diff --git a/src/resources/extensions/sf/auto/loop.js b/src/resources/extensions/sf/auto/loop.js
index ed9197bf9..e3c60140e 100644
--- a/src/resources/extensions/sf/auto/loop.js
+++ b/src/resources/extensions/sf/auto/loop.js
@@ -586,6 +586,26 @@ export async function autoLoop(ctx, pi, s, deps) {
 			cleared: runawayHeal,
 		});
 	}
+	// ── Start sift index warmup if not already running ──
+	// The warmup runs detached and builds the lexical index for the repo.
+	// Once cached, all future sift_search and codebase_search calls are fast.
+	// We do this here (not just in auto-start) so every repo SF enters gets
+	// indexed, including repos launched via `sf headless` or cd'd into mid-session.
+	try {
+		const { ensureSiftIndexWarmup } = await import("../code-intelligence.js");
+		const warmup = ensureSiftIndexWarmup(
+			s.basePath,
+			deps.loadEffectiveSFPreferences?.()?.preferences?.codebase,
+		);
+		if (warmup.status === "started") {
+			debugLog("autoLoop", {
+				phase: "sift-warmup-started",
+				reason: warmup.reason,
+			});
+		}
+	} catch {
+		/* best-effort — never block the loop on warmup */
+	}
 	let iteration = 0;
 	// Load persisted stuck state so counters survive session restarts (#3704)
 	const persisted = loadStuckState(s.basePath);
diff --git a/src/resources/extensions/sf/auto/run-unit.js b/src/resources/extensions/sf/auto/run-unit.js
index 38bc64c85..bef5f1231 100644
--- a/src/resources/extensions/sf/auto/run-unit.js
+++ b/src/resources/extensions/sf/auto/run-unit.js
@@ -26,6 +26,7 @@ import {
 	countChangedFiles,
 	resetRunawayGuardState,
 } from "../uok/auto-runaway-guard.js";
+import { emitJournalEvent } from "../journal.js";
 import { swarmDispatchAndWait } from "../uok/swarm-dispatch.js";
 import { logWarning } from "../workflow-logger.js";
 import {