diff --git a/ai/tasks/done/TASK-271-split-rcon-live-ingestion-from-historical-materialization.md b/ai/tasks/done/TASK-271-split-rcon-live-ingestion-from-historical-materialization.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b44e670
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ai/tasks/done/TASK-271-split-rcon-live-ingestion-from-historical-materialization.md
@@ -0,0 +1,128 @@
+---
+id: TASK-271
+title: Split RCON live ingestion from historical materialization
+status: in-progress
+type: backend
+team: Backend Senior
+supporting_teams: ["Arquitecto Python"]
+roadmap_item: current-match
+priority: high
+---
+
+# TASK-271 - Split RCON live ingestion from historical materialization
+
+## Goal
+
+Separate near-real-time AdminLog ingestion for current-match freshness from the slow historical materialization path so `/api/current-match/kills` and `/api/current-match/players` can stay fresh without waiting on heavy historical work.
+
+## Context
+
+Production evidence shows the current combined worker design is starving the current-match read model:
+
+- production service `hll-vietnam-rcon-historical-worker-1` currently runs `python -m app.rcon_historical_worker loop`
+- configured interval is `HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_INTERVAL_SECONDS=2`
+- configured AdminLog lookback is `HLL_BACKEND_RCON_ADMIN_LOG_LOOKBACK_MINUTES=10`
+- real `rcon_historical_capture_runs` durations are around `15-30` minutes
+- recent runs overlapped and one failed with PostgreSQL deadlock
+- each cycle materializes roughly `838k` player-stat rows and updates roughly `392-394` materialized matches
+- `/api/current-match/kills` and `/api/current-match/players` read `rcon_admin_log_events`, not live CRCON/RCON per public request
+
+This means the current-match feed problem is not primarily frontend rendering. The source table is not being refreshed frequently enough because live AdminLog ingestion is coupled to heavy historical materialization.
+
+This task must preserve the current product identity and must not change frontend layout, CSS, assets, RCON hosts, ports, passwords, server list, `27001`, ranking semantics, Elo/MMR activation, or reintroduce `comunidad-hispana-03`.
+
+## Steps
+
+1. Inspect the current historical worker, current-match worker, AdminLog ingestion/storage, materialization path, API read path and Portainer deployment.
+2. Implement a dedicated lightweight live AdminLog worker that only refreshes `rcon_admin_log_events`.
+3. Reduce repeated PostgreSQL schema initialization in the live path by moving obvious DDL/init work out of hot loops and request reads.
+4. Add no-overlap protection for heavy historical materialization so concurrent heavy runs skip cleanly instead of overlapping.
+5. Update Portainer deployment so live ingestion and heavy historical materialization run as separate services with safe cadences.
+6. Add or update focused tests and refresh the current-match freshness documentation with post-deploy validation commands.
+
+## Files to Read First
+
+- `AGENTS.md`
+- `ai/architecture-index.md`
+- `ai/repo-context.md`
+- `ai/orchestrator/backend-senior.md`
+- `backend/app/rcon_historical_worker.py`
+- `backend/app/rcon_current_match_worker.py`
+- `backend/app/rcon_admin_log_ingestion.py`
+- `backend/app/rcon_admin_log_storage.py`
+- `backend/app/postgres_rcon_storage.py`
+- `backend/app/payloads.py`
+- `deploy/portainer/docker-compose.nas.yml`
+- `docs/current-match-adminlog-freshness.md`
+
+## Expected Files to Modify
+
+- `ai/tasks/in-progress/TASK-271-split-rcon-live-ingestion-from-historical-materialization.md`
+- `backend/app/rcon_current_match_worker.py`
+- `backend/app/rcon_admin_log_storage.py`
+- `backend/app/postgres_rcon_storage.py`
+- `backend/app/rcon_historical_storage.py`
+- `backend/app/rcon_historical_worker.py`
+- `backend/tests/test_rcon_current_match_worker.py`
+- `backend/tests/test_rcon_historical_worker.py`
+- `backend/tests/test_current_match_payload.py`
+- `deploy/portainer/docker-compose.nas.yml`
+- `docs/current-match-adminlog-freshness.md`
+
+## Constraints
+
+- Do not run `ai-platform run`.
+- Do not commit or push.
+- Do not use `git add .`.
+- Do not touch `ai/system-metrics.md`.
+- Do not include `tmp/`.
+- Do not include TASK-204, TASK-242 or unrelated in-progress/done tasks.
+- Do not touch weapon assets, map assets or clan assets.
+- Do not touch frontend layout or CSS.
+- Do not change RCON hosts, ports, passwords, `27001` or the configured server list.
+- Do not reintroduce `comunidad-hispana-03`.
+- Do not reactivate Elo/MMR.
+- Do not change ranking semantics or fabricate support rankings.
+- Do not change annual tops/player search behavior except where explicitly needed to stop them from blocking live ingestion.
+- Keep the change backend/deployment/documentation scoped and reviewable.
+
+## Validation
+
+Before completing the task ensure:
+
+- `python -m compileall backend/app`
+- `cd backend; python -m unittest tests.test_current_match_payload`
+- `cd backend; python -m unittest tests.test_rcon_historical_worker`
+- `cd backend; python -m unittest tests.test_rcon_current_match_worker`
+- `git diff --name-only` matches the intended scope
+- no unrelated dirty files were modified
+- documentation reflects the new live worker split and post-deploy checks
+
+## Outcome
+
+Implemented scope:
+
+- dedicated live AdminLog worker path kept in `backend/app/rcon_current_match_worker.py`
+- live worker storage initialization moved out of the hot loop body and out of per-target persistence calls
+- live worker no longer waits on the shared long-running backend writer lock
+- current-match persistence stays idempotent through the existing `rcon_admin_log_events` dedupe path
+- historical capture/materialization path gained a single-running historical guard and returns `skipped` with `already-running` when a heavy run is still active
+- Portainer deployment now splits `rcon-live-adminlog-worker` from `rcon-historical-worker`
+- heavy historical cadence was set explicitly to `900` seconds in the Portainer compose file
+
+Validation completed:
+
+- `python -m compileall backend/app`
+- `cd backend; python -m unittest tests.test_current_match_payload`
+- `cd backend; python -m unittest tests.test_rcon_historical_worker`
+- `cd backend; python -m unittest tests.test_rcon_current_match_worker`
+
+Follow-up intentionally left out of central scope:
+
+- `TEAM KILL` parser correctness remains a separate follow-up task unless handled later with a tiny isolated patch
+
+## Change Budget
+
+- Prefer fewer than 5 modified files when feasible, but accept a slightly larger backend/deploy/docs scope if required to complete the split safely.
+- Prefer focused edits over broad refactors.
+- Split out follow-up correctness issues instead of expanding scope unnecessarily.
diff --git a/backend/app/postgres_rcon_storage.py b/backend/app/postgres_rcon_storage.py
index bbea491..d129b94 100644
--- a/backend/app/postgres_rcon_storage.py
+++ b/backend/app/postgres_rcon_storage.py
@@ -17,6 +17,9 @@ COMPETITIVE_WINDOW_GAP_SECONDS = 1800
 COMPETITIVE_MODE_PARTIAL = "partial"
 COMPETITIVE_MODE_APPROXIMATE = "approximate"
 COMPETITIVE_MODE_EXACT = "exact"
+RUNNING_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_CONFLICT_MESSAGE = (
+    "historical materialization capture already running"
+)
 
 
 RCON_SCHEMA_SQL = """
@@ -51,6 +54,10 @@ CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS rcon_historical_capture_runs (
     created_at TIMESTAMPTZ NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
 );
 
+CREATE UNIQUE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_rcon_historical_single_running_historical
+ON rcon_historical_capture_runs(mode)
+WHERE status = 'running' AND mode = 'historical';
+
 CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS rcon_historical_samples (
     id BIGSERIAL PRIMARY KEY,
     target_id BIGINT NOT NULL REFERENCES rcon_historical_targets(id),
@@ -475,14 +482,27 @@ def connect_postgres_compat(*, initialize: bool = True):
 def start_capture_run(*, mode: str, target_scope: str) -> int:
     initialize_postgres_rcon_storage()
     with connect_postgres() as connection:
-        row = connection.execute(
-            """
-            INSERT INTO rcon_historical_capture_runs (mode, status, target_scope, started_at)
-            VALUES (%s, 'running', %s, %s)
-            RETURNING id
-            """,
-            (mode, target_scope, _utc_now_iso()),
-        ).fetchone()
+        try:
+            row = connection.execute(
+                """
+                INSERT INTO rcon_historical_capture_runs (mode, status, target_scope, started_at)
+                VALUES (%s, 'running', %s, %s)
+                RETURNING id
+                """,
+                (mode, target_scope, _utc_now_iso()),
+            ).fetchone()
+        except Exception as error:
+            try:
+                import psycopg
+            except ImportError:
+                psycopg = None  # type: ignore[assignment]
+            if (
+                mode == "historical"
+                and psycopg is not None
+                and isinstance(error, psycopg.errors.UniqueViolation)
+            ):
+                raise RuntimeError(RUNNING_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_CONFLICT_MESSAGE) from error
+            raise
     return int(row["id"])
 
 
diff --git a/backend/app/rcon_admin_log_storage.py b/backend/app/rcon_admin_log_storage.py
index bd4193e..fa59cdb 100644
--- a/backend/app/rcon_admin_log_storage.py
+++ b/backend/app/rcon_admin_log_storage.py
@@ -108,12 +108,21 @@ def persist_rcon_admin_log_entries(
     target: Mapping[str, object],
     entries: list[dict[str, object]],
     db_path: Path | None = None,
+    ensure_storage: bool = True,
 ) -> dict[str, int]:
     """Persist raw and parsed AdminLog entries idempotently."""
     if use_postgres_rcon_storage(explicit_sqlite_path=db_path):
-        return _persist_rcon_admin_log_entries_postgres(target=target, entries=entries)
+        return _persist_rcon_admin_log_entries_postgres(
+            target=target,
+            entries=entries,
+            ensure_storage=ensure_storage,
+        )
 
-    resolved_path = initialize_rcon_admin_log_storage(db_path=db_path)
+    resolved_path = (
+        initialize_rcon_admin_log_storage(db_path=db_path)
+        if ensure_storage
+        else (db_path or get_storage_path())
+    )
     target_key = str(target.get("target_key") or target.get("external_server_id") or "")
     if not target_key:
         raise ValueError("target must include target_key or external_server_id")
@@ -1165,6 +1174,7 @@ def _persist_rcon_admin_log_entries_postgres(
     *,
     target: Mapping[str, object],
     entries: list[dict[str, object]],
+    ensure_storage: bool,
 ) -> dict[str, int]:
     from .postgres_rcon_storage import connect_postgres_compat
 
@@ -1175,7 +1185,7 @@ def _persist_rcon_admin_log_entries_postgres(
     external_server_id = target.get("external_server_id")
     inserted = 0
     duplicates = 0
-    with connect_postgres_compat() as connection:
+    with connect_postgres_compat(initialize=ensure_storage) as connection:
         for entry in entries:
             parsed = parse_rcon_admin_log_entry(entry)
             raw_message = str(parsed.get("raw_message") or "")
diff --git a/backend/app/rcon_current_match_worker.py b/backend/app/rcon_current_match_worker.py
index b798a5d..7b55155 100644
--- a/backend/app/rcon_current_match_worker.py
+++ b/backend/app/rcon_current_match_worker.py
@@ -13,13 +13,14 @@ from .config import (
     get_current_match_adminlog_enabled,
     get_current_match_adminlog_interval_seconds,
     get_current_match_adminlog_lookback_seconds,
-    get_rcon_current_match_writer_lock_timeout_seconds,
 )
 from .rcon_admin_log_ingestion import fetch_recent_admin_log_entries, serialize_rcon_target
-from .rcon_admin_log_storage import persist_rcon_admin_log_entries
+from .rcon_admin_log_storage import (
+    initialize_rcon_admin_log_storage,
+    persist_rcon_admin_log_entries,
+)
 from .rcon_client import RconServerTarget, build_rcon_target_key, load_rcon_targets
 from .scoreboard_origins import list_trusted_public_scoreboard_origins
-from .writer_lock import backend_writer_lock, build_writer_lock_holder
 
 
 def list_current_match_trusted_targets() -> list[RconServerTarget]:
@@ -41,19 +42,17 @@ def run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_once(
     fetch_entries_fn: Callable[..., list[dict[str, object]]] = fetch_recent_admin_log_entries,
     persist_entries_fn: Callable[..., dict[str, int]] = persist_rcon_admin_log_entries,
     db_path: object = None,
+    ensure_storage: bool = True,
 ) -> dict[str, object]:
     """Refresh recent AdminLog rows once for trusted current-match targets."""
-    with backend_writer_lock(
-        holder=build_writer_lock_holder("app.rcon_current_match_worker once"),
-        timeout_seconds=get_rcon_current_match_writer_lock_timeout_seconds(),
-    ):
-        return run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_once_unlocked(
-            lookback_seconds=lookback_seconds,
-            targets=targets,
-            fetch_entries_fn=fetch_entries_fn,
-            persist_entries_fn=persist_entries_fn,
-            db_path=db_path,
-        )
+    return run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_once_unlocked(
+        lookback_seconds=lookback_seconds,
+        targets=targets,
+        fetch_entries_fn=fetch_entries_fn,
+        persist_entries_fn=persist_entries_fn,
+        db_path=db_path,
+        ensure_storage=ensure_storage,
+    )
 
 
 def run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_once_unlocked(
@@ -63,12 +62,11 @@ def run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_once_unlocked(
     fetch_entries_fn: Callable[..., list[dict[str, object]]] = fetch_recent_admin_log_entries,
     persist_entries_fn: Callable[..., dict[str, int]] = persist_rcon_admin_log_entries,
     db_path: object = None,
+    ensure_storage: bool = True,
 ) -> dict[str, object]:
-    """Refresh recent AdminLog rows once assuming the shared writer lock is already held."""
-    resolved_lookback_seconds = (
-        get_current_match_adminlog_lookback_seconds()
-        if lookback_seconds is None
-        else int(lookback_seconds)
+    """Refresh recent AdminLog rows once using idempotent event inserts only."""
+    resolved_lookback_seconds = _resolve_lookback_seconds(
+        lookback_seconds=lookback_seconds,
     )
     if resolved_lookback_seconds <= 0:
         raise ValueError("lookback_seconds must be positive.")
@@ -78,6 +76,8 @@ def run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_once_unlocked(
     if not selected_targets:
         raise RuntimeError("No trusted current-match RCON targets are configured.")
 
+    if ensure_storage:
+        initialize_rcon_admin_log_storage(db_path=resolved_db_path)
     timeout_seconds = None
     refreshed_at = datetime.now(timezone.utc).isoformat(timespec="seconds").replace("+00:00", "Z")
     items: list[dict[str, object]] = []
@@ -104,6 +104,7 @@ def run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_once_unlocked(
                 target=target_metadata,
                 entries=entries,
                 db_path=resolved_db_path,
+                ensure_storage=False,
             )
             duration_ms = round((time.perf_counter() - started) * 1000, 2)
             totals["entries_seen"] += int(delta.get("events_seen") or 0)
@@ -147,6 +148,7 @@ def run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_loop(
     *,
     interval_seconds: int | None = None,
     lookback_seconds: int | None = None,
+    lookback_minutes: int | None = None,
     max_runs: int | None = None,
 ) -> None:
     """Run the lightweight current-match AdminLog refresher in a loop."""
@@ -165,10 +167,9 @@ def run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_loop(
         "current-match-adminlog-worker-started",
         enabled=get_current_match_adminlog_enabled(),
         interval_seconds=resolved_interval_seconds,
-        lookback_seconds=(
-            get_current_match_adminlog_lookback_seconds()
-            if lookback_seconds is None
-            else int(lookback_seconds)
+        lookback_seconds=_resolve_lookback_seconds(
+            lookback_seconds=lookback_seconds,
+            lookback_minutes=lookback_minutes,
         ),
         targets=[
             {
@@ -179,11 +180,17 @@ def run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_loop(
             for target in list_current_match_trusted_targets()
         ],
     )
+    initialize_rcon_admin_log_storage()
     try:
         while max_runs is None or run_count < max_runs:
             run_count += 1
+            _emit_worker_event("current-match-adminlog-cycle-started", run=run_count)
             result = run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_once(
-                lookback_seconds=lookback_seconds,
+                lookback_seconds=_resolve_lookback_seconds(
+                    lookback_seconds=lookback_seconds,
+                    lookback_minutes=lookback_minutes,
+                ),
+                ensure_storage=False,
             )
             _emit_worker_event(
                 "current-match-adminlog-cycle-finished",
@@ -192,6 +199,11 @@ def run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_loop(
             )
             if max_runs is not None and run_count >= max_runs:
                 break
+            _emit_worker_event(
+                "current-match-adminlog-sleep-started",
+                run=run_count,
+                sleep_seconds=resolved_interval_seconds,
+            )
             time.sleep(resolved_interval_seconds)
     except KeyboardInterrupt:
         _emit_worker_event("current-match-adminlog-worker-stopped", reason="keyboard-interrupt")
@@ -218,6 +230,11 @@ def build_arg_parser() -> argparse.ArgumentParser:
         default=get_current_match_adminlog_lookback_seconds(),
         help="overlap-safe AdminLog lookback window in seconds",
     )
+    parser.add_argument(
+        "--lookback-minutes",
+        type=int,
+        help="optional overlap-safe AdminLog lookback window in minutes",
+    )
     parser.add_argument(
         "--max-runs",
         type=int,
@@ -230,10 +247,14 @@ def main(argv: Iterable[str] | None = None) -> int:
     parser = build_arg_parser()
     args = parser.parse_args(list(argv) if argv is not None else None)
     if args.mode == "once":
+        lookback_seconds = _resolve_lookback_seconds(
+            lookback_seconds=args.lookback_seconds,
+            lookback_minutes=args.lookback_minutes,
+        )
         print(
             json.dumps(
                 run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_once(
-                    lookback_seconds=args.lookback_seconds,
+                    lookback_seconds=lookback_seconds,
                 ),
                 indent=2,
             )
@@ -243,11 +264,26 @@ def main(argv: Iterable[str] | None = None) -> int:
     run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_loop(
         interval_seconds=args.interval,
         lookback_seconds=args.lookback_seconds,
+        lookback_minutes=args.lookback_minutes,
         max_runs=args.max_runs,
     )
     return 0
 
 
+def _resolve_lookback_seconds(
+    *,
+    lookback_seconds: int | None = None,
+    lookback_minutes: int | None = None,
+) -> int:
+    if lookback_minutes is not None:
+        if int(lookback_minutes) <= 0:
+            raise ValueError("lookback_minutes must be positive.")
+        return int(lookback_minutes) * 60
+    if lookback_seconds is None:
+        return get_current_match_adminlog_lookback_seconds()
+    return int(lookback_seconds)
+
+
 def _emit_worker_event(event: str, **fields: object) -> None:
     print(json.dumps({"event": event, **fields}, indent=2, default=str), flush=True)
 
diff --git a/backend/app/rcon_historical_storage.py b/backend/app/rcon_historical_storage.py
index c0d8179..aa886a7 100644
--- a/backend/app/rcon_historical_storage.py
+++ b/backend/app/rcon_historical_storage.py
@@ -20,6 +20,9 @@ COMPETITIVE_WINDOW_GAP_SECONDS = 1800
 COMPETITIVE_MODE_PARTIAL = "partial"
 COMPETITIVE_MODE_APPROXIMATE = "approximate"
 COMPETITIVE_MODE_EXACT = "exact"
+RUNNING_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_CONFLICT_MESSAGE = (
+    "historical materialization capture already running"
+)
 
 
 def initialize_rcon_historical_storage(
@@ -72,6 +75,10 @@ def initialize_rcon_historical_storage(
                 created_at TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
             );
 
+            CREATE UNIQUE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_rcon_historical_single_running_historical
+            ON rcon_historical_capture_runs(mode)
+            WHERE status = 'running' AND mode = 'historical';
+
             CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS rcon_historical_samples (
                 id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT,
                 target_id INTEGER NOT NULL,
@@ -151,17 +158,22 @@ def start_rcon_historical_capture_run(
 
     resolved_path = initialize_rcon_historical_storage(db_path=db_path)
     with _connect(resolved_path) as connection:
-        cursor = connection.execute(
-            """
-            INSERT INTO rcon_historical_capture_runs (
-                mode,
-                status,
-                target_scope,
-                started_at
-            ) VALUES (?, 'running', ?, ?)
-            """,
-            (mode, target_scope, _utc_now_iso()),
-        )
+        try:
+            cursor = connection.execute(
+                """
+                INSERT INTO rcon_historical_capture_runs (
+                    mode,
+                    status,
+                    target_scope,
+                    started_at
+                ) VALUES (?, 'running', ?, ?)
+                """,
+                (mode, target_scope, _utc_now_iso()),
+            )
+        except sqlite3.IntegrityError as error:
+            if mode == "historical":
+                raise RuntimeError(RUNNING_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_CONFLICT_MESSAGE) from error
+            raise
         return int(cursor.lastrowid)
 
 
diff --git a/backend/app/rcon_historical_worker.py b/backend/app/rcon_historical_worker.py
index 6a76993..d7c6f89 100644
--- a/backend/app/rcon_historical_worker.py
+++ b/backend/app/rcon_historical_worker.py
@@ -105,10 +105,47 @@ def run_rcon_historical_capture_unlocked(
     admin_log_lookback_minutes = get_rcon_admin_log_lookback_minutes()
     captured_at = utc_now().isoformat().replace("+00:00", "Z")
     target_scope = target_key or "all-configured-rcon-targets"
-    run_id = start_rcon_historical_capture_run(
-        mode=resolved_capture_mode,
-        target_scope=target_scope,
-    )
+    try:
+        run_id = start_rcon_historical_capture_run(
+            mode=resolved_capture_mode,
+            target_scope=target_scope,
+        )
+    except RuntimeError as error:
+        if _is_historical_run_conflict(error, capture_mode=resolved_capture_mode):
+            return {
+                "status": "skipped",
+                "run_status": "skipped",
+                "captured_at": captured_at,
+                "target_scope": target_scope,
+                "capture_mode": resolved_capture_mode,
+                "materialization_skipped": resolved_skip_materialization,
+                "admin_log_lookback_minutes": admin_log_lookback_minutes,
+                "admin_log_events_seen": 0,
+                "admin_log_events_inserted": 0,
+                "duplicate_events": 0,
+                "samples_inserted": 0,
+                "targets": [],
+                "errors": [],
+                "admin_log_errors": [],
+                "materialization_result": {
+                    "status": "skipped",
+                    "reason": "already-running",
+                },
+                "storage_status": [],
+                "totals": {
+                    "targets_seen": 0,
+                    "samples_inserted": 0,
+                    "duplicate_samples": 0,
+                    "failed_targets": 0,
+                    "admin_log_events_seen": 0,
+                    "admin_log_events_inserted": 0,
+                    "admin_log_duplicate_events": 0,
+                    "admin_log_failed_targets": 0,
+                    "materialized_matches_inserted": 0,
+                    "materialized_matches_updated": 0,
+                },
+            }
+        raise
     stats = RconHistoricalCaptureStats()
     items: list[dict[str, object]] = []
     errors: list[dict[str, object]] = []
@@ -355,6 +392,12 @@ def _run_capture_with_retries(
                 time.sleep(retry_delay_seconds)
 
 
+def _is_historical_run_conflict(error: RuntimeError, *, capture_mode: str) -> bool:
+    return capture_mode == CAPTURE_MODE_HISTORICAL and (
+        "already running" in str(error).lower()
+    )
+
+
 def _select_targets(target_key: str | None) -> list[object]:
     configured_targets = list(load_rcon_targets())
     if not configured_targets:
diff --git a/backend/tests/test_current_match_payload.py b/backend/tests/test_current_match_payload.py
index 16afdab..81b6c72 100644
--- a/backend/tests/test_current_match_payload.py
+++ b/backend/tests/test_current_match_payload.py
@@ -760,6 +760,7 @@ class CurrentMatchPublicEndpointHardeningTests(unittest.TestCase):
                 "app.postgres_rcon_storage.connect_postgres_compat",
                 return_value=connection_scope,
             ) as connect_postgres,
+            patch("app.rcon_admin_log_materialization.materialize_rcon_admin_log") as materialize,
         ):
             result = rcon_admin_log_storage.list_current_match_kill_feed(
                 server_key="comunidad-hispana-01",
@@ -767,6 +768,7 @@ class CurrentMatchPublicEndpointHardeningTests(unittest.TestCase):
             )
 
         connect_postgres.assert_called_once_with(initialize=False)
+        materialize.assert_not_called()
         self.assertEqual(result["items"], [])
 
     def test_player_stats_postgres_read_only_does_not_initialize_storage(self) -> None:
@@ -783,6 +785,7 @@ class CurrentMatchPublicEndpointHardeningTests(unittest.TestCase):
                 "app.postgres_rcon_storage.connect_postgres_compat",
                 return_value=connection_scope,
             ) as connect_postgres,
+            patch("app.rcon_admin_log_materialization.materialize_rcon_admin_log") as materialize,
         ):
             result = rcon_admin_log_storage.list_current_match_player_stats(
                 server_key="comunidad-hispana-01",
@@ -790,6 +793,7 @@ class CurrentMatchPublicEndpointHardeningTests(unittest.TestCase):
             )
 
         connect_postgres.assert_called_once_with(initialize=False)
+        materialize.assert_not_called()
         self.assertEqual(result["items"], [])
         self.assertEqual(result["source"], "rcon-admin-log-current-match-summary")
 
diff --git a/backend/tests/test_rcon_current_match_worker.py b/backend/tests/test_rcon_current_match_worker.py
index 289dee9..8f6485d 100644
--- a/backend/tests/test_rcon_current_match_worker.py
+++ b/backend/tests/test_rcon_current_match_worker.py
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ from app.config import (
 )
 from app.rcon_current_match_worker import (
     list_current_match_trusted_targets,
+    run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_loop,
     run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_once_unlocked,
 )
 
@@ -76,7 +77,7 @@ class RconCurrentMatchWorkerTests(unittest.TestCase):
             fetch_calls.append((target.external_server_id, lookback_seconds, timeout_seconds))
             return [{"timestamp": "2026-06-18T18:00:00Z", "message": "[1 (1)] Killer(Allies) -> Victim(Axis) with Rifle"}]
 
-        def fake_persist(*, target, entries, db_path=None):
+        def fake_persist(*, target, entries, db_path=None, ensure_storage=True):
             persist_calls.append({"target": target, "entries": entries, "db_path": db_path})
             return {
                 "events_seen": len(entries),
@@ -94,16 +95,50 @@ class RconCurrentMatchWorkerTests(unittest.TestCase):
         self.assertEqual(fetch_calls, [("comunidad-hispana-01", 180, None)])
         self.assertEqual(len(persist_calls), 1)
         self.assertEqual(persist_calls[0]["target"]["target_key"], "comunidad-hispana-01")
+        self.assertEqual(persist_calls[0]["db_path"], None)
         self.assertEqual(result["totals"]["events_inserted"], 1)
         self.assertEqual(result["status"], "ok")
 
+    def test_once_unlocked_initializes_storage_once_and_persists_without_repeated_ddl(self) -> None:
+        persist_calls: list[dict[str, object]] = []
+
+        def fake_fetch(target, *, lookback_seconds, timeout_seconds):
+            return [{"timestamp": "2026-06-18T18:00:00Z", "message": "[1 (1)] Killer(Allies) -> Victim(Axis) with Rifle"}]
+
+        def fake_persist(*, target, entries, db_path=None, ensure_storage=True):
+            persist_calls.append(
+                {
+                    "target": target,
+                    "entries": entries,
+                    "db_path": db_path,
+                    "ensure_storage": ensure_storage,
+                }
+            )
+            return {
+                "events_seen": len(entries),
+                "events_inserted": len(entries),
+                "duplicate_events": 0,
+            }
+
+        with patch("app.rcon_current_match_worker.initialize_rcon_admin_log_storage") as initialize:
+            result = run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_once_unlocked(
+                lookback_seconds=180,
+                targets=[TARGET_01],
+                fetch_entries_fn=fake_fetch,
+                persist_entries_fn=fake_persist,
+            )
+
+        initialize.assert_called_once_with(db_path=None)
+        self.assertEqual(persist_calls[0]["ensure_storage"], False)
+        self.assertEqual(result["status"], "ok")
+
     def test_failing_target_does_not_block_other_target(self) -> None:
         def fake_fetch(target, *, lookback_seconds, timeout_seconds):
             if target.external_server_id == "comunidad-hispana-01":
                 raise RuntimeError("boom")
             return [{"timestamp": "2026-06-18T18:00:00Z", "message": "[1 (1)] Killer(Allies) -> Victim(Axis) with Rifle"}]
 
-        def fake_persist(*, target, entries, db_path=None):
+        def fake_persist(*, target, entries, db_path=None, ensure_storage=True):
             return {
                 "events_seen": len(entries),
                 "events_inserted": len(entries),
@@ -155,6 +190,44 @@ class RconCurrentMatchWorkerTests(unittest.TestCase):
         self.assertEqual(second["totals"]["events_inserted"], 0)
         self.assertEqual(second["totals"]["duplicate_events"], 1)
 
+    def test_loop_honors_max_runs(self) -> None:
+        results = [{"status": "ok"}, {"status": "ok"}]
+
+        with (
+            patch("app.rcon_current_match_worker.initialize_rcon_admin_log_storage") as initialize,
+            patch(
+                "app.rcon_current_match_worker.run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_once",
+                side_effect=results,
+            ) as run_once,
+            patch("app.rcon_current_match_worker.time.sleep") as sleep,
+        ):
+            run_current_match_adminlog_refresh_loop(
+                interval_seconds=5,
+                lookback_seconds=900,
+                max_runs=2,
+            )
+
+        initialize.assert_called_once_with()
+        self.assertEqual(run_once.call_count, 2)
+        self.assertEqual(sleep.call_count, 1)
+
+    def test_compose_nas_runs_split_live_worker_and_safe_historical_interval(self) -> None:
+        compose_path = os.path.join(
+            os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(__file__)),
+            "..",
+            "deploy",
+            "portainer",
+            "docker-compose.nas.yml",
+        )
+        with open(compose_path, encoding="utf-8") as handle:
+            compose_text = handle.read()
+
+        self.assertIn("rcon-live-adminlog-worker:", compose_text)
+        self.assertIn("app.rcon_current_match_worker", compose_text)
+        self.assertIn('--lookback-minutes\n      - "15"', compose_text)
+        self.assertIn('HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_INTERVAL_SECONDS: ${HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_INTERVAL_SECONDS:-900}', compose_text)
+        self.assertNotIn('HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_INTERVAL_SECONDS: ${HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_INTERVAL_SECONDS:-2}', compose_text)
+
     def test_current_match_adminlog_config_defaults_and_overrides(self) -> None:
         with _temporary_env(
             CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_INTERVAL_SECONDS=None,
diff --git a/backend/tests/test_rcon_historical_worker.py b/backend/tests/test_rcon_historical_worker.py
index 028a0d8..bc4aa98 100644
--- a/backend/tests/test_rcon_historical_worker.py
+++ b/backend/tests/test_rcon_historical_worker.py
@@ -155,6 +155,21 @@ class RconHistoricalWorkerTests(unittest.TestCase):
 
         self.assertEqual(seen["timeout_seconds"], 3.5)
 
+    def test_historical_capture_skips_when_previous_heavy_run_is_still_running(self) -> None:
+        with (
+            patch("app.rcon_historical_worker.initialize_rcon_historical_storage"),
+            patch("app.rcon_historical_worker._select_targets", return_value=[TARGET]),
+            patch(
+                "app.rcon_historical_worker.start_rcon_historical_capture_run",
+                side_effect=RuntimeError("historical materialization capture already running"),
+            ),
+        ):
+            payload = run_rcon_historical_capture_unlocked(capture_mode=CAPTURE_MODE_HISTORICAL)
+
+        self.assertEqual(payload["status"], "skipped")
+        self.assertEqual(payload["run_status"], "skipped")
+        self.assertEqual(payload["materialization_result"]["reason"], "already-running")
+
 
 @contextmanager
 def _temporary_env(**values: str):
diff --git a/deploy/portainer/docker-compose.nas.yml b/deploy/portainer/docker-compose.nas.yml
index c01edde..98f6db7 100644
--- a/deploy/portainer/docker-compose.nas.yml
+++ b/deploy/portainer/docker-compose.nas.yml
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ services:
   backend:
     build:
       context: ../../backend
-    environment:
+    environment: &backend_environment
       HLL_BACKEND_DATABASE_URL: ${HLL_BACKEND_DATABASE_URL:?HLL_BACKEND_DATABASE_URL is required}
       HLL_BACKEND_HOST: ${HLL_BACKEND_HOST:-0.0.0.0}
       HLL_BACKEND_PORT: ${HLL_BACKEND_PORT:-8000}
@@ -70,11 +70,7 @@ services:
       context: ../../backend
     command: ["python", "-m", "app.historical_runner", "--hourly"]
     environment:
-      HLL_BACKEND_DATABASE_URL: ${HLL_BACKEND_DATABASE_URL:?HLL_BACKEND_DATABASE_URL is required}
-      HLL_BACKEND_LIVE_DATA_SOURCE: ${HLL_BACKEND_LIVE_DATA_SOURCE:-rcon}
-      HLL_BACKEND_HISTORICAL_DATA_SOURCE: ${HLL_BACKEND_HISTORICAL_DATA_SOURCE:-rcon}
-      HLL_BACKEND_RCON_TIMEOUT_SECONDS: ${HLL_BACKEND_RCON_TIMEOUT_SECONDS:-20}
-      HLL_BACKEND_RCON_TARGETS: ${HLL_BACKEND_RCON_TARGETS:?HLL_BACKEND_RCON_TARGETS is required}
+      <<: *backend_environment
       HLL_HISTORICAL_REFRESH_INTERVAL_SECONDS: ${HLL_HISTORICAL_REFRESH_INTERVAL_SECONDS:-3600}
       HLL_HISTORICAL_REFRESH_MAX_RETRIES: ${HLL_HISTORICAL_REFRESH_MAX_RETRIES:-2}
       HLL_HISTORICAL_REFRESH_RETRY_DELAY_SECONDS: ${HLL_HISTORICAL_REFRESH_RETRY_DELAY_SECONDS:-15}
@@ -89,19 +85,57 @@ services:
       - hll-internal
     restart: unless-stopped
 
+  rcon-live-adminlog-worker:
+    profiles:
+      - advanced
+    build:
+      context: ../../backend
+    command:
+      - python
+      - -m
+      - app.rcon_current_match_worker
+      - loop
+      - --interval
+      - "5"
+      - --lookback-minutes
+      - "15"
+    environment:
+      <<: *backend_environment
+      CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_ENABLED: "true"
+      CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_INTERVAL_SECONDS: ${CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_INTERVAL_SECONDS:-5}
+      CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_LOOKBACK_SECONDS: ${CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_LOOKBACK_SECONDS:-900}
+    depends_on:
+      postgres:
+        condition: service_healthy
+      backend:
+        condition: service_started
+    volumes:
+      - backend-data:/app/data
+    networks:
+      - hll-internal
+    restart: unless-stopped
+
   rcon-historical-worker:
     profiles:
       - advanced
     build:
       context: ../../backend
-    command: ["python", "-m", "app.rcon_historical_worker", "loop"]
+    command:
+      - python
+      - -m
+      - app.rcon_historical_worker
+      - loop
+      - --capture-mode
+      - historical
+      - --interval
+      - "900"
+      - --retries
+      - "2"
+      - --retry-delay
+      - "15"
     environment:
-      HLL_BACKEND_DATABASE_URL: ${HLL_BACKEND_DATABASE_URL:?HLL_BACKEND_DATABASE_URL is required}
-      HLL_BACKEND_LIVE_DATA_SOURCE: ${HLL_BACKEND_LIVE_DATA_SOURCE:-rcon}
-      HLL_BACKEND_HISTORICAL_DATA_SOURCE: ${HLL_BACKEND_HISTORICAL_DATA_SOURCE:-rcon}
-      HLL_BACKEND_RCON_TIMEOUT_SECONDS: ${HLL_BACKEND_RCON_TIMEOUT_SECONDS:-20}
-      HLL_BACKEND_RCON_TARGETS: ${HLL_BACKEND_RCON_TARGETS:?HLL_BACKEND_RCON_TARGETS is required}
-      HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_INTERVAL_SECONDS: ${HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_INTERVAL_SECONDS:-600}
+      <<: *backend_environment
+      HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_INTERVAL_SECONDS: ${HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_INTERVAL_SECONDS:-900}
       HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_MAX_RETRIES: ${HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_MAX_RETRIES:-2}
       HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_RETRY_DELAY_SECONDS: ${HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_RETRY_DELAY_SECONDS:-15}
       HLL_BACKEND_RCON_ADMIN_LOG_LOOKBACK_MINUTES: ${HLL_BACKEND_RCON_ADMIN_LOG_LOOKBACK_MINUTES:-10}
diff --git a/docs/current-match-adminlog-freshness.md b/docs/current-match-adminlog-freshness.md
index 597a226..172a6e1 100644
--- a/docs/current-match-adminlog-freshness.md
+++ b/docs/current-match-adminlog-freshness.md
@@ -1,160 +1,342 @@
 # Current Match AdminLog Freshness
 
-## Problem
+## Production Evidence
 
-The public current-match page was lagging because:
+The current-match public feed was stale because the persisted AdminLog read model was coupled to slow historical materialization.
 
-- `/api/current-match/kills` reads persisted `rcon_admin_log_events`
-- `/api/current-match/players` reads persisted `rcon_admin_log_events`
-- those endpoints do not ingest AdminLog during the request path
-- the checked-in historical worker path refreshes AdminLog on a much slower cadence
-- frontend polling was already faster than backend data freshness
+Observed production/runtime evidence:
 
-Observed behavior from TASK-268 matched this design:
+- `hll-vietnam-rcon-historical-worker-1` was running `python -m app.rcon_historical_worker loop`
+- configured capture interval was `HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_INTERVAL_SECONDS=2`
+- configured retries were `HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_MAX_RETRIES=2` and `HLL_RCON_HISTORICAL_CAPTURE_RETRY_DELAY_SECONDS=1`
+- configured AdminLog lookback was `HLL_BACKEND_RCON_ADMIN_LOG_LOOKBACK_MINUTES=10`
+- real `rcon_historical_capture_runs` durations were around `15-30` minutes instead of `2` seconds
+- recent examples included:
+  - `40789`: `10:17:54 -> 10:33:45`
+  - `40790`: `10:33:44 -> 10:49:38`
+  - `40791`: `10:33:47 -> 11:05:20`
+  - `40792`: `11:05:19 -> 11:21:15` failed with PostgreSQL deadlock
+  - `40793`: `11:05:22` still running at inspection time
+- each heavy cycle was also doing large historical work:
+  - `player_stats_seen` around `838k`
+  - `player_stats_materialized` around `838k`
+  - `materialized_matches_updated` around `392-394`
 
-- checked-in historical worker interval: `600` seconds
-- checked-in AdminLog lookback: `10` minutes
-- observed public lag growing from about `333s` to about `651s`
+This matters because:
 
-## Solution
+- `/api/current-match/kills` reads `rcon_admin_log_events`
+- `/api/current-match/players` reads `rcon_admin_log_events`
+- those endpoints do not query RCON/CRCON directly per public request
+- if the worker cycle lasts longer than the AdminLog lookback window, new live events can be delayed or missed from the current-match API perspective
 
-Add a dedicated lightweight worker:
+The feed freshness problem was therefore primarily a backend ingestion architecture issue, not a frontend rendering issue.
 
-- module: `python -m app.rcon_current_match_worker`
-- scope: only trusted current-match servers
+## Architecture Before
+
+Before this change, one worker path mixed three concerns:
+
+1. lightweight live sample capture
+2. AdminLog ingestion
+3. heavy historical materialization of matches, player stats, rankings and search inputs
+
+That design had two bad properties:
+
+- current-match freshness depended on heavy historical work finishing
+- the heavy path could deadlock or overlap while still starving `rcon_admin_log_events` refreshes
+
+## Architecture After
+
+### Live AdminLog ingestion path
+
+- dedicated worker module: `python -m app.rcon_current_match_worker`
+- scope: trusted current-match servers only
   - `comunidad-hispana-01`
   - `comunidad-hispana-02`
-- fetches recent AdminLog directly from existing configured RCON targets
-- reuses existing parsing and `persist_rcon_admin_log_entries(...)`
-- writes into the same `rcon_admin_log_events` table
-- relies on existing dedupe/idempotency for overlap-safe windows
+- cadence: explicit fast loop, intended for `5s`
+- overlap safety: relies on idempotent AdminLog inserts and table uniqueness instead of the long historical writer lock
+- output target: `rcon_admin_log_events`
+- explicitly does not:
+  - run `materialize_rcon_admin_log`
+  - rebuild `rcon_match_player_stats`
+  - refresh annual rankings
+  - rebuild player search
+  - process hundreds of thousands of historical stat rows
 
-Default worker settings:
+Operational behavior:
 
-- `CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_INTERVAL_SECONDS=10`
-- `CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_LOOKBACK_SECONDS=180`
-- `CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_ENABLED=false`
+- worker startup initializes AdminLog storage once
+- each loop iteration fetches recent AdminLog only
+- each target is handled independently
+- per-target results include:
+  - `target_key`
+  - `entries_seen`
+  - `events_inserted`
+  - `duplicate_events`
+  - `duration_ms`
+- target failures are isolated and do not stop healthy targets
 
-The worker is opt-in. This task does not change Compose to start it automatically.
+### Historical materialization path
 
-## Design Notes
+- historical worker remains `python -m app.rcon_historical_worker loop`
+- it now runs on an explicit safe interval in Portainer instead of inheriting a too-fast runtime cadence
+- heavy materialization stays in the historical worker
+- a single-running-historical guard was added through the capture-run storage layer
+- if a historical run is already active, the next historical attempt returns a skipped result with reason `already-running`
 
-The worker intentionally avoids:
+### Schema and initialization behavior
 
-- changing RCON hosts, ports or passwords
-- introducing a second AdminLog schema
-- reducing the heavy historical worker interval globally
-- pushing ingestion into `/api/current-match/*` request handlers
+The hot live path was reduced in two places:
 
-Each iteration:
+- current-match API reads already use `ensure_storage=False`, so public `GET /api/current-match/kills` and `GET /api/current-match/players` do not request schema initialization on each read
+- the live AdminLog worker now initializes storage once at worker startup or once-mode execution, then persists with `ensure_storage=False`
 
-1. filters configured RCON targets down to trusted current-match servers
-2. fetches recent AdminLog entries with a small overlap window
-3. persists through the existing idempotent storage path
-4. logs per-target counts for:
-   - `entries_seen`
-   - `events_inserted`
-   - `duplicate_events`
-   - `duration_ms`
-5. continues if one server fails
+This removes obvious repeated PostgreSQL DDL/init from the live ingestion loop.
 
-## Run Commands
+## Deployment Decision
 
-Local one-shot validation:
+The chosen deployment split in `deploy/portainer/docker-compose.nas.yml` is:
 
-```powershell
-cd backend
-python -m app.rcon_current_match_worker once
-```
-
-Local loop:
-
-```powershell
-cd backend
-python -m app.rcon_current_match_worker loop --interval 10 --lookback-seconds 180
-```
-
-Docker/Compose-style ad hoc command without changing deployment defaults:
-
-```powershell
-docker compose run --rm backend python -m app.rcon_current_match_worker loop --interval 10 --lookback-seconds 180
-```
-
-Example service snippet for a future approved deployment:
+1. add a dedicated live worker service:
 
 ```yaml
-current-match-adminlog-worker:
-  profiles: ["advanced"]
-  build:
-    context: ./backend
-  command: ["python", "-m", "app.rcon_current_match_worker", "loop"]
-  environment:
-    HLL_BACKEND_DATABASE_URL: ${HLL_BACKEND_DATABASE_URL}
-    HLL_BACKEND_RCON_TARGETS: ${HLL_BACKEND_RCON_TARGETS}
-    CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_ENABLED: ${CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_ENABLED:-false}
-    CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_INTERVAL_SECONDS: ${CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_INTERVAL_SECONDS:-10}
-    CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_LOOKBACK_SECONDS: ${CURRENT_MATCH_ADMINLOG_LOOKBACK_SECONDS:-180}
+rcon-live-adminlog-worker:
+  command:
+    - python
+    - -m
+    - app.rcon_current_match_worker
+    - loop
+    - --interval
+    - "5"
+    - --lookback-minutes
+    - "15"
 ```
 
-The snippet is documented only. It is not applied automatically by this task.
+2. keep the historical worker for heavy materialization, but force a safe cadence:
 
-## Post-Deployment Validation
+```yaml
+rcon-historical-worker:
+  command:
+    - python
+    - -m
+    - app.rcon_historical_worker
+    - loop
+    - --capture-mode
+    - historical
+    - --interval
+    - "900"
+```
 
-Watch worker logs for per-target counts and errors. The useful signals are:
+Rationale:
 
-- `entries_seen`
-- `events_inserted`
-- `duplicate_events`
-- `target_key`
-- `duration_ms`
+- the repository already uses the historical worker for AdminLog-backed materialization
+- `historical-runner` is not a drop-in replacement for `materialize_rcon_admin_log`
+- the immediate production risk was heavy materialization running effectively every few seconds
+- slowing the heavy worker to `900s` while moving live ingestion to a dedicated `5s` worker cleanly separates freshness from historical backfill/materialization cost
 
-Sample the public API every 10 seconds:
+Non-negotiable result:
+
+- no worker should be materializing `~838k` player-stat rows every `2` seconds
+- live current-match freshness no longer depends on heavy historical materialization completing first
+
+## Current-Match API Read Path
+
+Confirmed after this change:
+
+- `/api/current-match/kills` reads from `rcon_admin_log_events`
+- `/api/current-match/players` reads from `rcon_admin_log_events`
+- those routes do not trigger `materialize_rcon_admin_log`
+- those routes do not query RCON directly per public request
+- those routes avoid repeated storage initialization through `ensure_storage=False`
+
+## Validation
+
+Code validation completed locally:
+
+- `python -m compileall backend/app`
+- `cd backend; python -m unittest tests.test_current_match_payload`
+- `cd backend; python -m unittest tests.test_rcon_historical_worker`
+- `cd backend; python -m unittest tests.test_rcon_current_match_worker`
+
+Coverage added/updated for:
+
+- live worker one-shot persistence reuse
+- live worker loop `max-runs`
+- live worker one-time storage initialization with `ensure_storage=False` on hot writes
+- live worker per-target failure isolation
+- historical worker skip when a heavy run is already active
+- compose split validation for live worker presence and historical safe interval
+- current-match read paths remaining read-only and not triggering materialization
+
+## Post-Deploy Validation Commands
+
+### 1. Verify services
 
 ```powershell
-$killsBase = "https://comunidadhll.devzamode.es/api/current-match/kills?server=comunidad-hispana-02&limit=18"
-$playersBase = "https://comunidadhll.devzamode.es/api/current-match/players?server=comunidad-hispana-02"
+docker ps --format "table {{.Names}}\t{{.Image}}\t{{.Command}}\t{{.Status}}"
+```
 
-1..18 | ForEach-Object {
-  $now = Get-Date
-  $ts = [DateTimeOffset]::UtcNow.ToUnixTimeMilliseconds()
+### 2. Verify live worker command
 
-  $kills = Invoke-RestMethod "$killsBase&_ts=$ts" -Headers @{ "Cache-Control" = "no-cache"; "Pragma" = "no-cache" }
-  $killItems = @($kills.data.items)
-  $topKill = $killItems | Select-Object -First 1
+```powershell
+docker inspect -f '{{.Path}} {{json .Args}}' hll-vietnam-rcon-live-adminlog-worker-1
+```
 
-  $players = Invoke-RestMethod "$playersBase&_ts=$ts" -Headers @{ "Cache-Control" = "no-cache"; "Pragma" = "no-cache" }
-  $playerItems = @($players.data.items)
-  $topPlayers = $playerItems | Sort-Object -Property kills -Descending | Select-Object -First 5 | ForEach-Object {
-    "$($_.player_name):K=$($_.kills):D=$($_.deaths):Team=$($_.team)"
-  }
+Adapt the container name to the actual stack service name if needed.
 
-  $killLocalTime = ""
-  $lagSeconds = ""
-  if ($topKill -and $topKill.server_time) {
-    $killDate = [DateTimeOffset]::FromUnixTimeSeconds([int64]$topKill.server_time).ToLocalTime()
-    $killLocalTime = $killDate.ToString("HH:mm:ss")
-    $lagSeconds = [int](([DateTimeOffset]::Now - $killDate).TotalSeconds)
-  }
+### 3. Verify historical worker is no longer 2-second heavy materialization
 
-  [PSCustomObject]@{
-    sample = $_
-    sampled_at = $now.ToString("HH:mm:ss")
-    kills_scope = $kills.data.scope
-    kills_count = $killItems.Count
-    first_id = if ($killItems.Count -gt 0) { $killItems[0].event_id } else { "" }
-    first_kill_time = $killLocalTime
-    estimated_lag_seconds = $lagSeconds
-    first_kill = if ($topKill) { "$($topKill.killer_name)->$($topKill.victim_name):$($topKill.weapon)" } else { "" }
-    players_count = $playerItems.Count
-    top_players = ($topPlayers -join " | ")
-  }
+```powershell
+docker inspect -f '{{.Path}} {{json .Args}}' hll-vietnam-rcon-historical-worker-1
 
-  Start-Sleep -Seconds 10
+docker inspect -f '{{range .Config.Env}}{{println .}}{{end}}' hll-vietnam-rcon-historical-worker-1 | sort | grep -Ei 'CAPTURE|CURRENT|RCON|ADMIN|MATERIAL|INTERVAL|RETRY|LOOKBACK|LOCK'
+```
+
+Expected:
+
+- no heavy materialization every `2` seconds
+- historical interval should be safe if materialization remains in this service
+
+### 4. Live worker logs
+
+```powershell
+docker logs --tail=200 hll-vietnam-rcon-live-adminlog-worker-1
+```
+
+Expected:
+
+- short cycles
+- per-target AdminLog counts
+- no `player_stats_seen 838k`
+- no `materialized_matches_updated` output every few seconds
+- no repeated deadlocks
+
+### 5. Historical worker/materializer logs
+
+```powershell
+docker logs --since 30m hll-vietnam-rcon-historical-worker-1 2>&1 | grep -Ei "deadlock|materialized|player_stats_seen|capture-cycle|error|exception|traceback"
+```
+
+Expected:
+
+- no repeated deadlocks
+- no overlapping heavy cycles
+- no heavy cycle every `2` seconds
+
+### 6. DB capture run sanity
+
+```powershell
+docker exec -i hll-vietnam-postgres-1 psql -U hll_vietnam -d hll_vietnam -P pager=off -c "
+SELECT
+  id,
+  mode,
+  status,
+  started_at,
+  completed_at,
+  targets_seen,
+  samples_inserted,
+  duplicate_samples,
+  failed_targets,
+  LEFT(COALESCE(notes,''), 160) AS notes
+FROM rcon_historical_capture_runs
+ORDER BY id DESC
+LIMIT 20;
+"
+```
+
+### 7. AdminLog freshness
+
+```powershell
+docker exec -i hll-vietnam-postgres-1 psql -U hll_vietnam -d hll_vietnam -P pager=off -c "
+SELECT
+  target_key,
+  event_type,
+  COUNT(*) AS n,
+  MAX(server_time) AS max_server_time,
+  MAX(event_timestamp) AS max_event_timestamp,
+  MAX(created_at) AS max_created_at
+FROM rcon_admin_log_events
+WHERE target_key IN ('comunidad-hispana-01', 'comunidad-hispana-02')
+  AND created_at >= now() - interval '15 minutes'
+GROUP BY target_key, event_type
+ORDER BY target_key, n DESC;
+"
+```
+
+### 8. API validation from Windows PowerShell
+
+```powershell
+cd "D:\Proyectos\HLL Vietnam"
+
+$servers = @("comunidad-hispana-01", "comunidad-hispana-02")
+
+foreach ($server in $servers) {
+    $ts = [DateTimeOffset]::UtcNow.ToUnixTimeMilliseconds()
+
+    $kills = Invoke-RestMethod "https://comunidadhll.devzamode.es/api/current-match/kills?server=$server&limit=20&_ts=$ts" -Headers @{
+        "Cache-Control" = "no-cache"
+        "Pragma" = "no-cache"
+    }
+
+    $players = Invoke-RestMethod "https://comunidadhll.devzamode.es/api/current-match/players?server=$server&_ts=$ts" -Headers @{
+        "Cache-Control" = "no-cache"
+        "Pragma" = "no-cache"
+    }
+
+    ""
+    "===== $server ====="
+
+    [PSCustomObject]@{
+        server = $server
+        kills_scope = $kills.data.scope
+        kills_confidence = $kills.data.confidence
+        kills_count = @($kills.data.items).Count
+        kills_stale_filtered = $kills.data.stale_events_filtered
+        players_scope = $players.data.scope
+        players_confidence = $players.data.confidence
+        players_count = @($players.data.items).Count
+        players_updated_at = $players.data.updated_at
+    }
+
+    "Latest kills:"
+    $kills.data.items | Select-Object -First 10 event_id,server_time,event_timestamp,killer_name,killer_team,victim_name,victim_team,weapon
+
+    "Top players:"
+    $players.data.items | Sort-Object kills -Descending | Select-Object -First 10 player_name,team,kills,deaths,teamkills,deaths_by_teamkill,most_used_weapon
 }
 ```
 
-Expected outcome after deployment:
+Expected acceptance after redeploy:
 
-- new CRCON kills should appear in `/api/current-match/kills` within roughly `10-30` seconds
-- `/api/current-match/players` should advance accordingly
-- the frontend should reflect it without further polling changes
+- new CRCON kills should reach `rcon_admin_log_events` within roughly `5-30` seconds under normal conditions
+- `/api/current-match/kills` should reflect them shortly after
+- `/api/current-match/players` should also advance shortly after
+- no worker should materialize `838k` player stats every few seconds
+- repeated PostgreSQL deadlocks should stop
+
+## Known Remaining Issue
+
+`TEAM KILL` AdminLog parsing was left as follow-up work in this task.
+
+Known behavior:
+
+- parser currently recognizes `KILL:` but not the separate `TEAM KILL` label in some lines
+- those lines can still land as `event_type="unknown"`
+- that means some teamkills may remain absent from current-match feed/stats until a follow-up parser fix lands
+
+This was intentionally not expanded into the central scope of the ingestion/materialization split.
+
+## Risks And Rollback
+
+Primary residual risks:
+
+- a stale historical `running` row can cause later heavy cycles to skip until an operator clears the stale state
+- if production has multiple unexpected worker replicas, logs should be reviewed after redeploy to confirm the split behaves as intended
+- live freshness still depends on RCON AdminLog availability per target
+
+Rollback path:
+
+1. stop the dedicated `rcon-live-adminlog-worker`
+2. restore the previous historical worker command/env in Portainer if required
+3. redeploy the stack
+
+Rollback should only be used if the new live worker introduces unexpected operational issues, because the previous combined design is known to starve current-match freshness under heavy materialization load.