diff --git a/.github/workflows/test.yml b/.github/workflows/test.yml
index 30bf439b9a..3b88467e71 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/test.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/test.yml
@@ -2197,6 +2197,131 @@ jobs:
         if: ${{ !cancelled() }}
         run: python3 -m unittest tests.test_native_abi_evidence_report
 
+      # #10782: pay auto-optimize's cold runtime builds HERE, under a budget of
+      # their own, instead of inside whichever gate step below happens to
+      # compile first.
+      #
+      # `perry compile` resolves `optimized_libs` unconditionally
+      # (run_pipeline.rs:6169), so the first LINKING compile in this job blocks
+      # on a nested `cargo build --release -p perry-runtime-static -p
+      # perry-stdlib-static` into `target/perry-auto-<hash>/`. That build does
+      # not fit the 300s `--compile-timeout` every gate step below runs under,
+      # and the failure surfaces as `TimeoutExpired` on whichever workload
+      # happened to compile first (`h1_native_rep_equivalence`, the head of
+      # both suites). `PERRY_RUNTIME_DIR` does not suppress the rebuild.
+      #
+      # TWO cold builds, not one. Every gated workload shares a single
+      # `target/perry-auto-<hash>/`, because the directory hash does not
+      # include the cross-feature set -- but the BUILD STAMP inside it does,
+      # and a stamp mismatch re-runs cargo. The harness
+      # sets `PERRY_GC_TRACE=1` only for workloads carrying `*_traced` runtime
+      # budgets, and `PERRY_GC_TRACE` adds `perry-runtime/diagnostics`
+      # (optimized_libs/freshness.rs). `loop_bound_semantics` is the one gated
+      # workload with no `*_traced` budget, so it is the one compile in the job
+      # that wants the OTHER feature set. Measured with a debug compiler on an
+      # M-series mini: 244.6s for the diagnostics variant and 242.1s for the
+      # non-diagnostics one, each against a 300s budget; every later flip
+      # between the two is ~4s, because cargo keeps both variants' artifacts.
+      # Warming only the first variant just moves the timeout from
+      # `h1_native_rep_equivalence` to `loop_bound_semantics`.
+      #
+      # This goes through the HARNESS rather than a bare `perry compile`
+      # precisely because the harness is what decides `PERRY_GC_TRACE` per
+      # workload: a hand-rolled compile would warm a stamp no gate step wants.
+      # `--skip-run` keeps it to the compile; the gate steps own the execution
+      # and the verdicts, and keep their 300s and their subjects unchanged.
+      #
+      # The trap this closes: a pre-warm that silently no-ops is WORSE than no
+      # pre-warm, because the gates then fail exactly as they do today while
+      # looking like they were warmed. The two assertions below are the gate on
+      # the gate.
+      - name: Pre-warm auto-optimized runtime
+        if: ${{ !cancelled() && steps.compiler_output_build.outcome == 'success' }}
+        run: |
+          set -euo pipefail
+          prewarm() {
+            python3 scripts/compiler_output_regression.py capture \
+              --perry target/debug/perry \
+              --workload "$1" \
+              --benchmark-mode smoke \
+              --runs 1 \
+              --perf-counters off \
+              --skip-run \
+              --compile-timeout 2400 \
+              --out-dir "target/compiler-output-regression/$2"
+          }
+
+          # Variant A -- `*_traced` budgets, so PERRY_GC_TRACE=1, so
+          # +perry-runtime/diagnostics. Every gated compile in the job but one.
+          prewarm h1_native_rep_equivalence prewarm-trace
+          # Variant B -- no `*_traced` budget, so no PERRY_GC_TRACE.
+          prewarm loop_bound_semantics prewarm-notrace
+          # Flip back to A. This leaves the stamp on the variant almost every
+          # gate step wants, AND it is the liveness probe: a flip is only cheap
+          # if BOTH variants are in cargo's cache, so its duration is what the
+          # second assertion below reads.
+          prewarm h1_native_rep_equivalence prewarm-verify
+
+          # Liveness assertion -- the point of the step, not decoration.
+          #
+          # `perry compile` EXITS 0 when auto-optimize fails: the driver prints
+          # "using prebuilt libraries" and returns `OptimizedLibs::empty()`
+          # (optimized_libs/driver.rs). So the three captures above exiting 0
+          # says nothing about whether anything was warmed, and a pre-warm that
+          # quietly warmed nothing is worse than no pre-warm at all -- the
+          # gates below then fail exactly as they do today while the log shows
+          # a green "Pre-warm" step above them.
+          #
+          # Two things are required, and neither alone is enough. Cargo creates
+          # `target/perry-auto-<hash>/` (and a zero-byte
+          # `.perry-auto-build.lock`) BEFORE it builds anything into it, so the
+          # directory existing proves nothing; and the build stamp is written
+          # only after `cargo build` reports success
+          # (driver.rs, `write(&build_stamp_path, ...)` past the
+          # `status.success()` check), which is also what the NEXT compile
+          # consults for freshness. Require a stamped directory holding a
+          # non-empty `libperry_runtime.a`.
+          warm=$(
+            for dir in target/perry-auto-*/; do
+              [ -s "${dir}.perry-auto-build.stamp" ] || continue
+              find "$dir" -maxdepth 3 -name 'libperry_runtime.a' -size +0c 2>/dev/null
+            done
+          ) || true
+          if [ -z "$warm" ]; then
+            echo "::error::pre-warm warmed nothing: no target/perry-auto-*/ holds both a build stamp and a non-empty libperry_runtime.a. Auto-optimize fell back to prebuilt libraries (perry exits 0 when it does), so every gate step below would pay the cold runtime build inside its 300s --compile-timeout." >&2
+            echo "--- target/perry-auto-* ---" >&2
+            ls -la target/perry-auto-*/ 2>&1 | head -60 >&2 || true
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          echo "pre-warmed auto-optimized runtime:"
+          printf '%s\n' "$warm" | while read -r archive; do ls -l "$archive"; done
+
+          # Second assertion: warm, not merely present. The check above proves
+          # a runtime was built; it cannot tell one warmed variant from two,
+          # and a job warmed for only one feature set fails at
+          # `loop_bound_semantics` instead of at `h1_native_rep_equivalence`.
+          # The third pre-warm above flipped the stamp back to variant A, which
+          # re-runs cargo -- that is cheap ONLY if variant B is also cached. So
+          # require that flip to have fitted comfortably inside the budget the
+          # gate steps get. A cold build here is ~240s; a warm flip is seconds.
+          python3 - <<'EOF'
+          import json, sys
+          budget_s = 300   # every gate step's --compile-timeout
+          limit_s = budget_s / 2
+          m = json.load(open("target/compiler-output-regression/prewarm-verify/manifest.json"))
+          took = m["commands"]["compile"]["duration_ms"] / 1000
+          print(f"post-warm flip compile: {took:.1f}s (must be < {limit_s:.0f}s)")
+          if took >= limit_s:
+              print(
+                  f"::error::pre-warm left the runtime cold: a compile after the "
+                  f"warm-up still took {took:.1f}s, more than half the {budget_s}s "
+                  f"--compile-timeout every gate step below runs under. Auto-optimize "
+                  f"is still rebuilding, so a gate step will time out.",
+                  file=sys.stderr,
+              )
+              sys.exit(1)
+          EOF
+
       - name: Gate native-region proof compiler output
         if: ${{ !cancelled() && steps.compiler_output_build.outcome == 'success' }}
         run: |
diff --git a/CLAUDE.md b/CLAUDE.md
index a0076624b2..646b769fd3 100644
--- a/CLAUDE.md
+++ b/CLAUDE.md
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ This file provides guidance to Claude Code (claude.ai/code) when working with co
 
 Perry is a native TypeScript compiler written in Rust that compiles TypeScript source code directly to native executables. It uses SWC for TypeScript parsing and LLVM for code generation.
 
-**Current Version:** 0.5.1621
+**Current Version:** 0.5.1622
 
 
 ## TypeScript Parity Status
diff --git a/Cargo.lock b/Cargo.lock
index 96325b1467..ba5708dc77 100644
--- a/Cargo.lock
+++ b/Cargo.lock
@@ -5543,7 +5543,7 @@ checksum = "1473d470930ed48574515a25df34900f3af89c6fa422d903e019121312a9f13e"
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "base64 0.22.1",
@@ -5607,7 +5607,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-api-manifest"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "perry-dispatch",
  "serde",
@@ -5615,7 +5615,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-audio-miniaudio"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "cc",
  "libc",
@@ -5624,7 +5624,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-codegen"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "aho-corasick",
  "anyhow",
@@ -5641,7 +5641,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-codegen-arkts"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "perry-hir",
@@ -5649,7 +5649,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-codegen-glance"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "perry-hir",
@@ -5657,7 +5657,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-codegen-js"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "perry-dispatch",
@@ -5666,7 +5666,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-codegen-swiftui"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "perry-hir",
@@ -5674,7 +5674,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-codegen-wasm"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "base64 0.22.1",
@@ -5686,7 +5686,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-codegen-wear-tiles"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "perry-hir",
@@ -5694,7 +5694,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-container-compose"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "async-trait",
  "clap",
@@ -5718,14 +5718,14 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-container-e2e"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
 ]
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-diagnostics"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "serde",
  "serde_json",
@@ -5733,7 +5733,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-dispatch"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-doc-fixture-my-bindings"
@@ -5744,7 +5744,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-doc-tests"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "clap",
@@ -5759,7 +5759,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-ads"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "block2",
  "objc2",
@@ -5769,7 +5769,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-argon2"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "argon2",
  "perry-ffi",
@@ -5778,7 +5778,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-bcrypt"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "bcrypt",
  "perry-ffi",
@@ -5786,7 +5786,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-better-sqlite3"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "perry-ffi",
  "rusqlite",
@@ -5794,7 +5794,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-cheerio"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "perry-ffi",
  "scraper",
@@ -5802,7 +5802,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-decimal"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "perry-ffi",
  "rust_decimal",
@@ -5810,7 +5810,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-ethers"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "perry-ffi",
  "rand 0.10.2",
@@ -5818,7 +5818,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-events"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "perry-ffi",
  "perry-runtime",
@@ -5826,7 +5826,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-fetch"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "bytes",
  "lazy_static",
@@ -5839,7 +5839,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-http"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "base64 0.22.1",
  "bytes",
@@ -5871,7 +5871,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-ioredis"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "lazy_static",
  "perry-ffi",
@@ -5881,7 +5881,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-mongodb"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "bson",
  "futures-util",
@@ -5893,7 +5893,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-mysql2"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "chrono",
  "perry-ffi",
@@ -5905,7 +5905,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-net"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "bytes",
  "perry-ffi",
@@ -5920,7 +5920,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-nodemailer"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "lettre",
  "perry-ffi",
@@ -5930,7 +5930,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-parcel-watcher"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "notify",
  "perry-ffi",
@@ -5942,7 +5942,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-pdf"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "perry-ffi",
  "printpdf",
@@ -5950,7 +5950,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-pg"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "perry-ffi",
  "sqlx",
@@ -5959,7 +5959,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-sharp"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "fast_image_resize",
  "image",
@@ -5970,7 +5970,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-streams"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "lazy_static",
  "perry-ffi",
@@ -5979,7 +5979,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-typescript"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "perry-ffi",
@@ -5999,7 +5999,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-undici"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "perry-ffi",
  "perry-runtime",
@@ -6008,7 +6008,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-ws"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "futures-util",
  "lazy_static",
@@ -6021,7 +6021,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ext-zlib"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "brotli",
  "flate2",
@@ -6031,7 +6031,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ffi"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "dashmap 6.2.1",
  "once_cell",
@@ -6041,7 +6041,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-hir"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "perry-api-manifest",
@@ -6061,11 +6061,11 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-native-registration"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-parser"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "perry-diagnostics",
@@ -6078,7 +6078,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-perex"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "perex",
  "regex",
@@ -6086,7 +6086,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-runtime"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "ahash",
  "base64 0.22.1",
@@ -6144,14 +6144,14 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-runtime-static"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "perry-runtime",
 ]
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-stdlib"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "aes 0.8.4",
  "aes 0.9.1",
@@ -6234,21 +6234,21 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-stdlib-static"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "perry-stdlib",
 ]
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-transform"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "perry-hir",
 ]
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "dirs",
  "perry-ffi",
@@ -6258,7 +6258,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui-android"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "base64 0.22.1",
  "jni",
@@ -6273,7 +6273,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui-geisterhand"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "rand 0.10.2",
  "serde",
@@ -6283,7 +6283,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui-gtk4"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "base64 0.22.1",
  "cairo-rs 0.22.9",
@@ -6306,7 +6306,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui-ios"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "base64 0.22.1",
  "block2",
@@ -6323,7 +6323,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui-macos"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "base64 0.22.1",
  "block2",
@@ -6340,7 +6340,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui-model"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui-test"
@@ -6351,11 +6351,11 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui-testkit"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui-tvos"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "base64 0.22.1",
  "block2",
@@ -6372,7 +6372,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui-visionos"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "base64 0.22.1",
  "block2",
@@ -6389,7 +6389,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui-watchos"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "block2",
  "libc",
@@ -6403,7 +6403,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui-windows"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "base64 0.22.1",
  "libc",
@@ -6422,7 +6422,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-ui-windows-winui"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "base64 0.22.1",
  "libc",
@@ -6435,7 +6435,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-updater"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "anyhow",
  "base64 0.22.1",
@@ -6450,7 +6450,7 @@ dependencies = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "perry-wasm-host"
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 dependencies = [
  "wasmi",
 ]
diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index 24bc1b26cd..3aaa869ead 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -317,7 +317,7 @@ codegen-units = 1
 codegen-units = 1
 
 [workspace.package]
-version = "0.5.1621"
+version = "0.5.1622"
 edition = "2021"
 license = "MIT"
 repository = "https://github.com/PerryTS/perry"
diff --git a/changelog.d/10782-prewarm-compiler-output.md b/changelog.d/10782-prewarm-compiler-output.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..d374ee7942
--- /dev/null
+++ b/changelog.d/10782-prewarm-compiler-output.md
@@ -0,0 +1,81 @@
+Gave the `compiler-output-regression` job's cold auto-optimize runtime builds a
+budget of their own, closing the residual #10782 left behind. The job is a
+`main-gate` input, so while it was red every merge bypassed it.
+
+`perry compile` resolves `optimized_libs` unconditionally
+(`run_pipeline.rs:6169`), several hundred lines before `--no-link`'s early
+return, so the first linking compile in the job blocks on a nested
+`cargo build --release -p perry-runtime-static -p perry-stdlib-static` into
+`target/perry-auto-<hash>/`. `PERRY_RUNTIME_DIR` does not suppress it. #10782
+moved that cost off the harness's `--print-hir --no-link` probe, where
+suppressing auto-optimize is inert, but deliberately not off the linking
+compile: `runtime_budgets`' `allocations_traced` / `gc_collections_traced` /
+`write_barriers_traced` are read out of the executed binary's `PERRY_GC_TRACE`
+stderr and are MAXIMA, so a runtime emitting no trace scores 0 and passes all
+three vacuously. The build therefore just moved into the linking compile's
+300 s `--compile-timeout`, and the gate kept failing with `TimeoutExpired` on
+`h1_native_rep_equivalence`, the head of both suites.
+
+A `Pre-warm auto-optimized runtime` step now does those builds before the
+gates, with `--skip-run --compile-timeout 2400`, so each gate step keeps its
+300 s and keeps measuring exactly what it measured before.
+
+**It is two cold builds, not one.** Every gated workload shares a single
+`target/perry-auto-<hash>/` — the directory hash keys on the stdlib feature
+arg, not on the cross-features — but the build stamp *inside* it keys on the
+cross-feature set, and a stamp mismatch re-runs cargo. The harness sets
+`PERRY_GC_TRACE=1` only for workloads carrying `*_traced` runtime budgets, and
+`PERRY_GC_TRACE` adds `perry-runtime/diagnostics`
+(`optimized_libs/freshness.rs`). `loop_bound_semantics` is the one gated
+workload with no `*_traced` budget, so it is the one compile in the job that
+wants the other feature set. Measured with a debug compiler on an M-series
+mini, from a cleared `target/perry-auto-*`:
+
+| compile | duration | budget |
+|---|---|---|
+| first gated compile, diagnostics variant | 244.6 s | 300 s |
+| `loop_bound_semantics`, non-diagnostics variant | 242.1 s | 300 s |
+| every later flip between the two variants | ~4 s | 300 s |
+| every other gated compile | 3–4 s | 300 s |
+
+So warming one variant only moves the timeout from `h1_native_rep_equivalence`
+to `loop_bound_semantics`, which is 242.1 s into a 300 s budget on a box faster
+than a GitHub runner. The step warms both, then flips back to the variant 24 of
+the 25 gated compiles want. It goes through the harness rather than a bare
+`perry compile` precisely because the harness is what decides `PERRY_GC_TRACE`
+per workload — a hand-rolled compile would warm a stamp no gate step wants.
+
+The step asserts it warmed something, which is the substance of the change
+rather than a flourish: `perry compile` **exits 0 when auto-optimize fails** —
+the driver prints "using prebuilt libraries" and returns
+`OptimizedLibs::empty()` — so a pre-warm that quietly warms nothing is worse
+than none at all, leaving the gates to fail exactly as before under a green
+"Pre-warm" step. Two assertions, because neither covers the other:
+
+* A stamped `target/perry-auto-*/` holding a non-empty `libperry_runtime.a`.
+  Both halves are load-bearing: cargo creates the directory and a zero-byte
+  `.perry-auto-build.lock` *before* building anything into it, while
+  `.perry-auto-build.stamp` is written only past the `status.success()` check
+  and is what the next compile consults for freshness.
+* The third pre-warm's own compile duration, which must be under half a gate
+  step's budget. That compile deliberately flips the stamp, and a flip is cheap
+  only if *both* variants are in cargo's cache — so it fails a job warmed for
+  one variant, which the artifact check above cannot see.
+
+Both were checked against the failures they exist for, not merely exercised.
+With the pre-warm neutered (`PERRY_NO_AUTO_OPTIMIZE=1`, runtime served from a
+pre-existing archive so the compile still succeeds) the harness exits 0 and the
+step goes red on the first assertion, naming the missing directory; its five
+states — no `target/`, a directory mid-build, a stamp with a zero-byte archive,
+an archive with no stamp, and fully warm — were each checked individually.
+
+Verified afterwards that the linking compile still runs *with* auto-optimize,
+i.e. that the #10782 exclusion is intact: `gc_trace_unavailable` is `False` on
+all 23 suite workloads, which is the executed binary's own report that
+`perry-runtime/diagnostics` was compiled in, and the harness fails the workload
+when it is not. A suppressed linking compile would flip it to `True` rather
+than pass vacuously.
+
+Not done here, and worth its own issue: `--no-link` could decline to
+auto-optimize outright, a two-line guard at `run_pipeline.rs:6169`, which fixes
+the class rather than this instance.
diff --git a/changelog.d/10782-step-liveness-registry.md b/changelog.d/10782-step-liveness-registry.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..e52b243925
--- /dev/null
+++ b/changelog.d/10782-step-liveness-registry.md
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+Registered the new "Pre-warm auto-optimized runtime" step in
+`scripts/compiler_output_step_liveness.py`'s `COMPILER_SUBJECTS`.
+
+That gate refuses to let the `compiler-output-regression` job's post-build step
+inventory drift silently, and it caught the addition immediately — which is the
+gate working, not a nuisance. Registering the step deliberately is the intended
+response.
+
+It belongs in `COMPILER_SUBJECTS` rather than `UNIT_TEST_SUBJECTS` because it
+depends on the build, and it already carries the matching guard
+(`!cancelled() && steps.compiler_output_build.outcome == 'success'`) so a
+sibling failure cannot hide it.
+
+Listing it matters beyond satisfying the check: the pre-warm carries its own
+liveness assertions and can fail, so it is a subject. Were it removed or
+silently disabled, every gate step below would quietly inherit the 300 s
+timeout the pre-warm exists to prevent.
diff --git a/changelog.d/10804-stale-denial-issue-pointer.md b/changelog.d/10804-stale-denial-issue-pointer.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..361ab6e48a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/changelog.d/10804-stale-denial-issue-pointer.md
@@ -0,0 +1,29 @@
+**fix(codegen): point the module-global `Ptr<Shape>` denial at its real issue.**
+`MODULE_GLOBAL_ISSUE` in `expr/slot_rep.rs` — the issue number the optimiser
+report prints when a module-level binding is denied a canonical slot — cited
+**#7109**. That is a different mechanism: #7109 is the module-init /
+program-entry *context* gate, which `MODULE_INIT_CONTEXT` in the same file
+still cites correctly. #7109 is closed, and so is #10774, which lifted that
+gate.
+
+So every reader who followed the denial's own pointer landed on a closed issue
+about something else, and could reasonably conclude the module-global class was
+already handled. That is not hypothetical: one optimisation pass recorded
+module-global storage as "less important" on exactly that reading, and a
+separate campaign spent a day repeating "#7109 is the blocker" on inherited
+belief before checking the issue state.
+
+Now points at **#10803** (`Ptr<Shape>` is denied to three storage classes:
+module globals, function parameters, and locals escaping into a module global),
+with a comment recording why the old pointer was wrong so the correction is not
+silently reverted.
+
+Deliberately unchanged: `MODULE_INIT_CONTEXT`'s `#7109`, which is accurate to
+that rule's subject, and the `#7109` fixture string in `opt_report/render.rs`'s
+test helper. Only the live user-facing pointer for the module-global storage
+class moved. `the_context_gate_is_reported_when_every_value_rule_passed`
+asserts the `MODULE_INIT_CONTEXT` pointer and still passes unchanged, which is
+what confirms the two were separable.
+
+Found by cross-session review while handing the module-global lane to another
+campaign; the denial classes it names are that campaign's #10803.
diff --git a/crates/perry-codegen/src/expr/slot_rep.rs b/crates/perry-codegen/src/expr/slot_rep.rs
index 21e77799e8..4f310c313c 100644
--- a/crates/perry-codegen/src/expr/slot_rep.rs
+++ b/crates/perry-codegen/src/expr/slot_rep.rs
@@ -450,7 +450,15 @@ pub(crate) fn deny_canonical_i32(ctx: &FnCtx<'_>, id: u32, name: &str, denial: C
 }
 
 /// Tracking issue for "a module-level binding can never take a canonical slot".
-const MODULE_GLOBAL_ISSUE: &str = "#7109";
+///
+/// This pointed at #7109 until #10803. #7109 is a *different* mechanism — the
+/// module-init / program-entry context gate, which `MODULE_INIT_CONTEXT` below
+/// still cites correctly — and it is closed, as is #10774 which lifted that
+/// gate. A reader who followed this denial's own pointer therefore landed on a
+/// closed issue about something else and could reasonably conclude the
+/// module-global class was already handled; that is how one optimisation pass
+/// came to record module-global storage as "less important".
+const MODULE_GLOBAL_ISSUE: &str = "#10803";
 /// Tracking issue for the index-use / i32-bound precondition.
 const NOT_BOUNDED_ISSUE: &str = "#7123";
 /// Tracking issue for the profitability refusal — the one denial in this list
diff --git a/scripts/compiler_output_step_liveness.py b/scripts/compiler_output_step_liveness.py
index b029c3dae6..e92ec29296 100644
--- a/scripts/compiler_output_step_liveness.py
+++ b/scripts/compiler_output_step_liveness.py
@@ -37,6 +37,12 @@
     "Run native ABI evidence report unit tests",
 )
 COMPILER_SUBJECTS = (
+    # #10782: pays auto-optimize's two cold runtime builds under a budget of
+    # its own, so no gate step below absorbs a 343s nested cargo build inside
+    # its 300s --compile-timeout. It is a subject, not scaffolding: it carries
+    # its own liveness assertions and can fail, so it must be listed here or a
+    # silently-removed pre-warm would hand every gate back its timeout.
+    "Pre-warm auto-optimized runtime",
     "Gate native-region proof compiler output",
     "Gate native-ABI proof compiler output",
     "Gate typed feedback runtime evidence",