diff --git a/vault_sync_daemon.py b/vault_sync_daemon.py
index 73f5bac..d5190fe 100644
--- a/vault_sync_daemon.py
+++ b/vault_sync_daemon.py
@@ -493,6 +493,59 @@ def handle_data_created(path):
     )
 
 
+def handle_data_moved(src_path, dest_path):
+    """
+    A folder in /data was renamed/moved (e.g. via an SMB client, GUI file
+    manager, or any tool that stages-then-renames rather than mkdir'ing
+    directly in place). DataHandler previously had NO on_moved at all, so
+    this fired zero log line and zero ntfy -- confirmed root cause of
+    Ryan's 2026-09-22 report ("created a folder in /data, nothing happened
+    on ntfy or in /vault": the folder actually arrived via a rename, not a
+    bare create, and there was no handler to catch it).
+
+    Mirror rule: if /vault already has a note at the OLD relative path,
+    rename it to match (same as the forward vault->data rename mirror).
+    If there's no /vault counterpart yet at all, treat this exactly like
+    a fresh data_created at the NEW path (covers the same "staged then
+    renamed into place" arrival pattern as a plain create).
+    """
+    if _in_skip(src_path, DATA) or _in_skip(dest_path, DATA):
+        return
+    rel_src = os.path.relpath(src_path, DATA)
+    rel_dest = os.path.relpath(dest_path, DATA)
+    if _under_data_exempt(rel_src) or _under_data_exempt(rel_dest):
+        return
+    vault_src = os.path.join(VAULT, rel_src)
+    vault_dest = os.path.join(VAULT, rel_dest)
+    if not os.path.isdir(vault_src):
+        # No /vault counterpart to rename -- treat the arrival at the new
+        # name like a normal reverse-sync create.
+        handle_data_created(dest_path)
+        return
+    if os.path.exists(vault_dest):
+        log(f"SKIP data-move mirror (vault dest exists): {rel_src} -> {rel_dest}")
+        return
+    os.makedirs(os.path.dirname(vault_dest), exist_ok=True)
+    os.rename(vault_src, vault_dest)
+    # keep the folder-note's own filename in sync with its containing
+    # folder's new name (matches the "<ID name>/<ID name>.md" convention
+    # used throughout the vault)
+    old_base = os.path.basename(vault_src)
+    new_base = os.path.basename(vault_dest)
+    old_note = os.path.join(vault_dest, old_base + ".md")
+    new_note = os.path.join(vault_dest, new_base + ".md")
+    if old_base != new_base and os.path.isfile(old_note) and not os.path.exists(new_note):
+        os.rename(old_note, new_note)
+    log(f"MIRRORED rename /vault: {rel_src} -> {rel_dest}")
+    commit_paths = [vault_dest] if os.path.isdir(vault_dest) else []
+    _git_commit(f"vault_sync_daemon: renamed {old_base} -> {new_base}", commit_paths)
+    ntfy_post(
+        "Vault sync: renamed",
+        f"/vault: {rel_src} -> {rel_dest}",
+        tags="package",
+    )
+
+
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 # watchdog wiring
 #
@@ -546,6 +599,11 @@ class DataHandler(FileSystemEventHandler):
             return
         _event_queue.put(("data_created", event.src_path))
 
+    def on_moved(self, event):
+        if not event.is_directory:
+            return
+        _event_queue.put(("data_moved", event.src_path, event.dest_path))
+
 
 def _worker_loop():
     """Single consumer thread: drains _event_queue and does the actual
@@ -576,6 +634,9 @@ def _worker_loop():
                     _, path = item
                     time.sleep(0.5)  # small settle delay so a batch mkdir/copy isn't caught half-written
                     handle_data_created(path)
+                elif kind == "data_moved":
+                    _, src_path, dest_path = item
+                    handle_data_moved(src_path, dest_path)
         except Exception as e:
             log(f"ERROR handling {item}: {e}")
             ntfy_post(
@@ -588,6 +649,78 @@ def _worker_loop():
             _event_queue.task_done()
 
 
+RECONCILE_INTERVAL_SECONDS = 180
+
+
+def reconcile():
+    """
+    Full-tree self-healing sweep, independent of inotify.
+
+    inotify is best-effort: watch descriptors can be dropped, events can be
+    coalesced or lost under load, and — per Ryan 2026-09-24 — a plain
+    `mkdir` under R.12.22 produced zero log line and zero ntfy with no
+    reproducible cause found (kernel-level inotifywait on the same exact
+    directory caught the same mkdir instantly, so it wasn't a mount/fs
+    issue — watchdog's own bookkeeping simply missed it). Rather than chase
+    every possible way an event can go missing, the daemon must be
+    resilient no matter what: periodically diff the whole tree in both
+    directions and self-heal anything inotify failed to deliver.
+
+    This walks every directory in /data and /vault and calls the exact
+    same idempotent handlers used for live events (handle_data_created /
+    handle_vault_created). Both are "check target state first, act only if
+    something's actually missing" by construction (see module docstring),
+    so calling them on every already-mirrored directory is a cheap no-op —
+    only genuinely missed folders get created, stubbed, and ntfy'd here.
+
+    Deliberately does NOT attempt rename detection: a rename that happened
+    while the daemon was blind looks identical to a delete+create pair,
+    which is genuinely ambiguous to reconstruct after the fact. Live
+    on_moved handling remains the only path for renames; reconcile's job
+    is just to guarantee creates are never permanently lost.
+    """
+    t0 = time.time()
+    data_count = 0
+    for dirpath, dirnames, _ in os.walk(DATA):
+        dirnames.sort()
+        if dirpath == DATA:
+            continue
+        if _in_skip(dirpath, DATA):
+            dirnames[:] = []
+            continue
+        with _lock:
+            handle_data_created(dirpath)
+        data_count += 1
+    vault_count = 0
+    for dirpath, dirnames, _ in os.walk(VAULT):
+        dirnames.sort()
+        if dirpath == VAULT:
+            continue
+        if _in_skip(dirpath, VAULT):
+            dirnames[:] = []
+            continue
+        with _lock:
+            handle_vault_created(dirpath)
+        vault_count += 1
+    log(f"reconcile: swept {data_count} /data dirs, {vault_count} /vault dirs "
+        f"in {time.time() - t0:.1f}s")
+
+
+def _reconcile_loop():
+    while True:
+        time.sleep(RECONCILE_INTERVAL_SECONDS)
+        try:
+            reconcile()
+        except Exception as e:
+            log(f"ERROR in reconcile sweep: {e}")
+            ntfy_post(
+                "Vault sync ERROR",
+                f"Periodic reconcile sweep failed:\n{e}",
+                tags="rotating_light",
+                priority="urgent",
+            )
+
+
 def main():
     log("vault_sync_daemon starting")
     worker = threading.Thread(target=_worker_loop, daemon=True)
@@ -598,6 +731,14 @@ def main():
     observer.start()
     log(f"watching {VAULT} and {DATA}")
     ntfy_post("Vault sync daemon started", f"Watching {VAULT} and {DATA}", tags="rocket", priority="low")
+    # Run one reconcile sweep at startup (catches anything that happened
+    # while the daemon was down, e.g. a reboot) then keep sweeping on a
+    # timer as a standing backstop under live inotify events.
+    try:
+        reconcile()
+    except Exception as e:
+        log(f"ERROR in startup reconcile sweep: {e}")
+    threading.Thread(target=_reconcile_loop, daemon=True).start()
     try:
         while True:
             time.sleep(5)