diff --git a/scripts/ha/acceptance-tests.sh b/scripts/ha/acceptance-tests.sh
index b7d8fe9..376edc2 100755
--- a/scripts/ha/acceptance-tests.sh
+++ b/scripts/ha/acceptance-tests.sh
@@ -97,7 +97,7 @@ fi
 # ── T4: iSCSI target visible on Active node ───────────────────────────────
 echo ""
 echo "[T4] iSCSI target"
-IQN_COUNT=$(na "ls /sys/kernel/config/target/iscsi/ 2>/dev/null | grep -c iqn" || echo "0")
+IQN_COUNT=$(na "bash -c 'ls /sys/kernel/config/target/iscsi/ 2>/dev/null | grep -c iqn || true'" 2>/dev/null || echo "0")
 if [[ "$IQN_COUNT" -ge 1 ]]; then
   pass "iSCSI IQN active on $ACTIVE_NODE ($IQN_COUNT target(s))"
 else
@@ -130,7 +130,7 @@ done
 
 if $MOVED; then
   pass "XFS mounted on $STANDBY_NODE after failover"
-  IQN_ON_STANDBY=$(ns "ls /sys/kernel/config/target/iscsi/ 2>/dev/null | grep -c iqn" || echo "0")
+  IQN_ON_STANDBY=$(ns "bash -c 'ls /sys/kernel/config/target/iscsi/ 2>/dev/null | grep -c iqn || true'" 2>/dev/null || echo "0")
   [[ "$IQN_ON_STANDBY" -ge 1 ]] \
     && pass "iSCSI target active on $STANDBY_NODE after failover" \
     || fail "iSCSI target NOT active on $STANDBY_NODE after failover"
diff --git a/scripts/ha/cluster-init.sh b/scripts/ha/cluster-init.sh
index 7bcd798..a2c7d2c 100755
--- a/scripts/ha/cluster-init.sh
+++ b/scripts/ha/cluster-init.sh
@@ -164,13 +164,25 @@ n2_ssh "drbdadm down ha-data 2>/dev/null || true"
 sleep 2
 
 log "Initialising DRBD metadata on $NODE1..."
-if ! drbdadm dstate ha-data 2>/dev/null | grep -q "UpToDate\|Inconsistent\|Diskless"; then
-  drbdadm create-md ha-data --force
+# Use drbdmeta --force directly for BOTH create-md and write-dev-uuid.
+# drbdadm create-md --force passes --force to drbdmeta create-md but NOT to
+# the write-dev-uuid sub-call it makes internally, so write-dev-uuid fails when
+# /dev/sdb is still busy (udev auto-attach, stale DRBD state, etc.) and stdin
+# is not a TTY: "stdin not a TTY, not waiting for confirmation" → exit 20.
+# Calling drbdmeta --force directly bypasses the exclusive-open confirmation on
+# both steps without needing a TTY, regardless of whether the device is busy.
+if ! drbdadm dstate ha-data 2>/dev/null | grep -q "UpToDate"; then
+  UUID1=$(openssl rand -hex 8 2>/dev/null | tr '[:lower:]' '[:upper:]')
+  drbdmeta --force 0 v08 /dev/sdb internal create-md
+  drbdmeta --force 0 v08 /dev/sdb internal write-dev-uuid "$UUID1"
 fi
 
 log "Initialising DRBD metadata on $NODE2..."
-# Use grep -E for ERE alternation inside the remote bash -c string (avoids \| quoting issues).
-n2_ssh "bash -c 'drbdadm dstate ha-data 2>/dev/null | grep -qE \"UpToDate|Inconsistent|Diskless\" || drbdadm create-md ha-data --force'"
+if ! n2_ssh "drbdadm dstate ha-data 2>/dev/null | grep -q UpToDate" 2>/dev/null; then
+  UUID2=$(openssl rand -hex 8 2>/dev/null | tr '[:lower:]' '[:upper:]')
+  n2_ssh "drbdmeta --force 0 v08 /dev/sdb internal create-md"
+  n2_ssh "drbdmeta --force 0 v08 /dev/sdb internal write-dev-uuid '${UUID2}'"
+fi
 
 log "Bringing up DRBD on both nodes..."
 drbdadm up ha-data 2>/dev/null || true