diff --git a/demo/qemu-args.sh b/demo/qemu-args.sh
index cedd1c0b..19474994 100644
--- a/demo/qemu-args.sh
+++ b/demo/qemu-args.sh
@@ -3,8 +3,10 @@
 # A session resumes a machine saved by make-snapshot.sh, and QEMU can resume a saved machine only
 # into the same machine: the same board, CPU, memory, firmware and devices. Both scripts build the
 # command line here, so they cannot drift apart. It is the machine `make -f kernel/Makefile
-# ARCH=amd64 qemu` boots (q35, TCG, 1 GiB, OVMF, the ISO as a CD), less what a visitor must not
-# have: no network device, no Artemis disk, no display, and QEMU's seccomp sandbox on.
+# ARCH=amd64 qemu` boots (q35, TCG, OVMF, the ISO as a CD) -- in 384 MiB, not its 1 GiB: v4 boots
+# to Zuse's prompt from 256 MiB, refuses at 128 ("no memory for the block chain"), measured
+# 2026-11-07 (#116) -- less what a visitor must not have: no network device, no Artemis disk, no
+# display, and QEMU's seccomp sandbox on.
 #
 #   demo_qemu_args <state-dir> <vars.fd>   -> fills the array QEMU_ARGS
 #
@@ -18,7 +20,7 @@ demo_qemu_args() {
     QEMU_ARGS=(
         -machine q35,accel=tcg
         -cpu qemu64,+rdrand
-        -m 1024
+        -m 384                                   # v4 boots from 256 MiB; 384 leaves room (#116)
         -smp 1
         -drive "if=pflash,format=raw,readonly=on,file=$OVMF_CODE"
         -drive "if=pflash,format=raw,file=$vars"
diff --git a/demo/starshipos-demo.service b/demo/starshipos-demo.service
index 2285a281..08ca318a 100644
--- a/demo/starshipos-demo.service
+++ b/demo/starshipos-demo.service
@@ -13,8 +13,13 @@ User=starshipos-demo
 Group=starshipos-demo
 Environment=DEMO_STATE=/var/lib/starshipos-demo
 Environment=DEMO_SESSION_LIMIT=1800
-# -m: sessions at once -- each a QEMU of about 1 GiB and most of a core (issue #116 measures it)
-ExecStart=/usr/bin/ttyd --port 7681 --interface lo --writable --max-clients 3 \
+Environment=DEMO_MAX_GUESTS=2
+# the guests' slot locks (start-session.sh): /run/starshipos-demo, made for this user, gone at stop
+RuntimeDirectory=starshipos-demo
+# --max-clients: the guests and a few more, so a visitor over the limit reaches the busy message
+# instead of a refused connection; still a cap on open connections
+# each guest a QEMU of 384 MiB and most of a core (demo/qemu-args.sh; #116)
+ExecStart=/usr/bin/ttyd --port 7681 --interface lo --writable --max-clients 6 \
     --client-option titleFixed=StarshipOS --client-option disableLeaveAlert=true \
     /opt/starshipos-demo/demo/start-session.sh
 Restart=on-failure
diff --git a/demo/start-session.sh b/demo/start-session.sh
index 09d4286f..b42340d8 100755
--- a/demo/start-session.sh
+++ b/demo/start-session.sh
@@ -12,8 +12,29 @@ here=$(cd "$(dirname "$0")" && pwd)
 . "$here/qemu-args.sh"
 dir=${1:-${DEMO_STATE:-/var/lib/starshipos-demo}}
 limit=${DEMO_SESSION_LIMIT:-1800}               # seconds a session may last
+guests=${DEMO_MAX_GUESTS:-2}                     # machines at once: 384 MiB each (qemu-args.sh, #116)
+slots=${DEMO_SLOTS:-/run/starshipos-demo}        # a lock file per machine
 
 [ -f "$dir/state" ] || { echo "The demo is not set up yet: no saved machine in $dir." >&2; exit 1; }
+
+# One of $guests slots, or a busy message (Captain Bob, 2026-11-07: "Limit guests and have a Busy,
+# try back in a few minutes"). A slot is a lock this script holds for the session's life (flock -n:
+# two visitors cannot both take the last one); it goes when the script does, however it ends. The
+# machine's processes are started without the lock's descriptor ({slot}>&-), so it is this
+# script's alone.
+mkdir -p "$slots"
+slot=
+for i in $(seq 1 "$guests"); do
+    exec {fd}>"$slots/slot-$i.lock"
+    if flock -n "$fd"; then slot=$fd; break; fi
+    exec {fd}>&-
+done
+if [ -z "$slot" ]; then
+    printf '\r\nEvery StarshipOS machine is busy right now (%d at once on this small server).\r\n' "$guests"
+    printf 'Try back in a few minutes.\r\n'
+    sleep 20
+    exit 0
+fi
 tmp=$(mktemp -d "${TMPDIR:-/tmp}/starshipos-session.XXXXXX")
 trap 'rm -rf "$tmp"' EXIT
 cp "$dir/vars.fd" "$tmp/vars.fd"
@@ -28,13 +49,13 @@ printf 'Try:  3 4 + .      : SQUARE DUP * ;  7 SQUARE .\r\n\r\n'
 qemu-system-x86_64 "${QEMU_ARGS[@]}" \
     -chardev "socket,id=con,path=$tmp/con.sock,server=on,wait=off" -serial chardev:con \
     -qmp "unix:$tmp/qmp.sock,server=on,wait=off" -monitor none \
-    -incoming "file:$dir/state" </dev/null &
+    -incoming "file:$dir/state" </dev/null {slot}>&- &
 qemu=$!
-( sleep "$limit"; kill "$qemu" 2>/dev/null ) &
+( sleep "$limit"; kill "$qemu" 2>/dev/null ) {slot}>&- &
 timer=$!
 # The bridge is a tracked child too: bash runs a trap only once its foreground command returns,
 # so a hang-up would otherwise wait on the bridge. `wait` returns to the trap at once.
-python3 -I "$here/console.py" "$tmp/qmp.sock" "$tmp/con.sock" 0<&0 &
+python3 -I "$here/console.py" "$tmp/qmp.sock" "$tmp/con.sock" 0<&0 {slot}>&- &
 bridge=$!
 trap 'kill "$bridge" "$qemu" "$timer" 2>/dev/null; rm -rf "$tmp"' EXIT
 trap 'exit 0' HUP TERM INT