Merge pull request 'Home updating-veil rework: change-triggered, settle-driven, with refresh feedback' (#114) from dev into main

The veil raised eagerly: any trigger over a warm cache put it up before
knowing whether the refresh would change anything. So every launch cost
~1-2s of opaque panel even when the pull returned exactly what was already
cached — which, now that the section swap is atomic and the index flow dedups
on ids, produces no visible churn to hide at all. The veil was covering
nothing and only delaying first paint.

The raise is now reactive: it fires when the content key actually differs from
what was already on screen, and never for a no-op refresh. The baseline is the
first state that HAS content, not the first state at all — over a warm cache
the cached rows paint a moment after the session starts, and counting that
first paint as "a change" would veil every launch, which is the thing being
fixed. Cost of reacting rather than anticipating: the veil arrives one emission
after the change, so a single atomic swap shows through. Everything messier
that follows it — tile hydration, then artwork — still lands behind it.

That leaves a hole this closes too: a manual pull where nothing changed would
now produce no veil, no movement, nothing whatsoever, which reads as broken. So
sessions report an outcome — CHANGED / UNCHANGED / FAILED — and Home surfaces
it as "Already up to date" or "Couldn't check for updates".

Only for refreshes a person actually asked for. "Already up to date" on every
launch, every 03:00 rebuild and every reconnect would be worse than silence, so
VeilSessionResult carries a userInitiated bit and background sessions stay
quiet. The bit is tracked separately from the request token because the request
channel is CONFLATED: coalescing drops the older token, and a user's pull must
not be swallowed by a background trigger arriving on its heels.

The surfaced failure is a deliberate narrowing of the earlier "silent on give
up" call, which is now read as being about background refreshes: for a pull the
user deliberately triggered, silence looks broken, and staying silent while the
success case speaks would be incoherent. Recovery is unaffected either way.

Pull-to-refresh now waits for whichever successor actually arrives — the veil,
or the snackbar — via finishedSessions, instead of only ever waiting on the
veil and timing out for 2s on an unchanged pull.

The Error-state Retry goes through the controller as well, so it gets the
retries and reports its outcome; over an empty cache there's no content to
protect, so no veil appears. HomeViewModel.refresh() is gone, replaced by
retry() and refreshFromPull() — the two things that actually exist.

Tests: two changed meaning and are rewritten rather than patched. A failed pull
writes nothing, so the veil no longer stands over the retries — it goes up when
a retry finally lands. And "waits for content to paint" became "cached content
painting is not mistaken for a change", which is the baseline subtlety above.
Added coverage for UNCHANGED, FAILED, the cold-load CHANGED case, and the
conflation of a user request with a background one.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

.gitea/workflows/android.yml

@@ -80,10 +80,16 @@ jobs:
 
       - name: Upload debug APK
         if: github.event_name == 'push' && github.ref == 'refs/heads/main'
-        # Gitea Actions runs in GHES-emulation mode; @actions/artifact v2+
-        # (i.e. upload-artifact@v4+) errors with "GHESNotSupportedError".
-        # Pin to @v3 until act_runner or the artifact backend catches up.
-        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v3
+        # Mirrored action, never actions/upload-artifact. @v4+ throws
+        # GHESNotSupportedError client-side on the hostname (no server setting
+        # reaches that check), and @v3 is worse — it reports success while Gitea
+        # serves artifacts back only through the v4 API, so the upload is stored
+        # and invisible to every retrieval path. @v3 is what left 72 unreachable
+        # artifacts on this repo. Pinned by SHA because the mirror auto-syncs;
+        # full URL because DEFAULT_ACTIONS_URL sends bare owner/repo to github.com.
+        # See Scribe issues 2255 / 2270.
+        uses: https://git.fabledsword.com/bvandeusen/upload-artifact@cb8afe72b42edc798abfb8fcb556cf660d894245
         with:
           name: minstrel-android-debug-${{ github.sha }}
           path: android/app/build/outputs/apk/debug/app-debug.apk
+          if-no-files-found: error

.gitea/workflows/release.yml

@@ -131,12 +131,19 @@ jobs:
             -PMINSTREL_VERSION_CODE=${{ steps.ver.outputs.code }}
 
       - name: Upload APK as workflow artifact
-        # @v3 because Gitea Actions emulates GHES and the v2 artifact
-        # backend used by upload-artifact@v4 errors with GHESNotSupportedError.
-        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v3
+        # Mirrored action, never actions/upload-artifact — @v4+ refuses on the
+        # hostname, @v3 uploads something Gitea will never serve back. This is
+        # the producing half of a pair: image-release downloads `minstrel-apk`
+        # below with the matching download-artifact mirror. Both must stay on
+        # the v4 protocol — mixing a v3 upload with a v4 download (or the
+        # reverse) yields an empty listing, not an error. See Scribe 2255 / 2270.
+        uses: https://git.fabledsword.com/bvandeusen/upload-artifact@cb8afe72b42edc798abfb8fcb556cf660d894245
         with:
           name: minstrel-apk
           path: android/app/build/outputs/apk/release/app-release.apk
+          # error, not the default warn: image-release hard-depends on this
+          # artifact existing, so an empty upload must fail here, not there.
+          if-no-files-found: error
 
       - name: Attach APK to gitea Release
         shell: bash
@@ -238,7 +245,20 @@ jobs:
         # Tag pushes only — android-release just produced this. Non-tag
         # builds take the "Bundle latest release APK" path below instead.
         if: steps.guard.outputs.ready == 'true' && startsWith(github.ref, 'refs/tags/v')
-        uses: actions/download-artifact@v3
+        # Consuming half of the pair — never actions/download-artifact. Same fork,
+        # same reason: upstream's client-side GHES check rejects this hostname
+        # before it connects. bvandeusen/download-artifact mirrors
+        # code.forgejo.org/forgejo/download-artifact.
+        #
+        # SHA below is that fork's `v6` tag. Match on @actions/artifact, NOT on
+        # the action's own version number — the two actions release on unrelated
+        # cadences, and download v5 would pair a ^2.3.2 client with this file's
+        # ^4.0.0 uploader. v6 is the tag whose bundled library major (^4.0.0) is
+        # the same one proven against this instance by the upload side.
+        # Deliberately NOT v7: it moves to node24 and upstream requires runner
+        # >= 2.327.1 for it, which act_runner does not claim to satisfy.
+        # Pinned, not tagged — the mirror auto-syncs every 8h.
+        uses: https://git.fabledsword.com/bvandeusen/download-artifact@8d4e9521a5f7e5f8b6351f341f719f9f45a92a3a
         with:
           name: minstrel-apk
           path: client/

android/app/build.gradle.kts

@@ -210,4 +210,17 @@ dependencies {
     debugImplementation(libs.compose.ui.test.manifest)
 }
 
-tasks.withType<Test> { useJUnitPlatform() }
+tasks.withType<Test> {
+    useJUnitPlatform()
+    // Print the assertion message + full stack trace for failures. The
+    // default console output gives only "AssertionError at Foo.kt:12", and
+    // for a failure inside a `runTest { }` lambda even that line collapses
+    // to the test function's own line (the assertion frames live in the
+    // suspend-lambda class, which Gradle filters out) — leaving nothing to
+    // debug from when the HTML report isn't reachable, as in CI.
+    testLogging {
+        events("failed")
+        exceptionFormat = org.gradle.api.tasks.testing.logging.TestExceptionFormat.FULL
+        showStackTraces = true
+    }
+}

android/app/src/main/java/com/fabledsword/minstrel/MinstrelApplication.kt

@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import androidx.work.Configuration
 import coil3.ImageLoader
 import coil3.SingletonImageLoader
 import coil3.network.okhttp.OkHttpNetworkFetcherFactory
+import coil3.request.crossfade
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.cache.CacheIndexer
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.cache.mutations.MutationReplayer
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.cache.sync.SyncController
@@ -29,6 +30,10 @@ import okhttp3.OkHttpClient
 import timber.log.Timber
 import javax.inject.Inject
 
+// Cover-art fade-in. Coil skips the transition for memory-cache hits, so
+// already-loaded art still appears instantly — only a genuine fetch fades.
+private const val ART_CROSSFADE_MS = 220
+
 @HiltAndroidApp
 class MinstrelApplication :
     Application(),
@@ -213,11 +218,18 @@ class MinstrelApplication :
      * OkHttp client as the network fetcher. The `callFactory` lambda
      * is invoked lazily so Hilt has time to inject `okHttpClient`
      * before Coil makes its first request.
+     *
+     * Crossfade is set here rather than per-call so every cover surface
+     * in the app fades its artwork in instead of snapping it. Art
+     * landing a beat after its tile was the most visible pop-in on Home
+     * (issue #2327); `ServerImage` fades its placeholder out over the
+     * same window so the two read as one cross-dissolve.
      */
     override fun newImageLoader(context: android.content.Context): ImageLoader =
         ImageLoader.Builder(context)
             .components {
                 add(OkHttpNetworkFetcherFactory(callFactory = { okHttpClient }))
             }
+            .crossfade(ART_CROSSFADE_MS)
             .build()
 }

android/app/src/main/java/com/fabledsword/minstrel/cache/db/dao/CachedHomeIndexDao.kt

@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ import androidx.room.Dao
 import androidx.room.Insert
 import androidx.room.OnConflictStrategy
 import androidx.room.Query
+import androidx.room.Transaction
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.cache.db.entities.CachedHomeIndexEntity
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.Flow
 
@@ -21,12 +22,32 @@ interface CachedHomeIndexDao {
     )
     suspend fun getBySection(section: String): List<CachedHomeIndexEntity>
 
+    /** True when Home has any cached section rows to render. */
+    @Query("SELECT EXISTS(SELECT 1 FROM cached_home_index)")
+    suspend fun hasAny(): Boolean
+
     @Insert(onConflict = OnConflictStrategy.REPLACE)
     suspend fun upsertAll(rows: List<CachedHomeIndexEntity>)
 
-    /** Replace-all pattern; sync wipes a section then re-inserts. */
-    @Query("DELETE FROM cached_home_index WHERE section = :section")
-    suspend fun deleteBySection(section: String)
+    @Query("DELETE FROM cached_home_index WHERE section IN (:sections)")
+    suspend fun deleteSections(sections: List<String>)
+
+    /**
+     * Swaps every listed section's rows in ONE transaction.
+     *
+     * Atomicity is the point, not just tidiness: Room's
+     * InvalidationTracker only notifies observers after the transaction
+     * commits, so [observeBySection] never sees the empty gap between the
+     * delete and the re-insert. Replacing sections one at a time (and
+     * un-transacted) made each Home row emit `emptyList()` — visibly
+     * collapsing — before refilling, and made the seven sections do it in
+     * sequence rather than as a single content swap.
+     */
+    @Transaction
+    suspend fun replaceSections(sections: List<String>, rows: List<CachedHomeIndexEntity>) {
+        deleteSections(sections)
+        if (rows.isNotEmpty()) upsertAll(rows)
+    }
 
     @Query("DELETE FROM cached_home_index")
     suspend fun clear()

android/app/src/main/java/com/fabledsword/minstrel/home/data/HomeRepository.kt

@@ -14,8 +14,10 @@ import com.fabledsword.minstrel.models.TrackRef
 import kotlinx.coroutines.ExperimentalCoroutinesApi
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.Flow
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.combine
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.distinctUntilChanged
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.flatMapLatest
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.flowOf
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.map
 import retrofit2.Retrofit
 import retrofit2.create
 import javax.inject.Inject
@@ -34,9 +36,10 @@ import javax.inject.Singleton
  * reveals when the fetch lands and Room re-emits. Mirrors Flutter's
  * per-item tile providers.
  *
- * `refreshIndex()` pulls `GET /api/home/index`, replaces each section
- * in-place (delete-then-insert, so the section Flows re-fire), and
- * pre-warms the top artists via [HomeArtistPrewarmer].
+ * `refreshIndex()` pulls `GET /api/home/index`, swaps all sections in
+ * one transaction (so the rows update together in a single emission
+ * rather than collapsing and refilling), and pre-warms the top artists
+ * via [HomeArtistPrewarmer].
  */
 @Singleton
 // Per-section observe accessors (one per Home row) inflate the function
@@ -85,72 +88,98 @@ class HomeRepository @Inject constructor(
     fun observeYouMightLikeArtists(): Flow<List<HomeTile<ArtistRef>>> =
         observeArtistSection(SECTION_YOU_MIGHT_LIKE_ARTISTS)
 
+    /** True when the index cache already has content on screen to protect. */
+    suspend fun hasCachedIndex(): Boolean = homeIndexDao.hasAny()
+
     /**
-     * Pulls /api/home/index, replaces each cached_home_index section,
-     * and pre-warms the top artists. The section Flows re-fire on the
-     * index change; missing entity rows hydrate via the on-miss path.
+     * Pulls /api/home/index and swaps every cached_home_index section in
+     * a single transaction, then pre-warms the top artists. Missing
+     * entity rows hydrate via the on-miss path.
+     *
+     * One transaction for all seven sections is deliberate: Room notifies
+     * observers once, on commit, so Home swaps from the old content to
+     * the new in a single emission. Per-section, un-transacted writes
+     * made every row visibly collapse to empty and refill, one after
+     * another (issue #2327).
      */
     suspend fun refreshIndex() {
         val wire = api.getHomeIndex()
-        replaceSection(SECTION_RECENTLY_ADDED_ALBUMS, "album", wire.recentlyAddedAlbums)
-        replaceSection(SECTION_REDISCOVER_ALBUMS, "album", wire.rediscoverAlbums)
-        replaceSection(SECTION_REDISCOVER_ARTISTS, "artist", wire.rediscoverArtists)
-        replaceSection(SECTION_MOST_PLAYED_TRACKS, "track", wire.mostPlayedTracks)
-        replaceSection(SECTION_LAST_PLAYED_ARTISTS, "artist", wire.lastPlayedArtists)
-        replaceSection(SECTION_YOU_MIGHT_LIKE_ALBUMS, "album", wire.youMightLikeAlbums)
-        replaceSection(SECTION_YOU_MIGHT_LIKE_ARTISTS, "artist", wire.youMightLikeArtists)
+        homeIndexDao.replaceSections(
+            sections = ALL_SECTIONS,
+            rows = rowsFor(SECTION_RECENTLY_ADDED_ALBUMS, "album", wire.recentlyAddedAlbums) +
+                rowsFor(SECTION_REDISCOVER_ALBUMS, "album", wire.rediscoverAlbums) +
+                rowsFor(SECTION_REDISCOVER_ARTISTS, "artist", wire.rediscoverArtists) +
+                rowsFor(SECTION_MOST_PLAYED_TRACKS, "track", wire.mostPlayedTracks) +
+                rowsFor(SECTION_LAST_PLAYED_ARTISTS, "artist", wire.lastPlayedArtists) +
+                rowsFor(SECTION_YOU_MIGHT_LIKE_ALBUMS, "album", wire.youMightLikeAlbums) +
+                rowsFor(SECTION_YOU_MIGHT_LIKE_ARTISTS, "artist", wire.youMightLikeArtists),
+        )
         prewarmer.warm(
             wire.rediscoverArtists + wire.lastPlayedArtists + wire.youMightLikeArtists,
         )
     }
 
-    private suspend fun replaceSection(section: String, entityType: String, ids: List<String>) {
-        homeIndexDao.deleteBySection(section)
-        if (ids.isEmpty()) return
-        homeIndexDao.upsertAll(
-            ids.mapIndexed { index, id ->
-                CachedHomeIndexEntity(
-                    section = section,
-                    position = index,
-                    entityType = entityType,
-                    entityId = id,
-                )
-            },
+    private fun rowsFor(
+        section: String,
+        entityType: String,
+        ids: List<String>,
+    ): List<CachedHomeIndexEntity> = ids.mapIndexed { index, id ->
+        CachedHomeIndexEntity(
+            section = section,
+            position = index,
+            entityType = entityType,
+            entityId = id,
         )
     }
 
+    /**
+     * The section's ordered entity ids, deduplicated.
+     *
+     * Room re-runs the query on every write to `cached_home_index` — and
+     * `CachedHomeIndexEntity.fetchedAt` is stamped fresh each time — so
+     * comparing whole rows would call every rewrite a change. Comparing
+     * the id list instead means a section whose contents didn't actually
+     * move never restarts the `flatMapLatest` below, which would
+     * otherwise tear down and rebuild all of its tiles' hydration flows
+     * and flicker unchanged tiles (issue #2327).
+     */
+    private fun observeSectionIds(section: String): Flow<List<String>> =
+        homeIndexDao.observeBySection(section)
+            .map { rows -> rows.map { it.entityId } }
+            .distinctUntilChanged()
+
     @OptIn(ExperimentalCoroutinesApi::class)
     private fun observeAlbumSection(section: String): Flow<List<HomeTile<AlbumRef>>> =
-        homeIndexDao.observeBySection(section).flatMapLatest { rows ->
-            if (rows.isEmpty()) {
+        observeSectionIds(section).flatMapLatest { ids ->
+            if (ids.isEmpty()) {
                 flowOf(emptyList())
             } else {
-                combine(rows.map { metadataProvider.observeAlbum(it.entityId) }) { refs ->
-                    rows.mapIndexed { i, r -> HomeTile(r.entityId, refs[i]) }
+                combine(ids.map { metadataProvider.observeAlbum(it) }) { refs ->
+                    ids.mapIndexed { i, id -> HomeTile(id, refs[i]) }
                 }
             }
         }
 
     @OptIn(ExperimentalCoroutinesApi::class)
     private fun observeArtistSection(section: String): Flow<List<HomeTile<ArtistRef>>> =
-        homeIndexDao.observeBySection(section).flatMapLatest { rows ->
-            if (rows.isEmpty()) {
+        observeSectionIds(section).flatMapLatest { ids ->
+            if (ids.isEmpty()) {
                 flowOf(emptyList())
             } else {
-                combine(rows.map { metadataProvider.observeArtist(it.entityId) }) { refs ->
-                    rows.mapIndexed { i, r -> HomeTile(r.entityId, refs[i]) }
+                combine(ids.map { metadataProvider.observeArtist(it) }) { refs ->
+                    ids.mapIndexed { i, id -> HomeTile(id, refs[i]) }
                 }
             }
         }
 
     @OptIn(ExperimentalCoroutinesApi::class)
     private fun observeTrackSection(section: String): Flow<List<HomeTile<TrackRef>>> =
-        homeIndexDao.observeBySection(section).flatMapLatest { rows ->
-            if (rows.isEmpty()) {
+        observeSectionIds(section).flatMapLatest { ids ->
+            if (ids.isEmpty()) {
                 flowOf(emptyList())
             } else {
-                combine(rows.map { metadataProvider.observeTrack(it.entityId) }) { refs ->
-                    rows.mapIndexed { i, r -> HomeTile(r.entityId, refs[i]) }
+                combine(ids.map { metadataProvider.observeTrack(it) }) { refs ->
+                    ids.mapIndexed { i, id -> HomeTile(id, refs[i]) }
                 }
             }
         }
@@ -163,5 +192,16 @@ class HomeRepository @Inject constructor(
         const val SECTION_LAST_PLAYED_ARTISTS = "last_played_artists"
         const val SECTION_YOU_MIGHT_LIKE_ALBUMS = "you_might_like_albums"
         const val SECTION_YOU_MIGHT_LIKE_ARTISTS = "you_might_like_artists"
+
+        /** Every section [refreshIndex] owns — the unit of one atomic swap. */
+        val ALL_SECTIONS = listOf(
+            SECTION_RECENTLY_ADDED_ALBUMS,
+            SECTION_REDISCOVER_ALBUMS,
+            SECTION_REDISCOVER_ARTISTS,
+            SECTION_MOST_PLAYED_TRACKS,
+            SECTION_LAST_PLAYED_ARTISTS,
+            SECTION_YOU_MIGHT_LIKE_ALBUMS,
+            SECTION_YOU_MIGHT_LIKE_ARTISTS,
+        )
     }
 }

android/app/src/main/java/com/fabledsword/minstrel/home/ui/HomeScreen.kt

@@ -43,6 +43,7 @@ import androidx.compose.material3.SnackbarHost
 import androidx.compose.material3.SnackbarHostState
 import androidx.compose.material3.Text
 import androidx.compose.runtime.Composable
+import androidx.compose.runtime.CompositionLocalProvider
 import androidx.compose.runtime.LaunchedEffect
 import androidx.compose.runtime.getValue
 import androidx.compose.runtime.remember
@@ -85,30 +86,38 @@ import com.fabledsword.minstrel.playlists.widgets.OfflinePoolCard
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.playlists.widgets.PlaylistCard
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.playlists.widgets.PlaylistPlaceholderCard
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.UiState
+import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.UpdateVeilController
+import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.VeilOutcome
+import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.VeilSessionResult
+import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.VeilSettleState
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.asCacheFirstStateFlow
+import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.widgets.ArtSettleTracker
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.widgets.EmptyState
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.widgets.ErrorRetry
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.widgets.HorizontalScrollRow
+import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.widgets.LocalArtSettleTracker
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.widgets.MinstrelTopAppBar
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.widgets.PullToRefreshScaffold
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.widgets.SkeletonAlbumTile
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.widgets.SkeletonArtistTile
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.widgets.SkeletonSectionHeader
 import dagger.hilt.android.lifecycle.HiltViewModel
-import kotlinx.coroutines.Job
+import kotlinx.coroutines.async
 import kotlinx.coroutines.channels.Channel
-import kotlinx.coroutines.delay
+import kotlinx.coroutines.coroutineScope
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.Flow
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.MutableStateFlow
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.SharingStarted
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.StateFlow
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.asStateFlow
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.combine
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.first
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.map
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.receiveAsFlow
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.stateIn
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.filter
 import kotlinx.coroutines.launch
+import kotlinx.coroutines.withTimeoutOrNull
 import javax.inject.Inject
 
 private const val SHARE_STOP_TIMEOUT_MS = 5_000L
@@ -120,16 +129,22 @@ private const val BOTTOM_PADDING_FOR_MINIPLAYER_DP = 140
 private const val RECENTLY_ADDED_GRID_ROWS = 2
 private const val RECENTLY_ADDED_GRID_HEIGHT_DP = 440
 
-// "Updating your mixes…" veil (automatic refresh). Held through the pull
-// plus VEIL_SETTLE_MS so per-tile hydration lands behind it before it wipes
-// off; near-opaque (VEIL_ALPHA) so the section churn never bleeds through.
-private const val VEIL_SETTLE_MS = 500L
+// "Updating your mixes…" veil. UpdateVeilController decides both whether it
+// appears at all — only when a refresh actually changes something — and how
+// long it stays, by watching the screen settle rather than by a fixed delay,
+// which lowered it while tiles and artwork were still landing (#2327).
+// Near-opaque (VEIL_ALPHA) so the section churn never bleeds through.
 private const val VEIL_WIPE_MS = 280
 private const val VEIL_ALPHA = 0.96f
 private const val VEIL_SPINNER_DP = 22
 private const val VEIL_SPINNER_STROKE_DP = 2
 private const val VEIL_LABEL_GAP_DP = 12
 
+// Backstop on how long a manual pull keeps its own indicator while waiting
+// for its successor — the veil, or the "already up to date" snackbar — so the
+// two never both vanish for a frame mid-handoff.
+private const val PULL_HANDOFF_TIMEOUT_MS = 2_000L
+
 // ─── State ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 data class HomeSections(
@@ -184,10 +199,13 @@ class HomeViewModel @Inject constructor(
             initialValue = false,
         )
 
-    private val poolMessages = Channel<String>(Channel.BUFFERED)
+    private val snackbarMessages = Channel<String>(Channel.BUFFERED)
 
-    /** Transient snackbar messages from offline-pool taps. */
-    val transientMessages: Flow<String> = poolMessages.receiveAsFlow()
+    /**
+     * Transient snackbar messages: offline-pool taps, playback failures, and
+     * the outcome of a refresh the user explicitly asked for.
+     */
+    val transientMessages: Flow<String> = snackbarMessages.receiveAsFlow()
 
     /**
      * Copy for the most recent /home/index refresh failure; null once a
@@ -197,38 +215,13 @@ class HomeViewModel @Inject constructor(
      */
     private val refreshError = MutableStateFlow<String?>(null)
 
-    private val updatingInternal = MutableStateFlow(false)
-
     /**
-     * True while an automatic background refresh (the 03:00 daily rebuild
-     * or a reconnect re-pull) is repopulating Home. Drives the "Updating
-     * your mixes…" veil so the section churn — delete-then-insert in
-     * [HomeRepository.refreshIndex] plus per-tile hydration — happens
-     * hidden behind the veil instead of on screen. Manual pull-to-refresh
-     * and cold start are NOT veiled (they own the pull spinner / skeleton).
+     * Cover-art loads in flight on Home, reported by every [ServerImage]
+     * under [LocalArtSettleTracker]. The veil waits on this so artwork
+     * arriving a beat after its tile lands behind the veil rather than
+     * popping in on screen.
      */
-    val isUpdating: StateFlow<Boolean> = updatingInternal.asStateFlow()
-
-    init {
-        refresh()
-        // Screen-level auto-recovery (issue #1245): a Home that failed to
-        // load while the server was unreachable re-pulls itself the moment
-        // health returns — same idiom as SyncController, one layer up.
-        // Veiled: content is already on screen and would otherwise churn.
-        viewModelScope.launch {
-            networkStatus.recoveries().collect { refreshBehindVeil() }
-        }
-        // #968: the daily 03:00 rebuild (and manual refresh) emit
-        // playlist.system_rebuilt; re-pull Home so the system-playlist tiles
-        // and You-might-like rows reflect the new snapshot without a manual
-        // reload. Mirrors the web SSE consumer. Veiled so the multi-section
-        // rebuild churn hides behind "Updating your mixes…".
-        viewModelScope.launch {
-            eventsStream.events
-                .filter { it.kind == "playlist.system_rebuilt" }
-                .collect { refreshBehindVeil() }
-        }
-    }
+    val artTracker = ArtSettleTracker()
 
     /**
      * Tap an offline pool: shuffle + play its cached tracks. Empty
@@ -241,7 +234,7 @@ class HomeViewModel @Inject constructor(
                 OfflinePoolKind.LIKED -> shuffleSource.liked()
             }.shuffled()
             if (tracks.isEmpty()) {
-                poolMessages.trySend("No cached ${kind.label} tracks yet")
+                snackbarMessages.trySend("No cached ${kind.label} tracks yet")
             } else {
                 player.setQueue(tracks, initialIndex = 0, source = "offline:${kind.name}")
             }
@@ -278,14 +271,14 @@ class HomeViewModel @Inject constructor(
             try {
                 val detail = libraryRepository.refreshAlbumDetail(albumId)
                 if (detail.tracks.isEmpty()) {
-                    poolMessages.trySend("This album has no tracks to play.")
+                    snackbarMessages.trySend("This album has no tracks to play.")
                 } else {
                     player.setQueue(detail.tracks, initialIndex = 0, source = "album:$albumId")
                 }
             } catch (
                 @Suppress("TooGenericExceptionCaught") e: Throwable,
             ) {
-                poolMessages.trySend(
+                snackbarMessages.trySend(
                     "Couldn't start playback: ${ErrorCopy.fromThrowable(e)}",
                 )
             }
@@ -303,14 +296,14 @@ class HomeViewModel @Inject constructor(
             try {
                 val tracks = libraryRepository.fetchArtistTracks(artistId).shuffled()
                 if (tracks.isEmpty()) {
-                    poolMessages.trySend("This artist has no tracks to play.")
+                    snackbarMessages.trySend("This artist has no tracks to play.")
                 } else {
                     player.setQueue(tracks, initialIndex = 0, source = "artist:$artistId")
                 }
             } catch (
                 @Suppress("TooGenericExceptionCaught") e: Throwable,
             ) {
-                poolMessages.trySend(
+                snackbarMessages.trySend(
                     "Couldn't start playback: ${ErrorCopy.fromThrowable(e)}",
                 )
             }
@@ -328,52 +321,66 @@ class HomeViewModel @Inject constructor(
     suspend fun playPlaylist(playlist: PlaylistRef) {
         viewModelScope.launch {
             playPlaylistShuffled(playlist, playlistsRepository, player) {
-                poolMessages.trySend(it)
+                snackbarMessages.trySend(it)
             }
         }.join()
     }
 
     /**
-     * Pulls both /home/index and the playlists list. Returns the Job
-     * for the combined refresh so a pull-to-refresh wrapper can await
-     * actual completion before hiding the indicator.
+     * Pulls /home/index, the playlists list and the system-playlist
+     * status. Returns true when the load-bearing /home/index pull
+     * succeeded — the veil controller retries on false and reports the
+     * outcome, so this must report failure rather than swallow it.
      */
-    fun refresh(): Job = viewModelScope.launch {
-        refreshError.value = null
-        val home = launch {
-            // /home/index is the load-bearing pull: its failure drives the
-            // empty-cache Error state. A failure over a populated cache
-            // stays silent — cached sections beat a full-screen error.
+    private suspend fun runRefresh(): Boolean = coroutineScope {
+        // /home/index is the load-bearing pull: its failure drives the
+        // empty-cache Error state. A failure over a populated cache
+        // stays silent — cached sections beat a full-screen error.
+        //
+        // Cleared on success, NOT at the start of each attempt: with the
+        // veil's retries, clearing up front made a failing cold start
+        // flash the "Welcome to Minstrel" empty state (empty cache + no
+        // error reads as Empty) between one attempt and the next.
+        val home = async {
             runCatching { homeRepository.refreshIndex() }
+                .onSuccess { refreshError.value = null }
                 .onFailure { refreshError.value = ErrorCopy.fromThrowable(it) }
+                .isSuccess
         }
         val lists = launch { runCatching { playlistsRepository.refreshList() } }
         val status = launch {
             runCatching { homeRepository.getSystemPlaylistsStatus() }
                 .onSuccess { systemStatusInternal.value = it }
         }
-        home.join()
         lists.join()
         status.join()
+        home.await()
     }
 
     /**
-     * Automatic background refresh with the "Updating your mixes…" veil
-     * raised (see [isUpdating]). Used by the daily-rebuild + reconnect
-     * paths where Home is already on screen. Holds the veil through the
-     * pull plus a short settle so per-tile hydration lands behind it, then
-     * lets it wipe off. Overlapping automatic refreshes are rare enough
-     * (once-daily rebuild, reconnect) that a plain flag beats a counter.
+     * The Error state's explicit Retry button. User-initiated, so it gets
+     * the controller's retries and reports its outcome; over an empty cache
+     * there's no content to protect, so no veil goes up.
      */
-    private fun refreshBehindVeil() {
-        viewModelScope.launch {
-            updatingInternal.value = true
-            try {
-                refresh().join()
-                delay(VEIL_SETTLE_MS)
-            } finally {
-                updatingInternal.value = false
-            }
+    fun retry() = veil.request(userInitiated = true)
+
+    /**
+     * Manual pull-to-refresh. Goes behind the veil like every other refresh
+     * (operator call, 2026-07-31: the churn a pull causes is identical to
+     * the automatic paths, and a small spinner didn't hide it).
+     *
+     * Suspends until the veil has taken over OR the session has finished,
+     * so the pull indicator hands off to exactly one successor: the veil if
+     * content changed, the "Already up to date" snackbar if it didn't. The
+     * timeout is only a backstop against a session that outlives it.
+     */
+    suspend fun refreshFromPull() {
+        val before = veil.finishedSessions.value
+        veil.request(userInitiated = true)
+        withTimeoutOrNull(PULL_HANDOFF_TIMEOUT_MS) {
+            combine(veil.visible, veil.finishedSessions) { veiled, finished ->
+                veiled || finished != before
+            }.first { it }
         }
     }
 
@@ -425,6 +432,124 @@ class HomeViewModel @Inject constructor(
                 else -> UiState.Empty
             }
         }
+
+    // ─── Updating veil ───────────────────────────────────────────────
+    // Declared after uiState: these initialisers read it, and Kotlin runs
+    // property initialisers and init blocks in declaration order.
+
+    /**
+     * What the veil watches to decide Home has stopped moving: the whole
+     * rendered state, plus how many covers are still loading.
+     *
+     * [UiState.Success] wraps a [HomeSections] data class, so any visible
+     * change — a section swapping ids, one tile hydrating from skeleton to
+     * album — changes this value and re-arms the veil's quiet window.
+     *
+     * Unhydrated tiles deliberately do NOT gate `quiescent`. A tile whose
+     * on-miss fetch soft-fails keeps a null value indefinitely
+     * ([MetadataProvider] swallows those errors), so treating "no
+     * skeletons left" as the settle condition would pin the veil to its
+     * hard ceiling on every refresh. They're covered by the content key
+     * instead: each tile that lands re-arms the window, and once they stop
+     * landing the screen is genuinely still.
+     */
+    private val settleSignal: Flow<VeilSettleState> =
+        combine(uiState, artTracker.inFlight) { state, artInFlight ->
+            VeilSettleState(
+                contentKey = state,
+                hasContent = state is UiState.Success,
+                quiescent = artInFlight == 0,
+            )
+        }
+
+    private val veil = UpdateVeilController(
+        scope = viewModelScope,
+        settleSignal = settleSignal,
+        shouldVeil = {
+            // Only worth hiding churn when there's already content to
+            // hide. A cold load over an empty cache keeps its skeleton —
+            // veiling that would replace a useful affordance with an
+            // opaque panel. `hasCachedIndex` is the honest check: uiState
+            // still reads Loading until the screen subscribes, so on a
+            // process restore over a warm cache it would say "no content"
+            // right before the cache emits.
+            uiState.value is UiState.Success || homeRepository.hasCachedIndex()
+        },
+        onSessionEnd = ::reportRefreshOutcome,
+        work = ::runRefresh,
+    )
+
+    /**
+     * Tells the user how a refresh *they asked for* went, in the one case
+     * the veil can't: when nothing changed there's no veil to see, and a
+     * pull that produces no visible response at all reads as broken.
+     *
+     * Only user-initiated sessions say anything. The same outcome from a
+     * background check — the initial load, the 03:00 rebuild, a reconnect —
+     * is noise, and "Already up to date" on every launch would be worse
+     * than silence (operator's call, 2026-07-31).
+     */
+    private fun reportRefreshOutcome(result: VeilSessionResult) {
+        if (!result.userInitiated) return
+        when (result.outcome) {
+            // The veil was the feedback.
+            VeilOutcome.CHANGED -> return
+            VeilOutcome.UNCHANGED -> snackbarMessages.trySend("Already up to date")
+            VeilOutcome.FAILED -> snackbarMessages.trySend("Couldn't check for updates")
+        }
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * True while the "Updating your mixes…" veil should be raised.
+     *
+     * Raised only when a refresh actually changes what's on screen, and then
+     * held until Home settles — tiles hydrated, artwork loaded — instead of
+     * for a fixed delay after the network pull returns (issue #2327). A
+     * refresh that returns what's already cached shows no veil at all;
+     * [reportRefreshOutcome] tells the user instead, if they asked.
+     */
+    val isUpdating: StateFlow<Boolean> = veil.visible
+
+    init {
+        // Every refresh path goes through the controller, which decides
+        // per session whether to raise the veil. That includes the initial
+        // load: over a warm cache it's a full re-pull that churns every
+        // section, and it used to run completely unveiled.
+        veil.request()
+        // Screen-level auto-recovery (issue #1245): a Home that failed to
+        // load while the server was unreachable re-pulls itself the moment
+        // health returns — same idiom as SyncController, one layer up.
+        // This is also the recovery that keeps trying after the veil has
+        // given up and lowered; the controller sets no latch against it.
+        viewModelScope.launch {
+            networkStatus.recoveries().collect { veil.request() }
+        }
+        // Server-side changes that rewrite what Home renders (#968 and
+        // the 2026-07-31 widening) re-pull behind the veil. Mirrors the
+        // web SSE consumer.
+        viewModelScope.launch {
+            eventsStream.events
+                .filter { it.kind in VEILED_EVENT_KINDS }
+                .collect { veil.request() }
+        }
+    }
+
+    private companion object {
+        /**
+         * Events that change what Home shows. `playlist.system_rebuilt`
+         * is the 03:00 daily rebuild; the other `playlist.*` kinds move
+         * the Playlists and Songs-like rows; `scan.run_finished` changes
+         * Recently added (and Home never reacted to it at all before).
+         */
+        private val VEILED_EVENT_KINDS = setOf(
+            "playlist.system_rebuilt",
+            "playlist.created",
+            "playlist.updated",
+            "playlist.deleted",
+            "playlist.tracks_changed",
+            "scan.run_finished",
+        )
+    }
 }
 
 // ─── Screen ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
@@ -454,14 +579,20 @@ fun HomeScreen(
         val offline by viewModel.offline.collectAsStateWithLifecycle()
         val updating by viewModel.isUpdating.collectAsStateWithLifecycle()
         PullToRefreshScaffold(
-            onRefresh = { viewModel.refresh().join() },
+            onRefresh = { viewModel.refreshFromPull() },
             modifier = Modifier.fillMaxSize().padding(inner),
         ) {
             Box(Modifier.fillMaxSize()) {
-                HomeStateCrossfade(state, systemStatus, offline, navController, viewModel)
-                // Automatic-refresh veil: the daily rebuild / reconnect
-                // churn hides behind an "Updating your mixes…" wipe. Manual
-                // pull owns the PullToRefreshBox spinner instead.
+                // Every cover below reports its load state to the tracker,
+                // so the veil can wait for artwork instead of guessing.
+                CompositionLocalProvider(
+                    LocalArtSettleTracker provides viewModel.artTracker,
+                ) {
+                    HomeStateCrossfade(state, systemStatus, offline, navController, viewModel)
+                }
+                // Refresh veil: rebuild / reconnect / pull / event churn all
+                // hide behind an "Updating your mixes…" wipe that stays up
+                // until the screen has actually stopped moving.
                 UpdatingVeil(visible = updating)
             }
         }
@@ -499,7 +630,7 @@ private fun HomeStateCrossfade(
             is UiState.Error -> ErrorRetry(
                 title = "Couldn't load home",
                 message = s.message,
-                onRetry = { viewModel.refresh() },
+                onRetry = { viewModel.retry() },
             )
             is UiState.Success -> HomeSuccessContent(
                 sections = s.data,

android/app/src/main/java/com/fabledsword/minstrel/shared/UpdateVeilController.kt

@@ -0,0 +1,315 @@
+package com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared
+
+import kotlinx.coroutines.CompletableDeferred
+import kotlinx.coroutines.CoroutineScope
+import kotlinx.coroutines.FlowPreview
+import kotlinx.coroutines.channels.Channel
+import kotlinx.coroutines.delay
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.Flow
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.MutableStateFlow
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.StateFlow
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.asStateFlow
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.debounce
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.distinctUntilChanged
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.first
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.update
+import kotlinx.coroutines.launch
+import kotlinx.coroutines.withTimeoutOrNull
+import java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicBoolean
+
+// Once raised, the veil stays up at least this long. Without a floor a
+// no-op refresh wipes on and straight back off, which reads as a glitch.
+private const val DEFAULT_MIN_HOLD_MS = 900L
+
+// The screen must stop changing for this long before the veil lowers.
+// Every content change re-arms it, so a refresh that lands in stages
+// (index → tile hydration → artwork) holds the veil across all of them.
+private const val DEFAULT_QUIET_MS = 700L
+
+// Hard ceiling on visibility. A refresh that never settles must not
+// strand the user behind an opaque veil; the work itself is NOT capped.
+private const val DEFAULT_MAX_HOLD_MS = 12_000L
+
+// Attempts per session. Retrying behind the veil is the point: a pull
+// that fails on the first try gets another go before the user sees
+// anything, instead of the veil wiping off over unchanged content.
+private const val DEFAULT_ATTEMPTS = 3
+private const val DEFAULT_RETRY_BACKOFF_MS = 600L
+
+/** Tunables for [UpdateVeilController]; defaults are the Home values. */
+data class VeilTimings(
+    val minHoldMs: Long = DEFAULT_MIN_HOLD_MS,
+    val quietMs: Long = DEFAULT_QUIET_MS,
+    val maxHoldMs: Long = DEFAULT_MAX_HOLD_MS,
+    val attempts: Int = DEFAULT_ATTEMPTS,
+    val retryBackoffMs: Long = DEFAULT_RETRY_BACKOFF_MS,
+)
+
+/**
+ * A snapshot of everything that visibly moves on the veiled screen.
+ *
+ * @param contentKey any value whose equality tracks what's rendered — a
+ *   change means the screen moved, and re-arms the quiet timer.
+ * @param hasContent true when real content (not a skeleton or an empty
+ *   state) is on screen. The veil waits for this before raising: there's
+ *   nothing to hide until there's something to hide.
+ * @param quiescent false while something is still landing (artwork
+ *   loading, tiles hydrating). The veil will not lower until this is
+ *   true, up to [VeilTimings.maxHoldMs].
+ */
+data class VeilSettleState(
+    val contentKey: Any?,
+    val hasContent: Boolean,
+    val quiescent: Boolean,
+)
+
+/** What a finished session did, so callers can report it if they want. */
+enum class VeilOutcome {
+    /** Content changed, and the veil covered the churn. */
+    CHANGED,
+
+    /** The refresh worked, but nothing on screen moved — already current. */
+    UNCHANGED,
+
+    /** Every attempt failed. */
+    FAILED,
+}
+
+/**
+ * One session's result, plus whether a user explicitly asked for it.
+ *
+ * [userInitiated] is what lets a caller tell feedback from noise: a user
+ * who pulled to refresh is owed an answer even when the answer is "nothing
+ * changed", while the same outcome from a background check is noise.
+ */
+data class VeilSessionResult(
+    val outcome: VeilOutcome,
+    val userInitiated: Boolean,
+)
+
+/**
+ * Drives an "updating" overlay from *observed content change and settling*
+ * rather than from a fixed delay.
+ *
+ * The problem this replaces: a veil held for `refresh().join() + 500ms`
+ * lowers while the screen is still moving, because finishing the network
+ * pull is nowhere near the end of the visible work — the pull writes id
+ * lists, then tiles hydrate one by one, then artwork loads. And a plain
+ * `isUpdating` Boolean set in a `finally` gets cleared by whichever of
+ * two overlapping refreshes finishes first, wiping the veil off mid-update
+ * (issue #2327).
+ *
+ * So instead: run [work], raise only if the content actually changes, then
+ * hold until [settleSignal] reports the screen has stopped changing for
+ * [VeilTimings.quietMs] AND is quiescent — bounded below by
+ * [VeilTimings.minHoldMs] so it can never flash, and above by
+ * [VeilTimings.maxHoldMs] so it can never strand.
+ *
+ * The raise is deliberately *reactive*: a refresh that returns what's
+ * already on screen — the common case on a launch over a warm cache —
+ * raises nothing at all, because a veil over an unchanged screen hides
+ * nothing and only delays first paint. The cost is that the veil arrives
+ * one emission after the change, so a single atomic content swap shows
+ * through; everything messier that follows it (tile hydration, then
+ * artwork) still lands behind the veil.
+ *
+ * Overlapping triggers extend the running session instead of racing it,
+ * so the veil stays up continuously rather than lowering and re-raising.
+ *
+ * Failure is quiet at this layer: [work] gets [VeilTimings.attempts] tries
+ * behind the veil, and if they all fail the veil simply wipes off over the
+ * cached content. Giving up ends only *this* session — it sets no latch and
+ * blocks nothing, so the caller's own recovery paths (reconnect re-pull,
+ * freshness sweeps, the next event, a manual pull) keep retrying afterwards
+ * exactly as before. Callers that want to surface a failure can do it from
+ * [onSessionEnd] instead.
+ *
+ * @param work one refresh attempt; returns true when it succeeded.
+ * @param shouldVeil sampled at session start — "is there cached content
+ *   this refresh is about to overwrite?". False means a cold load, where
+ *   a skeleton is the right affordance, and the work runs unveiled.
+ * @param onSessionEnd called once per finished session, on the controller's
+ *   coroutine. Use it for user-facing feedback the veil itself can't give.
+ */
+class UpdateVeilController(
+    private val scope: CoroutineScope,
+    private val settleSignal: Flow<VeilSettleState>,
+    private val shouldVeil: suspend () -> Boolean,
+    private val timings: VeilTimings = VeilTimings(),
+    private val onSessionEnd: (VeilSessionResult) -> Unit = {},
+    private val work: suspend () -> Boolean,
+) {
+    private val visibleInternal = MutableStateFlow(false)
+
+    /** True while the veil should be drawn over the screen. */
+    val visible: StateFlow<Boolean> = visibleInternal.asStateFlow()
+
+    private val finishedInternal = MutableStateFlow(0)
+
+    /**
+     * Increments as each session ends. Lets a caller wait for "this
+     * refresh is done" without knowing whether a veil ever went up —
+     * a pull-to-refresh indicator needs exactly that, since an unchanged
+     * refresh never raises one.
+     */
+    val finishedSessions: StateFlow<Int> = finishedInternal.asStateFlow()
+
+    // Conflated: a burst of triggers (reconnect + rebuild event arriving
+    // together) collapses into one follow-up pass, not a queue of them.
+    private val requests = Channel<Unit>(Channel.CONFLATED)
+
+    // Sticky across a conflated burst: conflation drops the older token, so
+    // the "a user asked for this" bit can't ride on it. If ANY coalesced
+    // trigger was the user's, the session still owes them an answer.
+    private val userAsked = AtomicBoolean(false)
+
+    init {
+        // One consumer, so sessions are serialised by construction: two
+        // triggers can never each own a piece of the veil's state.
+        scope.launch {
+            while (true) {
+                requests.receive()
+                runSession()
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Ask for a refresh. Safe to call from any trigger at any rate —
+     * calls arriving during a session extend it rather than starting a
+     * competing one.
+     *
+     * @param userInitiated true when a person explicitly asked (pull to
+     *   refresh, a Retry button), which is what [VeilSessionResult] carries
+     *   through to [onSessionEnd].
+     */
+    fun request(userInitiated: Boolean = false) {
+        if (userInitiated) userAsked.set(true)
+        requests.trySend(Unit)
+    }
+
+    private suspend fun runSession() {
+        // Sampled at both ends of the work: a trigger folded in mid-session
+        // (see [drainWork]) may have been the user's, and they're still owed
+        // an answer for it.
+        val askedAtStart = userAsked.getAndSet(false)
+        if (!shouldVeil()) {
+            // Cold load: the skeleton is the right affordance, so no veil.
+            // Succeeding here did change the screen — from nothing to
+            // something — so it reports CHANGED, never "already up to date".
+            val ok = drainWork()
+            finish(succeeded = ok, changed = ok, userInitiated = askedAtStart)
+            return
+        }
+        val raised = CompletableDeferred<Unit>()
+        val raiser = scope.launch { raiseWhenContentChanges(raised) }
+        // Floor and ceiling are measured from the raise, not the request,
+        // so a late raise still gets its full no-flash minimum.
+        val floor = scope.launch {
+            raised.await()
+            delay(timings.minHoldMs)
+        }
+        val ceiling = scope.launch {
+            raised.await()
+            delay(timings.maxHoldMs)
+            visibleInternal.value = false
+        }
+        var succeeded = false
+        try {
+            succeeded = drainWork()
+            // Always wait for the settle, never conditionally on `visible`:
+            // work that finishes without suspending would otherwise reach
+            // here before the raiser has been dispatched, tear the session
+            // down, and leave the churn uncovered. This wait is also what
+            // makes `raised.isCompleted` below a trustworthy "did anything
+            // change?" — a change landing just after the pull returns still
+            // gets seen.
+            withTimeoutOrNull(timings.maxHoldMs) { awaitSettled() }
+            // Honour the no-flash minimum before lowering. Deliberately in
+            // the try and not the finally: on cancellation the scope is
+            // going away and nothing will render the veil, so the floor is
+            // pointless there — and a finally that suspends is a finally
+            // that can resist teardown.
+            if (raised.isCompleted) floor.join()
+        } finally {
+            raiser.cancel()
+            ceiling.cancel()
+            floor.cancel()
+            visibleInternal.value = false
+            finish(
+                succeeded = succeeded,
+                changed = raised.isCompleted,
+                userInitiated = askedAtStart,
+            )
+        }
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Raises the veil the moment the screen's content differs from what was
+     * already on it — and never, if this refresh turns out to be a no-op.
+     *
+     * The baseline is the first state that HAS content, not simply the first
+     * state: over a warm cache the cached rows paint a moment after the
+     * session starts, and treating that first paint as "a change" would veil
+     * every launch, which is the whole thing this avoids.
+     */
+    private suspend fun raiseWhenContentChanges(raised: CompletableDeferred<Unit>) {
+        val baseline = settleSignal.first { it.hasContent }
+        settleSignal.first { it.hasContent && it.contentKey != baseline.contentKey }
+        visibleInternal.value = true
+        raised.complete(Unit)
+    }
+
+    private fun finish(succeeded: Boolean, changed: Boolean, userInitiated: Boolean) {
+        val outcome = when {
+            !succeeded -> VeilOutcome.FAILED
+            changed -> VeilOutcome.CHANGED
+            else -> VeilOutcome.UNCHANGED
+        }
+        onSessionEnd(
+            VeilSessionResult(
+                outcome = outcome,
+                // Fold in a mid-session request from the user.
+                userInitiated = userInitiated || userAsked.getAndSet(false),
+            ),
+        )
+        finishedInternal.update { it + 1 }
+    }
+
+    /** True when the refresh eventually succeeded. */
+    private suspend fun drainWork(): Boolean {
+        var succeeded: Boolean
+        do {
+            succeeded = runWorkWithRetries()
+            // A trigger that arrived mid-session gets folded into this one.
+        } while (requests.tryReceive().isSuccess)
+        return succeeded
+    }
+
+    private suspend fun runWorkWithRetries(): Boolean {
+        repeat(timings.attempts) { attempt ->
+            if (work()) return true
+            if (attempt < timings.attempts - 1) {
+                delay(timings.retryBackoffMs * (attempt + 1))
+            }
+        }
+        return false
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Suspends until the screen has been unchanged for
+     * [VeilTimings.quietMs] and reports itself quiescent.
+     *
+     * `debounce` is what makes this hold across a staged update: every
+     * change restarts the window, so the veil lowers only once emissions
+     * actually stop. `first { quiescent }` then rejects a quiet-but-
+     * still-loading moment and waits for the next lull.
+     */
+    @OptIn(FlowPreview::class)
+    private suspend fun awaitSettled() {
+        settleSignal
+            .distinctUntilChanged()
+            .debounce(timings.quietMs)
+            .first { it.quiescent }
+    }
+}

android/app/src/main/java/com/fabledsword/minstrel/shared/widgets/ArtSettleTracker.kt

@@ -0,0 +1,60 @@
+package com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.widgets
+
+import androidx.compose.runtime.Stable
+import androidx.compose.runtime.staticCompositionLocalOf
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.MutableStateFlow
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.StateFlow
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.asStateFlow
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.update
+
+/**
+ * Counts the cover-art loads that are currently in flight, so a
+ * screen-level overlay can wait for the artwork to actually land instead
+ * of guessing with a fixed delay.
+ *
+ * Artwork is the most visible pop-in on Home: a tile can be fully
+ * hydrated (title, artist, counts all present) and still snap its cover
+ * in a second later, which is exactly the churn the "Updating your
+ * mixes…" veil exists to hide. The refresh coroutine can't see that —
+ * it finishes long before Coil does — so the composition reports it
+ * upward here instead.
+ *
+ * [ServerImage] reports into whatever tracker it finds in
+ * [LocalArtSettleTracker], which means every art surface in the app
+ * participates for free. Only *composed* images are counted, so a
+ * LazyRow's off-screen tiles are correctly ignored — the count tracks
+ * the pop-in a user can actually see.
+ *
+ * Provide one per screen that needs it (typically owned by the
+ * screen's ViewModel so its refresh logic can read [inFlight]):
+ *
+ *     CompositionLocalProvider(LocalArtSettleTracker provides vm.artTracker) { ... }
+ */
+@Stable
+class ArtSettleTracker {
+    private val inFlightInternal = MutableStateFlow(0)
+
+    /**
+     * How many on-screen images are still loading. Zero means the
+     * artwork has settled — every composed cover has either drawn or
+     * failed to a fallback.
+     */
+    val inFlight: StateFlow<Int> = inFlightInternal.asStateFlow()
+
+    fun begin() {
+        inFlightInternal.update { it + 1 }
+    }
+
+    fun end() {
+        // Floor at zero: a decrement can outlive its increment when a
+        // tile is disposed mid-load and the count must not go negative
+        // and wedge "settled" off forever.
+        inFlightInternal.update { (it - 1).coerceAtLeast(0) }
+    }
+}
+
+/**
+ * The tracker [ServerImage] reports load state to, or null on screens
+ * that don't care (the default) — reporting is then a no-op.
+ */
+val LocalArtSettleTracker = staticCompositionLocalOf<ArtSettleTracker?> { null }

android/app/src/main/java/com/fabledsword/minstrel/shared/widgets/ServerImage.kt

@@ -1,25 +1,40 @@
 package com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.widgets
 
+import androidx.compose.animation.core.animateFloatAsState
+import androidx.compose.animation.core.tween
 import androidx.compose.foundation.layout.Box
 import androidx.compose.foundation.layout.fillMaxSize
 import androidx.compose.runtime.Composable
+import androidx.compose.runtime.DisposableEffect
 import androidx.compose.runtime.getValue
 import androidx.compose.runtime.mutableStateOf
 import androidx.compose.runtime.remember
 import androidx.compose.runtime.setValue
 import androidx.compose.ui.Alignment
 import androidx.compose.ui.Modifier
+import androidx.compose.ui.draw.alpha
 import androidx.compose.ui.layout.ContentScale
 import coil3.compose.AsyncImage
 import coil3.compose.AsyncImagePainter
 import com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared.resolveServerUrl
 
+// The fallback fades out as the artwork crossfades in (Coil's crossfade is
+// configured globally on the ImageLoader in MinstrelApplication). Matching
+// durations makes the swap read as one cross-dissolve; without the fade the
+// placeholder icon vanished a frame before the cover appeared, which is the
+// "art popping in" the Home veil exists to hide (issue #2327).
+private const val FALLBACK_FADE_MS = 220
+
 /**
  * Renders a server-hosted image, resolving relative URLs centrally so
  * every cover surface loads consistently. Shows [fallback] when the URL
  * is blank/unresolvable, while the image is still loading, and when the
  * load fails — so a tile is never left blank (e.g. art not yet backfilled,
  * which the "You might like" row hits often).
+ *
+ * In-flight loads are reported to [LocalArtSettleTracker] when a screen
+ * provides one, so a screen-level overlay can wait for artwork to land
+ * instead of guessing with a fixed delay.
  */
 @Composable
 fun ServerImage(
@@ -40,6 +55,23 @@ fun ServerImage(
     var state by remember(resolved) {
         mutableStateOf<AsyncImagePainter.State>(AsyncImagePainter.State.Empty)
     }
+    // Empty counts as loading: it's the pre-request state, so treating it
+    // as settled would let a screen overlay lower before Coil even starts.
+    val loading = state is AsyncImagePainter.State.Empty ||
+        state is AsyncImagePainter.State.Loading
+    val tracker = LocalArtSettleTracker.current
+    DisposableEffect(tracker, loading) {
+        if (loading) tracker?.begin()
+        // Balanced by construction: the effect re-runs when `loading` flips
+        // (decrement, then no re-increment) and disposes when a tile leaves
+        // the composition mid-load (scrolled away).
+        onDispose { if (loading) tracker?.end() }
+    }
+    val fallbackAlpha by animateFloatAsState(
+        targetValue = if (loading || state is AsyncImagePainter.State.Error) 1f else 0f,
+        animationSpec = tween(FALLBACK_FADE_MS),
+        label = "art-fallback",
+    )
     Box(modifier = modifier, contentAlignment = Alignment.Center) {
         AsyncImage(
             model = resolved,
@@ -48,10 +80,10 @@ fun ServerImage(
             contentScale = contentScale,
             onState = { state = it },
         )
-        if (state is AsyncImagePainter.State.Loading ||
-            state is AsyncImagePainter.State.Error
-        ) {
-            fallback()
+        if (fallbackAlpha > 0f) {
+            Box(Modifier.alpha(fallbackAlpha), contentAlignment = Alignment.Center) {
+                fallback()
+            }
         }
     }
 }

android/app/src/test/java/com/fabledsword/minstrel/shared/UpdateVeilControllerTest.kt

@@ -0,0 +1,314 @@
+package com.fabledsword.minstrel.shared
+
+import kotlinx.coroutines.ExperimentalCoroutinesApi
+import kotlinx.coroutines.delay
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.MutableStateFlow
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.map
+import kotlinx.coroutines.launch
+import kotlinx.coroutines.test.TestScope
+import kotlinx.coroutines.test.advanceTimeBy
+import kotlinx.coroutines.test.runCurrent
+import kotlinx.coroutines.test.runTest
+import org.junit.jupiter.api.Test
+import kotlin.test.assertEquals
+import kotlin.test.assertFalse
+import kotlin.test.assertTrue
+
+private const val WORK_MS = 1_000L
+private const val CHURN_ROUNDS = 5
+private const val ART_IN_FLIGHT = 3
+private const val SUCCEED_ON_ATTEMPT = 3
+private const val QUIET_WINDOWS_TO_OUTLAST = 3
+
+// Time to let a session finish once the screen has stopped changing: the
+// retry backoffs, the quiet window and the minimum hold all fit inside it,
+// while staying well under maxHoldMs. That gap matters — if a drain ran
+// past the ceiling, "the veil lowered" would no longer distinguish
+// "it settled" from "it gave up", which is the whole point of these tests.
+private const val DRAIN_MS = 3_000L
+
+/**
+ * The veil's job is to go up only when content actually changes, and then to
+ * stay up until the screen has stopped moving. Each test pins one of the ways
+ * the original fixed-delay implementation got that wrong (issue #2327).
+ *
+ * The controller is built on `backgroundScope` throughout: its consumer
+ * loop runs forever, so hanging it off the test's own scope would stop
+ * `runTest` from ever completing.
+ *
+ * Consequence, and the reason every wait below is an explicit
+ * `advanceTimeBy`: **`advanceUntilIdle()` is useless here.** It advances
+ * only while *foreground* work remains, and everything this controller
+ * does lives in `backgroundScope` — so it returns having run nothing, and
+ * assertions land on a session that never started (CI run 3163 failed all
+ * seven of these with "expected 3, actual 0" and friends). Drive the clock
+ * deliberately instead; don't "simplify" these back to advanceUntilIdle.
+ */
+@OptIn(ExperimentalCoroutinesApi::class)
+class UpdateVeilControllerTest {
+
+    private val timings = VeilTimings(
+        minHoldMs = 900,
+        quietMs = 700,
+        maxHoldMs = 12_000,
+        attempts = 3,
+        retryBackoffMs = 600,
+    )
+
+    /** Drives the settle signal by hand: content key, presence, art count. */
+    private class FakeScreen(hasContent: Boolean = true) {
+        val state = MutableStateFlow(Triple(0, hasContent, 0))
+
+        val signal = state.map { (key, hasContent, art) ->
+            VeilSettleState(contentKey = key, hasContent = hasContent, quiescent = art == 0)
+        }
+
+        /** Content visibly changed — what the veil exists to cover. */
+        fun churn() {
+            state.value = state.value.copy(first = state.value.first + 1)
+        }
+
+        fun artLoading(count: Int) {
+            state.value = state.value.copy(third = count)
+        }
+
+        fun contentAppears() {
+            state.value = state.value.copy(second = true)
+        }
+    }
+
+    private fun TestScope.controllerOn(
+        screen: FakeScreen,
+        shouldVeil: suspend () -> Boolean = { true },
+        onSessionEnd: (VeilSessionResult) -> Unit = {},
+        work: suspend () -> Boolean,
+    ) = UpdateVeilController(
+        scope = backgroundScope,
+        settleSignal = screen.signal,
+        shouldVeil = shouldVeil,
+        timings = timings,
+        onSessionEnd = onSessionEnd,
+        work = work,
+    )
+
+    /** Records every visibility transition, so an extra raise can't hide. */
+    private fun TestScope.recordVisibility(controller: UpdateVeilController): List<Boolean> {
+        val seen = mutableListOf<Boolean>()
+        backgroundScope.launch { controller.visible.collect { seen.add(it) } }
+        return seen
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `veil outlasts content that keeps churning after the pull returns`() = runTest {
+        val screen = FakeScreen()
+        val controller = controllerOn(screen) { true }
+
+        controller.request()
+        runCurrent()
+        // The pull's write lands: content changed, so the veil goes up.
+        screen.churn()
+        runCurrent()
+        assertTrue(controller.visible.value, "veil is up while the screen is still moving")
+
+        // Tiles hydrating one after another, each inside the quiet window.
+        // The old implementation had already wiped off after a flat 500ms.
+        repeat(CHURN_ROUNDS) {
+            advanceTimeBy(timings.quietMs / 2)
+            screen.churn()
+            runCurrent()
+            assertTrue(controller.visible.value, "veil must hold across staged churn")
+        }
+
+        advanceTimeBy(DRAIN_MS)
+        assertFalse(controller.visible.value, "veil lowers once the screen goes quiet")
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `veil waits for artwork to finish loading`() = runTest {
+        val screen = FakeScreen()
+        val controller = controllerOn(screen) { true }
+
+        screen.artLoading(ART_IN_FLIGHT)
+        controller.request()
+        runCurrent()
+        screen.churn()
+        runCurrent()
+        // Well past the quiet window and the floor — but art is still in
+        // flight, so lowering now would show the covers popping in.
+        advanceTimeBy(timings.minHoldMs + timings.quietMs * QUIET_WINDOWS_TO_OUTLAST)
+        assertTrue(controller.visible.value, "veil must wait on in-flight art")
+
+        screen.artLoading(0)
+        advanceTimeBy(DRAIN_MS)
+        assertFalse(controller.visible.value, "veil lowers once art has landed")
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `retries quietly, then veils the churn the successful attempt produces`() = runTest {
+        val screen = FakeScreen()
+        var attempts = 0
+        val controller = controllerOn(screen) {
+            attempts++
+            val succeeded = attempts >= SUCCEED_ON_ATTEMPT // fail twice
+            // Only a pull that worked writes anything.
+            if (succeeded) screen.churn()
+            succeeded
+        }
+        val seen = recordVisibility(controller)
+
+        controller.request()
+        runCurrent()
+        // A failed pull changes nothing, so there is nothing to hide yet —
+        // the retries happen with no veil at all.
+        assertFalse(controller.visible.value, "no veil over a pull that changed nothing")
+
+        advanceTimeBy(DRAIN_MS)
+        assertEquals(SUCCEED_ON_ATTEMPT, attempts, "retries until the pull succeeds")
+        assertEquals(
+            listOf(false, true, false),
+            seen,
+            "the veil went up once, over the churn the retry finally produced",
+        )
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `giving up is silent, reports FAILED, and does not block later requests`() = runTest {
+        val screen = FakeScreen()
+        val results = mutableListOf<VeilSessionResult>()
+        var attempts = 0
+        var succeed = false
+        val controller = controllerOn(screen, onSessionEnd = { results += it }) {
+            attempts++
+            succeed
+        }
+
+        controller.request(userInitiated = true)
+        advanceTimeBy(DRAIN_MS)
+        assertEquals(timings.attempts, attempts, "exhausts its attempts")
+        assertFalse(controller.visible.value, "no veil — a failed pull changed nothing")
+        assertEquals(VeilOutcome.FAILED, results.single().outcome)
+        assertTrue(results.single().userInitiated, "the user asked, so they're owed an answer")
+
+        // Giving up must not latch anything off — the reconnect-driven
+        // recovery still gets to try again later.
+        succeed = true
+        controller.request()
+        advanceTimeBy(DRAIN_MS)
+        assertEquals(timings.attempts + 1, attempts, "a later request still runs")
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `overlapping requests extend one veil instead of racing it`() = runTest {
+        val screen = FakeScreen()
+        var started = 0
+        val controller = controllerOn(screen) {
+            started++
+            delay(WORK_MS)
+            screen.churn()
+            true
+        }
+        val seen = recordVisibility(controller)
+
+        // Reconnect and the rebuild event arriving together is what made the
+        // old Boolean flag clear mid-update: whichever pull finished first
+        // wiped the veil off while the other was still running.
+        controller.request()
+        runCurrent()
+        controller.request()
+        advanceTimeBy(WORK_MS + 1)
+        assertTrue(controller.visible.value, "second trigger extends the same veil")
+
+        advanceTimeBy(DRAIN_MS)
+        assertEquals(2, started, "the mid-session trigger still did its pull")
+        assertEquals(listOf(false, true, false), seen, "one veil session, not two")
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a never-settling screen still releases the veil at the ceiling`() = runTest {
+        val screen = FakeScreen()
+        val controller = controllerOn(screen) {
+            screen.churn()
+            true
+        }
+
+        screen.artLoading(1) // an image that never completes
+        controller.request()
+        advanceTimeBy(timings.maxHoldMs + 1)
+        assertFalse(controller.visible.value, "the hard ceiling must never strand the user")
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `an unchanged refresh never raises the veil and reports UNCHANGED`() = runTest {
+        val screen = FakeScreen()
+        val results = mutableListOf<VeilSessionResult>()
+        // Succeeds without writing anything — the common case on a launch
+        // over a warm cache, where the server returns what's already cached.
+        val controller = controllerOn(screen, onSessionEnd = { results += it }) { true }
+        val seen = recordVisibility(controller)
+
+        controller.request(userInitiated = true)
+        advanceTimeBy(DRAIN_MS)
+
+        assertEquals(listOf(false), seen, "a veil over an unchanged screen would hide nothing")
+        assertEquals(VeilOutcome.UNCHANGED, results.single().outcome)
+        assertTrue(results.single().userInitiated, "so the caller can say 'already up to date'")
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `cached content painting is not mistaken for a change`() = runTest {
+        // Warm cache that hasn't painted yet: the rows arrive a moment after
+        // the session starts. Treating that first paint as churn would veil
+        // every single launch.
+        val screen = FakeScreen(hasContent = false)
+        val controller = controllerOn(screen) { true }
+
+        controller.request()
+        runCurrent()
+        screen.contentAppears()
+        advanceTimeBy(DRAIN_MS)
+
+        assertFalse(controller.visible.value, "first paint is not churn")
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a background trigger coalescing with the user's does not swallow their answer`() =
+        runTest {
+            val screen = FakeScreen()
+            val results = mutableListOf<VeilSessionResult>()
+            val controller = controllerOn(screen, onSessionEnd = { results += it }) { true }
+
+            // Conflation drops the older token, so the "a user asked" bit
+            // cannot ride on it — it's tracked separately for exactly this.
+            controller.request(userInitiated = true)
+            controller.request()
+            advanceTimeBy(DRAIN_MS)
+
+            assertTrue(
+                results.first().userInitiated,
+                "the user's request must not be conflated away",
+            )
+        }
+
+    @Test
+    fun `a cold load runs unveiled and is never reported as already up to date`() = runTest {
+        val screen = FakeScreen()
+        val results = mutableListOf<VeilSessionResult>()
+        var ran = false
+        val controller = controllerOn(
+            screen,
+            shouldVeil = { false }, // empty cache: the skeleton owns this
+            onSessionEnd = { results += it },
+        ) {
+            ran = true
+            true
+        }
+
+        controller.request(userInitiated = true)
+        advanceTimeBy(DRAIN_MS)
+
+        assertTrue(ran, "the refresh still happens")
+        assertFalse(controller.visible.value, "but no veil over a skeleton")
+        // It went from nothing to something — that IS a change.
+        assertEquals(VeilOutcome.CHANGED, results.single().outcome)
+    }
+}

ci-requirements.md

@@ -44,4 +44,64 @@ None.
 - **Go toolchain pin.** `go.mod` is on `go 1.25.0` because `golang.org/x/crypto v0.51.0` declares 1.25 as its minimum. `ci-go:1.26` satisfies this with headroom. Future `x/crypto` bumps that move the Go floor should be paired with an image-tag bump in this file + the workflows.
 - **In-app update channel polling.** `release.yml` polls Gitea's release-asset API for up to 15 min on tag pushes to fetch the APK that `flutter.yml` is concurrently attaching to the same release. The asset eventually appears because `flutter.yml` and `release.yml` run in parallel on the same tag; if the polling times out, the server image ships without the bundled update channel (graceful degradation, not a build failure).
 - **Cache server reachability.** `test-web.yml` does NOT use `cache: 'npm'` on `actions/setup-node` — the Gitea Actions cache server isn't reachable from this runner's container network and `setup-node` was burning ~4m41s on ETIMEDOUT before failing open. With the migration to `ci-go:1.26`, `setup-node` is removed entirely (Node is in the image). The cache concern reappears if a future change re-introduces a network-dependent action.
+- **Artifacts — use the mirrored actions, never `actions/{upload,download}-artifact`.**
+  ```yaml
+  uses: https://git.fabledsword.com/bvandeusen/upload-artifact@cb8afe72b42edc798abfb8fcb556cf660d894245
+  uses: https://git.fabledsword.com/bvandeusen/download-artifact@8d4e9521a5f7e5f8b6351f341f719f9f45a92a3a
+  ```
+  Upstream's `@v4+` cannot work against this instance and no server-side change
+  will help: `isGhes()` rejects any hostname that isn't `github.com` /
+  `*.ghe.com` / `*.localhost` and throws before it opens a connection, so the
+  server is never asked what it supports. `@v3` is worse — it reports success,
+  and Gitea then serves artifacts back only through the v4 API
+  (`content_encoding = application/zip`), so a v3 upload is stored but invisible
+  to every retrieval path. A green job producing nothing retrievable; that is how
+  72 unreachable artifacts accumulated on this repo. Scribe issues 2255 / 2270.
+
+  Both are pull mirrors of the Forgejo project's forks
+  (`code.forgejo.org/forgejo/{upload,download}-artifact`, one commit on upstream
+  disabling that check), mirrored so CI depends on commits we hold and pinned by
+  SHA because the mirrors auto-sync every 8h — a moved upstream tag would
+  otherwise silently change what runs.
+
+  **Match the pins on `@actions/artifact`, not on the actions' own version
+  numbers.** The two actions release on unrelated cadences, so equal version
+  numbers do NOT mean a compatible pair — upload `v5` bundles `@actions/artifact`
+  ^4.0.0 while download `v5` bundles ^2.3.2. The pins above are upload **v5** and
+  download **v6**, which is the pairing that puts ^4.0.0 on both sides. This
+  matters because `release.yml` is a producer/consumer pair — `android-release`
+  uploads `minstrel-apk`, `image-release` downloads it — and a protocol mismatch
+  across it yields an empty listing rather than an error, exactly the silent
+  failure this entry exists to prevent.
+
+  | tag | `@actions/artifact` | runtime |
+  |---|---|---|
+  | upload v4 | ^2.1.1 | node20 |
+  | **upload v5** ← pinned | **^4.0.0** | node20 |
+  | download v4 | ^2.1.1 | node20 |
+  | download v5 | ^2.3.2 | node20 |
+  | **download v6** ← pinned | **^4.0.0** | node20 |
+  | download v7 | ^5.0.0 | **node24** |
+
+  The only true protocol break in this history was **v3 → v4** (upstream:
+  "Downloading artifacts that were created from `actions/upload-artifact@v3` and
+  below are not supported"); v4-and-up are one family. Later majors are mostly
+  ergonomics and runtime — upload v4 forbids re-uploading a name and caps a job
+  at 500 artifacts; download v5 made by-ID extraction match by-name.
+
+  **Do not jump the download pin to v7.** That major is a runner requirement, not
+  a feature change: it moves to `runs.using: node24` and upstream states it
+  "requires a minimum Actions Runner version of 2.327.1 … if you are using
+  self-hosted runners, ensure they are updated before upgrading." act_runner is
+  not GitHub's runner and makes no such version claim, so node24 is unverified
+  here. Everything currently pinned is node20.
+
+  Upload steps set `if-no-files-found: error` rather than the default `warn`, so
+  an upload that matches nothing fails its own job instead of failing the
+  consumer later.
+
+  Retrieval: `GET /api/v1/repos/{owner}/{repo}/actions/runs/{run_id}/artifacts`
+  for the id (global run id, not the repo-scoped run number), then
+  `…/actions/artifacts/{id}/zip`. The workstation has no `unzip` — use
+  `python3 -m zipfile -e`.
 - **Friction asks.** None pending. The two images cover everything Minstrel needs.