diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
index 3d29ab5a..0e814ba8 100644
--- a/.env.example
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -222,6 +222,8 @@ GITEA_URL=http://gitea-changemaker:3000
 GITEA_PORT=3030
 GITEA_WEB_PORT=3030
 GITEA_SSH_PORT=2222
+# Admin user (auto-created on first boot by gitea-init.sh)
+GITEA_ADMIN_USER=admin
 GITEA_DB_TYPE=mysql
 GITEA_DB_HOST=gitea-db:3306
 GITEA_DB_NAME=gitea
diff --git a/admin/src/pages/NocoDBPage.tsx b/admin/src/pages/NocoDBPage.tsx
index f867e0a6..4373b7ed 100644
--- a/admin/src/pages/NocoDBPage.tsx
+++ b/admin/src/pages/NocoDBPage.tsx
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import { useState, useEffect, useCallback, useMemo } from 'react';
+import { useState, useEffect, useCallback, useMemo, useRef } from 'react';
 import { useOutletContext } from 'react-router-dom';
 import { Button, Space, Badge, Spin, Grid, Result, Alert } from 'antd';
 import { ReloadOutlined, LinkOutlined, DatabaseOutlined } from '@ant-design/icons';
@@ -7,8 +7,6 @@ import type { AppOutletContext } from '@/components/AppLayout';
 import type { ServicesStatus, ServicesConfig } from '@/types/api';
 import { buildServiceUrl } from '@/lib/service-url';
 
-const BANNER_DISMISSED_KEY = 'nocodb-auth-banner-dismissed';
-
 export default function NocoDBPage() {
   const { setPageHeader } = useOutletContext<AppOutletContext>();
   const screens = Grid.useBreakpoint();
@@ -17,9 +15,9 @@ export default function NocoDBPage() {
   const [online, setOnline] = useState<boolean | null>(null);
   const [config, setConfig] = useState<ServicesConfig | null>(null);
   const [loading, setLoading] = useState(true);
-  const [bannerDismissed, setBannerDismissed] = useState(
-    () => localStorage.getItem(BANNER_DISMISSED_KEY) === 'true'
-  );
+  const [iframeSrc, setIframeSrc] = useState<string | null>(null);
+  const [authFailed, setAuthFailed] = useState(false);
+  const authAttempted = useRef(false);
 
   const fetchStatus = useCallback(async () => {
     try {
@@ -44,7 +42,31 @@ export default function NocoDBPage() {
     ? buildServiceUrl(config.nocodbSubdomain, config.domain, config.nocodbPort)
     : null;
 
+  // Auto sign-in: fetch NocoDB auth token and navigate iframe to auth bridge
+  useEffect(() => {
+    if (!serviceUrl || !online || authAttempted.current) return;
+    authAttempted.current = true;
+
+    (async () => {
+      try {
+        const res = await api.get<{ token: string }>('/services/nocodb-auth');
+        if (res.data.token) {
+          // Navigate iframe to auth bridge (same origin as NocoDB) which sets the cookie
+          setIframeSrc(`${serviceUrl}/auth-bridge#${res.data.token}`);
+          return;
+        }
+      } catch {
+        // Auth endpoint unavailable — fall back to direct URL
+      }
+      setAuthFailed(true);
+      setIframeSrc(serviceUrl);
+    })();
+  }, [serviceUrl, online]);
+
   const handleRefresh = useCallback(() => {
+    authAttempted.current = false;
+    setIframeSrc(null);
+    setAuthFailed(false);
     fetchStatus();
   }, [fetchStatus]);
 
@@ -115,11 +137,11 @@ export default function NocoDBPage() {
 
   return (
     <div style={{ height: 'calc(100vh - 64px)', display: 'flex', flexDirection: 'column' }}>
-      {!bannerDismissed && (
+      {authFailed && (
         <Alert
           message={
             <>
-              If the database browser appears blank, you may need to{' '}
+              Auto sign-in unavailable. You may need to{' '}
               <a href={serviceUrl} target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">
                 sign in to NocoDB in a new tab
               </a>{' '}
@@ -129,23 +151,26 @@ export default function NocoDBPage() {
           type="info"
           showIcon
           closable
-          onClose={() => {
-            setBannerDismissed(true);
-            localStorage.setItem(BANNER_DISMISSED_KEY, 'true');
-          }}
+          onClose={() => setAuthFailed(false)}
           style={{ borderRadius: 0, flexShrink: 0 }}
         />
       )}
-      <iframe
-        src={serviceUrl}
-        style={{
-          width: '100%',
-          flex: 1,
-          border: 'none',
-          display: 'block',
-        }}
-        title="NocoDB"
-      />
+      {iframeSrc ? (
+        <iframe
+          src={iframeSrc}
+          style={{
+            width: '100%',
+            flex: 1,
+            border: 'none',
+            display: 'block',
+          }}
+          title="NocoDB"
+        />
+      ) : (
+        <div style={{ textAlign: 'center', padding: 80 }}>
+          <Spin size="large" tip="Signing in to NocoDB..." />
+        </div>
+      )}
     </div>
   );
 }
diff --git a/api/src/config/env.ts b/api/src/config/env.ts
index 221b45c4..9f22eff1 100644
--- a/api/src/config/env.ts
+++ b/api/src/config/env.ts
@@ -96,6 +96,8 @@ const envSchema = z.object({
 
   // Platform Services (NocoDB, n8n, Gitea)
   NOCODB_URL: z.string().default('http://changemaker-v2-nocodb:8080'),
+  NC_ADMIN_EMAIL: z.string().default(''),
+  NC_ADMIN_PASSWORD: z.string().default(''),
   NOCODB_PORT: z.coerce.number().default(8091),
   NOCODB_EMBED_PORT: z.coerce.number().default(8881),
   N8N_URL: z.string().default('http://n8n-changemaker:5678'),
diff --git a/api/src/modules/gitea-setup/gitea-setup.service.ts b/api/src/modules/gitea-setup/gitea-setup.service.ts
index 6b98255b..c22b6e1e 100644
--- a/api/src/modules/gitea-setup/gitea-setup.service.ts
+++ b/api/src/modules/gitea-setup/gitea-setup.service.ts
@@ -393,17 +393,26 @@ async function autoSetupIfNeeded(): Promise<{ alreadyComplete: boolean; success:
     // DB might not be ready yet
   }
 
-  // Wait for Gitea to be available (up to 3 retries, 15s apart)
+  // Wait for Gitea to be available and admin user to exist (up to 6 retries, 10s apart).
+  // The gitea-init.sh script creates the admin user after migrations,
+  // so we need to wait for both Gitea web AND admin auth to be ready.
   let giteaReady = false;
-  for (let i = 0; i < 3; i++) {
+  for (let i = 0; i < 6; i++) {
     try {
       const controller = new AbortController();
       const timeout = setTimeout(() => controller.abort(), 5000);
       try {
+        // Check if Gitea is online
         const res = await fetch(`${env.GITEA_URL}/api/v1/version`, { signal: controller.signal });
         if (res.ok) {
-          giteaReady = true;
-          break;
+          // Also verify admin auth works (user may not exist yet if init script is still running)
+          try {
+            await giteaBasicRequest<{ login: string }>('GET', '/user', 'admin', password);
+            giteaReady = true;
+            break;
+          } catch {
+            // Admin user not ready yet — gitea-init.sh may still be running
+          }
         }
       } finally {
         clearTimeout(timeout);
@@ -411,14 +420,14 @@ async function autoSetupIfNeeded(): Promise<{ alreadyComplete: boolean; success:
     } catch {
       // Not ready yet
     }
-    if (i < 2) {
-      logger.info(`Gitea auto-setup: waiting for Gitea to be ready (attempt ${i + 1}/3)...`);
-      await new Promise(r => setTimeout(r, 15000));
+    if (i < 5) {
+      logger.info(`Gitea auto-setup: waiting for Gitea + admin user (attempt ${i + 1}/6)...`);
+      await new Promise(r => setTimeout(r, 10000));
     }
   }
 
   if (!giteaReady) {
-    return { alreadyComplete: false, success: false, error: 'Gitea not reachable after 3 attempts' };
+    return { alreadyComplete: false, success: false, error: 'Gitea not reachable or admin user not ready after 6 attempts' };
   }
 
   // Run setup
diff --git a/api/src/modules/services/services.routes.ts b/api/src/modules/services/services.routes.ts
index f2bddad6..54b34633 100644
--- a/api/src/modules/services/services.routes.ts
+++ b/api/src/modules/services/services.routes.ts
@@ -64,6 +64,48 @@ router.get(
   },
 );
 
+// GET /api/services/nocodb-auth — proxy NocoDB signin to get an auth token for iframe auto-login
+router.get(
+  '/nocodb-auth',
+  async (_req: Request, res: Response, next: NextFunction) => {
+    try {
+      if (!env.NC_ADMIN_EMAIL || !env.NC_ADMIN_PASSWORD) {
+        res.status(503).json({ error: 'NocoDB admin credentials not configured' });
+        return;
+      }
+
+      const controller = new AbortController();
+      const timeout = setTimeout(() => controller.abort(), 5000);
+      try {
+        const response = await fetch(`${env.NOCODB_URL}/api/v1/auth/user/signin`, {
+          method: 'POST',
+          headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
+          body: JSON.stringify({ email: env.NC_ADMIN_EMAIL, password: env.NC_ADMIN_PASSWORD }),
+          signal: controller.signal,
+        });
+
+        if (!response.ok) {
+          res.status(502).json({ error: 'NocoDB authentication failed' });
+          return;
+        }
+
+        const data = (await response.json()) as { token?: string };
+        if (!data.token) {
+          res.status(502).json({ error: 'No token in NocoDB response' });
+          return;
+        }
+
+        res.json({ token: data.token });
+      } finally {
+        clearTimeout(timeout);
+      }
+    } catch (err) {
+      logger.error('NocoDB auth proxy failed', err);
+      next(err);
+    }
+  },
+);
+
 // GET /api/services/config — return public-facing port numbers + subdomain info for iframe URLs
 router.get(
   '/config',
diff --git a/config.sh b/config.sh
index 76da9671..315c074b 100755
--- a/config.sh
+++ b/config.sh
@@ -852,19 +852,29 @@ configure_features() {
 
     if [[ "$NON_INTERACTIVE" == "false" ]]; then
       echo ""
-      info "Gitea auto-setup will create the API token, repos, and OAuth app automatically."
-      info "You need to provide the Gitea admin password (set during Gitea's first-run install)."
+      info "Gitea will be auto-initialized on first boot (no manual install wizard)."
+      info "The admin user and docs comment system will be configured automatically."
+      info "Provide a password for the Gitea admin account:"
       echo ""
 
       read -srp "  Gitea admin password [leave blank to set up later via admin GUI]: " gitea_admin_pw
       echo ""
       if [[ -n "$gitea_admin_pw" ]]; then
+        update_env_var "GITEA_ADMIN_USER" "admin"
         update_env_var "GITEA_ADMIN_PASSWORD" "$gitea_admin_pw"
         update_env_var "GITEA_COMMENTS_REPO_OWNER" "admin"
-        success "Gitea admin password saved — auto-setup will run on next start"
+        success "Gitea admin user + docs comment auto-setup configured"
       else
         info "No password provided. Run Gitea Setup from the admin GUI after first start."
       fi
+    else
+      # Non-interactive: reuse admin password for Gitea
+      local gitea_pw="${NI_ADMIN_PASSWORD:-}"
+      if [[ -n "$gitea_pw" ]]; then
+        update_env_var "GITEA_ADMIN_USER" "admin"
+        update_env_var "GITEA_ADMIN_PASSWORD" "$gitea_pw"
+        update_env_var "GITEA_COMMENTS_REPO_OWNER" "admin"
+      fi
     fi
   else
     DOCS_COMMENTS_ENABLED="no"
diff --git a/docker-compose.prod.yml b/docker-compose.prod.yml
index bbba337e..c002ba91 100644
--- a/docker-compose.prod.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.prod.yml
@@ -128,6 +128,16 @@ services:
       - GITEA_REGISTRY=${GITEA_REGISTRY:-gitea.bnkops.com/admin}
       - GITEA_REGISTRY_USER=${GITEA_REGISTRY_USER:-}
       - GITEA_REGISTRY_PASS=${GITEA_REGISTRY_PASS:-}
+      # Gitea (docs comments, version history, auto-setup)
+      - GITEA_URL=${GITEA_URL:-http://gitea-changemaker:3000}
+      - GITEA_API_TOKEN=${GITEA_API_TOKEN:-}
+      - GITEA_ADMIN_PASSWORD=${GITEA_ADMIN_PASSWORD:-}
+      - GITEA_DOCS_REPO=${GITEA_DOCS_REPO:-admin/changemaker.lite}
+      - GITEA_DOCS_PREFIX=${GITEA_DOCS_PREFIX:-mkdocs/docs}
+      - GITEA_DOCS_BRANCH=${GITEA_DOCS_BRANCH:-v2}
+      # NocoDB credentials (for auto sign-in proxy)
+      - NC_ADMIN_EMAIL=${NC_ADMIN_EMAIL:-admin@cmlite.org}
+      - NC_ADMIN_PASSWORD=${NC_ADMIN_PASSWORD:-}
       # GeoIP (MaxMind GeoLite2)
       - MAXMIND_ACCOUNT_ID=${MAXMIND_ACCOUNT_ID:-}
       - MAXMIND_LICENSE_KEY=${MAXMIND_LICENSE_KEY:-}
@@ -688,11 +698,19 @@ services:
       - GITEA__service__ENABLE_REVERSE_PROXY_EMAIL=false
       - GITEA__service__REVERSE_PROXY_AUTHENTICATION_HEADER=X-WEBAUTH-USER
       - GITEA__service__REQUIRE_SIGNIN_VIEW=true
+      # Skip installation wizard — admin user created by gitea-init.sh
+      - GITEA__security__INSTALL_LOCK=true
+      # Admin user creation (used by gitea-init.sh on first boot)
+      - GITEA_ADMIN_USER=${GITEA_ADMIN_USER:-admin}
+      - GITEA_ADMIN_PASSWORD=${GITEA_ADMIN_PASSWORD:-}
+      - GITEA_ADMIN_EMAIL=${INITIAL_ADMIN_EMAIL:-admin@cmlite.org}
     restart: unless-stopped
     volumes:
       - gitea-data:/data
+      - ./scripts/gitea-init.sh:/custom/gitea-init.sh:ro
       - /etc/timezone:/etc/timezone:ro
       - /etc/localtime:/etc/localtime:ro
+    command: ["/bin/sh", "/custom/gitea-init.sh"]
     ports:
       - "127.0.0.1:${GITEA_WEB_PORT:-3030}:3000"
       - "127.0.0.1:${GITEA_SSH_PORT:-2222}:22"
diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index cdab741d..6e8d761c 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -136,6 +136,9 @@ services:
       - GITEA_DOCS_REPO=${GITEA_DOCS_REPO:-admin/changemaker.lite}
       - GITEA_DOCS_PREFIX=${GITEA_DOCS_PREFIX:-mkdocs/docs}
       - GITEA_DOCS_BRANCH=${GITEA_DOCS_BRANCH:-v2}
+      # NocoDB credentials (for auto sign-in proxy)
+      - NC_ADMIN_EMAIL=${NC_ADMIN_EMAIL:-admin@cmlite.org}
+      - NC_ADMIN_PASSWORD=${NC_ADMIN_PASSWORD:-}
       # GeoIP (MaxMind GeoLite2)
       - MAXMIND_ACCOUNT_ID=${MAXMIND_ACCOUNT_ID:-}
       - MAXMIND_LICENSE_KEY=${MAXMIND_LICENSE_KEY:-}
@@ -714,11 +717,19 @@ services:
       - GITEA__service__ENABLE_REVERSE_PROXY_EMAIL=false
       - GITEA__service__REVERSE_PROXY_AUTHENTICATION_HEADER=X-WEBAUTH-USER
       - GITEA__service__REQUIRE_SIGNIN_VIEW=true
+      # Skip installation wizard — admin user created by gitea-init.sh
+      - GITEA__security__INSTALL_LOCK=true
+      # Admin user creation (used by gitea-init.sh on first boot)
+      - GITEA_ADMIN_USER=${GITEA_ADMIN_USER:-admin}
+      - GITEA_ADMIN_PASSWORD=${GITEA_ADMIN_PASSWORD:-}
+      - GITEA_ADMIN_EMAIL=${INITIAL_ADMIN_EMAIL:-admin@cmlite.org}
     restart: unless-stopped
     volumes:
       - gitea-data:/data
+      - ./scripts/gitea-init.sh:/custom/gitea-init.sh:ro
       - /etc/timezone:/etc/timezone:ro
       - /etc/localtime:/etc/localtime:ro
+    command: ["/bin/sh", "/custom/gitea-init.sh"]
     ports:
       - "127.0.0.1:${GITEA_WEB_PORT:-3030}:3000"
       - "127.0.0.1:${GITEA_SSH_PORT:-2222}:22"
diff --git a/nginx/conf.d/services.conf.template b/nginx/conf.d/services.conf.template
index d192a2c7..39cd6397 100644
--- a/nginx/conf.d/services.conf.template
+++ b/nginx/conf.d/services.conf.template
@@ -78,6 +78,14 @@ server {
     server_name db.${DOMAIN};
     add_header Content-Security-Policy "frame-ancestors 'self' app.${DOMAIN}" always;
 
+    # Auth bridge for iframe auto-sign-in (token passed via URL hash, never sent to server)
+    location = /auth-bridge {
+        default_type text/html;
+        add_header Cache-Control "no-store" always;
+        add_header Content-Security-Policy "frame-ancestors 'self' app.${DOMAIN}" always;
+        return 200 '<!DOCTYPE html><html><head><meta charset="utf-8"><script>(function(){var t=location.hash.substring(1);if(!t){document.body.innerText="No token";return;}document.cookie="nocodb-token="+encodeURIComponent(t)+";path=/;SameSite=Lax;max-age=86400";try{localStorage.setItem("nocodb-token",JSON.stringify(t));}catch(e){}window.location.replace("/dashboard/");})()</script></head><body>Signing in...</body></html>';
+    }
+
     location / {
         set $upstream_nocodb http://changemaker-v2-nocodb:8080;
         proxy_pass $upstream_nocodb;
@@ -287,6 +295,14 @@ server {
 
 server {
     listen ${NOCODB_EMBED_PORT};
+
+    # Auth bridge for iframe auto-sign-in (localhost/dev variant)
+    location = /auth-bridge {
+        default_type text/html;
+        add_header Cache-Control "no-store" always;
+        return 200 '<!DOCTYPE html><html><head><meta charset="utf-8"><script>(function(){var t=location.hash.substring(1);if(!t){document.body.innerText="No token";return;}document.cookie="nocodb-token="+encodeURIComponent(t)+";path=/;SameSite=Lax;max-age=86400";try{localStorage.setItem("nocodb-token",JSON.stringify(t));}catch(e){}window.location.replace("/dashboard/");})()</script></head><body>Signing in...</body></html>';
+    }
+
     location / {
         set $upstream_nocodb http://changemaker-v2-nocodb:8080;
         proxy_pass $upstream_nocodb;
diff --git a/scripts/build-release.sh b/scripts/build-release.sh
index 167f2618..69123de1 100755
--- a/scripts/build-release.sh
+++ b/scripts/build-release.sh
@@ -103,7 +103,7 @@ cp "$PROJECT_DIR/api/prisma/init-nocodb-db.sh" "$STAGE_DIR/scripts/"
 cp "$PROJECT_DIR/api/prisma/init-gancio-db.sh" "$STAGE_DIR/scripts/"
 
 # Runtime scripts
-for script in nocodb-init.sh mkdocs-entrypoint.sh backup.sh \
+for script in nocodb-init.sh gitea-init.sh mkdocs-entrypoint.sh backup.sh \
               upgrade.sh upgrade-check.sh upgrade-watcher.sh \
               uninstall.sh test-deployment.sh; do
   if [[ -f "$PROJECT_DIR/scripts/$script" ]]; then
diff --git a/scripts/gitea-init.sh b/scripts/gitea-init.sh
new file mode 100755
index 00000000..07b09d2e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/gitea-init.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+#!/bin/sh
+# =============================================================================
+# Gitea Initialization Script
+# =============================================================================
+# Replaces the default CMD in the Gitea Docker container.
+# Runs database migrations, creates the admin user (if credentials are provided
+# and the user doesn't already exist), then starts the Gitea web server.
+#
+# This script is exec'd by /usr/bin/entrypoint, which has already:
+#   - Set up UID/GID
+#   - Created directories with correct permissions
+#   - Converted GITEA__* env vars into /data/gitea/conf/app.ini
+# =============================================================================
+set -e
+
+PREFIX="[gitea-init]"
+log()  { echo "$PREFIX $1"; }
+
+# --- Step 1: Run database migrations ---
+log "Running database migrations..."
+MIGRATE_OK=false
+for i in $(seq 1 10); do
+  if gitea migrate 2>&1; then
+    MIGRATE_OK=true
+    log "Migrations complete"
+    break
+  fi
+  log "Waiting for database... (attempt $i/10)"
+  sleep 3
+done
+
+if [ "$MIGRATE_OK" = false ]; then
+  log "WARNING: Migrations may not have completed — starting anyway"
+fi
+
+# --- Step 2: Create admin user if credentials provided ---
+if [ -n "$GITEA_ADMIN_USER" ] && [ -n "$GITEA_ADMIN_PASSWORD" ] && [ -n "$GITEA_ADMIN_EMAIL" ]; then
+  log "Creating admin user '${GITEA_ADMIN_USER}'..."
+  if gitea admin user create --admin \
+    --username "$GITEA_ADMIN_USER" \
+    --password "$GITEA_ADMIN_PASSWORD" \
+    --email "$GITEA_ADMIN_EMAIL" \
+    --must-change-password false 2>&1; then
+    log "Admin user created successfully"
+  else
+    log "Admin user already exists (or creation skipped)"
+  fi
+else
+  log "No GITEA_ADMIN_USER/PASSWORD/EMAIL set — skipping admin creation"
+fi
+
+# --- Step 3: Start Gitea web server ---
+log "Starting Gitea web server..."
+exec gitea web