diff --git a/CLAUDE.md b/CLAUDE.md
index f23aeb6..ccd0a31 100644
--- a/CLAUDE.md
+++ b/CLAUDE.md
@@ -74,6 +74,8 @@ This is an Elixir OTP application that serves as a systemd daemon for MQTT-based
 - Uses hostname-based randomized client ID to avoid conflicts across multiple hosts
 - Configurable startup delay (default 5 seconds) before first metrics publish
 - Real-time metrics collection with configurable intervals
+- **Connection verification**: Tests MQTT connectivity on startup with timeout-based validation
+- **Graceful shutdown**: Exits cleanly via `System.stop(1)` when MQTT broker unavailable (prevents crash dumps)
 
 ### Configuration System
 Systant uses a TOML-based configuration system with environment variable overrides:
diff --git a/server/lib/systant/mqtt_client.ex b/server/lib/systant/mqtt_client.ex
index a2c5b60..3960e46 100644
--- a/server/lib/systant/mqtt_client.ex
+++ b/server/lib/systant/mqtt_client.ex
@@ -57,10 +57,14 @@ defmodule Systant.MqttClient do
             
           :timeout ->
             Logger.error("MQTT connection timeout - broker at #{mqtt_config.host}:#{mqtt_config.port} is not responding")
+            Logger.error("Shutting down systant due to MQTT connection failure")
+            System.stop(1)
             {:stop, :connection_timeout}
             
           {:error, reason} ->
             Logger.error("MQTT connection verification failed: #{inspect(reason)}")
+            Logger.error("Shutting down systant due to MQTT connection failure")
+            System.stop(1)
             {:stop, reason}
         end
         
@@ -151,16 +155,29 @@ defmodule Systant.MqttClient do
     test_topic = "systant/connection_test"
     test_payload = "test"
     
-    case Tortoise.publish_sync(client_id, test_topic, test_payload, qos: 0, timeout: timeout_ms) do
-      :ok ->
-        Logger.debug("MQTT connection test successful")
-        :ok
-      {:error, :timeout} ->
-        Logger.error("MQTT connection test timed out")
-        :timeout
-      {:error, reason} ->
-        Logger.error("MQTT connection test failed: #{inspect(reason)}")
-        {:error, reason}
+    try do
+      case Tortoise.publish_sync(client_id, test_topic, test_payload, qos: 0, timeout: timeout_ms) do
+        :ok ->
+          Logger.debug("MQTT connection test successful")
+          :ok
+        {:error, :timeout} ->
+          Logger.error("MQTT connection test timed out")
+          :timeout
+        {:error, reason} ->
+          Logger.error("MQTT connection test failed: #{inspect(reason)}")
+          {:error, reason}
+        other ->
+          Logger.error("MQTT connection test unexpected result: #{inspect(other)}")
+          {:error, other}
+      end
+    rescue
+      error ->
+        Logger.error("MQTT connection test exception: #{inspect(error)}")
+        {:error, :connection_failed}
+    catch
+      :exit, reason ->
+        Logger.error("MQTT connection test exit: #{inspect(reason)}")
+        {:error, :connection_failed}
     end
   end
 end
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