diff --git a/nanoclaw.sh b/nanoclaw.sh
index 6a23558..2a98f98 100755
--- a/nanoclaw.sh
+++ b/nanoclaw.sh
@@ -3,14 +3,13 @@
 # NanoClaw — scripted end-to-end install.
 #
 # Runs `bash setup.sh` (bootstrap: Node check, pnpm install, native module
-# verify), then `pnpm run setup:auto` (environment → timezone → container →
-# onecli → auth → mounts → service → verify).
+# verify), then `pnpm run setup:auto` (environment → container → onecli →
+# auth → mounts → service → cli-agent → verify).
 #
 # Everything that can be scripted runs unattended; the one interactive pause
 # is the auth step (browser sign-in or paste token/API key).
 #
 # Config via env — passed through unchanged:
-#   NANOCLAW_TZ    IANA zone override
 #   NANOCLAW_SKIP  comma-separated setup:auto step names to skip
 #   SECRET_NAME    OneCLI secret name (default: Anthropic)
 #   HOST_PATTERN   OneCLI host pattern (default: api.anthropic.com)
diff --git a/setup/auto.ts b/setup/auto.ts
index 8ef87d8..3945d82 100644
--- a/setup/auto.ts
+++ b/setup/auto.ts
@@ -7,13 +7,16 @@
  * module check). This driver picks up from there.
  *
  * Config via env:
- *   NANOCLAW_TZ            IANA zone override (skip autodetect)
  *   NANOCLAW_DISPLAY_NAME  operator name for the CLI agent (default: $USER)
  *   NANOCLAW_AGENT_NAME    agent persona name (default: display name)
  *   NANOCLAW_SKIP          comma-separated step names to skip
- *                          (environment|timezone|container|onecli|auth|
+ *                          (environment|container|onecli|auth|
  *                           mounts|service|cli-agent|verify)
  *
+ * Timezone is not configured here — it defaults to the host system's TZ.
+ * Run `pnpm exec tsx setup/index.ts --step timezone -- --tz <zone>` later
+ * if autodetect is wrong (e.g. headless server with TZ=UTC).
+ *
  * Anthropic credential registration runs via setup/register-claude-token.sh
  * (the only step that truly requires human input — browser sign-in or a
  * pasted token/key). Channel auth and `/manage-channels` remain separate
@@ -132,24 +135,12 @@ async function main(): Promise<void> {
       .map((s) => s.trim())
       .filter(Boolean),
   );
-  const tz = process.env.NANOCLAW_TZ;
 
   if (!skip.has('environment')) {
     const env = await runStep('environment');
     if (!env.ok) fail('environment check failed');
   }
 
-  if (!skip.has('timezone')) {
-    const res = await runStep('timezone', tz ? ['--tz', tz] : []);
-    if (res.fields.NEEDS_USER_INPUT === 'true') {
-      fail(
-        'Timezone could not be autodetected.',
-        'Set NANOCLAW_TZ to an IANA zone (e.g. NANOCLAW_TZ=America/New_York).',
-      );
-    }
-    if (!res.ok) fail('timezone step failed');
-  }
-
   if (!skip.has('container')) {
     const res = await runStep('container');
     if (!res.ok) {