diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index bf2d944..87ce4b5 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -112,10 +112,15 @@ Deploy `docker-compose.server.yml` with built-in health checking:
 ```bash
 # Start hosted MCP server on port 3000
 OPENPROJECT_BASE_URL="https://openproject.example.com" \
-HOST_PORT=3000 \
+docker compose -f docker-compose.server.yml up -d
+
+# Optionally override the published host port (e.g. host port 8080 -> container port 3000):
+HOST_PORT=8080 OPENPROJECT_BASE_URL="https://openproject.example.com" \
 docker compose -f docker-compose.server.yml up -d
 ```
 
+> **Note on adding to an existing compose file**: Inside the container, the service requires `PORT=3000` (under `environment:`) to activate HTTP/SSE server mode. `HOST_PORT` in `docker-compose.server.yml` is solely used for the outer host-side port mapping (`${HOST_PORT:-3000}:3000`).
+
 #### Run with Bun (from source)
 ```bash
 OPENPROJECT_BASE_URL="https://openproject.example.com" \