diff --git a/mtproxymax.sh b/mtproxymax.sh
index b0ac44b..06788e3 100644
--- a/mtproxymax.sh
+++ b/mtproxymax.sh
@@ -525,9 +525,21 @@ detect_os() {
     fi
 }
 
+# True only when systemd is actually running as PID 1. Testing for the `systemctl`
+# binary alone is not enough: a chroot, a container that pulled systemd in as a
+# dependency, and a half-booted host all have the binary while every systemctl call
+# fails. `systemctl --version` is no better — it exits 0 with no bus at all.
+_systemd_is_running() {
+    [ -d /run/systemd/system ] || return 1
+    local _state
+    _state=$(systemctl is-system-running 2>/dev/null) || true
+    # "degraded" still means booted, so this compares the value rather than the status.
+    [ -n "$_state" ] && [ "$_state" != "offline" ]
+}
+
 # Detect the host init system: systemd | openrc | none
 detect_init_system() {
-    if command -v systemctl &>/dev/null; then
+    if _systemd_is_running; then
         echo "systemd"
     elif [ -x /sbin/openrc-run ] || command -v rc-service &>/dev/null; then
         echo "openrc"
@@ -13560,9 +13572,16 @@ ExecStop=/usr/local/bin/mtproxymax stop
 WantedBy=multi-user.target
 AUTOSTART_EOF
 
-        systemctl daemon-reload
-        systemctl enable mtproxymax.service 2>/dev/null
-        log_success "Auto-start enabled (systemd)"
+        systemctl daemon-reload >/dev/null 2>&1 || true
+        # Check the result instead of discarding it. `systemctl enable` exits non-zero when
+        # there is no systemd to talk to (the not-booted case), so the old unconditional
+        # log_success told users autostart was on when nothing had been enabled.
+        if systemctl enable mtproxymax.service >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+            log_success "Auto-start enabled (systemd)"
+        else
+            log_warn "Could not enable auto-start — run: systemctl enable mtproxymax"
+            return 1
+        fi
         ;;
     openrc)
         # Type=oneshot + RemainAfterExit=yes wraps the manager's own start/stop,
diff --git a/tests/test_init_detection.sh b/tests/test_init_detection.sh
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1b446ee
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_init_detection.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,147 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+# Regression tests for init-system detection and autostart reporting.
+#
+# detect_init_system() tested for the presence of the `systemctl` *binary*, not for systemd
+# actually running as PID 1. In a chroot, in a container that pulled systemd in as a
+# dependency, or on a half-booted host, it reported "systemd" — and the systemd branch of
+# setup_autostart() then ran `systemctl daemon-reload` and `systemctl enable` with no
+# status check and printed "Auto-start enabled (systemd)" regardless. The user was told
+# autostart was enabled when nothing had been enabled.
+#
+# The OpenRC branch directly below it already verifies (openrc_enable_service checks that
+# the runlevel symlink landed) and returns 1 with a warning. These tests assert the
+# systemd branch behaves the same way.
+set -o pipefail
+
+if [ "${BASH_VERSINFO[0]:-0}" -lt 4 ]; then
+    echo "SKIP: bash 4+ required (got ${BASH_VERSION:-unknown})" >&2
+    exit 0
+fi
+
+TEST_TMPDIR=$(mktemp -d 2>/dev/null || mktemp -d -t 'mtp_init_XXXXXX')
+
+# A systemctl whose behaviour is driven by the environment, so both "not booted" and
+# "booted but enable fails" can be reproduced without a real init system.
+FAKEBIN="$TEST_TMPDIR/bin"
+mkdir -p "$FAKEBIN"
+cat >"$FAKEBIN/systemctl" <<'SYSTEMCTL_EOF'
+#!/bin/bash
+case "${1:-}" in
+is-system-running)
+    echo "${FAKE_SYSTEMD_STATE:-offline}"
+    [ "${FAKE_SYSTEMD_STATE:-offline}" = "offline" ] && exit 1
+    exit 0
+    ;;
+is-enabled)
+    echo "${FAKE_IS_ENABLED:-disabled}"
+    [ "${FAKE_IS_ENABLED:-disabled}" = "enabled" ] && exit 0
+    exit 1
+    ;;
+enable) exit "${FAKE_ENABLE_RC:-0}" ;;
+*) exit 0 ;;
+esac
+SYSTEMCTL_EOF
+chmod +x "$FAKEBIN/systemctl"
+PATH="$FAKEBIN:$PATH"
+export PATH
+
+MTPROXYMAX_SOURCE_ONLY=true source "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")/../mtproxymax.sh"
+set +e
+
+# setup_autostart writes to ${SYSTEMD_DIR}; keep it inside the sandbox.
+SYSTEMD_DIR="$TEST_TMPDIR/systemd"
+mkdir -p "$SYSTEMD_DIR"
+
+# Real systemd installs have this directory; its absence is how a not-booted host looks.
+RUNDIR=/run/systemd/system
+RUNDIR_PREEXISTED=0
+[ -d "$RUNDIR" ] && RUNDIR_PREEXISTED=1
+
+cleanup() {
+    [ "$RUNDIR_PREEXISTED" -eq 0 ] && rmdir "$RUNDIR" 2>/dev/null
+    rmdir /run/systemd 2>/dev/null
+    rm -rf "$TEST_TMPDIR"
+}
+trap cleanup EXIT
+
+TESTS_RUN=0
+TESTS_FAILED=0
+
+assert_eq() {
+    local name="$1" want="$2" got="$3"
+    TESTS_RUN=$((TESTS_RUN + 1))
+    if [ "$got" = "$want" ]; then
+        printf '  PASS  %s\n' "$name"
+    else
+        printf '  FAIL  %s (got=%q want=%q)\n' "$name" "$got" "$want"
+        TESTS_FAILED=$((TESTS_FAILED + 1))
+    fi
+}
+
+assert_ne() {
+    local name="$1" unwanted="$2" got="$3"
+    TESTS_RUN=$((TESTS_RUN + 1))
+    if [ "$got" != "$unwanted" ]; then
+        printf '  PASS  %s\n' "$name"
+    else
+        printf '  FAIL  %s (unexpectedly %q)\n' "$name" "$got"
+        TESTS_FAILED=$((TESTS_FAILED + 1))
+    fi
+}
+
+LOG_SUCCESS=""
+LOG_WARN=""
+log_success() { LOG_SUCCESS="$*"; }
+log_warn() { LOG_WARN="$*"; }
+log_info() { :; }
+log_error() { :; }
+
+echo "init detection tests"
+
+# The stub must be the systemctl that resolves, or none of this proves anything.
+assert_eq "stub systemctl is on PATH" "$FAKEBIN/systemctl" "$(command -v systemctl)"
+assert_eq "no OpenRC present to fall back to" "absent" \
+    "$([ -x /sbin/openrc-run ] || command -v rc-service >/dev/null 2>&1 && echo present || echo absent)"
+
+# --- systemctl exists but systemd is not running ---------------------------------
+# This is the chroot / container / half-booted case.
+rm -rf "$RUNDIR"
+export FAKE_SYSTEMD_STATE=offline
+
+assert_ne "binary present but not booted is not detected as systemd" "systemd" "$(detect_init_system)"
+
+LOG_SUCCESS=""
+LOG_WARN=""
+setup_autostart >/dev/null 2>&1
+assert_ne "setup_autostart does not report success" "0" "$?"
+assert_eq "no success message is printed" "" "$LOG_SUCCESS"
+assert_ne "a warning is printed instead" "" "$LOG_WARN"
+
+# --- systemd running, but enabling the unit fails ---------------------------------
+# The unit file is still written; what must not happen is reporting success.
+mkdir -p "$RUNDIR"
+export FAKE_SYSTEMD_STATE=running
+export FAKE_ENABLE_RC=1
+export FAKE_IS_ENABLED=disabled
+
+assert_eq "booted systemd is detected" "systemd" "$(detect_init_system)"
+
+LOG_SUCCESS=""
+LOG_WARN=""
+setup_autostart >/dev/null 2>&1
+assert_ne "a failed enable does not report success" "0" "$?"
+assert_eq "no success message on a failed enable" "" "$LOG_SUCCESS"
+
+# --- and the happy path must still work -------------------------------------------
+FAKE_ENABLE_RC=0
+FAKE_IS_ENABLED=enabled
+export FAKE_ENABLE_RC FAKE_IS_ENABLED
+
+LOG_SUCCESS=""
+LOG_WARN=""
+setup_autostart >/dev/null 2>&1
+assert_eq "a working enable reports success" "0" "$?"
+assert_ne "success message is printed when it really succeeded" "" "$LOG_SUCCESS"
+
+printf '\n%d tests, %d failures\n' "$TESTS_RUN" "$TESTS_FAILED"
+[ "$TESTS_FAILED" -eq 0 ]