fix(maintenance): bound search_clicks and lyrics_index, clear stale queue source

Three unbounded or stale surfaces, each small on its own:

- lyrics_index rows were never pruned on track removal, so the FTS index
  grew forever. Delete the entry where the library search FTS entry is
  already deleted, on the orphan and RemoveFromLibrary paths.
- search_clicks had no ceiling; age out ranking rows after a retention
  window via a daily janitor job.
- queue.source_* kept a "Playing from X" label after its playlist was
  deleted. Drop the source when the queue's own playlist goes, wired
  through a playlist-service hook like Library.SetRemovalHooks.

Closes #249

.pi/skills/yj-loop/SKILL.md

@@ -81,6 +81,24 @@ rules. Never "go fix it" — the leg contract is in this file.
 | escalation | `yj-loop.escalate` | go/kimi-k3 (T3) | same leg re-run, seeded with failure summary |
 | prose (PR body, commit msgs, journal) | `yj-loop.scribe` | go/mimo-v2.5 (T0) | text only, from supplied facts |
 
+**Model fallback on quota exhaustion.** The pinned models are the
+intent, not a guarantee. The qwen token plan is a weekly pool and has
+run dry mid-tick (`429 … 1-week quota exhausted`). When a leg's launch
+fails with a 429, re-run it with a per-run `model` override one rung
+down and journal the substitution — never spend the T3 escalation
+model on a quota substitution. The qwen-pinned legs (`work`,
+`diffreview`) fall back `qwen/deepseek-v4-pro-0813` → `go/deepseek-v4-pro`
+→ `go/glm-5.3-flash`. Do **not** use the `deepseek/...` provider: it has
+no models, only catalog overrides, and fails silently (empty artifact,
+no session) — the model lives on the `go` gateway.
+
+**Launch legs in the foreground.** The async subagent runner has died
+without persisting a child session (nothing to resume) and emits
+spurious "needs attention" nudges on runs that are already complete.
+Foreground `subagent` calls are the reliable mode here. A worker that
+dies mid-leg leaves uncommitted work: inspect the tree, then relaunch
+to *complete* — never to re-implement.
+
 Orchestrator-only legs: **claim** (`issue.sh claim --branch` — atomic,
 refuses if held), **ship's PR/CI polling** (REST API below — `gitea_ci`
 job_logs 404s on this Gitea; the REST endpoints are the way), **merge**
@@ -168,8 +186,12 @@ Merge when, and only when, **all** hold:
   `block_on_outdated_branch: true` refuses it anyway; never
   `force_manually_merged` around it.
 
-**Refresh before every merge.** In the loop worktree: fetch, then
-`git merge origin/main` on the PR branch, push. A textual conflict
+**Refresh before every merge.** In the loop worktree: `git fetch origin`
+in the same breath, then `git merge origin/main` on the PR branch,
+push. The fetch must be immediate — a cached `origin/main` merges
+against the wrong base, CI goes green on it, and the merge comes back
+405 "behind base", one whole CI cycle wasted (measured on the adoption
+wave). A textual conflict
 stops the leg there — as diff text, not as a failed merge click: hunks
 the loop authored are resolved by the loop; anything else is left with
 `⟦loop⟧` comment for a human, never forced. After any refresh push,
@@ -247,7 +269,10 @@ AVD), then `make android-emulator` per session.
 
 - **Worktree:** `git worktree add ~/.paseo/worktrees/loop/jumpy-hound
   origin/main` (from any clone; branch from origin/main in the loop
-  tree, never `git checkout main`).
+  tree, never `git checkout main`). **Provision it once before the
+  first push:** `make build-frontend` and `make testdata` — the pre-push
+  `go-test` hook needs `frontend/dist` (the `//go:embed` in `main.go`)
+  and the fixture library, and refuses the push without them.
 - **Session:** pi in that worktree, `/name loop`. Add the job via
   `/schedule-prompt` (name `yj-loop`, cron
   `0 0 10-18 * * 1-5`, prompt: "Read `.pi/skills/yj-loop/SKILL.md` and
@@ -270,4 +295,12 @@ AVD), then `make android-emulator` per session.
   which leg it really is.
 - The job did not fire — the scheduler fires only while a session is
   open in its directory (documented); "the loop is off" is the correct
-  reading, not a bug.
+  reading, not a bug.
+- `error: object file … is empty` / `unpack-objects failed` / `bad
+  object refs/heads/…` during a fetch or checkout — the shared object
+  store was corrupted (a killed fetch leaves 0-byte object files, and a
+  local ref can end up pointing at the dead sha1). **Halt and report**;
+  do not retry, the churn only deepens it. Human repair: delete the
+  0-byte objects, `git fetch origin --prune`, delete any ref that
+  still dangles (`git update-ref -d refs/heads/<b>`), re-checkout the
+  worktree at `origin/main`, then `git fsck --full`.

.planning/plans/active/020-autonomous-backlog-loop.md

@@ -112,7 +112,9 @@ in the job's directory — that limitation is the switch:
 
 - **Worktree:** `git worktree add` a dedicated clone at
   `~/.paseo/worktrees/loop/jumpy-hound`. Loop edits happen only there; a
-  dirty tree there is the loop's business and nobody else's.
+  dirty tree there is the loop's business and nobody else's. **Provision
+  it once before its first push:** `make build-frontend` + `make testdata`
+  — the pre-push `go-test` hook needs both and refuses without them.
 - **Session:** pi in that worktree, `/name loop`. The job is bound to that
   session, so another pi elsewhere in the same directory does not
   double-fire it.

.planning/plans/active/021-listening-accounting.md

@@ -0,0 +1,263 @@
+# 021 — Listening accounting: smart plays, skips, and a real history
+
+**Issue:** none yet — open one before the first edit (tracker is the
+source of truth; `./scripts/issue.sh search "skip play count"` comes
+back empty as of this writing).
+
+**Status:** plan — not started.
+
+**Relates:** play-count rendering (`frontend/src/components/track-list/columns.ts`),
+smart playlists (`backend/smartplaylist/`), the event contract
+(`TrackPlayCountChanged`), and any future Wrapped / "minutes listened"
+surface.
+
+---
+
+## What exists now
+
+Three facts, all load-bearing.
+
+**A "play" is recorded only on a natural finish.** `recordPlay`
+(`backend/queue/playhistory.go:9`) is called from exactly one place —
+`OnPlaybackFinished` (`backend/queue/handlers.go:14`), and only when
+`srcErr == nil`. A track the user skips past at 90% is *not* a play;
+neither is one they pause at 60% and abandon. `play_count` /
+`last_played` on `audio_files` reflect "finished to the end," nothing
+more.
+
+**There is no skip concept at all.** Skipping is indistinguishable
+from a natural finish, a pause, or a shutdown. Nothing records "the
+user rejected this track," so no downstream feature (smart playlists,
+shuffle, the revisit shelf, a future skip-rate heuristic) can ask
+about it.
+
+**`play_history` is a write-only log.** It holds
+`(audio_file_id, played_at)` and nothing reads it — no sqlc query
+touches it, no `PlayHistory` read path exists. Its only recorded
+purpose is the timestamps a future "minutes listened over time"
+feature would need. It is classified `Authored, Cascade` in
+`backend/datamap/datamap.go:272` ("Listening history").
+
+So the gaps are: (1) skips are invisible, and (2) "played" is
+under-counted — the opposite of the usual over-counting fear. The
+scrobble intuition (count a play once `min(50%, 4:00)` has been
+*heard*, independent of how it ends) is the fix for both.
+
+---
+
+## What we're building
+
+A single classification of every track *exit*, plus one row per exit in
+a listening log, plus the existing denormalized `play_count` /
+`last_played` updated to match the new meaning. Three exit kinds:
+
+| kind | condition |
+|---|---|
+| `complete` | reached natural end, **or** abandoned with `remaining <= tail` |
+| `play` | heard `>= playThreshold`, abandoned before the tail |
+| `skip` | user moved to a *different* track before `playThreshold` |
+
+Not counted, not any kind: decode failure, pause/stop/shutdown before
+the threshold, and tracks shorter than `minTrackLength`.
+
+### The thresholds — named judgements, one file
+
+Follow the `PreviousRestartThreshold` precedent (`backend/queue/queue.go:28`,
+a bare `const` with a comment). A new `backend/queue/listen.go` (or a
+tiny `backend/listencount` package) declares:
+
+```go
+const (
+    // A track this short is deliberated jingle / interstitial and is
+    // never counted, either way.
+    minTrackLength = 30 * time.Second
+    // The scrobble rule: half the track, or four minutes, whichever
+    // comes first (Last.fm / ListenBrainz).
+    playThresholdMax = 4 * time.Minute
+    // "Finished enough": within 15s of the end, or the last 10%,
+    // whichever is larger.  A 10:00 ambient track gets a 60s fade
+    // window; a 2:00 pop song gets 15s.
+    tailWindowFloor    = 15 * time.Second
+    tailWindowFraction = 0.10
+)
+
+func playThreshold(d time.Duration) time.Duration {
+    return min(d/2, playThresholdMax)
+}
+func tailWindow(d time.Duration) time.Duration {
+    return max(d/10, tailWindowFloor)
+}
+```
+
+Classification is a pure function of `(reason, position, duration)` and
+*therefore unit-testable without a player*:
+
+```go
+func classify(reason ExitReason, pos, dur time.Duration) Kind
+```
+
+`ExitReason` is `finished | skipped | failed | abandoned`. `skipped`
+means the queue moved to a different track by user action (Next,
+Previous past the restart threshold, PlayIndex, queue replacement,
+select-from-a-list). `failed` is the decode-error path. `abandoned` is
+pause/stop/unload/shutdown — and in v1 is a no-op (see open question 3).
+
+**"Heard" is approximated by the position at exit.** We read
+`player.CurrentPositionSeconds()` at the moment of the transition, not
+an accumulated listen-time ledger. A user who seeks to 80% and listens
+5 seconds reads as "heard 80%." That is deliberately accepted for v1:
+it is how most players actually behave, it is drastically simpler, and
+the failure mode ("counted a track you skimmed as played") is mild and
+exactly what the scrobble threshold already forgives. Written down
+because "position is not listen time" is the one assumption that will
+look like a bug if it is not.
+
+**Fires once per listen.** Leaving a track already leaves it; the
+`chainID` guard in `player.onPlaybackFinished` (`backend/player/player.go:633`)
+already swallows a stale finish callback, and a transition advances
+`currentIndex` past the finished track. The classifier needs the same
+guard so a Next-then-stale-finish cannot produce two rows. Key it on the
+`(audioFileID, chainID)` the transition was about.
+
+---
+
+## Schema — resolved: fresh design, no migration
+
+The A/B migration agonizing is moot.  This app has two users and both
+are devs, and play counts are explicitly not worth preserving yet — so
+the schema is written as if listening accounting had been designed in
+from the start, and the existing two databases rebuild what they need
+(see below).  There is no migration step and none is re-introduced.
+
+**`play_history` is renamed to `listening_events`** and grows the three
+kinds, plus the raw position/duration the classification was made from:
+
+```sql
+CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS listening_events (
+    id               INTEGER PRIMARY KEY,
+    audio_file_id    INTEGER NOT NULL,
+    kind             TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT 'complete'
+                     CHECK (kind IN ('complete','play','skip')),
+    position_seconds INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
+    duration_seconds INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
+    occurred_at      DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT (datetime('now')),
+    FOREIGN KEY(audio_file_id) REFERENCES audio_files(id) ON DELETE CASCADE
+);
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_listening_events_audio_file_id
+    ON listening_events(audio_file_id);
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_listening_events_occurred_at
+    ON listening_events(occurred_at);
+```
+
+`position_seconds`/`duration_seconds` are kept raw so a future re-tune
+of the threshold does not force the events to be re-recorded.  `kind`
+stays the write-time classification; the raw reading is evidence, not
+a second copy of the rule.
+
+**The counters are denormalized onto `audio_files`** — `skip_count` /
+`last_skipped` join the existing `play_count` / `last_played`, because
+that is where the hot read path already lives and a log join per track
+row is not acceptable.  This does grow the MIXED-KIND wart (see the
+survey below for the structural answer), but it is the *continuation* of
+the existing design, not a new leak: play counts sat on `audio_files`
+from before this feature existed.
+
+**What happens to the two real databases on next launch.**
+`listening_events` is a new table, created verbatim.  `audio_files`
+gains two columns, which `retireStaleTables` treats as a stale Owned
+table and rebuilds by rescan — dropping `play_count` / `last_played` /
+`tag_status` with it, which is the accepted cost stated in the issue.
+`play_history` is gone from the schema and the datamap, so
+`obsoleteTables` drops it; its (natural-finish-only) timestamp rows go
+with it.  Nothing here is wrong on a fresh install, and on the two dev
+machines the answer is the documented "delete and rescan."
+
+---
+
+## Wiring: where the classifier is called
+
+The risk is not the classifier — it is that **every track-replacement
+path must classify the outgoing track**, and there are many: `Next`,
+`Previous` (past the 3s restart threshold), `PlayIndex`, `playFromStart`,
+`SetQueue` / clear-and-play, remove-current, and select-from-a-list.
+Miss one and that path silently never records a skip.
+
+So the classification is centralized in one queue method —
+
+```go
+// leaveCurrent(reason) classifies the track at currentIndex as it is
+// about to be replaced, and records exactly one listening event.
+// Must be called without q.mu held (it writes to SQLite).
+func (q *Queue) leaveCurrent(reason ExitReason)
+```
+
+— which reads position/duration from the player, calls `classify`, and
+emits the play/skip row + `TrackPlayCountChanged` when `kind != skip`.
+`OnPlaybackFinished(nil)` routes through `leaveCurrent(finished)`, the
+navigation methods route through `leaveCurrent(skipped)` before they
+advance, and `recordPlay` becomes the "did a play happen" half of it.
+
+Because "one path forgot to call it" is the failure mode, a **source
+sweep** pins it, on the pattern of `TestNoDirectRuntimeEmits`
+(`backend/events/noemit_test.go`) and `TestCatalogCoversSchema`: a test
+walks `backend/queue` for assignments to `currentIndex` (and the
+`SetQueue` / remove paths) and fails if a mutation site does not sit
+adjacent to a `leaveCurrent` call. The sweep is the enforcement; the
+central method is the convenience.
+
+`recordPlay` keeps its existing contract *when a play happens* —
+`TrackPlayCountChanged` with `{audioFileId, filePath, playCount,
+lastPlayed}` — so the frontend patch path and
+`playhistory_test.go` keep passing. A skip emits no per-track event in
+v1 (open question 4).
+
+---
+
+## Phases
+
+1. **The classifier.** `listen.go`: the constants, `playThreshold`,
+   `tailWindow`, `classify`. Table-driven unit tests covering every
+   cell of the tristate, the <30s exemption, the tail window on both a
+   10:00 and a 2:00 track, and the clip at the 4:00 cap. No I/O.
+2. **Schema.** *Done in this session.* `listening_events` replaces
+   `play_history`; `skip_count` / `last_skipped` added to
+   `audio_files`; datamap entry and `TestAuthoredCascadesAreDeliberate`
+   allow-list renamed; `recordPlay` writes `listening_events
+   ('complete')`.  `make generate` run; database / datamap / queue
+   tests green.
+3. **Wiring.** `leaveCurrent`, the navigation/finish/error call sites,
+   the `fires once per listen` guard, and the source sweep. Extend
+   `playhistory_test.go` for skip/complete classification through the
+   queue rather than the pure function.
+4. **Smart-playlist field.** `skip_count` (and optionally
+   `days_since_skipped`) in `smartplaylist.go` field/numeric maps and
+   the editor's field list, via subquery. A frontend event for skip —
+   if a UI wants a skip column — follows separately.
+
+## Verification
+
+- **Go:** the classifier is pure and exhaustively unit-tested; the
+  queue wiring is tested in-process with `events.WithSink`
+  (`backend/queue/emit_test.go` is the model), asserting a Next at 90%
+  emits a *play*, a Next at 10% emits a *skip and no play*, a natural
+  finish emits a *complete*.
+- **Database:** schema + datamap tests fail-loud on any new or
+  reclassified table; `database_test.go`'s listening-events round-trip
+  asserts the new table and the four denormalized counter columns.
+- **e2e:** `e2e/specs/play-count.spec.ts` already awaits
+  `TrackPlayCountChanged`; add the skip case (advance early, assert no
+  `TrackPlayCountChanged` and a `skip` row via the `__/test/sql`
+  endpoint if convenient, or via the playlist effect).
+- No visual/component tier needed unless a skip column ships (phase 4).
+
+## Open questions / decisions needed
+
+1. **Migration mechanism.** Resolved — fresh design, no migration (see the schema section).  Play counts are not worth preserving, both users are devs, and `audio_files` / `play_history` rebuild-or-drop on next launch.
+2. **"Position is not listen time."** Accept the approximation for v1,
+   or track accumulated listen seconds (a real ledger on the player) now?
+3. **Abandon on shutdown.** A track paused at 70% and then app-killed:
+   count a `play` (scrobble says heard) or leave it unrecorded? v1
+   proposes *unrecorded* — same as today — to keep the write path off
+   the shutdown critical path.
+4. **Skip event to the frontend.** Emit now (parallel to
+   `TrackPlayCountChanged`) or only when a surface consumes it?

CLAUDE.md

@@ -172,7 +172,7 @@ make ui-test          # Vitest component/store suite in a real browser (no app)
 make ui-visual        # Same, including toMatchScreenshot comparisons
 make ui-setup         # Install the Vitest provider's own Chromium (once)
 make bindings-check   # Fail if frontend/bindings is stale vs the Go bindings
-make skill-check      # Fail if .pi/ documents a make target that doesn't exist
+make skill-check      # Fail if a doc names a make target that doesn't exist
 make commit-check     # Fail if a commit subject is not a Conventional Commit
 make lint             # golangci-lint v2 (strict), all three build configurations
 make test             # All tests with race detector, all three build configurations
@@ -673,6 +673,28 @@ rather than renaming them.
   one of the shell's rows, which is what the skip link is absolutely
   positioned to avoid.
 - `config` — TOML-based settings. Settings page uses HTMX + templ for server-rendered HTML fragments.
+
+  **A setter that can reject its argument puts the old value back**, and
+  that is a correctness rule rather than hygiene (#231). `Save()`
+  validates the *whole* config, so a value left behind by a failed write
+  does not merely fail its own call: it fails every later save, of every
+  unrelated setting — theme, launch page, shortcuts, libraries — for the
+  rest of the session. Nothing reaches disk, so a restart clears it,
+  which is exactly what makes the fault invisible and unreportable. One
+  rejected track-list column list was enough to stop the app saving
+  anything at all.
+
+  Two shapes are safe and a third is the trap. A setter that assigns and
+  *then* validates snapshots the field first and restores it on the
+  error path — seven do. `SetLibraryDirectory` is the better shape where
+  the value can be built on its own: it validates a candidate *before*
+  assigning, so there is nothing to undo. And a setter whose argument no
+  validation inspects needs neither — the bools, the favourites playlist
+  id and the shortcut bindings, plus `SetViewVisible`, which refuses an
+  unknown, non-hideable or launch-page view up front so
+  `GeneralConfig.Validate` never sees one it would fail on. Which set a
+  new setter joins is decided by whether its own `Validate` can reject
+  it, not by preference.
 - `playlist` / `smartplaylist` — Playlist CRUD and rule-based smart playlists.
 - `mediacontrols` — OS media controls behind one `Handler`: MPRIS over
   D-Bus on desktop Linux, a MediaSession on Android, a no-op stub

Makefile

@@ -192,7 +192,7 @@ css-check: ## Fail on a css`` literal ended early by a backtick, or a nested rul
 # Every command in them is a make target on purpose, so this is
 # checkable.  It also asserts AGENTS.md is a symlink to CLAUDE.md, so the
 # two harnesses cannot drift onto two descriptions of one project.
-skill-check: ## Fail if the agent docs name a missing make target, or AGENTS.md is not a symlink
+skill-check: ## Fail if the docs name a missing make target, or AGENTS.md is not a symlink
 	@./scripts/skill-check.sh
 
 # Conventional Commits, which CLAUDE.md claimed CI enforced for a long

backend/app.go

@@ -499,6 +499,10 @@ func (yj *YellowJacketApp) OnStartup(ctx context.Context) {
 		PostRemove: yj.explore.InvalidateLibrarySync,
 	})
 
+	// A deleted playlist must not leave the queue's "Playing from"
+	// label pointing at it.
+	yj.playlist.SetOnPlaylistDeleted(yj.queue.DropSourceForPlaylist)
+
 	// Register playback finished handler to drive queue auto-advance.
 	yj.player.SetPlaybackFinishedHandler(yj.queue.OnPlaybackFinished)
 
@@ -775,6 +779,7 @@ func (yj *YellowJacketApp) startJanitor() {
 	}
 
 	yj.janitor.Register(maintenance.ExpiredHTTPCacheJob(yj.database))
+	yj.janitor.Register(maintenance.StaleSearchClicksJob(yj.database))
 	yj.janitor.Register(maintenance.OrphanedCoverFilesJob(
 		yj.database, coversDir, library.CoverArtFileSet,
 	))

backend/config/config.go

@@ -303,6 +303,24 @@ func (c *Config) GetLibraryDirectory() string {
 	return string(c.Library.DirectoryPath)
 }
 
+// A rejected setter puts the old value back, and that is not tidiness
+// (#231).  Save validates the *whole* config, so a value left behind by
+// a failed write does not merely fail its own call: it fails every
+// later save, of every unrelated setting, silently and for the rest of
+// the session.  Nothing reaches disk, so a restart clears it -- which
+// is exactly what makes the fault hard to see and impossible to report.
+//
+// The setters below that assign and then validate therefore snapshot
+// the field first and restore it on the error path.  SetLibraryDirectory
+// is the other safe shape and the better one where the value can be
+// built on its own: it validates a candidate *before* assigning
+// anything, so there is nothing to undo.
+//
+// Not every setter needs either.  A bool, an int64 and the shortcut
+// bindings pass through no validation that can reject them, and
+// SetViewVisible refuses an unknown, non-hideable or launch-page view
+// up front, so GeneralConfig.Validate never sees one it would fail on.
+
 // SetLibraryDirectory validates and saves a new library directory,
 // then emits the LibraryConfigChanged event so listeners (e.g. the
 // Library scanner) can react.
@@ -360,11 +378,14 @@ func (c *Config) SetScanConcurrency(mode string) error {
 		c.Library.ApplyDefaults()
 	}
 
+	previous := c.Library.ScanConcurrency
 	c.Library.ScanConcurrency = library.ScanConcurrency(
 		mode,
 	)
 
 	if err := c.Library.Validate(); err != nil {
+		c.Library.ScanConcurrency = previous
+
 		return fmt.Errorf(
 			"invalid scan concurrency mode: %w", err,
 		)
@@ -455,9 +476,12 @@ func (c *Config) SetThemeAccentColor(
 		c.Theme.ApplyDefaults()
 	}
 
+	previous := c.Theme.AccentColor
 	c.Theme.AccentColor = color
 
 	if err := c.Theme.Validate(); err != nil {
+		c.Theme.AccentColor = previous
+
 		return fmt.Errorf(
 			"invalid theme accent color: %w", err,
 		)
@@ -488,9 +512,12 @@ func (c *Config) SetThemeBackgroundShade(
 		c.Theme.ApplyDefaults()
 	}
 
+	previous := c.Theme.BackgroundShade
 	c.Theme.BackgroundShade = theme.BackgroundShade(shade)
 
 	if err := c.Theme.Validate(); err != nil {
+		c.Theme.BackgroundShade = previous
+
 		return fmt.Errorf(
 			"invalid theme background shade: %w", err,
 		)
@@ -544,9 +571,12 @@ func (c *Config) SetDefaultPage(page string) error {
 		c.General.ApplyDefaults()
 	}
 
+	previous := c.General.DefaultPage
 	c.General.DefaultPage = View(page)
 
 	if err := c.General.Validate(); err != nil {
+		c.General.DefaultPage = previous
+
 		return fmt.Errorf(
 			"invalid default page: %w", err,
 		)
@@ -591,9 +621,12 @@ func (c *Config) SetQueueFallback(mode string) error {
 		c.General.ApplyDefaults()
 	}
 
+	previous := c.General.QueueFallback
 	c.General.QueueFallback = QueueFallback(mode)
 
 	if err := c.General.Validate(); err != nil {
+		c.General.QueueFallback = previous
+
 		return fmt.Errorf(
 			"invalid queue fallback: %w", err,
 		)
@@ -801,9 +834,12 @@ func (c *Config) SetTrackListColumns(
 		c.TrackList = &tracklist.Config{}
 	}
 
+	previous := c.TrackList.Columns
 	c.TrackList.Columns = columns
 
 	if err := c.TrackList.Validate(); err != nil {
+		c.TrackList.Columns = previous
+
 		return fmt.Errorf(
 			"invalid track-list columns: %w", err,
 		)
@@ -901,9 +937,12 @@ func (c *Config) SetFavoritesIconStyle(
 		c.Favorites.ApplyDefaults()
 	}
 
+	previous := c.Favorites.IconStyle
 	c.Favorites.IconStyle = favorites.IconStyle(style)
 
 	if err := c.Favorites.Validate(); err != nil {
+		c.Favorites.IconStyle = previous
+
 		return fmt.Errorf(
 			"invalid favorites icon style: %w", err,
 		)

backend/config/setter_rollback_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,262 @@
+package config
+
+import (
+	"log/slog"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"testing"
+
+	"yellowjacket/backend/library"
+	"yellowjacket/backend/tracklist"
+)
+
+// newSavableConfig builds a loaded, valid config in a temp directory,
+// so Save() writes rather than refusing with errSaveBeforeLoad.
+//
+// The library directory is real and set, because Config.Validate only
+// validates the Library section when DirectoryPath is non-empty -- an
+// empty one would hide a poisoned ScanConcurrency from the whole-config
+// save that is the symptom under test.
+func newSavableConfig(t *testing.T) *Config {
+	t.Helper()
+
+	c := &Config{
+		logger:   slog.Default(),
+		filePath: filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "config.toml"),
+		Library: &library.Config{
+			DirectoryPath: library.Directory(t.TempDir()),
+		},
+	}
+
+	c.applyDefaults()
+
+	if err := c.Load(); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Load() error: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if err := c.Save(); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Save() on a fresh config error: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	return c
+}
+
+// TestSetterRejectionDoesNotPoisonTheConfig is the whole of #231.
+//
+// Every setter here assigns to the in-memory config and then validates.
+// When the validation rejects the argument, the rejected value has to go
+// back -- not because the caller sees it (it gets an error either way),
+// but because Config.Save() validates the *whole* config.  A value left
+// behind by a failed setter therefore fails every later save, of every
+// unrelated setting, silently and for the rest of the session.
+//
+// So each case asserts three things in order: the setter reports the
+// error, the getter still reports the old value, and an unrelated save
+// still works.  The third is the one the user feels.
+func TestSetterRejectionDoesNotPoisonTheConfig(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	cases := []struct {
+		name string
+		// reject calls the setter with an argument its own Validate
+		// refuses.
+		reject func(*Config) error
+		// read reports the value the setter writes, so the rollback is
+		// asserted on the config rather than only on the save.
+		read func(*Config) string
+	}{
+		{
+			name: "scan concurrency",
+			reject: func(c *Config) error {
+				return c.SetScanConcurrency("telepathy")
+			},
+			read: (*Config).GetScanConcurrency,
+		},
+		{
+			name: "theme accent colour",
+			reject: func(c *Config) error {
+				return c.SetThemeAccentColor("not-a-hex")
+			},
+			read: (*Config).GetThemeAccentColor,
+		},
+		{
+			name: "theme background shade",
+			reject: func(c *Config) error {
+				return c.SetThemeBackgroundShade("chartreuse")
+			},
+			read: (*Config).GetThemeBackgroundShade,
+		},
+		{
+			name: "default page",
+			reject: func(c *Config) error {
+				return c.SetDefaultPage("nowhere")
+			},
+			read: (*Config).GetDefaultPage,
+		},
+		{
+			name: "queue fallback",
+			reject: func(c *Config) error {
+				return c.SetQueueFallback("improvise")
+			},
+			read: (*Config).GetQueueFallback,
+		},
+		{
+			name: "favorites icon style",
+			reject: func(c *Config) error {
+				return c.SetFavoritesIconStyle("asterisk")
+			},
+			read: (*Config).GetFavoritesIconStyle,
+		},
+		{
+			name: "track-list columns",
+			reject: func(c *Config) error {
+				// titleArtist is a drawing definition, not a
+				// configurable column (#197), so it is exactly what
+				// the frontend used to be able to send.
+				return c.SetTrackListColumns([]tracklist.Column{
+					{ID: "titleArtist"},
+				})
+			},
+			read: func(c *Config) string {
+				return columnIDs(c.GetTrackListColumns())
+			},
+		},
+		{
+			name: "track-list columns, duplicated",
+			reject: func(c *Config) error {
+				// The route #197 closed was one invalid id; a
+				// duplicate is the one still reachable from a client
+				// that assembles the list itself.
+				return c.SetTrackListColumns([]tracklist.Column{
+					{ID: tracklist.ColTrackName},
+					{ID: tracklist.ColTrackName},
+				})
+			},
+			read: func(c *Config) string {
+				return columnIDs(c.GetTrackListColumns())
+			},
+		},
+	}
+
+	for _, tc := range cases {
+		t.Run(tc.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			t.Parallel()
+
+			c := newSavableConfig(t)
+			before := tc.read(c)
+
+			if err := tc.reject(c); err == nil {
+				t.Fatal("setter accepted an invalid value, want an error")
+			}
+
+			if after := tc.read(c); after != before {
+				t.Errorf(
+					"value after a rejected write = %q, want the previous %q",
+					after, before,
+				)
+			}
+
+			// The symptom: an unrelated setting can no longer be saved.
+			if err := c.SetPopupVolume(true); err != nil {
+				t.Errorf("an unrelated setter failed after a rejected write: %v", err)
+			}
+
+			if err := c.Save(); err != nil {
+				t.Errorf("Save() failed after a rejected write: %v", err)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+// TestRejectedSetterLeavesNothingOnDisk pairs with the sweep above: the
+// rollback must not be undone by what the file already holds, so a
+// config reloaded from disk after a rejected write agrees with memory.
+func TestRejectedSetterLeavesNothingOnDisk(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	c := newSavableConfig(t)
+
+	if err := c.SetThemeAccentColor("#123456"); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("SetThemeAccentColor() error: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if err := c.SetThemeAccentColor("not-a-hex"); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("SetThemeAccentColor accepted a non-colour, want an error")
+	}
+
+	reloaded := &Config{logger: slog.Default(), filePath: c.filePath}
+	reloaded.applyDefaults()
+
+	if err := reloaded.Load(); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Load() error: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if got := reloaded.GetThemeAccentColor(); got != "#123456" {
+		t.Errorf("accent colour on disk = %q, want %q", got, "#123456")
+	}
+
+	if c.GetThemeAccentColor() != reloaded.GetThemeAccentColor() {
+		t.Errorf(
+			"in-memory accent %q disagrees with disk %q after a rejected write",
+			c.GetThemeAccentColor(), reloaded.GetThemeAccentColor(),
+		)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestSetLibraryDirectoryValidatesBeforeAssigning pins the precedent the
+// seven rolled-back setters follow: this one has always built and
+// validated a candidate before assigning, so a bad path never reaches
+// the config at all.
+func TestSetLibraryDirectoryValidatesBeforeAssigning(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	c := newSavableConfig(t)
+	before := c.GetLibraryDirectory()
+
+	if err := c.SetLibraryDirectory(filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "no-such-dir")); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("SetLibraryDirectory accepted a missing directory, want an error")
+	}
+
+	if after := c.GetLibraryDirectory(); after != before {
+		t.Errorf("library directory = %q, want the previous %q", after, before)
+	}
+
+	if err := c.Save(); err != nil {
+		t.Errorf("Save() failed after a rejected library directory: %v", err)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestSetViewVisibleRefusesBeforeAssigning covers the other setter left
+// out of the rollback pass: it guards its own argument up front, so
+// GeneralConfig.Validate never sees a view it would reject.
+func TestSetViewVisibleRefusesBeforeAssigning(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	c := newSavableConfig(t)
+
+	if err := c.SetViewVisible("no-such-view", false); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("SetViewVisible accepted an unknown view, want an error")
+	}
+
+	if err := c.SetViewVisible(c.GetDefaultPage(), false); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("SetViewVisible hid the launch page, want an error")
+	}
+
+	if err := c.Save(); err != nil {
+		t.Errorf("Save() failed after a refused view visibility change: %v", err)
+	}
+}
+
+// columnIDs renders a column list for comparison in the table above.
+func columnIDs(cols []tracklist.Column) string {
+	ids := make([]byte, 0, len(cols)*8)
+
+	for i, col := range cols {
+		if i > 0 {
+			ids = append(ids, ',')
+		}
+
+		ids = append(ids, col.ID...)
+	}
+
+	return string(ids)
+}

backend/database/database_test.go

@@ -662,19 +662,19 @@ func TestSmartPlaylistColumns(t *testing.T) {
 }
 
 // ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-// Migration 10 — play history tracking
+// Listening events tracking
 // ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
-func TestPlayHistoryTable(t *testing.T) {
+func TestListeningEventsTable(t *testing.T) {
 	t.Parallel()
 
 	db := NewTestDB(t)
 
-	// Verify play_history table exists.
+	// Verify listening_events table exists.
 	var tableCount int64
 
 	tblRows, err := db.QueryContext(
-		"SELECT COUNT(*) FROM sqlite_master WHERE type='table' AND name='play_history'",
+		"SELECT COUNT(*) FROM sqlite_master WHERE type='table' AND name='listening_events'",
 	)
 	if err != nil {
 		t.Fatalf("query sqlite_master: %v", err)
@@ -695,12 +695,14 @@ func TestPlayHistoryTable(t *testing.T) {
 	_ = tblRows.Close()
 
 	if tableCount != 1 {
-		t.Errorf("play_history table count = %d, want 1", tableCount)
+		t.Errorf("listening_events table count = %d, want 1", tableCount)
 	}
 
-	// Verify audio_files has play_count and last_played columns.
+	// Verify audio_files has the denormalized listening counters.
 	hasPlayCount := false
 	hasLastPlayed := false
+	hasSkipCount := false
+	hasLastSkipped := false
 
 	colRows, err := db.QueryContext("PRAGMA table_info(audio_files)")
 	if err != nil {
@@ -732,6 +734,14 @@ func TestPlayHistoryTable(t *testing.T) {
 		if name == "last_played" {
 			hasLastPlayed = true
 		}
+
+		if name == "skip_count" {
+			hasSkipCount = true
+		}
+
+		if name == "last_skipped" {
+			hasLastSkipped = true
+		}
 	}
 
 	_ = colRows.Close()
@@ -744,6 +754,14 @@ func TestPlayHistoryTable(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Error("audio_files missing last_played column")
 	}
 
+	if !hasSkipCount {
+		t.Error("audio_files missing skip_count column")
+	}
+
+	if !hasLastSkipped {
+		t.Error("audio_files missing last_skipped column")
+	}
+
 	// Verify track_metadata VIEW includes play_count and last_played.
 	viewCols := map[string]bool{}
 
@@ -783,7 +801,7 @@ func TestPlayHistoryTable(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Error("track_metadata VIEW missing last_played column")
 	}
 
-	// Round-trip: insert a play_history row and verify play_count update.
+	// Round-trip: insert a listening_events row and verify play_count update.
 	// First, set up test data. The test DB already has library id=0.
 	InsertTestTrack(t, db, TestTrack{
 		FilePath:    "/test/play_history.mp3",
@@ -821,12 +839,12 @@ func TestPlayHistoryTable(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Errorf("initial play_count = %d, want 0", playCount)
 	}
 
-	// Insert a play_history row and update play_count.
+	// Insert a listening_events row (kind defaults to 'complete').
 	_, err = db.ExecContext(
-		"INSERT INTO play_history (audio_file_id) VALUES (1)",
+		"INSERT INTO listening_events (audio_file_id, kind) VALUES (1, 'complete')",
 	)
 	if err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("insert play_history: %v", err)
+		t.Fatalf("insert listening_events: %v", err)
 	}
 
 	_, err = db.ExecContext(

backend/database/lyrics_search.go

@@ -151,16 +151,28 @@ func (d *DB) SetLyrics(audioFileID int64, lyrics, source, recordingMBID string)
 	return d.upsertLyricsIndex(audioFileID, lyrics)
 }
 
-// upsertLyricsIndex refreshes a single file's entry in the contentless
-// lyrics_index.  contentless_delete=1 makes the DELETE valid; an empty
-// lyrics string leaves the row deleted.
-func (d *DB) upsertLyricsIndex(audioFileID int64, lyrics string) error {
+// DeleteLyricsIndex removes one file's entry from the contentless
+// lyrics_index.  It is called wherever a file row is deleted — the
+// `lyrics` table cascades with its file, but the FTS entry does not and
+// would otherwise accumulate for the life of the install (#249).
+func (d *DB) DeleteLyricsIndex(audioFileID int64) error {
 	if _, err := d.db.ExecContext(d.Ctx,
 		"DELETE FROM lyrics_index WHERE rowid = ?", audioFileID,
 	); err != nil {
 		return fmt.Errorf("could not delete lyrics_index row: %w", err)
 	}
 
+	return nil
+}
+
+// upsertLyricsIndex refreshes a single file's entry in the contentless
+// lyrics_index.  contentless_delete=1 makes the DELETE valid; an empty
+// lyrics string leaves the row deleted.
+func (d *DB) upsertLyricsIndex(audioFileID int64, lyrics string) error {
+	if err := d.DeleteLyricsIndex(audioFileID); err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
 	if strings.TrimSpace(lyrics) == "" {
 		return nil
 	}

backend/database/playlistphantoms.go

@@ -0,0 +1,125 @@
+package database
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"database/sql"
+	"fmt"
+	"log/slog"
+)
+
+// Preserving a playlist entry across the loss of its track is two
+// statements, not one, and the split is not tidiness -- it is what
+// makes the important half work in the situation that needs it most.
+//
+// `playlist_tracks.audio_file_id` is ON DELETE SET NULL, so an entry
+// outlives its file as an id-less row that says nothing about what the
+// user put in the playlist.  The phantom_* columns carry the answer
+// across and ResolvePhantomTracksAfterScan re-links them afterwards --
+// but only if something fills them *before* the rows go.
+//
+// The two halves are not equally important and are not equally
+// available:
+//
+//   - **phantom_file_path is the one that matters.**
+//     ResolvePhantomTracksAfterScan matches it against
+//     `audio_files.file_path`, so without it an entry can never be
+//     re-linked and the playlist is empty for good.  It comes straight
+//     off `audio_files`, whose `file_path` is the table's natural key
+//     and has been present in every shape it has ever had -- including
+//     the pre-013 stub of `(id, file_path, recording_id)`.
+//   - The rest is *display* for a phantom entry before a rescan
+//     re-links it, and it comes from the `track_metadata` view, which
+//     is the one definition of a track row and not worth restating.
+//
+// Reading the view is what cannot be relied on here, and that is the
+// whole reason for the split.  This runs *before* applySchema, which is
+// precisely the moment the schema is inconsistent: the view is whatever
+// the last launch's schema declared, while `audio_files` is whatever
+// the launch before that left behind.  A view over columns the table no
+// longer has is not merely empty -- `pragma_table_info` on it *errors*,
+// and so does selecting from it.  `cmd/indexbuild`'s fixture is exactly
+// that shape and is what caught this.
+//
+// COALESCE keeps an existing phantom value in both halves: an entry
+// already phantom is one whose file went missing in an earlier pass,
+// and its recorded metadata is the only copy left.  Overwriting that
+// from a NULL join erases the rows this exists to protect.
+const (
+	preservePhantomPathSQL = `
+		UPDATE playlist_tracks
+		SET phantom_file_path = COALESCE(phantom_file_path, (
+			SELECT af.file_path FROM audio_files af
+			WHERE af.id = playlist_tracks.audio_file_id
+		))
+		WHERE audio_file_id IS NOT NULL
+	`
+
+	preservePhantomDisplaySQL = `
+		UPDATE playlist_tracks
+		SET
+			phantom_title = COALESCE(phantom_title, (
+				SELECT tm.title FROM track_metadata tm
+				WHERE tm.id = playlist_tracks.audio_file_id
+			)),
+			phantom_artist = COALESCE(phantom_artist, (
+				SELECT tm.artist_name FROM track_metadata tm
+				WHERE tm.id = playlist_tracks.audio_file_id
+			)),
+			phantom_album = COALESCE(phantom_album, (
+				SELECT tm.album FROM track_metadata tm
+				WHERE tm.id = playlist_tracks.audio_file_id
+			)),
+			phantom_duration_ms = COALESCE(phantom_duration_ms, (
+				SELECT af.length_milliseconds FROM audio_files af
+				WHERE af.id = playlist_tracks.audio_file_id
+			)),
+			phantom_genre = COALESCE(phantom_genre, (
+				SELECT tm.genre FROM track_metadata tm
+				WHERE tm.id = playlist_tracks.audio_file_id
+			)),
+			phantom_cover_art_path = COALESCE(phantom_cover_art_path, (
+				SELECT tm.cover_art_path FROM track_metadata tm
+				WHERE tm.id = playlist_tracks.audio_file_id
+			))
+		WHERE audio_file_id IS NOT NULL
+	`
+)
+
+// PreservePlaylistPhantoms records every linked playlist entry's track
+// metadata on the entry itself, so the entry survives the rows being
+// deleted underneath it.
+//
+// Every path that empties `audio_files` must call this first, inside
+// the same transaction as the delete.  There are two such paths and
+// they had drifted: the full rescan in backend/library did this and the
+// stale-shape retire in this package did not, so the *documented*
+// repair ("delete and rescan") preserved playlists while the automatic
+// one that exists to spare the user that work silently emptied them.
+//
+// The display half is skipped, with a warning, when `track_metadata`
+// cannot answer -- see the note above.  Skipping it costs a phantom
+// entry its title until a rescan re-links it; skipping the path half
+// would cost the entry outright, so that one is an error.
+func PreservePlaylistPhantoms(
+	ctx context.Context, tx *sql.Tx, logger *slog.Logger,
+) error {
+	if _, err := tx.ExecContext(ctx, preservePhantomPathSQL); err != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf(
+			"could not preserve playlist track file paths: %w", err,
+		)
+	}
+
+	if _, err := tx.ExecContext(ctx, preservePhantomDisplaySQL); err != nil {
+		// A failed statement does not roll back a SQLite transaction,
+		// so the path half above stands and the entries remain
+		// re-linkable.
+		logger.Warn(
+			"could not record display metadata for playlist entries; "+
+				"they will be re-linked by the next scan but read as "+
+				"unknown until then",
+			"err", err,
+		)
+	}
+
+	return nil
+}

backend/database/sql/schemas/audio_files.sql

@@ -68,8 +68,14 @@ CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS audio_files (
   -- compared against the on-disk mtime during a scan to detect files
   -- another application retagged in place.
   modified_at        INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
+  -- Listening counts, denormalized from listening_events so the hot
+  -- read path (track list sort, shelves, smart playlists) never joins
+  -- a log table.  Authored: a rescan cannot rebuild them.  This is the
+  -- "MIXED KIND" half of audio_files the datamap notes.
   play_count         INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
   last_played        DATETIME,
+  skip_count         INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
+  last_skipped       DATETIME,
   tag_status         TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT 'untagged'
     CHECK(tag_status IN (
       'untagged', 'auto_matched', 'user_confirmed', 'user_skipped_permanent'

backend/database/sql/schemas/download_items.sql

@@ -45,8 +45,6 @@ CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_download_items_live
 CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_download_items_state
     ON download_items(state);
 
--- idx_download_items_download is deliberately NOT declared here: on an
--- existing database this table already exists at schema-pass time with
--- its old column still named request_id, so an inline CREATE INDEX on
--- download_id would fail outright. See ensureDownloadIndexes in
--- backend/database/download_rename_migration.go.
+-- ListDownloadItemsForDownload filters on the parent download.
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_download_items_download
+    ON download_items(download_id);

backend/database/sql/schemas/download_requests.sql

@@ -66,14 +66,11 @@ CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS download_requests (
     FOREIGN KEY(parent_id) REFERENCES download_requests(id) ON DELETE CASCADE
 );
 
--- idx_download_requests_{due,entity,parent} are deliberately NOT
--- declared here. This table name is reused from the old one-shot
--- attempt table (also called download_requests before the Want/Request
--- rename), so on an existing database this CREATE TABLE is a no-op
--- against a table that, at schema-pass time, is still shaped like the
--- OLD attempts table and lacks these columns entirely — an inline
--- CREATE INDEX here would fail outright rather than just no-op. See
--- migrateDownloadRename/ensureDownloadIndexes in
--- backend/database/download_rename_migration.go, which create these
--- once the rename has actually happened (or immediately, on a fresh
--- database where the columns exist from the start).
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_download_requests_due
+    ON download_requests(state, next_try_at);
+
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_download_requests_entity
+    ON download_requests(entity, state);
+
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_download_requests_parent
+    ON download_requests(parent_id) WHERE parent_id IS NOT NULL;

backend/database/sql/schemas/listening_events.sql

@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+-- One row per track *exit*, three ways a listen can end: it reached
+-- the end, it was heard enough to count and then skipped past, or it
+-- was abandoned for another track before anyone had really listened.
+--
+-- This is the source of truth for listening behaviour.  The
+-- denormalized `play_count` / `last_played` / `skip_count` /
+-- `last_skipped` on audio_files are materialized from it, because the
+-- hot read path (track-list sort, the shelves, smart playlists) must
+-- not join a log that grows by one row per song forever.
+--
+-- `kind` is the classification, applied at write time:
+--
+--   complete   the track reached its natural end, or was skipped in
+--              its tail window (the last few seconds of a long fade).
+--   play       the scrobble threshold was heard — half the track or
+--              four minutes, whichever is less — and the user moved on
+--              before the end.
+--   skip       the user moved to a different track before that.
+--
+-- `position_seconds` / `duration_seconds` are the raw reading the
+-- classification was made from, kept so a future re-tune of the
+-- threshold does not need the events re-recorded.  0/0 on a row means
+-- "not captured for this event" (e.g. a natural finish recorded before
+-- these columns existed), not "a zero-second track".
+CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS listening_events (
+    id               INTEGER PRIMARY KEY,
+    audio_file_id    INTEGER NOT NULL,
+    kind             TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT 'complete'
+                     CHECK (kind IN ('complete', 'play', 'skip')),
+    position_seconds INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
+    duration_seconds INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
+    occurred_at      DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT (datetime('now')),
+    FOREIGN KEY(audio_file_id) REFERENCES audio_files(id) ON DELETE CASCADE
+);
+
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_listening_events_audio_file_id
+    ON listening_events(audio_file_id);
+
+-- "What did I listen to this month" walks this, rather than the
+-- per-track index above.
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_listening_events_occurred_at
+    ON listening_events(occurred_at);

backend/database/sql/schemas/play_history.sql

@@ -1,9 +0,0 @@
-CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS play_history (
-    id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY,
-    audio_file_id INTEGER NOT NULL,
-    played_at DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT (datetime('now')),
-    FOREIGN KEY(audio_file_id) REFERENCES audio_files(id) ON DELETE CASCADE
-);
-
-CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_play_history_audio_file_id
-    ON play_history(audio_file_id);

backend/database/sql/schemas/queue.sql

@@ -1,18 +1,15 @@
 CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS queue (
     id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY CHECK(id = 1),
-    source_playlist_id INTEGER,
     current_position INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
     shuffle_mode BOOLEAN NOT NULL DEFAULT false,
     repeat_mode TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT 'off',
     shuffle_order TEXT,
-    -- source_playlist_id above is unused dead weight (nothing has ever
-    -- written it a nonzero value); source_type/source_id/source_label
-    -- below are its generalized replacement, covering albums, playlists,
-    -- smart playlists, genres and artists rather than playlists alone.
+    -- What the queue was built from ("Playing from: X"): an album,
+    -- playlist, smart playlist, genre or artist, identified by the id
+    -- that source_type's namespace gives it.
     source_type TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT '',
     source_id INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
-    source_label TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT '',
-    FOREIGN KEY(source_playlist_id) REFERENCES playlists(id) ON DELETE SET NULL
+    source_label TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT ''
 );
 
 -- Singleton row: there is exactly one playback queue.

backend/database/sql/schemas/tagging_items.sql

@@ -26,17 +26,10 @@ CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS tagging_items (
   -- complete rip of their own directory.  parent_group_key is the
   -- original folder group they were split from.
   --
-  -- These two columns are declared LAST, after created_at, even
-  -- though that reads oddly next to the rest of the table: sql/
-  -- migrations/0001 brings a pre-existing tagging_items up to date
-  -- with `ALTER TABLE ADD COLUMN`, which SQLite always appends at
-  -- the end of the column list.  A fresh install (this file) and an
-  -- upgraded database (this file + the migration) must end up with
-  -- IDENTICAL column order, because sqlc-generated `SELECT *` scans
-  -- (e.g. GetTaggingItem) bind columns positionally — see the
-  -- schema/migration column-order test in database_test.go.  Put
-  -- new columns wherever reads best when adding a table for the
-  -- first time; append-only from the second migration on.
+  -- These columns are appended after created_at rather than grouped
+  -- with the rest of the row: sqlc's `SELECT *` scans (GetTaggingItem)
+  -- bind column order positionally, so new columns always go at the
+  -- end.
   synthetic               INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
   parent_group_key        TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT '',
   -- album_artist_conflict latches to 1 the first time two tracks
@@ -58,10 +51,3 @@ CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_tagging_items_library_status
 
 CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_tagging_items_status_pending
     ON tagging_items(library_id) WHERE status = 'pending';
-
--- idx_tagging_items_parent_group_key is NOT declared here on
--- purpose: this file runs unconditionally, before migrations, even
--- against a database that hasn't run 0001 yet — an index predicate
--- referencing parent_group_key would fail on that table.  It lives
--- solely in sql/migrations/0001_tagging_items_synthetic.sql, which
--- runs after the column exists either way (see database.go).

backend/database/sql/sqlcgen/audio_files.sql.go

@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ INSERT INTO audio_files (
   ?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?,
   ?, ?, ?, ?, ?
 )
-RETURNING id, file_path, library_id, file_type_id, length_milliseconds, sample_rate, bit_depth, channels, bitrate, file_size, title, artist_credit, artist_id, album_id, track_number, disc_number, total_tracks, year, composer, comment, recording_mbid, basename, group_key, modified_at, play_count, last_played, tag_status
+RETURNING id, file_path, library_id, file_type_id, length_milliseconds, sample_rate, bit_depth, channels, bitrate, file_size, title, artist_credit, artist_id, album_id, track_number, disc_number, total_tracks, year, composer, comment, recording_mbid, basename, group_key, modified_at, play_count, last_played, skip_count, last_skipped, tag_status
 `
 
 type CreateAudioFileParams struct {
@@ -135,6 +135,8 @@ func (q *Queries) CreateAudioFile(ctx context.Context, arg CreateAudioFileParams
 		&i.ModifiedAt,
 		&i.PlayCount,
 		&i.LastPlayed,
+		&i.SkipCount,
+		&i.LastSkipped,
 		&i.TagStatus,
 	)
 	return i, err
@@ -192,7 +194,7 @@ func (q *Queries) GetAllAudioFilePaths(ctx context.Context) ([]GetAllAudioFilePa
 
 const getAudioFile = `-- name: GetAudioFile :one
 
-SELECT id, file_path, library_id, file_type_id, length_milliseconds, sample_rate, bit_depth, channels, bitrate, file_size, title, artist_credit, artist_id, album_id, track_number, disc_number, total_tracks, year, composer, comment, recording_mbid, basename, group_key, modified_at, play_count, last_played, tag_status FROM audio_files WHERE id = ? LIMIT 1
+SELECT id, file_path, library_id, file_type_id, length_milliseconds, sample_rate, bit_depth, channels, bitrate, file_size, title, artist_credit, artist_id, album_id, track_number, disc_number, total_tracks, year, composer, comment, recording_mbid, basename, group_key, modified_at, play_count, last_played, skip_count, last_skipped, tag_status FROM audio_files WHERE id = ? LIMIT 1
 `
 
 // ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -228,13 +230,15 @@ func (q *Queries) GetAudioFile(ctx context.Context, id int64) (AudioFile, error)
 		&i.ModifiedAt,
 		&i.PlayCount,
 		&i.LastPlayed,
+		&i.SkipCount,
+		&i.LastSkipped,
 		&i.TagStatus,
 	)
 	return i, err
 }
 
 const getAudioFileByPath = `-- name: GetAudioFileByPath :one
-SELECT id, file_path, library_id, file_type_id, length_milliseconds, sample_rate, bit_depth, channels, bitrate, file_size, title, artist_credit, artist_id, album_id, track_number, disc_number, total_tracks, year, composer, comment, recording_mbid, basename, group_key, modified_at, play_count, last_played, tag_status FROM audio_files WHERE file_path = ? LIMIT 1
+SELECT id, file_path, library_id, file_type_id, length_milliseconds, sample_rate, bit_depth, channels, bitrate, file_size, title, artist_credit, artist_id, album_id, track_number, disc_number, total_tracks, year, composer, comment, recording_mbid, basename, group_key, modified_at, play_count, last_played, skip_count, last_skipped, tag_status FROM audio_files WHERE file_path = ? LIMIT 1
 `
 
 func (q *Queries) GetAudioFileByPath(ctx context.Context, filePath string) (AudioFile, error) {
@@ -267,6 +271,8 @@ func (q *Queries) GetAudioFileByPath(ctx context.Context, filePath string) (Audi
 		&i.ModifiedAt,
 		&i.PlayCount,
 		&i.LastPlayed,
+		&i.SkipCount,
+		&i.LastSkipped,
 		&i.TagStatus,
 	)
 	return i, err
@@ -334,7 +340,7 @@ func (q *Queries) GetAudioFilesByPaths(ctx context.Context, paths []string) ([]G
 }
 
 const getAudioFilesInLibrary = `-- name: GetAudioFilesInLibrary :many
-SELECT id, file_path, library_id, file_type_id, length_milliseconds, sample_rate, bit_depth, channels, bitrate, file_size, title, artist_credit, artist_id, album_id, track_number, disc_number, total_tracks, year, composer, comment, recording_mbid, basename, group_key, modified_at, play_count, last_played, tag_status FROM audio_files WHERE library_id = ?
+SELECT id, file_path, library_id, file_type_id, length_milliseconds, sample_rate, bit_depth, channels, bitrate, file_size, title, artist_credit, artist_id, album_id, track_number, disc_number, total_tracks, year, composer, comment, recording_mbid, basename, group_key, modified_at, play_count, last_played, skip_count, last_skipped, tag_status FROM audio_files WHERE library_id = ?
 `
 
 func (q *Queries) GetAudioFilesInLibrary(ctx context.Context, libraryID int64) ([]AudioFile, error) {
@@ -373,6 +379,8 @@ func (q *Queries) GetAudioFilesInLibrary(ctx context.Context, libraryID int64) (
 			&i.ModifiedAt,
 			&i.PlayCount,
 			&i.LastPlayed,
+			&i.SkipCount,
+			&i.LastSkipped,
 			&i.TagStatus,
 		); err != nil {
 			return nil, err

backend/database/sql/sqlcgen/models.go

@@ -94,6 +94,8 @@ type AudioFile struct {
 	ModifiedAt         int64
 	PlayCount          int64
 	LastPlayed         sql.NullTime
+	SkipCount          int64
+	LastSkipped        sql.NullTime
 	TagStatus          string
 }
 
@@ -261,6 +263,15 @@ type Library struct {
 	AutotagWarningAcked int64
 }
 
+type ListeningEvent struct {
+	ID              int64
+	AudioFileID     int64
+	Kind            string
+	PositionSeconds int64
+	DurationSeconds int64
+	OccurredAt      time.Time
+}
+
 type Lyric struct {
 	AudioFileID   int64
 	Text          string
@@ -273,12 +284,6 @@ type LyricsIndex struct {
 	Lyrics string
 }
 
-type PlayHistory struct {
-	ID          int64
-	AudioFileID int64
-	PlayedAt    time.Time
-}
-
 type PlayerState struct {
 	ID                  int64
 	Volume              int64
@@ -312,15 +317,14 @@ type PlaylistTrack struct {
 }
 
 type Queue struct {
-	ID               int64
-	SourcePlaylistID sql.NullInt64
-	CurrentPosition  int64
-	ShuffleMode      bool
-	RepeatMode       string
-	ShuffleOrder     sql.NullString
-	SourceType       string
-	SourceID         int64
-	SourceLabel      string
+	ID              int64
+	CurrentPosition int64
+	ShuffleMode     bool
+	RepeatMode      string
+	ShuffleOrder    sql.NullString
+	SourceType      string
+	SourceID        int64
+	SourceLabel     string
 }
 
 type QueueTrack struct {

backend/database/staleshape.go

@@ -245,6 +245,13 @@ func dropDeferred(
 	ctx context.Context, db *sql.DB, logger *slog.Logger,
 	drop map[string]string,
 ) error {
+	// Asked before the transaction opens, because the answer is about
+	// which tables are live and that cannot change underneath us here.
+	preserve, err := shouldPreservePhantoms(ctx, db, drop)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
 	tx, err := db.BeginTx(ctx, nil)
 	if err != nil {
 		return fmt.Errorf("could not begin the retire transaction: %w", err)
@@ -256,6 +263,22 @@ func dropDeferred(
 		return fmt.Errorf("could not defer foreign keys: %w", err)
 	}
 
+	// Before any drop, so every entry still has a track to read.  It is
+	// in this transaction rather than beside it because the preservation
+	// and the delete have to succeed or fail together: a commit that
+	// dropped the files without the phantoms is the bug, and a commit
+	// that wrote phantoms without dropping anything is a lie about rows
+	// that are still there.
+	if preserve {
+		logger.Info(
+			"preserving playlist entries across the retire of audio_files",
+		)
+
+		if err := PreservePlaylistPhantoms(ctx, tx, logger); err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+	}
+
 	// Sorted, so a failure is reproducible.  Map order is random, and a
 	// bug that depends on which table happens to go first reproduces on
 	// one run in three and passes review on the other two -- which is
@@ -283,6 +306,38 @@ func dropDeferred(
 	return nil
 }
 
+// shouldPreservePhantoms reports whether this retire is about to take
+// `audio_files` out from under the playlists.
+//
+// The `playlist_tracks` check is not defensive padding.  This runs
+// *before* applySchema, which is the moment the schema is by definition
+// mid-repair, and the preservation reads a table it does not drop.  A
+// database old enough not to have it would otherwise fail here, and
+// failing here means the app does not open at all -- while nothing is
+// lost by skipping, since an absent `playlist_tracks` holds no
+// playlists to save.
+//
+// It deliberately does *not* ask after `track_metadata`.  Whether that
+// view can answer is PreservePlaylistPhantoms's own business, because a
+// view broken against an older `audio_files` is a state this function
+// cannot detect without hitting the same error it is trying to avoid:
+// pragma_table_info on such a view errors rather than reporting no
+// columns.
+func shouldPreservePhantoms(
+	ctx context.Context, db *sql.DB, drop map[string]string,
+) (bool, error) {
+	if _, going := drop["audio_files"]; !going {
+		return false, nil
+	}
+
+	cols, err := liveColumns(ctx, db, "playlist_tracks")
+	if err != nil {
+		return false, err
+	}
+
+	return len(cols) > 0, nil
+}
+
 // staleReason reports why a live table disagrees with its declaration,
 // or "" when it agrees.  A column the live table does not have is the
 // additive case; a column whose declared type changed is the one an

backend/database/staleshape_test.go

@@ -497,3 +497,180 @@ func TestParseCreateTablesReadsTheRealSchema(t *testing.T) {
 		}
 	}
 }
+
+// TestRetiringAudioFilesKeepsPlaylistContents is the symptom this
+// repair exists for: a playlist survived the retire as a row count and
+// nothing else.
+//
+// TestRetiringOwnedTablesDoesNotDangle already asserts the entry does
+// not keep a stale id, which is the *dangerous* half.  It is satisfied
+// just as well by an entry that says nothing at all, which is the
+// half that quietly emptied every playlist -- so this asserts what the
+// entry still knows, and specifically phantom_file_path, because that
+// is the column ResolvePhantomTracksAfterScan matches back against
+// audio_files.file_path.
+//
+// Note the seed drops `comment`, not `artist_credit`: the mutation has
+// to leave `track_metadata` standing, since a real launch reaches the
+// retire with the view the previous launch created.  A test that drops
+// the view first is testing the skip path, not this one.
+func TestRetiringAudioFilesKeepsPlaylistContents(t *testing.T) {
+	ctx := context.Background()
+	db := openRaw(t, t.TempDir())
+
+	if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, "PRAGMA foreign_keys = ON"); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("pragma: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if err := applySchema(ctx, db); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("applySchema: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, `
+		INSERT INTO playlists (id, name) VALUES (1, 'keepme');
+		INSERT INTO libraries (id, name, path) VALUES (0, 'test', '/music');
+		INSERT INTO artists (id, name) VALUES (3, 'Aurora Fields');
+		INSERT INTO cover_art (id, file_path, mime_type)
+			VALUES (9, 'covers/7.jpg', 'image/jpeg');
+		INSERT INTO genres (id, name) VALUES (5, 'Ambient');
+		INSERT INTO albums (id, name, artist_id, cover_art_id)
+			VALUES (4, 'Tideline', 3, 9);
+		INSERT INTO audio_files
+			(id, file_path, file_type_id, length_milliseconds,
+			 title, artist_credit, artist_id, album_id)
+			VALUES (7, '/music/a.flac', 1, 1000,
+			        'Slack Water', 'Aurora Fields', 3, 4);
+		INSERT INTO file_genres (audio_file_id, genre_id) VALUES (7, 5);
+		INSERT INTO playlist_tracks (playlist_id, audio_file_id, position)
+			VALUES (1, 7, 0);
+		ALTER TABLE audio_files DROP COLUMN comment;
+	`); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("seed: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if err := retireStaleTables(ctx, db, testLogger()); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("retire: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if err := applySchema(ctx, db); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("applySchema: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	var (
+		path, title, artist, album, genre, cover sql.NullString
+		duration                                 sql.NullInt64
+	)
+
+	if err := db.QueryRowContext(ctx, `
+		SELECT phantom_file_path, phantom_title, phantom_artist,
+		       phantom_album, phantom_duration_ms, phantom_genre,
+		       phantom_cover_art_path
+		FROM playlist_tracks WHERE playlist_id = 1
+	`).Scan(&path, &title, &artist, &album, &duration, &genre, &cover); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("read the surviving entry: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	// The one that matters: without it the entry can never be re-linked
+	// by the rescan the retire itself provokes.
+	if path.String != "/music/a.flac" {
+		t.Fatalf(
+			"phantom_file_path is %q, want %q -- the playlist entry "+
+				"cannot be re-linked and the playlist is empty for good",
+			path.String, "/music/a.flac",
+		)
+	}
+
+	if title.String != "Slack Water" {
+		t.Errorf("phantom_title is %q, want %q", title.String, "Slack Water")
+	}
+
+	if artist.String != "Aurora Fields" {
+		t.Errorf("phantom_artist is %q, want %q", artist.String, "Aurora Fields")
+	}
+
+	if album.String != "Tideline" {
+		t.Errorf("phantom_album is %q, want %q", album.String, "Tideline")
+	}
+
+	if duration.Int64 != 1000 {
+		t.Errorf("phantom_duration_ms is %d, want 1000", duration.Int64)
+	}
+
+	if genre.String != "Ambient" {
+		t.Errorf("phantom_genre is %q, want %q", genre.String, "Ambient")
+	}
+
+	if cover.String != "covers/7.jpg" {
+		t.Errorf("phantom_cover_art_path is %q, want %q", cover.String, "covers/7.jpg")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestRetiringAudioFilesKeepsPathsWhenTheViewCannotAnswer is the case
+// that broke cmd/indexbuild: this repair runs *before* applySchema, so
+// `track_metadata` is whatever the last launch declared while
+// `audio_files` is whatever the launch before that left behind, and a
+// view over columns the table no longer has does not read as empty --
+// it errors.
+//
+// The pre-013 stub shape below is the real one that fixture carries.
+// What must survive is phantom_file_path, because `file_path` is the
+// table's natural key and has been in every shape it ever had; the
+// display columns are allowed to be absent, and the open must not fail.
+func TestRetiringAudioFilesKeepsPathsWhenTheViewCannotAnswer(t *testing.T) {
+	ctx := context.Background()
+	db := openRaw(t, t.TempDir())
+
+	if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, "PRAGMA foreign_keys = ON"); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("pragma: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if err := applySchema(ctx, db); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("applySchema: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	// The rows go in *after* the reshape: dropping audio_files with
+	// foreign keys on would fire the ON DELETE SET NULL and null the
+	// entry this test is about, which would pass for the wrong reason.
+	if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, `
+		DROP TABLE audio_files;
+		CREATE TABLE audio_files (
+			id           INTEGER PRIMARY KEY,
+			file_path    TEXT NOT NULL UNIQUE,
+			recording_id INTEGER
+		);
+		INSERT INTO playlists (id, name) VALUES (1, 'keepme');
+		INSERT INTO audio_files (id, file_path) VALUES (7, '/music/a.flac');
+		INSERT INTO playlist_tracks (playlist_id, audio_file_id, position)
+			VALUES (1, 7, 0);
+	`); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("seed: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	// The symptom this guards: the repair must not turn a recoverable
+	// database into one the app refuses to open.
+	if err := retireStaleTables(ctx, db, testLogger()); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf(
+			"the retire failed on a view it could not read, so the app "+
+				"would not open at all: %v", err,
+		)
+	}
+
+	if err := applySchema(ctx, db); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("applySchema: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	var path sql.NullString
+	if err := db.QueryRowContext(ctx,
+		"SELECT phantom_file_path FROM playlist_tracks WHERE playlist_id = 1",
+	).Scan(&path); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("read the surviving entry: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if path.String != "/music/a.flac" {
+		t.Fatalf(
+			"phantom_file_path is %q, want %q -- the display half being "+
+				"unavailable must not cost the entry its one re-link key",
+			path.String, "/music/a.flac",
+		)
+	}
+}

backend/datamap/datamap.go

@@ -269,10 +269,11 @@ var tables = []Table{
 			"from owned files plus the LRCLIB backfill.",
 	},
 	{
-		Name: "play_history", Kind: Authored, Lifetime: Cascade,
-		Note: "Listening history. Authored, but intentionally cascades " +
-			"with its track — history for a file no longer in the library " +
-			"has nothing to point at.",
+		Name: "listening_events", Kind: Authored, Lifetime: Cascade,
+		Note: "Listening history, one row per track exit (complete, play " +
+			"or skip). Authored, but intentionally cascades with its " +
+			"track — history for a file no longer in the library has " +
+			"nothing to point at.",
 	},
 	{
 		Name: "player_state", Kind: Authored, Lifetime: Retained,

backend/datamap/datamap_test.go

@@ -212,14 +212,14 @@ func TestLifetimesMatchSchema(t *testing.T) {
 
 // Authored data is unrecoverable, so it must never be removed as a side
 // effect of deleting owned data.  Cascade is allowed only where the
-// catalog explains why (play_history, queue_tracks); this test pins the
+// catalog explains why (listening_events, queue_tracks); this test pins the
 // set so a new cascade onto authored data is a deliberate decision.
 func TestAuthoredCascadesAreDeliberate(t *testing.T) {
 	t.Parallel()
 
 	allowed := map[string]bool{
-		"play_history": true,
-		"queue_tracks": true,
+		"listening_events": true,
+		"queue_tracks":     true,
 
 		// Download history is scoped to the library it imported into.
 		// When that library is removed the files it acquired go with

backend/library/library.go

@@ -968,7 +968,7 @@ func (l *Library) scanInternal(
 				}
 			}
 
-			// Remove from FTS5 search index.
+			// Remove from FTS5 search index and the lyrics index.
 			if err := l.db.DeleteSearchIndex(
 				audioFile.ID,
 			); err != nil {
@@ -981,6 +981,18 @@ func (l *Library) scanInternal(
 				metrics.addWarning(path, "orphan", err)
 			}
 
+			if err := l.db.DeleteLyricsIndex(
+				audioFile.ID,
+			); err != nil {
+				l.logger.Warn(
+					"failed to delete lyrics index entry for orphan",
+					"id", audioFile.ID,
+					"err", err,
+				)
+
+				metrics.addWarning(path, "orphan", err)
+			}
+
 			removed.Add(1)
 
 			return true

backend/library/remove_tracks.go

@@ -127,6 +127,11 @@ func (l *Library) RemoveFromLibrary(filePaths []string) (*RemovalResult, error)
 			l.logger.Warn("could not delete FTS entry for removed track",
 				"path", row.FilePath, "id", row.ID, "err", err)
 		}
+
+		if err := l.db.DeleteLyricsIndex(row.ID); err != nil {
+			l.logger.Warn("could not delete lyrics index entry for removed track",
+				"path", row.FilePath, "id", row.ID, "err", err)
+		}
 	}
 
 	// Deleting an audio_files row cascades to queue_tracks, so the

backend/library/rescan.go

@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ import (
 	"time"
 
 	"yellowjacket/backend/coverart"
+	"yellowjacket/backend/database"
 )
 
 var errNoLibrariesConfigured = errors.New(
@@ -137,34 +138,12 @@ func (l *Library) clearLibraryTables() error {
 	// metadata for all linked tracks before audio_files are deleted.
 	// ON DELETE SET NULL will null out audio_file_id, converting them
 	// to phantoms that ResolvePhantomTracksAfterScan can re-link.
-	if _, err := tx.ExecContext(l.ctx, `
-		UPDATE playlist_tracks
-		SET
-			phantom_title = COALESCE(phantom_title, (
-				SELECT tm.title FROM track_metadata tm
-				WHERE tm.id = playlist_tracks.audio_file_id
-			)),
-			phantom_artist = COALESCE(phantom_artist, (
-				SELECT tm.artist_name FROM track_metadata tm
-				WHERE tm.id = playlist_tracks.audio_file_id
-			)),
-			phantom_album = COALESCE(phantom_album, (
-				SELECT tm.album FROM track_metadata tm
-				WHERE tm.id = playlist_tracks.audio_file_id
-			)),
-			phantom_duration_ms = COALESCE(phantom_duration_ms, (
-				SELECT af.length_milliseconds FROM audio_files af
-				WHERE af.id = playlist_tracks.audio_file_id
-			)),
-			phantom_file_path = COALESCE(phantom_file_path, (
-				SELECT af.file_path FROM audio_files af
-				WHERE af.id = playlist_tracks.audio_file_id
-			))
-		WHERE audio_file_id IS NOT NULL
-	`); err != nil {
-		return fmt.Errorf(
-			"could not preserve playlist track metadata: %w", err,
-		)
+	//
+	// Shared with the stale-shape retire in backend/database, which is
+	// the other path that empties this table and which did not do this
+	// (#183): the statement lives there so the two cannot drift again.
+	if err := database.PreservePlaylistPhantoms(l.ctx, tx, l.logger); err != nil {
+		return err
 	}
 
 	// Phase 2: the files.  file_genres cascades with them.

backend/maintenance/maintenance_test.go

@@ -666,3 +666,52 @@ func TestExpiredHTTPCacheJob_TrimsToBudget(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Errorf("kept %q, want the longest-lived row", kept)
 	}
 }
+
+// TestStaleSearchClicksJob deletes only the clicks old enough to have
+// left the retention window (#249).
+func TestStaleSearchClicksJob(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	db := database.NewTestDB(t)
+
+	count := func(mbid string) int {
+		t.Helper()
+
+		var n int
+		if err := db.QueryRowWriter(
+			"SELECT COUNT(*) FROM search_clicks WHERE entity_mbid = ?", mbid,
+		).Scan(&n); err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("count %s: %v", mbid, err)
+		}
+
+		return n
+	}
+
+	seed := func(query, mbid, lastClicked string) {
+		t.Helper()
+
+		if _, err := db.ExecContext(
+			`INSERT INTO search_clicks
+			   (query, entity_mbid, entity_type, click_count, last_clicked)
+			 VALUES (?, ?, 'recording', 1, ?)`,
+			query, mbid, lastClicked,
+		); err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("seed search_clicks: %v", err)
+		}
+	}
+
+	seed("tide", "aaaa", "2024-01-01 00:00:00") // stale
+	seed("tide", "bbbb", "2999-01-01 00:00:00") // recent
+
+	if _, err := StaleSearchClicksJob(db).Run(context.Background()); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("run job: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if n := count("bbbb"); n != 1 {
+		t.Errorf("recent click was deleted: %d rows, want 1", n)
+	}
+
+	if n := count("aaaa"); n != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("stale click survived: %d rows, want 0", n)
+	}
+}

backend/maintenance/sweeps.go

@@ -628,3 +628,35 @@ func dirSize(dir string) (bytes, files int64) {
 
 	return bytes, files
 }
+
+// searchClicksRetention is how long a search-click ranking signal stays
+// useful.  search_clicks is authored behavioural data — nothing that
+// owns a row ever drops it — so age is the ceiling that keeps the table
+// from growing without bound for the life of the install (#249).
+const searchClicksRetention = "-180 days"
+
+// StaleSearchClicksJob deletes search-click ranking rows older than the
+// retention window.  Rows are small and the table grows slowly, so this
+// runs daily and does almost nothing most runs.
+func StaleSearchClicksJob(db *database.DB) Job {
+	return Job{
+		Name:        "search-clicks-sweep",
+		MinInterval: dailyInterval,
+		Run: func(_ context.Context) (Result, error) {
+			res, err := db.ExecContext(
+				`DELETE FROM search_clicks
+				 WHERE last_clicked < datetime('now', ?)`,
+				searchClicksRetention,
+			)
+			if err != nil {
+				return Result{}, fmt.Errorf(
+					"delete stale search_clicks rows: %w", err,
+				)
+			}
+
+			rows, _ := res.RowsAffected()
+
+			return Result{RowsDeleted: rows}, nil
+		},
+	}
+}

backend/playlist/playlist.go

@@ -134,6 +134,12 @@ type Service struct {
 	libraryDir    LibraryDirProvider
 	favoritesConf FavoritesConfigProvider
 
+	// onDeleted, when set, is called after a playlist is deleted so
+	// cross-cutting state that points at it (the queue's "Playing
+	// from" label) can stop pointing at a playlist that no longer
+	// exists.  Wired from app.go, like Library.SetRemovalHooks.
+	onDeleted func(playlistID int64)
+
 	// dataDirOverride, when non-empty, replaces the OS user data
 	// directory as the base for the playlists folder. Set by tests to
 	// keep M3U writes out of the real user data directory.
@@ -166,6 +172,17 @@ func (s *Service) SetFavoritesConfig(
 	s.favoritesConf = provider
 }
 
+// SetOnPlaylistDeleted registers a callback invoked after a playlist is
+// deleted, for cross-cutting invalidation.
+//
+//wails:ignore // internal wiring, not part of the app's IPC surface.
+func (s *Service) SetOnPlaylistDeleted(onDeleted func(playlistID int64)) {
+	s.mu.Lock()
+	defer s.mu.Unlock()
+
+	s.onDeleted = onDeleted
+}
+
 // ServiceStartup is v3's service lifecycle hook: it runs once the
 // runtime exists, and ctx is cancelled when the app shuts down.  It
 // replaces v2's SetContext, which had to be called by hand from
@@ -766,6 +783,17 @@ func (s *Service) DeletePlaylist(playlistID int64) error {
 
 	s.emitEvent(events.PlaylistDeleted, playlistID)
 
+	// Cross-cutting invalidation: the queue's "Playing from" label may
+	// point at this playlist, and a link to a playlist that no longer
+	// exists is worse than none.
+	s.mu.Lock()
+	onDeleted := s.onDeleted
+	s.mu.Unlock()
+
+	if onDeleted != nil {
+		onDeleted(playlistID)
+	}
+
 	// Recreate the default playlist if we just deleted it.
 	if s.defaultPlaylistID() == playlistID {
 		s.EnsureDefaultPlaylist()

backend/queue/playhistory.go

@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ import (
 	"yellowjacket/backend/events"
 )
 
-// recordPlay inserts a play_history row and updates the denormalized
+// recordPlay inserts a listening_events row and updates the denormalized
 // play_count / last_played columns on audio_files. Called from
 // OnPlaybackFinished for the track that just finished.
 //
@@ -20,10 +20,12 @@ func (q *Queue) recordPlay(audioFileID int64) {
 
 	now := time.Now().UTC().Format(time.DateTime)
 
-	// Insert play_history row.
+	// Insert the listening event.  A natural finish is a 'complete' by
+	// construction; position/duration are the classifier's to fill once
+	// skips are recorded (see .planning/plans/active/021).
 	_, err := q.db.ExecContext(
-		`INSERT INTO play_history (audio_file_id, played_at)
-		 VALUES (?, ?)`,
+		`INSERT INTO listening_events (audio_file_id, kind, occurred_at)
+		 VALUES (?, 'complete', ?)`,
 		audioFileID, now,
 	)
 	if err != nil {

backend/queue/queue.go

@@ -1581,6 +1581,21 @@ func (q *Queue) dropSource() {
 	q.source = Source{}
 }
 
+// DropSourceForPlaylist clears the queue's "Playing from" label when
+// its source playlist is deleted.  A link back to a playlist that no
+// longer exists is worse than none, and the label otherwise survives
+// the deletion until the next SetQueue (#249).
+func (q *Queue) DropSourceForPlaylist(playlistID int64) {
+	q.mu.Lock()
+	defer q.mu.Unlock()
+
+	if (q.source.Type == "playlist" || q.source.Type == "smartPlaylist") &&
+		q.source.ID == playlistID {
+		q.dropSource()
+		q.persistState()
+	}
+}
+
 // commitMutation persists the current queue state after a mutation.
 // When reindex is true, track positions are renumbered first.
 // The caller must hold q.mu.

backend/queue/queue_test.go

@@ -535,3 +535,35 @@ func TestCycleRepeat_CyclesThroughModes(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Errorf("after third cycle: got %q, want %q", state.RepeatMode, RepeatOff)
 	}
 }
+
+// TestDropSourceForPlaylist clears the "Playing from" label when the
+// queue's source playlist is deleted, and leaves it alone otherwise
+// (#249).
+func TestDropSourceForPlaylist(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	q, db := setupTestQueue(t)
+	paths := seedAudioFiles(t, db, 2)
+
+	q.SetQueue(paths, 0, false, Source{Type: "playlist", ID: 42, Label: "Road Trip"})
+	q.DropSourceForPlaylist(42)
+
+	if got := q.GetState().Source; got != (Source{}) {
+		t.Errorf("source = %+v, want empty after playlist 42 deleted", got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestDropSourceForPlaylistIgnoresOtherPlaylists(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	q, db := setupTestQueue(t)
+	paths := seedAudioFiles(t, db, 2)
+
+	source := Source{Type: "smartPlaylist", ID: 42, Label: "Road Trip"}
+	q.SetQueue(paths, 0, false, source)
+	q.DropSourceForPlaylist(7)
+
+	if got := q.GetState().Source; got != source {
+		t.Errorf("source = %+v, want %+v unchanged for a different playlist", got, source)
+	}
+}

e2e/specs/header-action-overflow.spec.ts

@@ -42,10 +42,10 @@ const ACTIONS = ['Import', 'New Playlist', 'New Smart Playlist'];
  * because the number this issue is about (a button 48px wider than the
  * box holding it) is not in the accessibility tree at all.
  */
-const headerFit = (page: import('@playwright/test').Page) =>
-  page.evaluate(() => {
+const headerFit = (page: import('@playwright/test').Page, view = 'playlist-view') =>
+  page.evaluate((tag) => {
     const root = document
-      .querySelector('[data-testid="main-content"] playlist-view')
+      .querySelector(`[data-testid="main-content"] ${tag}`)
       ?.shadowRoot?.querySelector('page-header')?.shadowRoot;
 
     if (!root) return null;
@@ -76,7 +76,7 @@ const headerFit = (page: import('@playwright/test').Page) =>
         ...root.querySelectorAll('#page-header-overflow wa-dropdown-item'),
       ].map((i) => i.textContent?.trim() ?? ''),
     };
-  });
+  }, view);
 
 test.describe('the page header never clips an action', () => {
   test.beforeEach(async ({ app }) => {
@@ -316,3 +316,58 @@ test.describe('the page header never clips an action', () => {
     await expect.poll(async () => (await headerFit(app))?.menu).toEqual([]);
   });
 });
+
+/**
+ * The Tracks header carries the play-all/shuffle-all pair (#31), so
+ * the promise above has to hold for it too — the same per-button
+ * measurement, one view over. Its two actions are the whole of the
+ * header's declared set, and the pair is what plays the list the row
+ * is in, so a button rendered 20px of its 90px is a queue of nothing.
+ */
+const TRACK_ACTIONS = ['Play all', 'Shuffle all'];
+
+test.describe('the Tracks header never clips an action', () => {
+  test.beforeEach(async ({ app }) => {
+    await app.getByTestId('nav-tracks').click();
+    await expect(app.getByTestId('main-content')).toHaveAttribute(
+      'data-active-view',
+      'tracks',
+    );
+  });
+
+  test.afterEach(async ({ app }) => {
+    await app.setViewportSize({ width: 1280, height: 800 });
+  });
+
+  for (const vp of VIEWPORTS) {
+    test(`every action is reachable at ${vp.name}`, async ({ app }) => {
+      await app.setViewportSize({ width: vp.width, height: vp.height });
+
+      await expect
+        .poll(async () => (await headerFit(app, 'track-list'))?.clipped)
+        .toEqual([]);
+
+      const fit = (await headerFit(app, 'track-list'))!;
+
+      expect(fit.overflow).toBeLessThanOrEqual(0);
+
+      // Between them, buttons and menu account for both actions —
+      // not "it fits" but "nothing was dropped to make it fit".
+      expect([...fit.buttons, ...fit.menu].sort()).toEqual(
+        [...TRACK_ACTIONS].sort(),
+      );
+    });
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * The pair's names, through the accessibility tree — a shadow query
+   * measures, but it cannot say what a screen reader is offered.
+   */
+  test('both actions are named controls', async ({ app }) => {
+    for (const label of TRACK_ACTIONS) {
+      await expect(
+        app.getByRole('button', { name: label, exact: true }),
+      ).toBeVisible();
+    }
+  });
+});

e2e/specs/play-all.spec.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,220 @@
+import { test, expect, callBinding, resetEvents, waitForEvent } from '../support/fixtures.js';
+
+type Page = import('@playwright/test').Page;
+
+/**
+ * Play-all/Shuffle-all, asserted on what the backend queued rather than
+ * on playback pixels.
+ *
+ * `SetQueue` reports the queue through `QueueChanged`, and `GetState`
+ * says exactly what it holds: the tracks in order, whether shuffle is
+ * on, and the `Source` the "Playing from" link is built from.  That is
+ * the honest contract here — the buttons are only as good as the queue
+ * they build, and the queue is only as good as the source it names.
+ */
+
+interface QueueState {
+  tracks: { filePath: string; title: string }[];
+  currentIndex: number;
+  shuffleMode: boolean;
+  source: { type: string; id: number; label: string };
+}
+
+const TRACKS_SOURCE = { type: 'tracks', id: 0, label: 'All Tracks' };
+
+const getQueue = (app: Page) =>
+  callBinding<QueueState>(app, 'queue.Queue.GetState');
+
+/** The track paths a rendered track list shows, in row order. */
+function displayedPaths(app: Page, scope: string): Promise<string[]> {
+  return app
+    .locator(`${scope} [data-testid="track-row"]`)
+    .evaluateAll((els) =>
+      els.map((el) => el.getAttribute('data-file-path') ?? ''),
+    );
+}
+
+/** Leave shuffle in a known state. The mode persists across specs in
+ *  one backend process, so a test that asserts on it has to set it. */
+async function setShuffleMode(app: Page, on: boolean): Promise<void> {
+  const state = await getQueue(app);
+
+  if (state.shuffleMode !== on) {
+    await resetEvents(app);
+    await callBinding(app, 'queue.Queue.ToggleShuffle');
+    await waitForEvent(app, 'QueueModeChanged');
+  }
+}
+
+test.describe('play-all/shuffle-all on the track list', () => {
+  test.beforeEach(async ({ app }) => {
+    await callBinding(app, 'queue.Queue.Clear').catch(() => {
+      /* the queue is clearable on every build these specs run against */
+    });
+    await setShuffleMode(app, false);
+  });
+
+  test('Tracks Play all queues the displayed list with an honest source', async ({
+    app,
+  }) => {
+    await app.getByTestId('nav-tracks').click();
+    await expect(app.getByTestId('main-content')).toHaveAttribute(
+      'data-active-view',
+      'tracks',
+    );
+    await expect(
+      app.locator('track-list [data-testid="track-row"]').first(),
+    ).toBeVisible();
+
+    const paths = await displayedPaths(app, 'track-list');
+
+    await resetEvents(app);
+    await app.getByTestId('page-action-play-all').click();
+    await waitForEvent(app, 'QueueChanged');
+
+    const state = await getQueue(app);
+
+    expect(state.tracks.map((t) => t.filePath)).toEqual(paths);
+    expect(state.currentIndex).toBe(0);
+    expect(state.shuffleMode).toBe(false);
+    expect(state.source).toEqual(TRACKS_SOURCE);
+  });
+
+  test('Tracks Shuffle all turns shuffle on and keeps the source', async ({
+    app,
+  }) => {
+    await app.getByTestId('nav-tracks').click();
+    await expect(
+      app.locator('track-list [data-testid="track-row"]').first(),
+    ).toBeVisible();
+
+    const paths = await displayedPaths(app, 'track-list');
+
+    await resetEvents(app);
+    await app.getByTestId('page-action-shuffle-all').click();
+    await waitForEvent(app, 'QueueChanged');
+
+    const state = await getQueue(app);
+
+    expect(state.tracks.map((t) => t.filePath)).toEqual(paths);
+    expect(state.shuffleMode).toBe(true);
+    expect(state.source).toEqual(TRACKS_SOURCE);
+  });
+});
+
+test.describe('play-all on an embedded track list', () => {
+  test.beforeEach(async ({ app }) => {
+    await callBinding(app, 'queue.Queue.Clear').catch(() => {});
+    await setShuffleMode(app, false);
+  });
+
+  test('a genre page queues the genre with its name as the source', async ({
+    app,
+  }) => {
+    await app.getByTestId('nav-genres').click();
+    await expect(app.getByTestId('main-content')).toHaveAttribute(
+      'data-active-view',
+      'genres',
+    );
+
+    const first = app.locator('genres-view .genre-card').first();
+
+    await expect(first).toBeVisible();
+    await first.click();
+
+    await expect(app.getByTestId('main-content')).toHaveAttribute(
+      'data-active-view',
+      'genre-details',
+    );
+    await expect(
+      app.locator('genre-details [data-testid="track-row"]').first(),
+    ).toBeVisible();
+
+    const genreName = (await app
+      .locator('genre-details .genre-title')
+      .textContent())?.trim();
+    const paths = await displayedPaths(app, 'genre-details');
+
+    await resetEvents(app);
+    await app
+      .locator('genre-details [data-testid="page-action-play-all"]')
+      .click();
+    await waitForEvent(app, 'QueueChanged');
+
+    const state = await getQueue(app);
+
+    expect(state.tracks.map((t) => t.filePath)).toEqual(paths);
+    expect(state.currentIndex).toBe(0);
+    expect(state.source).toEqual({ type: 'genre', id: 0, label: genreName });
+  });
+});
+
+test.describe('play-all on the library artist page', () => {
+  test.beforeEach(async ({ app }) => {
+    await callBinding(app, 'queue.Queue.Clear').catch(() => {});
+    await setShuffleMode(app, false);
+  });
+
+  test('an artist page queues album paths in album order with the artist source', async ({
+    app,
+  }) => {
+    const artists = await callBinding<{ ID: number; Name: string }[]>(
+      app,
+      'library.Library.GetArtists',
+      [0],
+    );
+    const first = artists[0]!;
+
+    await app.evaluate(
+      ([id, name]) => {
+        document.dispatchEvent(
+          new CustomEvent('navigate', {
+            detail: {
+              view: 'artist-details',
+              artistId: id,
+              artistName: name,
+            },
+            bubbles: true,
+            composed: true,
+          }),
+        );
+      },
+      [first.ID, first.Name] as const,
+    );
+
+    await expect(app.getByTestId('main-content')).toHaveAttribute(
+      'data-active-view',
+      'artist-details',
+    );
+    await expect(app.getByTestId('artist-play-all')).toBeEnabled();
+
+    const albums = await callBinding<{ ID: number }[]>(
+      app,
+      'library.Library.GetAlbumsByArtist',
+      [first.Name, 0],
+    );
+    const byAlbum = await callBinding<Record<string, string[]>>(
+      app,
+      'library.Library.GetFilePathsByAlbums',
+      [albums.map((a) => a.ID), 0],
+    );
+    const expected: string[] = [];
+
+    for (const album of albums) {
+      expected.push(...(byAlbum[String(album.ID)] ?? []));
+    }
+
+    await resetEvents(app);
+    await app.getByTestId('artist-play-all').click();
+    await waitForEvent(app, 'QueueChanged');
+
+    const state = await getQueue(app);
+
+    expect(state.tracks.map((t) => t.filePath)).toEqual(expected);
+    expect(state.source).toEqual({
+      type: 'artist',
+      id: first.ID,
+      label: first.Name,
+    });
+  });
+});

e2e/specs/playback.spec.ts

@@ -137,7 +137,7 @@ test.describe('queue', () => {
   });
 
   test('shuffle and repeat toggles report their state', async ({ app }) => {
-    const shuffle = app.getByRole('button', { name: 'Shuffle' });
+    const shuffle = app.getByRole('button', { name: 'Shuffle', exact: true });
 
     await resetEvents(app);
     await shuffle.click();

frontend/src/components/artist-details/artist-details.ts

@@ -11,11 +11,22 @@ import {
     GetArtistImageCachedPath,
     GetArtistMBID,
 } from '@go/explore/service.js';
+import { GetFilePathsByAlbums } from '@go/library/library.js';
+import { libraryStore } from '@store/library-store';
+import { notificationStore } from '@store/notification-store';
+import { dict } from '@utils/binding';
+import { playAll } from '@utils/play-all';
+import { describeError } from '@utils/describe-error';
+import { ICON_PLAY, ICON_SHUFFLE } from '@utils/icon-language';
 import '@awesome.me/webawesome/dist/components/icon/icon.js';
 import '@components/cover-grid/cover-grid.js';
+import '../notifications/inline-notice';
 import { designTokens } from '../../styles/tokens.css';
 import { backButton } from '../../styles/back-button.css';
 
+/** The region the artist header's own failures are rendered in. */
+const ArtistRegion = 'library-artist';
+
 @customElement('artist-details')
 export class ArtistDetails extends LitElement {
     @property({ type: Number, attribute: 'artist-id' })
@@ -131,6 +142,39 @@ export class ArtistDetails extends LitElement {
             );
         }
 
+        .header-actions {
+            margin-left: auto;
+            display: flex;
+            align-items: center;
+            gap: 8px;
+            flex-shrink: 0;
+        }
+
+        .header-action {
+            background: none;
+            border: 1px solid var(--yj-border-subtle, #555);
+            border-radius: 4px;
+            color: var(--yj-text-primary, #fff);
+            padding: 6px 12px;
+            font-size: var(--yj-text-md, 13px);
+            font-family: inherit;
+            cursor: pointer;
+            display: flex;
+            align-items: center;
+            gap: 6px;
+            white-space: nowrap;
+        }
+
+        .header-action:hover {
+            border-color: var(--yj-accent, #ffd43b);
+            color: var(--yj-accent-text, #ffd43b);
+        }
+
+        .header-action:disabled {
+            opacity: 0.5;
+            cursor: default;
+        }
+
         /* ====================================
          * Content
          * ==================================== */
@@ -145,6 +189,23 @@ export class ArtistDetails extends LitElement {
             height: 100%;
         }
 
+        /* Phone widths: the header's flex row squeezed .artist-info to
+         * nothing, so the title ellipsised away entirely and the
+         * actions clipped against the host's own overflow — the album
+         * page's fault one detail view over (#66). The pair takes its
+         * own row instead. Written last, because a media query adds no
+         * specificity and a rule placed above the plain ones it
+         * overrides is silently dead. */
+        @media (max-width: 599px) {
+            .artist-header {
+                flex-wrap: wrap;
+            }
+
+            .header-actions {
+                flex-basis: 100%;
+                margin-left: 0;
+            }
+        }
     `];
 
     override connectedCallback() {
@@ -302,6 +363,45 @@ export class ArtistDetails extends LitElement {
         return name.charAt(0).toUpperCase();
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Play every track on this artist's albums, in album order.
+     *
+     * One `GetFilePathsByAlbums` call returns the paths grouped by
+     * album id; the caller owns the ordering, so they are flattened in
+     * `this.albums` order rather than by id.
+     */
+    private async playAllTracks(shuffle: boolean): Promise<void> {
+        if (this.albums.length === 0) return;
+
+        try {
+            const libId = libraryStore.getSelectedLibraryId() ?? 0;
+            const ids = this.albums.map((a) => a.ID);
+            const byAlbum = await dict(
+                GetFilePathsByAlbums(ids, libId),
+            );
+            const paths: string[] = [];
+
+            for (const id of ids) {
+                paths.push(...(byAlbum[id] ?? []));
+            }
+
+            playAll(
+                paths,
+                {
+                    type: 'artist',
+                    id: this.artistId,
+                    label: this.artistName,
+                },
+                shuffle,
+            );
+        } catch (error) {
+            console.error('Could not play artist:', error);
+            notificationStore.inline(ArtistRegion, {
+                text: describeError(error, 'Could not play this artist’s tracks.'),
+            });
+        }
+    }
+
     /* ================================================================
      * Rendering
      * ================================================================ */
@@ -351,12 +451,38 @@ export class ArtistDetails extends LitElement {
                           `
                         : ''}
                 </div>
+                <div class="header-actions">
+                    <button
+                        class="header-action"
+                        data-testid="artist-play-all"
+                        ?disabled=${this.albums.length === 0}
+                        @click=${() =>
+                            void this.playAllTracks(false)}
+                    >
+                        <wa-icon name=${ICON_PLAY}></wa-icon>
+                        Play all
+                    </button>
+                    <button
+                        class="header-action"
+                        data-testid="artist-shuffle-all"
+                        ?disabled=${this.albums.length === 0}
+                        @click=${() =>
+                            void this.playAllTracks(true)}
+                    >
+                        <wa-icon name=${ICON_SHUFFLE}></wa-icon>
+                        Shuffle all
+                    </button>
+                </div>
             </div>
             <div class="content">
                 <cover-grid
                     .externalAlbums=${this.albums}
                 ></cover-grid>
             </div>
+            <inline-notice
+                region=${ArtistRegion}
+                testid="artist-play-message"
+            ></inline-notice>
         `;
     }
 }

frontend/src/components/explore-album-details/explore-album-details.ts

@@ -43,6 +43,7 @@ import type * as autotagservice from '@go/autotagservice/models.js';
 import { confirmAction } from '../confirm-dialog/confirm-dialog';
 import { queueStore } from '../../store/queue-store';
 import type { QueueSource } from '../../store/queue-store';
+import { playAll } from '@utils/play-all';
 import { notificationStore } from '../../store/notification-store';
 import '../notifications/inline-notice';
 import {
@@ -2771,20 +2772,11 @@ export class ExploreAlbumDetails extends LitElement implements ContextMenuHost {
 
     /** Play what the user owns of this release, optionally shuffled. */
     private playOwned(shuffle: boolean): void {
-        const paths = this.ownedFilePaths();
-
         // The button is only rendered when there is something to play,
-        // so an empty set here is not a state the user can reach.
-        if (paths.length === 0) return;
-
-        // `shuffleStart` only picks a random first track when shuffle
-        // mode is *already* on — it does not turn it on — so the mode
-        // has to be set before the queue, not after.
-        if (shuffle && !queueStore.getState().shuffleMode) {
-            queueStore.toggleShuffle();
-        }
-
-        queueStore.setQueue(paths, 0, shuffle, this.queueSource());
+        // so an empty set here is not a state the user can reach.  The
+        // shuffle-mode semantics live in `playAll`, shared with the
+        // play-all/shuffle-all pair on every track list.
+        playAll(this.ownedFilePaths(), this.queueSource(), shuffle);
     }
 
     /** Append what the user owns of this release to the queue. */

frontend/src/components/playlist-details/playlist-details.ts

@@ -85,7 +85,9 @@ import {
     ICON_PLAYLIST,
     ICON_QUEUE,
     ICON_REMOVE,
+    ICON_SHUFFLE,
 } from '@utils/icon-language';
+import { playAll } from '@utils/play-all';
 
 /** One playlist row: the track and its position in the *playlist*,
  *  which is not its position in the filtered view. */
@@ -355,14 +357,32 @@ export class PlaylistDetails
     // Track interactions
     // =================================================================
 
-    private handlePlayAll() {
-        const filePaths = this.tracks
+    private playableFilePaths(): string[] {
+        return this.tracks
             .filter((t) => !t.Phantom)
             .map((t) => t.FilePath);
+    }
 
-        if (filePaths.length === 0) return;
+    private handlePlayAll() {
+        // Start at the first row, not at a random one: the old `true`
+        // was `shuffleStart`, which only picks a random first track
+        // when shuffle mode is already on — so "Play All" quietly did
+        // "play from the top" while leaving the mode as it was.  The
+        // mode semantics now live in `playAll`, shared with the other
+        // track lists.
+        playAll(
+            this.playableFilePaths(),
+            { type: 'playlist', id: this.playlistId, label: this.playlistName },
+            false,
+        );
+    }
 
-        queueStore.setQueue(filePaths, 0, true, { type: 'playlist', id: this.playlistId, label: this.playlistName });
+    private handleShuffleAll() {
+        playAll(
+            this.playableFilePaths(),
+            { type: 'playlist', id: this.playlistId, label: this.playlistName },
+            true,
+        );
     }
 
     private handleTrackClick(
@@ -1599,9 +1619,16 @@ export class PlaylistDetails
                     class="play-all-button"
                     @click=${() => this.handlePlayAll()}
                 >
-                    <wa-icon name="play"></wa-icon>
+                    <wa-icon name=${ICON_PLAY}></wa-icon>
                     Play All
                 </button>
+                <button
+                    class="play-all-button"
+                    @click=${() => this.handleShuffleAll()}
+                >
+                    <wa-icon name=${ICON_SHUFFLE}></wa-icon>
+                    Shuffle All
+                </button>
             </div>
             <div class="track-header">
                 <div class="header-cell col-number">#</div>

frontend/src/components/smart-playlist-details/smart-playlist-details.ts

@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ import {
 import { EventsOn } from '@runtime/runtime';
 import { Events } from '../../events';
 import { queueStore } from '@store/queue-store';
+import { playAll } from '@utils/play-all';
 import { creditStore } from '@store/credit-store';
 import { PlayerController } from '@store/controllers/player-controller';
 import { SearchController } from '@store/controllers/search-controller';
@@ -771,24 +772,29 @@ export class SmartPlaylistDetails
     // Actions
     // =================================================================
 
-    private handlePlay() {
-        const filePaths = this.tracks
+    private playableFilePaths(): string[] {
+        return this.tracks
             .filter((t) => !t.Phantom)
             .map((t) => t.FilePath);
+    }
 
-        if (filePaths.length === 0) return;
-
-        queueStore.setQueue(filePaths, 0, false, { type: 'smartPlaylist', id: this.playlistId, label: this.playlistName });
+    private handlePlay() {
+        playAll(
+            this.playableFilePaths(),
+            { type: 'smartPlaylist', id: this.playlistId, label: this.playlistName },
+            false,
+        );
     }
 
     private handleShuffle() {
-        const filePaths = this.tracks
-            .filter((t) => !t.Phantom)
-            .map((t) => t.FilePath);
-
-        if (filePaths.length === 0) return;
-
-        queueStore.setQueue(filePaths, 0, true, { type: 'smartPlaylist', id: this.playlistId, label: this.playlistName });
+        // This used to be a no-op when shuffle mode was off: it passed
+        // `shuffleStart` without turning the mode on, so the queue
+        // started at track 1 in order.  `playAll` sets the mode first.
+        playAll(
+            this.playableFilePaths(),
+            { type: 'smartPlaylist', id: this.playlistId, label: this.playlistName },
+            true,
+        );
     }
 
     private async handleRefresh() {

frontend/src/components/track-list/track-list.ts

@@ -26,7 +26,10 @@ import type { ContextMenuHost, MenuTarget } from '@utils/context-menu-controller
 import { PlayerController } from '@store/controllers/player-controller';
 import { SearchController } from '@store/controllers/search-controller';
 import '@components/page-header/page-header';
-import type { SortOption } from '@components/page-header/page-header';
+import type {
+    SortOption,
+    PageAction,
+} from '@components/page-header/page-header';
 import { TrackListController } from '@store/controllers/tracklist-controller';
 import { FavoritesController } from '@store/controllers/favorites-controller';
 import { queueStore } from '@store/queue-store';
@@ -87,7 +90,9 @@ import {
     ICON_PLAYLIST,
     ICON_PLAY_NEXT,
     ICON_QUEUE,
+    ICON_SHUFFLE,
 } from '@utils/icon-language';
+import { playAll } from '@utils/play-all';
 
 const COLUMN_STORAGE_KEY = 'track-list-column-widths';
 const SORT_FIELD_KEY = 'track-list-sort-field';
@@ -2393,6 +2398,27 @@ export class TrackList
                 .map((c) => ({ id: c.id, label: c.label })),
         ];
 
+        const hasTracks = this.cachedSortedTracks.length > 0;
+
+        const actions: PageAction[] = [
+            {
+                id: 'play-all',
+                label: 'Play all',
+                icon: ICON_PLAY,
+                priority: 1,
+                disabled: !hasTracks,
+                onSelect: this.handlePlayAll,
+            },
+            {
+                id: 'shuffle-all',
+                label: 'Shuffle all',
+                icon: ICON_SHUFFLE,
+                priority: 0,
+                disabled: !hasTracks,
+                onSelect: this.handleShuffleAll,
+            },
+        ];
+
         return html`
             <page-header
                 heading=${this.externalTracks === undefined ? 'Tracks' : ''}
@@ -2404,11 +2430,29 @@ export class TrackList
                 sort-field=${this.sortField ?? ''}
                 sort-direction=${this.sortDirection}
                 search-term=${this.searchCtrl.term}
+                .actions=${actions}
                 @sort-change=${this.onPageHeaderSort}
             ></page-header>
         `;
     }
 
+    /** The queue is the list as displayed, in the order the user sees. */
+    private handlePlayAll = (): void => {
+        playAll(
+            this.cachedSortedTracks.map((t) => t.FilePath),
+            this.effectiveQueueSource,
+            false,
+        );
+    };
+
+    private handleShuffleAll = (): void => {
+        playAll(
+            this.cachedSortedTracks.map((t) => t.FilePath),
+            this.effectiveQueueSource,
+            true,
+        );
+    };
+
     private onPageHeaderSort = (
         e: CustomEvent<{ field: string; direction: 'asc' | 'desc' }>,
     ) => {

frontend/src/utils/play-all.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,26 @@
+import { queueStore } from '@store/queue-store';
+import type { QueueSource } from '@store/queue-store';
+
+/**
+ * Queue a list and start it, optionally shuffled.
+ *
+ * This is the one place that owns what "shuffle this collection" means.
+ * `SetQueue`'s `shuffleStart` only picks a random first track when
+ * shuffle mode is *already* on — it does not turn it on — so the mode
+ * has to be set before the queue, not after.  The album page used to
+ * carry that rule privately; the play-all/shuffle-all pair on every
+ * track list now shares it.
+ */
+export function playAll(
+    paths: string[],
+    source: QueueSource | undefined,
+    shuffle: boolean,
+): void {
+    if (paths.length === 0) return;
+
+    if (shuffle && !queueStore.getState().shuffleMode) {
+        queueStore.toggleShuffle();
+    }
+
+    queueStore.setQueue(paths, 0, shuffle, source);
+}

frontend/test/components/play-all.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,373 @@
+/**
+ * The play-all/shuffle-all pair on every page that lists tracks.
+ *
+ * The pair is driven by one helper (`utils/play-all`) that owns the
+ * one rule the album page already carried: `shuffleStart` does not turn
+ * shuffle on, it only picks a random first track once the mode is on —
+ * so the mode has to be set *before* the queue, not after.  The hosts
+ * differ only in where their paths come from and what `Source` they
+ * hand over.
+ */
+import { describe, expect, it, beforeEach } from 'vitest';
+import type { LitElement } from 'lit';
+
+import '@components/track-list/track-list';
+import '@components/artist-details/artist-details';
+import '@components/playlist-details/playlist-details';
+import '@components/smart-playlist-details/smart-playlist-details';
+import {
+  stub,
+  flush,
+  resetHarness,
+  calls,
+  lastArgs,
+  emit,
+} from '@test/support/harness';
+import {
+  fixture,
+  shadowAll,
+  deepShadow,
+} from '@test/support/render';
+
+/** The action button rendered by `<page-header>`, through the nested
+ *  shadow roots (track-list → page-header). */
+function pageAction(
+  host: LitElement,
+  id: string,
+): HTMLElement | null {
+  return deepShadow<HTMLElement>(host, `[data-testid="page-action-${id}"]`);
+}
+
+function setShuffleMode(on: boolean): void {
+  emit('QueueModeChanged', { shuffleMode: on, repeatMode: 'off' });
+}
+
+/** The queue's `SetQueue` args, with the shuffle flag and source. */
+function queued(): {
+  paths: string[];
+  startIndex: number;
+  shuffleStart: boolean;
+  source: unknown;
+} {
+  const args = lastArgs('queue.Queue.SetQueue');
+
+  if (!args) throw new Error('nothing was queued');
+
+  return {
+    paths: args[0] as string[],
+    startIndex: args[1] as number,
+    shuffleStart: args[2] as boolean,
+    source: args[3],
+  };
+}
+
+// =====================================================================
+// The track list (Tracks, and every embedding detail view)
+// =====================================================================
+
+const PATHS = Array.from({ length: 12 }, (_, i) => `/music/track-${i}.mp3`);
+
+const LIST = PATHS.map((FilePath, i) => ({
+  FilePath,
+  TrackName: `Track ${i}`,
+  ArtistName: 'An Artist',
+  Album: 'An Album',
+  Duration: 180,
+}));
+
+const GENRE_SOURCE = { type: 'genre', id: 0, label: 'Dream Pop' };
+
+async function embeddedTrackList(): Promise<LitElement> {
+  resetHarness();
+  localStorage.removeItem('track-list-column-widths');
+
+  const el = await fixture<LitElement>('track-list', {
+    externalTracks: LIST,
+    queueSource: GENRE_SOURCE,
+  });
+
+  // Say which order is being asserted rather than inheriting a
+  // persisted sort. See play-in-context.test.ts for the same trap.
+  (el as unknown as { sortField: string | null }).sortField = null;
+
+  el.style.display = 'block';
+  el.style.height = '600px';
+  await flush();
+  await el.updateComplete;
+  await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 60));
+
+  return el;
+}
+
+describe('the track-list play-all/shuffle-all pair', () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    resetHarness();
+    localStorage.removeItem('track-list-column-widths');
+  });
+
+  it('renders in the primary Tracks header and is disabled while empty', async () => {
+    const el = await fixture<LitElement>('track-list', {});
+
+    const play = pageAction(el, 'play-all');
+    const shuffle = pageAction(el, 'shuffle-all');
+
+    expect(play).not.toBeNull();
+    expect(shuffle).not.toBeNull();
+    expect(play?.hasAttribute('disabled')).toBe(true);
+    expect(shuffle?.hasAttribute('disabled')).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  it('renders in an embedded track-list header too', async () => {
+    const el = await embeddedTrackList();
+
+    expect(pageAction(el, 'play-all')).not.toBeNull();
+    expect(pageAction(el, 'shuffle-all')).not.toBeNull();
+    expect(pageAction(el, 'play-all')?.hasAttribute('disabled')).toBe(false);
+    expect(pageAction(el, 'shuffle-all')?.hasAttribute('disabled')).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it('Play all queues the displayed list in order, unshuffled', async () => {
+    const el = await embeddedTrackList();
+
+    pageAction(el, 'play-all')!.click();
+    await flush();
+
+    expect(queued()).toEqual({
+      paths: PATHS,
+      startIndex: 0,
+      shuffleStart: false,
+      source: GENRE_SOURCE,
+    });
+  });
+
+  it('Shuffle all turns shuffle on before queueing when the mode is off', async () => {
+    const el = await embeddedTrackList();
+
+    setShuffleMode(false);
+    await flush();
+
+    pageAction(el, 'shuffle-all')!.click();
+    await flush();
+
+    const all = calls();
+    const toggle = all.findLastIndex(
+      (c) => c.path === 'queue.Queue.ToggleShuffle',
+    );
+    const setQueue = all.findLastIndex(
+      (c) => c.path === 'queue.Queue.SetQueue',
+    );
+
+    expect(toggle).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(0);
+    expect(toggle).toBeLessThan(setQueue);
+
+    expect(queued()).toEqual({
+      paths: PATHS,
+      startIndex: 0,
+      shuffleStart: true,
+      source: GENRE_SOURCE,
+    });
+  });
+
+  it('Shuffle all does not toggle when the mode is already on', async () => {
+    const el = await embeddedTrackList();
+
+    setShuffleMode(true);
+    await flush();
+
+    pageAction(el, 'shuffle-all')!.click();
+    await flush();
+
+    expect(calls('queue.Queue.ToggleShuffle')).toHaveLength(0);
+
+    expect(queued()).toEqual({
+      paths: PATHS,
+      startIndex: 0,
+      shuffleStart: true,
+      source: GENRE_SOURCE,
+    });
+  });
+});
+
+// =====================================================================
+// The library artist page
+// =====================================================================
+
+const ALBUMS = [
+  { ID: 3, Name: 'Third', ArtistName: 'Aurora Fields', ArtistMBID: '', MBID: '', CoverArtPath: '', CoverArtSmall: '', CoverArtMedium: '', CoverArtLarge: '', Year: 0, ReleaseYear: 0 },
+  { ID: 1, Name: 'First', ArtistName: 'Aurora Fields', ArtistMBID: '', MBID: '', CoverArtPath: '', CoverArtSmall: '', CoverArtMedium: '', CoverArtLarge: '', Year: 0, ReleaseYear: 0 },
+  { ID: 2, Name: 'Second', ArtistName: 'Aurora Fields', ArtistMBID: '', MBID: '', CoverArtPath: '', CoverArtSmall: '', CoverArtMedium: '', CoverArtLarge: '', Year: 0, ReleaseYear: 0 },
+];
+
+describe('the artist page play-all pair', () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    resetHarness();
+    stub('explore.Service.GetArtistMBID', '');
+    stub('library.Library.GetAlbumsByArtist', ALBUMS);
+    stub('library.Library.GetFilePathsByAlbums', {
+      '3': ['/a3-1', '/a3-2'],
+      '1': ['/a1'],
+      '2': ['/a2-1', '/a2-2', '/a2-3'],
+    });
+  });
+
+  it('flattens album paths in the album list order', async () => {
+    const el = await fixture<LitElement>('artist-details', {
+      artistId: 7,
+      artistName: 'Aurora Fields',
+      artistMBID: '',
+    });
+
+    await flush();
+    await el.updateComplete;
+
+    const play = shadowAll<HTMLElement>(el, '[data-testid="artist-play-all"]')[0];
+
+    play!.click();
+    await flush();
+
+    expect(queued()).toEqual({
+      paths: ['/a3-1', '/a3-2', '/a1', '/a2-1', '/a2-2', '/a2-3'],
+      startIndex: 0,
+      shuffleStart: false,
+      source: { type: 'artist', id: 7, label: 'Aurora Fields' },
+    });
+  });
+});
+
+// =====================================================================
+// A smart playlist
+// =====================================================================
+
+function smartPlaylistTracks(n: number) {
+  return Array.from({ length: n }, (_, i) => ({
+    ID: i + 1,
+    FilePath: `/music/track-${i}.mp3`,
+    Title: `Track ${i}`,
+    Artist: 'An Artist',
+    Album: 'An Album',
+    Duration: 180000,
+    CoverArtSmall: `/covers/${i}_sm.jpg`,
+    CoverArtMedium: `/covers/${i}_md.jpg`,
+    CoverArtPath: `/covers/${i}.jpg`,
+    Phantom: false,
+  }));
+}
+
+describe('the smart-playlist play-all pair', () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    resetHarness();
+    stub('playlist.Service.GetSmartPlaylistTracks', smartPlaylistTracks(8));
+    stub('playlist.Service.GetSmartPlaylistRules', '{"rules":[]}');
+    stub('playlist.Service.GetAllPlaylists', []);
+  });
+
+  /** The details header's own action row, not a page-header action. */
+  function actionButton(el: LitElement, label: string): HTMLElement {
+    const button = shadowAll<HTMLElement>(el, '.action-button').find(
+      (b) => b.textContent?.trim() === label,
+    );
+
+    if (!button) throw new Error(`no "${label}" action button rendered`);
+
+    return button;
+  }
+
+  it('Shuffle turns the mode on before queueing, so the queue starts shuffled', async () => {
+    const el = await fixture<LitElement>('smart-playlist-details', {
+      playlistId: 1,
+      playlistName: 'A smart playlist',
+    });
+
+    el.style.display = 'block';
+    el.style.height = '600px';
+    await flush();
+    await el.updateComplete;
+    await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 60));
+
+    setShuffleMode(false);
+    await flush();
+
+    actionButton(el, 'Shuffle').click();
+    await flush();
+
+    // The issue's headline fix. `SetQueue`'s `shuffleStart` only picks
+    // a random first track when shuffle mode is already on — it does
+    // not turn it on — so reverting the mode toggle puts the queue back
+    // to track 1 in order while every assertion about the queue's
+    // contents still passes. Order of the calls is the assertion.
+    const all = calls();
+    const toggle = all.findLastIndex(
+      (c) => c.path === 'queue.Queue.ToggleShuffle',
+    );
+    const setQueue = all.findLastIndex(
+      (c) => c.path === 'queue.Queue.SetQueue',
+    );
+
+    expect(toggle).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(0);
+    expect(toggle).toBeLessThan(setQueue);
+
+    expect(queued()).toEqual({
+      paths: Array.from({ length: 8 }, (_, i) => `/music/track-${i}.mp3`),
+      startIndex: 0,
+      shuffleStart: true,
+      source: { type: 'smartPlaylist', id: 1, label: 'A smart playlist' },
+    });
+  });
+});
+
+// =====================================================================
+// A regular playlist
+// =====================================================================
+
+function playlistTracks(n: number) {
+  return Array.from({ length: n }, (_, i) => ({
+    ID: i + 1,
+    FilePath: `/music/track-${i}.mp3`,
+    Title: `Track ${i}`,
+    Artist: 'An Artist',
+    Album: 'An Album',
+    Duration: 180000,
+    Phantom: false,
+  }));
+}
+
+describe('the playlist play-all pair', () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    resetHarness();
+    stub('playlist.Service.GetPlaylistTracks', playlistTracks(8));
+    stub('playlist.Service.GetAllPlaylists', []);
+  });
+
+  it('offers Shuffle All beside Play All, both through the helper', async () => {
+    const el = await fixture<LitElement>('playlist-details', {
+      playlistId: 1,
+      playlistName: 'A playlist',
+    });
+
+    el.style.display = 'block';
+    el.style.height = '600px';
+    await flush();
+    await el.updateComplete;
+    await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 60));
+
+    const buttons = shadowAll<HTMLElement>(el, '.play-all-button');
+
+    expect(buttons.map((b) => b.textContent?.trim())).toEqual([
+      'Play All',
+      'Shuffle All',
+    ]);
+
+    setShuffleMode(false);
+    await flush();
+
+    buttons[1]!.click();
+    await flush();
+
+    expect(queued()).toEqual({
+      paths: Array.from({ length: 8 }, (_, i) => `/music/track-${i}.mp3`),
+      startIndex: 0,
+      shuffleStart: true,
+      source: { type: 'playlist', id: 1, label: 'A playlist' },
+    });
+  });
+});

lefthook.yml

@@ -38,10 +38,14 @@ pre-commit:
       glob: "*.go"
       run: ./scripts/bindings-check.sh
 
-    # .pi/ documents make targets; a stale one sends an agent off a
-    # cliff with total confidence.  Instant.
+    # The docs document make targets; a stale one sends an agent — or a
+    # contributor reading CONTRIBUTING.md — off a cliff with total
+    # confidence.  The glob is the script's own scanned set, because a
+    # hook that does not fire on a file the check reads is the drift the
+    # check exists to prevent: it was `{Makefile,.pi/**/*.md}` while the
+    # script already read CLAUDE.md.  Instant.
     skill-check:
-      glob: "{Makefile,.pi/**/*.md}"
+      glob: "{Makefile,.pi/**/*.md,AGENTS.md,CLAUDE.md,README.md,CONTRIBUTING.md}"
       run: ./scripts/skill-check.sh
 
     frontend-typecheck:

scripts/skill-check.sh

@@ -14,6 +14,11 @@
 # missing: CLAUDE.md names 27 targets and nothing verified one of them,
 # so the file the agents trust most was the file least checked.
 #
+# README.md and CONTRIBUTING.md are in it too, and the header sentence
+# above is why: a person who has *not* read the Makefile goes looking in
+# the contributor-facing doc, so a renamed target sends them off the
+# same cliff it sends an agent off.  CONTRIBUTING.md names 21 targets.
+#
 # **AGENTS.md is a symlink to CLAUDE.md.**  This repo is worked on by
 # two agent harnesses that read different files by convention — Claude
 # Code reads CLAUDE.md, others read AGENTS.md — and two harnesses
@@ -43,7 +48,19 @@ if [ -e AGENTS.md ] || [ -L AGENTS.md ]; then
 	fi
 fi
 
-[ -d .pi ] || exit 0
+# The scan is over the docs that are actually there: a checkout without
+# .pi/ still has README.md and CONTRIBUTING.md to check, and gating the
+# whole run on .pi/ would have made the human-facing half conditional on
+# the agent-facing one.  This list is used twice — once to read the
+# mentions out and once to say which file a missing target came from —
+# because a second list is a second thing to forget.
+# `ls` exits non-zero when *any* of its arguments is missing while still
+# printing the ones that are there, and under `set -e` that would sink
+# the assignment rather than scanning what exists, so swallow it.
+docs="$({ find .pi -name '*.md' 2>/dev/null
+	ls CLAUDE.md README.md CONTRIBUTING.md 2>/dev/null || true; })"
+
+[ -n "$docs" ] || exit 0
 
 # `make -pq` prints the database including every rule, without running
 # anything.  It exits non-zero when a target is out of date, and under
@@ -68,7 +85,7 @@ targets="$({ make -pqRr 2>/dev/null || true; } |
 # AGENTS.md is deliberately not in this list: it is a symlink to
 # CLAUDE.md, asserted above, so scanning it would report every failure
 # twice under two names.
-mentioned="$({ find .pi -name '*.md' 2>/dev/null; echo CLAUDE.md; } |
+mentioned="$(printf '%s\n' "$docs" |
 	xargs awk '
 		FNR == 1 { fence = 0 }
 		/^```/   { fence = !fence; next }
@@ -93,10 +110,10 @@ for t in $mentioned; do
 done
 
 if [ -n "$missing" ]; then
-	echo "skill-check: the agent docs name make targets that do not exist:" >&2
+	echo "skill-check: the docs name make targets that do not exist:" >&2
 	for t in $missing; do
 		echo "  make $t" >&2
-		grep -rln "make $t" .pi CLAUDE.md --include='*.md' | sed 's/^/      /' >&2
+		printf '%s\n' "$docs" | xargs grep -ln "make $t" | sed 's/^/      /' >&2
 	done
 	echo "Fix the docs, or restore the target." >&2
 	exit 1