diff --git a/app/Services/Dns/HttpHetznerDnsClient.php b/app/Services/Dns/HttpHetznerDnsClient.php
index 21506f9..c9d7807 100644
--- a/app/Services/Dns/HttpHetznerDnsClient.php
+++ b/app/Services/Dns/HttpHetznerDnsClient.php
@@ -50,6 +50,15 @@ class HttpHetznerDnsClient implements HetznerDnsClient
 
     public function deleteRecord(string $recordId): void
     {
-        $this->http()->delete("/records/{$recordId}")->throw();
+        $response = $this->http()->delete("/records/{$recordId}");
+
+        // A record that is already gone is the outcome we wanted. Without this,
+        // a lost response or a retry after a later failure turns every further
+        // attempt into a 404 — and a host that can then never be purged.
+        if ($response->notFound()) {
+            return;
+        }
+
+        $response->throw();
     }
 }
diff --git a/tests/Feature/Provisioning/ServicesTest.php b/tests/Feature/Provisioning/ServicesTest.php
index 3c0e67a..70d8883 100644
--- a/tests/Feature/Provisioning/ServicesTest.php
+++ b/tests/Feature/Provisioning/ServicesTest.php
@@ -103,3 +103,13 @@ it('reports node capacity for a host (FakeProxmoxClient)', function () {
         ->and($client->nodeStatus('pve')['memory']['total'])->toBeGreaterThan(0)
         ->and($client->nodeStorage('pve')[0]['total'])->toBeGreaterThan(0);
 });
+
+it('treats an already-deleted DNS record as done', function () {
+    Illuminate\Support\Facades\Http::fake([
+        '*' => Illuminate\Support\Facades\Http::response(['error' => 'not found'], 404),
+    ]);
+
+    // A lost response, or a retry after a later step failed, must not make the
+    // record impossible to clean up — and its host impossible to purge.
+    (new App\Services\Dns\HttpHetznerDnsClient)->deleteRecord('rec-123');
+})->throwsNoExceptions();