbmux` is self-contained (its own config + HTTP server).
 
 ## Structure
 
@@ -22,13 +28,15 @@ main.go                       # node-lookup CLI source (module root, package mai
 main_test.go                  # node-lookup unit tests (mock PuppetDB via httptest)
 cmd/pburl/main.go             # pburl CLI
 cmd/pblastreport/main.go      # pblastreport CLI (report.go: report-time formatting)
+cmd/pdbmux/                   # pdbmux daemon: main.go, config.go, merge.go, server.go
 internal/puppet/              # shared: config, puppetdb nodes query, board URLs, stdin
 go.mod              # Go module (module name: node-lookup)
 go.sum              # dependency checksums
 Makefile            # build / test / lint / completions / rpm / version-bump targets
-packaging/nfpm.yaml # nfpm spec (envsubst-templated) for the RPM (all 3 binaries)
+packaging/nfpm.yaml # nfpm spec (envsubst-templated) for the RPM (CLI tools only)
+Dockerfile.pdbmux   # container image for the k8s-only pdbmux daemon
 scripts/build-rpm.sh # generates completions + packages the RPM with nfpm
-.woodpecker/        # CI: build, test, pre-commit (PR) + release (tag)
+.woodpecker/        # CI: build, test, pre-commit (PR) + release/docker (tag)
 dist/               # build output: binaries, completions, RPM (not committed)
 ```
 
@@ -55,6 +63,13 @@ make rpm            # build the binary + package it into dist/*.rpm via nfpm
 and bundles them alongside `/usr/bin/node-lookup`. On a `v*` tag the release
 pipeline builds the RPM and `PUT`s it to the artifactapi `rpm-internal` repo.
 
+The RPM contains the workstation/VM CLI tools only (`node-lookup`, `pburl`,
+`pblastreport`). `pdbmux` is a k8s-only daemon and is deliberately excluded from
+the RPM — it is released as a container image
+(`git.unkin.net/unkin/pdbmux:<tag>`, built by `.woodpecker/docker.yaml` from
+`Dockerfile.pdbmux`) and deployed via `argocd-apps`. `make build` and
+`go test ./...` still cover pdbmux.
+
 ## Shell completions
 
 Cobra provides a `completion` subcommand:
diff --git a/Dockerfile.pdbmux b/Dockerfile.pdbmux
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..35ae319
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Dockerfile.pdbmux
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+# Container image for pdbmux, the merging PuppetDB proxy daemon. This repo ships
+# several CLI tools (node-lookup/pburl/pblastreport) as an RPM, but pdbmux is a
+# k8s-only service, so it gets its own Dockerfile (Dockerfile.pdbmux) and image.
+FROM golang:1.25-alpine AS builder
+
+RUN apk add --no-cache git
+
+WORKDIR /build
+
+COPY go.mod go.sum ./
+RUN go mod download
+
+COPY . .
+
+ARG VERSION=dev
+RUN CGO_ENABLED=0 go build -ldflags="-s -w -X main.version=${VERSION}" -o pdbmux ./cmd/pdbmux
+
+FROM gcr.io/distroless/static-debian12:nonroot
+
+COPY --from=builder /build/pdbmux /usr/local/bin/pdbmux
+
+EXPOSE 8080
+
+ENTRYPOINT ["pdbmux", "serve"]
diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 8838e0c..759cab4 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 BINARY  := node-lookup
 # All shipped binaries and the package path each is built from. node-lookup is
 # the module root; the companion tools live under cmd/.
-BINARIES := node-lookup pburl pblastreport
+BINARIES := node-lookup pburl pblastreport pdbmux
 DIST    := dist
 VERSION := $(shell git describe --tags --always --dirty 2>/dev/null || echo dev)
 GOFLAGS := -ldflags="-s -w -X main.version=$(VERSION)"
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5d5e6f8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,158 @@
+# node-lookup tools
+
+PuppetDB CLIs plus one proxy daemon.
+
+The CLIs ship together in a single RPM for workstations/VMs:
+
+- **`node-lookup`** — query and filter PuppetDB node facts.
+- **`pburl`** — print each host's Puppetboard node-page URL.
+- **`pblastreport`** — print each host's last Puppet report time + Puppetboard URL.
+
+The proxy daemon is deployed to Kubernetes as a container image (not in the RPM):
+
+- **`pdbmux`** — merging HTTP proxy over two PuppetDBs (see below).
+
+See [AGENTS.md](AGENTS.md) for the CLI tools' flags, config, and internals. This
+README covers **pdbmux**.
+
+---
+
+## pdbmux — merging PuppetDB proxy
+
+### What
+
+`pdbmux` is a small HTTP daemon that fronts **two** PuppetDB backends and serves
+a single, merged PuppetDB v4 query surface on one address. Point `node-lookup`,
+`pblastreport`, or anything else at `pdbmux` instead of a raw PuppetDB and it
+sees one consistent view spanning both.
+
+### Why
+
+During the VM→k8s Puppet migration there are two PuppetDBs:
+
+- **old** — the legacy Consul-registered `http://puppetdbapi.service.consul:8080`
+- **new** — the k8s `https://puppetdb.k8s.syd1.au.unkin.net` (TLS terminated at
+  the gateway; backends are plain PuppetDB on 8080)
+
+Nodes move from old to new as they migrate, so at any moment a given node's
+current data lives in exactly one of them. `pdbmux` merges both so consumers
+don't have to know (or query twice) which PuppetDB a node currently lives in.
+
+### Endpoints
+
+`pdbmux` proxies **GET** requests only. The `query` param (PuppetDB AST JSON,
+not PQL) is forwarded verbatim.
+
+| Path | Behaviour |
+|---|---|
+| `GET /pdb/query/v4/nodes` | Fan out to both backends, dedupe by `certname`, keep the record with the newer `report_timestamp`. |
+| `GET /pdb/query/v4/facts` | Fan out to both, and per `certname` keep **all** facts from the backend that owns that node (see merge semantics). |
+| `GET /pdb/query/v4/*` (any other) | Transparently proxied to the **primary** backend, unmerged, streamed verbatim. |
+| `GET /healthz` | Per-backend reachability. `200 {"status":"ok"}` if all reachable, `200 degraded` if some fail, `503 down` if all fail. |
+
+Fan-out is concurrent. If one backend errors or times out, `pdbmux` serves the
+survivor's results and logs a warning; a merged endpoint only returns `502` when
+**every** backend fails. Response records are passed through as raw JSON so
+unknown fields survive untouched.
+
+### Merge semantics
+
+- **`/nodes`** — dedupe by `certname`; the record with the strictly-newer
+  `report_timestamp` wins. On a tie (or when a node exists in only one backend),
+  the **preferred** backend's record is kept.
+- **`/facts`** — node-level granularity. For a `certname` present in both
+  backends, `pdbmux` keeps **all** of that node's facts from **one** backend and
+  drops the other's, chosen by the merge strategy:
+  - **`freshness`** (default) — attribute each `certname` to whichever backend
+    holds its newer `report_timestamp`. `pdbmux` derives this from a per-certname
+    freshness map built by querying `/nodes` from both backends, cached for
+    `freshness_ttl` (default 30s). Ties/fallbacks use `prefer`.
+  - **`static`** — always keep the `prefer` backend's facts for shared nodes.
+    No extra `/nodes` query.
+  - A node present in only one backend always appears (falls back to whichever
+    backend actually returned facts for it).
+
+### Config
+
+Precedence (lowest → highest): **defaults < config file < env vars (`PDBMUX_*`) < flags**.
+
+Config file: `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/pdbmux/config.yaml`. In Kubernetes, configuration
+is supplied entirely via `PDBMUX_*` env vars (no config file), which is the
+supported deployment path — see [Deployment](#deployment).
+
+```yaml
+# ~/.config/pdbmux/config.yaml  (local dev; in k8s use PDBMUX_* env instead)
+listen: ":8080"
+backends:
+  - name: old
+    url: http://puppetdbapi.service.consul:8080
+  - name: new
+    url: https://puppetdb.k8s.syd1.au.unkin.net
+primary: new          # backend used for non-merged /pdb/query/v4/* pass-through
+merge: freshness      # freshness | static
+prefer: new           # winner on ties / static merge / fallback
+timeout: 10s          # per-upstream request timeout
+freshness_ttl: 30s    # freshness-map cache TTL (freshness merge only)
+```
+
+`backends[*].url` is a **base** URL (`scheme://host[:port]`), without the
+`/pdb/query/v4/...` path — `pdbmux` appends the path per request.
+
+| Env var | Overrides |
+|---|---|
+| `PDBMUX_LISTEN` | `listen` |
+| `PDBMUX_PRIMARY` | `primary` |
+| `PDBMUX_MERGE` | `merge` |
+| `PDBMUX_PREFER` | `prefer` |
+| `PDBMUX_TIMEOUT` | `timeout` (Go duration, e.g. `10s`) |
+| `PDBMUX_FRESHNESS_TTL` | `freshness_ttl` |
+| `PDBMUX_BACKENDS` | whole backend list, as `name=url,name=url` |
+
+Flags: `--listen`, `--primary`, `--merge`.
+
+### Running
+
+```bash
+pdbmux                 # start the proxy (serve is the default action)
+pdbmux serve           # explicit
+pdbmux config init     # write a default config file
+pdbmux config show     # print active config after all overrides
+pdbmux version
+```
+
+Point a consumer at it:
+
+```bash
+node-lookup --url http://localhost:8080/pdb/query/v4/facts -R
+NODE_LOOKUP_URL=http://localhost:8080/pdb/query/v4/facts pblastreport somehost
+```
+
+### Deployment
+
+`pdbmux` runs **in Kubernetes** as a container, in line with the all-in-k8s
+estate direction — it is not shipped as a per-VM RPM/systemd service. The image
+is built and pushed on every `v*` tag (`.woodpecker/docker.yaml`) to:
+
+```
+git.unkin.net/unkin/pdbmux:<tag>
+```
+
+It is a minimal static (`CGO_ENABLED=0`) binary on a distroless base
+(`Dockerfile.pdbmux`), configured entirely via `PDBMUX_*` env vars, with a
+single HTTP listener and `/healthz` for liveness/readiness probes.
+
+The Deployment/Service/Gateway manifests live in the estate's `argocd-apps` repo
+under `apps/base/pdbmux/` (namespace `pdbmux`, 2 replicas), and it is exposed to
+VM/workstation `node-lookup` consumers over HTTPS at:
+
+```
+https://pdbmux.k8s.syd1.au.unkin.net
+```
+
+Locally you can still run the binary directly for development:
+
+```bash
+PDBMUX_BACKENDS='old=http://puppetdbapi.service.consul:8080,new=http://puppetdb.puppet.svc.cluster.local:8080' \
+  pdbmux serve
+curl -s localhost:8080/healthz
+```
diff --git a/cmd/pdbmux/config.go b/cmd/pdbmux/config.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3e8714b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/pdbmux/config.go
@@ -0,0 +1,250 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"fmt"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"strconv"
+	"strings"
+	"time"
+
+	"gopkg.in/yaml.v3"
+)
+
+const (
+	appName        = "pdbmux"
+	configFileName = "config.yaml"
+	envPrefix      = "PDBMUX_"
+
+	// defaultListen is the default HTTP listen address.
+	defaultListen = ":8080"
+	// defaultOldURL / defaultNewURL are the two PuppetDBs merged during the
+	// VM -> k8s migration. old = legacy Consul-registered puppetdbapi; new =
+	// the k8s PuppetDB behind the gateway (TLS terminated there).
+	defaultOldURL = "http://puppetdbapi.service.consul:8080"
+	defaultNewURL = "https://puppetdb.k8s.syd1.au.unkin.net"
+	// defaultPrimary is the backend name used for pass-through (non-merged)
+	// /pdb/query/v4/* paths and as static precedence for merge fallback.
+	defaultPrimary = "new"
+
+	defaultTimeout      = 10 * time.Second
+	defaultFreshnessTTL = 30 * time.Second
+)
+
+// Backend is one upstream PuppetDB. URL is the base URL (scheme://host[:port]),
+// without the /pdb/query/v4/... path — that is appended per request.
+type Backend struct {
+	Name string `yaml:"name"`
+	URL  string `yaml:"url"`
+}
+
+// Config holds every configurable value. Fields map 1:1 to config-file keys and
+// env vars (PDBMUX_*). See Load for precedence.
+type Config struct {
+	// Listen is the HTTP listen address (host:port).
+	Listen string `yaml:"listen"`
+	// Backends is the ordered list of upstream PuppetDBs to fan out to.
+	Backends []Backend `yaml:"backends"`
+	// Primary is the backend Name used for transparent pass-through of
+	// non-merged /pdb/query/v4/* paths.
+	Primary string `yaml:"primary"`
+	// Merge selects how /facts records are attributed to a backend when a
+	// certname appears in both: "freshness" (query /nodes report_timestamp,
+	// newer wins) or "static" (always prefer the Prefer backend).
+	Merge string `yaml:"merge"`
+	// Prefer names the backend that wins under static merge and as the
+	// tie-breaker/fallback under freshness merge.
+	Prefer string `yaml:"prefer"`
+	// Timeout bounds each upstream request.
+	Timeout time.Duration `yaml:"timeout"`
+	// FreshnessTTL is how long a per-certname freshness map (from /nodes) is
+	// cached under the "freshness" merge strategy.
+	FreshnessTTL time.Duration `yaml:"freshness_ttl"`
+}
+
+const (
+	mergeFreshness = "freshness"
+	mergeStatic    = "static"
+)
+
+// DefaultConfig returns the built-in defaults: both migration PuppetDBs,
+// freshness merge, "new" primary/preferred.
+func DefaultConfig() Config {
+	return Config{
+		Listen: defaultListen,
+		Backends: []Backend{
+			{Name: "old", URL: defaultOldURL},
+			{Name: "new", URL: defaultNewURL},
+		},
+		Primary:      defaultPrimary,
+		Merge:        mergeFreshness,
+		Prefer:       defaultPrimary,
+		Timeout:      defaultTimeout,
+		FreshnessTTL: defaultFreshnessTTL,
+	}
+}
+
+// ConfigDir returns the XDG_CONFIG_HOME/pdbmux directory.
+func ConfigDir() string {
+	base := os.Getenv("XDG_CONFIG_HOME")
+	if base == "" {
+		home, _ := os.UserHomeDir()
+		base = filepath.Join(home, ".config")
+	}
+	return filepath.Join(base, appName)
+}
+
+// ConfigPath returns the full path to the config file.
+func ConfigPath() string {
+	return filepath.Join(ConfigDir(), configFileName)
+}
+
+// Load reads the config file (if present), then applies env var overrides.
+// Precedence (lowest -> highest): defaults < config file < env vars < flags
+// (flags are applied by the caller). Backends can be overridden wholesale via
+// PDBMUX_BACKENDS ("name=url,name=url").
+func Load() (Config, error) {
+	cfg := DefaultConfig()
+
+	path := ConfigPath()
+	data, err := os.ReadFile(path)
+	if err != nil && !os.IsNotExist(err) {
+		return cfg, fmt.Errorf("reading config %s: %w", path, err)
+	}
+	if err == nil {
+		if err := yaml.Unmarshal(data, &cfg); err != nil {
+			return cfg, fmt.Errorf("parsing config %s: %w", path, err)
+		}
+	}
+
+	applyEnv(&cfg, os.Getenv)
+
+	if err := cfg.Validate(); err != nil {
+		return cfg, err
+	}
+	return cfg, nil
+}
+
+// applyEnv overlays PDBMUX_* env vars onto cfg. getenv is injected for testing.
+func applyEnv(cfg *Config, getenv func(string) string) {
+	if v := getenv(envPrefix + "LISTEN"); v != "" {
+		cfg.Listen = v
+	}
+	if v := getenv(envPrefix + "PRIMARY"); v != "" {
+		cfg.Primary = v
+	}
+	if v := getenv(envPrefix + "MERGE"); v != "" {
+		cfg.Merge = v
+	}
+	if v := getenv(envPrefix + "PREFER"); v != "" {
+		cfg.Prefer = v
+	}
+	if v := getenv(envPrefix + "TIMEOUT"); v != "" {
+		if d, err := time.ParseDuration(v); err == nil {
+			cfg.Timeout = d
+		}
+	}
+	if v := getenv(envPrefix + "FRESHNESS_TTL"); v != "" {
+		if d, err := time.ParseDuration(v); err == nil {
+			cfg.FreshnessTTL = d
+		}
+	}
+	if v := getenv(envPrefix + "BACKENDS"); v != "" {
+		if bs := parseBackends(v); len(bs) > 0 {
+			cfg.Backends = bs
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// parseBackends parses "name=url,name=url" into Backends. Entries without an
+// "=" are skipped. Used for the PDBMUX_BACKENDS env override.
+func parseBackends(s string) []Backend {
+	var out []Backend
+	for _, part := range strings.Split(s, ",") {
+		part = strings.TrimSpace(part)
+		if part == "" {
+			continue
+		}
+		name, url, ok := strings.Cut(part, "=")
+		name, url = strings.TrimSpace(name), strings.TrimSpace(url)
+		if !ok || name == "" || url == "" {
+			continue
+		}
+		out = append(out, Backend{Name: name, URL: url})
+	}
+	return out
+}
+
+// Validate checks the config is internally consistent and usable.
+func (c Config) Validate() error {
+	if len(c.Backends) == 0 {
+		return fmt.Errorf("no backends configured")
+	}
+	seen := map[string]bool{}
+	for _, b := range c.Backends {
+		if b.Name == "" || b.URL == "" {
+			return fmt.Errorf("backend requires both name and url: %+v", b)
+		}
+		if seen[b.Name] {
+			return fmt.Errorf("duplicate backend name %q", b.Name)
+		}
+		seen[b.Name] = true
+	}
+	if !seen[c.Primary] {
+		return fmt.Errorf("primary %q is not a configured backend", c.Primary)
+	}
+	switch c.Merge {
+	case mergeFreshness, mergeStatic:
+	default:
+		return fmt.Errorf("merge must be %q or %q, got %q", mergeFreshness, mergeStatic, c.Merge)
+	}
+	if !seen[c.Prefer] {
+		return fmt.Errorf("prefer %q is not a configured backend", c.Prefer)
+	}
+	if c.Timeout <= 0 {
+		return fmt.Errorf("timeout must be positive")
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+// PrimaryBackend returns the backend named by Primary (guaranteed present after
+// Validate).
+func (c Config) PrimaryBackend() Backend {
+	for _, b := range c.Backends {
+		if b.Name == c.Primary {
+			return b
+		}
+	}
+	return c.Backends[0]
+}
+
+// writeDefaultConfig creates the config dir and writes a default config file.
+func writeDefaultConfig() error {
+	dir := ConfigDir()
+	if err := os.MkdirAll(dir, 0o755); err != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("creating config dir: %w", err)
+	}
+	path := ConfigPath()
+	if _, err := os.Stat(path); err == nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("config already exists at %s", path)
+	}
+	data, _ := yaml.Marshal(DefaultConfig())
+	header := []byte("# pdbmux configuration\n" +
+		"# A merging proxy over two PuppetDBs (old Consul + new k8s) during migration.\n" +
+		"# Env overrides: PDBMUX_LISTEN, PDBMUX_PRIMARY, PDBMUX_MERGE, PDBMUX_PREFER,\n" +
+		"#   PDBMUX_TIMEOUT, PDBMUX_FRESHNESS_TTL, PDBMUX_BACKENDS (name=url,name=url).\n\n")
+	if err := os.WriteFile(path, append(header, data...), 0o644); err != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("writing config: %w", err)
+	}
+	fmt.Println("Config written to", path)
+	return nil
+}
+
+// durationString renders a duration for `config show` (falls back to a plain
+// seconds count for zero to avoid "0s" ambiguity in logs).
+func durationString(d time.Duration) string {
+	if d == 0 {
+		return "0"
+	}
+	return strconv.FormatFloat(d.Seconds(), 'f', -1, 64) + "s"
+}
diff --git a/cmd/pdbmux/config_test.go b/cmd/pdbmux/config_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..647e0c5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/pdbmux/config_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,126 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+)
+
+func TestLoad_Defaults(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Setenv("XDG_CONFIG_HOME", t.TempDir())
+	clearEnv(t)
+
+	cfg, err := Load()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	if cfg.Listen != defaultListen {
+		t.Errorf("listen = %q, want %q", cfg.Listen, defaultListen)
+	}
+	if len(cfg.Backends) != 2 || cfg.Backends[0].Name != "old" || cfg.Backends[1].Name != "new" {
+		t.Errorf("unexpected default backends: %+v", cfg.Backends)
+	}
+	if cfg.Merge != mergeFreshness || cfg.Primary != "new" {
+		t.Errorf("unexpected defaults merge=%s primary=%s", cfg.Merge, cfg.Primary)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestLoad_FileAndEnvOverride(t *testing.T) {
+	dir := t.TempDir()
+	t.Setenv("XDG_CONFIG_HOME", dir)
+	clearEnv(t)
+
+	cfgDir := filepath.Join(dir, appName)
+	if err := os.MkdirAll(cfgDir, 0o755); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	body := "listen: :9999\nmerge: static\nprimary: old\nprefer: old\n"
+	if err := os.WriteFile(filepath.Join(cfgDir, configFileName), []byte(body), 0o644); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+
+	// env beats file for listen.
+	t.Setenv(envPrefix+"LISTEN", "127.0.0.1:1234")
+
+	cfg, err := Load()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("load: %v", err)
+	}
+	if cfg.Listen != "127.0.0.1:1234" {
+		t.Errorf("env should beat file for listen, got %q", cfg.Listen)
+	}
+	if cfg.Merge != mergeStatic || cfg.Primary != "old" {
+		t.Errorf("file override failed: merge=%s primary=%s", cfg.Merge, cfg.Primary)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestApplyEnv_Backends(t *testing.T) {
+	cfg := DefaultConfig()
+	env := map[string]string{
+		envPrefix + "BACKENDS":      "a=http://a:8080,b=http://b:8080",
+		envPrefix + "PRIMARY":       "a",
+		envPrefix + "PREFER":        "a",
+		envPrefix + "TIMEOUT":       "3s",
+		envPrefix + "FRESHNESS_TTL": "45s",
+	}
+	applyEnv(&cfg, func(k string) string { return env[k] })
+
+	if len(cfg.Backends) != 2 || cfg.Backends[0].Name != "a" || cfg.Backends[1].URL != "http://b:8080" {
+		t.Fatalf("PDBMUX_BACKENDS parse failed: %+v", cfg.Backends)
+	}
+	if cfg.Timeout != 3*time.Second || cfg.FreshnessTTL != 45*time.Second {
+		t.Errorf("duration envs failed: %v %v", cfg.Timeout, cfg.FreshnessTTL)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestValidate(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := []struct {
+		name    string
+		mutate  func(*Config)
+		wantErr bool
+	}{
+		{"ok", func(*Config) {}, false},
+		{"no backends", func(c *Config) { c.Backends = nil }, true},
+		{"dup name", func(c *Config) { c.Backends = append(c.Backends, Backend{Name: "old", URL: "x"}) }, true},
+		{"missing url", func(c *Config) { c.Backends[0].URL = "" }, true},
+		{"primary not a backend", func(c *Config) { c.Primary = "ghost" }, true},
+		{"prefer not a backend", func(c *Config) { c.Prefer = "ghost" }, true},
+		{"bad merge", func(c *Config) { c.Merge = "wrong" }, true},
+		{"zero timeout", func(c *Config) { c.Timeout = 0 }, true},
+	}
+	for _, tc := range cases {
+		t.Run(tc.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			cfg := DefaultConfig()
+			tc.mutate(&cfg)
+			err := cfg.Validate()
+			if (err != nil) != tc.wantErr {
+				t.Fatalf("Validate() err=%v, wantErr=%v", err, tc.wantErr)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+func TestParseBackends(t *testing.T) {
+	got := parseBackends("a=http://a, b=http://b ,,broken,c=http://c")
+	if len(got) != 3 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected 3 valid backends, got %d: %+v", len(got), got)
+	}
+	if got[0].Name != "a" || got[2].URL != "http://c" {
+		t.Errorf("unexpected parse: %+v", got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPrimaryBackend(t *testing.T) {
+	cfg := DefaultConfig()
+	if cfg.PrimaryBackend().URL != defaultNewURL {
+		t.Errorf("primary backend URL = %q, want %q", cfg.PrimaryBackend().URL, defaultNewURL)
+	}
+}
+
+func clearEnv(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Helper()
+	for _, k := range []string{"LISTEN", "PRIMARY", "MERGE", "PREFER", "TIMEOUT", "FRESHNESS_TTL", "BACKENDS"} {
+		t.Setenv(envPrefix+k, "")
+	}
+}
diff --git a/cmd/pdbmux/main.go b/cmd/pdbmux/main.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..52beabc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/pdbmux/main.go
@@ -0,0 +1,171 @@
+// Command pdbmux is a small merging HTTP proxy over two PuppetDB backends.
+//
+// During the VM -> k8s Puppet migration there are two PuppetDBs — the legacy
+// Consul-registered one and the new k8s one — and nodes move between them as
+// they migrate. pdbmux presents a single merged PuppetDB v4 query surface so
+// node-lookup and pblastreport (and anything else) see one consistent view:
+//
+//   - GET /pdb/query/v4/nodes  — fan out to both backends, dedupe by certname,
+//     keep the record with the newer report_timestamp.
+//   - GET /pdb/query/v4/facts  — fan out to both, and for a certname present in
+//     both keep ALL facts from the backend holding that node's newer report
+//     (freshness merge) or a static preferred backend (static merge).
+//   - any other GET /pdb/query/v4/* — transparently proxied to the primary.
+//   - GET /healthz — per-backend reachability.
+//
+// The query param is forwarded verbatim (PuppetDB AST JSON). If one backend
+// errors/times out, the other's results are served; only if both fail does a
+// merged endpoint return 502.
+package main
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"errors"
+	"fmt"
+	"log"
+	"net/http"
+	"os"
+	"os/signal"
+	"syscall"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
+)
+
+var version = "dev"
+
+func main() {
+	cfg, err := Load()
+	if err != nil {
+		fmt.Fprintln(os.Stderr, "config error:", err)
+		os.Exit(1)
+	}
+
+	var (
+		listen  string
+		primary string
+		merge   string
+	)
+
+	serve := func(cmd *cobra.Command) error {
+		if cmd.Flags().Changed("listen") {
+			cfg.Listen = listen
+		}
+		if cmd.Flags().Changed("primary") {
+			cfg.Primary = primary
+		}
+		if cmd.Flags().Changed("merge") {
+			cfg.Merge = merge
+		}
+		if err := cfg.Validate(); err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+		return runServer(cfg)
+	}
+
+	root := &cobra.Command{
+		Use:   appName,
+		Short: "Merging HTTP proxy over two PuppetDB backends.",
+		Long: "pdbmux presents a single merged PuppetDB v4 query surface over the old\n" +
+			"(Consul) and new (k8s) PuppetDBs during the migration, so node-lookup and\n" +
+			"pblastreport see one consistent view. Running pdbmux with no subcommand\n" +
+			"(or `pdbmux serve`) starts the proxy.",
+		SilenceUsage: true,
+		RunE:         func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error { return serve(cmd) },
+	}
+
+	pf := root.PersistentFlags()
+	pf.StringVar(&listen, "listen", cfg.Listen, "HTTP listen address (overrides config and PDBMUX_LISTEN)")
+	pf.StringVar(&primary, "primary", cfg.Primary, "Primary backend name for non-merged pass-through")
+	pf.StringVar(&merge, "merge", cfg.Merge, "Facts merge strategy: freshness or static")
+
+	serveCmd := &cobra.Command{
+		Use:          "serve",
+		Short:        "Start the proxy (default action)",
+		SilenceUsage: true,
+		RunE:         func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error { return serve(cmd) },
+	}
+
+	configCmd := &cobra.Command{Use: "config", Short: "Manage configuration"}
+	configCmd.AddCommand(
+		&cobra.Command{
+			Use:          "init",
+			Short:        "Write a default config file to " + ConfigPath(),
+			SilenceUsage: true,
+			RunE:         func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error { return writeDefaultConfig() },
+		},
+		&cobra.Command{
+			Use:          "show",
+			Short:        "Print the active configuration",
+			SilenceUsage: true,
+			RunE: func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
+				printConfig(cfg)
+				return nil
+			},
+		},
+	)
+
+	versionCmd := &cobra.Command{
+		Use:          "version",
+		Short:        "Print the version",
+		Run:          func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) { fmt.Println(version) },
+		SilenceUsage: true,
+	}
+
+	root.AddCommand(serveCmd, configCmd, versionCmd)
+
+	if err := root.Execute(); err != nil {
+		os.Exit(1)
+	}
+}
+
+// runServer starts the HTTP server and blocks until SIGINT/SIGTERM, then
+// gracefully shuts down.
+func runServer(cfg Config) error {
+	logger := log.New(os.Stderr, "pdbmux: ", log.LstdFlags)
+	srv := NewServer(cfg, logger)
+
+	httpSrv := &http.Server{
+		Addr:              cfg.Listen,
+		Handler:           srv.Handler(),
+		ReadHeaderTimeout: 10 * time.Second,
+	}
+
+	logger.Printf("listening on %s (merge=%s primary=%s backends=%d)",
+		cfg.Listen, cfg.Merge, cfg.Primary, len(cfg.Backends))
+
+	errCh := make(chan error, 1)
+	go func() {
+		if err := httpSrv.ListenAndServe(); err != nil && !errors.Is(err, http.ErrServerClosed) {
+			errCh <- err
+		}
+	}()
+
+	stop := make(chan os.Signal, 1)
+	signal.Notify(stop, syscall.SIGINT, syscall.SIGTERM)
+
+	select {
+	case err := <-errCh:
+		return err
+	case <-stop:
+		logger.Println("shutting down")
+		ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(context.Background(), 5*time.Second)
+		defer cancel()
+		return httpSrv.Shutdown(ctx)
+	}
+}
+
+// printConfig renders the active config for `config show`.
+func printConfig(cfg Config) {
+	fmt.Printf("config file  : %s\n", ConfigPath())
+	fmt.Printf("listen       : %s\n", cfg.Listen)
+	fmt.Printf("primary      : %s\n", cfg.Primary)
+	fmt.Printf("merge        : %s\n", cfg.Merge)
+	fmt.Printf("prefer       : %s\n", cfg.Prefer)
+	fmt.Printf("timeout      : %s\n", durationString(cfg.Timeout))
+	fmt.Printf("freshness_ttl: %s\n", durationString(cfg.FreshnessTTL))
+	fmt.Println("backends:")
+	for _, b := range cfg.Backends {
+		fmt.Printf("  - %-8s %s\n", b.Name, b.URL)
+	}
+}
diff --git a/cmd/pdbmux/merge.go b/cmd/pdbmux/merge.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9240733
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/pdbmux/merge.go
@@ -0,0 +1,173 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"encoding/json"
+	"time"
+)
+
+// record is a single PuppetDB result element kept as raw JSON so unknown fields
+// survive the merge untouched. certname/report_timestamp are decoded only for
+// merge decisions.
+type record struct {
+	Raw             json.RawMessage
+	Certname        string
+	ReportTimestamp string // only populated for /nodes records
+}
+
+// recordMeta is the subset we decode from any /nodes or /facts element to drive
+// merge decisions.
+type recordMeta struct {
+	Certname        string `json:"certname"`
+	ReportTimestamp string `json:"report_timestamp"`
+}
+
+// decodeRecords turns a raw PuppetDB JSON array into records, preserving each
+// element verbatim in Raw. A body that is not a JSON array yields (nil, err).
+func decodeRecords(body []byte) ([]record, error) {
+	var raws []json.RawMessage
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(body, &raws); err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	out := make([]record, 0, len(raws))
+	for _, raw := range raws {
+		var m recordMeta
+		_ = json.Unmarshal(raw, &m) // best-effort; missing fields stay zero
+		out = append(out, record{
+			Raw:             raw,
+			Certname:        m.Certname,
+			ReportTimestamp: m.ReportTimestamp,
+		})
+	}
+	return out, nil
+}
+
+// parseTimestamp parses a PuppetDB RFC3339(nano) timestamp. Zero time on
+// failure sorts oldest, so a backend with a well-formed newer timestamp wins.
+func parseTimestamp(s string) time.Time {
+	if s == "" {
+		return time.Time{}
+	}
+	if t, err := time.Parse(time.RFC3339Nano, s); err == nil {
+		return t
+	}
+	return time.Time{}
+}
+
+// mergeNodes dedupes /nodes records by certname, keeping the one with the newer
+// report_timestamp. backends is the ordered list of (name, records) results;
+// when timestamps tie (or both are zero), the earlier backend in the slice
+// wins, so callers should order by precedence.
+func mergeNodes(results []backendResult) []json.RawMessage {
+	type pick struct {
+		raw json.RawMessage
+		ts  time.Time
+	}
+	best := map[string]pick{}
+	var order []string
+	for _, res := range results {
+		for _, rec := range res.records {
+			ts := parseTimestamp(rec.ReportTimestamp)
+			cur, ok := best[rec.Certname]
+			if !ok {
+				best[rec.Certname] = pick{raw: rec.Raw, ts: ts}
+				order = append(order, rec.Certname)
+				continue
+			}
+			// Strictly-newer wins; ties keep the existing (earlier-backend) pick.
+			if ts.After(cur.ts) {
+				best[rec.Certname] = pick{raw: rec.Raw, ts: ts}
+			}
+		}
+	}
+	out := make([]json.RawMessage, 0, len(order))
+	for _, cn := range order {
+		out = append(out, best[cn].raw)
+	}
+	return out
+}
+
+// freshness maps certname -> backend name that holds that node's newest report.
+type freshness map[string]string
+
+// buildFreshness computes, per certname, which backend has the newer
+// report_timestamp. results must be ordered by precedence; on a tie the
+// earlier backend wins.
+func buildFreshness(results []backendResult) freshness {
+	type pick struct {
+		backend string
+		ts      time.Time
+	}
+	best := map[string]pick{}
+	for _, res := range results {
+		for _, rec := range res.records {
+			ts := parseTimestamp(rec.ReportTimestamp)
+			cur, ok := best[rec.Certname]
+			if !ok || ts.After(cur.ts) {
+				best[rec.Certname] = pick{backend: res.name, ts: ts}
+			}
+		}
+	}
+	f := make(freshness, len(best))
+	for cn, p := range best {
+		f[cn] = p.backend
+	}
+	return f
+}
+
+// mergeFacts merges /facts records at node granularity: for each certname, all
+// facts from the winning backend are kept and the other backend's facts for
+// that certname are dropped.
+//
+// The winner is chosen per certname by `owner(certname)`. Callers supply owner
+// from either a freshness map (freshness merge) or a constant preferred backend
+// (static merge). When owner returns a backend that has no facts for a certname
+// (or a name not in results), records fall back to precedence order so a node
+// present in only one backend still appears.
+func mergeFacts(results []backendResult, owner func(certname string) string) []json.RawMessage {
+	// Which backends actually returned facts for each certname, in precedence
+	// order, so we can fall back if the chosen owner has none.
+	present := map[string][]string{} // certname -> ordered backend names
+	byKey := map[string][]json.RawMessage{}
+	for _, res := range results {
+		for _, rec := range res.records {
+			key := rec.Certname + "\x00" + res.name
+			if _, ok := byKey[key]; !ok {
+				present[rec.Certname] = append(present[rec.Certname], res.name)
+			}
+			byKey[key] = append(byKey[key], rec.Raw)
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Emit in first-seen certname order for stable output.
+	var order []string
+	seen := map[string]bool{}
+	for _, res := range results {
+		for _, rec := range res.records {
+			if !seen[rec.Certname] {
+				seen[rec.Certname] = true
+				order = append(order, rec.Certname)
+			}
+		}
+	}
+
+	out := []json.RawMessage{}
+	for _, cn := range order {
+		backends := present[cn]
+		chosen := owner(cn)
+		// Fall back to precedence order if the chosen backend has no facts here.
+		if !contains(backends, chosen) {
+			chosen = backends[0]
+		}
+		out = append(out, byKey[cn+"\x00"+chosen]...)
+	}
+	return out
+}
+
+func contains(s []string, v string) bool {
+	for _, x := range s {
+		if x == v {
+			return true
+		}
+	}
+	return false
+}
diff --git a/cmd/pdbmux/merge_test.go b/cmd/pdbmux/merge_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..59c4a55
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/pdbmux/merge_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,228 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"encoding/json"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+// recs builds a backendResult from name + literal JSON element strings.
+func recs(t *testing.T, name string, elems ...string) backendResult {
+	t.Helper()
+	body := "[" + join(elems) + "]"
+	r, err := decodeRecords([]byte(body))
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("decodeRecords(%s): %v", body, err)
+	}
+	return backendResult{name: name, records: r}
+}
+
+func join(elems []string) string {
+	out := ""
+	for i, e := range elems {
+		if i > 0 {
+			out += ","
+		}
+		out += e
+	}
+	return out
+}
+
+// certnames extracts the certname field from a merged result set.
+func certnames(t *testing.T, raws []json.RawMessage) []string {
+	t.Helper()
+	var out []string
+	for _, r := range raws {
+		var m recordMeta
+		if err := json.Unmarshal(r, &m); err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("unmarshal %s: %v", r, err)
+		}
+		out = append(out, m.Certname)
+	}
+	return out
+}
+
+// factValues extracts "certname:name=value" for /facts records to assert which
+// backend's facts survived.
+func factValues(t *testing.T, raws []json.RawMessage) []string {
+	t.Helper()
+	var out []string
+	for _, r := range raws {
+		var m struct {
+			Certname string `json:"certname"`
+			Name     string `json:"name"`
+			Value    string `json:"value"`
+		}
+		if err := json.Unmarshal(r, &m); err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("unmarshal %s: %v", r, err)
+		}
+		out = append(out, m.Certname+":"+m.Name+"="+m.Value)
+	}
+	return out
+}
+
+func node(cn, ts string) string {
+	return `{"certname":"` + cn + `","report_timestamp":"` + ts + `","latest_report_status":"changed"}`
+}
+
+func fact(cn, name, val, ts string) string {
+	// facts records don't carry report_timestamp in real PuppetDB, but including
+	// it is harmless and lets a couple of tests reuse the same helper. Merge
+	// attribution for facts comes from the owner func, not the record.
+	if ts == "" {
+		return `{"certname":"` + cn + `","name":"` + name + `","value":"` + val + `"}`
+	}
+	return `{"certname":"` + cn + `","name":"` + name + `","value":"` + val + `","report_timestamp":"` + ts + `"}`
+}
+
+func TestMergeNodes_NewerWins(t *testing.T) {
+	old := recs(t, "old", node("h1", "2026-07-01T00:00:00Z"), node("h2", "2026-07-10T00:00:00Z"))
+	nw := recs(t, "new", node("h1", "2026-07-20T00:00:00Z"), node("h3", "2026-07-05T00:00:00Z"))
+
+	merged := mergeNodes([]backendResult{old, nw})
+	got := map[string]string{}
+	for _, r := range merged {
+		var m recordMeta
+		_ = json.Unmarshal(r, &m)
+		got[m.Certname] = m.ReportTimestamp
+	}
+	if got["h1"] != "2026-07-20T00:00:00Z" {
+		t.Errorf("h1: newer (new) should win, got %s", got["h1"])
+	}
+	if got["h2"] != "2026-07-10T00:00:00Z" {
+		t.Errorf("h2: only in old, got %s", got["h2"])
+	}
+	if got["h3"] != "2026-07-05T00:00:00Z" {
+		t.Errorf("h3: only in new, got %s", got["h3"])
+	}
+	if len(merged) != 3 {
+		t.Errorf("expected 3 deduped nodes, got %d", len(merged))
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMergeNodes_OneBackendOnly(t *testing.T) {
+	old := recs(t, "old", node("h1", "2026-07-01T00:00:00Z"))
+	// new returned nothing (e.g. empty result).
+	nw := backendResult{name: "new"}
+	merged := mergeNodes([]backendResult{old, nw})
+	if len(merged) != 1 || certnames(t, merged)[0] != "h1" {
+		t.Fatalf("expected only h1, got %v", certnames(t, merged))
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMergeNodes_TieKeepsEarlierBackend(t *testing.T) {
+	// Equal timestamps: the backend listed first (precedence) wins.
+	prefer := recs(t, "new", node("h1", "2026-07-01T00:00:00Z"))
+	other := recs(t, "old", node("h1", "2026-07-01T00:00:00Z"))
+	merged := mergeNodes([]backendResult{prefer, other})
+	if len(merged) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected 1 record, got %d", len(merged))
+	}
+	// Ensure the kept record is the first backend's (identical here, but assert count/dedupe).
+	if certnames(t, merged)[0] != "h1" {
+		t.Fatalf("expected h1")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMergeNodes_PreservesUnknownFields(t *testing.T) {
+	old := recs(t, "old", `{"certname":"h1","report_timestamp":"2026-07-01T00:00:00Z","extra":{"deep":42}}`)
+	merged := mergeNodes([]backendResult{old})
+	if len(merged) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected 1 record")
+	}
+	var m map[string]json.RawMessage
+	_ = json.Unmarshal(merged[0], &m)
+	if _, ok := m["extra"]; !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("unknown field 'extra' was dropped: %s", merged[0])
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMergeFacts_Static_PreferWins(t *testing.T) {
+	// h1 in both; static prefer=new -> new's facts kept, old's dropped.
+	old := recs(t, "old", fact("h1", "role", "web-old", ""), fact("h2", "role", "db-old", ""))
+	nw := recs(t, "new", fact("h1", "role", "web-new", ""))
+
+	merged := mergeFacts([]backendResult{nw, old}, func(string) string { return "new" })
+	got := factValues(t, merged)
+	assertContains(t, got, "h1:role=web-new")
+	assertNotContains(t, got, "h1:role=web-old")
+	// h2 only in old -> falls back to old.
+	assertContains(t, got, "h2:role=db-old")
+}
+
+func TestMergeFacts_Freshness_NewerBackendWins(t *testing.T) {
+	// owner map says h1 belongs to old (older backend has the newer report),
+	// h2 belongs to new. Multiple facts per node must all come from the winner.
+	old := recs(t, "old",
+		fact("h1", "role", "web-old", ""), fact("h1", "ip", "10.0.0.1", ""),
+		fact("h2", "role", "db-old", ""))
+	nw := recs(t, "new",
+		fact("h1", "role", "web-new", ""), fact("h1", "ip", "10.9.9.9", ""),
+		fact("h2", "role", "db-new", ""), fact("h2", "ip", "10.0.0.2", ""))
+
+	owner := func(cn string) string {
+		if cn == "h1" {
+			return "old"
+		}
+		return "new"
+	}
+	merged := mergeFacts([]backendResult{nw, old}, owner)
+	got := factValues(t, merged)
+	// h1 -> all old facts, no new facts.
+	assertContains(t, got, "h1:role=web-old")
+	assertContains(t, got, "h1:ip=10.0.0.1")
+	assertNotContains(t, got, "h1:role=web-new")
+	assertNotContains(t, got, "h1:ip=10.9.9.9")
+	// h2 -> all new facts.
+	assertContains(t, got, "h2:role=db-new")
+	assertContains(t, got, "h2:ip=10.0.0.2")
+	assertNotContains(t, got, "h2:role=db-old")
+}
+
+func TestMergeFacts_OwnerMissingFallsBackToPrecedence(t *testing.T) {
+	// owner returns a backend with no facts for h1 -> fall back to first
+	// backend present (precedence order of the slice).
+	prefer := recs(t, "new", fact("h1", "role", "web-new", ""))
+	other := recs(t, "old", fact("h1", "role", "web-old", ""))
+	merged := mergeFacts([]backendResult{prefer, other}, func(string) string { return "ghost" })
+	got := factValues(t, merged)
+	assertContains(t, got, "h1:role=web-new") // new is first in slice
+	assertNotContains(t, got, "h1:role=web-old")
+}
+
+func TestBuildFreshness(t *testing.T) {
+	// old has newer report for h1; new has newer for h2.
+	old := recs(t, "old", node("h1", "2026-07-20T00:00:00Z"), node("h2", "2026-07-01T00:00:00Z"))
+	nw := recs(t, "new", node("h1", "2026-07-01T00:00:00Z"), node("h2", "2026-07-20T00:00:00Z"))
+	f := buildFreshness([]backendResult{old, nw})
+	if f["h1"] != "old" {
+		t.Errorf("h1 should belong to old, got %q", f["h1"])
+	}
+	if f["h2"] != "new" {
+		t.Errorf("h2 should belong to new, got %q", f["h2"])
+	}
+}
+
+func TestDecodeRecords_NotArray(t *testing.T) {
+	if _, err := decodeRecords([]byte(`{"not":"array"}`)); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("expected error decoding non-array body")
+	}
+}
+
+func assertContains(t *testing.T, hay []string, needle string) {
+	t.Helper()
+	for _, h := range hay {
+		if h == needle {
+			return
+		}
+	}
+	t.Errorf("expected %q in %v", needle, hay)
+}
+
+func assertNotContains(t *testing.T, hay []string, needle string) {
+	t.Helper()
+	for _, h := range hay {
+		if h == needle {
+			t.Errorf("did not expect %q in %v", needle, hay)
+		}
+	}
+}
diff --git a/cmd/pdbmux/server.go b/cmd/pdbmux/server.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1763a1a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/pdbmux/server.go
@@ -0,0 +1,294 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"encoding/json"
+	"fmt"
+	"io"
+	"log"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/url"
+	"sort"
+	"strings"
+	"sync"
+	"time"
+)
+
+const (
+	factsPath = "/pdb/query/v4/facts"
+	nodesPath = "/pdb/query/v4/nodes"
+	queryV4   = "/pdb/query/v4/"
+)
+
+// backendResult is one backend's decoded response for a query. err is non-nil
+// when the backend failed (network/timeout/non-2xx); such results carry no
+// records and are excluded from the merge but logged.
+type backendResult struct {
+	name    string
+	records []record
+	err     error
+}
+
+// Server proxies and merges PuppetDB queries across the configured backends.
+type Server struct {
+	cfg    Config
+	client *http.Client
+	log    *log.Logger
+
+	// freshness cache (freshness merge only).
+	mu        sync.Mutex
+	freshData freshness
+	freshAt   time.Time
+}
+
+// NewServer builds a Server with an HTTP client bounded by cfg.Timeout.
+func NewServer(cfg Config, logger *log.Logger) *Server {
+	return &Server{
+		cfg:    cfg,
+		client: &http.Client{Timeout: cfg.Timeout},
+		log:    logger,
+	}
+}
+
+// Handler returns the HTTP mux for the proxy.
+func (s *Server) Handler() http.Handler {
+	mux := http.NewServeMux()
+	mux.HandleFunc("/healthz", s.handleHealth)
+	mux.HandleFunc("/pdb/query/v4/", s.handleQuery)
+	return mux
+}
+
+// handleQuery dispatches /pdb/query/v4/* requests: /facts and /nodes are merged
+// across backends; every other v4 path is transparently proxied to the primary.
+func (s *Server) handleQuery(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	if r.Method != http.MethodGet {
+		http.Error(w, "only GET is supported", http.StatusMethodNotAllowed)
+		return
+	}
+	switch r.URL.Path {
+	case nodesPath:
+		s.serveMerged(w, r, nodesPath, s.mergeNodesResponse)
+	case factsPath:
+		s.serveMerged(w, r, factsPath, s.mergeFactsResponse)
+	default:
+		s.proxyPrimary(w, r)
+	}
+}
+
+// serveMerged fans out the request to all backends, then hands the per-backend
+// results to merge to produce the response body. If every backend fails it
+// returns 502; if some fail it serves the survivors and logs a warning.
+func (s *Server) serveMerged(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request, path string, merge func([]backendResult) []json.RawMessage) {
+	query := r.URL.Query().Get("query")
+	results := s.fanOut(r.Context(), path, query)
+
+	var alive []backendResult
+	for _, res := range results {
+		if res.err != nil {
+			s.log.Printf("warning: backend %q failed for %s: %v", res.name, path, res.err)
+			continue
+		}
+		alive = append(alive, res)
+	}
+	if len(alive) == 0 {
+		http.Error(w, "all backends failed", http.StatusBadGateway)
+		return
+	}
+
+	merged := merge(alive)
+	writeJSON(w, merged)
+}
+
+// mergeNodesResponse merges /nodes results (dedupe by certname, newer wins).
+func (s *Server) mergeNodesResponse(results []backendResult) []json.RawMessage {
+	return mergeNodes(s.byPrecedence(results))
+}
+
+// mergeFactsResponse merges /facts results at node granularity, choosing each
+// certname's owner via the configured merge strategy.
+func (s *Server) mergeFactsResponse(results []backendResult) []json.RawMessage {
+	ordered := s.byPrecedence(results)
+	if s.cfg.Merge == mergeStatic {
+		prefer := s.cfg.Prefer
+		return mergeFacts(ordered, func(string) string { return prefer })
+	}
+	// freshness merge: attribute each certname to the backend with the newer
+	// report_timestamp, taken from a short-TTL /nodes freshness map.
+	fresh := s.freshnessMap(context.Background(), ordered)
+	prefer := s.cfg.Prefer
+	return mergeFacts(ordered, func(cn string) string {
+		if b, ok := fresh[cn]; ok {
+			return b
+		}
+		return prefer
+	})
+}
+
+// byPrecedence orders results so the Prefer backend comes first, giving it the
+// tie-break on equal timestamps. Remaining backends keep config order.
+func (s *Server) byPrecedence(results []backendResult) []backendResult {
+	ordered := make([]backendResult, len(results))
+	copy(ordered, results)
+	sort.SliceStable(ordered, func(i, j int) bool {
+		return ordered[i].name == s.cfg.Prefer && ordered[j].name != s.cfg.Prefer
+	})
+	return ordered
+}
+
+// freshnessMap returns a per-certname owner map derived from each backend's
+// /nodes report_timestamp, cached for cfg.FreshnessTTL. On cache miss it queries
+// /nodes from all backends; a backend that fails is simply absent from the map,
+// so its certnames fall back to precedence/Prefer.
+//
+// When the incoming request already carries /nodes data (results has records),
+// we still query /nodes broadly here because a /facts query's certname set can
+// differ from what the request's query filter returned. The cache keeps this
+// cheap under load.
+func (s *Server) freshnessMap(ctx context.Context, _ []backendResult) freshness {
+	s.mu.Lock()
+	if s.freshData != nil && time.Since(s.freshAt) < s.cfg.FreshnessTTL {
+		f := s.freshData
+		s.mu.Unlock()
+		return f
+	}
+	s.mu.Unlock()
+
+	// Empty query = all nodes; cheap enough for a short-TTL cache.
+	nodeResults := s.fanOut(ctx, nodesPath, "")
+	var alive []backendResult
+	for _, res := range nodeResults {
+		if res.err != nil {
+			s.log.Printf("warning: freshness /nodes query to %q failed: %v", res.name, res.err)
+			continue
+		}
+		alive = append(alive, res)
+	}
+	f := buildFreshness(s.byPrecedence(alive))
+
+	s.mu.Lock()
+	s.freshData = f
+	s.freshAt = time.Now()
+	s.mu.Unlock()
+	return f
+}
+
+// fanOut queries every backend concurrently for path?query=... and returns one
+// backendResult per backend, in config order.
+func (s *Server) fanOut(ctx context.Context, path, query string) []backendResult {
+	results := make([]backendResult, len(s.cfg.Backends))
+	var wg sync.WaitGroup
+	for i, b := range s.cfg.Backends {
+		wg.Add(1)
+		go func(i int, b Backend) {
+			defer wg.Done()
+			recs, err := s.queryBackend(ctx, b, path, query)
+			results[i] = backendResult{name: b.Name, records: recs, err: err}
+		}(i, b)
+	}
+	wg.Wait()
+	return results
+}
+
+// queryBackend performs one GET b.URL+path?query=... and decodes the JSON array.
+func (s *Server) queryBackend(ctx context.Context, b Backend, path, query string) ([]record, error) {
+	target := strings.TrimRight(b.URL, "/") + path
+	req, err := http.NewRequestWithContext(ctx, http.MethodGet, target, nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	if query != "" {
+		q := url.Values{}
+		q.Set("query", query)
+		req.URL.RawQuery = q.Encode()
+	}
+	resp, err := s.client.Do(req)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	defer func() { _ = resp.Body.Close() }()
+	body, err := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	if resp.StatusCode != http.StatusOK {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("HTTP %d: %s", resp.StatusCode, strings.TrimSpace(string(body)))
+	}
+	return decodeRecords(body)
+}
+
+// proxyPrimary transparently forwards a non-merged /pdb/query/v4/* request to
+// the primary backend and streams the response back verbatim.
+func (s *Server) proxyPrimary(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	b := s.cfg.PrimaryBackend()
+	target := strings.TrimRight(b.URL, "/") + r.URL.Path
+	if r.URL.RawQuery != "" {
+		target += "?" + r.URL.RawQuery
+	}
+	req, err := http.NewRequestWithContext(r.Context(), http.MethodGet, target, nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		http.Error(w, err.Error(), http.StatusBadGateway)
+		return
+	}
+	resp, err := s.client.Do(req)
+	if err != nil {
+		s.log.Printf("warning: primary %q pass-through failed for %s: %v", b.Name, r.URL.Path, err)
+		http.Error(w, "primary backend failed", http.StatusBadGateway)
+		return
+	}
+	defer func() { _ = resp.Body.Close() }()
+	if ct := resp.Header.Get("Content-Type"); ct != "" {
+		w.Header().Set("Content-Type", ct)
+	}
+	w.WriteHeader(resp.StatusCode)
+	_, _ = io.Copy(w, resp.Body)
+}
+
+// healthReport is the /healthz JSON body.
+type healthReport struct {
+	Status   string            `json:"status"`
+	Backends map[string]string `json:"backends"` // name -> "ok" | error text
+}
+
+// handleHealth probes every backend's /nodes endpoint with a trivial query and
+// reports per-backend reachability. Overall status is "ok" if any backend is
+// reachable, "degraded" if some fail, "down" if all fail (503 in that case).
+func (s *Server) handleHealth(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	probe := `["=","certname","pdbmux-healthz-probe"]`
+	results := s.fanOut(r.Context(), nodesPath, probe)
+
+	report := healthReport{Backends: map[string]string{}}
+	healthy := 0
+	for _, res := range results {
+		if res.err != nil {
+			report.Backends[res.name] = res.err.Error()
+			continue
+		}
+		report.Backends[res.name] = "ok"
+		healthy++
+	}
+	switch {
+	case healthy == len(results):
+		report.Status = "ok"
+	case healthy > 0:
+		report.Status = "degraded"
+	default:
+		report.Status = "down"
+	}
+
+	w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
+	if healthy == 0 {
+		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusServiceUnavailable)
+	}
+	enc := json.NewEncoder(w)
+	enc.SetIndent("", "  ")
+	_ = enc.Encode(report)
+}
+
+// writeJSON writes a JSON array of raw records as a PuppetDB-style response.
+func writeJSON(w http.ResponseWriter, recs []json.RawMessage) {
+	w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
+	if recs == nil {
+		recs = []json.RawMessage{}
+	}
+	_ = json.NewEncoder(w).Encode(recs)
+}
diff --git a/cmd/pdbmux/server_test.go b/cmd/pdbmux/server_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..18243e2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/pdbmux/server_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,286 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"encoding/json"
+	"io"
+	"log"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/http/httptest"
+	"net/url"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+)
+
+// fakeBackend is an httptest PuppetDB that returns canned bodies per path and
+// records the query params it received.
+type fakeBackend struct {
+	srv        *httptest.Server
+	nodesBody  string
+	factsBody  string
+	fail       bool          // return 500 for everything
+	delay      time.Duration // artificial latency
+	gotQueries map[string]string
+}
+
+func newFakeBackend(t *testing.T, nodesBody, factsBody string) *fakeBackend {
+	t.Helper()
+	fb := &fakeBackend{nodesBody: nodesBody, factsBody: factsBody, gotQueries: map[string]string{}}
+	fb.srv = httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+		if fb.delay > 0 {
+			time.Sleep(fb.delay)
+		}
+		fb.gotQueries[r.URL.Path] = r.URL.Query().Get("query")
+		if fb.fail {
+			http.Error(w, "boom", http.StatusInternalServerError)
+			return
+		}
+		w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
+		switch r.URL.Path {
+		case nodesPath:
+			_, _ = io.WriteString(w, fb.nodesBody)
+		case factsPath:
+			_, _ = io.WriteString(w, fb.factsBody)
+		default:
+			_, _ = io.WriteString(w, `[{"path":"`+r.URL.Path+`"}]`)
+		}
+	}))
+	t.Cleanup(fb.srv.Close)
+	return fb
+}
+
+func testConfig(oldURL, newURL, merge string) Config {
+	return Config{
+		Listen:       ":0",
+		Backends:     []Backend{{Name: "old", URL: oldURL}, {Name: "new", URL: newURL}},
+		Primary:      "new",
+		Merge:        merge,
+		Prefer:       "new",
+		Timeout:      2 * time.Second,
+		FreshnessTTL: 30 * time.Second,
+	}
+}
+
+func newTestServer(cfg Config) *Server {
+	return NewServer(cfg, log.New(io.Discard, "", 0))
+}
+
+func doGet(t *testing.T, h http.Handler, path, query string) *httptest.ResponseRecorder {
+	t.Helper()
+	target := path
+	if query != "" {
+		target += "?query=" + url.QueryEscape(query)
+	}
+	req := httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodGet, target, nil)
+	rec := httptest.NewRecorder()
+	h.ServeHTTP(rec, req)
+	return rec
+}
+
+func TestHandler_NodesMerged(t *testing.T) {
+	old := newFakeBackend(t,
+		`[`+node("h1", "2026-07-01T00:00:00Z")+`,`+node("h2", "2026-07-10T00:00:00Z")+`]`, `[]`)
+	nw := newFakeBackend(t,
+		`[`+node("h1", "2026-07-20T00:00:00Z")+`]`, `[]`)
+	srv := newTestServer(testConfig(old.srv.URL, nw.srv.URL, mergeStatic))
+
+	rec := doGet(t, srv.Handler(), nodesPath, `["=","certname","h1"]`)
+	if rec.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("status %d: %s", rec.Code, rec.Body.String())
+	}
+	var got []recordMeta
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(rec.Body.Bytes(), &got); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	if len(got) != 2 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected 2 deduped nodes, got %d: %s", len(got), rec.Body.String())
+	}
+	for _, m := range got {
+		if m.Certname == "h1" && m.ReportTimestamp != "2026-07-20T00:00:00Z" {
+			t.Errorf("h1 should be new's newer record, got %s", m.ReportTimestamp)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestHandler_QueryPassthrough(t *testing.T) {
+	old := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`, `[]`)
+	nw := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`, `[]`)
+	srv := newTestServer(testConfig(old.srv.URL, nw.srv.URL, mergeStatic))
+
+	q := `["=","certname","abc.example.net"]`
+	doGet(t, srv.Handler(), factsPath, q)
+	if old.gotQueries[factsPath] != q {
+		t.Errorf("old backend got query %q, want %q", old.gotQueries[factsPath], q)
+	}
+	if nw.gotQueries[factsPath] != q {
+		t.Errorf("new backend got query %q, want %q", nw.gotQueries[factsPath], q)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestHandler_FactsStaticMerge(t *testing.T) {
+	old := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`,
+		`[`+fact("h1", "role", "web-old", "")+`,`+fact("h2", "role", "db-old", "")+`]`)
+	nw := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`,
+		`[`+fact("h1", "role", "web-new", "")+`]`)
+	srv := newTestServer(testConfig(old.srv.URL, nw.srv.URL, mergeStatic))
+
+	rec := doGet(t, srv.Handler(), factsPath, `["=","name","role"]`)
+	if rec.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("status %d", rec.Code)
+	}
+	body := rec.Body.String()
+	if !strings.Contains(body, "web-new") || strings.Contains(body, "web-old") {
+		t.Errorf("static prefer=new should keep web-new, drop web-old: %s", body)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(body, "db-old") {
+		t.Errorf("h2 only in old should survive: %s", body)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestHandler_FactsFreshnessMerge(t *testing.T) {
+	// Freshness: old holds h1's newer report; new holds h2's newer report.
+	old := newFakeBackend(t,
+		`[`+node("h1", "2026-07-20T00:00:00Z")+`,`+node("h2", "2026-07-01T00:00:00Z")+`]`,
+		`[`+fact("h1", "role", "web-old", "")+`,`+fact("h2", "role", "db-old", "")+`]`)
+	nw := newFakeBackend(t,
+		`[`+node("h1", "2026-07-01T00:00:00Z")+`,`+node("h2", "2026-07-20T00:00:00Z")+`]`,
+		`[`+fact("h1", "role", "web-new", "")+`,`+fact("h2", "role", "db-new", "")+`]`)
+	srv := newTestServer(testConfig(old.srv.URL, nw.srv.URL, mergeFreshness))
+
+	rec := doGet(t, srv.Handler(), factsPath, `["=","name","role"]`)
+	if rec.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("status %d: %s", rec.Code, rec.Body.String())
+	}
+	body := rec.Body.String()
+	// h1 -> old (newer report there); h2 -> new.
+	if !strings.Contains(body, "web-old") || strings.Contains(body, "web-new") {
+		t.Errorf("h1 should resolve to old: %s", body)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(body, "db-new") || strings.Contains(body, "db-old") {
+		t.Errorf("h2 should resolve to new: %s", body)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestHandler_OneBackendDown(t *testing.T) {
+	old := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`, `[]`)
+	old.fail = true
+	nw := newFakeBackend(t,
+		`[`+node("h1", "2026-07-20T00:00:00Z")+`]`, `[]`)
+	srv := newTestServer(testConfig(old.srv.URL, nw.srv.URL, mergeStatic))
+
+	rec := doGet(t, srv.Handler(), nodesPath, "")
+	if rec.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("expected 200 serving survivor, got %d", rec.Code)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(rec.Body.String(), "h1") {
+		t.Errorf("expected survivor's h1: %s", rec.Body.String())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestHandler_BothBackendsDown(t *testing.T) {
+	old := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`, `[]`)
+	nw := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`, `[]`)
+	old.fail, nw.fail = true, true
+	srv := newTestServer(testConfig(old.srv.URL, nw.srv.URL, mergeStatic))
+
+	rec := doGet(t, srv.Handler(), nodesPath, "")
+	if rec.Code != http.StatusBadGateway {
+		t.Fatalf("expected 502 when all backends fail, got %d", rec.Code)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestHandler_PassThroughToPrimary(t *testing.T) {
+	// A non-merged v4 path (e.g. /reports) goes only to the primary (new).
+	old := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`, `[]`)
+	nw := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`, `[]`)
+	srv := newTestServer(testConfig(old.srv.URL, nw.srv.URL, mergeStatic))
+
+	rec := doGet(t, srv.Handler(), "/pdb/query/v4/reports", `["=","certname","h1"]`)
+	if rec.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("status %d", rec.Code)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(rec.Body.String(), "/pdb/query/v4/reports") {
+		t.Errorf("expected pass-through body, got %s", rec.Body.String())
+	}
+	// Only primary (new) should have been queried.
+	if _, hit := old.gotQueries["/pdb/query/v4/reports"]; hit {
+		t.Errorf("non-primary backend should not be queried for pass-through")
+	}
+	if _, hit := nw.gotQueries["/pdb/query/v4/reports"]; !hit {
+		t.Errorf("primary backend should be queried for pass-through")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestHandler_PostRejected(t *testing.T) {
+	old := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`, `[]`)
+	nw := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`, `[]`)
+	srv := newTestServer(testConfig(old.srv.URL, nw.srv.URL, mergeStatic))
+	req := httptest.NewRequest(http.MethodPost, factsPath, nil)
+	rec := httptest.NewRecorder()
+	srv.Handler().ServeHTTP(rec, req)
+	if rec.Code != http.StatusMethodNotAllowed {
+		t.Fatalf("expected 405 for POST, got %d", rec.Code)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestHandler_Health(t *testing.T) {
+	old := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`, `[]`)
+	nw := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`, `[]`)
+	srv := newTestServer(testConfig(old.srv.URL, nw.srv.URL, mergeStatic))
+
+	rec := doGet(t, srv.Handler(), "/healthz", "")
+	if rec.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("expected 200 healthy, got %d: %s", rec.Code, rec.Body.String())
+	}
+	var hr healthReport
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(rec.Body.Bytes(), &hr); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	if hr.Status != "ok" || hr.Backends["old"] != "ok" || hr.Backends["new"] != "ok" {
+		t.Fatalf("unexpected health: %+v", hr)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestHandler_HealthDegradedAndDown(t *testing.T) {
+	old := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`, `[]`)
+	nw := newFakeBackend(t, `[]`, `[]`)
+	old.fail = true
+	srv := newTestServer(testConfig(old.srv.URL, nw.srv.URL, mergeStatic))
+
+	rec := doGet(t, srv.Handler(), "/healthz", "")
+	var hr healthReport
+	_ = json.Unmarshal(rec.Body.Bytes(), &hr)
+	if hr.Status != "degraded" {
+		t.Errorf("expected degraded, got %s", hr.Status)
+	}
+	if rec.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Errorf("degraded should still be 200, got %d", rec.Code)
+	}
+
+	nw.fail = true
+	rec = doGet(t, srv.Handler(), "/healthz", "")
+	_ = json.Unmarshal(rec.Body.Bytes(), &hr)
+	if hr.Status != "down" || rec.Code != http.StatusServiceUnavailable {
+		t.Errorf("expected down/503, got %s/%d", hr.Status, rec.Code)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestFreshnessCache_Reused(t *testing.T) {
+	old := newFakeBackend(t,
+		`[`+node("h1", "2026-07-20T00:00:00Z")+`]`,
+		`[`+fact("h1", "role", "web-old", "")+`]`)
+	nw := newFakeBackend(t,
+		`[`+node("h1", "2026-07-01T00:00:00Z")+`]`,
+		`[`+fact("h1", "role", "web-new", "")+`]`)
+	srv := newTestServer(testConfig(old.srv.URL, nw.srv.URL, mergeFreshness))
+
+	// Two facts queries; the freshness /nodes probe should be cached after the
+	// first, so query recording only reflects the last observed nodes query but
+	// results stay consistent (h1 -> old).
+	for i := 0; i < 2; i++ {
+		rec := doGet(t, srv.Handler(), factsPath, `["=","name","role"]`)
+		if !strings.Contains(rec.Body.String(), "web-old") {
+			t.Fatalf("iteration %d: expected h1->old, got %s", i, rec.Body.String())
+		}
+	}
+}
diff --git a/packaging/nfpm.yaml b/packaging/nfpm.yaml
index 4a3085d..ae40ee5 100644
--- a/packaging/nfpm.yaml
+++ b/packaging/nfpm.yaml
@@ -43,6 +43,12 @@ contents:
       owner: root
       group: root
 
+  # NOTE: pdbmux is intentionally NOT shipped in this RPM. It is a k8s-only
+  # daemon (deployed via argocd-apps as a container image), not a workstation/VM
+  # CLI tool, so it has no place in the CLI package. pdbmux is still built and
+  # tested in this repo (see Makefile) and released as a container image
+  # (.woodpecker/docker.yaml).
+
   # Shell completions (generated by scripts/build-rpm.sh before packaging).
   - src: dist/completions/node-lookup.bash
     dst: /usr/share/bash-completion/completions/node-lookup
diff --git a/scripts/build-rpm.sh b/scripts/build-rpm.sh
index 817c575..87aaab2 100755
--- a/scripts/build-rpm.sh
+++ b/scripts/build-rpm.sh
@@ -12,6 +12,9 @@ cd "${ROOT_DIR}"
 VERSION="${1:-${CI_COMMIT_TAG:-0.0.0-dev}}"
 VERSION="${VERSION#v}" # strip a leading v
 BINARY="node-lookup"
+# RPM ships the workstation/VM CLI tools only. pdbmux is a k8s-only daemon and
+# is deliberately excluded from the RPM (it is released as a container image);
+# it is still built + tested in this repo via the Makefile.
 BINARIES=(node-lookup pburl pblastreport)
 DIST="dist"
 
@@ -37,7 +40,7 @@ export PACKAGE_VERSION="${VERSION}"
 export PACKAGE_RELEASE="1"
 export PACKAGE_ARCH="amd64"
 export PACKAGE_PLATFORM="linux"
-export PACKAGE_DESCRIPTION="CLI tools for PuppetDB: node-lookup (fact lookup/filtering) plus pburl and pblastreport (Puppetboard URLs and last-report times)"
+export PACKAGE_DESCRIPTION="CLI tools for PuppetDB: node-lookup (fact lookup/filtering), pburl and pblastreport (Puppetboard URLs and last-report times)"
 export PACKAGE_MAINTAINER="Ben Vincent <ben@unkin.net>"
 export PACKAGE_HOMEPAGE="https://git.unkin.net/unkin/node-lookup"
 export PACKAGE_LICENSE="MIT"