diff --git a/python/deploy.py b/python/deploy.py
index 6ab533e..5dfd46b 100644
--- a/python/deploy.py
+++ b/python/deploy.py
@@ -105,10 +105,12 @@ def container_status():
 
 def deploy_all():
     cfg = load_config()
-    if not cfg.get("nodes"):
+    nodes = cfg.get("nodes", cfg)  # support both {"nodes":{...}} and flat format
+    if not nodes:
         print("No nodes in fw.conf")
         return
-    for name, nc in cfg.items():
+    for name, nc in nodes.items():
+        if not isinstance(nc, dict): continue
         deploy_container(name, nc["token"], nc.get("cloud","EU"),
                         str(nc.get("port","8081")), nc.get("upstream_ip","127.0.0.1"),
                         str(nc.get("upstream_port","80")), nc.get("labels",""),