diff --git a/src/app.h b/src/app.h
index 09910f8..276be60 100644
--- a/src/app.h
+++ b/src/app.h
@@ -507,6 +507,10 @@ private:
     std::string connection_status_ = "Disconnected";
     bool connection_in_progress_ = false;
     bool remote_rpc_plaintext_warning_shown_ = false;
+    // Startup daemon-launch diagnostics: bound the "RPC port busy, no config" wait before warning,
+    // and show the embedded-daemon start failure (binary/params/spawn) only once. Reset on connect.
+    int daemon_wait_attempts_ = 0;
+    bool daemon_start_error_shown_ = false;
     float loading_timer_ = 0.0f;  // spinner animation for loading overlay
 
     // Current page (sidebar navigation)
diff --git a/src/app_network.cpp b/src/app_network.cpp
index 53f1e23..ea6e1cd 100644
--- a/src/app_network.cpp
+++ b/src/app_network.cpp
@@ -165,6 +165,12 @@ static const char* const kDaemonInitPhases[] = {
     "Rescanning", "Rewinding", "Activating", "Verifying", "Loading", "Pruning",
 };
 
+// How many consecutive "RPC port busy but no config" connect attempts to wait through before
+// warning the user that whatever owns the port isn't a usable DragonX node. The core retry runs
+// roughly every few seconds, so this is on the order of ~20s — long enough for a real daemon to
+// write its config, short enough not to leave the user guessing.
+static constexpr int kDaemonWaitWarnAttempts = 4;
+
 // ============================================================================
 // Connection Management
 // ============================================================================
@@ -193,19 +199,32 @@ void App::tryConnect()
         VERBOSE_LOGF("[connect #%d] No valid config — DRAGONX.conf missing or no rpcuser/rpcpassword (looked at: %s)\n",
                    connect_attempt, confPath.c_str());
         
-        // If we already know an external daemon is on the port, just wait
-        // for the config file to appear (the daemon creates it on first run).
-        if (daemon_controller_ && daemon_controller_->externalDaemonDetected()) {
+        // Re-evaluate the RPC port LIVE rather than trusting a latched "external daemon detected"
+        // flag: EmbeddedDaemon::start() sets that latch whenever the port was busy at a prior
+        // attempt and then never re-checks it, so a stale socket (or a transient squatter that has
+        // since died) would strand us forever "waiting for config". If the port is genuinely busy,
+        // a real daemon writes its config shortly and we keep waiting; if it's free, we must start
+        // our own.
+        const bool portInUse = daemon::EmbeddedDaemon::isRpcPortInUse();
+        if (portInUse) {
             connection_status_ = TR("sb_waiting_config");
-            VERBOSE_LOGF("[connect #%d] External daemon detected on port, waiting for config file to appear\n", connect_attempt);
+            VERBOSE_LOGF("[connect #%d] RPC port in use but no config yet — waiting for the daemon to write it\n",
+                       connect_attempt);
+            // After a bounded wait with no config appearing, whatever owns the port is not a usable
+            // DragonX node (a foreign process, or a stuck/half-dead daemon). Say so once, with the
+            // action, instead of leaving the user on a silent "waiting" spinner forever.
+            if (++daemon_wait_attempts_ == kDaemonWaitWarnAttempts) {
+                ui::Notifications::instance().warning(TR("daemon_port_busy_warn"), 20.0f);
+            }
             network_refresh_.setTimer(services::NetworkRefreshService::Timer::Core,
                                         services::RefreshScheduler::kCoreDefault - 1.0f);
             return;
         }
-        
+        daemon_wait_attempts_ = 0;  // port is free — clear the bounded-wait counter
+
         connection_status_ = TR("sb_no_conf");
-        
-        // Try to start embedded daemon if enabled
+
+        // Port is free → start our own embedded daemon (if enabled).
         if (isUsingEmbeddedDaemon() && !isEmbeddedDaemonRunning()) {
             connection_status_ = TR("sb_starting_daemon");
             if (startEmbeddedDaemon()) {
@@ -213,16 +232,24 @@ void App::tryConnect()
                 VERBOSE_LOGF("[connect #%d] Embedded daemon starting, will retry connection...\n", connect_attempt);
                 network_refresh_.setTimer(services::NetworkRefreshService::Timer::Core,
                                             services::RefreshScheduler::kCoreDefault - 1.0f);
-            } else if (daemon_controller_ && daemon_controller_->externalDaemonDetected()) {
-                connection_status_ = TR("sb_waiting_config");
-                VERBOSE_LOGF("[connect #%d] External daemon detected but no config yet, will retry...\n", connect_attempt);
+            } else {
+                // The daemon couldn't be started (binary not found, Sapling params missing, spawn
+                // failure, …). Surface the actual reason instead of leaving the status stuck on
+                // "Starting dragonxd…": connection_status_ for the overlay/status bar, plus a
+                // one-time sticky notification with the full, actionable detail.
+                std::string detail = daemon_controller_ ? daemon_controller_->lastError() : std::string();
+                VERBOSE_LOGF("[connect #%d] startEmbeddedDaemon() failed — lastError: %s, binary: %s\n",
+                           connect_attempt, detail.empty() ? "(none)" : detail.c_str(),
+                           daemon::EmbeddedDaemon::findDaemonBinary().c_str());
+                connection_status_ = TR("sb_daemon_start_failed");
+                if (!daemon_start_error_shown_) {
+                    daemon_start_error_shown_ = true;
+                    ui::Notifications::instance().error(
+                        detail.empty() ? std::string(TR("sb_daemon_start_failed")) : detail, 30.0f);
+                }
+                // Keep retrying: a missing binary/params can be fixed without a restart.
                 network_refresh_.setTimer(services::NetworkRefreshService::Timer::Core,
                                             services::RefreshScheduler::kCoreDefault - 1.0f);
-            } else {
-                VERBOSE_LOGF("[connect #%d] startEmbeddedDaemon() failed — lastError: %s, binary: %s\n",
-                           connect_attempt,
-                           daemon_controller_ ? daemon_controller_->lastError().c_str() : "(no daemon object)",
-                           daemon::EmbeddedDaemon::findDaemonBinary().c_str());
             }
         } else if (!isUsingEmbeddedDaemon()) {
             VERBOSE_LOGF("[connect #%d] Embedded daemon disabled (using external). No config found at %s\n",
@@ -420,6 +447,8 @@ void App::onConnected()
 {
     state_.connected = true;
     state_.daemon_initializing = false;  // RPC is answering now; clear the "initializing" overlay
+    daemon_wait_attempts_ = 0;           // re-arm the port-busy / start-failure notifications
+    daemon_start_error_shown_ = false;
     connection_status_ = TR("connected");
     
     // Reset crash counter on successful connection
diff --git a/src/util/i18n.cpp b/src/util/i18n.cpp
index 269c4d5..d4fc79f 100644
--- a/src/util/i18n.cpp
+++ b/src/util/i18n.cpp
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
 
 #include "i18n.h"
 #include "platform.h"
+#include "../config/version.h"  // DRAGONX_DEFAULT_RPC_PORT
 
 #include <fstream>
 #include <cstdio>
@@ -780,6 +781,11 @@ void I18n::loadBuiltinEnglish()
         strings_["sb_connecting_generic"] = "Connecting to daemon...";
         strings_["sb_connecting_err"] = "Connecting to daemon — %s";
         strings_["sb_daemon_crashed"] = "Daemon crashed %d times";
+        strings_["sb_daemon_start_failed"] = "Couldn't start dragonxd";
+        strings_["daemon_port_busy_warn"] =
+            "Port " DRAGONX_DEFAULT_RPC_PORT " is in use but isn't responding as a DragonX node. "
+            "Close the program using it (or free the port), then restart — the wallet can't start "
+            "its own node while the port is taken.";
         strings_["sb_extracting_sapling"] = "Extracting Sapling parameters...";
         strings_["sb_sapling_failed"] = "Failed to extract Sapling parameters.";
         strings_["sb_sapling_not_found"] = "Sapling parameters not found.";