diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
index 3a6b4c7..9ace972 100644
--- a/Dockerfile
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -100,7 +100,7 @@ COPY --from=frontend-builder /frontend/dist /app/frontend-dist
 # Final setup: permissions and directories in one layer
 # Only creating directories and setting executable bits.
 # Ownership will be handled by the entrypoint script.
-RUN mkdir -p /var/log/cwa-book-downloader /cwa-book-ingest && \
+RUN mkdir -p /var/log/cwa-book-downloader /books && \
     chmod +x /app/entrypoint.sh /app/tor.sh /app/genDebug.sh
 
 # Expose the application port
diff --git a/cwa_book_downloader/config/settings.py b/cwa_book_downloader/config/settings.py
index 23f1bc1..070e830 100644
--- a/cwa_book_downloader/config/settings.py
+++ b/cwa_book_downloader/config/settings.py
@@ -27,14 +27,8 @@ logger.debug(f"BASE_DIR: {BASE_DIR}")
 if env.ENABLE_LOGGING:
     env.LOG_DIR.mkdir(exist_ok=True)
 
-# Create necessary directories
+# Create staging directory (destination is created by orchestrator using config value)
 env.TMP_DIR.mkdir(exist_ok=True)
-env.INGEST_DIR.mkdir(exist_ok=True)
-
-CROSS_FILE_SYSTEM = os.stat(env.TMP_DIR).st_dev != os.stat(env.INGEST_DIR).st_dev
-logger.debug(f"STAT TMP_DIR: {os.stat(env.TMP_DIR)}")
-logger.debug(f"STAT INGEST_DIR: {os.stat(env.INGEST_DIR)}")
-logger.debug(f"CROSS_FILE_SYSTEM: {CROSS_FILE_SYSTEM}")
 
 # DNS placeholders - actual values set by network.init() from config/ENV
 CUSTOM_DNS: list[str] = []
@@ -453,6 +447,7 @@ def download_settings():
             description="Directory where downloaded files are saved.",
             default="/books",
             required=True,
+            env_var="INGEST_DIR",  # Legacy env var name for backwards compatibility
         ),
         SelectField(
             key="FILE_ORGANIZATION",
diff --git a/entrypoint.sh b/entrypoint.sh
index e409ac1..d9d14ba 100644
--- a/entrypoint.sh
+++ b/entrypoint.sh
@@ -127,7 +127,7 @@ change_ownership /tmp/cwa-book-downloader
 
 # Test write to all folders
 make_writable ${CONFIG_DIR:-/config}
-make_writable /cwa-book-ingest
+make_writable ${INGEST_DIR:-/books}
 
 # Always run Gunicorn (even when DEBUG=true) to ensure Socket.IO WebSocket
 # upgrades work reliably on customer machines.
diff --git a/genDebug.sh b/genDebug.sh
index 5c942da..2a72b30 100755
--- a/genDebug.sh
+++ b/genDebug.sh
@@ -100,8 +100,8 @@ echo "=== Permissions ===" > "$LOG_DIR/permissions.txt"
 echo "ls -all /app" >> "$LOG_DIR/permissions.txt"
 ls -all /app >> "$LOG_DIR/permissions.txt" 2>&1
 echo "" >> "$LOG_DIR/permissions.txt"
-echo "ls -all /cwa-book-ingest" >> "$LOG_DIR/permissions.txt"
-ls -all /cwa-book-ingest >> "$LOG_DIR/permissions.txt" 2>&1
+echo "ls -all ${INGEST_DIR:-/books}" >> "$LOG_DIR/permissions.txt"
+ls -all ${INGEST_DIR:-/books} >> "$LOG_DIR/permissions.txt" 2>&1
 echo "" >> "$LOG_DIR/permissions.txt"
 echo "ls -all /var/log/cwa-book-downloader" >> "$LOG_DIR/permissions.txt"
 ls -all /var/log/cwa-book-downloader >> "$LOG_DIR/permissions.txt" 2>&1
diff --git a/readme.md b/readme.md
index a86bc4c..39f068e 100644
--- a/readme.md
+++ b/readme.md
@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ That's it! Configure settings through the web interface as needed.
 ```yaml
 volumes:
   - /your/config/path:/config             # Config, database, and artwork cache directory
-  - /your/download/path:/cwa-book-ingest  # Downloaded books
+  - /your/download/path:/books  # Downloaded books
 ```
 
 > **Tip**: Point the download volume to your CWA or Booklore ingest folder for automatic import.
@@ -90,7 +90,7 @@ Environment variables work for initial setup and Docker deployments. They serve
 | Variable | Description | Default |
 |----------|-------------|---------|
 | `FLASK_PORT` | Web interface port | `8084` |
-| `INGEST_DIR` | Book download directory | `/cwa-book-ingest` |
+| `INGEST_DIR` | Book download directory | `/books` |
 | `TZ` | Container timezone | `UTC` |
 | `PUID` / `PGID` | Runtime user/group ID (also supports legacy `UID`/`GID`) | `1000` / `1000` |
 | `SEARCH_MODE` | `direct` or `universal` | `direct` |
diff --git a/tests/config/test_docker_volumes.py b/tests/config/test_docker_volumes.py
index c95d4d3..b999744 100644
--- a/tests/config/test_docker_volumes.py
+++ b/tests/config/test_docker_volumes.py
@@ -415,9 +415,9 @@ class TestCrossFilesystem:
             assert os.stat(tmp_dir).st_dev == os.stat(ingest_dir).st_dev
 
     def test_detect_cross_filesystem(self):
-        """CROSS_FILE_SYSTEM detection should work."""
-        # This is a documentation test - the actual logic is in settings.py:
-        # CROSS_FILE_SYSTEM = os.stat(env.TMP_DIR).st_dev != os.stat(env.INGEST_DIR).st_dev
+        """Cross-filesystem detection uses same_filesystem() at runtime."""
+        # Detection is done lazily by same_filesystem() in core/naming.py
+        # when hardlinking is attempted, not at startup
         pass