diff --git a/.githooks/post-receive b/.githooks/post-receive
index 2426e63..9f23d3b 100644
--- a/.githooks/post-receive
+++ b/.githooks/post-receive
@@ -19,8 +19,11 @@
 
 copy_env_file() {
   local branch="$1"
+  local env_file
+  env_file="$(get_deploy_env_file "$branch")"
+  source "$env_file"
   # Copy the .env file for the test environment
-  cp "$(get_deploy_env_file "$branch")" "$tmpdir/.env" || {
+  cp "$env_file" "$tmpdir/.env" || {
     echo "Error: Failed to copy .env file for test environment."
     return 1
   }
@@ -225,11 +228,7 @@
   copy_env_file "$branch" || return 1
 
   initialize_submodules "$tmpdir" || return 1
-
-  export TEST_PORT=4123
-  export TEST_SCHEMA=http
-  export NODE_ENV=testing
-
+  
   # echo "Skipping tests"
   # return 0
 
@@ -238,6 +237,7 @@
   combine_css || return 1
 
   echo "Starting application for tests..."
+  systemctl --user stop express-blog@"$branch".service
   nohup node src/app.js >>"$logfile" 2>&1 &
   echo $! >"$pidfile"
 
@@ -249,7 +249,6 @@
   run_tests "$branch" "$pidfile" "$logfile" || return 1
 
   kill "$(cat "$pidfile")" 2>/dev/null || true
-  unset TEST_PORT TEST_SCHEMA NODE_ENV
 
   echo "Tests passed for branch '$branch' in temporary environment."
   return 0
@@ -274,7 +273,7 @@
 wait_for_service() {
   local logfile="$1"
   # Wait for the application to become responsive
-  if ! _wait_for_service "http://127.0.0.1:$TEST_PORT"; then
+  if ! _wait_for_service "$SERVER_SCHEMA://$SERVER_DOMAIN"; then
     echo "Application did not start or respond for tests. Check logs in $logfile:"
     cat "$logfile" # Display logs on failure
     return 1
diff --git a/.githooks/pre-push b/.githooks/pre-push
index 86e9f52..93153bc 100755
--- a/.githooks/pre-push
+++ b/.githooks/pre-push
@@ -9,11 +9,6 @@
 set -euo pipefail
 set -x
 
-
-export TEST_SCHEMA="http"
-export TEST_DOMAIN="127.0.0.1"
-export TEST_PORT=4123
-
 node src/app.js >/dev/null 2>&1 &
   APP_PID=$!
 
diff --git a/src/middleware/authCheck.js b/src/middleware/authCheck.js
index 1f1432c..928b9ab 100644
--- a/src/middleware/authCheck.js
+++ b/src/middleware/authCheck.js
@@ -26,8 +26,26 @@
     }
   }
 }, CACHE_TTL);
+const SAFE_IPS = ["192.168.1.200", "192.168.1.50"];
 
 module.exports = async (req, res, next) => {
+  // Determine the client IP address.
+  // req.ip is often provided by Express and correctly handles X-Forwarded-For if Express is configured for it.
+  // If not, you might need to manually check req.headers['x-forwarded-for']
+  const clientIp = req.ip; // Or req.headers['x-forwarded-for']?.split(',')[0] || req.connection.remoteAddress;
+  // --- Bypass Logic ---
+  // Check if the client IP is in the list of safe IPs
+  if (SAFE_IPS.includes(clientIp)) {
+    req.isAuthenticated = true; // Mark as authenticated (bypassed)
+    if (req.log) {
+      req.log.info(`Bypassing authentication for safe IP: ${clientIp}`);
+    } else {
+      console.info(`Bypassing authentication for safe IP: ${clientIp}`);
+    }
+    return next(); // Proceed to the next middleware/route handler
+  }
+  // --- End Bypass Logic ---
+
   const cookie = req.headers["cookie"] || "";
   const authHeader = req.headers["authorization"] || "";
   const cacheKey = getCacheKey(cookie, authHeader);