diff --git a/modules/commands/trace_command.py b/modules/commands/trace_command.py
index bc803cf..3d016b3 100644
--- a/modules/commands/trace_command.py
+++ b/modules/commands/trace_command.py
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ class TraceCommand(BaseCommand):
 
     short_description = "Run link trace (manual or reciprocal path)"
     usage = "trace [path]  or  tracer [path]"
-    examples = ["trace 01,7a,55", "tracer", "tracer 01,7a,55"]
+    examples = ["trace 01,7a,55", "trace feed,6ddf,feed", "tracer", "tracer 01,7a,55"]
 
     def __init__(self, bot):
         super().__init__(bot)
@@ -55,7 +55,8 @@ class TraceCommand(BaseCommand):
     def get_help_text(self) -> str:
         return (
             "trace [path] — run trace along path (return may not be heard). No path = round-trip like tracer. "
-            "tracer [path] — round-trip so bot hears return. Path: comma 2-char hex (e.g. 01,7a,55). "
+            "tracer [path] — round-trip so bot hears return. Path: comma-separated hex nodes "
+            "(2-char 1-byte e.g. 01,7a,55; 4-char 2-byte e.g. feed,6ddf,feed). "
             "No path = use your message path (round-trip)."
         )
 
@@ -66,7 +67,7 @@ class TraceCommand(BaseCommand):
         return bool(content_lower.startswith("trace ") or content_lower.startswith("tracer "))
 
     def _extract_path_from_message(self, message: MeshMessage) -> list[str]:
-        """Extract path node IDs from message.path (supports 1-hop and multi-hop)."""
+        """Extract path node IDs from message.path (supports 1-byte, 2-byte, and 3-byte hashes)."""
         if not message.path:
             return []
         if "Direct" in message.path or "0 hops" in message.path:
@@ -79,21 +80,32 @@ class TraceCommand(BaseCommand):
         path_string = path_string.strip()
         # Single node (e.g. "01 (1 hop)") has no comma
         if "," not in path_string:
-            if len(path_string) == 2 and all(c in "0123456789abcdefABCDEF" for c in path_string):
+            if len(path_string) in (2, 4, 6) and all(c in "0123456789abcdefABCDEF" for c in path_string):
                 return [path_string.lower()]
             return []
         parts = path_string.split(",")
         valid = []
+        expected_len = None
         for part in parts:
             part = part.strip()
-            if len(part) == 2 and all(c in "0123456789abcdefABCDEF" for c in part):
-                valid.append(part.lower())
+            if not part:
+                continue
+            if len(part) not in (2, 4, 6) or not all(c in "0123456789abcdefABCDEF" for c in part):
+                continue
+            if expected_len is None:
+                expected_len = len(part)
+            if len(part) != expected_len:
+                continue
+            valid.append(part.lower())
         return valid
 
     def _parse_path_arg(self, content: str) -> Optional[list[str]]:
         """Parse path from command content after 'trace ' or 'tracer '.
-        Accepts: comma-separated 2-char hex (01,7a,55), contiguous hex (01e07a), or mixed (01,e001).
-        Returns list of 2-char hex bytes, or None if no path args / invalid.
+        Accepts comma-separated hex nodes where each segment is the same length:
+          2-char = 1-byte (e.g. 01,7a,55), 4-char = 2-byte (e.g. feed,6ddf),
+          6-char = 3-byte (e.g. feedca,6ddf01).
+        Without commas, treats contiguous hex as 2-char (1-byte) nodes.
+        Returns list of hex node IDs, or None if no path args / invalid.
         """
         content = content.strip()
         if content.startswith("!"):
@@ -105,13 +117,24 @@ class TraceCommand(BaseCommand):
                 break
         if not rest:
             return None
-        # Normalize: drop commas and spaces, single string of hex chars
-        hex_chars = re.sub(r"[\s,]+", "", rest).lower()
+        # Comma-separated: each segment is one node; preserves multibyte groupings
+        if "," in rest:
+            parts = [p.strip().lower() for p in rest.split(",") if p.strip()]
+            if not parts:
+                return None
+            first_len = len(parts[0])
+            if first_len not in (2, 4, 6) or not all(
+                len(p) == first_len and all(c in "0123456789abcdef" for c in p)
+                for p in parts
+            ):
+                return None
+            return parts
+        # No commas: treat as contiguous hex, split into 2-char (1-byte) nodes
+        hex_chars = re.sub(r"\s+", "", rest).lower()
         if not hex_chars or len(hex_chars) % 2 != 0:
             return None
         if not all(c in "0123456789abcdef" for c in hex_chars):
             return None
-        # Split into 2-char (1-byte) nodes
         return [hex_chars[i : i + 2] for i in range(0, len(hex_chars), 2)]
 
     def _build_reciprocal_path(self, nodes: list[str]) -> list[str]:
@@ -203,9 +226,9 @@ class TraceCommand(BaseCommand):
             await self.send_response(message, "Trace not available (firmware/connection).")
             return True
 
-        flags = 0
-        if self.trace_mode == "two_byte":
-            flags = 1  # Reserve flag for 2-byte when supported
+        # Auto-detect flags from path element length: 2-char=1-byte→0, 4-char=2-byte→1
+        node_len = len(path_nodes[0]) if path_nodes else 2
+        flags = {2: 0, 4: 1}.get(node_len, 0)
 
         result = await run_trace(
             self.bot,
diff --git a/tests/test_trace_command.py b/tests/test_trace_command.py
index af98ce2..b6997b8 100644
--- a/tests/test_trace_command.py
+++ b/tests/test_trace_command.py
@@ -1,9 +1,12 @@
 """Tests for modules.commands.trace_command — pure logic functions."""
 
 import configparser
-from unittest.mock import MagicMock, Mock
+from unittest.mock import AsyncMock, MagicMock, Mock, patch
+
+import pytest
 
 from modules.commands.trace_command import TraceCommand
+from modules.trace_runner import RunTraceResult
 from tests.conftest import mock_message
 
 
@@ -367,7 +370,6 @@ class TestTraceExecute:
 
     def test_execute_no_meshcore_commands(self):
         import asyncio
-        from unittest.mock import AsyncMock
         bot = _make_bot()
         bot.connected = True
         bot.meshcore = MagicMock()
@@ -377,3 +379,105 @@ class TestTraceExecute:
         msg = mock_message(content="trace 01,7a")
         result = asyncio.run(cmd.execute(msg))
         assert result is True
+
+
+class TestMultibyteParsePathArg:
+    """Multibyte path parsing: 2-byte (4-char) and 3-byte (6-char) nodes."""
+
+    def setup_method(self):
+        self.cmd = TraceCommand(_make_bot())
+
+    def test_two_byte_comma_separated(self):
+        result = self.cmd._parse_path_arg("trace feed,6ddf,feed")
+        assert result == ["feed", "6ddf", "feed"]
+
+    def test_two_byte_single_pair(self):
+        result = self.cmd._parse_path_arg("trace feed,6ddf")
+        assert result == ["feed", "6ddf"]
+
+    def test_two_byte_tracer_prefix(self):
+        result = self.cmd._parse_path_arg("tracer feed,6ddf")
+        assert result == ["feed", "6ddf"]
+
+    def test_mixed_length_returns_none(self):
+        result = self.cmd._parse_path_arg("trace feed,01")
+        assert result is None
+
+    def test_three_byte_comma_separated(self):
+        result = self.cmd._parse_path_arg("trace feedca,6ddf01")
+        assert result == ["feedca", "6ddf01"]
+
+    def test_contiguous_hex_still_splits_by_two(self):
+        result = self.cmd._parse_path_arg("trace feed6ddf")
+        assert result == ["fe", "ed", "6d", "df"]
+
+    def test_two_byte_bang_prefix(self):
+        result = self.cmd._parse_path_arg("!trace feed,6ddf")
+        assert result == ["feed", "6ddf"]
+
+
+class TestMultibyteExtractPathFromMessage:
+    """_extract_path_from_message handles 1-byte, 2-byte, and 3-byte path hashes."""
+
+    def setup_method(self):
+        self.cmd = TraceCommand(_make_bot())
+
+    def test_two_byte_multi_hop(self):
+        msg = mock_message(content="trace", path="feed,6ddf,feed (3 hops via FLOOD)")
+        assert self.cmd._extract_path_from_message(msg) == ["feed", "6ddf", "feed"]
+
+    def test_two_byte_single_node(self):
+        msg = mock_message(content="trace", path="feed (1 hop)")
+        assert self.cmd._extract_path_from_message(msg) == ["feed"]
+
+    def test_three_byte_multi_hop(self):
+        msg = mock_message(content="trace", path="feedca,6ddf01 (2 hops via FLOOD)")
+        assert self.cmd._extract_path_from_message(msg) == ["feedca", "6ddf01"]
+
+    def test_three_byte_single_node(self):
+        msg = mock_message(content="trace", path="feedca (1 hop)")
+        assert self.cmd._extract_path_from_message(msg) == ["feedca"]
+
+    def test_mixed_length_parts_skipped(self):
+        msg = mock_message(content="trace", path="feed,01,ab")
+        result = self.cmd._extract_path_from_message(msg)
+        assert len(set(len(p) for p in result)) <= 1
+
+
+class TestMultibyteReciprocalPath:
+    """_build_reciprocal_path works with multibyte nodes."""
+
+    def setup_method(self):
+        self.cmd = TraceCommand(_make_bot())
+
+    def test_two_byte_three_node_reciprocal(self):
+        result = self.cmd._build_reciprocal_path(["feed", "6ddf", "feed"])
+        assert result == ["feed", "6ddf", "feed", "6ddf", "feed"]
+
+
+class TestFlagsAutoDetection:
+    """execute() passes flags derived from path element length, not from trace_mode config."""
+
+    def setup_method(self):
+        self.bot = _make_bot()
+        self.bot.connected = True
+        self.bot.meshcore = MagicMock()
+        self.bot.meshcore.commands = MagicMock()
+        self.cmd = TraceCommand(self.bot)
+        self.cmd.send_response = AsyncMock(return_value=True)
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_one_byte_path_uses_flags_zero(self):
+        with patch("modules.commands.trace_command.run_trace") as mock_run:
+            mock_run.return_value = RunTraceResult(success=False, tag=0, error_message="x")
+            await self.cmd.execute(mock_message(content="trace 01,7a,55"))
+        mock_run.assert_called_once()
+        assert mock_run.call_args.kwargs["flags"] == 0
+
+    @pytest.mark.asyncio
+    async def test_two_byte_path_uses_flags_one(self):
+        with patch("modules.commands.trace_command.run_trace") as mock_run:
+            mock_run.return_value = RunTraceResult(success=False, tag=0, error_message="x")
+            await self.cmd.execute(mock_message(content="trace feed,6ddf,feed"))
+        mock_run.assert_called_once()
+        assert mock_run.call_args.kwargs["flags"] == 1