diff --git a/src/engines.mjs b/src/engines.mjs
index 59ea517..0167eb0 100644
--- a/src/engines.mjs
+++ b/src/engines.mjs
@@ -33,7 +33,12 @@ export const ENGINES = {
     agentArgs: ["--auto"],
     agentsView: ["agent", "list"],
     install: { cmd: "sh", args: ["-c", "curl -fsSL https://getprivacycode.com/install | sh"] },
-    upgrade: { cmd: "privacycode", args: ["upgrade"] },
+    // Deliberately no native updater. `privacycode upgrade` is opencode's, and
+    // it works out how to update itself by recognising where it was installed —
+    // it knows opencode's own locations, not this fork's ~/.privacycode/bin. It
+    // reports `Using method: unknown` and aborts with "Unknown installation
+    // method", every time, so it can never upgrade an install we made. Falling
+    // through to the installer above is what actually moves the version.
   },
   claude: {
     desc: "Claude Code — Anthropic's agentic CLI",
diff --git a/src/upgrade.mjs b/src/upgrade.mjs
index 2858475..faf6848 100644
--- a/src/upgrade.mjs
+++ b/src/upgrade.mjs
@@ -80,6 +80,10 @@ export function planUpgrade(targets = []) {
       label: key,
       kind: "engine",
       spec: installed ? upgradeSpec(ENGINES[key]) : ENGINES[key].install,
+      // Where to turn when a native updater refuses. Only set when the updater
+      // is something other than the installer, so a fallback can never repeat
+      // the command that just failed.
+      fallback: installed && upgradeSpec(ENGINES[key]) !== ENGINES[key].install ? ENGINES[key].install : null,
       installed,
     });
   };
@@ -93,6 +97,7 @@ export function planUpgrade(targets = []) {
       label: key,
       kind: "tool",
       spec: installed ? toolUpgradeSpec(TOOLS[key]) : TOOLS[key].install,
+      fallback: installed && toolUpgradeSpec(TOOLS[key]) !== TOOLS[key].install ? TOOLS[key].install : null,
       installed,
     });
   };
@@ -133,16 +138,22 @@ export async function runUpgrade(targets = [], io = {}) {
     return [];
   }
 
+  const exec = io.runCmd || runCmd;
+
   const results = [];
-  const run = async (name, spec, note) => {
+  const attempt = async (name, spec, note) => {
     log(`\n⬆ upgrading ${name}${note ? ` ${note}` : ""} — ${spec.cmd} ${spec.args.join(" ")}`);
     rule();
-    const r = await runCmd(spec.cmd, spec.args);
+    const r = await exec(spec.cmd, spec.args);
     rule();
     const ok = ranOk(r);
     log(ok ? `✓ ${name} up to date` : `✗ ${name} upgrade failed (${exitReason(r)})`);
-    results.push({ name, ok, code: r.code, signal: r.signal ?? null });
-    return ok;
+    return { name, ok, code: r.code, signal: r.signal ?? null };
+  };
+  const run = async (name, spec, note) => {
+    const result = await attempt(name, spec, note);
+    results.push(result);
+    return result.ok;
   };
 
   if (self) {
@@ -158,7 +169,20 @@ export async function runUpgrade(targets = [], io = {}) {
       }
     }
   }
-  for (const it of items) await run(it.label, it.spec, it.installed ? "" : "(installing — not present)");
+  for (const it of items) {
+    const result = await attempt(it.label, it.spec, it.installed ? "" : "(installing — not present)");
+    // A native updater that can't tell how the binary got there fails the same
+    // way on every run — an opencode fork living under its own directory, a
+    // binary someone moved, a machine where the installer left no marker. The
+    // installer is idempotent and fetches the latest, so reach for it rather
+    // than leaving the target stranded on an old version.
+    if (!result.ok && it.fallback) {
+      log(`· ${it.label}'s own updater could not do it — falling back to its installer`);
+      results.push(await attempt(it.label, it.fallback, "(installer)"));
+      continue;
+    }
+    results.push(result);
+  }
 
   const failed = results.filter((r) => !r.ok);
   log(`\n${failed.length ? "✗" : "✓"} upgraded ${results.length - failed.length}/${results.length}${failed.length ? ` — failed: ${failed.map((r) => r.name).join(", ")}` : "."} 🤘`);
diff --git a/test/upgrade-install-missing.test.mjs b/test/upgrade-install-missing.test.mjs
index 69b6cf0..f83f7c1 100644
--- a/test/upgrade-install-missing.test.mjs
+++ b/test/upgrade-install-missing.test.mjs
@@ -78,7 +78,11 @@ test("a missing engine reached through an alias is planned with its installer",
 test("no missing target is ever planned to run the binary it is missing", () => {
   // The sweep that matters: for EVERY entry with a native updater, the planned
   // command for a not-installed target must not be the absent binary itself.
-  assert.ok(withNativeUpdater.length >= 5, "expected several native updaters");
+  // Cover both code paths rather than counting to a number that moves whenever
+  // an entry gains or loses an updater — privacycode dropped its own once it
+  // turned out it could never update an install of ours.
+  assert.ok(withNativeUpdater.some(([, , kind]) => kind === "engine"), "no engine has a native updater to sweep");
+  assert.ok(withNativeUpdater.some(([, , kind]) => kind === "tool"), "no tool has a native updater to sweep");
   for (const [key, entry, kind] of withNativeUpdater) {
     const item = specOf(key);
     assert.equal(item.installed, false, `${kind} ${key} should not be installed`);
diff --git a/test/upgrade.test.mjs b/test/upgrade.test.mjs
index 1458726..483f3f1 100644
--- a/test/upgrade.test.mjs
+++ b/test/upgrade.test.mjs
@@ -4,7 +4,24 @@ import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
 import path from "node:path";
 import test from "node:test";
 
-import { planUpgrade, selfSpec } from "../src/upgrade.mjs";
+import { ENGINES, upgradeSpec } from "../src/engines.mjs";
+import { planUpgrade, runUpgrade, selfSpec } from "../src/upgrade.mjs";
+
+// Same trick as withFakeTools, for the cases that turn on a target being
+// installed: only an installed target is asked to update itself, so the
+// fallback path can't be reached without one on PATH.
+async function withFakeBins(names, fn) {
+  const dir = mkdtempSync(path.join(tmpdir(), "moshcode-upgrade-bins-"));
+  for (const name of names) {
+    const file = path.join(dir, name);
+    writeFileSync(file, "#!/bin/sh\nexit 0\n");
+    chmodSync(file, 0o755);
+  }
+  const before = process.env.PATH;
+  process.env.PATH = dir;
+  try { return await fn(); }
+  finally { process.env.PATH = before; }
+}
 
 function withFakeTools(fn) {
   const dir = mkdtempSync(path.join(tmpdir(), "moshcode-upgrade-"));
@@ -63,6 +80,71 @@ test("default upgrade includes self and every installed tool", () => {
   });
 });
 
+test("privacycode upgrades by re-running its installer, not its own updater", () => {
+  // `privacycode upgrade` is opencode's updater, and it decides how to update
+  // by recognising where the binary was installed. It knows opencode's
+  // locations, not this fork's ~/.privacycode/bin, so against an install of
+  // ours it reports `Using method: unknown` and aborts every time. Re-running
+  // the installer is what actually moves the version.
+  assert.equal(ENGINES.privacycode.upgrade, undefined, "privacycode must not carry a native updater");
+  assert.deepEqual(upgradeSpec(ENGINES.privacycode), ENGINES.privacycode.install);
+
+  // The same call on plain opencode keeps its updater: that one does know
+  // where opencode puts itself.
+  assert.deepEqual(upgradeSpec(ENGINES.opencode), { cmd: "opencode", args: ["upgrade"] });
+});
+
+test("an explicit privacycode upgrade plans the installer", () => {
+  const plan = planUpgrade(["privacycode"]);
+
+  assert.equal(plan.self, false);
+  assert.deepEqual(plan.items.map(({ key, kind, spec }) => ({ key, kind, spec })), [
+    {
+      key: "privacycode",
+      kind: "engine",
+      spec: { cmd: "sh", args: ["-c", "curl -fsSL https://getprivacycode.com/install | sh"] },
+    },
+  ]);
+});
+
+test("a refused native updater falls back to the installer", async () => {
+  // opencode's updater picks its method from where the binary was installed,
+  // and reports `Using method: unknown` and gives up when it doesn't
+  // recognise the location — the same on every run, so the target would stay
+  // stranded on an old version. The installer is idempotent; use it.
+  const calls = [];
+  const runCmd = async (cmd, args) => {
+    calls.push(`${cmd} ${args.join(" ")}`);
+    return cmd === "opencode" ? { ok: true, code: 1, signal: null } : { ok: true, code: 0, signal: null };
+  };
+  const logs = [];
+  const results = await withFakeBins(["opencode"], () => runUpgrade(["opencode"], {
+    runCmd, log: (s) => logs.push(s), rule: () => {},
+  }));
+
+  assert.deepEqual(calls, [
+    "opencode upgrade",
+    "bash -c curl -fsSL https://opencode.ai/install | bash",
+  ], "the installer runs only after its own updater refuses");
+  assert.deepEqual(results.map((r) => r.ok), [true], "the fallback result is what counts, not the refusal");
+  assert.ok(logs.some((l) => l.includes("falling back to its installer")), "the fallback must be visible, not silent");
+});
+
+test("a target with no separate updater is not retried", async () => {
+  // claude upgrades with `npm install -g`, which is already the installer.
+  // Retrying it would just run the identical command a second time.
+  const calls = [];
+  const runCmd = async (cmd, args) => {
+    calls.push(`${cmd} ${args.join(" ")}`);
+    return { ok: true, code: 1, signal: null };
+  };
+  const results = await withFakeBins(["claude"], () =>
+    runUpgrade(["claude"], { runCmd, log: () => {}, rule: () => {} }));
+
+  assert.deepEqual(calls, ["npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code"]);
+  assert.deepEqual(results.map((r) => r.ok), [false]);
+});
+
 test("unknown upgrade targets remain visible to the caller", () => {
   const plan = planUpgrade(["not-a-tool"]);
   assert.deepEqual(plan.unknown, ["not-a-tool"]);