diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index d3db86ce..8148d420 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -34,4 +34,5 @@ sources.list.bak
 
 # Generated configs
 config/traefik/acme.json
+config/traefik/.htpasswd
 config/traefik/dynamic/*.generated.yml
diff --git a/config/traefik/traefik.yml b/config/traefik/traefik.yml
index 3e71c28f..032fecf5 100644
--- a/config/traefik/traefik.yml
+++ b/config/traefik/traefik.yml
@@ -81,7 +81,7 @@ certificatesResolvers:
 # -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 providers:
   docker:
-    endpoint: "unix:///var/run/docker.sock"
+    endpoint: "tcp://docker-socket-proxy:2375"
     exposedByDefault: false    # Containers must opt-in with traefik.enable=true
     network: proxy             # Default network for routing
     watch: true
diff --git a/install.sh b/install.sh
index e911d519..c1c722ba 100644
--- a/install.sh
+++ b/install.sh
@@ -71,12 +71,23 @@ mkdir -p \
   data/vaultwarden
 
 chmod 600 config/traefik/acme.json 2>/dev/null || touch config/traefik/acme.json && chmod 600 config/traefik/acme.json
+if [[ ! -f config/traefik/.htpasswd ]]; then
+  user=$(grep -m1 '^TRAEFIK_DASHBOARD_USER=' .env | cut -d= -f2-)
+  hash=$(grep -m1 '^TRAEFIK_DASHBOARD_PASSWORD_HASH=' .env | cut -d= -f2- | sed 's/\$\$/\$/g')
+  if [[ -n "$user" && -n "$hash" ]]; then
+    printf '%s:%s\n' "$user" "$hash" > config/traefik/.htpasswd
+    chmod 600 config/traefik/.htpasswd
+  else
+    log_warn "config/traefik/.htpasswd was not created; Traefik dashboard auth may fail"
+  fi
+fi
+docker network inspect proxy >/dev/null 2>&1 || docker network create proxy
 
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 # Step 5: Launch base infrastructure
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 log_step "Launching base infrastructure"
-docker compose -f docker-compose.base.yml up -d
+docker compose --env-file .env -f stacks/base/docker-compose.yml up -d
 
 log_info ""
 log_info "${GREEN}${BOLD}✓ Base infrastructure is up!${NC}"
diff --git a/scripts/setup-env.sh b/scripts/setup-env.sh
index f6faf733..d4e06f6f 100644
--- a/scripts/setup-env.sh
+++ b/scripts/setup-env.sh
@@ -44,6 +44,13 @@ set_env() {
 
 get_env() { grep -m1 "^${1}=" "$ENV_FILE" 2>/dev/null | cut -d= -f2- || true; }
 gen_secret() { LC_ALL=C tr -dc 'A-Za-z0-9!@#%^&*' </dev/urandom | head -c "${1:-32}" || true; }
+write_htpasswd() {
+  local user="$1" hash="$2" htpasswd_file="$ROOT_DIR/config/traefik/.htpasswd"
+  [[ -z "$user" || -z "$hash" ]] && return 0
+  mkdir -p "$(dirname "$htpasswd_file")"
+  printf '%s:%s\n' "$user" "${hash//\$\$/\$}" > "$htpasswd_file"
+  chmod 600 "$htpasswd_file" 2>/dev/null || true
+}
 
 main() {
   echo; echo "HomeLab Stack -- Environment Setup"
@@ -66,6 +73,7 @@ main() {
       log_warn 'htpasswd not found — set TRAEFIK_DASHBOARD_PASSWORD_HASH manually'
     fi
   fi
+  write_htpasswd "$user" "$(get_env TRAEFIK_DASHBOARD_PASSWORD_HASH)"
 
   log_step "CN Mirror (Optional)"
   local cn; cn=$(ask 'Enable CN mirrors? (true/false)' "$(get_env CN_MODE)")
diff --git a/stacks/base/README.md b/stacks/base/README.md
index 19505b80..7c49959d 100644
--- a/stacks/base/README.md
+++ b/stacks/base/README.md
@@ -1,76 +1,130 @@
 # Base Infrastructure Stack
 
-The foundation of HomeLab Stack. Must be deployed **before any other stack**.
+The foundation of HomeLab Stack. Deploy this stack before any other stack.
 
 ## What's Included
 
 | Service | Version | URL | Purpose |
 |---------|---------|-----|---------|
-| Traefik | 3.1 | `traefik.<DOMAIN>` | Reverse proxy + TLS termination |
-| Portainer CE | 2.21 | `portainer.<DOMAIN>` | Docker management UI |
-| Watchtower | latest-stable | — | Automatic container updates |
+| Traefik | 3.1.6 | `traefik.<DOMAIN>` | Reverse proxy and TLS termination |
+| Portainer CE | 2.21.4 | `portainer.<DOMAIN>` | Docker management UI |
+| Watchtower | 1.7.1 | n/a | Automatic container updates |
+| Docker Socket Proxy | 0.2.0 | n/a | Constrained Docker API access for Traefik |
 
 ## Architecture
 
-```
+```text
 Internet
-    │
-    ▼
-[Traefik :443]
-    │  TLS termination (Let's Encrypt)
-    │  ForwardAuth → Authentik (optional)
-    │
-    ├──► portainer.<DOMAIN>  → Portainer
-    ├──► traefik.<DOMAIN>    → Traefik Dashboard
-    └──► *..<DOMAIN>         → Other stacks via 'proxy' network
-
-[proxy] ← shared Docker network — all stacks attach here
+  |
+  +-- Traefik :80  -> redirects to HTTPS
+  +-- Traefik :443 -> TLS termination
+        |
+        +-- traefik.<DOMAIN>   -> Traefik dashboard
+        +-- portainer.<DOMAIN> -> Portainer
+        +-- other stacks       -> containers attached to the proxy network
+
+Traefik discovers Docker services through docker-socket-proxy instead of
+mounting /var/run/docker.sock directly.
 ```
 
 ## Prerequisites
 
-- Docker >= 24.0 with Compose v2 plugin
-- Ports 80 and 443 open on your firewall
-- A domain pointing to your server's IP (A record)
-- `./scripts/setup-env.sh` completed (creates `.env` and `acme.json`)
+- Docker Engine 24 or newer with Docker Compose v2
+- Ports 80 and 443 open on the host firewall
+- A domain pointing to the server IP
+- A populated root `.env` file
 
 ## Quick Start
 
+From the repository root:
+
 ```bash
-# From repo root — recommended (runs check-deps + setup-env first)
 ./install.sh
+```
 
-# Or manually:
-cd stacks/base
-ln -sf ../../.env .env       # share root .env
-docker compose up -d
+Manual launch:
+
+```bash
+docker network create proxy
+touch config/traefik/acme.json
+chmod 600 config/traefik/acme.json
+./scripts/setup-env.sh
+docker compose --env-file .env -f stacks/base/docker-compose.yml up -d
 ```
 
 ## Configuration
 
-### Environment Variables (`.env`)
+### Environment Variables
 
 | Variable | Required | Description |
 |----------|----------|-------------|
-| `DOMAIN` | ✅ | Base domain, e.g. `home.example.com` |
-| `ACME_EMAIL` | ✅ | Email for Let's Encrypt notifications |
-| `TRAEFIK_DASHBOARD_USER` | ✅ | Dashboard login username |
-| `TRAEFIK_DASHBOARD_PASSWORD_HASH` | ✅ | Bcrypt hash — see below |
-| `TZ` | ✅ | Timezone, e.g. `Asia/Shanghai` |
-| `CN_MODE` | — | `true` to use CN Docker mirrors |
+| `DOMAIN` | yes | Base domain, for example `home.example.com` |
+| `ACME_EMAIL` | yes | Let's Encrypt notification email |
+| `TRAEFIK_DASHBOARD_USER` | yes | Dashboard login username |
+| `TRAEFIK_DASHBOARD_PASSWORD_HASH` | yes | Bcrypt password hash |
+| `TZ` | yes | Timezone, for example `Asia/Shanghai` |
 
-### Generate Dashboard Password Hash
+### Dashboard Password
+
+Generate a bcrypt hash:
 
 ```bash
-# Install htpasswd (Debian/Ubuntu)
 sudo apt-get install -y apache2-utils
+htpasswd -nbB admin 'yourpassword' | sed 's/\$/\$\$/g'
+```
+
+Paste the result into `.env` as `TRAEFIK_DASHBOARD_PASSWORD_HASH`.
+`scripts/setup-env.sh` also writes `config/traefik/.htpasswd` automatically.
 
-# Generate hash (replace 'yourpassword')
-htpasswd -nbB admin 'yourpassword' | sed -e 's/\$$/\$\$\$/g'
+If you edit `.env` manually, regenerate the htpasswd file:
 
-# Paste output into .env as TRAEFIK_DASHBOARD_PASSWORD_HASH
+```bash
+printf '%s:%s\n' "$TRAEFIK_DASHBOARD_USER" \
+  "$(printf '%s' "$TRAEFIK_DASHBOARD_PASSWORD_HASH" | sed 's/\$\$/\$/g')" \
+  > config/traefik/.htpasswd
+chmod 600 config/traefik/.htpasswd
 ```
 
 ### TLS Certificates
 
-Traefik uses Let's Encrypt HTTP-01 challenge by default. Certificates are stored in
\ No newline at end of file
+Traefik uses the `letsencrypt` resolver and stores certificates in
+`config/traefik/acme.json`. The file must exist and have mode `600` before
+Traefik starts.
+
+The default resolver uses HTTP-01 challenge on port 80. A DNS resolver is also
+present in `config/traefik/traefik.yml` for wildcard setups; edit the provider
+and credentials before using it.
+
+### Docker Socket Proxy
+
+`docker-socket-proxy` exposes only the read-only Docker API endpoints Traefik
+needs for service discovery:
+
+- containers
+- events
+- info
+- networks
+- services
+- tasks
+- version
+
+`POST=0` is set so Traefik cannot mutate Docker state through the proxy.
+Portainer and Watchtower keep direct socket access because those services are
+expected to manage containers and update images.
+
+## Verification
+
+```bash
+docker compose --env-file .env -f stacks/base/docker-compose.yml config
+docker compose --env-file .env -f stacks/base/docker-compose.yml up -d
+docker compose --env-file .env -f stacks/base/docker-compose.yml ps
+```
+
+Expected results:
+
+- Four containers start: Traefik, Portainer, Watchtower, Docker Socket Proxy.
+- `http://<server-ip>` redirects to HTTPS.
+- `https://traefik.<DOMAIN>` requires BasicAuth.
+- `https://portainer.<DOMAIN>` opens Portainer.
+- Other stacks attached to the `proxy` network are discovered by Traefik only
+  when they set `traefik.enable=true`.
diff --git a/stacks/base/docker-compose.yml b/stacks/base/docker-compose.yml
index 7185e836..b0bee551 100644
--- a/stacks/base/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/stacks/base/docker-compose.yml
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 # =============================================================================
 # HomeLab Stack — Base Infrastructure
 # Services: Traefik (reverse proxy) + Portainer (container management)
-#           + Watchtower (auto-updates)
+#           + Watchtower (auto-updates) + Docker Socket Proxy
 #
 # Prerequisites:
 #   1. cp .env.example .env && fill in required values
@@ -12,6 +12,32 @@
 # =============================================================================
 
 services:
+  # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+  # Docker Socket Proxy - constrained Docker API access for Traefik
+  # Traefik only needs read-only discovery endpoints. Portainer and Watchtower
+  # keep direct socket access because they intentionally manage/update Docker.
+  # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+  docker-socket-proxy:
+    image: tecnativa/docker-socket-proxy:0.2.0
+    container_name: docker-socket-proxy
+    restart: unless-stopped
+    networks:
+      - proxy
+    environment:
+      - LOG_LEVEL=warning
+      - CONTAINERS=1
+      - EVENTS=1
+      - INFO=1
+      - NETWORKS=1
+      - SERVICES=1
+      - TASKS=1
+      - VERSION=1
+      - POST=0
+    volumes:
+      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro
+    read_only: true
+    tmpfs:
+      - /run
 
   # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
   # Traefik — Reverse Proxy & TLS Termination
@@ -29,10 +55,12 @@ services:
       - "443:443"
     environment:
       - TZ=${TZ}
+    depends_on:
+      - docker-socket-proxy
     volumes:
-      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro
       - ../../config/traefik/traefik.yml:/traefik.yml:ro
       - ../../config/traefik/dynamic:/dynamic:ro
+      - ../../config/traefik/.htpasswd:/dynamic/.htpasswd:ro
       - ../../config/traefik/acme.json:/acme.json
       - traefik-logs:/var/log/traefik
     labels:
@@ -83,7 +111,7 @@ services:
 
   # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
   # Watchtower — Automatic Container Updates
-  # Checks for image updates daily at 4:00 AM
+  # Checks for image updates daily at 3:00 AM
   # Notifications sent via configured notifier (see .env)
   # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
   watchtower:
@@ -96,7 +124,7 @@ services:
       - TZ=${TZ}
       - WATCHTOWER_CLEANUP=true
       - WATCHTOWER_INCLUDE_RESTARTING=true
-      - WATCHTOWER_SCHEDULE=0 0 4 * * *
+      - WATCHTOWER_SCHEDULE=0 0 3 * * *
       - WATCHTOWER_TIMEOUT=60s
       - WATCHTOWER_NOTIFICATIONS_LEVEL=warn
       # Scope: only update containers with this label