diff --git a/src/commands/sync.mjs b/src/commands/sync.mjs
index efa64fe..3af737a 100644
--- a/src/commands/sync.mjs
+++ b/src/commands/sync.mjs
@@ -48,8 +48,17 @@ Examples:
   ak sync --dry-run       preview the plan
   ak sync --no-upgrade    re-heal without touching versions`;
 
-export async function run({ flags, pkgRoot }) {
+export async function run({ flags, pkgRoot, fetchLatest }) {
   const cwd = process.cwd();
+  // #134: draw the plan from CURRENT drift, not the TTL cache — a cache
+  // stamped before an upstream release claims "all current" and the upgrade
+  // never reaches the plan (the old force at apply time sat behind the very
+  // versions gate it needed to open). Dry-runs skip the refresh: it writes
+  // kit.json, and --dry-run is pinned to touch nothing — so a dry-run
+  // preview may be cache-stale by up to one TTL window.
+  if (!flags['dry-run'] && !flags['no-upgrade']) {
+    await driftReport({ force: true, ...(fetchLatest ? { fetchLatest } : {}) });
+  }
   const rows = await collect({ pkgRoot, cwd });
   const plan = rows.filter((r) => r.fix)
     .filter((r) => !(flags['no-upgrade'] && ['versions', 'self', 'ruvnet-brain', 'ruvector'].includes(r.subsystem)));
@@ -79,7 +88,9 @@ export async function run({ flags, pkgRoot }) {
 
   if (subsystems.has('versions') && !flags['no-upgrade']) {
     report('daemons', await heal.stopAllDaemons());
-    for (const d of await driftReport({ force: true })) {
+    // No force here: the pre-plan refresh above already ran for every
+    // non-dry-run, non-no-upgrade sync, so this read hits that fresh cache.
+    for (const d of await driftReport()) {
       if (d.outdated || !d.installed) await step(`upgrade ${d.pkg}`, () => heal.upgradePackage(d.pkg));
     }
   }
diff --git a/src/lib/heal.mjs b/src/lib/heal.mjs
index d75f95c..7c77954 100644
--- a/src/lib/heal.mjs
+++ b/src/lib/heal.mjs
@@ -134,17 +134,20 @@ export async function healAidefence() {
 }
 
 /** Optional native sublinear solver for agentic-qe (best-effort). */
-export async function healAqeSolver({ runner = run } = {}) {
+export async function healAqeSolver() {
   if (!fs.existsSync(aqeRoot())) {
     return { ok: true, status: 'skipped', usable: false, detail: 'agentic-qe not installed' };
   }
   const probe = path.join(aqeRoot(), 'node_modules', '@ruvector', 'solver-node', 'package.json');
   if (fs.existsSync(probe)) return { ok: true, status: 'ok', usable: true, detail: 'already present' };
-  const r = await npmInstallInto(aqeRoot(), '@ruvector/solver-node', runner);
-  if (r.code === 0) return { ok: true, status: 'ok', usable: true, detail: 'installed' };
+  // The native accelerator was never published to npm, and upstream resolved
+  // its own half by documenting the TypeScript solver as the implementation
+  // (agentic-qe#617 → #620, shipped in aqe 3.13.10). Attempting the install
+  // would only manufacture a 404 warning for a by-design state (#135). The
+  // probe above still detects a native that arrives by any other route.
   return {
-    ok: true, status: 'degraded', usable: true,
-    detail: `native solver unavailable; TypeScript fallback active (<50K nodes) (${failTail(r)})`,
+    ok: true, status: 'ok', usable: true,
+    detail: 'native solver unpublished upstream (agentic-qe#617) — TypeScript fallback is the implementation (<50K nodes)',
   };
 }
 
diff --git a/src/lib/versions.mjs b/src/lib/versions.mjs
index a7d1637..8c2da98 100644
--- a/src/lib/versions.mjs
+++ b/src/lib/versions.mjs
@@ -54,8 +54,11 @@ export function cmpVersions(a, b) {
 const newer = (a, b) => cmpVersions(a, b) > 0;
 
 /** Drift report for the managed packages. Network hit at most once per TTL
- *  window (cached in kit.json); force=true bypasses the cache. */
-export async function driftReport({ force = false } = {}) {
+ *  window (cached in kit.json); force=true bypasses the cache. A failed probe
+ *  falls back to the cached value per package, and a run where EVERY probe
+ *  failed neither overwrites `seen` nor stamps `last` — clobbering good data
+ *  with nulls would suppress upgrade detection for a whole TTL window (#134). */
+export async function driftReport({ force = false, fetchLatest = latestVersion } = {}) {
   const cfg = loadKitConfig();
   const ttlMs = (cfg.versionCheck?.ttlHours ?? 24) * 3600_000;
   const fresh = !force && cfg.versionCheck?.last && Date.now() - cfg.versionCheck.last < ttlMs;
@@ -67,12 +70,20 @@ export async function driftReport({ force = false } = {}) {
   const HOST_PKGS = ['@anthropic-ai/claude-code', '@openai/codex', 'opencode-ai'];
   const pkgs = ['ruflo', 'agentic-qe', ...HOST_PKGS.filter((p) => installedVersion(p))];
   const report = [];
-  let latest = cfg.versionCheck?.seen ?? {};
+  const cached = cfg.versionCheck?.seen ?? {};
+  let latest = cached;
   if (!fresh) {
     latest = {};
-    for (const p of pkgs) latest[p] = await latestVersion(p);
-    cfg.versionCheck = { ...cfg.versionCheck, last: Date.now(), seen: latest };
-    try { saveKitConfig(cfg); } catch { /* read-only envs: nudge just re-fetches */ }
+    let succeeded = 0;
+    for (const p of pkgs) {
+      const v = await fetchLatest(p);
+      if (v) succeeded += 1;
+      latest[p] = v ?? cached[p] ?? null;
+    }
+    if (succeeded > 0) {
+      cfg.versionCheck = { ...cfg.versionCheck, last: Date.now(), seen: latest };
+      try { saveKitConfig(cfg); } catch { /* read-only envs: nudge just re-fetches */ }
+    }
   }
   for (const p of pkgs) {
     const installed = installedVersion(p);
diff --git a/tests/kit/drift-freshness.test.mjs b/tests/kit/drift-freshness.test.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e4a2c52
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/kit/drift-freshness.test.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,93 @@
+// #134 — sync must not let the version-drift TTL cache hide an available
+// upgrade, and a failed forced fetch must never clobber good cached data.
+// #135's solver contract lives in heal-natives.test.mjs; this file owns the
+// drift-report resilience contract and the sync plan-freshness contract.
+import { test } from 'node:test';
+import assert from 'node:assert/strict';
+import fs from 'node:fs';
+import path from 'node:path';
+import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
+import {
+  sandboxHome, assertSandboxed, captureLog, rmrf,
+  sandboxProject, writeKitConfig, offlineKitConfig, fakeGlobalRoot,
+} from './helpers/home-sandbox.mjs';
+
+const HOME = sandboxHome('ak-drift-fresh');
+const paths = await import('../../src/lib/paths.mjs');
+const { driftReport } = await import('../../src/lib/versions.mjs');
+const sync = await import('../../src/commands/sync.mjs');
+const { loadKitConfig } = await import('../../src/lib/config.mjs');
+assertSandboxed(paths, HOME);
+
+const PKG_ROOT = path.resolve(path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url)), '../..');
+const PROJECT = sandboxProject('ak-drift-fresh');
+const FLAGS = (over = {}) => ({ 'dry-run': false, 'no-upgrade': false, json: false, ...over });
+
+/** kit.json with an explicit versionCheck state; global root has ruflo+aqe fixtures. */
+function seedHome({ last, seen, ruflo = '9.9.9' }) {
+  rmrf(paths.claudeDir(), paths.configDir());
+  fs.mkdirSync(paths.claudeDir(), { recursive: true });
+  fs.writeFileSync(paths.claudeMdPath(), '# machine notes\n');
+  const cfg = offlineKitConfig();
+  cfg.versionCheck = { ttlHours: 24, last, seen, self: cfg.versionCheck.self };
+  writeKitConfig(HOME, cfg);
+  paths._setGlobalRootForTest(fakeGlobalRoot(HOME, { ruflo, 'agentic-qe': '9.9.9' }));
+}
+
+const inSandboxProject = async (fn) => {
+  const cwd = process.cwd();
+  process.chdir(PROJECT);
+  try { return await fn(); } finally { process.chdir(cwd); }
+};
+
+test('a failed forced fetch falls back to the cached seen values instead of nulling them', async () => {
+  seedHome({ last: 1, seen: { ruflo: '9.9.10', 'agentic-qe': '9.9.9' } }); // stale cache, good data
+  const report = await driftReport({ force: true, fetchLatest: async () => null }); // npm down
+
+  const ruflo = report.find((r) => r.pkg === 'ruflo');
+  assert.equal(ruflo.latest, '9.9.10', 'cached seen survives a failed fetch');
+  assert.equal(ruflo.outdated, true, '9.9.10 > installed 9.9.9 still detected');
+});
+
+test('a fully-failed forced fetch neither clobbers seen nor stamps last (TTL retries promptly)', async () => {
+  seedHome({ last: 1, seen: { ruflo: '9.9.10', 'agentic-qe': '9.9.9' } });
+  await driftReport({ force: true, fetchLatest: async () => null });
+
+  const after = loadKitConfig().versionCheck;
+  assert.equal(after.seen.ruflo, '9.9.10', 'seen preserved on total failure');
+  assert.equal(after.last, 1, 'last not stamped — the next call must retry, not trust a failed probe');
+});
+
+test('a successful forced fetch updates seen, stamps last, and reports drift', async () => {
+  seedHome({ last: Date.now(), seen: { ruflo: '9.9.9', 'agentic-qe': '9.9.9' } }); // FRESH but wrong
+  const report = await driftReport({ force: true, fetchLatest: async (pkg) => (pkg === 'ruflo' ? '9.9.11' : '9.9.9') });
+
+  assert.equal(report.find((r) => r.pkg === 'ruflo').outdated, true);
+  const after = loadKitConfig().versionCheck;
+  assert.equal(after.seen.ruflo, '9.9.11');
+  assert.ok(after.last > 1, 'last stamped on success');
+});
+
+test('a STALE cache with newer seen data reaches the sync plan even when npm is unreachable', async () => {
+  // The collect() path: last=0 forces a refetch; offline that refetch fails.
+  // Resilient fallback must keep 9.9.10 visible so the plan includes the upgrade.
+  seedHome({ last: 0, seen: { ruflo: '9.9.10', 'agentic-qe': '9.9.9' } });
+  const { result, out } = await inSandboxProject(() =>
+    captureLog(() => sync.run({ flags: FLAGS({ 'dry-run': true }), pkgRoot: PKG_ROOT })));
+
+  assert.equal(result, 0);
+  assert.match(out, /\[versions\].*ruflo 9\.9\.9 installed, 9\.9\.10 available/,
+    'the plan must surface the upgrade the cache already knows about');
+});
+
+test('sync (non-dry) force-refreshes drift BEFORE building the plan, so a fresh-but-wrong cache cannot hide an upgrade', async () => {
+  seedHome({ last: Date.now(), seen: { ruflo: '9.9.9', 'agentic-qe': '9.9.9' } }); // fresh cache: "all current"
+  const { out } = await inSandboxProject(() =>
+    captureLog(() => sync.run({
+      flags: FLAGS(), pkgRoot: PKG_ROOT,
+      fetchLatest: async (pkg) => (pkg === 'ruflo' ? '9.9.12' : '9.9.9'), // npm knows better
+    })));
+
+  assert.match(out, /\[versions\].*ruflo 9\.9\.9 installed, 9\.9\.12 available/,
+    'plan must be built from a forced refresh, not the stale-fresh cache');
+});
diff --git a/tests/kit/heal-natives.test.mjs b/tests/kit/heal-natives.test.mjs
index 6a3939d..205d6f3 100644
--- a/tests/kit/heal-natives.test.mjs
+++ b/tests/kit/heal-natives.test.mjs
@@ -340,17 +340,39 @@ test('brain installer stamps only a zero-exit installation', async () => {
   assert.equal(stamped, '4.0.12');
 });
 
-test('AQE native solver failure is an explicit degraded fallback', async () => {
+test('AQE solver: the unpublished native is never install-attempted and the TS fallback is reported as the implementation (#135)', async () => {
   const root = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'ak-solver-'));
   fs.mkdirSync(path.join(root, 'agentic-qe'), { recursive: true });
   _setGlobalRootForTest(root);
   try {
+    // upstream declared the package not-installable (agentic-qe#617/#620) —
+    // any npm invocation here is a regression to the pre-#620 behavior.
     const r = await healAqeSolver({
-      runner: async () => ({ code: 1, stdout: '', stderr: 'native package unavailable\n' }),
+      runner: async () => { throw new Error('must not shell out for @ruvector/solver-node'); },
     });
-    assert.equal(r.ok, true, 'the TypeScript fallback remains usable');
-    assert.equal(r.status, 'degraded');
-    assert.equal(r.usable, true);
+    assert.equal(r.ok, true);
+    assert.equal(r.status, 'ok', 'expected state, not a warning');
+    assert.equal(r.usable, true, 'the TypeScript fallback is the implementation');
+    assert.match(r.detail, /unpublished upstream/);
+    assert.doesNotMatch(r.detail, /FAILED|npm error/, 'no error tail for a by-design state');
+  } finally {
+    _setGlobalRootForTest(null);
+    fs.rmSync(root, { recursive: true, force: true });
+  }
+});
+
+test('AQE solver: a native already present on disk is still detected and reported', async () => {
+  const root = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'ak-solver-present-'));
+  const probe = path.join(root, 'agentic-qe', 'node_modules', '@ruvector', 'solver-node');
+  fs.mkdirSync(probe, { recursive: true });
+  fs.writeFileSync(path.join(probe, 'package.json'), '{"name":"@ruvector/solver-node"}');
+  _setGlobalRootForTest(root);
+  try {
+    const r = await healAqeSolver({
+      runner: async () => { throw new Error('must not shell out'); },
+    });
+    assert.equal(r.status, 'ok');
+    assert.equal(r.detail, 'already present');
   } finally {
     _setGlobalRootForTest(null);
     fs.rmSync(root, { recursive: true, force: true });