diff --git a/overlay/usr/local/bin/veilor-installer b/overlay/usr/local/bin/veilor-installer
index b957312..4f00fc2 100644
--- a/overlay/usr/local/bin/veilor-installer
+++ b/overlay/usr/local/bin/veilor-installer
@@ -17,7 +17,10 @@
 
 set -uo pipefail
 export TERM="${TERM:-linux}"
-LOG=/var/log/veilor-installer.log
+# Log to /run (pure tmpfs) — /var/log overlays squashfs on the live ISO, so a
+# bad sector on the USB medium turns `tee -a` into "input/output error" and
+# kills the installer before the menu can render.
+LOG=/run/veilor-installer.log
 
 # require_tty MUST run before the tee redirect — process substitution
 # replaces fd1 with a pipe, breaking `[[ -t 1 ]]`.
@@ -29,8 +32,12 @@ require_tty() {
 }
 require_tty
 
-# Now safe to tee output for log persistence — tty detection already passed.
-exec > >(tee -a "$LOG") 2>&1
+# Tee output for log persistence, but only if LOG is writable. On a flaky USB
+# the squashfs/overlay can throw I/O errors mid-write — tolerate that and
+# keep the installer running without persistence rather than aborting.
+if : >> "$LOG" 2>/dev/null; then
+    exec > >(tee -a "$LOG") 2>&1
+fi
 
 # ── Branded styling for gum ─────────────────────────────────────────────
 # colors.gum sets GUM_* env vars — pure-black palette from veilor-black KDE.