diff --git a/codev/projects/bugfix-1199-afx-status-recommends-afx-towe/status.yaml b/codev/projects/bugfix-1199-afx-status-recommends-afx-towe/status.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..e9f4a309f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/codev/projects/bugfix-1199-afx-status-recommends-afx-towe/status.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,22 @@
+id: bugfix-1199
+title: afx-status-recommends-afx-towe
+protocol: bugfix
+phase: verified
+plan_phases: []
+current_plan_phase: null
+gates:
+  pr:
+    status: approved
+    requested_at: '2026-07-18T21:12:37.974Z'
+    approved_at: '2026-07-18T21:16:42.226Z'
+iteration: 1
+build_complete: false
+history: []
+started_at: '2026-07-18T09:04:23.549Z'
+updated_at: '2026-07-18T21:17:09.868Z'
+pr_history:
+  - phase: pr
+    pr_number: 1200
+    branch: builder/bugfix-1199
+    created_at: '2026-07-18T09:16:31.778Z'
+pr_ready_for_human: false
diff --git a/codev/state/bugfix-1199_thread.md b/codev/state/bugfix-1199_thread.md
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..b97c726fd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/codev/state/bugfix-1199_thread.md
@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+# Bugfix #1199 Thread
+
+## Investigate
+
+- Confirmed no existing PR or prior implementation for issue #1199.
+- Reproduced the bug against the running Tower from a temporary, unregistered Codev workspace: `status()` reported `Workspace: not active in tower` and recommended `afx tower start`.
+- Root cause: the Tower-running/unregistered-workspace branch in `packages/codev/src/agent-farm/commands/status.ts` contains a stale hard-coded `afx tower start` recommendation. The separate Tower-down branch correctly uses `afx tower start` to start the daemon.
+- Fix scope is BUGFIX-appropriate: one production string plus focused unit coverage for the Tower-running/unregistered and Tower-down branches. No architectural changes are needed.
+
+## Fix
+
+- Changed only the unregistered-workspace recommendation to `afx workspace start`.
+- Added deterministic unit coverage for both required branches and their distinct recommendations in `spec-1057-status-owner.test.ts`.
+- Focused regression suite passed: 17/17 tests.
+- Porch build and full test checks passed. The shared environment's `/tmp/.git` marker and global `~/.codev/config.json` initially contaminated unrelated non-hermetic tests; isolating `TMPDIR` and `HOME` made the unchanged baseline tests pass without out-of-scope edits.
+
+## PR
+
+- Published the branch through the contributor fork and opened upstream PR #1200.
+- CMAP completed with all three required verdicts: Gemini `APPROVE` (high confidence), Codex `APPROVE` (high confidence), and Claude `APPROVE` (high confidence).
+- The Claude lane initially hit its CLI quota, then succeeded when retried after the quota window reset. No reviewer requested changes.
diff --git a/packages/codev/src/agent-farm/__tests__/spec-1057-status-owner.test.ts b/packages/codev/src/agent-farm/__tests__/spec-1057-status-owner.test.ts
index 14dccb75a..9295067d8 100644
--- a/packages/codev/src/agent-farm/__tests__/spec-1057-status-owner.test.ts
+++ b/packages/codev/src/agent-farm/__tests__/spec-1057-status-owner.test.ts
@@ -323,3 +323,46 @@ describe('afx status — Tower-running human path (Spec 1057)', () => {
     expect(rows.map((r) => r[0])).toEqual(['builder-feedback-1']);
   });
 });
+
+// ============================================================================
+// Startup recommendations (Bugfix #1199)
+// ============================================================================
+
+describe('afx status — startup recommendations', () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    vi.clearAllMocks();
+    mockLoadState.mockReturnValue({
+      architect: null,
+      architects: [],
+      builders: [],
+      utils: [],
+      annotations: [],
+    });
+  });
+
+  it('recommends workspace start when Tower is running but the workspace is unregistered', async () => {
+    mockIsRunning.mockResolvedValue(true);
+    mockGetHealth.mockResolvedValue({
+      uptime: 100,
+      activeWorkspaces: 1,
+      memoryUsage: 1024 * 1024,
+    });
+    mockGetWorkspaceStatus.mockResolvedValue(null);
+
+    await status();
+
+    const info = mockLoggerInfo.mock.calls.map((c) => stripAnsi(String(c[0])));
+    expect(info).toContain(`Run 'afx workspace start' to activate this workspace`);
+    expect(info).not.toContain(`Run 'afx tower start' to activate this workspace`);
+  });
+
+  it('continues to recommend tower start when Tower is not running', async () => {
+    mockIsRunning.mockResolvedValue(false);
+
+    await status();
+
+    const info = mockLoggerInfo.mock.calls.map((c) => stripAnsi(String(c[0])));
+    expect(info).toContain(`Run 'afx tower start' to start the tower daemon`);
+    expect(info).not.toContain(`Run 'afx workspace start' to start the tower daemon`);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/packages/codev/src/agent-farm/commands/status.ts b/packages/codev/src/agent-farm/commands/status.ts
index 29309326f..ebb003fae 100644
--- a/packages/codev/src/agent-farm/commands/status.ts
+++ b/packages/codev/src/agent-farm/commands/status.ts
@@ -265,7 +265,7 @@ export async function status(options: StatusOptions = {}): Promise<void> {
 
     // Workspace not found in tower, show "not active"
     logger.kv('Workspace', chalk.gray('not active in tower'));
-    logger.info(`Run 'afx tower start' to activate this workspace`);
+    logger.info(`Run 'afx workspace start' to activate this workspace`);
     return;
   }