diff --git a/pillar/data/addtotab.sh b/pillar/data/addtotab.sh
deleted file mode 100644
index 65f9446dd..000000000
--- a/pillar/data/addtotab.sh
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,59 +0,0 @@
-#!/usr/bin/env bash
-
-# This script adds sensors/nodes/etc to the nodes tab
-default_salt_dir=/opt/so/saltstack/default
-local_salt_dir=/opt/so/saltstack/local
-TYPE=$1
-NAME=$2
-IPADDRESS=$3
-CPUS=$4
-GUID=$5
-MANINT=$6
-ROOTFS=$7
-NSM=$8
-MONINT=$9
-#NODETYPE=$10
-#HOTNAME=$11
-
-echo "Seeing if this host is already in here. If so delete it"
-if grep -q $NAME "$local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls"; then
-  echo "Node Already Present - Let's re-add it"
-  awk -v blah="  $NAME:" 'BEGIN{ print_flag=1 }
-{
-    if( $0 ~ blah )
-    {
-       print_flag=0;
-       next
-    }
-    if( $0 ~ /^  [a-zA-Z0-9]+:$/ )
-    {
-        print_flag=1;
-    }
-    if ( print_flag == 1 )
-        print $0
-
-} ' $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls > $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/tmp.$TYPE.sls
-mv $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/tmp.$TYPE.sls $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls
-echo "Deleted $NAME from the tab. Now adding it in again with updated info"
-fi
-echo "  $NAME:" >> $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls
-echo "    ip: $IPADDRESS" >> $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls
-echo "    manint: $MANINT" >> $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls
-echo "    totalcpus: $CPUS" >> $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls
-echo "    guid: $GUID" >> $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls
-echo "    rootfs: $ROOTFS" >> $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls
-echo "    nsmfs: $NSM" >> $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls
-if [ $TYPE == 'sensorstab' ]; then
-  echo "    monint: bond0" >> $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls
-fi
-if [ $TYPE == 'evaltab' ] || [ $TYPE == 'standalonetab' ]; then
-  echo "    monint: bond0" >> $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls
-  if [ ! $10 ]; then
-    salt-call state.apply utility queue=True
-  fi
-fi
-if [ $TYPE == 'nodestab' ]; then
-  salt-call state.apply elasticsearch queue=True
-#  echo "    nodetype: $NODETYPE" >> $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls
-#  echo "    hotname: $HOTNAME" >> $local_salt_dir/pillar/data/$TYPE.sls
-fi
diff --git a/salt/allowed_states.map.jinja b/salt/allowed_states.map.jinja
index c831b45fe..72e4bbe82 100644
--- a/salt/allowed_states.map.jinja
+++ b/salt/allowed_states.map.jinja
@@ -37,8 +37,7 @@
     'elasticfleet',
     'elasticfleet.manager',
     'elasticsearch.cluster',
-    'elastic-fleet-package-registry',
-    'utility'
+    'elastic-fleet-package-registry'
 ] %}
 
 {% set sensor_states = [
diff --git a/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-common b/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-common
index 812c1bb10..4e6580ae1 100755
--- a/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-common
+++ b/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-common
@@ -291,6 +291,20 @@ download_and_verify() {
 	fi
 }
 
+# check if container with name is running and optionally stop it
+docker_check_running() {
+    # show running containers, only names
+    if docker ps --format '{{.Names}}' | grep -q "^so-${1}$"; then
+        if [[ "$2" == "--stop" ]]; then
+            docker stop "so-${1}"
+        fi
+
+        return 0
+    else
+        return 1
+    fi
+}
+
 elastic_license() {
 
 read -r -d '' message <<- EOM
diff --git a/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-kernel-upgrade b/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-kernel-upgrade
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..46d471051
--- /dev/null
+++ b/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-kernel-upgrade
@@ -0,0 +1,57 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+#
+# Copyright Security Onion Solutions LLC and/or licensed to Security Onion Solutions LLC under one
+# or more contributor license agreements. Licensed under the Elastic License 2.0 as shown at
+# https://securityonion.net/license; you may not use this file except in compliance with the
+# Elastic License 2.0.
+#
+# so-kernel-upgrade — switch the boot default to the installed UEK8 (6.x) kernel.
+#
+# Security Onion is moving off the EL9 stock kernel / UEK7 (5.x) onto UEK8 (6.x).
+# Installing the kernel-uek-core package adds a UEK8 boot entry but does NOT make it the
+# default: kernel-install/grubby only auto-promote a new kernel within the running
+# kernel's flavor lineage, and we're crossing from a 5.x kernel to the new 6.x UEK flavor.
+# So even with UPDATEDEFAULT=yes and DEFAULTKERNEL=kernel-uek-core the box keeps booting
+# the old kernel. This tool finds the newest installed 6.x UEK kernel and makes it the
+# GRUB default via grubby so the next boot comes up on UEK8.
+#
+# Idempotent: if the UEK8 kernel is already the default it does nothing. It only sets the
+# boot default; it does NOT reboot — the admin reboots the node on their own schedule.
+
+log() { echo "[so-kernel-upgrade] $*"; }
+
+[ "$(id -u)" -eq 0 ] || { log "must run as root"; exit 1; }
+command -v grubby >/dev/null 2>&1 || { log "grubby not found"; exit 1; }
+
+# Newest installed UEK8 (6.x) kernel known to the bootloader. UEK8 vmlinuz paths look like
+# /boot/vmlinuz-6.12.0-203.76.7.5.el9uek.x86_64; the 5.x UEK7 and 5.14 RHCK won't match.
+target="$(grubby --info=ALL 2>/dev/null \
+    | sed -n 's/^kernel="\(.*\)"$/\1/p' \
+    | grep -E '/vmlinuz-6\.[0-9]+.*uek' \
+    | sort -V | tail -1)"
+
+if [ -z "$target" ]; then
+    log "no installed 6.x UEK (UEK8) kernel found — confirm the kernel repo is assigned and"
+    log "'dnf update' has installed kernel-uek-core. Nothing to do."
+    exit 0
+fi
+
+current="$(grubby --default-kernel 2>/dev/null)"
+if [ "$current" = "$target" ]; then
+    log "UEK8 kernel is already the boot default: $target"
+    exit 0
+fi
+
+log "current default kernel: ${current:-unknown}"
+log "switching boot default to UEK8 kernel: $target"
+grubby --set-default="$target" || { log "ERROR: grubby --set-default failed for $target"; exit 1; }
+
+# Verify the change actually took before claiming success.
+now="$(grubby --default-kernel 2>/dev/null)"
+if [ "$now" != "$target" ]; then
+    log "ERROR: default kernel is still '${now:-unknown}' after set-default"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+log "boot default is now $target"
+log "REBOOT REQUIRED to start using the UEK8 kernel (currently running $(uname -r))."
diff --git a/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-restart b/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-restart
index 7345078b8..14747d134 100755
--- a/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-restart
+++ b/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-restart
@@ -5,27 +5,41 @@
 # https://securityonion.net/license; you may not use this file except in compliance with the
 # Elastic License 2.0.
 
-
-
-# Usage: so-restart  kibana | playbook 
-
 . /usr/sbin/so-common
 
-if [ $# -ge 1 ]; then
+usage() {
+    echo "Usage: $0 <component> [args]"
+    echo ""
+    echo "Supported args:"
+    echo "  --force | -f          Force stop all Salt jobs before starting component."
+    echo ""
+    echo "Examples:"
+    echo "  $0 kibana             Restart Kibana"
+    echo "  $0 kibana --force     Force stop all Salt jobs before restarting Kibana"
+    exit 1
+}
 
-        echo $banner
-        printf "Restarting $1...\n\nThis could take a while if another Salt job is running. \nRun this command with --force to stop all Salt jobs before proceeding.\n"
-        echo $banner
-
-        if [ "$2" = "--force" ]; then
-                printf "\nForce-stopping all Salt jobs before proceeding\n\n"
-                salt-call saltutil.kill_all_jobs
-        fi
-
-        case $1 in
-                "elastic-fleet") docker stop so-elastic-fleet && docker rm so-elastic-fleet && salt-call state.apply elasticfleet queue=True;;
-                *)  docker stop so-$1 ; docker rm so-$1 ; salt-call state.apply $1 queue=True;;
-        esac
-else
-        echo -e "\nPlease provide an argument by running like so-restart $component, or by using the component-specific script.\nEx. so-restart logstash, or so-logstash-restart\n"
+if [[ $# -lt 1 ]]; then
+    usage
 fi
+
+#shellcheck disable=SC2154
+echo "$banner"
+printf "Restarting %s...\n\nThis could take a while if another Salt job is running. \nRun this command with --force to stop all Salt jobs before proceeding.\n" "$1"
+echo "$banner"
+if [[ "$2" = "--force" ]] || [[ "$2" = "-f" ]]; then
+    printf "\nForce-stopping all Salt jobs before proceeding\n\n"
+    salt-call saltutil.kill_all_jobs
+fi
+case $1 in
+    "elastic-fleet"|"elasticfleet")
+        docker_check_running "elastic-fleet" "--stop"
+        docker rm "so-elastic-fleet" 2> /dev/null
+        salt-call state.apply elasticfleet queue=True
+        ;;
+    *)
+        docker_check_running "$1" "--stop"
+        docker rm "so-${1}" 2> /dev/null
+        salt-call state.apply "$1" queue=True
+        ;;
+esac
diff --git a/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-start b/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-start
index 1a312a94d..a5c66ffe7 100755
--- a/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-start
+++ b/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-start
@@ -5,27 +5,54 @@
 # https://securityonion.net/license; you may not use this file except in compliance with the
 # Elastic License 2.0.
 
-
-
-# Usage: so-start  all | kibana | playbook 
-
+# shellcheck disable=SC1091
 . /usr/sbin/so-common
 
-if [ $# -ge 1 ]; then
-	echo $banner
-	printf "Starting $1...\n\nThis could take a while if another Salt job is running. \nRun this command with --force to stop all Salt jobs before proceeding.\n"
-	echo $banner
+usage() {
+    echo "Usage: $0 <component> [args]"
+    echo ""
+    echo "Supported args:"
+    echo "  --force | -f          Force stop all Salt jobs before starting component."
+    echo ""
+    echo "Examples:"
+    echo "  $0 kibana             Start Kibana"
+    echo "  $0 kibana --force     Force stop all Salt jobs before starting Kibana"
+    exit 1
+}
 
-	if [ "$2" = "--force" ]; then
-   		printf "\nForce-stopping all Salt jobs before proceeding\n\n"
-   		salt-call saltutil.kill_all_jobs
-	fi
-
-	case $1 in
-   		"all") salt-call state.highstate queue=True;;
-   		"elastic-fleet") if docker ps | grep -q so-$1; then printf "\n$1 is already running!\n\n"; else docker rm so-$1 >/dev/null 2>&1 ; salt-call state.apply elasticfleet queue=True; fi ;; 
-   		*) if docker ps | grep -E -q '^so-$1$'; then printf "\n$1 is already running\n\n"; else docker rm so-$1 >/dev/null 2>&1 ; salt-call state.apply $1 queue=True; fi ;; 
-	esac
-else
-	echo -e "\nPlease provide an argument by running like so-start $component, or by using the component-specific script.\nEx. so-start logstash, or so-logstash-start\n"	
+if [[ $# -lt 1 ]]; then
+    usage
 fi
+
+#shellcheck disable=SC2154
+echo "$banner"
+printf "Starting %s...\n\nThis could take a while if another Salt job is running. \nRun this command with --force to stop all Salt jobs before proceeding.\n" "$1"
+echo "$banner"
+if [[ "$2" = "--force" ]] || [[ "$2" == "-f" ]]; then
+	printf "\nForce-stopping all Salt jobs before proceeding\n\n"
+	salt-call saltutil.kill_all_jobs
+fi
+
+case "$1" in
+    "all")
+        salt-call state.highstate queue=True
+        ;;
+   	"elastic-fleet"|"elasticfleet")
+        if docker_check_running "elastic-fleet"; then
+            printf "\nso-%s is already running!\n\n" "elastic-fleet"
+            /usr/sbin/so-status
+        else
+            docker rm "so-elastic-fleet" 2> /dev/null
+            salt-call state.apply elasticfleet queue=True
+        fi
+        ;;
+   	*)
+        if docker_check_running "$1"; then
+            printf "\nso-%s is already running\n\n" "$1"
+            /usr/sbin/so-status
+        else
+            docker rm "so-${1}" 2> /dev/null
+            salt-call state.apply "$1" queue=True
+        fi
+        ;;
+esac
diff --git a/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-stop b/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-stop
index 32e24f83a..d036a7b63 100755
--- a/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-stop
+++ b/salt/common/tools/sbin/so-stop
@@ -5,21 +5,33 @@
 # https://securityonion.net/license; you may not use this file except in compliance with the
 # Elastic License 2.0.
 
-
-
-# Usage: so-stop kibana | playbook | thehive
-
+# shellcheck disable=SC1091
 . /usr/sbin/so-common
 
-if [ $# -ge 1 ]; then
-	echo $banner
-	printf "Stopping $1...\n"
-	echo $banner
+usage() {
+    echo "Usage: $0 <component>"
+    echo ""
+    echo "Examples:"
+    echo "  $0 kibana             Stop Kibana"
+    exit 1
+}
 
-	case $1 in
-    		*) docker stop so-$1 ; docker rm so-$1 ;;
-	esac
-else
-	echo -e "\nPlease provide an argument by running like so-stop $component, or by using the component-specific script.\nEx. so-stop logstash, or so-logstash-stop\n"	
+if [[ $# -lt 1 ]]; then
+    usage
 fi
 
+
+#shellcheck disable=SC2154
+echo "$banner"
+printf "Stopping %s...\n" "$1"
+echo "$banner"
+case $1 in
+	"elasticfleet"|"elastic-fleet")
+        docker_check_running "elastic-fleet" "--stop"
+        docker rm "so-elastic-fleet" 2> /dev/null
+        ;;
+    *)
+        docker_check_running "$1" "--stop"
+        docker rm "so-${1}" 2> /dev/null
+    ;;
+esac
diff --git a/salt/elasticsearch/files/ingest/zeek.ssl b/salt/elasticsearch/files/ingest/zeek.ssl
index 0bd6fedb2..80a7b12da 100644
--- a/salt/elasticsearch/files/ingest/zeek.ssl
+++ b/salt/elasticsearch/files/ingest/zeek.ssl
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
     { "remove":   { "field": ["host"],     "ignore_failure": true } },
     { "json":             { "field": "message",                 "target_field": "message2",             "ignore_failure": true  } },
     { "rename":         { "field": "message2.version",          "target_field": "ssl.version",          "ignore_missing": true  } },
+    { "set":      { "description": "Set transport for the community_id processor", "if": "ctx.ssl?.version == null || !ctx.ssl.version.startsWith('DTLS')", "field": "network.transport", "value": "tcp", "ignore_failure": true } },
     { "rename":         { "field": "message2.cipher",           "target_field": "ssl.cipher",           "ignore_missing": true  } },
     { "rename":         { "field": "message2.curve",            "target_field": "ssl.curve",            "ignore_missing": true  } },
     { "rename":         { "field": "message2.server_name",      "target_field": "ssl.server_name",              "ignore_missing": true  } },
diff --git a/salt/kibana/enabled.sls b/salt/kibana/enabled.sls
index 1257f66c6..e8b561754 100644
--- a/salt/kibana/enabled.sls
+++ b/salt/kibana/enabled.sls
@@ -69,7 +69,7 @@ wait_for_so-kibana:
     - ssl: True
     - verify_ssl: False
     - status: 200
-    - wait_for: 300
+    - wait_for: 600
     - request_interval: 15
     - require:
       - docker_container: so-kibana
diff --git a/salt/manager/files/mirror-kernel.txt b/salt/manager/files/mirror-kernel.txt
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..1d9ce75d2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/salt/manager/files/mirror-kernel.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+https://repo.securityonion.net/file/so-repo/prod/3/oracle/9-uek8
+https://repo-alt.securityonion.net/prod/3/oracle/9-uek8
diff --git a/salt/manager/files/repodownload.conf b/salt/manager/files/repodownload.conf
index 3c156a9db..9c9cb5109 100644
--- a/salt/manager/files/repodownload.conf
+++ b/salt/manager/files/repodownload.conf
@@ -10,4 +10,9 @@ keepcache=0
 name=Security Onion Repo repo
 mirrorlist=file:///opt/so/conf/reposync/mirror.txt
 enabled=1
-gpgcheck=1
\ No newline at end of file
+gpgcheck=1
+[securityonionkernelsync]
+name=Security Onion Kernel Repo repo
+mirrorlist=file:///opt/so/conf/reposync/mirror-kernel.txt
+enabled=1
+gpgcheck=1
diff --git a/salt/manager/init.sls b/salt/manager/init.sls
index 2353bb64b..e77b1a601 100644
--- a/salt/manager/init.sls
+++ b/salt/manager/init.sls
@@ -86,6 +86,28 @@ repo_dir:
       - group
     - show_changes: False
 
+kernelrepo_dir:
+  file.directory:
+    - name: /nsm/kernelrepo
+    - user: socore
+    - group: socore
+    - recurse:
+      - user
+      - group
+    - show_changes: False
+
+# Ensure /nsm/kernelrepo is always a valid (if empty) repo before it is ever assigned to
+# a client. Without repodata/repomd.xml an enabled file:///nsm/kernelrepo repo makes every
+# dnf operation fail; so-repo-sync only populates it after the highstate, so seed an empty
+# repo here. Only runs when repodata is missing, so it won't clobber a synced repo.
+kernelrepo_init_empty:
+  cmd.run:
+    - name: createrepo /nsm/kernelrepo
+    - unless: 'test -e /nsm/kernelrepo/repodata/repomd.xml'
+    - require:
+      - file: kernelrepo_dir
+      - pkg: install_createrepo
+
 manager_sbin:
   file.recurse:
     - name: /usr/sbin
@@ -122,6 +144,13 @@ so-repo-mirrorlist:
     - user: socore
     - group: socore
 
+so-repo-kernel-mirrorlist:
+  file.managed:
+    - name: /opt/so/conf/reposync/mirror-kernel.txt
+    - source: salt://manager/files/mirror-kernel.txt
+    - user: socore
+    - group: socore
+
 so-repo-sync:
   {%     if MANAGERMERGED.reposync.enabled %}
   cron.present:
diff --git a/salt/manager/tools/sbin/so-repo-sync b/salt/manager/tools/sbin/so-repo-sync
index a0393a36b..d6a290c25 100755
--- a/salt/manager/tools/sbin/so-repo-sync
+++ b/salt/manager/tools/sbin/so-repo-sync
@@ -10,5 +10,16 @@ NOROOT=1
 set -e
 
 curl --retry 5 --retry-delay 60 -A "reposync/$(sync_options)" https://sigs.securityonion.net/checkup --output /tmp/checkup
+
 dnf reposync --norepopath -g --delete -m -c /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf --repoid=securityonionsync --download-metadata -p /nsm/repo/
 createrepo /nsm/repo
+
+# The kernel repo section is deployed to repodownload.conf by the manager highstate, which
+# runs AFTER this script during soup. On the first upgrade to a kernel-aware version the
+# on-disk config still predates the section, so guard on its presence to avoid dnf's
+# "Unknown repo: 'securityonionkernelsync'" aborting the sync (set -e). The next sync after the
+# highstate deploys the section will pick it up.
+if grep -q '^\[securityonionkernelsync\]' /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf; then
+  dnf reposync --norepopath -g --delete -m -c /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf --repoid=securityonionkernelsync --download-metadata -p /nsm/kernelrepo/
+  createrepo /nsm/kernelrepo
+fi
diff --git a/salt/manager/tools/sbin/soup b/salt/manager/tools/sbin/soup
index 2b8680191..6725cc95c 100755
--- a/salt/manager/tools/sbin/soup
+++ b/salt/manager/tools/sbin/soup
@@ -245,6 +245,7 @@ check_airgap() {
       UPDATE_DIR=/tmp/soagupdate/SecurityOnion
       AGDOCKER=/tmp/soagupdate/docker
       AGREPO=/tmp/soagupdate/minimal/Packages
+      AGUEKREPO=/tmp/soagupdate/uek/Packages
   else
       is_airgap=1
   fi
@@ -850,6 +851,28 @@ kibana_backport_streams_index_template() {
 
 }
 
+# Runs kafka-features.sh upgrade --release-version $1
+#   Upgrades Kafka KRaft cluster metadata
+update_kafka_metadata() {
+    metadata_version="$1"
+    global_pillar="/opt/so/saltstack/local/pillar/global/soc_global.sls"
+    if PIPELINE=$(so-yaml.py get -r "$global_pillar" global.pipeline 2> /dev/null) && [[ "$PIPELINE" == "KAFKA" ]]; then
+        kafka_nodes_raw=$(salt-call pillar.get kafka:nodes --out=json)
+        if kafka_nodes=$(jq -er '.local | select(type == "object" and length > 0)' <<< "$kafka_nodes_raw"); then
+            bootstrap_servers=$(jq -r '[to_entries[] | select(.value.role | contains("broker")) | "\(.value.ip):9092"] | join(",")' <<< "$kafka_nodes")
+            echo "Upgrading Kafka KRaft cluster version"
+            so-kafka-cli kafka-features.sh --bootstrap-server "$bootstrap_servers" --command-config /opt/kafka/config/kraft/client.properties upgrade --release-version "$metadata_version" 2>/dev/null || true
+
+            return 0
+        else
+            FINAL_MESSAGE_QUEUE+=("WARNING: Unable to automatically perform Kafka KRaft cluster metadata update. This step can be performed manually using the following command (replacing \$BROKER_IP with the ip of atleast 1 available Kafka broker):")
+            FINAL_MESSAGE_QUEUE+=("    - so-kafka-cli kafka-features.sh --bootstrap-server \$BROKER_IP:9092 --command-config /opt/kafka/config/kraft/client.properties upgrade --release-version $metadata_version")
+        fi
+    else
+        echo "Nothing to do!"
+    fi
+}
+
 up_to_3.2.0() {
   fix_logstash_0013_lumberjack_pipeline_name
 
@@ -867,6 +890,8 @@ post_to_3.2.0() {
 
   kibana_backport_streams_index_template
 
+  update_kafka_metadata "4.3"
+
   POSTVERSION=3.2.0
 }
 
@@ -980,13 +1005,19 @@ update_airgap_rules() {
   rsync -a $UPDATE_DIR/agrules/securityonion-resources/* /nsm/securityonion-resources/
 }
 
-update_airgap_repo() {
+update_airgap_repos() {
   # Update the files in the repo
-  echo "Syncing new updates to /nsm/repo"
-  rsync -a $AGREPO/* /nsm/repo/
-  echo "Creating repo"
+  echo "Syncing new updates to /nsm/repo & /nsm/kernelrepo"
+  # Airgap soup copies new files into the local repo, but doesn't remove old packages. Retaining the ability to rollback package updates
+  rsync -a "$AGREPO"/ /nsm/repo/
+  rsync -a "$AGUEKREPO"/ /nsm/kernelrepo/
+
   dnf -y install yum-utils createrepo_c
+
+  echo "Running createrepo for /nsm/repo"
   createrepo /nsm/repo
+  echo "Running createrepo for /nsm/kernelrepo"
+  createrepo /nsm/kernelrepo
 }
 
 update_salt_mine() {
@@ -1742,7 +1773,7 @@ main() {
   set -e
 
   if [[ $is_airgap -eq 0 ]]; then
-    update_airgap_repo
+    update_airgap_repos
     dnf clean all
     check_os_updates
   elif [[ $OS == 'oracle' ]]; then
diff --git a/salt/nginx/enabled.sls b/salt/nginx/enabled.sls
index 2e4c9631c..40fde5b0e 100644
--- a/salt/nginx/enabled.sls
+++ b/salt/nginx/enabled.sls
@@ -59,6 +59,7 @@ so-nginx:
       - /opt/so/conf/navigator/layers/:/opt/socore/html/navigator/assets/so:ro
       - /opt/so/conf/navigator/config.json:/opt/socore/html/navigator/assets/config.json:ro
       - /nsm/repo:/opt/socore/html/repo:ro
+      - /nsm/kernelrepo:/opt/socore/html/kernelrepo:ro
       - /nsm/rules:/nsm/rules:ro
       {%   if NGINXMERGED.external_suricata %}
       - /opt/so/rules/nids/suri:/surirules:ro
diff --git a/salt/nginx/etc/nginx.conf b/salt/nginx/etc/nginx.conf
index 8150265f5..b7a70da2b 100644
--- a/salt/nginx/etc/nginx.conf
+++ b/salt/nginx/etc/nginx.conf
@@ -323,6 +323,16 @@ http {
 			autoindex_localtime on;
 		}
 
+		location /kernelrepo/ {
+			allow all;
+			sendfile on;
+			sendfile_max_chunk 1m;
+			autoindex on;
+			autoindex_exact_size off;
+			autoindex_format html;
+			autoindex_localtime on;
+		}
+
 		location /influxdb/ {
 			auth_request          /auth/sessions/whoami;
 			rewrite               /influxdb/api/(.*) /api/$1 break;
diff --git a/salt/repo/client/oracle.sls b/salt/repo/client/oracle.sls
index 70f529830..bf0a02751 100644
--- a/salt/repo/client/oracle.sls
+++ b/salt/repo/client/oracle.sls
@@ -6,6 +6,10 @@
 {% from 'repo/client/map.jinja' import REPOPATH with context %}
 {% from 'vars/globals.map.jinja' import GLOBALS %}
 
+{% import_yaml 'salt/minion.defaults.yaml' as saltversion %}
+{% set saltversion = saltversion.salt.minion.version %}
+{% set INSTALLEDSALTVERSION = grains.saltversion %}
+
 {% set role = grains.id.split('_') | last %}
 {% set MANAGER = salt['grains.get']('master') %}
 {% if grains['os'] == 'OEL' %}
@@ -57,6 +61,32 @@ so_repo:
     - enabled: 1
     - gpgcheck: 1
 
+# Only assign the kernel repo once this node's running salt matches the version this
+# SO release ships. During a soup the grid is mid-salt-upgrade; gating here keeps the
+# UEK8 kernel repo (and the kernel update it enables) from activating until the node is
+# fully on the target salt, the same way other states defer across the upgrade window.
+{% if saltversion | string == INSTALLEDSALTVERSION | string %}
+so_kernel_repo:
+  pkgrepo.managed:
+    - name: securityonionkernel
+    - humanname: Security Onion Kernel Repo
+  {% if GLOBALS.is_manager %}
+    - baseurl: file:///nsm/kernelrepo/
+  {% else %}
+    - baseurl: https://{{ GLOBALS.repo_host }}/kernelrepo
+  {% endif %}
+    - enabled: 1
+    - gpgcheck: 1
+    # Supplementary kernel repo: tolerate it being empty/unreachable (e.g. before the
+    # manager has populated /nsm/kernelrepo) so a missing repomd.xml can't make every
+    # dnf/pkg operation on the grid fail.
+    - skip_if_unavailable: 1
+    # Only assign the kernel repo once physical NIC names are pinned by MAC, so the
+    # UEK8 kernel update can't renumber interfaces SO binds by name (see pin_nic_names
+    # in salt/common/init.sls, which drops this marker via /usr/sbin/so-nic-pin).
+    - onlyif: 'test -e /opt/so/state/nic_names_pinned'
+{% endif %}
+
 {% endif %}
   
 # TODO: Add a pillar entry for custom repos
diff --git a/salt/suricata/enabled.sls b/salt/suricata/enabled.sls
index d9d7f32ae..bb31b2c78 100644
--- a/salt/suricata/enabled.sls
+++ b/salt/suricata/enabled.sls
@@ -65,10 +65,11 @@ so-suricata:
       - file: suriclassifications
 
 surirulereload:
-  cmd.run: 
+  cmd.run:
     - name: /usr/sbin/so-suricata-reload-rules >> /opt/so/log/suricata/reload.log 2>&1
-    - onchanges: 
+    - onchanges:
         - file: surirulesync
+    - onlyif: test -f /opt/so/rules/suricata/all-rulesets.rules
     - require:
         - docker_container: so-suricata
     
diff --git a/salt/suricata/tools/sbin/so-suricata-reload-rules b/salt/suricata/tools/sbin/so-suricata-reload-rules
index e21e28e2f..6db519413 100644
--- a/salt/suricata/tools/sbin/so-suricata-reload-rules
+++ b/salt/suricata/tools/sbin/so-suricata-reload-rules
@@ -7,5 +7,59 @@
 
 . /usr/sbin/so-common
 
-retry 60 3 'docker exec so-suricata /opt/suricata/bin/suricatasc -c reload-rules /var/run/suricata/suricata-command.socket' '{"message":"done","return":"OK"}' || fail "The Suricata container was not ready in time."
-retry 60 3 'docker exec so-suricata /opt/suricata/bin/suricatasc -c ruleset-reload-nonblocking /var/run/suricata/suricata-command.socket' '{"message":"done","return":"OK"}' || fail "The Suricata container was not ready in time."
+RULES_FILE="/opt/so/rules/suricata/all-rulesets.rules"
+SOCKET="/var/run/suricata/suricata-command.socket"
+SURICATASC="docker exec so-suricata /opt/suricata/bin/suricatasc"
+
+# Format an epoch as a human-readable local timestamp for log messages.
+fmt_time() { date -d "@$1" '+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S %Z' 2>/dev/null; }
+
+# Prefix each input line with the current timestamp.
+timestamp_lines() { while IFS= read -r line; do printf '%s %s\n' "$(date '+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S %Z')" "$line"; done; }
+
+# Epoch of Suricata's last *completed* ruleset reload; non-zero return on failure.
+suricata_reload_epoch() {
+  local out ts
+  out=$($SURICATASC -c ruleset-reload-time "$SOCKET" 2>/dev/null)
+  ts=$(echo "$out" | jq -r '.message[0].last_reload // empty' 2>/dev/null)
+  [ -n "$ts" ] || return 1
+  date -d "$ts" +%s 2>/dev/null
+}
+
+# Trigger a fresh reload and confirm Suricata is running a ruleset at least as new
+# as the rules file. Returns 0 only when both hold, so retry keeps going until an
+# in-progress reload clears and our own reload completes.
+reload_and_verify() {
+  local out reload_epoch
+  out=$($SURICATASC -c reload-rules "$SOCKET")
+  echo "reload-rules: $out"
+
+  if [[ "$out" =~ "Reload already in progress" ]]; then
+    echo "A reload is already in progress; waiting for it to clear so a fresh reload can load the current ruleset."
+    return 1
+  fi
+  if [[ ! "$out" =~ '{"message":"done","return":"OK"}' ]]; then
+    echo "Suricata not ready or unexpected reload output; will retry."
+    return 1
+  fi
+
+  reload_epoch=$(suricata_reload_epoch) || { echo "Could not read ruleset-reload-time; will retry."; return 1; }
+  if [ "$reload_epoch" -ge "$target_mtime" ]; then
+    echo "Loaded ruleset is current: last reload ($(fmt_time "$reload_epoch")) is newer than rules file ($(fmt_time "$target_mtime"))."
+    return 0
+  fi
+  echo "Loaded ruleset is stale: last reload ($(fmt_time "$reload_epoch")) is older than rules file ($(fmt_time "$target_mtime")); retrying."
+  return 1
+}
+
+# Run the reload/verify, timestamping every line of output (ours and the
+# retry/fail helpers') so reload.log shows when each step ran. The pipeline is
+# synchronous, so the log is fully flushed and ordered before we exit; the
+# script's real exit code is preserved via PIPESTATUS.
+{
+  # Epoch mtime of the ruleset we need Suricata to have loaded. Captured once so
+  # a file update mid-reload does not move the goalpost.
+  target_mtime=$(stat -c %Y "$RULES_FILE") || fail "Could not stat the Suricata rules file: $RULES_FILE"
+  retry 60 3 'reload_and_verify' || fail "Suricata did not load the current ruleset in time."
+} 2>&1 | timestamp_lines
+exit "${PIPESTATUS[0]}"
diff --git a/salt/top.sls b/salt/top.sls
index cf743edd1..ffa43864c 100644
--- a/salt/top.sls
+++ b/salt/top.sls
@@ -83,7 +83,6 @@ base:
     - zeek
     - strelka
     - elastalert
-    - utility
     - elasticfleet
     - pcap.cleanup
 
@@ -113,7 +112,6 @@ base:
     - zeek
     - strelka
     - elastalert
-    - utility
     - elasticfleet
     - stig
     - kafka
@@ -141,7 +139,6 @@ base:
     - elastic-fleet-package-registry
     - kibana
     - elastalert
-    - utility
     - elasticfleet
     - stig
     - kafka
@@ -168,7 +165,6 @@ base:
     - elastic-fleet-package-registry
     - kibana
     - elastalert
-    - utility
     - elasticfleet
     - kafka
 
@@ -198,7 +194,6 @@ base:
     - elastic-fleet-package-registry
     - kibana
     - elastalert
-    - utility
     - elasticfleet
     - stig
     - kafka
@@ -222,7 +217,6 @@ base:
     - elasticsearch
     - elastic-fleet-package-registry
     - kibana
-    - utility
     - suricata
     - zeek
     - elasticfleet
diff --git a/salt/utility/bin/eval b/salt/utility/bin/eval
deleted file mode 100644
index f30f0f421..000000000
--- a/salt/utility/bin/eval
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,29 +0,0 @@
-#!/bin/bash
-# Wait for ElasticSearch to come up, so that we can query for version infromation
-echo -n "Waiting for ElasticSearch..."
-COUNT=0
-ELASTICSEARCH_CONNECTED="no"
-while [[ "$COUNT" -le 30 ]]; do
-  curl -K /opt/so/conf/elasticsearch/curl.config -k --output /dev/null --silent --head --fail -L https://{{ GLOBALS.manager_ip }}:9200
-  if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then
-    ELASTICSEARCH_CONNECTED="yes"
-    echo "connected!"
-    break
-  else
-    ((COUNT+=1))
-    sleep 1
-    echo -n "."
-  fi
-done
-if [ "$ELASTICSEARCH_CONNECTED" == "no" ]; then
-  echo
-  echo -e "Connection attempt timed out.  Unable to connect to ElasticSearch.  \nPlease try: \n  -checking log(s) in /var/log/elasticsearch/\n  -running 'docker ps' \n  -running 'sudo so-elastic-restart'"
-  echo
-
-  exit
-fi
-
-echo "Applying cross cluster search config..."
-    curl -K /opt/so/conf/elasticsearch/curl.config -s -k -XPUT -L https://{{ GLOBALS.manager_ip }}:9200/_cluster/settings \
-         -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
-         -d "{\"persistent\": {\"search\": {\"remote\": {\"{{ grains.host }}\": {\"seeds\": [\"127.0.0.1:9300\"]}}}}}"
diff --git a/salt/utility/init.sls b/salt/utility/init.sls
deleted file mode 100644
index 49bb2cb0c..000000000
--- a/salt/utility/init.sls
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,22 +0,0 @@
-{% from 'allowed_states.map.jinja' import allowed_states %}
-{% from 'vars/globals.map.jinja' import GLOBALS %}
-
-{% if sls in allowed_states %}
-  {% if grains['role'] in ['so-eval', 'so-import'] %}
-fixsearch:
-  cmd.script:
-    - shell: /bin/bash
-    - cwd: /opt/so
-    - source: salt://utility/bin/eval
-    - template: jinja
-    - defaults:
-        GLOBALS: {{ GLOBALS }}
-  {% endif %}
-
-{% else %}
-
-{{sls}}_state_not_allowed:
-  test.fail_without_changes:
-    - name: {{sls}}_state_not_allowed
-
-{% endif %}
diff --git a/setup/so-functions b/setup/so-functions
index c1f8e11f8..bb7d6922b 100755
--- a/setup/so-functions
+++ b/setup/so-functions
@@ -889,6 +889,7 @@ create_repo() {
 	title "Create the repo directory"
 	logCmd "dnf -y install yum-utils createrepo_c"
 	logCmd "createrepo /nsm/repo"
+	logCmd "createrepo /nsm/kernelrepo"
 }
 
 
@@ -1813,6 +1814,16 @@ securityonion_repo() {
 			echo "mirrorlist=file:///etc/yum/mirror.txt" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
 			echo "enabled=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
 			echo "gpgcheck=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
+			echo "https://repo.securityonion.net/file/so-repo/prod/3/oracle/9-uek8" > /etc/yum/mirror-kernel.txt
+			echo "https://so-repo-east.s3.us-east-005.backblazeb2.com/prod/3/oracle/9-uek8" >> /etc/yum/mirror-kernel.txt
+			echo "[securityonionkernel]" > /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+			echo "name=Security Onion Kernel Repo repo" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+			echo "mirrorlist=file:///etc/yum/mirror-kernel.txt" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+			echo "enabled=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+			echo "gpgcheck=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+			# Supplementary kernel repo: tolerate it being empty/unreachable so a missing
+			# repomd.xml can't make every dnf operation fail before the repo is populated.
+			echo "skip_if_unavailable=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
 			logCmd "dnf repolist"
 		else
 			echo "[securityonion]" > /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
@@ -1821,6 +1832,13 @@ securityonion_repo() {
 			echo "enabled=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
 			echo "gpgcheck=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
 			echo "sslverify=0" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
+			echo "[securityonionkernel]" > /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+			echo "name=Security Onion Kernel Repo" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+			echo "baseurl=https://$MSRV/kernelrepo" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+			echo "enabled=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+			echo "gpgcheck=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+			echo "sslverify=0" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+			echo "skip_if_unavailable=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
 			logCmd "dnf repolist"
 		fi
 	elif [[ ! $waitforstate ]]; then
@@ -1830,12 +1848,25 @@ securityonion_repo() {
 		echo "enabled=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
 		echo "gpgcheck=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
 		echo "sslverify=0" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
+		echo "[securityonionkernel]" > /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+		echo "name=Security Onion Kernel Repo" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+		echo "baseurl=https://$MSRV/kernelrepo" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+		echo "enabled=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+		echo "gpgcheck=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+		echo "sslverify=0" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+		echo "skip_if_unavailable=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
 	elif [[ $waitforstate ]]; then
 		echo "[securityonion]" > /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
 		echo "name=Security Onion Repo" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
 		echo "baseurl=file:///nsm/repo/" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
 		echo "enabled=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
 		echo "gpgcheck=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonion.repo
+		echo "[securityonionkernel]" > /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+		echo "name=Security Onion Kernel Repo" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+		echo "baseurl=file:///nsm/kernelrepo/" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+		echo "enabled=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+		echo "gpgcheck=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
+		echo "skip_if_unavailable=1" >> /etc/yum.repos.d/securityonionkernel.repo
 	fi
 	logCmd "dnf repolist all"
 	if [[ $waitforstate ]]; then
@@ -1851,9 +1882,12 @@ repo_sync_local() {
 	# Sync the repo from the SO repo locally.
 	info "Adding Repo Download Configuration"
 	mkdir -p /nsm/repo
+	mkdir -p /nsm/kernelrepo
 	mkdir -p /opt/so/conf/reposync/cache
 	echo "https://repo.securityonion.net/file/so-repo/prod/3/oracle/9" > /opt/so/conf/reposync/mirror.txt
 	echo "https://repo-alt.securityonion.net/prod/3/oracle/9" >> /opt/so/conf/reposync/mirror.txt
+	echo "https://repo.securityonion.net/file/so-repo/prod/3/oracle/9-uek8" > /opt/so/conf/reposync/mirror-kernel.txt
+	echo "https://repo-alt.securityonion.net/prod/3/oracle/9-uek8" >> /opt/so/conf/reposync/mirror-kernel.txt
 	echo "[main]" > /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf
 	echo "gpgcheck=1" >> /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf
 	echo "installonly_limit=3" >> /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf
@@ -1867,12 +1901,18 @@ repo_sync_local() {
 	echo "mirrorlist=file:///opt/so/conf/reposync/mirror.txt" >> /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf
 	echo "enabled=1" >> /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf
 	echo "gpgcheck=1" >> /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf
+	echo "[securityonionkernel]" >> /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf
+	echo "name=Security Onion Kernel Repo repo" >> /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf
+	echo "mirrorlist=file:///opt/so/conf/reposync/mirror-kernel.txt" >> /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf
+	echo "enabled=1" >> /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf
+	echo "gpgcheck=1" >> /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf
 
 	logCmd "dnf repolist"
 
 	if [[ ! $is_airgap ]]; then
 		curl --retry 5 --retry-delay 60 -A "netinstall/$SOVERSION/$OS/$(uname -r)/1" https://sigs.securityonion.net/checkup --output /tmp/install
-		retry 5 60 "dnf reposync --norepopath -g --delete -m -c /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf --repoid=securityonionsync --download-metadata -p /nsm/repo/" >> "$setup_log" 2>&1 || fail_setup "Repo sync failed"
+		retry 5 60 "dnf reposync --norepopath -g --delete -m -c /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf --repoid=securityonionsync --download-metadata -p /nsm/repo/" >> "$setup_log" 2>&1 || fail_setup "Failed to sync repos"
+		retry 5 60 "dnf reposync --norepopath -g --delete -m -c /opt/so/conf/reposync/repodownload.conf --repoid=securityonionkernel --download-metadata -p /nsm/kernelrepo/" >> "$setup_log" 2>&1 || fail_setup "Failed to sync kernel repos"
 		# After the download is complete run createrepo
 		create_repo
 	fi
@@ -2229,6 +2269,13 @@ update_sudoers_for_testing() {
 }
 
 update_packages() {
+	# Pin physical NIC names by MAC BEFORE pulling packages, so the UEK8 kernel that
+	# the update below installs can't renumber the interfaces SO binds by name. Doing
+	# it here (instead of waiting for the common highstate) also drops the
+	# /opt/so/state/nic_names_pinned marker that gates the kernel repo, so the kernel
+	# repo is assigned on the very first highstate and the kernel isn't downgraded and
+	# then re-upgraded. Run-once: so-nic-pin no-ops if the marker already exists.
+	logCmd "bash ../salt/common/tools/sbin/so-nic-pin"
 	logCmd "dnf repolist"
 	logCmd "dnf -y update --allowerasing --exclude=salt*,docker*,containerd*"
 	RMREPOFILES=("oracle-linux-ol9.repo" "uek-ol9.repo" "virt-ol9.repo")
diff --git a/setup/so-setup b/setup/so-setup
index e4b74716b..a44934088 100755
--- a/setup/so-setup
+++ b/setup/so-setup
@@ -9,14 +9,17 @@
 # Make sure you are root before doing anything
 uid="$(id -u)"
 if [ "$uid" -ne 0 ]; then
-	echo "This script must be run using sudo!"
-	fail_setup
+	echo "This script must be run using sudo!" >&2
+	exit 1
 fi
 
 # Save the original argument array since we modify it
 original_args=("$@")
 
-cd "$(dirname "$0")" || fail_setup
+cd "$(dirname "$0")" || {
+	echo "Unable to change to setup directory" >&2
+	exit 1
+}
 
 echo "Getting started..."