diff --git a/system/src/Grav/Common/Upgrade/SafeUpgradeService.php b/system/src/Grav/Common/Upgrade/SafeUpgradeService.php
index c3a2843cc..0122c880a 100644
--- a/system/src/Grav/Common/Upgrade/SafeUpgradeService.php
+++ b/system/src/Grav/Common/Upgrade/SafeUpgradeService.php
@@ -263,7 +263,9 @@ class SafeUpgradeService
         try {
             $this->copyEntries($packageEntries, $packagePath, $this->rootPath, 'installing', 'Deploying');
         } catch (Throwable $e) {
-            $this->copyEntries($snapshotEntries, $backupPath, $this->rootPath, 'installing', 'Restoring');
+            // Rollback: restore from snapshot
+            $this->reportProgress('rollback', 'Upgrade failed, restoring from snapshot...', null);
+            $this->copyEntries($packageEntries, $backupPath, $this->rootPath, 'rollback', 'Restoring');
             throw new RuntimeException('Failed to promote staged Grav release.', 0, $e);
         }
 
@@ -430,9 +432,9 @@ class SafeUpgradeService
                 }
             } elseif (is_dir($source)) {
                 Folder::create(dirname($destination));
-                // DON'T preserve permissions - let filesystem inherit from parent
-                // This matches traditional upgrade behavior
-                Folder::rcopy($source, $destination, false);
+                // Use move() like traditional upgrade - faster than copy
+                // Snapshot is already taken before this, so we don't need to preserve source
+                Folder::move($source, $destination);
 
                 // Set bin/ permissions like traditional upgrade does
                 if ($entry === 'bin') {
diff --git a/system/src/Grav/Installer/Install.php b/system/src/Grav/Installer/Install.php
index addf5b309..ad4cec912 100644
--- a/system/src/Grav/Installer/Install.php
+++ b/system/src/Grav/Installer/Install.php
@@ -467,33 +467,19 @@ ERR;
         }
 
         // CRITICAL CHECK: Ensure current installation supports SafeUpgradeService
-        // This must be checked BEFORE reading config, because the NEW package's system.yaml
-        // has safe_upgrade:true as default, which would be returned even for old installations
+        // Must check this BEFORE reading config to prevent using safe-upgrade on old installations
         $currentServiceFile = GRAV_ROOT . '/system/src/Grav/Common/Upgrade/SafeUpgradeService.php';
         if (!file_exists($currentServiceFile)) {
             // Current installation doesn't have SafeUpgradeService (upgrading from < 1.7.50)
-            // Use traditional upgrade method regardless of config
+            // Use traditional upgrade method
             return false;
         }
 
-        // PRIMARY CHECK: Check Grav config setting
-        // Only use safe-upgrade if explicitly enabled in user configuration
+        // PRIMARY CHECK: Check Grav config setting using proper config system
+        // This respects the fallback chain: user/config/system.yaml -> system/config/system.yaml
         try {
             $grav = Grav::instance();
             if ($grav && isset($grav['config'])) {
-                // IMPORTANT: Read from USER config only, not merged config
-                // This prevents the NEW package's default (true) from being used
-                $userConfigFile = USER_DIR . 'config/system.yaml';
-                if (file_exists($userConfigFile)) {
-                    $userConfig = \Grav\Common\Yaml::parseFile($userConfigFile);
-                    if (is_array($userConfig) && isset($userConfig['updates']['safe_upgrade'])) {
-                        // User has explicitly set this in their config
-                        return (bool) $userConfig['updates']['safe_upgrade'];
-                    }
-                }
-
-                // Fallback: try reading from merged config
-                // This is safe now because we already verified current installation has SafeUpgradeService
                 $configValue = $grav['config']->get('system.updates.safe_upgrade');
                 if ($configValue !== null) {
                     return (bool) $configValue;
@@ -501,7 +487,7 @@ ERR;
             }
         } catch (\Throwable $e) {
             // Grav container may not be initialised yet
-            // Fall through to default behavior
+            // Fall through to load SafeUpgradeService and return false
         }
 
         // FINAL STEP: Load SafeUpgradeService from NEW package if needed