diff --git a/client/embed/embed.go b/client/embed/embed.go
index 6b1d69935..32e567be4 100644
--- a/client/embed/embed.go
+++ b/client/embed/embed.go
@@ -49,6 +49,11 @@ type PeerConnStatus = peer.ConnStatus
 
 // PeerState is the status recorder's view of one remote peer, as carried in
 // the Peers field of the value returned by Status and StatusSnapshot.
+//
+// It is a read-only snapshot. The scalar fields are copied under the
+// recorder's lock and are safe to read, but the value still shares its mutex
+// and route map with the recorder, so callers must not mutate it or call its
+// route methods.
 type PeerState = peer.State
 
 // Client manages a netbird embedded client instance.
diff --git a/client/embed/embed_test.go b/client/embed/embed_test.go
index 0f135efe8..169d131d6 100644
--- a/client/embed/embed_test.go
+++ b/client/embed/embed_test.go
@@ -233,9 +233,16 @@ func TestClientSyncResponsePersistence(t *testing.T) {
 				}
 			})
 
+			// Start returns before the first sync response necessarily arrives, so
+			// wait for the engine to apply one. Without this the assertion below
+			// could pass on a client that simply has not synced yet.
+			require.Eventually(t, func() bool {
+				return client.StatusSnapshot().LocalPeerState.IP != ""
+			}, 30*time.Second, 200*time.Millisecond, "the initial management sync should be applied")
+
 			if !tc.persisted {
 				_, err := client.GetLatestSyncResponse()
-				require.Error(t, err, "no sync response may be retained when persistence is disabled")
+				require.ErrorContains(t, err, "persistence is disabled", "the sync response must be dropped, not merely unavailable")
 				return
 			}