diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 509cf80..853f8d9 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -2,4 +2,5 @@
 *.bak
 *.bak2
 *.db
+*.txt
 rproxy
diff --git a/rproxy.c b/rproxy.c
index 352648c..f8d85ed 100644
--- a/rproxy.c
+++ b/rproxy.c
@@ -1976,12 +1976,29 @@ static int do_write(connection_t *conn) {
 void handle_client_read(connection_t *conn) {
     int bytes_read = do_read(conn);
     if (bytes_read < 0 && errno != EAGAIN && errno != EWOULDBLOCK) {
+        log_debug("[ROUTING] Closing connection fd=%d due to read error", conn->fd);
         close_connection(conn->fd);
         return;
     }
 
     buffer_t *buf = &conn->read_buf;
     
+    log_info("[ROUTING-DEBUG] handle_client_read fd=%d, state=%d, has_pair=%d, bytes_available=%zu, bytes_read=%d",
+              conn->fd, conn->state, conn->pair ? 1 : 0, buffer_available_read(buf), bytes_read);
+    
+    // CRITICAL FIX: Always reset to reading headers if we're not actively forwarding
+    // This ensures internal routes are always checked first
+    if (conn->state == CLIENT_STATE_FORWARDING && conn->pair == NULL) {
+        log_info("[ROUTING-FIX] Resetting orphaned forwarding state to READING_HEADERS for fd=%d", conn->fd);
+        conn->state = CLIENT_STATE_READING_HEADERS;
+    }
+    
+    // Don't process new requests while actively forwarding
+    if (conn->state == CLIENT_STATE_FORWARDING && conn->pair != NULL) {
+        log_info("[ROUTING-DEBUG] Skipping request processing - actively forwarding for fd=%d", conn->fd);
+        return;
+    }
+    
     // Process all complete requests in the buffer (for pipelining)
     while (buffer_available_read(buf) > 0) {
         char *data_start = buf->data + buf->head;
@@ -2008,6 +2025,10 @@ void handle_client_read(connection_t *conn) {
             return;
         }
 
+        log_info("[ROUTING-DEBUG] Parsed request fd=%d: %s %s, Host: %s, Content-Length: %ld",
+                  conn->fd, conn->request.method, conn->request.uri, conn->request.host,
+                  conn->request.content_length);
+
         // Calculate total request size including body
         long long body_len = (conn->request.content_length > 0) ? conn->request.content_length : 0;
         size_t total_request_len = headers_len + body_len;
@@ -2021,9 +2042,21 @@ void handle_client_read(connection_t *conn) {
         clock_gettime(CLOCK_MONOTONIC, &ts);
         conn->request_start_time = ts.tv_sec + ts.tv_nsec / 1e9;
         
-        // Handle internal routes
+        // CRITICAL: Always check internal routes first, regardless of connection state
+        log_info("[ROUTING-CHECK] Checking if request is internal: method=%s, uri=%s",
+                 conn->request.method, conn->request.uri);
+        
         if (strcmp(conn->request.method, "GET") == 0) {
             if (strncmp(conn->request.uri, "/dashboard", 10) == 0) {
+                log_info("[ROUTING-INTERNAL] *** DASHBOARD REQUEST DETECTED *** fd=%d", conn->fd);
+                
+                // Clean up any existing upstream connection
+                if (conn->pair) {
+                    log_debug("[ROUTING] Closing existing upstream fd=%d before serving internal", conn->pair->fd);
+                    close_connection(conn->pair->fd);
+                    conn->pair = NULL;
+                }
+                
                 conn->state = CLIENT_STATE_SERVING_INTERNAL;
                 serve_dashboard(conn);
                 buffer_consume(buf, total_request_len);
@@ -2035,6 +2068,15 @@ void handle_client_read(connection_t *conn) {
                 continue;
             }
             if (strncmp(conn->request.uri, "/api/stats", 10) == 0) {
+                log_info("[ROUTING-INTERNAL] *** API STATS REQUEST DETECTED *** fd=%d", conn->fd);
+                
+                // Clean up any existing upstream connection
+                if (conn->pair) {
+                    log_debug("[ROUTING] Closing existing upstream fd=%d before serving internal", conn->pair->fd);
+                    close_connection(conn->pair->fd);
+                    conn->pair = NULL;
+                }
+                
                 conn->state = CLIENT_STATE_SERVING_INTERNAL;
                 serve_stats_api(conn);
                 buffer_consume(buf, total_request_len);
@@ -2048,6 +2090,9 @@ void handle_client_read(connection_t *conn) {
         }
         
         // This is a request to be forwarded to upstream
+        log_info("[ROUTING-FORWARD] >>> FORWARDING TO UPSTREAM <<< fd=%d: %s %s",
+                 conn->fd, conn->request.method, conn->request.uri);
+        
         conn->vhost_stats = monitor_get_or_create_vhost_stats(conn->request.host);
         monitor_record_request_start(conn->vhost_stats, conn->request.is_websocket);
         
@@ -2067,6 +2112,22 @@ void handle_client_read(connection_t *conn) {
 static void handle_forwarding(connection_t *conn) {
     connection_t *pair = conn->pair;
     if (!pair || pair->fd == -1) {
+        // If this is a client with no pair, reset it to reading headers
+        if (conn->type == CONN_TYPE_CLIENT) {
+            log_info("[ROUTING-ORPHAN] Client fd=%d lost upstream, resetting to READING_HEADERS", conn->fd);
+            conn->state = CLIENT_STATE_READING_HEADERS;
+            conn->pair = NULL;
+            // Clear old request data to avoid state confusion
+            memset(&conn->request, 0, sizeof(http_request_t));
+            conn->request.keep_alive = 1;  // Default for HTTP/1.1
+            conn->request.content_length = -1;
+            // Try to read any pending requests
+            if (buffer_available_read(&conn->read_buf) > 0) {
+                log_info("[ROUTING-ORPHAN] Processing buffered data on orphaned client fd=%d", conn->fd);
+                handle_client_read(conn);
+            }
+            return;
+        }
         close_connection(conn->fd);
         return;
     }
@@ -2086,8 +2147,8 @@ static void handle_forwarding(connection_t *conn) {
             }
         }
         
-        memcpy(pair->write_buf.data + pair->write_buf.tail, 
-               conn->read_buf.data + conn->read_buf.head, 
+        memcpy(pair->write_buf.data + pair->write_buf.tail,
+               conn->read_buf.data + conn->read_buf.head,
                data_to_forward);
         pair->write_buf.tail += data_to_forward;
         buffer_consume(&conn->read_buf, data_to_forward);
@@ -2098,7 +2159,37 @@ static void handle_forwarding(connection_t *conn) {
     
     // Handle connection closure
     if (bytes_read == 0) {
-        // EOF received - perform half-close
+        // EOF received
+        log_info("[ROUTING-EOF] EOF on fd=%d (type=%d), keep-alive=%d, is_websocket=%d",
+                 conn->fd, conn->type, conn->request.keep_alive, conn->request.is_websocket);
+        
+        // For client connections with keep-alive, don't close immediately
+        if (conn->type == CONN_TYPE_CLIENT && conn->request.keep_alive && !conn->request.is_websocket) {
+            // Close the upstream connection
+            if (pair) {
+                log_info("[ROUTING-KEEPALIVE] Closing upstream fd=%d, keeping client fd=%d alive", pair->fd, conn->fd);
+                close_connection(pair->fd);
+                conn->pair = NULL;
+            }
+            // Reset client to reading headers for next request
+            conn->state = CLIENT_STATE_READING_HEADERS;
+            conn->half_closed = 0;
+            conn->write_shutdown = 0;
+            // Clear request data
+            memset(&conn->request, 0, sizeof(http_request_t));
+            conn->request.keep_alive = 1;  // Default for HTTP/1.1
+            conn->request.content_length = -1;
+            
+            // CRITICAL FIX: Process any buffered data (pipelined requests)
+            if (buffer_available_read(&conn->read_buf) > 0) {
+                log_info("[ROUTING-PIPELINE] Processing buffered pipelined request on fd=%d (%zu bytes)",
+                         conn->fd, buffer_available_read(&conn->read_buf));
+                handle_client_read(conn);
+            }
+            return;
+        }
+        
+        // Regular half-close for non-keep-alive connections
         if (!conn->half_closed) {
             conn->half_closed = 1;
             shutdown(conn->fd, SHUT_RD);
diff --git a/test_routing.sh b/test_routing.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..78cf0ba
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test_routing.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,207 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+# Test script for verifying proxy routing behavior
+# Ensures /dashboard and /api/stats are always handled internally
+
+PORT=8080
+TEST_UPSTREAM_PORT=3000
+
+echo "=== Proxy Routing Test Suite ==="
+echo "================================"
+
+# Start a simple upstream server that logs all requests
+echo "Starting test upstream server on port $TEST_UPSTREAM_PORT..."
+cat > test_upstream.py << 'EOF'
+from http.server import HTTPServer, BaseHTTPRequestHandler
+import json
+import datetime
+
+class TestHandler(BaseHTTPRequestHandler):
+    def do_GET(self):
+        print(f"[{datetime.datetime.now()}] UPSTREAM RECEIVED: {self.command} {self.path}")
+        if self.path == "/dashboard" or self.path == "/api/stats":
+            print("ERROR: Internal route leaked to upstream!")
+        self.send_response(200)
+        self.send_header('Content-Type', 'application/json')
+        self.end_headers()
+        response = {"upstream": "response", "path": self.path}
+        self.wfile.write(json.dumps(response).encode())
+    
+    def do_POST(self):
+        self.do_GET()
+    
+    def log_message(self, format, *args):
+        return  # Suppress default logging
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    server = HTTPServer(('localhost', 3000), TestHandler)
+    print("Test upstream server running on port 3000")
+    server.serve_forever()
+EOF
+
+python3 test_upstream.py &
+UPSTREAM_PID=$!
+sleep 2
+
+# Start the proxy with debug mode
+echo "Starting proxy server..."
+DEBUG=1 ./rproxy proxy_config.json &
+PROXY_PID=$!
+sleep 3
+
+echo ""
+echo "=== Test 1: Direct dashboard access ==="
+echo "Request: GET /dashboard"
+response=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" http://localhost:$PORT/dashboard)
+if [ "$response" = "200" ]; then
+    echo "✓ Dashboard served correctly (HTTP $response)"
+else
+    echo "✗ Dashboard failed (HTTP $response)"
+fi
+
+echo ""
+echo "=== Test 2: Direct API stats access ==="
+echo "Request: GET /api/stats"
+response=$(curl -s http://localhost:$PORT/api/stats | jq -r '.current' 2>/dev/null)
+if [ ! -z "$response" ]; then
+    echo "✓ API stats served correctly"
+else
+    echo "✗ API stats failed"
+fi
+
+echo ""
+echo "=== Test 3: Multiple requests on same connection (keep-alive) ==="
+echo "Testing pipeline: /api/stats -> /test -> /dashboard -> /another"
+cat > test_requests.txt << 'EOF'
+GET /api/stats HTTP/1.1
+Host: localhost
+Connection: keep-alive
+
+GET /test HTTP/1.1
+Host: localhost
+Connection: keep-alive
+
+GET /dashboard HTTP/1.1
+Host: localhost
+Connection: keep-alive
+
+GET /another HTTP/1.1
+Host: localhost
+Connection: close
+
+EOF
+
+# Send pipelined requests
+(cat test_requests.txt; sleep 1) | nc localhost $PORT > test_response.txt 2>&1
+
+# Check if internal routes were handled correctly
+if grep -q "cpu_percent" test_response.txt && grep -q "Reverse Proxy Monitor" test_response.txt; then
+    echo "✓ Internal routes handled correctly in pipeline"
+else
+    echo "✗ Internal routes not handled correctly in pipeline"
+fi
+
+echo ""
+echo "=== Test 4: Concurrent connections ==="
+echo "Sending 10 concurrent requests to different endpoints..."
+
+# Background requests
+for i in {1..3}; do
+    curl -s http://localhost:$PORT/dashboard > /dev/null &
+done
+for i in {1..3}; do
+    curl -s http://localhost:$PORT/api/stats > /dev/null &
+done
+for i in {1..4}; do
+    curl -s http://localhost:$PORT/test$i > /dev/null &
+done
+
+wait
+
+echo "✓ Concurrent requests completed"
+
+echo ""
+echo "=== Test 5: Rapid sequential requests ==="
+echo "Sending rapid requests to verify state management..."
+
+success=0
+failed=0
+
+for i in {1..20}; do
+    # Alternate between internal and forwarded routes
+    if [ $((i % 3)) -eq 0 ]; then
+        response=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" http://localhost:$PORT/dashboard)
+        if [ "$response" = "200" ]; then
+            ((success++))
+        else
+            ((failed++))
+            echo "  ✗ Dashboard request $i failed (HTTP $response)"
+        fi
+    elif [ $((i % 3)) -eq 1 ]; then
+        response=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" http://localhost:$PORT/api/stats)
+        if [ "$response" = "200" ]; then
+            ((success++))
+        else
+            ((failed++))
+            echo "  ✗ API stats request $i failed (HTTP $response)"
+        fi
+    else
+        response=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" http://localhost:$PORT/test$i)
+        if [ "$response" = "200" ]; then
+            ((success++))
+        else
+            ((failed++))
+        fi
+    fi
+done
+
+echo "Results: $success successful, $failed failed"
+if [ $failed -eq 0 ]; then
+    echo "✓ All rapid requests handled correctly"
+else
+    echo "✗ Some requests failed"
+fi
+
+echo ""
+echo "=== Test 6: WebSocket upgrade after regular request ==="
+echo "Testing state reset after WebSocket..."
+
+# First a normal request
+curl -s http://localhost:$PORT/api/stats > /dev/null
+echo "✓ Normal request sent"
+
+# Then attempt WebSocket (will fail but tests state handling)
+curl -s -H "Upgrade: websocket" -H "Connection: upgrade" http://localhost:$PORT/ws 2>/dev/null
+echo "✓ WebSocket attempt sent"
+
+# Then another normal request to internal route
+response=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" http://localhost:$PORT/dashboard)
+if [ "$response" = "200" ]; then
+    echo "✓ Dashboard works after WebSocket attempt"
+else
+    echo "✗ Dashboard failed after WebSocket attempt (HTTP $response)"
+fi
+
+echo ""
+echo "=== Checking upstream server logs ==="
+echo "Verifying no internal routes leaked to upstream..."
+sleep 1
+
+# The upstream server prints errors if it receives internal routes
+# Check proxy debug logs for routing decisions
+echo ""
+echo "Recent routing decisions from proxy logs:"
+echo "(Last 10 routing log entries)"
+echo "----------------------------------------"
+
+# Kill the servers
+kill $PROXY_PID 2>/dev/null
+kill $UPSTREAM_PID 2>/dev/null
+
+# Clean up
+rm -f test_upstream.py test_requests.txt test_response.txt
+
+echo ""
+echo "=== Test Complete ==="
+echo "If you see any 'ERROR: Internal route leaked to upstream!' messages above,"
+echo "the routing issue is NOT fixed. Otherwise, the fix is working correctly."
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/test_routing_comprehensive.sh b/test_routing_comprehensive.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..5a427c3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test_routing_comprehensive.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,185 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+# Comprehensive test script for routing reliability
+
+set -e
+
+echo "=== Comprehensive Routing Test ==="
+echo "This test verifies that /dashboard and /api/stats are ALWAYS handled internally"
+echo ""
+
+# Kill any existing proxy
+pkill -f rproxy || true
+sleep 1
+
+# Start the proxy with debug output
+echo "Starting proxy with debug logging..."
+DEBUG=1 ./rproxy > proxy.log 2>&1 &
+PROXY_PID=$!
+sleep 2
+
+# Check if proxy is running
+if ! ps -p $PROXY_PID > /dev/null; then
+    echo "ERROR: Proxy failed to start"
+    cat proxy.log
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+echo "Proxy started with PID: $PROXY_PID"
+echo ""
+
+# Function to test a URL and check response
+test_url() {
+    local url=$1
+    local expected_pattern=$2
+    local test_name=$3
+    
+    echo "Testing: $test_name"
+    response=$(curl -s -w "\nHTTP_CODE:%{http_code}" "$url" 2>/dev/null || true)
+    http_code=$(echo "$response" | grep "HTTP_CODE:" | cut -d: -f2)
+    body=$(echo "$response" | grep -v "HTTP_CODE:")
+    
+    if [ "$http_code" = "200" ]; then
+        if echo "$body" | grep -q "$expected_pattern"; then
+            echo "  ✓ Success: Got expected response"
+            return 0
+        else
+            echo "  ✗ FAIL: Got 200 but wrong content"
+            echo "    Expected pattern: $expected_pattern"
+            echo "    Got: ${body:0:100}..."
+            return 1
+        fi
+    else
+        echo "  ✗ FAIL: Got HTTP $http_code instead of 200"
+        return 1
+    fi
+}
+
+# Run tests
+echo "=== Test 1: Basic Dashboard Access ==="
+test_url "http://localhost:8888/dashboard" "Reverse Proxy Monitor" "Dashboard"
+echo ""
+
+echo "=== Test 2: Basic API Stats Access ==="
+test_url "http://localhost:8888/api/stats" "cpu_percent" "API Stats"
+echo ""
+
+echo "=== Test 3: Multiple Sequential Dashboard Requests ==="
+for i in {1..5}; do
+    test_url "http://localhost:8888/dashboard" "Reverse Proxy Monitor" "Dashboard request $i"
+done
+echo ""
+
+echo "=== Test 4: Multiple Sequential API Requests ==="
+for i in {1..5}; do
+    test_url "http://localhost:8888/api/stats" "cpu_percent" "API request $i"
+done
+echo ""
+
+echo "=== Test 5: Mixed Dashboard and API Requests ==="
+for i in {1..3}; do
+    test_url "http://localhost:8888/dashboard" "Reverse Proxy Monitor" "Dashboard request $i"
+    test_url "http://localhost:8888/api/stats" "cpu_percent" "API request $i"
+done
+echo ""
+
+echo "=== Test 6: Concurrent Dashboard Requests ==="
+echo "Sending 10 concurrent dashboard requests..."
+for i in {1..10}; do
+    (
+        response=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" "http://localhost:8888/dashboard" 2>/dev/null)
+        if [ "$response" = "200" ]; then
+            echo "  Request $i: ✓ 200 OK"
+        else
+            echo "  Request $i: ✗ Got $response"
+        fi
+    ) &
+done
+wait
+echo ""
+
+echo "=== Test 7: Concurrent API Requests ==="
+echo "Sending 10 concurrent API requests..."
+for i in {1..10}; do
+    (
+        response=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" "http://localhost:8888/api/stats" 2>/dev/null)
+        if [ "$response" = "200" ]; then
+            echo "  Request $i: ✓ 200 OK"
+        else
+            echo "  Request $i: ✗ Got $response"
+        fi
+    ) &
+done
+wait
+echo ""
+
+echo "=== Test 8: Pipelined Requests (Keep-Alive) ==="
+echo "Testing pipelined requests with keep-alive..."
+(echo -ne "GET /dashboard HTTP/1.1\r\nHost: localhost\r\n\r\nGET /api/stats HTTP/1.1\r\nHost: localhost\r\n\r\n" | nc localhost 8888 | grep -E "(Reverse Proxy Dashboard|vhost_stats)" | wc -l) > pipeline_result.txt 2>&1
+pipeline_count=$(cat pipeline_result.txt)
+if [ "$pipeline_count" = "2" ]; then
+    echo "  ✓ Both pipelined requests were handled correctly"
+else
+    echo "  ✗ FAIL: Only $pipeline_count/2 pipelined requests handled correctly"
+fi
+echo ""
+
+echo "=== Test 9: Rapid Fire Mixed Requests ==="
+echo "Sending 50 rapid requests mixing dashboard, API, and proxy requests..."
+success=0
+fail=0
+for i in {1..50}; do
+    case $((i % 3)) in
+        0) url="http://localhost:8888/dashboard" ;;
+        1) url="http://localhost:8888/api/stats" ;;
+        2) url="http://localhost:8888/" ;;  # This should be proxied
+    esac
+    
+    response=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" "$url" 2>/dev/null || echo "000")
+    if [ "$response" = "200" ] || [ "$response" = "502" ]; then
+        ((success++))
+    else
+        ((fail++))
+        echo "  Request $i to $url failed with code: $response"
+    fi
+done
+echo "  Results: $success successful, $fail failed"
+echo ""
+
+echo "=== Test 10: Check Routing Log Patterns ==="
+echo "Analyzing proxy log for routing decisions..."
+dashboard_internal=$(grep -c "ROUTING-INTERNAL.*DASHBOARD" proxy.log || true)
+api_internal=$(grep -c "ROUTING-INTERNAL.*API STATS" proxy.log || true)
+dashboard_forward=$(grep -c "ROUTING-FORWARD.*dashboard" proxy.log || true)
+api_forward=$(grep -c "ROUTING-FORWARD.*api/stats" proxy.log || true)
+
+echo "  Dashboard handled internally: $dashboard_internal times"
+echo "  API stats handled internally: $api_internal times"
+echo "  Dashboard incorrectly forwarded: $dashboard_forward times"
+echo "  API stats incorrectly forwarded: $api_forward times"
+
+if [ "$dashboard_forward" -gt 0 ] || [ "$api_forward" -gt 0 ]; then
+    echo "  ✗ FAIL: Internal routes were incorrectly forwarded!"
+    echo ""
+    echo "=== Showing incorrect forwarding logs ==="
+    grep "ROUTING-FORWARD.*dashboard\|ROUTING-FORWARD.*api/stats" proxy.log | head -10 || true
+else
+    echo "  ✓ Success: All internal routes handled correctly"
+fi
+echo ""
+
+echo "=== Cleanup ==="
+kill $PROXY_PID 2>/dev/null || true
+wait $PROXY_PID 2>/dev/null || true
+echo "Proxy stopped"
+echo ""
+
+echo "=== Test Summary ==="
+if [ "$dashboard_forward" -gt 0 ] || [ "$api_forward" -gt 0 ]; then
+    echo "❌ TESTS FAILED: Internal routes were incorrectly forwarded"
+    echo "   Check proxy.log for details"
+    exit 1
+else
+    echo "✅ ALL TESTS PASSED: Internal routes are reliably handled"
+    exit 0
+fi
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/test_routing_fix.sh b/test_routing_fix.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..84b8a2c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test_routing_fix.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,115 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+# Focused test for routing fix verification
+
+set -e
+
+echo "=== Routing Fix Verification Test ==="
+echo ""
+
+# Kill any existing proxy
+pkill -f rproxy || true
+sleep 1
+
+# Start proxy with debug logging
+echo "Starting proxy with debug logging..."
+DEBUG=1 ./rproxy > proxy_test.log 2>&1 &
+PROXY_PID=$!
+sleep 2
+
+# Check if proxy is running
+if ! ps -p $PROXY_PID > /dev/null; then
+    echo "ERROR: Proxy failed to start"
+    cat proxy_test.log
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+echo "Proxy started with PID: $PROXY_PID"
+echo ""
+
+# Test function
+test_endpoint() {
+    local endpoint=$1
+    local name=$2
+    
+    echo "Testing $name..."
+    response=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" "http://localhost:8888$endpoint" 2>/dev/null)
+    if [ "$response" = "200" ]; then
+        echo "  ✓ Got 200 OK"
+        return 0
+    else
+        echo "  ✗ Got HTTP $response"
+        return 1
+    fi
+}
+
+# Run 20 rapid tests alternating between dashboard and API
+echo "=== Rapid Alternating Tests (20 requests) ==="
+success=0
+fail=0
+
+for i in {1..10}; do
+    # Test dashboard
+    if test_endpoint "/dashboard" "Dashboard #$i"; then
+        ((success++))
+    else
+        ((fail++))
+    fi
+    
+    # Test API stats
+    if test_endpoint "/api/stats" "API Stats #$i"; then
+        ((success++))
+    else
+        ((fail++))
+    fi
+done
+
+echo ""
+echo "Results: $success/20 successful"
+echo ""
+
+# Test pipelined requests
+echo "=== Testing Pipelined Requests ==="
+echo "Sending 2 pipelined requests..."
+response=$(echo -ne "GET /dashboard HTTP/1.1\r\nHost: localhost\r\nConnection: keep-alive\r\n\r\nGET /api/stats HTTP/1.1\r\nHost: localhost\r\nConnection: close\r\n\r\n" | nc localhost 8888 2>/dev/null | grep -c "HTTP/1.1 200 OK" || echo "0")
+
+if [ "$response" = "2" ]; then
+    echo "  ✓ Both pipelined requests handled correctly"
+else
+    echo "  ✗ Only $response/2 pipelined requests handled"
+fi
+echo ""
+
+# Check logs for incorrect forwarding
+echo "=== Checking Logs for Routing Issues ==="
+dashboard_internal=$(grep -c "ROUTING-INTERNAL.*DASHBOARD" proxy_test.log || echo "0")
+api_internal=$(grep -c "ROUTING-INTERNAL.*API STATS" proxy_test.log || echo "0")
+dashboard_forward=$(grep -c "ROUTING-FORWARD.*dashboard" proxy_test.log || echo "0")
+api_forward=$(grep -c "ROUTING-FORWARD.*api/stats" proxy_test.log || echo "0")
+
+echo "Dashboard handled internally: $dashboard_internal times"
+echo "API stats handled internally: $api_internal times"
+echo "Dashboard forwarded (should be 0): $dashboard_forward times"
+echo "API stats forwarded (should be 0): $api_forward times"
+echo ""
+
+# Final verdict
+if [ "$dashboard_forward" -eq 0 ] && [ "$api_forward" -eq 0 ] && [ "$fail" -eq 0 ]; then
+    echo "✅ SUCCESS: All internal routes handled correctly!"
+    result=0
+else
+    echo "❌ FAILURE: Some requests were misrouted"
+    echo ""
+    echo "Sample of routing logs:"
+    grep "ROUTING-" proxy_test.log | tail -20
+    result=1
+fi
+
+# Cleanup
+echo ""
+echo "Cleaning up..."
+kill $PROXY_PID 2>/dev/null || true
+wait $PROXY_PID 2>/dev/null || true
+echo "Done."
+
+exit $result
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/test_upstream.py b/test_upstream.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c2b4b0e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test_upstream.py
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+from http.server import HTTPServer, BaseHTTPRequestHandler
+import json
+import datetime
+
+class TestHandler(BaseHTTPRequestHandler):
+    def do_GET(self):
+        print(f"[{datetime.datetime.now()}] UPSTREAM RECEIVED: {self.command} {self.path}")
+        if self.path == "/dashboard" or self.path == "/api/stats":
+            print("ERROR: Internal route leaked to upstream!")
+        self.send_response(200)
+        self.send_header('Content-Type', 'application/json')
+        self.end_headers()
+        response = {"upstream": "response", "path": self.path}
+        self.wfile.write(json.dumps(response).encode())
+    
+    def do_POST(self):
+        self.do_GET()
+    
+    def log_message(self, format, *args):
+        return  # Suppress default logging
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    server = HTTPServer(('localhost', 3000), TestHandler)
+    print("Test upstream server running on port 3000")
+    server.serve_forever()
diff --git a/verify_routing.sh b/verify_routing.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..eb8ce72
--- /dev/null
+++ b/verify_routing.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,86 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+# Simple routing verification test
+
+echo "=== Routing Verification Test ==="
+echo ""
+
+# Kill any existing proxy
+pkill -f rproxy 2>/dev/null
+sleep 1
+
+# Start proxy
+echo "Starting proxy..."
+DEBUG=1 ./rproxy > routing_verify.log 2>&1 &
+PROXY_PID=$!
+sleep 2
+
+if ! ps -p $PROXY_PID > /dev/null; then
+    echo "ERROR: Proxy failed to start"
+    cat routing_verify.log
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+echo "Proxy started (PID: $PROXY_PID)"
+echo ""
+
+# Test internal routes
+echo "Testing internal route handling:"
+
+# Test dashboard 5 times
+echo -n "  Dashboard: "
+for i in {1..5}; do
+    response=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" http://localhost:8888/dashboard 2>/dev/null)
+    if [ "$response" = "200" ]; then
+        echo -n "✓"
+    else
+        echo -n "✗($response)"
+    fi
+done
+echo ""
+
+# Test API stats 5 times
+echo -n "  API Stats: "
+for i in {1..5}; do
+    response=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" http://localhost:8888/api/stats 2>/dev/null)
+    if [ "$response" = "200" ]; then
+        echo -n "✓"
+    else
+        echo -n "✗($response)"
+    fi
+done
+echo ""
+echo ""
+
+# Check routing decisions in log
+echo "Analyzing routing decisions:"
+dashboard_internal=$(grep "ROUTING-INTERNAL.*DASHBOARD" routing_verify.log 2>/dev/null | wc -l)
+api_internal=$(grep "ROUTING-INTERNAL.*API STATS" routing_verify.log 2>/dev/null | wc -l)
+dashboard_forward=$(grep "ROUTING-FORWARD.*dashboard" routing_verify.log 2>/dev/null | wc -l)
+api_forward=$(grep "ROUTING-FORWARD.*api/stats" routing_verify.log 2>/dev/null | wc -l)
+
+echo "  ✓ Dashboard handled internally: $dashboard_internal times"
+echo "  ✓ API stats handled internally: $api_internal times"
+
+if [ "$dashboard_forward" -gt 0 ]; then
+    echo "  ✗ Dashboard incorrectly forwarded: $dashboard_forward times"
+fi
+if [ "$api_forward" -gt 0 ]; then
+    echo "  ✗ API stats incorrectly forwarded: $api_forward times"
+fi
+
+echo ""
+
+# Cleanup
+kill $PROXY_PID 2>/dev/null
+wait $PROXY_PID 2>/dev/null
+
+# Verdict
+if [ "$dashboard_forward" -eq 0 ] && [ "$api_forward" -eq 0 ] && [ "$dashboard_internal" -gt 0 ] && [ "$api_internal" -gt 0 ]; then
+    echo "✅ SUCCESS: All internal routes are properly handled!"
+    echo "   /dashboard and /api/stats are ALWAYS served internally, never forwarded."
+    exit 0
+else
+    echo "❌ FAILURE: Routing issues detected"
+    exit 1
+fi
\ No newline at end of file