diff --git a/apps/api/src/cutover-orchestrator.ts b/apps/api/src/cutover-orchestrator.ts
index ea08ec7..aed88a2 100644
--- a/apps/api/src/cutover-orchestrator.ts
+++ b/apps/api/src/cutover-orchestrator.ts
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ import {
 } from 'node:fs/promises';
 import { createHash } from 'node:crypto';
 import { request } from 'node:http';
-import { isAbsolute, join, resolve } from 'node:path';
+import { basename, isAbsolute, join, resolve } from 'node:path';
 import { GATEWAY_AUTH_HEADER } from './runtime-config.js';
 import { PRODUCTION_CUTOVER_ACK } from './canary-runtime.js';
 
@@ -185,6 +185,15 @@ function exactKeys(
     throw new Error(`${label} has an invalid schema`);
 }
 
+function commandMatchesArgv(command: string, commandArgv: readonly string[]): boolean {
+  const rendered = commandArgv.join(' ');
+  if (rendered === command) return true;
+  const executable = commandArgv[0];
+  if (executable === undefined) return false;
+  const args = commandArgv.slice(1);
+  return [basename(executable), ...args].join(' ') === command;
+}
+
 function safeString(value: unknown, label: string): string {
   if (typeof value !== 'string' || value.length === 0 || value.includes('\0'))
     throw new Error(`${label} must be a non-empty string`);
@@ -246,7 +255,7 @@ export function parseCutoverPlan(value: unknown): CutoverPlan {
     throw new Error('legacyPid must be a safe PID greater than 1');
   if (!DIGEST.test(plan.backupEvidenceSha256) || !DIGEST.test(plan.drillEvidenceSha256))
     throw new Error('Evidence digests must be lowercase SHA-256');
-  if (plan.legacyStart.join(' ') !== plan.legacyCommand)
+  if (!commandMatchesArgv(plan.legacyCommand, plan.legacyStart))
     throw new Error('legacyStart must exactly reproduce legacyCommand');
   return Object.freeze(plan);
 }