diff --git a/pkg/server/auth.go b/pkg/server/auth.go
index d4394ad3..7af28f7f 100644
--- a/pkg/server/auth.go
+++ b/pkg/server/auth.go
@@ -2,8 +2,10 @@ package server
 
 import (
 	"context"
+	"encoding/json"
 	"fmt"
 	"net/http"
+	"strings"
 	"sync"
 	"time"
 
@@ -11,6 +13,7 @@ import (
 
 	authclient "github.com/ethpandaops/panda/pkg/auth/client"
 	authstore "github.com/ethpandaops/panda/pkg/auth/store"
+	"github.com/ethpandaops/panda/pkg/proxy"
 	"github.com/ethpandaops/panda/pkg/serverapi"
 )
 
@@ -18,6 +21,10 @@ import (
 // approval when the provider does not advertise an expiry.
 const minLoginPollWindow = 5 * time.Minute
 
+// proxyScopeDiscoveryTimeout bounds the /auth/metadata fetch performed at login
+// so an unreachable proxy fails the login promptly instead of stalling it.
+const proxyScopeDiscoveryTimeout = 5 * time.Second
+
 // credentialTarget is the resolved proxy auth configuration the controller
 // operates against. It mirrors the values the proxy client uses to build its
 // own credential store so both resolve to the same on-disk credential file.
@@ -44,6 +51,13 @@ type credentialController struct {
 	newClient func(credentialTarget) authclient.Client
 	newStore  func(credentialTarget, authclient.Client) authstore.Store
 
+	// discoverScopes resolves the proxy's advertised login scope set at login
+	// time (from /auth/metadata) so the proxy — not a possibly-stale local
+	// config — decides which scopes the token carries. It is injected for tests;
+	// in production it is always set. A nil hook (tests only) requests the
+	// configured target scopes verbatim.
+	discoverScopes func(ctx context.Context) ([]string, error)
+
 	mu      sync.Mutex
 	pending *pendingLogin
 }
@@ -58,7 +72,7 @@ type pendingLogin struct {
 // newCredentialController builds a controller for the resolved proxy auth
 // metadata. It returns nil when no interactive auth is configured (e.g. the
 // client_credentials service-account grant, which has no human login flow).
-func newCredentialController(log logrus.FieldLogger, meta *serverapi.ProxyAuthMetadataResponse) *credentialController {
+func newCredentialController(log logrus.FieldLogger, meta *serverapi.ProxyAuthMetadataResponse, proxyURL string) *credentialController {
 	if meta == nil || !meta.Enabled {
 		return nil
 	}
@@ -71,7 +85,7 @@ func newCredentialController(log logrus.FieldLogger, meta *serverapi.ProxyAuthMe
 		enabled:   meta.Enabled,
 	}
 
-	return &credentialController{
+	c := &credentialController{
 		log:    log.WithField("component", "credential-controller"),
 		target: target,
 		newClient: func(t credentialTarget) authclient.Client {
@@ -91,6 +105,17 @@ func newCredentialController(log logrus.FieldLogger, meta *serverapi.ProxyAuthMe
 			})
 		},
 	}
+
+	// The proxy owns which scopes its features require and advertises them at
+	// /auth/metadata (the same endpoint `panda init` reads). Resolve them at
+	// login so a config written before a feature existed still requests the
+	// scope it now needs, without a re-init — and without ever consulting the
+	// local scopes field.
+	c.discoverScopes = func(ctx context.Context) ([]string, error) {
+		return fetchProxyLoginScopes(ctx, proxyURL)
+	}
+
+	return c
 }
 
 // Status reports the current credential state without exposing any token.
@@ -130,7 +155,24 @@ func (c *credentialController) Status() serverapi.AuthStatusResponse {
 // that persists the tokens on approval. It returns the user-facing verification
 // details; the device code stays server-side.
 func (c *credentialController) BeginLogin(ctx context.Context) (serverapi.AuthLoginResponse, error) {
-	client := c.newClient(c.target)
+	// The proxy is authoritative for login scopes: it advertises the exact set
+	// its features require at /auth/metadata. Request those and never the
+	// configured scopes, so a stale config cannot mint a token silently missing
+	// a scope (e.g. "workflows") that only surfaces later as an opaque 401. If
+	// the proxy cannot be reached we fail loudly rather than guess. Only the
+	// scopes come from discovery; issuer/client/resource stay as configured so
+	// the credential file keys identically.
+	target := c.target
+	if c.discoverScopes != nil {
+		scopes, err := c.discoverScopes(ctx)
+		if err != nil {
+			return serverapi.AuthLoginResponse{}, fmt.Errorf("resolving login scopes from proxy: %w", err)
+		}
+
+		target.scopes = scopes
+	}
+
+	client := c.newClient(target)
 
 	device, err := client.BeginDeviceLogin(ctx)
 	if err != nil {
@@ -202,6 +244,46 @@ func (c *credentialController) Stop() {
 	c.pending = nil
 }
 
+// fetchProxyLoginScopes reads the proxy's advertised login scope set from its
+// public /auth/metadata discovery endpoint. A successful fetch returns the
+// advertised scopes; an empty slice is a valid result meaning the proxy needs
+// no extra scopes (the auth client then applies its own defaults). Any
+// transport, status, or decode failure returns an error so the caller fails the
+// login loudly instead of guessing a scope set.
+func fetchProxyLoginScopes(ctx context.Context, proxyURL string) ([]string, error) {
+	base := strings.TrimSpace(proxyURL)
+	if base == "" {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("proxy URL is not configured")
+	}
+
+	reqCtx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(ctx, proxyScopeDiscoveryTimeout)
+	defer cancel()
+
+	metadataURL := strings.TrimRight(base, "/") + "/auth/metadata"
+
+	req, err := http.NewRequestWithContext(reqCtx, http.MethodGet, metadataURL, nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("building metadata request: %w", err)
+	}
+
+	resp, err := http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("fetching %s: %w", metadataURL, err)
+	}
+	defer func() { _ = resp.Body.Close() }()
+
+	if resp.StatusCode != http.StatusOK {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("fetching %s: unexpected status %s", metadataURL, resp.Status)
+	}
+
+	var meta proxy.AuthMetadataResponse
+	if err := json.NewDecoder(resp.Body).Decode(&meta); err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("decoding %s: %w", metadataURL, err)
+	}
+
+	return meta.Scopes, nil
+}
+
 // runLogin polls for device approval and persists the resulting tokens. The
 // terminal state and the credential write are committed under the lock only if
 // this attempt is still the current pending login, so a logout or a newer login
diff --git a/pkg/server/auth_paths_test.go b/pkg/server/auth_paths_test.go
index 1473329b..1f2cfa31 100644
--- a/pkg/server/auth_paths_test.go
+++ b/pkg/server/auth_paths_test.go
@@ -58,7 +58,7 @@ func TestCredentialPathMatchesProxyTokenSource(t *testing.T) {
 			}).Path()
 
 			// The credential file the server's controller operates on.
-			ctrl := newCredentialController(logrus.New(), buildProxyAuthMetadata(&config.Config{Proxy: tt.pc}))
+			ctrl := newCredentialController(logrus.New(), buildProxyAuthMetadata(&config.Config{Proxy: tt.pc}), tt.pc.URL)
 			require.NotNil(t, ctrl)
 			require.Equal(t, proxyPath, ctrl.Status().CredentialsPath)
 		})
diff --git a/pkg/server/auth_test.go b/pkg/server/auth_test.go
index b7a5def6..69631779 100644
--- a/pkg/server/auth_test.go
+++ b/pkg/server/auth_test.go
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ import (
 
 	authclient "github.com/ethpandaops/panda/pkg/auth/client"
 	authstore "github.com/ethpandaops/panda/pkg/auth/store"
+	"github.com/ethpandaops/panda/pkg/proxy"
 	"github.com/ethpandaops/panda/pkg/serverapi"
 )
 
@@ -92,13 +93,13 @@ func seedTokens(t *testing.T, path string, tokens *authclient.Tokens) {
 func TestNewCredentialController(t *testing.T) {
 	t.Parallel()
 
-	require.Nil(t, newCredentialController(logrus.New(), nil), "nil metadata yields nil controller")
-	require.Nil(t, newCredentialController(logrus.New(), &serverapi.ProxyAuthMetadataResponse{}),
+	require.Nil(t, newCredentialController(logrus.New(), nil, ""), "nil metadata yields nil controller")
+	require.Nil(t, newCredentialController(logrus.New(), &serverapi.ProxyAuthMetadataResponse{}, ""),
 		"disabled auth yields nil controller (e.g. client_credentials)")
 
 	ctrl := newCredentialController(logrus.New(), &serverapi.ProxyAuthMetadataResponse{
 		Enabled: true, IssuerURL: "https://i", ClientID: "panda", Resource: "https://r",
-	})
+	}, "")
 	require.NotNil(t, ctrl)
 	require.Equal(t, "https://i", ctrl.target.issuerURL)
 	require.Equal(t, "panda", ctrl.target.clientID)
@@ -363,3 +364,157 @@ func callJSON(t *testing.T, h http.HandlerFunc, method string) *httptest.Respons
 
 	return rec
 }
+
+// TestBeginLoginScopeSelection verifies login requests the proxy-advertised
+// scopes (never the configured ones) and aborts before minting a token when
+// scope discovery fails, while leaving the credential-file keying
+// (issuer/client/resource) untouched.
+func TestBeginLoginScopeSelection(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	t.Run("proxy scopes replace configured scopes", func(t *testing.T) {
+		t.Parallel()
+
+		var gotScopes []string
+
+		path := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "creds.json")
+		fake := &fakeAuthClient{
+			beginResp: &authclient.DeviceAuth{DeviceCode: "d", UserCode: "U", ExpiresIn: 600},
+			pollResp:  &authclient.Tokens{AccessToken: "at", ExpiresAt: time.Now().Add(time.Hour)},
+		}
+
+		ctrl := &credentialController{
+			log: logrus.New(),
+			target: credentialTarget{
+				issuerURL: "https://issuer.example", clientID: "panda", resource: "https://r",
+				enabled: true, scopes: []string{"stale-config-scope"},
+			},
+			discoverScopes: func(context.Context) ([]string, error) {
+				return []string{"openid", "workflows"}, nil
+			},
+			newClient: func(tg credentialTarget) authclient.Client {
+				gotScopes = tg.scopes
+
+				return fake
+			},
+			newStore: func(_ credentialTarget, c authclient.Client) authstore.Store {
+				return authstore.New(logrus.New(), authstore.Config{Path: path, AuthClient: c})
+			},
+		}
+
+		_, err := ctrl.BeginLogin(context.Background())
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+		require.Equal(t, []string{"openid", "workflows"}, gotScopes, "configured scopes must not be used")
+
+		require.Eventually(t, func() bool {
+			return ctrl.LoginState().State == serverapi.AuthLoginAuthenticated
+		}, 2*time.Second, 10*time.Millisecond)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("discovery failure aborts login before minting a token", func(t *testing.T) {
+		t.Parallel()
+
+		clientBuilt := false
+		ctrl := &credentialController{
+			log: logrus.New(),
+			target: credentialTarget{
+				issuerURL: "https://issuer.example", clientID: "panda",
+				enabled: true, scopes: []string{"stale-config-scope"},
+			},
+			discoverScopes: func(context.Context) ([]string, error) {
+				return nil, errors.New("proxy unreachable")
+			},
+			newClient: func(credentialTarget) authclient.Client {
+				clientBuilt = true
+
+				return &fakeAuthClient{}
+			},
+			newStore: func(_ credentialTarget, c authclient.Client) authstore.Store {
+				return authstore.New(logrus.New(), authstore.Config{Path: filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "c.json"), AuthClient: c})
+			},
+		}
+
+		_, err := ctrl.BeginLogin(context.Background())
+		require.Error(t, err)
+		require.Contains(t, err.Error(), "proxy unreachable")
+		require.False(t, clientBuilt, "login must not mint a token when scopes are unknown")
+		require.Equal(t, serverapi.AuthLoginNone, ctrl.LoginState().State)
+	})
+}
+
+// TestFetchProxyLoginScopes verifies scope discovery reads /auth/metadata,
+// returns the advertised scopes (empty is a valid answer), and errors on any
+// unreachable or non-200 proxy so the caller can fail the login loudly.
+func TestFetchProxyLoginScopes(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	t.Run("empty url errors", func(t *testing.T) {
+		t.Parallel()
+
+		_, err := fetchProxyLoginScopes(context.Background(), "")
+		require.Error(t, err)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("unreachable proxy errors", func(t *testing.T) {
+		t.Parallel()
+
+		srv := httptest.NewServer(http.NotFoundHandler())
+		url := srv.URL
+		srv.Close()
+
+		_, err := fetchProxyLoginScopes(context.Background(), url)
+		require.Error(t, err)
+	})
+
+	tests := []struct {
+		name       string
+		handler    http.HandlerFunc
+		wantScopes []string
+		wantErr    bool
+	}{
+		{
+			name: "advertised scopes returned",
+			handler: func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+				require.Equal(t, "/auth/metadata", r.URL.Path)
+				_ = json.NewEncoder(w).Encode(proxy.AuthMetadataResponse{
+					Enabled: true,
+					Scopes:  []string{"openid", "email", "groups", "offline_access", "workflows"},
+				})
+			},
+			wantScopes: []string{"openid", "email", "groups", "offline_access", "workflows"},
+		},
+		{
+			name: "empty scopes are a valid result",
+			handler: func(w http.ResponseWriter, _ *http.Request) {
+				_ = json.NewEncoder(w).Encode(proxy.AuthMetadataResponse{Enabled: true})
+			},
+			wantScopes: nil,
+		},
+		{
+			name: "non-200 errors",
+			handler: func(w http.ResponseWriter, _ *http.Request) {
+				w.WriteHeader(http.StatusInternalServerError)
+			},
+			wantErr: true,
+		},
+	}
+
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			t.Parallel()
+
+			srv := httptest.NewServer(tt.handler)
+			defer srv.Close()
+
+			scopes, err := fetchProxyLoginScopes(context.Background(), srv.URL)
+			if tt.wantErr {
+				require.Error(t, err)
+
+				return
+			}
+
+			require.NoError(t, err)
+			require.Equal(t, tt.wantScopes, scopes)
+		})
+	}
+}
diff --git a/pkg/server/builder.go b/pkg/server/builder.go
index 5472a79d..b268b82b 100644
--- a/pkg/server/builder.go
+++ b/pkg/server/builder.go
@@ -181,7 +181,7 @@ func (b *Builder) Build(ctx context.Context) (Service, error) {
 	// uses the exact same issuer/client/resource — and therefore the exact same
 	// on-disk credential file — as the proxy client's token source.
 	proxyAuthMeta := buildProxyAuthMetadata(b.cfg)
-	credentials := newCredentialController(b.log, proxyAuthMeta)
+	credentials := newCredentialController(b.log, proxyAuthMeta, b.cfg.Proxy.URL)
 
 	// Create and return the server service.
 	return NewService(