diff --git a/mediamanager-startup.sh b/mediamanager-startup.sh
index 1880930..8a69c36 100644
--- a/mediamanager-startup.sh
+++ b/mediamanager-startup.sh
@@ -145,21 +145,30 @@ else
     echo "Config file found at: $CONFIG_FILE"
 fi
 
-# permission fix
-echo "Ensuring file permissions for mediamanager user..."
+# check if running as root, if yes, fix permissions
+if [ "$(id -u)" = '0' ]; then
+    echo "Running as root. Ensuring file permissions for mediamanager user..."
+    chown -R mediamanager:mediamanager "$CONFIG_DIR"
 
-chown -R mediamanager:mediamanager "$CONFIG_DIR"
-
-if [ -d "/data" ]; then
-    if [ "$(stat -c '%U' /data)" != "mediamanager" ]; then
-        echo "Fixing ownership of /data (this may take a while for large libraries)..."
-        chown -R mediamanager:mediamanager /data
+    if [ -d "/data" ]; then
+        if [ "$(stat -c '%U' /data)" != "mediamanager" ]; then
+            echo "Fixing ownership of /data (this may take a while for large media libraries)..."
+            chown -R mediamanager:mediamanager /data
+        else
+            echo "/data ownership is already correct."
+        fi
     fi
+else
+    echo "Running as non-root user ($(id -u)). Skipping permission fixes."
+    echo "Note: Ensure your host volumes are manually set to the correct permissions."
 fi
 
-
 echo "Running DB migrations..."
-gosu mediamanager uv run alembic upgrade head
+if [ "$(id -u)" = '0' ]; then
+   gosu mediamanager uv run alembic upgrade head
+else
+   uv run alembic upgrade head
+fi
 
 echo "Starting MediaManager backend service..."
 echo ""
@@ -172,9 +181,16 @@ echo ""
 
 DEVELOPMENT_MODE=${MEDIAMANAGER_MISC__DEVELOPMENT:-FALSE}
 PORT=${PORT:-8000}
+
 if [ "$DEVELOPMENT_MODE" == "TRUE" ]; then
     echo "Development mode is enabled, enabling auto-reload..."
-    exec gosu mediamanager uv run fastapi run /app/media_manager/main.py --port "$PORT" --proxy-headers --reload
+    DEV_OPTIONS="--reload"
 else
-    exec gosu mediamanager uv run fastapi run /app/media_manager/main.py --port "$PORT" --proxy-headers
+    DEV_OPTIONS=""
 fi
+
+if [ "$(id -u)" = '0' ]; then
+    exec gosu mediamanager uv run fastapi run /app/media_manager/main.py --port "$PORT" --proxy-headers $DEV_OPTIONS
+else
+    exec uv run fastapi run /app/media_manager/main.py --port "$PORT" --proxy-headers $DEV_OPTIONS
+fi
\ No newline at end of file