diff --git a/docs/systems/federation.md b/docs/systems/federation.md
index de421744..7cac2f84 100644
--- a/docs/systems/federation.md
+++ b/docs/systems/federation.md
@@ -107,7 +107,7 @@ Both instances store the **same** HMAC secret. The initiating instance generates
 
 ### PEER_UNREACHABLE_THRESHOLD
 
-Defined in `federationWorker.ts:45` as `10`. After 10 consecutive delivery failures for a peer, the worker sets `status = 'unreachable'`. The health check worker (1h interval) pings `GET /api/instance/info` on unreachable peers and reverts to `active` on success.
+Defined in `federationWorker.ts:47` as `10`. After 10 consecutive delivery failures for a peer, the worker sets `status = 'unreachable'`. The health check worker (15-minute interval, matching `ROTATION_GRACE_PERIOD_MS`) pings `GET /api/instance/info` on unreachable peers and reverts to `active` on success.
 
 ### Auto-Peering
 
@@ -1121,7 +1121,7 @@ All workers are started by `startFederationWorkers()` on server boot and stopped
 |--------|----------|-------|---------|--------|
 | Outbox delivery | 10s | 50 | 30s | `processOutboxTick` |
 | File download | 30s | 5 | 60s | `processFileQueueTick` |
-| Health check | 1h | all unreachable | 10s | `processHealthCheckTick` |
+| Health check | 15min | all unreachable | 10s | `processHealthCheckTick` |
 | Janitor | 1h | -- | -- | `runFederationJanitor` (sync) |
 | Initial sync | Once at startup | -- | 30s per page | `runInitialSyncForNewPeers` |
 
diff --git a/packages/server/src/utils/federationWorker.ts b/packages/server/src/utils/federationWorker.ts
index 92f26856..d444aa53 100644
--- a/packages/server/src/utils/federationWorker.ts
+++ b/packages/server/src/utils/federationWorker.ts
@@ -22,7 +22,10 @@ import { Readable } from 'node:stream';
 
 const OUTBOX_INTERVAL_MS = 1_000;         // 1 second (idle polls are no-ops)
 const FILE_QUEUE_INTERVAL_MS = 30_000;    // 30 seconds
-const HEALTH_CHECK_INTERVAL_MS = 3_600_000; // 1 hour
+// Matches ROTATION_GRACE_PERIOD_MS: guarantees a finalization tick fires within
+// one grace window on each side, so rotation desync can't outlast the window
+// and trip spurious auth failures on the other peer.
+const HEALTH_CHECK_INTERVAL_MS = 15 * 60 * 1000; // 15 minutes
 const JANITOR_INTERVAL_MS = 3_600_000;     // 1 hour
 
 const OUTBOX_BATCH_LIMIT = 50;