provision.sh deleted the cloud image's link to systemd-resolved's resolv.conf, but systemd's tmpfiles put it back at the next boot. With systemd-resolved off the link led nowhere, NetworkManager won't replace a link it didn't make, and the VM had no DNS, so install.sh couldn't reach archlinux.org. An empty file stops tmpfiles, and NetworkManager fills it. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>