diff --git a/.gitea/workflows/cd-develop.yml b/.gitea/workflows/cd-develop.yml
index 663b49f..f0d2934 100644
--- a/.gitea/workflows/cd-develop.yml
+++ b/.gitea/workflows/cd-develop.yml
@@ -86,6 +86,7 @@ jobs:
       # org secret; if unset the step no-ops so forks/dry-runs don't error.
       - name: Notify Slack (#hiveops-dev-deploy)
         if: always()
+        continue-on-error: true   # a notification must NEVER fail the deploy
         env:
           SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL: ${{ secrets.SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL }}
           JOB_STATUS: ${{ job.status }}
@@ -98,7 +99,8 @@ jobs:
         run: |
           [ -z "$SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL" ] && { echo "no SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL secret — skipping"; exit 0; }
           SHORT="${SHA:0:8}"
-          SUBJECT="$(printf '%s' "$COMMIT_MSG" | head -n1 | tr -d '"\\' | cut -c1-100)"
+          FIRST="${COMMIT_MSG%%$'\n'*}"   # first line via param-expansion (no pipe)
+          SUBJECT="$(printf '%s' "$FIRST" | tr -d '"\\' | cut -c1-100)"
           if [ "$JOB_STATUS" = "success" ]; then
             COLOR="#2eb67d"; TITLE=":white_check_mark: guide → bcos.dev deployed"
           else
@@ -106,4 +108,6 @@ jobs:
           fi
           PAYLOAD=$(printf '{"attachments":[{"color":"%s","blocks":[{"type":"section","text":{"type":"mrkdwn","text":"*%s*"}},{"type":"section","fields":[{"type":"mrkdwn","text":"*Commit*\\n`%s` %s"},{"type":"mrkdwn","text":"*Branch*\\n%s"},{"type":"mrkdwn","text":"*By*\\n%s"},{"type":"mrkdwn","text":"*Run*\\n#%s"}]},{"type":"actions","elements":[{"type":"button","text":{"type":"plain_text","text":"View run"},"url":"%s"}]}]}]}' \
             "$COLOR" "$TITLE" "$SHORT" "$SUBJECT" "$REF_NAME" "$ACTOR" "$RUN_NUMBER" "$RUN_URL")
-          curl -s -X POST -H 'Content-type: application/json' --data "$PAYLOAD" "$SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL"
+          # Non-fatal: capture the HTTP code, never let curl's exit fail the step.
+          code=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w '%{http_code}' --max-time 15 -X POST -H 'Content-type: application/json' --data "$PAYLOAD" "$SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL" || echo "curl-error")
+          echo "slack notify HTTP: $code (200 = card posted; anything else = runner could not reach Slack)"
diff --git a/backend/src/main/resources/content/technical/journal/overview.md b/backend/src/main/resources/content/technical/journal/overview.md
index fc57566..78e422d 100644
--- a/backend/src/main/resources/content/technical/journal/overview.md
+++ b/backend/src/main/resources/content/technical/journal/overview.md
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ audience: dev
 
 ## Responsibility
 
-`hiveops-journal` receives raw ATM journal files from agents (chunked upload), stores the originals on disk, and parses them into structured transactions using YAML rules (VC journal format + TCR rules). It also detects missing journal dates per ATM (gaps), archives old transactions (90-day hot/cold split), and exposes a REST API consumed by the incident/devices frontends. It replaces the legacy SmartJournal dependency. See [platform.service-ownership].
+`hiveops-journal` receives raw ATM journal files from agents (chunked upload), stores the originals on disk, and parses them into structured transactions using YAML rules (VC journal format + TCR rules). It also detects missing journal dates per ATM (gaps), archives old transactions (90-day hot/cold split), and exposes a REST API consumed by the incident/devices frontends. It replaces the legacy journal-parsing dependency. See [platform.service-ownership].
 
 Runs as **one image, two roles** driven by `JOURNAL_ROLE`:
 - `upload` (default) — HTTP controllers, scheduled jobs, Kafka **producer**.
diff --git a/scripts/coverage-reconcile.py b/scripts/coverage-reconcile.py
index 290ac05..ab95049 100644
--- a/scripts/coverage-reconcile.py
+++ b/scripts/coverage-reconcile.py
@@ -53,11 +53,11 @@ def main():
     for repo in sorted(glob.glob(os.path.join(ROOT, "hiveops-*"))):
         name = os.path.basename(repo)
         svc = name[len("hiveops-"):]
-        # non-service / special repos, and DEPRECATED ones (qds-monitor + smartjournal were the
-        # early incident bridge before the agent shipped — superseded, don't document)
+        # non-service / special repos, and the DEPRECATED qds-monitor (the early incident
+        # bridge before the agent shipped — superseded, don't document)
         if svc in ("agent","guide","bom","security-common","template","docs","release",
                    "devops","integration","tools","adoons",
-                   "qds-monitor","smartjournal"):  # last line = deprecated
+                   "qds-monitor"):  # last entry = deprecated
             continue
         if not os.path.isdir(repo) or not has_backend(repo):
             continue