refactor: clean up checkpoint orchestration (#7309)

Signed-off-by: Schwinn Saereesitthipitak <schwinns@nvidia.com>

deploy/operator/api/v1alpha1/zz_generated.deepcopy.go

@@ -272,6 +272,11 @@ func (in *DynamoCheckpointIdentity) DeepCopy() *DynamoCheckpointIdentity {
 func (in *DynamoCheckpointJobConfig) DeepCopyInto(out *DynamoCheckpointJobConfig) {
 	*out = *in
 	in.PodTemplateSpec.DeepCopyInto(&out.PodTemplateSpec)
+	if in.SharedMemory != nil {
+		in, out := &in.SharedMemory, &out.SharedMemory
+		*out = new(SharedMemorySpec)
+		(*in).DeepCopyInto(*out)
+	}
 	if in.ActiveDeadlineSeconds != nil {
 		in, out := &in.ActiveDeadlineSeconds, &out.ActiveDeadlineSeconds
 		*out = new(int64)

deploy/operator/config/crd/bases/nvidia.com_dynamocheckpoints.yaml

@@ -124,11 +124,12 @@ spec:
                       default: 3600
                       description: ActiveDeadlineSeconds specifies the maximum time the Job can run
                       format: int64
+                      minimum: 1
                       type: integer
                     backoffLimit:
-                      default: 3
-                      description: BackoffLimit specifies the number of retries before marking the Job failed
+                      description: 'Deprecated: BackoffLimit is ignored. Checkpoint Jobs never retry.'
                       format: int32
+                      minimum: 0
                       type: integer
                     podTemplateSpec:
                       description: |-
@@ -8154,10 +8155,28 @@ spec:
                             - containers
                           type: object
                       type: object
+                    sharedMemory:
+                      description: |-
+                        SharedMemory controls the tmpfs mounted at /dev/shm for the checkpoint Job pod.
+                        When omitted, checkpoint Jobs use the same default 8Gi tmpfs as Dynamo components.
+                      properties:
+                        disabled:
+                          type: boolean
+                        size:
+                          anyOf:
+                            - type: integer
+                            - type: string
+                          pattern: ^(\+|-)?(([0-9]+(\.[0-9]*)?)|(\.[0-9]+))(([KMGTPE]i)|[numkMGTPE]|([eE](\+|-)?(([0-9]+(\.[0-9]*)?)|(\.[0-9]+))))?$
+                          x-kubernetes-int-or-string: true
+                      type: object
+                      x-kubernetes-validations:
+                        - message: sharedMemory.size must not be set when sharedMemory.disabled is true
+                          rule: '!(self.disabled && has(self.size))'
                     ttlSecondsAfterFinished:
                       default: 300
                       description: TTLSecondsAfterFinished specifies how long to keep the Job after completion
                       format: int32
+                      minimum: 0
                       type: integer
                   required:
                     - podTemplateSpec
@@ -8170,7 +8189,7 @@ spec:
               description: DynamoCheckpointStatus defines the observed state of DynamoCheckpoint
               properties:
                 conditions:
-                  description: Conditions represent the latest available observations of the checkpoint's state
+                  description: 'DEPRECATED: Conditions are deprecated. Use status.phase instead.'
                   items:
                     description: Condition contains details for one aspect of the current state of this API Resource.
                     properties:

deploy/operator/config/crd/bases/nvidia.com_dynamocomponentdeployments.yaml

@@ -678,8 +678,8 @@ spec:
                   properties:
                     checkpointRef:
                       description: |-
-                        CheckpointRef references an existing Checkpoint CR to use
-                        If specified, Identity is ignored and this checkpoint is used directly
+                        CheckpointRef references an existing DynamoCheckpoint CR by metadata.name.
+                        If specified, this service's Identity is ignored and the referenced checkpoint is used directly.
                       type: string
                     enabled:
                       default: false
@@ -11211,6 +11211,9 @@ spec:
                       pattern: ^(\+|-)?(([0-9]+(\.[0-9]*)?)|(\.[0-9]+))(([KMGTPE]i)|[numkMGTPE]|([eE](\+|-)?(([0-9]+(\.[0-9]*)?)|(\.[0-9]+))))?$
                       x-kubernetes-int-or-string: true
                   type: object
+                  x-kubernetes-validations:
+                    - message: sharedMemory.size must not be set when sharedMemory.disabled is true
+                      rule: '!(self.disabled && has(self.size))'
                 subComponentType:
                   description: SubComponentType indicates the sub-role of this component (for example, "prefill").
                   type: string

deploy/operator/config/crd/bases/nvidia.com_dynamographdeployments.yaml

@@ -887,8 +887,8 @@ spec:
                         properties:
                           checkpointRef:
                             description: |-
-                              CheckpointRef references an existing Checkpoint CR to use
-                              If specified, Identity is ignored and this checkpoint is used directly
+                              CheckpointRef references an existing DynamoCheckpoint CR by metadata.name.
+                              If specified, this service's Identity is ignored and the referenced checkpoint is used directly.
                             type: string
                           enabled:
                             default: false
@@ -11420,6 +11420,9 @@ spec:
                             pattern: ^(\+|-)?(([0-9]+(\.[0-9]*)?)|(\.[0-9]+))(([KMGTPE]i)|[numkMGTPE]|([eE](\+|-)?(([0-9]+(\.[0-9]*)?)|(\.[0-9]+))))?$
                             x-kubernetes-int-or-string: true
                         type: object
+                        x-kubernetes-validations:
+                          - message: sharedMemory.size must not be set when sharedMemory.disabled is true
+                            rule: '!(self.disabled && has(self.size))'
                       subComponentType:
                         description: SubComponentType indicates the sub-role of this component (for example, "prefill").
                         type: string
@@ -11466,7 +11469,7 @@ spec:
                         description: IdentityHash is the computed hash of the checkpoint identity
                         type: string
                       ready:
-                        description: Ready indicates if the checkpoint is ready for use
+                        description: Ready indicates if the checkpoint was visible to the worker at startup
                         type: boolean
                     type: object
                   description: |-

deploy/operator/config/samples/nvidia.com_v1alpha1_dynamocheckpoint.yaml

@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@
 apiVersion: nvidia.com/v1alpha1
 kind: DynamoCheckpoint
 metadata:
-  name: vllm-llama3-8b-tp1
+  name: llama3-8b-bf16
 spec:
   # Identity - determines the checkpoint hash
   identity:
@@ -33,7 +33,6 @@ spec:
   # Job configuration for checkpoint creation
   job:
     activeDeadlineSeconds: 3600
-    backoffLimit: 3
     ttlSecondsAfterFinished: 300
     podTemplateSpec:
       spec:
@@ -60,4 +59,3 @@ spec:
               limits:
                 nvidia.com/gpu: 1
         restartPolicy: Never
-

deploy/operator/docs/footer.md

@@ -242,17 +242,6 @@ These are injected into all components when the corresponding infrastructure ser
 | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
 | `OMPI_MCA_orte_keep_fqdn_hostnames` | Instructs OpenMPI to preserve FQDN hostnames for inter-node communication | `1` | `string` | Multinode deployments only |
 
-### Checkpoint / Restore
-
-These environment variables are injected when checkpoint/restore is enabled for a component.
-
-| Variable | Purpose | Default | Type | Condition |
-| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
-| `DYN_CHECKPOINT_PATH` | Base directory where checkpoint data is stored | From operator checkpoint config `storage.pvc.basePath` | `string` | PVC storage type |
-| `DYN_CHECKPOINT_LOCATION` | Full checkpoint URI (for non-PVC backends) | — | `string` | S3 or OCI storage type |
-| `DYN_CHECKPOINT_HASH` | Identity hash that uniquely identifies the checkpoint | — | `string` | Always set when checkpoint is enabled |
-| `SKIP_WAIT_FOR_CHECKPOINT` | Skips the checkpoint readiness polling loop; checks once and proceeds | — | `string` | Set on restored and DGD pods |
-
 ## Service Accounts
 
 The following component types automatically receive dedicated service accounts:

deploy/operator/internal/checkpoint/dgd_integration_test.go → deploy/operator/internal/checkpoint/checkpoint_test.go

@@ -30,6 +30,7 @@ import (
 	metav1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime"
 	"k8s.io/utils/ptr"
+	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/client"
 	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/client/fake"
 )
 
@@ -80,34 +81,103 @@ func testInfo() *CheckpointInfo {
 	return &CheckpointInfo{Enabled: true, Hash: testHash}
 }
 
-// --- Helper function tests ---
+type createHookClient struct {
+	client.Client
+	onCreate func(ctx context.Context, obj client.Object) error
+}
 
-func TestHelpers(t *testing.T) {
-	// GetPVCBasePath
-	assert.Equal(t, "", GetPVCBasePath(nil))
-	assert.Equal(t, "/checkpoints", GetPVCBasePath(testPVCConfig()))
+func (c *createHookClient) Create(ctx context.Context, obj client.Object, opts ...client.CreateOption) error {
+	if c.onCreate != nil {
+		if err := c.onCreate(ctx, obj); err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+		c.onCreate = nil
+	}
+
+	return c.Client.Create(ctx, obj, opts...)
+}
 
-	// getCheckpointInfoFromCheckpoint — ready
+// --- Resource helper tests ---
+
+func TestHelpers(t *testing.T) {
+	// checkpointInfoFromObject — ready
+	hash, err := ComputeIdentityHash(testIdentity())
+	require.NoError(t, err)
 	ckpt := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
-		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{Name: "ckpt-abc"},
+		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{Name: hash},
 		Spec:       nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{Identity: testIdentity()},
 		Status: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
-			Phase: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady, IdentityHash: testHash,
-			Location: "/checkpoints/" + testHash, StorageType: "pvc",
+			Phase:        nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady,
+			IdentityHash: hash,
+			Location:     "/checkpoints/" + hash,
+			StorageType:  "pvc",
 		},
 	}
-	info := getCheckpointInfoFromCheckpoint(ckpt)
+	info, err := checkpointInfoFromObject(ckpt)
+	require.NoError(t, err)
 	assert.True(t, info.Enabled)
 	assert.True(t, info.Ready)
-	assert.Equal(t, testHash, info.Hash)
-	assert.Equal(t, "/checkpoints/"+testHash, info.Location)
+	assert.Equal(t, hash, info.Hash)
+	assert.Equal(t, "/checkpoints/"+hash, info.Location)
+	assert.Equal(t, ckpt.Name, info.CheckpointName)
 
-	// getCheckpointInfoFromCheckpoint — not ready
+	// checkpointInfoFromObject — not ready
 	ckpt.Status.Phase = nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseCreating
-	info = getCheckpointInfoFromCheckpoint(ckpt)
+	info, err = checkpointInfoFromObject(ckpt)
+	require.NoError(t, err)
 	assert.False(t, info.Ready)
 }
 
+func TestCreateOrGetAutoCheckpointDeduplicatesConcurrentSameHashCheckpoint(t *testing.T) {
+	ctx := context.Background()
+	s := testScheme()
+
+	identity := testIdentity()
+	hash, err := ComputeIdentityHash(identity)
+	require.NoError(t, err)
+
+	friendly := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
+		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+			Name:      "friendly-checkpoint",
+			Namespace: testNamespace,
+			Labels: map[string]string{
+				consts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash: hash,
+			},
+		},
+		Spec: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{
+			Identity: identity,
+			Job: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointJobConfig{
+				PodTemplateSpec: corev1.PodTemplateSpec{},
+			},
+		},
+		Status: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
+			IdentityHash: hash,
+			Phase:        nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady,
+		},
+	}
+
+	baseClient := fake.NewClientBuilder().WithScheme(s).Build()
+	c := &createHookClient{
+		Client: baseClient,
+		onCreate: func(ctx context.Context, obj client.Object) error {
+			_, ok := obj.(*nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint)
+			if !ok {
+				return nil
+			}
+			return baseClient.Create(ctx, friendly.DeepCopy())
+		},
+	}
+
+	ckpt, err := CreateOrGetAutoCheckpoint(ctx, c, testNamespace, identity, corev1.PodTemplateSpec{})
+	require.NoError(t, err)
+	assert.Equal(t, friendly.Name, ckpt.Name)
+
+	list := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointList{}
+	require.NoError(t, baseClient.List(ctx, list))
+	require.Len(t, list.Items, 1)
+	assert.Equal(t, friendly.Name, list.Items[0].Name)
+}
+
 // --- Injection idempotency tests ---
 
 func TestInjectionIdempotency(t *testing.T) {
@@ -126,87 +196,40 @@ func TestInjectionIdempotency(t *testing.T) {
 	assert.Len(t, container.VolumeMounts, 2)
 }
 
-// --- InjectCheckpointEnvVars tests ---
+func TestApplyCheckpointPodMetadata(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Run("checkpoint source metadata uses annotations for location and storage", func(t *testing.T) {
+		labels := map[string]string{}
+		annotations := map[string]string{}
 
-func TestInjectCheckpointEnvVars(t *testing.T) {
-	t.Run("PVC storage injects PATH and HASH", func(t *testing.T) {
-		container := &corev1.Container{}
-		InjectCheckpointEnvVars(container, testInfo(), testPVCConfig())
+		ApplyCheckpointSourcePodMetadata(labels, annotations, testHash, "/checkpoints/"+testHash, "pvc")
 
-		envMap := make(map[string]string, len(container.Env))
-		for _, e := range container.Env {
-			envMap[e.Name] = e.Value
-		}
-		assert.Equal(t, "/checkpoints", envMap[consts.EnvCheckpointPath])
-		assert.Equal(t, testHash, envMap[consts.EnvCheckpointHash])
-		_, hasLocation := envMap[consts.EnvCheckpointLocation]
-		assert.False(t, hasLocation)
+		assert.Equal(t, consts.KubeLabelValueTrue, labels[consts.KubeLabelIsCheckpointSource])
+		assert.Equal(t, testHash, labels[consts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash])
+		assert.Equal(t, "/checkpoints/"+testHash, annotations[consts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointLocation])
+		assert.Equal(t, "pvc", annotations[consts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointStorageType])
 	})
 
-	t.Run("S3 storage injects LOCATION and HASH", func(t *testing.T) {
-		container := &corev1.Container{}
-		info := &CheckpointInfo{Enabled: true, Hash: testHash, Location: "s3://bucket/" + testHash + ".tar"}
-		config := &configv1alpha1.CheckpointConfiguration{
-			Storage: configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageConfiguration{
-				Type: configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageTypeS3,
-				S3:   configv1alpha1.CheckpointS3Config{URI: "s3://bucket"},
-			},
+	t.Run("restore metadata clears stale values when checkpoint is not ready", func(t *testing.T) {
+		labels := map[string]string{
+			consts.KubeLabelIsRestoreTarget: consts.KubeLabelValueTrue,
+			consts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash:  "stale-hash",
 		}
-		InjectCheckpointEnvVars(container, info, config)
-
-		envMap := make(map[string]string, len(container.Env))
-		for _, e := range container.Env {
-			envMap[e.Name] = e.Value
+		annotations := map[string]string{
+			consts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointLocation:    "/checkpoints/stale-hash",
+			consts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointStorageType: "pvc",
 		}
-		assert.Equal(t, "s3://bucket/"+testHash+".tar", envMap[consts.EnvCheckpointLocation])
-		assert.Equal(t, testHash, envMap[consts.EnvCheckpointHash])
-	})
-
-	t.Run("disabled is a no-op", func(t *testing.T) {
-		container := &corev1.Container{}
-		InjectCheckpointEnvVars(container, &CheckpointInfo{Enabled: false}, testPVCConfig())
-		assert.Empty(t, container.Env)
-	})
-
-	t.Run("preserves existing env vars", func(t *testing.T) {
-		container := &corev1.Container{Env: []corev1.EnvVar{{Name: "EXISTING", Value: "keep"}}}
-		InjectCheckpointEnvVars(container, testInfo(), testPVCConfig())
-
-		envMap := make(map[string]string, len(container.Env))
-		for _, e := range container.Env {
-			envMap[e.Name] = e.Value
-		}
-		assert.Equal(t, "keep", envMap["EXISTING"])
-		assert.Equal(t, testHash, envMap[consts.EnvCheckpointHash])
-	})
-}
-
-// --- InjectCheckpointLabelsFromConfig tests ---
 
-func TestInjectCheckpointLabelsFromConfig(t *testing.T) {
-	// Disabled/nil configs are no-ops
-	for _, cfg := range []*nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig{nil, {Enabled: false}} {
-		labels := map[string]string{"existing": "value"}
-		result, err := InjectCheckpointLabelsFromConfig(labels, cfg)
-		require.NoError(t, err)
-		assert.Equal(t, map[string]string{"existing": "value"}, result)
-	}
+		ApplyRestorePodMetadata(labels, annotations, &CheckpointInfo{Enabled: true, Ready: false})
 
-	// Enabled with identity adds hash label
-	identity := testIdentity()
-	result, err := InjectCheckpointLabelsFromConfig(nil, &nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig{
-		Enabled: true, Identity: &identity,
+		_, hasRestoreTarget := labels[consts.KubeLabelIsRestoreTarget]
+		_, hasCheckpointHash := labels[consts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash]
+		_, hasLocation := annotations[consts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointLocation]
+		_, hasStorageType := annotations[consts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointStorageType]
+		assert.False(t, hasRestoreTarget)
+		assert.False(t, hasCheckpointHash)
+		assert.False(t, hasLocation)
+		assert.False(t, hasStorageType)
 	})
-	require.NoError(t, err)
-	hash, ok := result[consts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash]
-	assert.True(t, ok)
-	assert.Len(t, hash, 16)
-
-	// Enabled without identity does not add hash
-	result, err = InjectCheckpointLabelsFromConfig(map[string]string{}, &nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig{Enabled: true})
-	require.NoError(t, err)
-	_, ok = result[consts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash]
-	assert.False(t, ok)
 }
 
 // --- InjectCheckpointIntoPodSpec tests ---
@@ -251,7 +274,7 @@ func TestInjectCheckpointIntoPodSpec(t *testing.T) {
 		require.NotNil(t, podSpec.SecurityContext.SeccompProfile)
 	})
 
-	t.Run("PVC storage injects volumes, mounts, and env vars", func(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Run("PVC storage injects volumes and mounts", func(t *testing.T) {
 		podSpec := testPodSpec()
 		require.NoError(t, InjectCheckpointIntoPodSpec(podSpec, testInfo(), testPVCConfig()))
 
@@ -262,6 +285,20 @@ func TestInjectCheckpointIntoPodSpec(t *testing.T) {
 			if v.Name == consts.CheckpointVolumeName {
 				assert.Equal(t, "snapshot-pvc", v.PersistentVolumeClaim.ClaimName)
 			}
+			if v.Name == consts.PodInfoVolumeName {
+				require.NotNil(t, v.DownwardAPI)
+				fieldPaths := map[string]string{}
+				for _, item := range v.DownwardAPI.Items {
+					if item.FieldRef != nil {
+						fieldPaths[item.Path] = item.FieldRef.FieldPath
+					}
+				}
+				assert.Equal(t, "metadata.labels['"+consts.KubeLabelDynamoNamespace+"']", fieldPaths[consts.PodInfoFileDynNamespace])
+				assert.Equal(t, "metadata.labels['"+consts.KubeLabelDynamoWorkerHash+"']", fieldPaths[consts.PodInfoFileDynNamespaceWorkerSuffix])
+				assert.Equal(t, "metadata.labels['"+consts.KubeLabelDynamoComponentType+"']", fieldPaths[consts.PodInfoFileDynComponent])
+				assert.Equal(t, "metadata.labels['"+consts.KubeLabelDynamoGraphDeploymentName+"']", fieldPaths[consts.PodInfoFileDynParentDGDName])
+				assert.Equal(t, consts.PodInfoFieldPodNamespace, fieldPaths[consts.PodInfoFileDynParentDGDNamespace])
+			}
 		}
 		assert.True(t, volNames[consts.CheckpointVolumeName])
 		assert.True(t, volNames[consts.PodInfoVolumeName])
@@ -273,14 +310,6 @@ func TestInjectCheckpointIntoPodSpec(t *testing.T) {
 		}
 		assert.Equal(t, "/checkpoints", mountPaths[consts.CheckpointVolumeName])
 		assert.Equal(t, consts.PodInfoMountPath, mountPaths[consts.PodInfoVolumeName])
-
-		// Env
-		envMap := make(map[string]string, len(podSpec.Containers[0].Env))
-		for _, e := range podSpec.Containers[0].Env {
-			envMap[e.Name] = e.Value
-		}
-		assert.Equal(t, "/checkpoints", envMap[consts.EnvCheckpointPath])
-		assert.Equal(t, testHash, envMap[consts.EnvCheckpointHash])
 	})
 
 	t.Run("computes hash from identity when hash is empty", func(t *testing.T) {
@@ -328,9 +357,6 @@ func TestInjectCheckpointIntoPodSpec(t *testing.T) {
 			{"PVC name missing", testPodSpec(), testInfo(), &configv1alpha1.CheckpointConfiguration{
 				Storage: configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageConfiguration{Type: "pvc", PVC: configv1alpha1.CheckpointPVCConfig{BasePath: "/checkpoints"}},
 			}, "no PVC name"},
-			{"PVC base path missing", testPodSpec(), testInfo(), &configv1alpha1.CheckpointConfiguration{
-				Storage: configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageConfiguration{Type: "pvc", PVC: configv1alpha1.CheckpointPVCConfig{PVCName: "snapshot-pvc"}},
-			}, "no PVC base path"},
 			{"S3 URI missing", testPodSpec(), testInfo(), &configv1alpha1.CheckpointConfiguration{
 				Storage: configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageConfiguration{Type: "s3"},
 			}, "S3"},
@@ -370,39 +396,48 @@ func TestResolveCheckpointForService(t *testing.T) {
 	})
 
 	t.Run("checkpointRef resolves ready CR", func(t *testing.T) {
+		hash, err := ComputeIdentityHash(testIdentity())
+		require.NoError(t, err)
 		ckpt := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
-			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{Name: "my-ckpt", Namespace: testNamespace},
+			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{Name: hash, Namespace: testNamespace},
 			Spec:       nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{Identity: testIdentity()},
 			Status: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
-				Phase: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady, IdentityHash: testHash,
-				Location: "/checkpoints/" + testHash, StorageType: "pvc",
+				Phase:        nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady,
+				IdentityHash: hash,
+				Location:     "/checkpoints/" + hash,
+				StorageType:  "pvc",
 			},
 		}
 		c := fake.NewClientBuilder().WithScheme(s).WithObjects(ckpt).WithStatusSubresource(ckpt).Build()
-		ref := "my-ckpt"
+		ref := hash
 
 		info, err := ResolveCheckpointForService(ctx, c, testNamespace, &nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig{
 			Enabled: true, CheckpointRef: &ref,
 		})
 		require.NoError(t, err)
+		assert.True(t, info.Exists)
 		assert.True(t, info.Ready)
-		assert.Equal(t, testHash, info.Hash)
-		assert.Equal(t, "/checkpoints/"+testHash, info.Location)
+		assert.Equal(t, hash, info.Hash)
+		assert.Equal(t, "/checkpoints/"+hash, info.Location)
+		assert.Equal(t, hash, info.CheckpointName)
 	})
 
 	t.Run("checkpointRef resolves not-ready CR", func(t *testing.T) {
+		hash, err := ComputeIdentityHash(testIdentity())
+		require.NoError(t, err)
 		ckpt := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
-			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{Name: "pending-ckpt", Namespace: testNamespace},
+			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{Name: hash, Namespace: testNamespace},
 			Spec:       nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{Identity: testIdentity()},
 			Status:     nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{Phase: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseCreating},
 		}
 		c := fake.NewClientBuilder().WithScheme(s).WithObjects(ckpt).WithStatusSubresource(ckpt).Build()
-		ref := "pending-ckpt"
+		ref := hash
 
 		info, err := ResolveCheckpointForService(ctx, c, testNamespace, &nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig{
 			Enabled: true, CheckpointRef: &ref,
 		})
 		require.NoError(t, err)
+		assert.True(t, info.Exists)
 		assert.False(t, info.Ready)
 	})
 
@@ -415,20 +450,40 @@ func TestResolveCheckpointForService(t *testing.T) {
 		assert.ErrorContains(t, err, "nonexistent")
 	})
 
-	t.Run("identity lookup finds existing checkpoint by label", func(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Run("checkpointRef resolves human-readable checkpoint names", func(t *testing.T) {
+		hash, err := ComputeIdentityHash(testIdentity())
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+		ckpt := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
+			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{Name: "not-the-hash", Namespace: testNamespace},
+			Spec:       nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{Identity: testIdentity()},
+			Status: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
+				IdentityHash: hash,
+			},
+		}
+		c := fake.NewClientBuilder().WithScheme(s).WithObjects(ckpt).WithStatusSubresource(ckpt).Build()
+		ref := "not-the-hash"
+
+		info, err := ResolveCheckpointForService(ctx, c, testNamespace, &nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig{
+			Enabled: true, CheckpointRef: &ref,
+		})
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+		assert.Equal(t, "not-the-hash", info.CheckpointName)
+		assert.Equal(t, hash, info.Hash)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("identity lookup finds existing checkpoint by identity hash", func(t *testing.T) {
 		identity := testIdentity()
 		hash, err := ComputeIdentityHash(identity)
 		require.NoError(t, err)
 
 		ckpt := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
-			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
-				Name: hash, Namespace: testNamespace,
-				Labels: map[string]string{consts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash: hash},
-			},
-			Spec: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{Identity: identity},
+			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{Name: "friendly-name", Namespace: testNamespace},
+			Spec:       nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{Identity: identity},
 			Status: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
-				Phase: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady, IdentityHash: hash,
-				Location: "/checkpoints/" + hash, StorageType: "pvc",
+				Phase:        nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady,
+				IdentityHash: hash,
+				Location:     "/checkpoints/" + hash,
+				StorageType:  "pvc",
 			},
 		}
 		c := fake.NewClientBuilder().WithScheme(s).WithObjects(ckpt).WithStatusSubresource(ckpt).Build()
@@ -437,8 +492,34 @@ func TestResolveCheckpointForService(t *testing.T) {
 			Enabled: true, Identity: &identity,
 		})
 		require.NoError(t, err)
+		assert.True(t, info.Exists)
 		assert.True(t, info.Ready)
 		assert.Equal(t, hash, info.Hash)
+		assert.Equal(t, "friendly-name", info.CheckpointName)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("identity lookup returns existing not-ready checkpoint", func(t *testing.T) {
+		identity := testIdentity()
+		hash, err := ComputeIdentityHash(identity)
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+
+		ckpt := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
+			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{Name: "friendly-name", Namespace: testNamespace},
+			Spec:       nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{Identity: identity},
+			Status: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
+				Phase:        nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseCreating,
+				IdentityHash: hash,
+			},
+		}
+		c := fake.NewClientBuilder().WithScheme(s).WithObjects(ckpt).WithStatusSubresource(ckpt).Build()
+
+		info, err := ResolveCheckpointForService(ctx, c, testNamespace, &nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig{
+			Enabled: true, Identity: &identity,
+		})
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+		assert.True(t, info.Exists)
+		assert.False(t, info.Ready)
+		assert.Equal(t, hash, info.Hash)
 	})
 
 	t.Run("identity lookup returns not-ready when no CR found", func(t *testing.T) {
@@ -448,6 +529,7 @@ func TestResolveCheckpointForService(t *testing.T) {
 			Enabled: true, Identity: &identity,
 		})
 		require.NoError(t, err)
+		assert.False(t, info.Exists)
 		assert.False(t, info.Ready)
 		assert.Len(t, info.Hash, 16)
 	})

deploy/operator/internal/checkpoint/dgd_integration.go → deploy/operator/internal/checkpoint/podspec.go

@@ -18,288 +18,151 @@
 package checkpoint
 
 import (
-	"context"
 	"fmt"
 
 	configv1alpha1 "github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/api/config/v1alpha1"
 	nvidiacomv1alpha1 "github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/api/v1alpha1"
-	"github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/internal/consts"
+	commonconsts "github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/internal/consts"
 	corev1 "k8s.io/api/core/v1"
-	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/types"
 	"k8s.io/utils/ptr"
-	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/client"
 )
 
-// getCheckpointInfoFromCheckpoint extracts CheckpointInfo from a DynamoCheckpoint CR
-func getCheckpointInfoFromCheckpoint(ckpt *nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint) *CheckpointInfo {
-	info := &CheckpointInfo{
-		Enabled:        true,
-		CheckpointName: ckpt.Name,
-		Hash:           ckpt.Status.IdentityHash,
-		Location:       ckpt.Status.Location,
-		StorageType:    ckpt.Status.StorageType,
-		Ready:          ckpt.Status.Phase == nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady,
-		Identity:       &ckpt.Spec.Identity,
+func ApplyCheckpointSourcePodMetadata(
+	labels map[string]string,
+	annotations map[string]string,
+	hash string,
+	location string,
+	storageType nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStorageType,
+) {
+	delete(labels, commonconsts.KubeLabelIsRestoreTarget)
+	delete(labels, commonconsts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash)
+	delete(annotations, commonconsts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointLocation)
+	delete(annotations, commonconsts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointStorageType)
+
+	labels[commonconsts.KubeLabelIsCheckpointSource] = commonconsts.KubeLabelValueTrue
+	if hash != "" {
+		labels[commonconsts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash] = hash
 	}
-
-	return info
-}
-
-// getPVCBasePath returns the PVC base path from storage config.
-// Only applicable for PVC storage type
-func getPVCBasePath(storageConfig *configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageConfiguration) string {
-	if storageConfig != nil && storageConfig.PVC.BasePath != "" {
-		return storageConfig.PVC.BasePath
+	if location != "" {
+		annotations[commonconsts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointLocation] = location
 	}
-	return ""
-}
-
-// GetPVCBasePath returns the configured PVC base path from controller config.
-// This is used by both CheckpointReconciler and DynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler.
-// Only applicable for PVC storage type.
-func GetPVCBasePath(config *configv1alpha1.CheckpointConfiguration) string {
-	if config != nil {
-		return getPVCBasePath(&config.Storage)
+	if storageType != "" {
+		annotations[commonconsts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointStorageType] = string(storageType)
 	}
-	return ""
-}
-
-// CheckpointInfo contains resolved checkpoint information for a DGD service
-type CheckpointInfo struct {
-	// Enabled indicates if checkpointing is enabled
-	Enabled bool
-	// Identity is the resolved checkpoint identity (model, framework, etc.)
-	Identity *nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity
-	// Hash is the computed identity hash
-	Hash string
-	// Location is the full URI/path in the storage backend
-	Location string
-	// StorageType is the storage backend type (pvc, s3, oci)
-	StorageType nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStorageType
-	// CheckpointName is the name of the Checkpoint CR
-	CheckpointName string
-	// Ready indicates if the checkpoint is ready for use
-	Ready bool
 }
 
-// ResolveCheckpointForService resolves checkpoint information for a DGD service.
-// It handles both checkpointRef (direct reference) and identity-based lookup.
-// Returns CheckpointInfo with the resolved identity populated.
-func ResolveCheckpointForService(
-	ctx context.Context,
-	c client.Client,
-	namespace string,
-	config *nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig,
-) (*CheckpointInfo, error) {
-	if config == nil || !config.Enabled {
-		return &CheckpointInfo{Enabled: false}, nil
-	}
-
-	// If a direct checkpoint reference is provided, use it
-	if config.CheckpointRef != nil && *config.CheckpointRef != "" {
-		ckpt := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{}
-		err := c.Get(ctx, types.NamespacedName{
-			Namespace: namespace,
-			Name:      *config.CheckpointRef,
-		}, ckpt)
-		if err != nil {
-			return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to get referenced checkpoint %s: %w", *config.CheckpointRef, err)
-		}
-
-		// Extract all checkpoint info including identity from the CR
-		return getCheckpointInfoFromCheckpoint(ckpt), nil
-	}
-
-	// Otherwise, compute hash from identity and look up checkpoint
-	if config.Identity == nil {
-		return nil, fmt.Errorf("checkpoint enabled but no checkpointRef or identity provided")
-	}
-
-	hash, err := ComputeIdentityHash(*config.Identity)
-	if err != nil {
-		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to compute identity hash: %w", err)
-	}
-
-	info := &CheckpointInfo{
-		Enabled:  true,
-		Identity: config.Identity,
-		Hash:     hash,
-	}
-
-	// Look for existing checkpoint with matching hash using label selector
-	checkpointList := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointList{}
-	if err = c.List(ctx, checkpointList,
-		client.InNamespace(namespace),
-		client.MatchingLabels{consts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash: info.Hash},
-	); err != nil {
-		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to list checkpoints: %w", err)
-	}
+func ApplyRestorePodMetadata(labels map[string]string, annotations map[string]string, checkpointInfo *CheckpointInfo) {
+	delete(labels, commonconsts.KubeLabelIsRestoreTarget)
+	delete(labels, commonconsts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash)
+	delete(annotations, commonconsts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointLocation)
+	delete(annotations, commonconsts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointStorageType)
 
-	// Return the first matching checkpoint (there should be at most one per hash)
-	if len(checkpointList.Items) > 0 {
-		ckpt := &checkpointList.Items[0]
-		// Merge checkpoint info from the CR (overrides the computed values)
-		foundInfo := getCheckpointInfoFromCheckpoint(ckpt)
-		// Keep the hash and identity we computed from the config
-		foundInfo.Hash = info.Hash
-		foundInfo.Identity = info.Identity
-		return foundInfo, nil
-	}
-
-	// No existing checkpoint found
-	// In Auto mode, the controller should create one
-	return info, nil
-}
-
-// InjectCheckpointEnvVars adds checkpoint-related environment variables to a restored/DGD container.
-// Sets PATH and HASH so the restored process knows its checkpoint identity.
-// DYN_CHECKPOINT_LOCATION is reserved for future S3/OCI support.
-func InjectCheckpointEnvVars(container *corev1.Container, info *CheckpointInfo, checkpointConfig *configv1alpha1.CheckpointConfiguration) {
-	if !info.Enabled {
+	if checkpointInfo == nil || !checkpointInfo.Enabled || !checkpointInfo.Ready {
 		return
 	}
 
-	var envVars []corev1.EnvVar
-
-	// For PVC storage: inject base path so the restored process knows its checkpoint location.
-	// For S3/OCI (future): inject DYN_CHECKPOINT_LOCATION directly.
-	storageType := configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageTypePVC
-	if checkpointConfig != nil && checkpointConfig.Storage.Type != "" {
-		storageType = checkpointConfig.Storage.Type
+	labels[commonconsts.KubeLabelIsRestoreTarget] = commonconsts.KubeLabelValueTrue
+	if checkpointInfo.Hash != "" {
+		labels[commonconsts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash] = checkpointInfo.Hash
 	}
-
-	switch storageType {
-	case configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageTypePVC:
-		basePath := ""
-		if checkpointConfig != nil {
-			basePath = getPVCBasePath(&checkpointConfig.Storage)
-		}
-		envVars = append(envVars, corev1.EnvVar{
-			Name:  consts.EnvCheckpointPath,
-			Value: basePath,
-		})
-	default:
-		// S3/OCI: inject full location URI directly
-		if info.Location != "" {
-			envVars = append(envVars, corev1.EnvVar{
-				Name:  consts.EnvCheckpointLocation,
-				Value: info.Location,
-			})
-		}
+	if checkpointInfo.Location != "" {
+		annotations[commonconsts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointLocation] = checkpointInfo.Location
 	}
-
-	if info.Hash != "" {
-		envVars = append(envVars, corev1.EnvVar{
-			Name:  consts.EnvCheckpointHash,
-			Value: info.Hash,
-		})
+	if checkpointInfo.StorageType != "" {
+		annotations[commonconsts.KubeAnnotationCheckpointStorageType] = string(checkpointInfo.StorageType)
 	}
-
-	// Prepend checkpoint env vars to ensure they're available
-	container.Env = append(envVars, container.Env...)
 }
 
-// InjectCheckpointVolume adds the checkpoint PVC volume to a pod spec
 func InjectCheckpointVolume(podSpec *corev1.PodSpec, pvcName string) {
-	// Check if volume already exists
-	for _, v := range podSpec.Volumes {
-		if v.Name == consts.CheckpointVolumeName {
+	for _, volume := range podSpec.Volumes {
+		if volume.Name == commonconsts.CheckpointVolumeName {
 			return
 		}
 	}
 
 	podSpec.Volumes = append(podSpec.Volumes, corev1.Volume{
-		Name: consts.CheckpointVolumeName,
+		Name: commonconsts.CheckpointVolumeName,
 		VolumeSource: corev1.VolumeSource{
 			PersistentVolumeClaim: &corev1.PersistentVolumeClaimVolumeSource{
 				ClaimName: pvcName,
-				ReadOnly:  false, // CRIU needs write access during restore
+				ReadOnly:  false,
 			},
 		},
 	})
 }
 
-// InjectCheckpointVolumeMount adds the checkpoint volume mount to a container
 func InjectCheckpointVolumeMount(container *corev1.Container, basePath string) {
-	// Check if mount already exists
-	for _, m := range container.VolumeMounts {
-		if m.Name == consts.CheckpointVolumeName {
+	for _, mount := range container.VolumeMounts {
+		if mount.Name == commonconsts.CheckpointVolumeName {
 			return
 		}
 	}
 
 	container.VolumeMounts = append(container.VolumeMounts, corev1.VolumeMount{
-		Name:      consts.CheckpointVolumeName,
+		Name:      commonconsts.CheckpointVolumeName,
 		MountPath: basePath,
-		ReadOnly:  false, // CRIU needs write access for restore.log and restore-criu.conf
+		ReadOnly:  false,
 	})
 }
 
-// InjectPodInfoVolume adds a Downward API volume for pod identity and DGD info.
-// This is critical for CRIU checkpoint/restore scenarios where environment variables
-// contain stale values from the checkpoint source pod. The Downward API files
-// always reflect the current pod's identity and DGD configuration.
 func InjectPodInfoVolume(podSpec *corev1.PodSpec) {
-	// Check if volume already exists
-	for _, v := range podSpec.Volumes {
-		if v.Name == consts.PodInfoVolumeName {
+	for _, volume := range podSpec.Volumes {
+		if volume.Name == commonconsts.PodInfoVolumeName {
 			return
 		}
 	}
 
 	podSpec.Volumes = append(podSpec.Volumes, corev1.Volume{
-		Name: consts.PodInfoVolumeName,
+		Name: commonconsts.PodInfoVolumeName,
 		VolumeSource: corev1.VolumeSource{
 			DownwardAPI: &corev1.DownwardAPIVolumeSource{
 				Items: []corev1.DownwardAPIVolumeFile{
-					// Pod identity fields
 					{
 						Path: "pod_name",
 						FieldRef: &corev1.ObjectFieldSelector{
-							FieldPath: consts.PodInfoFieldPodName,
+							FieldPath: commonconsts.PodInfoFieldPodName,
 						},
 					},
 					{
 						Path: "pod_uid",
 						FieldRef: &corev1.ObjectFieldSelector{
-							FieldPath: consts.PodInfoFieldPodUID,
+							FieldPath: commonconsts.PodInfoFieldPodUID,
 						},
 					},
 					{
 						Path: "pod_namespace",
 						FieldRef: &corev1.ObjectFieldSelector{
-							FieldPath: consts.PodInfoFieldPodNamespace,
+							FieldPath: commonconsts.PodInfoFieldPodNamespace,
 						},
 					},
-					// DGD info from annotations (for CRIU restore)
 					{
-						Path: consts.PodInfoFileDynNamespace,
+						Path: commonconsts.PodInfoFileDynNamespace,
 						FieldRef: &corev1.ObjectFieldSelector{
-							FieldPath: "metadata.annotations['" + consts.AnnotationDynNamespace + "']",
+							FieldPath: "metadata.labels['" + commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoNamespace + "']",
 						},
 					},
 					{
-						Path: consts.PodInfoFileDynComponent,
+						Path: commonconsts.PodInfoFileDynNamespaceWorkerSuffix,
 						FieldRef: &corev1.ObjectFieldSelector{
-							FieldPath: "metadata.annotations['" + consts.AnnotationDynComponent + "']",
+							FieldPath: "metadata.labels['" + commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoWorkerHash + "']",
 						},
 					},
 					{
-						Path: consts.PodInfoFileDynParentDGDName,
+						Path: commonconsts.PodInfoFileDynComponent,
 						FieldRef: &corev1.ObjectFieldSelector{
-							FieldPath: "metadata.annotations['" + consts.AnnotationDynParentDGDName + "']",
+							FieldPath: "metadata.labels['" + commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoComponentType + "']",
 						},
 					},
 					{
-						Path: consts.PodInfoFileDynParentDGDNS,
+						Path: commonconsts.PodInfoFileDynParentDGDName,
 						FieldRef: &corev1.ObjectFieldSelector{
-							FieldPath: "metadata.annotations['" + consts.AnnotationDynParentDGDNS + "']",
+							FieldPath: "metadata.labels['" + commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoGraphDeploymentName + "']",
 						},
 					},
 					{
-						Path: consts.PodInfoFileDynDiscoveryBackend,
+						Path: commonconsts.PodInfoFileDynParentDGDNamespace,
 						FieldRef: &corev1.ObjectFieldSelector{
-							FieldPath: "metadata.annotations['" + consts.AnnotationDynDiscoveryBackend + "']",
+							FieldPath: commonconsts.PodInfoFieldPodNamespace,
 						},
 					},
 				},
@@ -308,35 +171,20 @@ func InjectPodInfoVolume(podSpec *corev1.PodSpec) {
 	})
 }
 
-// InjectPodInfoVolumeMount adds the Downward API volume mount to a container.
 func InjectPodInfoVolumeMount(container *corev1.Container) {
-	// Check if mount already exists
-	for _, m := range container.VolumeMounts {
-		if m.Name == consts.PodInfoVolumeName {
+	for _, mount := range container.VolumeMounts {
+		if mount.Name == commonconsts.PodInfoVolumeName {
 			return
 		}
 	}
 
 	container.VolumeMounts = append(container.VolumeMounts, corev1.VolumeMount{
-		Name:      consts.PodInfoVolumeName,
-		MountPath: consts.PodInfoMountPath,
+		Name:      commonconsts.PodInfoVolumeName,
+		MountPath: commonconsts.PodInfoMountPath,
 		ReadOnly:  true,
 	})
 }
 
-// InjectCheckpointIntoPodSpec injects checkpoint configuration into a pod spec for
-// external restore via the snapshot DaemonSet. The pod image is expected to be a
-// runtime-compatible restore image (runtime + CRIU tooling). For ready checkpoints,
-// the operator overrides command to `sleep infinity` so the watcher can trigger
-// external restore via nsenter + nsrestore.
-//
-// Modifications applied:
-//  1. Security context - seccomp profile (io_uring blocking, matches checkpoint environment)
-//  2. Environment variables - checkpoint path and hash
-//  3. Storage configuration - checkpoint PVC and Downward API (pod identity)
-//
-// No hostIPC, no privileged mode — those are only needed when CRIU runs inside the
-// container. With external restore, all privilege lives in the DaemonSet.
 func InjectCheckpointIntoPodSpec(
 	podSpec *corev1.PodSpec,
 	checkpointInfo *CheckpointInfo,
@@ -351,6 +199,7 @@ func InjectCheckpointIntoPodSpec(
 		if info.Identity == nil {
 			return fmt.Errorf("checkpoint enabled but identity is nil and hash is not set")
 		}
+
 		hash, err := ComputeIdentityHash(*info.Identity)
 		if err != nil {
 			return fmt.Errorf("failed to compute identity hash: %w", err)
@@ -358,10 +207,9 @@ func InjectCheckpointIntoPodSpec(
 		info.Hash = hash
 	}
 
-	// Find the main container (needed for volume mounts and env vars)
 	var mainContainer *corev1.Container
 	for i := range podSpec.Containers {
-		if podSpec.Containers[i].Name == consts.MainContainerName {
+		if podSpec.Containers[i].Name == commonconsts.MainContainerName {
 			mainContainer = &podSpec.Containers[i]
 			break
 		}
@@ -373,26 +221,20 @@ func InjectCheckpointIntoPodSpec(
 		return fmt.Errorf("no container found to inject checkpoint config")
 	}
 
-	// When a ready checkpoint exists, override the container command to sleep infinity.
-	// The DaemonSet watcher detects this pod via the checkpoint-restore label and
-	// performs external restore (nsenter + nsrestore). When no checkpoint is ready,
-	// the original command runs (cold start).
 	if info.Ready {
 		mainContainer.Command = []string{"sleep", "infinity"}
 		mainContainer.Args = nil
 	}
 
-	// Seccomp profile to match checkpoint environment (blocks io_uring syscalls)
 	if podSpec.SecurityContext == nil {
 		podSpec.SecurityContext = &corev1.PodSecurityContext{}
 	}
 	podSpec.SecurityContext.SeccompProfile = &corev1.SeccompProfile{
 		Type:             corev1.SeccompProfileTypeLocalhost,
-		LocalhostProfile: ptr.To(consts.SeccompProfilePath),
+		LocalhostProfile: ptr.To(commonconsts.SeccompProfilePath),
 	}
 
-	// Determine storage type and compute location/path
-	storageType := configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageTypePVC // default
+	storageType := configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageTypePVC
 	var storageConfig *configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageConfiguration
 	if checkpointConfig != nil {
 		storageConfig = &checkpointConfig.Storage
@@ -408,59 +250,30 @@ func InjectCheckpointIntoPodSpec(
 			return fmt.Errorf("S3 storage type selected but no S3 URI configured (set checkpoint.storage.s3.uri)")
 		}
 		info.Location = fmt.Sprintf("%s/%s.tar", storageConfig.S3.URI, info.Hash)
-
 	case configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageTypeOCI:
 		info.StorageType = nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStorageType(storageType)
 		if storageConfig == nil || storageConfig.OCI.URI == "" {
 			return fmt.Errorf("OCI storage type selected but no OCI URI configured (set checkpoint.storage.oci.uri)")
 		}
 		info.Location = fmt.Sprintf("%s:%s", storageConfig.OCI.URI, info.Hash)
-
-	default: // PVC
+	default:
 		info.StorageType = nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStorageType(storageType)
-		basePath := getPVCBasePath(storageConfig)
+		basePath := ""
+		if storageConfig != nil && storageConfig.PVC.BasePath != "" {
+			basePath = storageConfig.PVC.BasePath
+		}
 		if storageConfig == nil || storageConfig.PVC.PVCName == "" {
 			return fmt.Errorf("PVC storage type selected but no PVC name configured (set checkpoint.storage.pvc.pvcName)")
 		}
-		pvcName := storageConfig.PVC.PVCName
 		if basePath == "" {
 			return fmt.Errorf("PVC storage type selected but no PVC base path configured (set checkpoint.storage.pvc.basePath)")
 		}
 		info.Location = fmt.Sprintf("%s/%s", basePath, info.Hash)
-
-		InjectCheckpointVolume(podSpec, pvcName)
+		InjectCheckpointVolume(podSpec, storageConfig.PVC.PVCName)
 		InjectCheckpointVolumeMount(mainContainer, basePath)
 	}
 
-	// Downward API volume for pod identity after CRIU restore
 	InjectPodInfoVolume(podSpec)
 	InjectPodInfoVolumeMount(mainContainer)
-
-	// Checkpoint environment variables (path, hash)
-	InjectCheckpointEnvVars(mainContainer, info, checkpointConfig)
-
 	return nil
 }
-
-// InjectCheckpointLabelsFromConfig adds checkpoint identity labels to a label map based on config.
-// Restore trigger labels are injected only when a concrete restore request is prepared.
-func InjectCheckpointLabelsFromConfig(labels map[string]string, config *nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig) (map[string]string, error) {
-	if config == nil || !config.Enabled {
-		return labels, nil
-	}
-
-	if labels == nil {
-		labels = make(map[string]string)
-	}
-
-	// Compute hash from identity if provided
-	if config.Identity != nil {
-		hash, err := ComputeIdentityHash(*config.Identity)
-		if err != nil {
-			return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to compute identity hash for labels: %w", err)
-		}
-		labels[consts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash] = hash
-	}
-
-	return labels, nil
-}

deploy/operator/internal/checkpoint/resolve.go

+/*
+ * SPDX-FileCopyrightText: Copyright (c) 2025 NVIDIA CORPORATION & AFFILIATES. All rights reserved.
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
+ *
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ * http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+
+package checkpoint
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"fmt"
+
+	configv1alpha1 "github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/api/config/v1alpha1"
+	nvidiacomv1alpha1 "github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/api/v1alpha1"
+	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/types"
+	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/client"
+)
+
+type CheckpointInfo struct {
+	Enabled        bool
+	Exists         bool
+	Identity       *nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity
+	Hash           string
+	Location       string
+	StorageType    nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStorageType
+	CheckpointName string
+	Ready          bool
+}
+
+func checkpointInfoFromObject(ckpt *nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint) (*CheckpointInfo, error) {
+	hash, err := checkpointIdentityHash(ckpt)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+
+	return &CheckpointInfo{
+		Enabled:        true,
+		Exists:         true,
+		Identity:       &ckpt.Spec.Identity,
+		Hash:           hash,
+		Location:       ckpt.Status.Location,
+		StorageType:    ckpt.Status.StorageType,
+		CheckpointName: ckpt.Name,
+		Ready:          ckpt.Status.Phase == nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady,
+	}, nil
+}
+
+func ResolveCheckpointForService(
+	ctx context.Context,
+	c client.Client,
+	namespace string,
+	config *nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig,
+) (*CheckpointInfo, error) {
+	switch {
+	case config == nil || !config.Enabled:
+		return &CheckpointInfo{Enabled: false}, nil
+	case config.CheckpointRef != nil && *config.CheckpointRef != "":
+		ckpt := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{}
+		if err := c.Get(ctx, types.NamespacedName{
+			Namespace: namespace,
+			Name:      *config.CheckpointRef,
+		}, ckpt); err != nil {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to get referenced checkpoint %s: %w", *config.CheckpointRef, err)
+		}
+
+		return checkpointInfoFromObject(ckpt)
+	case config.Identity == nil:
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("checkpoint enabled but no checkpointRef or identity provided")
+	}
+
+	hash, err := ComputeIdentityHash(*config.Identity)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to compute identity hash: %w", err)
+	}
+
+	existing, err := FindCheckpointByIdentityHash(ctx, c, namespace, hash, "")
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	if existing == nil {
+		return &CheckpointInfo{
+			Enabled:  true,
+			Identity: config.Identity,
+			Hash:     hash,
+		}, nil
+	}
+
+	info, err := checkpointInfoFromObject(existing)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	info.Identity = config.Identity
+	return info, nil
+}
+
+func ResolveCheckpointStorage(
+	hash string,
+	config *configv1alpha1.CheckpointConfiguration,
+) (string, nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStorageType, error) {
+	storageType := configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageTypePVC
+	if config != nil && config.Storage.Type != "" {
+		storageType = config.Storage.Type
+	}
+
+	switch storageType {
+	case configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageTypeS3:
+		if config == nil || config.Storage.S3.URI == "" {
+			return "", "", fmt.Errorf("S3 storage type selected but no S3 URI configured (set checkpoint.storage.s3.uri)")
+		}
+		return fmt.Sprintf("%s/%s.tar", config.Storage.S3.URI, hash), nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStorageType(storageType), nil
+	case configv1alpha1.CheckpointStorageTypeOCI:
+		if config == nil || config.Storage.OCI.URI == "" {
+			return "", "", fmt.Errorf("OCI storage type selected but no OCI URI configured (set checkpoint.storage.oci.uri)")
+		}
+		return fmt.Sprintf("%s:%s", config.Storage.OCI.URI, hash), nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStorageType(storageType), nil
+	default:
+		if config == nil || config.Storage.PVC.BasePath == "" {
+			return "", "", fmt.Errorf("PVC storage type selected but no PVC base path configured (set checkpoint.storage.pvc.basePath)")
+		}
+		return fmt.Sprintf("%s/%s", config.Storage.PVC.BasePath, hash), nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStorageType(storageType), nil
+	}
+}

deploy/operator/internal/checkpoint/resource.go

+/*
+ * SPDX-FileCopyrightText: Copyright (c) 2025 NVIDIA CORPORATION & AFFILIATES. All rights reserved.
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
+ *
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ * http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+
+package checkpoint
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"fmt"
+
+	nvidiacomv1alpha1 "github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/api/v1alpha1"
+	"github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/internal/consts"
+	corev1 "k8s.io/api/core/v1"
+	apierrors "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/api/errors"
+	metav1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
+	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/types"
+	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/client"
+)
+
+func checkpointIdentityHash(ckpt *nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint) (string, error) {
+	if ckpt.Status.IdentityHash != "" {
+		return ckpt.Status.IdentityHash, nil
+	}
+
+	hash, err := ComputeIdentityHash(ckpt.Spec.Identity)
+	if err != nil {
+		return "", fmt.Errorf("failed to compute checkpoint hash for %s: %w", ckpt.Name, err)
+	}
+
+	return hash, nil
+}
+
+func FindCheckpointByIdentityHash(
+	ctx context.Context,
+	c client.Client,
+	namespace string,
+	hash string,
+	excludeName string,
+) (*nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint, error) {
+	checkpoints := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointList{}
+	if err := c.List(
+		ctx,
+		checkpoints,
+		client.InNamespace(namespace),
+		client.MatchingLabels{consts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash: hash},
+	); err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to list checkpoints by hash label: %w", err)
+	}
+
+	var existing *nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint
+	for i := range checkpoints.Items {
+		if checkpoints.Items[i].Name == excludeName {
+			continue
+		}
+		if existing != nil {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("multiple checkpoints found for identity hash %s", hash)
+		}
+		existing = checkpoints.Items[i].DeepCopy()
+	}
+	if existing != nil {
+		return existing, nil
+	}
+
+	// Fall back to a full scan so legacy checkpoints without the hash label still resolve.
+	checkpoints = &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointList{}
+	if err := c.List(ctx, checkpoints, client.InNamespace(namespace)); err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to list checkpoints: %w", err)
+	}
+
+	for i := range checkpoints.Items {
+		ckpt := &checkpoints.Items[i]
+		if ckpt.Name == excludeName {
+			continue
+		}
+		existingHash, err := checkpointIdentityHash(ckpt)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+		if existingHash != hash {
+			continue
+		}
+		if existing != nil {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("multiple checkpoints found for identity hash %s", hash)
+		}
+		existing = ckpt.DeepCopy()
+	}
+
+	return existing, nil
+}
+
+func CreateOrGetAutoCheckpoint(
+	ctx context.Context,
+	c client.Client,
+	namespace string,
+	identity nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity,
+	podTemplate corev1.PodTemplateSpec,
+) (*nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint, error) {
+	hash, err := ComputeIdentityHash(identity)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to compute identity hash: %w", err)
+	}
+
+	ckpt := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
+		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+			Name:      fmt.Sprintf("checkpoint-%s", hash),
+			Namespace: namespace,
+			Labels: map[string]string{
+				consts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash: hash,
+			},
+		},
+		Spec: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{
+			Identity: identity,
+			Job: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointJobConfig{
+				PodTemplateSpec: podTemplate,
+			},
+		},
+	}
+
+	if err := c.Create(ctx, ckpt); err != nil {
+		if !apierrors.IsAlreadyExists(err) {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to create checkpoint %s: %w", ckpt.Name, err)
+		}
+		existing := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{}
+		key := types.NamespacedName{Name: ckpt.Name, Namespace: namespace}
+		if err := c.Get(ctx, key, existing); err != nil {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to get checkpoint %s after already exists: %w", ckpt.Name, err)
+		}
+
+		existingHash, err := checkpointIdentityHash(existing)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+		if existingHash != hash {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("checkpoint %s already exists with identity hash %s", ckpt.Name, existingHash)
+		}
+
+		return existing, nil
+	}
+
+	existing, err := FindCheckpointByIdentityHash(ctx, c, namespace, hash, ckpt.Name)
+	if err != nil {
+		if deleteErr := c.Delete(ctx, ckpt); deleteErr != nil && !apierrors.IsNotFound(deleteErr) {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to clean up checkpoint %s after dedupe error: %v (lookup error: %w)", ckpt.Name, deleteErr, err)
+		}
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	if existing != nil {
+		if err := c.Delete(ctx, ckpt); err != nil && !apierrors.IsNotFound(err) {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to delete duplicate checkpoint %s: %w", ckpt.Name, err)
+		}
+		return existing, nil
+	}
+
+	return ckpt, nil
+}

deploy/operator/internal/consts/consts.go

@@ -144,17 +144,14 @@ const (
 	// deploy/snapshot/pkg/config/constants.go. If you change a value here, update there too.
 
 	// Kubernetes labels
-	KubeLabelIsCheckpointSource = "nvidia.com/snapshot-is-checkpoint-source" // Pod label that triggers DaemonSet auto-checkpoint
-	KubeLabelCheckpointHash     = "nvidia.com/snapshot-checkpoint-hash"      // Checkpoint identity hash (= DynamoCheckpoint CR name)
-	KubeLabelIsRestoreTarget    = "nvidia.com/snapshot-is-restore-target"    // Pod label that triggers DaemonSet auto-restore
+	KubeLabelIsCheckpointSource         = "nvidia.com/snapshot-is-checkpoint-source"    // Pod label that triggers DaemonSet auto-checkpoint
+	KubeLabelCheckpointHash             = "nvidia.com/snapshot-checkpoint-hash"         // Checkpoint identity hash used for lookup/reuse (may differ from DynamoCheckpoint metadata.name)
+	KubeLabelIsRestoreTarget            = "nvidia.com/snapshot-is-restore-target"       // Pod label that triggers DaemonSet auto-restore
+	KubeAnnotationCheckpointLocation    = "nvidia.com/snapshot-checkpoint-location"     // Pod annotation that tells snapshot-agent where the checkpoint lives
+	KubeAnnotationCheckpointStorageType = "nvidia.com/snapshot-checkpoint-storage-type" // Pod annotation that tells snapshot-agent which storage backend owns the checkpoint
 
 	// Environment variables injected into pods
-	EnvCheckpointStorageType  = "DYN_CHECKPOINT_STORAGE_TYPE"   // Storage backend (pvc, s3, oci) — checkpoint job pods only
-	EnvCheckpointLocation     = "DYN_CHECKPOINT_LOCATION"       // Full checkpoint URI — future S3/OCI; for PVC, use PATH+HASH instead
-	EnvCheckpointPath         = "DYN_CHECKPOINT_PATH"           // Base checkpoint directory (e.g., /checkpoints) — PVC restored pods
-	EnvCheckpointHash         = "DYN_CHECKPOINT_HASH"           // Identity hash — all checkpoint-related pods
 	EnvReadyForCheckpointFile = "DYN_READY_FOR_CHECKPOINT_FILE" // Ready-for-checkpoint file path — checkpoint job pods
-	EnvSkipWaitForCheckpoint  = "SKIP_WAIT_FOR_CHECKPOINT"      // Skip polling, check once — restored/DGD pods
 	// Checkpoint pod-internal constants
 	CheckpointVolumeName = "checkpoint-storage" // Pod-internal volume name for checkpoint PVC
 
@@ -173,19 +170,12 @@ const (
 	PodInfoFieldPodUID       = "metadata.uid"
 	PodInfoFieldPodNamespace = "metadata.namespace"
 
-	// Downward API file names for DGD annotations
-	PodInfoFileDynNamespace        = "dyn_namespace"
-	PodInfoFileDynComponent        = "dyn_component"
-	PodInfoFileDynParentDGDName    = "dyn_parent_dgd_name"
-	PodInfoFileDynParentDGDNS      = "dyn_parent_dgd_namespace"
-	PodInfoFileDynDiscoveryBackend = "dyn_discovery_backend"
-
-	// Annotation keys for DGD info (exposed via Downward API)
-	AnnotationDynNamespace        = "nvidia.com/dyn-namespace"
-	AnnotationDynComponent        = "nvidia.com/dyn-component"
-	AnnotationDynParentDGDName    = "nvidia.com/dyn-parent-dgd-name"
-	AnnotationDynParentDGDNS      = "nvidia.com/dyn-parent-dgd-namespace"
-	AnnotationDynDiscoveryBackend = "nvidia.com/dyn-discovery-backend"
+	// Downward API file names for restore identity
+	PodInfoFileDynNamespace             = "dyn_namespace"
+	PodInfoFileDynNamespaceWorkerSuffix = "dyn_namespace_worker_suffix"
+	PodInfoFileDynComponent             = "dyn_component"
+	PodInfoFileDynParentDGDName         = "dyn_parent_dgd_k8s_name"
+	PodInfoFileDynParentDGDNamespace    = "dyn_parent_dgd_k8s_namespace"
 
 	// Rolling update annotations
 	AnnotationCurrentWorkerHash = "nvidia.com/current-worker-hash"

deploy/operator/internal/controller/dynamocomponentdeployment_controller.go

@@ -1068,19 +1068,19 @@ func (r *DynamoComponentDeploymentReconciler) generatePodTemplateSpec(ctx contex
 		maps.Copy(podAnnotations, extraPodMetadata.Annotations)
 		maps.Copy(podLabels, extraPodMetadata.Labels)
 	}
-	// Restore labels are operator-controlled. Clear any stale/user-provided
-	// value after metadata merge; the controller re-adds it only when the
-	// checkpoint contract below is satisfied.
-	delete(podLabels, commonconsts.KubeLabelIsRestoreTarget)
-
-	// Explicit restore orchestration contract:
-	// only mark pods as restore targets when checkpoint material is ready.
-	if checkpointInfo != nil && checkpointInfo.Enabled && checkpointInfo.Ready {
-		podLabels[commonconsts.KubeLabelIsRestoreTarget] = commonconsts.KubeLabelValueTrue
-		if checkpointInfo.Hash != "" {
-			podLabels[commonconsts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash] = checkpointInfo.Hash
-		}
+	podLabels[commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoGraphDeploymentName] = opt.dynamoComponentDeployment.Spec.Labels[commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoGraphDeploymentName]
+	if opt.dynamoComponentDeployment.Spec.ComponentType != "" {
+		podLabels[commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoComponentType] = opt.dynamoComponentDeployment.Spec.ComponentType
+	}
+	if opt.dynamoComponentDeployment.Spec.DynamoNamespace != nil && *opt.dynamoComponentDeployment.Spec.DynamoNamespace != "" {
+		podLabels[commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoNamespace] = *opt.dynamoComponentDeployment.Spec.DynamoNamespace
+	}
+	if workerHash := opt.dynamoComponentDeployment.Spec.Labels[commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoWorkerHash]; workerHash != "" {
+		podLabels[commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoWorkerHash] = workerHash
 	}
+	// Restore labels are operator-controlled state. Clear stale values after
+	// metadata merge and only reapply them when checkpoint material is ready.
+	checkpoint.ApplyRestorePodMetadata(podLabels, podAnnotations, checkpointInfo)
 
 	// Propagate restart annotation to pod template to trigger rolling restart
 	// This is the same mechanism used by kubectl rollout restart

deploy/operator/internal/controller/dynamocomponentdeployment_controller_test.go

@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ import (
 
 	configv1alpha1 "github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/api/config/v1alpha1"
 	"github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/api/v1alpha1"
+	"github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/internal/checkpoint"
 	commonconsts "github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/internal/consts"
 	"github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/internal/controller_common"
 	"github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/internal/dynamo"
@@ -724,10 +725,11 @@ func TestDynamoComponentDeploymentReconciler_generateLeaderWorkerSet(t *testing.
 						LeaderTemplate: &corev1.PodTemplateSpec{
 							ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
 								Labels: map[string]string{
-									"instance-id":                        "0",
-									commonconsts.KubeLabelMetricsEnabled: commonconsts.KubeLabelValueTrue,
-									"role":                               "leader",
-									"nvidia.com/label1":                  "label1",
+									"instance-id":                                   "0",
+									commonconsts.KubeLabelMetricsEnabled:            commonconsts.KubeLabelValueTrue,
+									"role":                                          "leader",
+									"nvidia.com/label1":                             "label1",
+									commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoNamespace:           "default-test-lws-deploy",
 									commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoComponentType:       commonconsts.ComponentTypeWorker,
 									commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoSubComponentType:    "test-sub-component",
 									commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoGraphDeploymentName: "",
@@ -865,10 +867,11 @@ func TestDynamoComponentDeploymentReconciler_generateLeaderWorkerSet(t *testing.
 						WorkerTemplate: corev1.PodTemplateSpec{
 							ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
 								Labels: map[string]string{
-									"instance-id":                        "0",
-									commonconsts.KubeLabelMetricsEnabled: commonconsts.KubeLabelValueTrue,
-									"role":                               "worker",
-									"nvidia.com/label1":                  "label1",
+									"instance-id":                                   "0",
+									commonconsts.KubeLabelMetricsEnabled:            commonconsts.KubeLabelValueTrue,
+									"role":                                          "worker",
+									"nvidia.com/label1":                             "label1",
+									commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoNamespace:           "default-test-lws-deploy",
 									commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoComponentType:       commonconsts.ComponentTypeWorker,
 									commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoSubComponentType:    "test-sub-component",
 									commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoGraphDeploymentName: "",
@@ -1267,6 +1270,7 @@ func TestDynamoComponentDeploymentReconciler_generatePodTemplateSpec_RestoreLabe
 					DynamoNamespace: ptr.To("default"),
 					Labels: map[string]string{
 						commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoGraphDeploymentName: "test-dgd",
+						commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoWorkerHash:          "workerhash",
 						commonconsts.KubeLabelIsRestoreTarget:           commonconsts.KubeLabelValueTrue,
 					},
 					Checkpoint: &v1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig{
@@ -1308,16 +1312,20 @@ func TestDynamoComponentDeploymentReconciler_generatePodTemplateSpec_RestoreLabe
 	}
 
 	t.Run("ready checkpoint adds explicit restore labels", func(t *testing.T) {
-		checkpointName := "ckpt-ready"
+		identity := v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity{Model: "test-model", BackendFramework: "vllm"}
+		checkpointName, err := checkpoint.ComputeIdentityHash(identity)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("ComputeIdentityHash failed: %v", err)
+		}
 		dcd := makeDCD(checkpointName)
 		ckpt := &v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
 			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
 				Name:      checkpointName,
 				Namespace: "default",
 			},
+			Spec: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{Identity: identity},
 			Status: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
-				Phase:        v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady,
-				IdentityHash: "hash-ready-1",
+				Phase: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady,
 			},
 		}
 
@@ -1334,22 +1342,76 @@ func TestDynamoComponentDeploymentReconciler_generatePodTemplateSpec_RestoreLabe
 		if got := podTemplateSpec.Labels[commonconsts.KubeLabelIsRestoreTarget]; got != commonconsts.KubeLabelValueTrue {
 			t.Fatalf("expected %s label to be true, got %q", commonconsts.KubeLabelIsRestoreTarget, got)
 		}
-		if got := podTemplateSpec.Labels[commonconsts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash]; got != "hash-ready-1" {
+		if got := podTemplateSpec.Labels[commonconsts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash]; got != checkpointName {
 			t.Fatalf("expected %s to be checkpoint hash, got %q", commonconsts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash, got)
 		}
 	})
 
+	t.Run("operator reasserts restore identity labels after metadata merge", func(t *testing.T) {
+		identity := v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity{Model: "test-model", BackendFramework: "vllm"}
+		checkpointName, err := checkpoint.ComputeIdentityHash(identity)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("ComputeIdentityHash failed: %v", err)
+		}
+		dcd := makeDCD(checkpointName)
+		dcd.Spec.ExtraPodMetadata = &v1alpha1.ExtraPodMetadata{
+			Labels: map[string]string{
+				commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoNamespace:           "wrong-namespace",
+				commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoComponentType:       commonconsts.ComponentTypeFrontend,
+				commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoGraphDeploymentName: "wrong-dgd",
+				commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoWorkerHash:          "wrong-hash",
+			},
+		}
+		ckpt := &v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
+			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+				Name:      checkpointName,
+				Namespace: "default",
+			},
+			Spec: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{Identity: identity},
+			Status: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
+				Phase: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady,
+			},
+		}
+
+		r := makeReconciler(dcd, ckpt)
+		podTemplateSpec, err := r.generatePodTemplateSpec(
+			context.Background(),
+			generateResourceOption{dynamoComponentDeployment: dcd},
+			dynamo.RoleMain,
+		)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("generatePodTemplateSpec failed: %v", err)
+		}
+
+		if got := podTemplateSpec.Labels[commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoNamespace]; got != defaultNamespace {
+			t.Fatalf("expected %s label to be %q, got %q", commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoNamespace, "default", got)
+		}
+		if got := podTemplateSpec.Labels[commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoComponentType]; got != commonconsts.ComponentTypeWorker {
+			t.Fatalf("expected %s label to be %q, got %q", commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoComponentType, commonconsts.ComponentTypeWorker, got)
+		}
+		if got := podTemplateSpec.Labels[commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoGraphDeploymentName]; got != "test-dgd" {
+			t.Fatalf("expected %s label to be %q, got %q", commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoGraphDeploymentName, "test-dgd", got)
+		}
+		if got := podTemplateSpec.Labels[commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoWorkerHash]; got != "workerhash" {
+			t.Fatalf("expected %s label to be %q, got %q", commonconsts.KubeLabelDynamoWorkerHash, "workerhash", got)
+		}
+	})
+
 	t.Run("non-ready checkpoint clears stale restore labels", func(t *testing.T) {
-		checkpointName := "ckpt-pending"
+		identity := v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity{Model: "test-model", BackendFramework: "vllm"}
+		checkpointName, err := checkpoint.ComputeIdentityHash(identity)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("ComputeIdentityHash failed: %v", err)
+		}
 		dcd := makeDCD(checkpointName)
 		ckpt := &v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
 			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
 				Name:      checkpointName,
 				Namespace: "default",
 			},
+			Spec: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{Identity: identity},
 			Status: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
-				Phase:        v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseCreating,
-				IdentityHash: "hash-pending-1",
+				Phase: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseCreating,
 			},
 		}
 
@@ -1440,16 +1502,20 @@ func TestDynamoComponentDeploymentReconciler_generateDeployment_RestoreStrategy(
 	}
 
 	t.Run("ready checkpoint forces Recreate strategy", func(t *testing.T) {
-		checkpointName := "ckpt-ready"
+		identity := v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity{Model: "test-model", BackendFramework: "vllm"}
+		checkpointName, err := checkpoint.ComputeIdentityHash(identity)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("ComputeIdentityHash failed: %v", err)
+		}
 		dcd := makeDCD(checkpointName)
 		ckpt := &v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
 			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
 				Name:      checkpointName,
 				Namespace: "default",
 			},
+			Spec: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{Identity: identity},
 			Status: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
-				Phase:        v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady,
-				IdentityHash: "hash-ready-1",
+				Phase: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseReady,
 			},
 		}
 
@@ -1469,16 +1535,20 @@ func TestDynamoComponentDeploymentReconciler_generateDeployment_RestoreStrategy(
 	})
 
 	t.Run("non-ready checkpoint keeps RollingUpdate strategy", func(t *testing.T) {
-		checkpointName := "ckpt-creating"
+		identity := v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity{Model: "test-model", BackendFramework: "vllm"}
+		checkpointName, err := checkpoint.ComputeIdentityHash(identity)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("ComputeIdentityHash failed: %v", err)
+		}
 		dcd := makeDCD(checkpointName)
 		ckpt := &v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
 			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
 				Name:      checkpointName,
 				Namespace: "default",
 			},
+			Spec: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{Identity: identity},
 			Status: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
-				Phase:        v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseCreating,
-				IdentityHash: "hash-creating-1",
+				Phase: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseCreating,
 			},
 		}
 
@@ -2068,6 +2138,100 @@ func Test_reconcileDeploymentResources(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+func Test_reconcileDeploymentResources_DoesNotRecycleFailedRestorePods(t *testing.T) {
+	ctx := context.Background()
+	g := gomega.NewGomegaWithT(t)
+
+	s := scheme.Scheme
+	g.Expect(v1alpha1.AddToScheme(s)).To(gomega.Succeed())
+	g.Expect(appsv1.AddToScheme(s)).To(gomega.Succeed())
+	g.Expect(corev1.AddToScheme(s)).To(gomega.Succeed())
+
+	replicas := int32(1)
+	dcd := &v1alpha1.DynamoComponentDeployment{
+		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+			Name:      "test-component",
+			Namespace: "default",
+		},
+		Spec: v1alpha1.DynamoComponentDeploymentSpec{
+			BackendFramework: string(dynamo.BackendFrameworkVLLM),
+			DynamoComponentDeploymentSharedSpec: v1alpha1.DynamoComponentDeploymentSharedSpec{
+				ServiceName:     "test-service",
+				DynamoNamespace: ptr.To("default"),
+				ComponentType:   string(commonconsts.ComponentTypeDecode),
+				Replicas:        &replicas,
+				ExtraPodSpec: &v1alpha1.ExtraPodSpec{
+					MainContainer: &corev1.Container{
+						Image: "test-image:latest",
+						Args:  []string{"--test-arg"},
+					},
+				},
+			},
+		},
+	}
+
+	deployment := &appsv1.Deployment{
+		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+			Name:       "test-component",
+			Namespace:  "default",
+			Generation: 1,
+		},
+		Spec: appsv1.DeploymentSpec{
+			Replicas: ptr.To(int32(1)),
+		},
+		Status: appsv1.DeploymentStatus{
+			ObservedGeneration: 1,
+			Replicas:           1,
+			UpdatedReplicas:    1,
+			ReadyReplicas:      0,
+			AvailableReplicas:  0,
+			Conditions: []appsv1.DeploymentCondition{
+				{
+					Type:   appsv1.DeploymentAvailable,
+					Status: corev1.ConditionFalse,
+				},
+			},
+		},
+	}
+
+	fakeKubeClient := fake.NewClientBuilder().
+		WithScheme(s).
+		WithObjects(dcd, deployment).
+		WithStatusSubresource(dcd, deployment).
+		Build()
+
+	reconciler := &DynamoComponentDeploymentReconciler{
+		Client:        fakeKubeClient,
+		Recorder:      record.NewFakeRecorder(100),
+		Config:        &configv1alpha1.OperatorConfiguration{},
+		RuntimeConfig: &controller_common.RuntimeConfig{},
+		DockerSecretRetriever: &mockDockerSecretRetriever{
+			GetSecretsFunc: func(namespace, imageName string) ([]string, error) {
+				return []string{}, nil
+			},
+		},
+	}
+
+	result, err := reconciler.reconcileDeploymentResources(ctx, dcd)
+	g.Expect(err).NotTo(gomega.HaveOccurred())
+	g.Expect(result).To(gomega.Equal(ComponentReconcileResult{
+		modified: true,
+		status:   metav1.ConditionFalse,
+		reason:   "DeploymentNotReady",
+		message:  "Deployment is not ready",
+		serviceReplicaStatus: &v1alpha1.ServiceReplicaStatus{
+			ComponentKind:     v1alpha1.ComponentKindDeployment,
+			ComponentName:     "test-component",
+			ComponentNames:    []string{"test-component"},
+			Replicas:          1,
+			UpdatedReplicas:   1,
+			ReadyReplicas:     ptr.To(int32(0)),
+			AvailableReplicas: ptr.To(int32(0)),
+		},
+	}))
+
+}
+
 func Test_setStatusConditionAndServiceReplicaStatus(t *testing.T) {
 	ctx := context.Background()
 

deploy/operator/internal/controller/dynamographdeployment_controller.go

@@ -87,6 +87,7 @@ type DynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler struct {
 // +kubebuilder:rbac:groups=grove.io,resources=podcliquescalinggroups/scale,verbs=get;update;patch
 // +kubebuilder:rbac:groups=scheduling.run.ai,resources=queues,verbs=get;list
 // +kubebuilder:rbac:groups=inference.networking.k8s.io,resources=inferencepools,verbs=get;list;watch;create;update;patch;delete
+// +kubebuilder:rbac:groups=core,resources=pods,verbs=get;list;watch
 
 // Reconcile is part of the main kubernetes reconciliation loop which aims to
 // move the current state of the cluster closer to the desired state.
@@ -1202,12 +1203,15 @@ func (r *DynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler) reconcilePVCs(ctx context.Context, dyn
 	return nil
 }
 
-// reconcileCheckpoints reconciles Checkpoint CRs for services with checkpointing enabled
-// For Auto mode, it creates Checkpoint CRs if they don't exist
-// Returns a map of service names to checkpoint status and a map of service names to checkpoint info
-func (r *DynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler) reconcileCheckpoints(ctx context.Context, dynamoDeployment *nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoGraphDeployment) (map[string]nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointStatus, map[string]*checkpoint.CheckpointInfo, error) {
+// reconcileCheckpoints reconciles Checkpoint CRs for services with checkpointing enabled.
+// For Auto mode, it creates Checkpoint CRs if they do not exist.
+// Returns per-service checkpoint status and resolved checkpoint info.
+func (r *DynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler) reconcileCheckpoints(
+	ctx context.Context,
+	dynamoDeployment *nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoGraphDeployment,
+) (map[string]nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointStatus, map[string]*checkpoint.CheckpointInfo, error) {
 	logger := log.FromContext(ctx)
-	statuses := make(map[string]nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointStatus)
+	checkpointStatuses := make(map[string]nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointStatus)
 	checkpointInfos := make(map[string]*checkpoint.CheckpointInfo)
 
 	for serviceName, component := range dynamoDeployment.Spec.Services {
@@ -1227,8 +1231,13 @@ func (r *DynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler) reconcileCheckpoints(ctx context.Conte
 		// Store checkpoint info for later use in pod spec generation
 		checkpointInfos[serviceName] = info
 
-		// If no checkpoint found and mode is Auto, create one
-		if info.CheckpointName == "" && component.Checkpoint.Mode == nvidiacomv1alpha1.CheckpointModeAuto {
+		// checkpointRef is authoritative. Auto mode should only create the canonical checkpoint
+		// when the service is using identity-based lookup.
+		if component.Checkpoint.Mode == nvidiacomv1alpha1.CheckpointModeAuto &&
+			(component.Checkpoint.CheckpointRef == nil || *component.Checkpoint.CheckpointRef == "") &&
+			!info.Exists &&
+			info.Identity != nil &&
+			!info.Ready {
 			logger.Info("Creating DynamoCheckpoint CR in Auto mode", "service", serviceName)
 
 			ckpt, err := r.createCheckpointCR(ctx, dynamoDeployment, serviceName, component)
@@ -1236,28 +1245,22 @@ func (r *DynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler) reconcileCheckpoints(ctx context.Conte
 				logger.Error(err, "Failed to create DynamoCheckpoint CR", "service", serviceName)
 				return nil, nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to create checkpoint for service %s: %w", serviceName, err)
 			}
-
+			info.Exists = true
 			info.CheckpointName = ckpt.Name
-			// Compute hash locally since status may not be populated yet
-			// (checkpoint controller reconciles asynchronously)
-			hash, err := checkpoint.ComputeIdentityHash(*component.Checkpoint.Identity)
-			if err != nil {
-				logger.Error(err, "Failed to compute checkpoint identity hash", "service", serviceName)
-				return nil, nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to compute checkpoint hash for service %s: %w", serviceName, err)
+			if info.Hash == "" {
+				info.Hash = ckpt.Status.IdentityHash
 			}
-			info.Hash = hash
-			info.Ready = false // Newly created checkpoint is not ready yet
+			info.Ready = false
 		}
 
-		// Update status
-		statuses[serviceName] = nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointStatus{
+		checkpointStatuses[serviceName] = nvidiacomv1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointStatus{
 			CheckpointName: info.CheckpointName,
 			IdentityHash:   info.Hash,
 			Ready:          info.Ready,
 		}
 	}
 
-	return statuses, checkpointInfos, nil
+	return checkpointStatuses, checkpointInfos, nil
 }
 
 // createCheckpointCR creates a DynamoCheckpoint CR for a service in Auto mode
@@ -1273,70 +1276,36 @@ func (r *DynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler) createCheckpointCR(
 
 	identity := component.Checkpoint.Identity
 
-	// Compute hash for naming
-	hash, err := checkpoint.ComputeIdentityHash(*identity)
-	if err != nil {
-		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to compute identity hash: %w", err)
-	}
-
-	// Generate checkpoint name: use hash directly (16 chars, 64 bits)
-	// This allows natural deduplication - same identity = same checkpoint name
-	// 16 characters provides excellent collision resistance (1% at 500M configs)
-	ckptName := hash
-
-	// Use SyncResource to create/update the DynamoCheckpoint CR
-	// Pass nil as parentResource to create an independent checkpoint (no owner reference)
-	// This ensures the checkpoint persists even if the DGD is deleted
-	_, ckpt, err := commoncontroller.SyncResource(ctx, r, nil, func(ctx context.Context) (*nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint, bool, error) {
-		// Build the checkpoint identity from service identity
-		checkpointIdentity := nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity{
-			Model:                identity.Model,
-			BackendFramework:     identity.BackendFramework,
-			DynamoVersion:        identity.DynamoVersion,
-			TensorParallelSize:   identity.TensorParallelSize,
-			PipelineParallelSize: identity.PipelineParallelSize,
-			Dtype:                identity.Dtype,
-			MaxModelLen:          identity.MaxModelLen,
-			ExtraParameters:      identity.ExtraParameters,
-		}
-
-		// Build pod template from service spec for checkpoint job
-		// This uses GenerateBasePodSpec to ensure same config as worker pods (image pull secrets, etc.)
-		// Pass framework from checkpoint identity for accurate backend detection
-		podTemplate, err := r.buildCheckpointJobPodTemplate(
-			dynamoDeployment,
-			component,
-			serviceName,
-			identity.BackendFramework, // Use framework from checkpoint identity
-		)
-		if err != nil {
-			return nil, false, fmt.Errorf("failed to build checkpoint job pod template: %w", err)
-		}
+	checkpointIdentity := nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity{
+		Model:                identity.Model,
+		BackendFramework:     identity.BackendFramework,
+		DynamoVersion:        identity.DynamoVersion,
+		TensorParallelSize:   identity.TensorParallelSize,
+		PipelineParallelSize: identity.PipelineParallelSize,
+		Dtype:                identity.Dtype,
+		MaxModelLen:          identity.MaxModelLen,
+		ExtraParameters:      identity.ExtraParameters,
+	}
 
-		ckpt := &nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
-			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
-				Name:      ckptName,
-				Namespace: dynamoDeployment.Namespace,
-				Labels: map[string]string{
-					consts.KubeLabelDynamoGraphDeploymentName: dynamoDeployment.Name,
-					consts.KubeLabelDynamoComponent:           serviceName,
-					consts.KubeLabelCheckpointHash:            hash,
-				},
-			},
-			Spec: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{
-				Identity: checkpointIdentity,
-				Job: nvidiacomv1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointJobConfig{
-					PodTemplateSpec: podTemplate,
-				},
-			},
-		}
-		return ckpt, false, nil
-	})
+	// Capture config is not part of the checkpoint identity. Once a checkpoint object exists for a
+	// hash, later reconcilers must reuse it instead of racing to overwrite the capture pod template.
+	podTemplate, err := r.buildCheckpointJobPodTemplate(
+		dynamoDeployment,
+		component,
+		serviceName,
+		identity.BackendFramework,
+	)
 	if err != nil {
-		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to sync checkpoint CR: %w", err)
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("failed to build checkpoint job pod template: %w", err)
 	}
 
-	return ckpt, nil
+	return checkpoint.CreateOrGetAutoCheckpoint(
+		ctx,
+		r.Client,
+		dynamoDeployment.Namespace,
+		checkpointIdentity,
+		podTemplate,
+	)
 }
 
 // buildCheckpointJobPodTemplate builds a pod template for the checkpoint job from service spec
@@ -1603,6 +1572,7 @@ func (r *DynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler) SetupWithManager(mgr ctrl.Manager) err
 					GenericFunc: func(ge event.GenericEvent) bool { return false },
 				}),
 			)
+
 	}
 	// Wrap with metrics collection
 	observedReconciler := observability.NewObservedReconciler(r, consts.ResourceTypeDynamoGraphDeployment)

deploy/operator/internal/controller/dynamographdeployment_controller_test.go

@@ -23,11 +23,13 @@ import (
 
 	configv1alpha1 "github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/api/config/v1alpha1"
 	"github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/api/v1alpha1"
+	"github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/internal/checkpoint"
 	commonconsts "github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/internal/consts"
 	"github.com/ai-dynamo/dynamo/deploy/operator/internal/controller_common"
 	grovev1alpha1 "github.com/ai-dynamo/grove/operator/api/core/v1alpha1"
 	"github.com/onsi/gomega"
 	autoscalingv1 "k8s.io/api/autoscaling/v1"
+	corev1 "k8s.io/api/core/v1"
 	metav1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime/schema"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/types"
@@ -342,6 +344,314 @@ func TestDynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler_reconcileScalingAdapters(t *testing.T)
 	}
 }
 
+func TestDynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler_createCheckpointCR_reusesExistingCapture(t *testing.T) {
+	if err := v1alpha1.AddToScheme(scheme.Scheme); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to add v1alpha1 to scheme: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	ctx := context.Background()
+	identity := v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity{
+		Model:            "meta-llama/Llama-2-7b-hf",
+		BackendFramework: "vllm",
+	}
+	hash, err := checkpoint.ComputeIdentityHash(identity)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to compute checkpoint hash: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	existing := &v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
+		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+			Name:      "existing-worker-checkpoint",
+			Namespace: "default",
+		},
+		Spec: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{
+			Identity: identity,
+			Job: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointJobConfig{
+				PodTemplateSpec: corev1.PodTemplateSpec{
+					Spec: corev1.PodSpec{
+						Containers: []corev1.Container{{
+							Name:  "main",
+							Image: "keep-existing:latest",
+						}},
+					},
+				},
+			},
+		},
+		Status: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
+			IdentityHash: hash,
+		},
+	}
+
+	reconciler := &DynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler{
+		Client: fake.NewClientBuilder().
+			WithScheme(scheme.Scheme).
+			WithObjects(existing).
+			Build(),
+		Config:   &configv1alpha1.OperatorConfiguration{},
+		Recorder: record.NewFakeRecorder(10),
+	}
+
+	dgd := &v1alpha1.DynamoGraphDeployment{
+		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+			Name:      "test-dgd",
+			Namespace: "default",
+		},
+	}
+	component := &v1alpha1.DynamoComponentDeploymentSharedSpec{
+		ComponentType: string(commonconsts.ComponentTypeWorker),
+		Checkpoint: &v1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig{
+			Enabled: true,
+			Mode:    v1alpha1.CheckpointModeAuto,
+			Identity: &v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity{
+				Model:                identity.Model,
+				BackendFramework:     identity.BackendFramework,
+				TensorParallelSize:   1,
+				PipelineParallelSize: 1,
+				ExtraParameters:      map[string]string{},
+			},
+		},
+		ExtraPodSpec: &v1alpha1.ExtraPodSpec{
+			MainContainer: &corev1.Container{
+				Name:  "main",
+				Image: "new-writer:latest",
+			},
+		},
+	}
+
+	ckpt, err := reconciler.createCheckpointCR(ctx, dgd, "worker", component)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("createCheckpointCR() error = %v", err)
+	}
+	if ckpt.Name != "existing-worker-checkpoint" {
+		t.Fatalf("createCheckpointCR() returned checkpoint %s, want existing-worker-checkpoint", ckpt.Name)
+	}
+
+	updated := &v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{}
+	if err := reconciler.Get(ctx, types.NamespacedName{Name: "existing-worker-checkpoint", Namespace: "default"}, updated); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to get checkpoint: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(updated.Spec.Job.PodTemplateSpec.Spec.Containers) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected one job container, got %d", len(updated.Spec.Job.PodTemplateSpec.Spec.Containers))
+	}
+	if updated.Spec.Job.PodTemplateSpec.Spec.Containers[0].Image != "keep-existing:latest" {
+		t.Fatalf("existing job image was mutated to %s", updated.Spec.Job.PodTemplateSpec.Spec.Containers[0].Image)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestDynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler_reconcileCheckpoints_checkpointRefSkipsAutoCreateWhileReferencedCRIsNotReady(t *testing.T) {
+	if err := v1alpha1.AddToScheme(scheme.Scheme); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to add v1alpha1 to scheme: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	ctx := context.Background()
+	identity := v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity{
+		Model:            "meta-llama/Llama-2-7b-hf",
+		BackendFramework: "vllm",
+	}
+	hash, err := checkpoint.ComputeIdentityHash(identity)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to compute checkpoint hash: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	referenced := &v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
+		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+			Name:      "friendly-checkpoint",
+			Namespace: "default",
+		},
+		Spec: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{
+			Identity: identity,
+			Job: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointJobConfig{
+				PodTemplateSpec: corev1.PodTemplateSpec{
+					Spec: corev1.PodSpec{
+						Containers: []corev1.Container{{
+							Name:  "main",
+							Image: "keep-existing:latest",
+						}},
+					},
+				},
+			},
+		},
+		Status: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
+			Phase:        v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseCreating,
+			IdentityHash: hash,
+		},
+	}
+
+	reconciler := &DynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler{
+		Client: fake.NewClientBuilder().
+			WithScheme(scheme.Scheme).
+			WithObjects(referenced).
+			WithStatusSubresource(referenced).
+			Build(),
+		Config:   &configv1alpha1.OperatorConfiguration{},
+		Recorder: record.NewFakeRecorder(10),
+	}
+
+	ref := friendlyCheckpointName
+	dgd := &v1alpha1.DynamoGraphDeployment{
+		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+			Name:      "test-dgd",
+			Namespace: "default",
+		},
+		Spec: v1alpha1.DynamoGraphDeploymentSpec{
+			Services: map[string]*v1alpha1.DynamoComponentDeploymentSharedSpec{
+				"worker": {
+					ComponentType: string(commonconsts.ComponentTypeWorker),
+					Checkpoint: &v1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig{
+						Enabled:       true,
+						Mode:          v1alpha1.CheckpointModeAuto,
+						CheckpointRef: &ref,
+					},
+				},
+			},
+		},
+	}
+
+	checkpointStatuses, checkpointInfos, err := reconciler.reconcileCheckpoints(ctx, dgd)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("reconcileCheckpoints() error = %v", err)
+	}
+
+	info, ok := checkpointInfos["worker"]
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("expected checkpoint info for worker service")
+	}
+	if info.Ready {
+		t.Fatalf("expected referenced checkpoint to remain not ready")
+	}
+	if !info.Exists {
+		t.Fatalf("expected referenced checkpoint to exist")
+	}
+	if info.Hash != hash {
+		t.Fatalf("checkpoint hash = %s, want %s", info.Hash, hash)
+	}
+	if checkpointStatuses["worker"].CheckpointName != "friendly-checkpoint" {
+		t.Fatalf("checkpoint status name = %s, want friendly-checkpoint", checkpointStatuses["worker"].CheckpointName)
+	}
+
+	checkpoints := &v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointList{}
+	if err := reconciler.List(ctx, checkpoints, client.InNamespace("default")); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("failed to list checkpoints: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(checkpoints.Items) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected only the referenced checkpoint to exist, found %d", len(checkpoints.Items))
+	}
+	if checkpoints.Items[0].Name != "friendly-checkpoint" {
+		t.Fatalf("unexpected checkpoint %s", checkpoints.Items[0].Name)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestDynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler_reconcileCheckpoints_autoModeWaitsForExistingCreatingCheckpoint(t *testing.T) {
+	if err := v1alpha1.AddToScheme(scheme.Scheme); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to add v1alpha1 to scheme: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	ctx := context.Background()
+	identity := v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity{
+		Model:            "meta-llama/Llama-2-7b-hf",
+		BackendFramework: "vllm",
+	}
+	hash, err := checkpoint.ComputeIdentityHash(identity)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to compute checkpoint hash: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	existing := &v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{
+		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+			Name:      "existing-worker-checkpoint",
+			Namespace: "default",
+		},
+		Spec: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointSpec{
+			Identity: identity,
+			Job: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointJobConfig{
+				PodTemplateSpec: corev1.PodTemplateSpec{
+					Spec: corev1.PodSpec{
+						Containers: []corev1.Container{{
+							Name:  "main",
+							Image: "keep-existing:latest",
+						}},
+					},
+				},
+			},
+		},
+		Status: v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointStatus{
+			Phase:        v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointPhaseCreating,
+			IdentityHash: hash,
+		},
+	}
+
+	reconciler := &DynamoGraphDeploymentReconciler{
+		Client: fake.NewClientBuilder().
+			WithScheme(scheme.Scheme).
+			WithObjects(existing).
+			WithStatusSubresource(existing).
+			Build(),
+		Config:   &configv1alpha1.OperatorConfiguration{},
+		Recorder: record.NewFakeRecorder(10),
+	}
+
+	dgd := &v1alpha1.DynamoGraphDeployment{
+		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+			Name:      "test-dgd",
+			Namespace: "default",
+		},
+		Spec: v1alpha1.DynamoGraphDeploymentSpec{
+			Services: map[string]*v1alpha1.DynamoComponentDeploymentSharedSpec{
+				"worker": {
+					ComponentType: string(commonconsts.ComponentTypeWorker),
+					Checkpoint: &v1alpha1.ServiceCheckpointConfig{
+						Enabled: true,
+						Mode:    v1alpha1.CheckpointModeAuto,
+						Identity: &v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpointIdentity{
+							Model:            identity.Model,
+							BackendFramework: identity.BackendFramework,
+						},
+					},
+					ExtraPodSpec: &v1alpha1.ExtraPodSpec{
+						MainContainer: &corev1.Container{
+							Name:  "main",
+							Image: "new-writer:latest",
+						},
+					},
+				},
+			},
+		},
+	}
+
+	checkpointStatuses, checkpointInfos, err := reconciler.reconcileCheckpoints(ctx, dgd)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("reconcileCheckpoints() error = %v", err)
+	}
+
+	info, ok := checkpointInfos["worker"]
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("expected checkpoint info for worker service")
+	}
+	if info.Ready {
+		t.Fatalf("expected existing checkpoint to remain not ready")
+	}
+	if !info.Exists {
+		t.Fatalf("expected existing checkpoint to be detected")
+	}
+	if info.Hash != hash {
+		t.Fatalf("checkpoint hash = %s, want %s", info.Hash, hash)
+	}
+	if checkpointStatuses["worker"].CheckpointName != "existing-worker-checkpoint" {
+		t.Fatalf("checkpoint status name = %s, want existing-worker-checkpoint", checkpointStatuses["worker"].CheckpointName)
+	}
+
+	updated := &v1alpha1.DynamoCheckpoint{}
+	if err := reconciler.Get(ctx, types.NamespacedName{Name: "existing-worker-checkpoint", Namespace: "default"}, updated); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Failed to get checkpoint: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(updated.Spec.Job.PodTemplateSpec.Spec.Containers) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected one job container, got %d", len(updated.Spec.Job.PodTemplateSpec.Spec.Containers))
+	}
+	if updated.Spec.Job.PodTemplateSpec.Spec.Containers[0].Image != "keep-existing:latest" {
+		t.Fatalf("existing job image was mutated to %s", updated.Spec.Job.PodTemplateSpec.Spec.Containers[0].Image)
+	}
+}
+
 // mockScaleClient implements scale.ScalesGetter for testing
 type mockScaleClient struct{}