diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index d243047b75..2e725b1ba4 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -21,6 +21,8 @@
 
 ### 🐛 Bug Fixes
 
+- **fix(sse):** the reasoning-token buffer no longer inflates **probe-sized `max_tokens`** ([#6274](https://github.com/diegosouzapw/OmniRoute/issues/6274)) — Claude Code's `/model` capability check sends `max_tokens: 1`, but for a thinking-capable model with a large output cap (e.g. `glm-5.2`) the #3587 headroom heuristic (`max(current + 1000, ceil(current * 1.5))`) rewrote it to `1001` and forwarded that upstream, wasting tokens on a request that was never a genuine reasoning budget. `resolveReasoningBufferedMaxTokens()` (`open-sse/services/reasoningTokenBuffer.ts`) now short-circuits and returns the caller's value verbatim when it is below the new `REASONING_BUFFER_MIN_TRIGGER` (256) threshold — a tiny explicit limit is a probe, not a reasoning request. Real budgets still receive the #3587 headroom unchanged, and the guard runs after the existing capability checks so unknown / non-reasoning models keep returning `null`. Regression guard: `tests/unit/reasoning-token-buffer-6274.test.ts`. (thanks @brightfiscalband)
+
 - **fix(cli):** `omniroute reset-password` now works as a real subcommand, and password resets over piped (non-TTY) stdin actually apply ([#6261](https://github.com/diegosouzapw/OmniRoute/issues/6261), [#6258](https://github.com/diegosouzapw/OmniRoute/issues/6258)). Two coupled defects: (1) **#6261** — `bin/omniroute.mjs` routed everything through Commander with only two pre-Commander bypasses (`--mcp`, `reset-encrypted-columns`), so `omniroute reset-password` was rejected as an unknown command; only the separate `omniroute-reset-password` bin worked, while the docs falsely advertised the subcommand (incl. a bogus "legacy alias still works"). A pre-Commander bypass mirroring `reset-encrypted-columns` now dynamically imports `bin/reset-password.mjs` (which self-executes) before Commander parses; the three doc lines were corrected. (2) **#6258** — `bin/reset-password.mjs` issued two sequential `rl.question` prompts; under piped stdin the second read never settled at EOF, so `main()` never reached `resetManagementPassword` and the reset was a silent no-op (both prompts printed, no success, password unchanged). The CLI now detects non-TTY stdin and reads it once (first line = password, second line = confirm if present, else reused), adds a `--password-stdin` flag (entire stdin is the password, no confirmation), and exits `0` explicitly so the success line always flushes; interactive TTY behavior is unchanged. Regression guard: `tests/unit/reset-password-cli-6261-6258.test.ts` (3). (thanks @chirag127)
 
 - **fix(db):** the mass-migration **safety abort** now tells the operator how to bypass it and stops flooding the log ([#6260](https://github.com/diegosouzapw/OmniRoute/issues/6260)) — after restoring a backup that wiped the migration tracking table, `runMigrations()` threw the abort on every downstream `ensureDbInitialized()`, re-logging the full banner 11+ times, and the message never mentioned the existing `OMNIROUTE_MAX_PENDING_MIGRATIONS` escape hatch. The abort text now appends a bypass hint (set `OMNIROUTE_MAX_PENDING_MIGRATIONS=0` in `server.env` / `DATA_DIR/.env`), and a new `MigrationSafetyAbortError` is memoized so repeated calls in the same process throw the same instance and emit a single concise line instead of the full cascade. Regression guard: `tests/unit/migration-safety-abort-6260.test.ts`. (thanks @chirag127)
diff --git a/open-sse/services/reasoningTokenBuffer.ts b/open-sse/services/reasoningTokenBuffer.ts
index 65d021e7f5..bbb67da335 100644
--- a/open-sse/services/reasoningTokenBuffer.ts
+++ b/open-sse/services/reasoningTokenBuffer.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,14 @@
 import { getResolvedModelCapabilities } from "../../src/lib/modelCapabilities.ts";
 
+/**
+ * Below this caller-supplied `max_tokens`, the request is treated as a probe
+ * (e.g. Claude Code's `/model` capability check sends `max_tokens: 1`) rather
+ * than a genuine reasoning budget, so no headroom is added. Keeping it a named
+ * constant makes the threshold easy to tune. See issue #6274 (probe inflated to
+ * 1001 upstream) vs. issue #3587 (headroom for real reasoning budgets).
+ */
+export const REASONING_BUFFER_MIN_TRIGGER = 256;
+
 export function toPositiveInteger(value: unknown): number | null {
   const numericValue =
     typeof value === "number"
@@ -30,6 +39,10 @@ export function resolveReasoningBufferedMaxTokens(
   if (current > maxOutputTokens) return maxOutputTokens;
   if (current === maxOutputTokens) return current;
 
+  // Issue #6274: a tiny explicit budget is a capability probe, not a reasoning
+  // request. Respect it verbatim instead of inflating (e.g. 1 -> 1001).
+  if (current < REASONING_BUFFER_MIN_TRIGGER) return current;
+
   const buffered = Math.max(current + 1000, Math.ceil(current * 1.5));
   if (buffered > maxOutputTokens) return current;
 
diff --git a/tests/unit/combo-routing-engine.test.ts b/tests/unit/combo-routing-engine.test.ts
index fc0ce964b6..7ea5271345 100644
--- a/tests/unit/combo-routing-engine.test.ts
+++ b/tests/unit/combo-routing-engine.test.ts
@@ -2977,8 +2977,8 @@ test("#3587 reasoning buffer is disabled without explicit model capability data"
     "reasoning metadata without an explicit output cap is not safe enough to inflate"
   );
   assert.equal(
-    resolveReasoningBufferedMaxTokens("openai/default-cap-reasoning", 100),
-    1100,
+    resolveReasoningBufferedMaxTokens("openai/default-cap-reasoning", 300),
+    1300,
     "explicit default-sized caps are treated as real capability data"
   );
 });
diff --git a/tests/unit/reasoning-token-buffer-6274.test.ts b/tests/unit/reasoning-token-buffer-6274.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..95403ee45d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/unit/reasoning-token-buffer-6274.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,93 @@
+/**
+ * #6274 — the reasoning-token buffer must not inflate probe-sized max_tokens.
+ *
+ * Claude Code's `/model` capability check sends `max_tokens: 1`; for a thinking-
+ * capable model with a large output cap (e.g. glm-5.2) the #3587 headroom heuristic
+ * (`max(current + 1000, ceil(current * 1.5))`) rewrote it to 1001 and forwarded that
+ * upstream. A tiny explicit budget below REASONING_BUFFER_MIN_TRIGGER (256) is a
+ * probe and must pass through verbatim; genuine budgets keep the #3587 headroom.
+ *
+ * Kept standalone against the pure `resolveReasoningBufferedMaxTokens` rather than
+ * extending the frozen `combo-routing-engine.test.ts` god-file.
+ */
+import test from "node:test";
+import assert from "node:assert/strict";
+import fs from "node:fs";
+import os from "node:os";
+import path from "node:path";
+
+const TEST_DATA_DIR = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), "omniroute-reasoning-buffer-"));
+process.env.DATA_DIR = TEST_DATA_DIR;
+
+const core = await import("../../src/lib/db/core.ts");
+const { saveModelsDevCapabilities, clearModelsDevCapabilities } = await import(
+  "../../src/lib/modelsDevSync.ts"
+);
+const { resolveReasoningBufferedMaxTokens, REASONING_BUFFER_MIN_TRIGGER } = await import(
+  "../../open-sse/services/reasoningTokenBuffer.ts"
+);
+
+function capabilityEntry(limitContext: unknown, overrides: Record<string, unknown> = {}) {
+  return {
+    tool_call: true,
+    reasoning: false,
+    attachment: false,
+    structured_output: true,
+    temperature: true,
+    modalities_input: JSON.stringify(["text"]),
+    modalities_output: JSON.stringify(["text"]),
+    knowledge_cutoff: null,
+    release_date: null,
+    last_updated: null,
+    status: null,
+    family: null,
+    open_weights: false,
+    limit_context: limitContext,
+    limit_input: limitContext,
+    limit_output: 4096,
+    interleaved_field: null,
+    ...overrides,
+  };
+}
+
+test.before(() => {
+  // A thinking-capable model with a large output cap: the #3587 guards all pass.
+  saveModelsDevCapabilities({
+    zhipu: {
+      "glm-5.2": capabilityEntry(200000, { reasoning: true, limit_output: 65536 }),
+    },
+  });
+});
+
+test.after(() => {
+  clearModelsDevCapabilities();
+  core.resetDbInstance();
+  fs.rmSync(TEST_DATA_DIR, { recursive: true, force: true });
+});
+
+test("#6274 reasoning buffer does not inflate probe-sized max_tokens", () => {
+  // The Claude-Code `/model` probe (max_tokens: 1) must pass through (was 1001).
+  assert.equal(
+    resolveReasoningBufferedMaxTokens("zhipu/glm-5.2", 1),
+    1,
+    "probe-sized max_tokens=1 must not be inflated"
+  );
+  // Just below the trigger threshold is still treated as a probe.
+  assert.equal(
+    resolveReasoningBufferedMaxTokens("zhipu/glm-5.2", REASONING_BUFFER_MIN_TRIGGER - 1),
+    REASONING_BUFFER_MIN_TRIGGER - 1,
+    "budgets below REASONING_BUFFER_MIN_TRIGGER are respected verbatim"
+  );
+  // At the threshold, headroom resumes: max(256 + 1000, ceil(256 * 1.5)) = 1256.
+  assert.equal(
+    resolveReasoningBufferedMaxTokens("zhipu/glm-5.2", REASONING_BUFFER_MIN_TRIGGER),
+    1256,
+    "budgets at the threshold receive reasoning headroom"
+  );
+  // A realistic reasoning budget still gets buffered: max(32000 + 1000, 48000) = 48000.
+  assert.equal(
+    resolveReasoningBufferedMaxTokens("zhipu/glm-5.2", 32000),
+    48000,
+    "genuine reasoning budgets keep the #3587 headroom"
+  );
+});