diff --git a/apps/ui/scripts/prepare-server.mjs b/apps/ui/scripts/prepare-server.mjs
index 82309574..db92b385 100644
--- a/apps/ui/scripts/prepare-server.mjs
+++ b/apps/ui/scripts/prepare-server.mjs
@@ -7,8 +7,8 @@
  */
 
 import { execSync } from 'child_process';
-import { cpSync, existsSync, mkdirSync, rmSync, writeFileSync, readFileSync } from 'fs';
-import { join, dirname } from 'path';
+import { cpSync, existsSync, mkdirSync, rmSync, writeFileSync, readFileSync, lstatSync } from 'fs';
+import { join, dirname, resolve } from 'path';
 import { fileURLToPath } from 'url';
 
 const __filename = fileURLToPath(import.meta.url);
@@ -112,6 +112,29 @@ execSync('npm install --omit=dev', {
   },
 });
 
+// Step 6b: Replace symlinks for local packages with real copies
+// npm install creates symlinks for file: references, but these break when packaged by electron-builder
+console.log('🔗 Replacing symlinks with real directory copies...');
+const nodeModulesAutomaker = join(BUNDLE_DIR, 'node_modules', '@automaker');
+for (const pkgName of LOCAL_PACKAGES) {
+  const pkgDir = pkgName.replace('@automaker/', '');
+  const nmPkgPath = join(nodeModulesAutomaker, pkgDir);
+  try {
+    // lstatSync does not follow symlinks, allowing us to check for broken ones
+    if (lstatSync(nmPkgPath).isSymbolicLink()) {
+      const realPath = resolve(BUNDLE_DIR, 'libs', pkgDir);
+      rmSync(nmPkgPath);
+      cpSync(realPath, nmPkgPath, { recursive: true });
+      console.log(`   ✓ Replaced symlink: ${pkgName}`);
+    }
+  } catch (error) {
+    // If the path doesn't exist, lstatSync throws ENOENT. We can safely ignore this.
+    if (error.code !== 'ENOENT') {
+      throw error;
+    }
+  }
+}
+
 // Step 7: Rebuild native modules for current architecture
 // This is critical for modules like node-pty that have native bindings
 console.log('🔨 Rebuilding native modules for current architecture...');
diff --git a/libs/platform/src/system-paths.ts b/libs/platform/src/system-paths.ts
index 8c212561..0d900dfa 100644
--- a/libs/platform/src/system-paths.ts
+++ b/libs/platform/src/system-paths.ts
@@ -750,6 +750,9 @@ export function electronUserDataWriteFileSync(
     throw new Error('[SystemPaths] Electron userData path not initialized');
   }
   const fullPath = path.join(electronUserDataPath, relativePath);
+  // Ensure parent directory exists (may not exist on first launch)
+  const dir = path.dirname(fullPath);
+  fsSync.mkdirSync(dir, { recursive: true });
   fsSync.writeFileSync(fullPath, data, options);
 }