diff --git a/src/servers/app-store/pm2.ts b/src/servers/app-store/pm2.ts
index 8e6a7d67..b84a8d8f 100644
--- a/src/servers/app-store/pm2.ts
+++ b/src/servers/app-store/pm2.ts
@@ -59,7 +59,23 @@ export async function isKnownToPm2(name: string, cwd: string): Promise<boolean>
  */
 export async function startProcess(name: string, cwd: string): Promise<Pm2Result> {
   const known = await isKnownToPm2(name, cwd);
-  const args = known ? ['start', name] : ['start', ECOSYSTEM, '--only', name];
+  /*
+    Through the ECOSYSTEM FILE either way, and that is the whole point of this line.
+
+    `pm2 start <name>` restarts a known process with the environment PM2 already holds for it, and never
+    looks at the file again. That was fine while an entry was just a script path — it is not now that an
+    entry carries `env`, because a plugin whose allocated port changed would have its new number written
+    to the file and go on running with the old one.
+
+    Seen exactly once, on the day ports were added: the ecosystem said PORT_SITE=34507, the process was
+    serving 3011, and nothing anywhere reported a disagreement.
+
+    `restart <file> --only <name>` re-reads the entry; `--update-env` makes PM2 replace the stored
+    environment rather than merge into it, so a variable REMOVED from the entry actually goes away.
+  */
+  const args = known
+    ? ['restart', ECOSYSTEM, '--only', name, '--update-env']
+    : ['start', ECOSYSTEM, '--only', name];
 
   const { code, out } = await pm2(args, cwd);
   if (code !== 0) return { ok: false, error: out || `pm2 ${args.join(' ')} exited ${code}` };