diff --git a/create-a-container/bin/create-container.js b/create-a-container/bin/create-container.js
index 335b73a9..c5f33a14 100755
--- a/create-a-container/bin/create-container.js
+++ b/create-a-container/bin/create-container.js
@@ -35,6 +35,7 @@ const { parseArgs } = require(path.join(__dirname, '..', 'utils', 'cli'));
 const { isDockerImage, parseDockerRef, getImageDigest } = require(path.join(__dirname, '..', 'utils', 'docker-registry'));
 const { manageDnsRecords } = require(path.join(__dirname, '..', 'utils', 'cloudflare-dns'));
 const { createVirtualMachine, withNetbox } = require(path.join(__dirname, '..', 'utils', 'netbox'));
+const { withVmidRetry } = require(path.join(__dirname, '..', 'utils', 'vmid'));
 const {
   resolveVolumesRoot,
   deriveVolumeHostPaths,
@@ -357,14 +358,14 @@ async function main() {
     console.log('Preparing volumes...');
     const preparedVolumes = await prepareVolumes(client, node, container);
 
-    // Allocate the provider ID right before creating to minimize race condition window.
-    // Proxmox requires us to allocate a VMID first; Docker returns its real container
-    // ID after create.
+    // Proxmox requires us to allocate a VMID first; it is generated pseudo-randomly
+    // (time + random) so concurrent jobs don't collide. Docker returns its real
+    // container ID after create.
     let vmid = null;
     if (isDockerNode) {
       console.log('Docker node selected; Docker will allocate the container ID during create.');
     } else {
-      console.log('Allocating VMID from Proxmox...');
+      console.log('Allocating VMID...');
       vmid = await client.nextId();
       console.log(`Allocated VMID: ${vmid}`);
     }
@@ -412,8 +413,8 @@ async function main() {
       // Create container from the pulled image (Proxmox adds .tar to the filename)
       console.log(`Creating container from ${filename}.tar...`);
       const ostemplate = `${templateStorage}:vztmpl/${filename}.tar`;
-      const createUpid = await client.createLxc(node.name, {
-        vmid,
+      const createOptions = (id) => ({
+        vmid: id,
         hostname: container.hostname,
         ostemplate,
         description: `Created from Docker image ${container.template}`,
@@ -432,6 +433,12 @@ async function main() {
         // prepareVolumes above). Setting mpN here would 400 against a
         // not-yet-created directory (issue #421).
       });
+      let createUpid;
+      if (isDockerNode) {
+        createUpid = await client.createLxc(node.name, createOptions(vmid));
+      } else {
+        ({ vmid, result: createUpid } = await withVmidRetry(vmid, (id) => client.createLxc(node.name, createOptions(id))));
+      }
       console.log(`Create task started: ${createUpid}`);
 
       if (isDockerNode) {
@@ -466,12 +473,18 @@ async function main() {
 
       // Clone the template
       console.log(`Cloning template ${templateVmid} to VMID ${vmid}...`);
-      const cloneUpid = await client.cloneLxc(node.name, templateVmid, vmid, {
+      const cloneOptions = {
         hostname: container.hostname,
         description: `Cloned from template ${container.template}`,
         full: 1,
         storage: rootfsStorage
-      });
+      };
+      let cloneUpid;
+      if (isDockerNode) {
+        cloneUpid = await client.cloneLxc(node.name, templateVmid, vmid, cloneOptions);
+      } else {
+        ({ vmid, result: cloneUpid } = await withVmidRetry(vmid, (id) => client.cloneLxc(node.name, templateVmid, id, cloneOptions)));
+      }
       console.log(`Clone task started: ${cloneUpid}`);
       
       // Wait for clone to complete
diff --git a/create-a-container/utils/__tests__/vmid.test.js b/create-a-container/utils/__tests__/vmid.test.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..7a33a0dc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/create-a-container/utils/__tests__/vmid.test.js
@@ -0,0 +1,67 @@
+const { generateVmid, isVmidConflict, withVmidRetry, VMID_MIN, VMID_MAX } = require('../vmid');
+
+describe('generateVmid', () => {
+  it('stays within the Proxmox VMID range', () => {
+    for (const now of [0, 999, Date.now(), 9998999, 9999000, Number.MAX_SAFE_INTEGER]) {
+      for (let i = 0; i < 100; i++) {
+        const vmid = generateVmid(now);
+        expect(Number.isInteger(vmid)).toBe(true);
+        expect(vmid).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(VMID_MIN);
+        expect(vmid).toBeLessThanOrEqual(VMID_MAX);
+      }
+    }
+  });
+
+  it('randomizes IDs allocated in the same second', () => {
+    const now = Date.now();
+    const ids = new Set(Array.from({ length: 1000 }, () => generateVmid(now)));
+    // ~5 birthday collisions expected out of a 100000-wide random space
+    expect(ids.size).toBeGreaterThan(980);
+  });
+
+  it('never collides across different seconds', () => {
+    const now = Date.now();
+    const a = Array.from({ length: 50 }, () => generateVmid(now));
+    const b = Array.from({ length: 50 }, () => generateVmid(now + 1000));
+    expect(a.some((id) => b.includes(id))).toBe(false);
+  });
+});
+
+describe('isVmidConflict', () => {
+  it('detects Proxmox "already exists" errors', () => {
+    const err = new Error('Request failed with status code 500');
+    err.response = { statusText: "CT 123 already exists on node 'pve1'", data: {} };
+    expect(isVmidConflict(err)).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  it('ignores unrelated errors', () => {
+    expect(isVmidConflict(new Error('connection refused'))).toBe(false);
+  });
+});
+
+describe('withVmidRetry', () => {
+  const conflict = () => Object.assign(new Error('CT already exists'), {});
+  beforeEach(() => jest.spyOn(console, 'warn').mockImplementation(() => {}));
+  afterEach(() => jest.restoreAllMocks());
+
+  it('retries with a new VMID on conflict', async () => {
+    const fn = jest.fn()
+      .mockRejectedValueOnce(conflict())
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce('UPID:ok');
+    const out = await withVmidRetry(100, fn, { generate: () => 200 });
+    expect(out).toEqual({ vmid: 200, result: 'UPID:ok' });
+    expect(fn.mock.calls.map((c) => c[0])).toEqual([100, 200]);
+  });
+
+  it('does not retry unrelated errors', async () => {
+    const fn = jest.fn().mockRejectedValue(new Error('boom'));
+    await expect(withVmidRetry(100, fn)).rejects.toThrow('boom');
+    expect(fn).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+  });
+
+  it('gives up after maxAttempts', async () => {
+    const fn = jest.fn().mockRejectedValue(conflict());
+    await expect(withVmidRetry(100, fn, { maxAttempts: 3 })).rejects.toThrow('already exists');
+    expect(fn).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(3);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/create-a-container/utils/proxmox-api.js b/create-a-container/utils/proxmox-api.js
index 8225f5af..adf4bad3 100644
--- a/create-a-container/utils/proxmox-api.js
+++ b/create-a-container/utils/proxmox-api.js
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 const axios = require('axios');
 const { URL } = require('url');
+const { generateVmid } = require('./vmid');
 
 /**
  * 
@@ -253,11 +254,12 @@ class ProxmoxApi {
   }
 
   /**
-   * @returns {Promise<number>} - The next available VMID
+   * Allocate a VMID locally instead of via /cluster/nextid, which returns the
+   * same ID to concurrent callers and causes create conflicts.
+   * @returns {Promise<number>} - A pseudo-random VMID
    */
   async nextId() {
-    const response = await axios.get(`${this.baseUrl}/api2/json/cluster/nextid`, this.options);
-    return response.data.data;
+    return generateVmid();
   }
 
   /**
diff --git a/create-a-container/utils/vmid.js b/create-a-container/utils/vmid.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..4698d1f2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/create-a-container/utils/vmid.js
@@ -0,0 +1,64 @@
+const crypto = require('crypto');
+
+// Proxmox accepts VMIDs in the range 100..999999999.
+const VMID_MIN = 100;
+const VMID_MAX = 999999999;
+
+// UUIDv7-style layout squeezed into the VMID range: a coarse timestamp in the
+// high digits and random bits in the low digits. IDs allocated in different
+// seconds never collide within a time cycle, and concurrent allocations in the
+// same second only collide with probability 1/RANDOM_SPACE. This replaces
+// Proxmox's /cluster/nextid, which hands the same ID to concurrent callers.
+const RANDOM_SPACE = 100000;
+const TIME_SLOTS = Math.floor((VMID_MAX - VMID_MIN + 1) / RANDOM_SPACE);
+
+/**
+ * Generate a pseudo-random VMID that is safe to allocate without coordination.
+ * @param {number} [now] - Epoch milliseconds (injectable for tests)
+ * @returns {number}
+ */
+function generateVmid(now = Date.now()) {
+  const timeSlot = Math.floor(now / 1000) % TIME_SLOTS;
+  return VMID_MIN + timeSlot * RANDOM_SPACE + crypto.randomInt(RANDOM_SPACE);
+}
+
+/**
+ * True if an error from a Proxmox create/clone call means the VMID is taken
+ * (e.g. "CT 123 already exists on node 'pve1'").
+ * @param {Error} err
+ * @returns {boolean}
+ */
+function isVmidConflict(err) {
+  const msg = [
+    err?.response?.data?.message,
+    err?.response?.statusText,
+    err?.message,
+  ].filter(Boolean).join(' ');
+  return /already exists/i.test(msg);
+}
+
+/**
+ * Run `fn(vmid)` and, if it fails because the VMID is already in use, retry
+ * with a freshly generated VMID up to `maxAttempts` total attempts.
+ * @template T
+ * @param {number} vmid - Initial VMID to try
+ * @param {(vmid: number) => Promise<T>} fn
+ * @param {object} [opts]
+ * @param {number} [opts.maxAttempts=5]
+ * @param {() => number} [opts.generate=generateVmid]
+ * @returns {Promise<{ vmid: number, result: T }>}
+ */
+async function withVmidRetry(vmid, fn, { maxAttempts = 5, generate = generateVmid } = {}) {
+  for (let attempt = 1; ; attempt++) {
+    try {
+      return { vmid, result: await fn(vmid) };
+    } catch (err) {
+      if (attempt >= maxAttempts || !isVmidConflict(err)) throw err;
+      const next = generate();
+      console.warn(`VMID ${vmid} already in use; retrying with ${next} (attempt ${attempt + 1}/${maxAttempts})`);
+      vmid = next;
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+module.exports = { generateVmid, isVmidConflict, withVmidRetry, VMID_MIN, VMID_MAX };