diff --git a/bin/gstack-uninstall b/bin/gstack-uninstall
index 181b3813a..9f83386d7 100755
--- a/bin/gstack-uninstall
+++ b/bin/gstack-uninstall
@@ -140,6 +140,9 @@ CLAUDE_SKILLS="$HOME/.claude/skills"
 # prefixed variants, and the alias dirs. Built BEFORE the install root is
 # removed. A real directory in ~/.claude/skills is only deletable when its
 # name is in this inventory AND its SKILL.md carries the generated banner.
+# The seed names below are the alias dirs setup's _install_alias_skill_md
+# creates (setup: link_claude_root_skill_alias + the connect-chrome call
+# sites) — keep in sync with setup if an alias is added or renamed there.
 _INVENTORY=" _gstack-command connect-chrome gstack-connect-chrome "
 if [ -d "$GSTACK_DIR" ]; then
   for _SRC in "$GSTACK_DIR"/*/; do
@@ -172,13 +175,21 @@ if [ -d "$CLAUDE_SKILLS/gstack" ] || [ -L "$CLAUDE_SKILLS/gstack" ]; then
       esac
     elif [ -d "$_ENTRY" ] && { [ -f "$_ENTRY/SKILL.md" ] || [ -L "$_ENTRY/SKILL.md" ]; }; then
       if [ -L "$_ENTRY/SKILL.md" ]; then
-        # Shape 2: provenance readable from the symlink target itself
-        # (mirrors setup's cleanup_old_claude_symlinks semantics).
+        # Shape 2: provenance readable from the symlink target itself.
+        # Gate 1: the name must be in gstack's skill inventory (parity with
+        # shape 3). Gate 2: the target must contain "gstack" as an ANCHORED
+        # path segment (gstack/*|*/gstack/*, same pattern as shape 1) — a
+        # bare *gstack* substring match would wipe a user's own skill whose
+        # SKILL.md merely lives under e.g. ~/tools/gstack-fork/.
         _TARGET="$(readlink "$_ENTRY/SKILL.md" 2>/dev/null || true)"
-        case "$_TARGET" in
-          *gstack*) rm -rf "$_ENTRY"; REMOVED+=("claude/$_NAME") ;;
-          *) _SKIPPED_DIRS+=("$_ENTRY") ;;
-        esac
+        if _in_skill_inventory "$_NAME"; then
+          case "$_TARGET" in
+            gstack/*|*/gstack/*) rm -rf "$_ENTRY"; REMOVED+=("claude/$_NAME") ;;
+            *) _SKIPPED_DIRS+=("$_ENTRY") ;;
+          esac
+        else
+          _SKIPPED_DIRS+=("$_ENTRY")
+        fi
       elif _in_skill_inventory "$_NAME" && grep -q '<!-- AUTO-GENERATED from' "$_ENTRY/SKILL.md" 2>/dev/null; then
         # Shape 3: delete ONLY when BOTH gates pass (F8) — the name is in
         # gstack's skill inventory AND the SKILL.md carries the existing
@@ -199,13 +210,6 @@ if [ -d "$CLAUDE_SKILLS/gstack" ] || [ -L "$CLAUDE_SKILLS/gstack" ]; then
   REMOVED+=("~/.claude/skills/gstack")
 fi
 
-if [ ${#_SKIPPED_DIRS[@]} -gt 0 ]; then
-  echo "left in place (not provably gstack-managed — remove by hand if they are yours):" >&2
-  for _D in "${_SKIPPED_DIRS[@]}"; do
-    echo "  $_D" >&2
-  done
-fi
-
 # ─── Remove project-local Claude skills (--local installs) ──
 if [ -n "$_GIT_ROOT" ] && [ -d "$_GIT_ROOT/.claude/skills" ]; then
   for _LINK in "$_GIT_ROOT/.claude/skills"/*; do
@@ -252,12 +256,28 @@ if [ -d "$KIRO_SKILLS" ]; then
 fi
 
 # ─── Remove Cursor skills ───────────────────────────────────
+# Cursor installs are rendered REAL directories, so a bare gstack* glob could
+# sweep a user's own dir that merely starts with "gstack" (e.g.
+# ~/.cursor/skills/gstack-fork-notes). Provenance gate: a real dir is only
+# deleted when its SKILL.md carries the generated banner; anything else is
+# listed, never deleted. Symlinks stay ungated — removing a link never
+# destroys user content.
+_cursor_item_is_gstack_managed() {
+  # Symlinks and plain files are safe to remove; real dirs need the banner.
+  if [ -L "$1" ] || [ ! -d "$1" ]; then return 0; fi
+  grep -q '<!-- AUTO-GENERATED from' "$1/SKILL.md" 2>/dev/null
+}
+
 CURSOR_SKILLS="$HOME/.cursor/skills"
 if [ -d "$CURSOR_SKILLS" ]; then
   for _ITEM in "$CURSOR_SKILLS"/gstack*; do
     [ -e "$_ITEM" ] || [ -L "$_ITEM" ] || continue
-    rm -rf "$_ITEM"
-    REMOVED+=("cursor/$(basename "$_ITEM")")
+    if _cursor_item_is_gstack_managed "$_ITEM"; then
+      rm -rf "$_ITEM"
+      REMOVED+=("cursor/$(basename "$_ITEM")")
+    else
+      _SKIPPED_DIRS+=("$_ITEM")
+    fi
   done
 fi
 
@@ -287,11 +307,16 @@ fi
 
 # ─── Remove per-project .cursor/skills/gstack* ──────────────
 # Never rmdir .cursor itself — Cursor IDE stores rules and other user config there.
+# Same provenance gate as the global cursor block above.
 if [ -n "$_GIT_ROOT" ] && [ -d "$_GIT_ROOT/.cursor/skills" ]; then
   for _ITEM in "$_GIT_ROOT/.cursor/skills"/gstack*; do
     [ -e "$_ITEM" ] || [ -L "$_ITEM" ] || continue
-    rm -rf "$_ITEM"
-    REMOVED+=("cursor/$(basename "$_ITEM")")
+    if _cursor_item_is_gstack_managed "$_ITEM"; then
+      rm -rf "$_ITEM"
+      REMOVED+=("cursor/$(basename "$_ITEM")")
+    else
+      _SKIPPED_DIRS+=("$_ITEM")
+    fi
   done
 
   rmdir "$_GIT_ROOT/.cursor/skills" 2>/dev/null || true
@@ -338,6 +363,16 @@ for _TMP in /tmp/gstack-latest-version /tmp/gstack-sketch-*.html /tmp/gstack-ske
   fi
 done
 
+# ─── Skipped-entry report ───────────────────────────────────
+# Everything any provenance gate refused to delete (Claude shapes 2/3,
+# cursor real dirs) — listed once, at the end, so nothing is silent.
+if [ ${#_SKIPPED_DIRS[@]} -gt 0 ]; then
+  echo "left in place (not provably gstack-managed — remove by hand if they are yours):" >&2
+  for _D in "${_SKIPPED_DIRS[@]}"; do
+    echo "  $_D" >&2
+  done
+fi
+
 # ─── Summary ────────────────────────────────────────────────
 if [ ${#REMOVED[@]} -gt 0 ]; then
   echo "Removed: ${REMOVED[*]}"
diff --git a/setup b/setup
index c692549f0..5328d188c 100755
--- a/setup
+++ b/setup
@@ -843,6 +843,10 @@ link_claude_skill_dirs() {
 # (#2511, #2201). Copy-then-rewrite instead: sed reads the SOURCE and writes a
 # fresh copy with name: set to the alias. It must never edit through an
 # existing symlink — that would rewrite the generated source file itself.
+# NOTE: every alias name passed to this helper (_gstack-command,
+# connect-chrome, gstack-connect-chrome) is hardcoded in the _INVENTORY seed
+# list in bin/gstack-uninstall — keep the two sites in sync when adding or
+# renaming an alias, or uninstall will refuse to delete the new alias dir.
 _install_alias_skill_md() {
   local src_skill_md="$1"
   local dst_dir="$2"
diff --git a/test/uninstall-windows-copies.test.ts b/test/uninstall-windows-copies.test.ts
index fb4a92636..056511bf6 100644
--- a/test/uninstall-windows-copies.test.ts
+++ b/test/uninstall-windows-copies.test.ts
@@ -148,9 +148,56 @@ describe.skipIf(process.platform === 'win32')(
       expect(fs.existsSync(dir)).toBe(false);
     });
 
+    test('SKILL.md symlink into a gstack-SUBSTRING path (gstack-fork) → kept and listed', () => {
+      // DM5: the shape-2 gate must match "gstack" as an anchored path
+      // segment, not a substring — a user's own skill whose SKILL.md links
+      // into ~/tools/gstack-fork/ is NOT ours, even when the dir name
+      // collides with a real gstack skill (here: review, in the inventory).
+      // The anchored gate only matches a literal /gstack/ path segment, so
+      // the tmpdir must not carry one (shared-process shard runs can leave
+      // $TMPDIR pointing into a gstack worktree — same hazard as the
+      // "pointing elsewhere" test below). Fall back to a fixed neutral root
+      // and ASSERT the precondition.
+      let neutralRoot = os.tmpdir();
+      if (neutralRoot.split(path.sep).includes('gstack')) neutralRoot = '/private' + path.sep + 'tmp';
+      const forkRoot = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(neutralRoot, 'tools-'));
+      expect(forkRoot.split(path.sep).includes('gstack')).toBe(false);
+      const forkSrc = path.join(forkRoot, 'gstack-fork', 'review');
+      fs.mkdirSync(forkSrc, { recursive: true });
+      fs.writeFileSync(path.join(forkSrc, 'SKILL.md'), skillMd('review'));
+      const dir = path.join(skillsDir, 'review');
+      fs.mkdirSync(dir, { recursive: true });
+      fs.symlinkSync(path.join(forkSrc, 'SKILL.md'), path.join(dir, 'SKILL.md'));
+
+      try {
+        const r = runUninstall();
+        expect(r.status).toBe(0);
+        expect(fs.existsSync(dir)).toBe(true);
+        expect(r.stderr).toContain('left in place');
+        expect(r.stderr).toContain(path.join('skills', 'review'));
+      } finally {
+        fs.rmSync(forkRoot, { recursive: true, force: true });
+      }
+    });
+
+    test('SKILL.md symlink into gstack but name NOT in inventory → kept and listed', () => {
+      // Shape 2 now carries the same inventory gate as shape 3: a dir whose
+      // name setup could never have created is skipped even when its
+      // SKILL.md target resolves into the install root.
+      const dir = path.join(skillsDir, 'my-custom-wrapper');
+      fs.mkdirSync(dir, { recursive: true });
+      fs.symlinkSync(path.join(installRoot, 'qa', 'SKILL.md'), path.join(dir, 'SKILL.md'));
+
+      const r = runUninstall();
+      expect(r.status).toBe(0);
+      expect(fs.existsSync(dir)).toBe(true);
+      expect(r.stderr).toContain('my-custom-wrapper');
+    });
+
     test('SKILL.md symlink pointing elsewhere → kept and listed', () => {
-      // Target path must not contain "gstack" anywhere (the provenance match
-      // is a substring check, mirroring setup's cleanup helpers) — the suite
+      // Target path must not contain a gstack path segment (the provenance
+      // match is anchored: gstack/*|*/gstack/*; keeping the stricter
+      // no-substring precondition costs nothing) — the suite
       // tmpdir prefix does, so use a separate neutral tmpdir. os.tmpdir()
       // reads $TMPDIR at CALL time, and in shared-process shard runs a
       // neighboring test can leave it pointing at a gstack-containing path —
diff --git a/test/uninstall.test.ts b/test/uninstall.test.ts
index 214e1323b..1ed3edf83 100644
--- a/test/uninstall.test.ts
+++ b/test/uninstall.test.ts
@@ -163,15 +163,18 @@ describe('gstack-uninstall', () => {
     });
 
     test('--force removes Cursor gstack skills and leaves other Cursor skills', () => {
+      // Cursor installs are rendered real dirs, so removal is gated on the
+      // generated banner in SKILL.md (S5) — the managed fixtures carry it.
+      const banner = '<!-- AUTO-GENERATED from SKILL.md.tmpl - DO NOT EDIT DIRECTLY -->\n# x\n';
       fs.mkdirSync(path.join(mockHome, '.cursor', 'skills', 'gstack'), { recursive: true });
-      fs.writeFileSync(path.join(mockHome, '.cursor', 'skills', 'gstack', 'SKILL.md'), 'test');
+      fs.writeFileSync(path.join(mockHome, '.cursor', 'skills', 'gstack', 'SKILL.md'), banner);
       fs.mkdirSync(path.join(mockHome, '.cursor', 'skills', 'gstack-review'), { recursive: true });
-      fs.writeFileSync(path.join(mockHome, '.cursor', 'skills', 'gstack-review', 'SKILL.md'), 'test');
+      fs.writeFileSync(path.join(mockHome, '.cursor', 'skills', 'gstack-review', 'SKILL.md'), banner);
       fs.mkdirSync(path.join(mockHome, '.cursor', 'skills', 'frontend-design'), { recursive: true });
       fs.writeFileSync(path.join(mockHome, '.cursor', 'skills', 'frontend-design', 'SKILL.md'), 'keep');
 
       fs.mkdirSync(path.join(mockGitRoot, '.cursor', 'skills', 'gstack-ship'), { recursive: true });
-      fs.writeFileSync(path.join(mockGitRoot, '.cursor', 'skills', 'gstack-ship', 'SKILL.md'), 'test');
+      fs.writeFileSync(path.join(mockGitRoot, '.cursor', 'skills', 'gstack-ship', 'SKILL.md'), banner);
       fs.mkdirSync(path.join(mockGitRoot, '.cursor', 'rules'), { recursive: true });
       fs.writeFileSync(path.join(mockGitRoot, '.cursor', 'rules', 'keep.md'), 'keep');
 
@@ -194,5 +197,37 @@ describe('gstack-uninstall', () => {
       expect(fs.existsSync(path.join(mockGitRoot, '.cursor', 'skills', 'gstack-ship'))).toBe(false);
       expect(fs.existsSync(path.join(mockGitRoot, '.cursor', 'rules', 'keep.md'))).toBe(true);
     });
+
+    test("a user's own gstack-prefixed Cursor dir (no banner) survives and is listed", () => {
+      // S5: the bare gstack* glob must not sweep a dir that merely starts
+      // with "gstack" — provenance comes from the generated banner, and a
+      // hand-written SKILL.md never carries it.
+      const foreign = path.join(mockHome, '.cursor', 'skills', 'gstack-fork-notes');
+      fs.mkdirSync(foreign, { recursive: true });
+      fs.writeFileSync(path.join(foreign, 'SKILL.md'), '# my own notes\n');
+
+      const foreignLocal = path.join(mockGitRoot, '.cursor', 'skills', 'gstack-my-rules');
+      fs.mkdirSync(foreignLocal, { recursive: true });
+      fs.writeFileSync(path.join(foreignLocal, 'SKILL.md'), '# hand-written\n');
+
+      const result = spawnSync('bash', [UNINSTALL, '--force'], {
+        stdio: 'pipe',
+        env: {
+          ...process.env,
+          HOME: mockHome,
+          GSTACK_DIR: path.join(mockHome, '.claude', 'skills', 'gstack'),
+          GSTACK_STATE_DIR: path.join(mockHome, '.gstack'),
+        },
+        cwd: mockGitRoot,
+      });
+
+      expect(result.status).toBe(0);
+      expect(fs.existsSync(foreign)).toBe(true);
+      expect(fs.existsSync(foreignLocal)).toBe(true);
+      const stderr = result.stderr.toString();
+      expect(stderr).toContain('left in place');
+      expect(stderr).toContain('gstack-fork-notes');
+      expect(stderr).toContain('gstack-my-rules');
+    });
   });
 });