diff --git a/backup/backup-k8s-apps.sh b/backup/backup-k8s-apps.sh
index 7120c27..7b059ce 100755
--- a/backup/backup-k8s-apps.sh
+++ b/backup/backup-k8s-apps.sh
@@ -26,6 +26,26 @@
 
 set -uo pipefail
 
+# When run inside the management-platform pod, only the static k3s binary is
+# hostPath-mounted (no separate kubectl binary) — fall back to `k3s kubectl`.
+# IMPORTANT: this pod also has a pre-existing rw hostPath mount of /root (for
+# unrelated file-browsing features), which means the host's own root-owned
+# ~/.kube/config (full cluster-admin) is silently visible inside the pod too.
+# `--kubeconfig=/dev/null` is REQUIRED here to stop k3s kubectl from picking
+# that up as a base config — without it, every command below silently runs
+# as cluster-admin instead of the scoped management-platform-sa token,
+# defeating the RBAC in management-platform-backup-rbac.yaml entirely.
+if ! command -v kubectl &>/dev/null && command -v k3s &>/dev/null; then
+    kubectl() {
+        k3s kubectl \
+            --kubeconfig=/dev/null \
+            --server=https://kubernetes.default.svc \
+            --certificate-authority=/var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/ca.crt \
+            --token="$(cat /var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/token)" \
+            "$@"
+    }
+fi
+
 # --------------------------------------------------
 # Parse --apps
 # --------------------------------------------------
@@ -132,7 +152,9 @@ log_status() {
 # --------------------------------------------------
 check_resources() {
     local avail_mb avail_gb
-    avail_mb=$(free -m | awk '/^Mem:/{print $7}')
+    # /proc/meminfo instead of `free` — `free` isn't present in the
+    # management-platform pod's minimal image, /proc/meminfo always is.
+    avail_mb=$(awk '/^MemAvailable:/{printf "%d", $2/1024}' /proc/meminfo)
     avail_gb=$(df -BG / | awk 'NR==2{gsub("G","",$4); print $4}')
     if [ "$avail_mb" -lt 1536 ]; then
         echo "   ❌ RAM available ${avail_mb}MB < 1536MB threshold — aborting."
diff --git a/backup/restore-k8s-apps.sh b/backup/restore-k8s-apps.sh
index 33039a4..21e2bc4 100755
--- a/backup/restore-k8s-apps.sh
+++ b/backup/restore-k8s-apps.sh
@@ -36,6 +36,26 @@ set -uo pipefail
 SCRIPT_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")" && pwd)"
 cd "$SCRIPT_DIR"
 
+# When run inside the management-platform pod, only the static k3s binary is
+# hostPath-mounted (no separate kubectl binary) — fall back to `k3s kubectl`.
+# IMPORTANT: this pod also has a pre-existing rw hostPath mount of /root (for
+# unrelated file-browsing features), which means the host's own root-owned
+# ~/.kube/config (full cluster-admin) is silently visible inside the pod too.
+# `--kubeconfig=/dev/null` is REQUIRED here to stop k3s kubectl from picking
+# that up as a base config — without it, every command below silently runs
+# as cluster-admin instead of the scoped management-platform-sa token,
+# defeating the RBAC in management-platform-backup-rbac.yaml entirely.
+if ! command -v kubectl &>/dev/null && command -v k3s &>/dev/null; then
+    kubectl() {
+        k3s kubectl \
+            --kubeconfig=/dev/null \
+            --server=https://kubernetes.default.svc \
+            --certificate-authority=/var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/ca.crt \
+            --token="$(cat /var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/token)" \
+            "$@"
+    }
+fi
+
 APPS_FILTER="all"
 VALID_APPS="frappe odoo nextcloud mautic n8n"
 
@@ -98,7 +118,9 @@ echo "========================================="
 
 check_resources() {
     local avail_mb avail_gb
-    avail_mb=$(free -m | awk '/^Mem:/{print $7}')
+    # /proc/meminfo instead of `free` — `free` isn't present in the
+    # management-platform pod's minimal image, /proc/meminfo always is.
+    avail_mb=$(awk '/^MemAvailable:/{printf "%d", $2/1024}' /proc/meminfo)
     avail_gb=$(df -BG / | awk 'NR==2{gsub("G","",$4); print $4}')
     if [ "$avail_mb" -lt 1536 ] || [ "$avail_gb" -lt 10 ]; then
         echo "   ❌ Resource safety threshold hit (RAM=${avail_mb}MB, Disk=${avail_gb}GB) — aborting."
@@ -139,15 +161,21 @@ for app in $ALL_APPS; do
 
     app_ok=true
 
-    # ---- 1. Secret + manifests (apply — idempotent) ----
+    # ---- 1. Secret (apply — idempotent update, no create: every Secret
+    #         restored here already exists in a same-cluster restore) ----
     if [ -f "$APP_DIR/secret.yaml" ]; then
         echo -n "   🔑 Applying Secret ... "
         kubectl apply -f "$APP_DIR/secret.yaml" &>/dev/null && echo "✅" || { echo "⚠️  FAILED"; app_ok=false; }
     fi
-    if [ -f "$APP_DIR/manifests.yaml" ]; then
-        echo -n "   📄 Applying manifests ... "
-        kubectl apply -f "$APP_DIR/manifests.yaml" &>/dev/null && echo "✅" || { echo "⚠️  FAILED"; app_ok=false; }
-    fi
+    # NOTE: manifests.yaml (Deployment/Service/ConfigMap/Ingress specs) is
+    # captured by backup-k8s-apps.sh but deliberately NOT re-applied here.
+    # Same-cluster restore-in-place never needs to reconcile those specs —
+    # only Secret values, PVC data, and DB content actually change — and
+    # the pod's RBAC (management-platform-backup-role) intentionally grants
+    # no write on Deployments/Services/ConfigMaps/Ingresses beyond the
+    # deployments/scale subresource used in step 2/4 below. manifests.yaml
+    # is kept in every backup purely as a captured reference for a future
+    # fresh-cluster/DR restore path, which is explicitly out of scope today.
 
     # ---- 2. Scale app down ----
     prior_replicas=$(kubectl get deployment "$app_deploy" -n "$ns" -o jsonpath='{.spec.replicas}' 2>/dev/null || echo 1)
diff --git a/k8s/management-platform-deployment.yaml b/k8s/management-platform-deployment.yaml
index 981d0bf..f0f44b9 100644
--- a/k8s/management-platform-deployment.yaml
+++ b/k8s/management-platform-deployment.yaml
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ spec:
         app.kubernetes.io/managed-by: navitrends-pfe-migration
         owner: ameni-boukattaya
     spec:
-      serviceAccountName: management-platform-viewer-sa
+      serviceAccountName: management-platform-sa
       containers:
       - name: management-platform
         image: management-platform:latest
@@ -47,6 +47,9 @@ spec:
         - mountPath: /app/config.py
           name: config-py
           readOnly: true
+        - mountPath: /usr/local/bin/k3s
+          name: k3s-bin
+          readOnly: true
       volumes:
       - name: docker-sock
         hostPath:
@@ -68,3 +71,7 @@ spec:
         hostPath:
           path: /root/management-platform/config.py
           type: File
+      - name: k3s-bin
+        hostPath:
+          path: /usr/local/bin/k3s
+          type: File
diff --git a/management-platform-backup-rbac.yaml b/management-platform-backup-rbac.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b869c66
--- /dev/null
+++ b/management-platform-backup-rbac.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,149 @@
+apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
+kind: ClusterRole
+metadata:
+  name: management-platform-backup-role
+  labels:
+    owner: ameni-boukattaya
+    app.kubernetes.io/managed-by: navitrends-pfe-migration
+rules:
+  # Read + resolve exec targets (deploy/<name> shorthand needs get on the
+  # Deployment plus get/list on the Pods it selects).
+  - apiGroups: [""]
+    resources: ["pods", "persistentvolumeclaims"]
+    verbs: ["get", "list", "watch"]
+  - apiGroups: ["apps"]
+    resources: ["deployments"]
+    verbs: ["get", "list", "watch"]
+  # Read-only manifest capture for backup (`kubectl get deployment,service,
+  # configmap,ingress -o yaml`). Services and Deployments are already
+  # readable via management-platform-viewer-role (this SA also holds that
+  # binding — see management-platform-viewer-rbac.yaml); configmaps and
+  # ingresses are not, so they're granted explicitly here. Read-only, no
+  # write — matches "no write beyond scale" for everything but Secrets.
+  - apiGroups: [""]
+    resources: ["configmaps"]
+    verbs: ["get", "list", "watch"]
+  - apiGroups: ["networking.k8s.io"]
+    resources: ["ingresses"]
+    verbs: ["get", "list", "watch"]
+  # Run pg_dump/mysqldump/psql/mysql/tar inside existing DB and app pods,
+  # and inside the short-lived loader pod restore creates for PVC repopulation.
+  - apiGroups: [""]
+    resources: ["pods/exec"]
+    verbs: ["create"]
+  # Create/delete ONLY the short-lived alpine loader pod restore uses to
+  # repopulate a PVC after the app Deployment is scaled to 0 (no running
+  # app pod exists at that point to exec into — see restore-k8s-apps.sh
+  # step 3). Does not grant any write on the app/DB Deployments' own pods.
+  - apiGroups: [""]
+    resources: ["pods"]
+    verbs: ["create", "delete"]
+  # Scale only — deliberately NOT "update"/"patch" on the deployments
+  # resource itself, so this role cannot change a Deployment's image,
+  # env, mounts, etc. Same-cluster restore never reconciles Deployment/
+  # Service/ConfigMap/Ingress specs; those are captured in each backup's
+  # manifests.yaml for reference but are not re-applied by restore-k8s-apps.sh.
+  - apiGroups: ["apps"]
+    resources: ["deployments/scale"]
+    verbs: ["get", "update", "patch"]
+  # Read DB credentials for pg_dump/mysqldump/psql/mysql (backup + restore),
+  # and roll a Secret's values back to what's in the backup during restore
+  # (kubectl apply -f secret.yaml). No create/delete — every Secret this
+  # role touches already exists; restore only ever updates in place.
+  - apiGroups: [""]
+    resources: ["secrets"]
+    verbs: ["get", "list", "update", "patch"]
+---
+apiVersion: v1
+kind: ServiceAccount
+metadata:
+  name: management-platform-sa
+  namespace: management-platform
+  labels:
+    owner: ameni-boukattaya
+    app.kubernetes.io/managed-by: navitrends-pfe-migration
+---
+apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
+kind: RoleBinding
+metadata:
+  name: management-platform-backup-binding
+  namespace: n8n
+  labels:
+    owner: ameni-boukattaya
+    app.kubernetes.io/managed-by: navitrends-pfe-migration
+roleRef:
+  apiGroup: rbac.authorization.k8s.io
+  kind: ClusterRole
+  name: management-platform-backup-role
+subjects:
+  - kind: ServiceAccount
+    name: management-platform-sa
+    namespace: management-platform
+---
+apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
+kind: RoleBinding
+metadata:
+  name: management-platform-backup-binding
+  namespace: odoo
+  labels:
+    owner: ameni-boukattaya
+    app.kubernetes.io/managed-by: navitrends-pfe-migration
+roleRef:
+  apiGroup: rbac.authorization.k8s.io
+  kind: ClusterRole
+  name: management-platform-backup-role
+subjects:
+  - kind: ServiceAccount
+    name: management-platform-sa
+    namespace: management-platform
+---
+apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
+kind: RoleBinding
+metadata:
+  name: management-platform-backup-binding
+  namespace: mautic
+  labels:
+    owner: ameni-boukattaya
+    app.kubernetes.io/managed-by: navitrends-pfe-migration
+roleRef:
+  apiGroup: rbac.authorization.k8s.io
+  kind: ClusterRole
+  name: management-platform-backup-role
+subjects:
+  - kind: ServiceAccount
+    name: management-platform-sa
+    namespace: management-platform
+---
+apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
+kind: RoleBinding
+metadata:
+  name: management-platform-backup-binding
+  namespace: nextcloud
+  labels:
+    owner: ameni-boukattaya
+    app.kubernetes.io/managed-by: navitrends-pfe-migration
+roleRef:
+  apiGroup: rbac.authorization.k8s.io
+  kind: ClusterRole
+  name: management-platform-backup-role
+subjects:
+  - kind: ServiceAccount
+    name: management-platform-sa
+    namespace: management-platform
+---
+apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
+kind: RoleBinding
+metadata:
+  name: management-platform-backup-binding
+  namespace: erpnext
+  labels:
+    owner: ameni-boukattaya
+    app.kubernetes.io/managed-by: navitrends-pfe-migration
+roleRef:
+  apiGroup: rbac.authorization.k8s.io
+  kind: ClusterRole
+  name: management-platform-backup-role
+subjects:
+  - kind: ServiceAccount
+    name: management-platform-sa
+    namespace: management-platform
diff --git a/management-platform-viewer-rbac.yaml b/management-platform-viewer-rbac.yaml
index 3647c8b..a0556a5 100644
--- a/management-platform-viewer-rbac.yaml
+++ b/management-platform-viewer-rbac.yaml
@@ -1,12 +1,3 @@
-apiVersion: v1
-kind: ServiceAccount
-metadata:
-  name: management-platform-viewer-sa
-  namespace: management-platform
-  labels:
-    owner: ameni-boukattaya
-    app.kubernetes.io/managed-by: navitrends-pfe-migration
----
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
 kind: ClusterRole
 metadata:
@@ -36,7 +27,7 @@ roleRef:
   name: management-platform-viewer-role
 subjects:
   - kind: ServiceAccount
-    name: management-platform-viewer-sa
+    name: management-platform-sa
     namespace: management-platform
 ---
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
@@ -53,7 +44,7 @@ roleRef:
   name: management-platform-viewer-role
 subjects:
   - kind: ServiceAccount
-    name: management-platform-viewer-sa
+    name: management-platform-sa
     namespace: management-platform
 ---
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
@@ -70,7 +61,7 @@ roleRef:
   name: management-platform-viewer-role
 subjects:
   - kind: ServiceAccount
-    name: management-platform-viewer-sa
+    name: management-platform-sa
     namespace: management-platform
 ---
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
@@ -87,7 +78,7 @@ roleRef:
   name: management-platform-viewer-role
 subjects:
   - kind: ServiceAccount
-    name: management-platform-viewer-sa
+    name: management-platform-sa
     namespace: management-platform
 ---
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
@@ -104,7 +95,7 @@ roleRef:
   name: management-platform-viewer-role
 subjects:
   - kind: ServiceAccount
-    name: management-platform-viewer-sa
+    name: management-platform-sa
     namespace: management-platform
 ---
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
@@ -121,7 +112,7 @@ roleRef:
   name: management-platform-viewer-role
 subjects:
   - kind: ServiceAccount
-    name: management-platform-viewer-sa
+    name: management-platform-sa
     namespace: management-platform
 ---
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
@@ -138,7 +129,7 @@ roleRef:
   name: management-platform-viewer-role
 subjects:
   - kind: ServiceAccount
-    name: management-platform-viewer-sa
+    name: management-platform-sa
     namespace: management-platform
 ---
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
@@ -155,5 +146,5 @@ roleRef:
   name: management-platform-viewer-role
 subjects:
   - kind: ServiceAccount
-    name: management-platform-viewer-sa
+    name: management-platform-sa
     namespace: management-platform