diff --git a/apps/modeling-commons-frontend/nuxt.config.ts b/apps/modeling-commons-frontend/nuxt.config.ts
index 16d28554..9290e55d 100644
--- a/apps/modeling-commons-frontend/nuxt.config.ts
+++ b/apps/modeling-commons-frontend/nuxt.config.ts
@@ -164,7 +164,15 @@ export default defineNuxtConfig({
     experimental: { nativeSqlite: true },
     database: {
       type: "sqlite",
-      filename: ":memory:",
+      // Not ":memory:". Nuxt Content rewrites that filename to `{ name: "memory" }`,
+      // and db0's connectors only take their in-memory branch when the name is
+      // still ":memory:", so it silently becomes a file at `./.data/memory.sqlite`.
+      // Relative to the process CWD, which is a root-owned WORKDIR in the image
+      // while the process runs unprivileged, so the mkdir fails and every content
+      // query throws. Needs an absolute path that is writable both in the
+      // container and on a dev machine running the e2e suite in server mode.
+      // -- Omar Ibrahim, Aug 13 26
+      filename: "/tmp/contents.sqlite",
     },
   },
 
diff --git a/apps/modeling-commons-frontend/tests/e2e/smoke.test.ts b/apps/modeling-commons-frontend/tests/e2e/smoke.test.ts
index 5b370b67..8bd228c4 100644
--- a/apps/modeling-commons-frontend/tests/e2e/smoke.test.ts
+++ b/apps/modeling-commons-frontend/tests/e2e/smoke.test.ts
@@ -16,9 +16,9 @@ const PAGES: Array<{ path: string; identity: RegExp }> = [
   { path: "/login", identity: /Log In|Welcome back/i },
   { path: "/signup", identity: /Sign Up/i },
   { path: "/reset-password", identity: /Reset password/i },
-  // { path: "/privacy", identity: /Privacy Policy/i },
-  // { path: "/terms-of-service", identity: /Terms of Service/i },
-  // { path: "/cookies", identity: /Cookie Policy/i },
+  { path: "/privacy", identity: /Privacy Policy/i },
+  { path: "/terms-of-service", identity: /Terms of Service/i },
+  { path: "/cookies", identity: /Cookie Policy/i },
 ];
 
 describe("smoke: public pages", async () => {