diff --git a/src/cli.ts b/src/cli.ts
index 32d2e5081..72555c931 100755
--- a/src/cli.ts
+++ b/src/cli.ts
@@ -898,8 +898,21 @@ async function handleCliOnly(command: string, args: string[]) {
         await runDoctor(eng, args);
         await eng.disconnect();
       } catch {
-        // DB unavailable — still run filesystem checks
-        await runDoctor(null, args, getDbUrlSource());
+        // DB unavailable — still run filesystem checks. Detect the common
+        // case where PGLite is locked by an attached `gbrain serve` MCP
+        // (co-existence is expected, not an error) so doctor can demote
+        // the connection warning to an info-level ok message.
+        const fs = await import('fs');
+        const path = await import('path');
+        const { gbrainPath } = await import('./core/config.ts');
+        let lockHeldByMcp = false;
+        try {
+          const pidFile = path.join(gbrainPath('brain.pglite'), 'postmaster.pid');
+          lockHeldByMcp = fs.existsSync(pidFile);
+        } catch {
+          // best-effort detection
+        }
+        await runDoctor(null, args, getDbUrlSource(), { lockHeldByMcp });
       }
     }
     return;
diff --git a/src/commands/doctor.ts b/src/commands/doctor.ts
index c5658fc52..d587db12c 100644
--- a/src/commands/doctor.ts
+++ b/src/commands/doctor.ts
@@ -783,7 +783,7 @@ export async function checkSyncFreshness(engine: BrainEngine): Promise<Check> {
  * user has no DB configured anywhere; otherwise the caller chose --fast or
  * we failed to connect despite a configured URL.
  */
-export async function runDoctor(engine: BrainEngine | null, args: string[], dbSource?: DbUrlSource) {
+export async function runDoctor(engine: BrainEngine | null, args: string[], dbSource?: DbUrlSource, opts?: { lockHeldByMcp?: boolean }) {
   const jsonOutput = args.includes('--json');
   const fastMode = args.includes('--fast');
   const doFix = args.includes('--fix');
@@ -1260,14 +1260,24 @@ export async function runDoctor(engine: BrainEngine | null, args: string[], dbSo
       // skipped the connection. When null, there really is no config
       // anywhere.
       let msg: string;
+      let status: 'ok' | 'warn' | 'fail' = 'warn';
       if (fastMode && dbSource) {
         msg = `Skipping DB checks (--fast mode, URL present from ${dbSource})`;
+      } else if (!fastMode && dbSource && opts?.lockHeldByMcp) {
+        // PGLite single-writer lock held by another process (typically
+        // `gbrain serve` MCP). Co-existence with MCP is expected, not an
+        // error: filesystem checks still ran; DB-backed health is reachable
+        // via the MCP surface (mcp__gbrain__get_health). Demoting to `ok`
+        // with an info-prefixed message so this stops surfacing as a warning
+        // every time a user runs `gbrain doctor` alongside an attached MCP.
+        msg = `info: DB owned by another process (likely 'gbrain serve' MCP holding the PGLite single-writer lock). Filesystem checks ran; use 'mcp__gbrain__get_health' for DB-backed checks.`;
+        status = 'ok';
       } else if (!fastMode && dbSource) {
         msg = `Could not connect to configured DB (URL from ${dbSource}); filesystem checks only`;
       } else {
         msg = 'No database configured (filesystem checks only). Set GBRAIN_DATABASE_URL or run `gbrain init`.';
       }
-      checks.push({ name: 'connection', status: 'warn', message: msg });
+      checks.push({ name: 'connection', status, message: msg });
     }
     const earlyFail1 = outputResults(checks, jsonOutput);
     process.exit(earlyFail1 ? 1 : 0);
diff --git a/src/core/check-resolvable.ts b/src/core/check-resolvable.ts
index bb1249d1c..490a7486e 100644
--- a/src/core/check-resolvable.ts
+++ b/src/core/check-resolvable.ts
@@ -163,7 +163,7 @@ export function parseResolverEntries(resolverContent: string): ResolverEntry[] {
 
 /** Simple YAML frontmatter parser — extracts triggers array if present. */
 function extractTriggers(skillContent: string): string[] {
-  const fmMatch = skillContent.match(/^---\n([\s\S]*?)\n---/);
+  const fmMatch = skillContent.match(/^---\r?\n([\s\S]*?)\r?\n---/);
   if (!fmMatch) return [];
   const fm = fmMatch[1];
   const triggersMatch = fm.match(/^triggers:\s*\n((?:\s+-\s+.+\n?)*)/m);