diff --git a/shared/elevation.js b/shared/elevation.js
index f53c1b9..326c3d1 100644
--- a/shared/elevation.js
+++ b/shared/elevation.js
@@ -1,20 +1,23 @@
-// shared/elevation.js — admin elevation toggle.
+// shared/elevation.js — admin elevation via URL toggle.
 //
-// Sudo-style model: admins behave as normal users by default; clicking
-// the header toggle elevates the session so admin escape hatches (WORM
-// bypass, .zddc edit authority, profile admin scaffolds) start firing.
-// State is carried in a `zddc-elevate=1` cookie that the server reads
-// via handler.ACLMiddleware → zddc.Principal{Elevated}.
+// Sudo-style model: admins behave as normal users by default; elevating
+// the session turns on admin escape hatches (WORM bypass, .zddc edit
+// authority, profile admin scaffolds). State is carried in a
+// `zddc-elevate=1` cookie that the server reads via handler.ACLMiddleware
+// → zddc.Principal{Elevated}.
 //
-// Only renders the toggle when /.profile/access reports the caller has
-// some admin scope — a non-admin sees nothing, which keeps the chrome
-// quiet for the common case. The toggle fades in once access loads so
-// non-admins never even see the affordance flash.
+// Toggle is by URL query param — `?admin=true` to arm, `?admin=false`
+// (or the red banner's "Drop admin" button) to drop — so it's reachable
+// from ANY zddc-server page, not just ones that render a header control.
+// The cookie is the sticky state: it persists across navigation for its
+// Max-Age window, so the param need not stay in the URL (we strip it).
+// Arming is gated on /.profile/access `can_elevate`, so only real admins
+// can set it; a non-admin's ?admin=true is a silent no-op.
 //
-// Click flow: set/clear the cookie, then reload the page so the server
-// sees the new state on the next render. The reload is intentional —
-// admin scaffolds in tool HTML are server-rendered for some tools, so
-// a soft state flip on the client alone wouldn't reach those.
+// Applying the cookie reloads to the cleaned URL so the server re-renders
+// under the new state (admin scaffolds in some tool HTML are server-
+// rendered, so a client-only flip wouldn't reach them). The red viewport
+// border + banner (applyArmedChrome) reflect the cookie on every load.
 (function () {
     'use strict';
 
@@ -59,22 +62,65 @@
         }
     }
 
-    function render(host, elevated) {
-        host.classList.remove('hidden');
-        host.innerHTML =
-            '<input type="checkbox" id="elevation-checkbox"'
-            + (elevated ? ' checked' : '') + '>'
-            + '<label for="elevation-checkbox" class="elevation-toggle__label">'
-            + 'Admin</label>';
-        var cb = host.querySelector('#elevation-checkbox');
-        cb.addEventListener('change', function () {
-            setElevated(cb.checked);
-            // Hard reload so server-rendered admin surfaces (profile
-            // page scaffolds, hidden-entry listings) catch up. URL
-            // and scroll state are preserved by the browser's normal
-            // back-forward cache rules.
-            window.location.reload();
-        });
+    // ── URL toggle: ?admin=true | ?admin=false (typeable anywhere) ──────
+    //
+    // Admin mode is toggled via a URL query param rather than an on-screen
+    // checkbox, so it's reachable from any zddc-server page. The param only
+    // SETS the cookie; the cookie is the sticky state (it persists across
+    // navigation for its Max-Age window and is what the server reads), so
+    // there's no need to keep ?admin= in the URL once applied.
+
+    // adminParam returns true/false for a recognised ?admin= value, or null
+    // when absent / unrecognised (ignored).
+    function adminParam() {
+        try {
+            var v = new URLSearchParams(window.location.search).get('admin');
+            if (v === null) return null;
+            v = v.toLowerCase();
+            if (v === 'true' || v === '1' || v === 'on' || v === 'yes') return true;
+            if (v === 'false' || v === '0' || v === 'off' || v === 'no') return false;
+            return null;
+        } catch (_e) { return null; }
+    }
+
+    // urlWithoutAdmin returns the current URL with the admin param stripped
+    // (other params + hash preserved) — what we navigate/replace to so the
+    // dirty param isn't bookmarked and Back doesn't re-trigger it.
+    function urlWithoutAdmin() {
+        var u = new URL(window.location.href);
+        u.searchParams.delete('admin');
+        var qs = u.searchParams.toString();
+        return u.pathname + (qs ? '?' + qs : '') + u.hash;
+    }
+
+    // handleAdminParam applies a ?admin= request. Returns true when a
+    // navigation (reload) is underway so the caller can stop. Enabling is
+    // gated on can_elevate — a non-admin who types ?admin=true just gets
+    // the param stripped, never a misleading red border. Disabling is open
+    // (anyone may drop a cookie they somehow hold).
+    async function handleAdminParam() {
+        var want = adminParam();
+        if (want === null) return false;
+        var clean = urlWithoutAdmin();
+        if (want === isElevated()) {
+            // Already in the requested state — just clean the URL, no reload.
+            try { history.replaceState(history.state, '', clean); } catch (_e) {}
+            return false;
+        }
+        if (want === true) {
+            var access = await fetchAccess();
+            if (!access || !access.can_elevate) {
+                try { history.replaceState(history.state, '', clean); } catch (_e) {}
+                return false;
+            }
+            setElevated(true);
+        } else {
+            setElevated(false);
+        }
+        // Navigate to the clean URL (a real load, so the server re-renders
+        // under the new cookie) and replace history so Back is safe.
+        window.location.replace(clean);
+        return true;
     }
 
     // Page-wide affordances when elevation is active. The toggle alone
@@ -116,26 +162,16 @@
     }
 
     async function init() {
-        // Body chrome applies on every page load whether or not the
-        // header has a toggle slot — the banner needs to surface in
-        // tools / pages that don't host the toggle (e.g. iframed
-        // classifier inside browse's grid mode), so the user can't
-        // accidentally write through an elevated context elsewhere.
+        // Apply (or tear down) the red border + banner from the cookie on
+        // every page load — admin mode is toggled by URL, but the armed
+        // chrome must surface everywhere so the user can't accidentally
+        // write through an elevated context on a page they didn't toggle.
         applyArmedChrome(isElevated());
 
-        var host = document.getElementById('elevation-toggle');
-        if (!host) return; // tool doesn't include the slot yet — no-op
-        var access = await fetchAccess();
-        if (!access) return; // anonymous / endpoint missing — no-op
-        // Surface ONLY for users who have admin authority somewhere.
-        // /.profile/access ships `can_elevate` as an elevation-
-        // INDEPENDENT signal — true for any user named in any admin
-        // list, regardless of current cookie state. The other flags
-        // (is_super_admin, has_any_admin_scope) reflect EFFECTIVE
-        // authority and would be false for an un-elevated admin
-        // who hasn't toggled yet — so we can't gate on those.
-        if (!access.can_elevate) return;
-        render(host, isElevated());
+        // Honour ?admin=true|false typed into any zddc-server URL. There's
+        // no on-screen toggle anymore — the URL is the enable path and the
+        // red banner's "Drop admin" button is the one-click disable.
+        await handleAdminParam();
     }
 
     if (document.readyState === 'loading') {