fix: debounce distance index rebuild to prevent CPU hot loop

On busy meshes (325K+ transmissions, 50 observers), every ingest poll
triggers a full distance index rebuild (1M+ hop records) because
new observations frequently pick longer paths via pickBestObservation.
With 1-second poll intervals, the rebuild never finishes before the
next one starts, pegging CPU at 100% and starving the HTTP server.

Fix: mark the distance index dirty on path changes but only rebuild
at most every 30 seconds. The initial Load() rebuild still runs
synchronously, and distLast is set afterward to prevent an immediate
re-rebuild on the first ingest cycle.

Discovered on Cascadia Mesh instance (cascadiamesh.org) where the
server was completely unresponsive due to continuous distance index
rebuilds consuming all CPU.

Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

.github/workflows/deploy.yml

@@ -236,7 +236,7 @@ jobs:
   build:
     name: "🏗️ Build Docker Image"
     needs: [e2e-test]
-    runs-on: [self-hosted, Linux]
+    runs-on: [self-hosted, meshcore-vm]
     steps:
       - name: Checkout code
         uses: actions/checkout@v5
@@ -271,7 +271,7 @@ jobs:
     name: "🚀 Deploy Staging"
     if: github.event_name == 'push'
     needs: [build]
-    runs-on: [self-hosted, Linux]
+    runs-on: [self-hosted, meshcore-vm]
     steps:
       - name: Checkout code
         uses: actions/checkout@v5

AGENTS.md

@@ -362,6 +362,12 @@ One logical change per commit. Each commit is deployable. Each commit has its te
 - Tests: `test-{feature}.js` in repo root
 - No build step, no transpilation — write ES2020 for server, ES5/6 for frontend (broad browser support)
 
+### Deep Linking
+All new UI states that a user might want to share or bookmark MUST be reflected in the URL hash.
+This includes: tabs, filters, selected items, view modes. Use query parameters on the hash
+(e.g., `#/packets?observer=ABC&timeRange=24h`) for filter state.
+Existing patterns: `#/nodes/{pubkey}?section=node-neighbors`, `#/analytics?tab=collisions`, `#/packets/{hash}`.
+
 ## What NOT to Do
 - **Don't check in private information** — no names, API keys, tokens, passwords, IP addresses, personal data, or any identifying information. This is a PUBLIC repo.
 - Don't add npm dependencies without asking

cmd/server/advert_pubkey_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,181 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"encoding/json"
+	"fmt"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+// TestAdvertPubkeyTracking verifies that advertPubkeys is maintained
+// incrementally during ingest and eviction, and that GetPerfStoreStats
+// returns the correct count without per-request JSON parsing.
+func TestAdvertPubkeyTracking(t *testing.T) {
+	ps := NewPacketStore(nil, nil)
+	ps.mu.Lock()
+
+	// Helper to create an ADVERT StoreTx with a given pubkey.
+	pt4 := 4
+	mkAdvert := func(id int, pubkey string) *StoreTx {
+		d := map[string]interface{}{"pubKey": pubkey}
+		j, _ := json.Marshal(d)
+		return &StoreTx{
+			ID:          id,
+			Hash:        fmt.Sprintf("hash%d", id),
+			PayloadType: &pt4,
+			DecodedJSON: string(j),
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Add 3 adverts: 2 distinct pubkeys
+	tx1 := mkAdvert(1, "pk_alpha")
+	tx2 := mkAdvert(2, "pk_beta")
+	tx3 := mkAdvert(3, "pk_alpha") // duplicate pubkey
+
+	for _, tx := range []*StoreTx{tx1, tx2, tx3} {
+		ps.packets = append(ps.packets, tx)
+		ps.byHash[tx.Hash] = tx
+		ps.byTxID[tx.ID] = tx
+		ps.byPayloadType[4] = append(ps.byPayloadType[4], tx)
+		ps.trackAdvertPubkey(tx)
+	}
+	ps.mu.Unlock()
+
+	// GetPerfStoreStats should report 2 distinct pubkeys
+	stats := ps.GetPerfStoreStats()
+	indexes := stats["indexes"].(map[string]interface{})
+	got := indexes["advertByObserver"].(int)
+	if got != 2 {
+		t.Errorf("advertByObserver = %d, want 2", got)
+	}
+
+	// GetPerfStoreStatsTyped should agree
+	typed := ps.GetPerfStoreStatsTyped()
+	if typed.Indexes.AdvertByObserver != 2 {
+		t.Errorf("typed AdvertByObserver = %d, want 2", typed.Indexes.AdvertByObserver)
+	}
+
+	// Evict tx3 (pk_alpha duplicate) — count should stay 2
+	ps.mu.Lock()
+	ps.untrackAdvertPubkey(tx3)
+	ps.mu.Unlock()
+
+	stats2 := ps.GetPerfStoreStats()
+	idx2 := stats2["indexes"].(map[string]interface{})
+	if idx2["advertByObserver"].(int) != 2 {
+		t.Errorf("after evicting duplicate: advertByObserver = %d, want 2", idx2["advertByObserver"].(int))
+	}
+
+	// Evict tx1 (last pk_alpha) — count should drop to 1
+	ps.mu.Lock()
+	ps.untrackAdvertPubkey(tx1)
+	ps.mu.Unlock()
+
+	stats3 := ps.GetPerfStoreStats()
+	idx3 := stats3["indexes"].(map[string]interface{})
+	if idx3["advertByObserver"].(int) != 1 {
+		t.Errorf("after evicting last pk_alpha: advertByObserver = %d, want 1", idx3["advertByObserver"].(int))
+	}
+
+	// Evict tx2 (last remaining) — count should be 0
+	ps.mu.Lock()
+	ps.untrackAdvertPubkey(tx2)
+	ps.mu.Unlock()
+
+	stats4 := ps.GetPerfStoreStats()
+	idx4 := stats4["indexes"].(map[string]interface{})
+	if idx4["advertByObserver"].(int) != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("after evicting all: advertByObserver = %d, want 0", idx4["advertByObserver"].(int))
+	}
+}
+
+// TestAdvertPubkeyPublicKeyField tests the "public_key" JSON field variant.
+func TestAdvertPubkeyPublicKeyField(t *testing.T) {
+	ps := NewPacketStore(nil, nil)
+	ps.mu.Lock()
+	pt4 := 4
+	d, _ := json.Marshal(map[string]interface{}{"public_key": "pk_legacy"})
+	tx := &StoreTx{ID: 1, Hash: "h1", PayloadType: &pt4, DecodedJSON: string(d)}
+	ps.trackAdvertPubkey(tx)
+	ps.mu.Unlock()
+
+	stats := ps.GetPerfStoreStats()
+	idx := stats["indexes"].(map[string]interface{})
+	if idx["advertByObserver"].(int) != 1 {
+		t.Errorf("public_key field: advertByObserver = %d, want 1", idx["advertByObserver"].(int))
+	}
+}
+
+// TestAdvertPubkeyNonAdvert ensures non-ADVERT packets don't affect the count.
+func TestAdvertPubkeyNonAdvert(t *testing.T) {
+	ps := NewPacketStore(nil, nil)
+	ps.mu.Lock()
+	pt2 := 2
+	d, _ := json.Marshal(map[string]interface{}{"pubKey": "pk_text"})
+	tx := &StoreTx{ID: 1, Hash: "h1", PayloadType: &pt2, DecodedJSON: string(d)}
+	ps.trackAdvertPubkey(tx)
+	ps.mu.Unlock()
+
+	stats := ps.GetPerfStoreStats()
+	idx := stats["indexes"].(map[string]interface{})
+	if idx["advertByObserver"].(int) != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("non-ADVERT should not be tracked: advertByObserver = %d, want 0", idx["advertByObserver"].(int))
+	}
+}
+
+// BenchmarkGetPerfStoreStats benchmarks the perf stats endpoint with many adverts.
+// Before the fix, this did O(N) JSON unmarshals per call.
+// After the fix, it's O(1) — just len(map).
+func BenchmarkGetPerfStoreStats(b *testing.B) {
+	ps := NewPacketStore(nil, nil)
+	ps.mu.Lock()
+	pt4 := 4
+	for i := 0; i < 5000; i++ {
+		pk := fmt.Sprintf("pk_%04d", i%200) // 200 distinct pubkeys
+		d, _ := json.Marshal(map[string]interface{}{"pubKey": pk})
+		tx := &StoreTx{
+			ID:          i + 1,
+			Hash:        fmt.Sprintf("hash%d", i+1),
+			PayloadType: &pt4,
+			DecodedJSON: string(d),
+		}
+		ps.packets = append(ps.packets, tx)
+		ps.byHash[tx.Hash] = tx
+		ps.byTxID[tx.ID] = tx
+		ps.byPayloadType[4] = append(ps.byPayloadType[4], tx)
+		ps.trackAdvertPubkey(tx)
+	}
+	ps.mu.Unlock()
+
+	b.ResetTimer()
+	for i := 0; i < b.N; i++ {
+		ps.GetPerfStoreStats()
+	}
+}
+
+// BenchmarkGetPerfStoreStatsTyped benchmarks the typed variant.
+func BenchmarkGetPerfStoreStatsTyped(b *testing.B) {
+	ps := NewPacketStore(nil, nil)
+	ps.mu.Lock()
+	pt4 := 4
+	for i := 0; i < 5000; i++ {
+		pk := fmt.Sprintf("pk_%04d", i%200)
+		d, _ := json.Marshal(map[string]interface{}{"pubKey": pk})
+		tx := &StoreTx{
+			ID:          i + 1,
+			Hash:        fmt.Sprintf("hash%d", i+1),
+			PayloadType: &pt4,
+			DecodedJSON: string(d),
+		}
+		ps.packets = append(ps.packets, tx)
+		ps.byHash[tx.Hash] = tx
+		ps.byTxID[tx.ID] = tx
+		ps.byPayloadType[4] = append(ps.byPayloadType[4], tx)
+		ps.trackAdvertPubkey(tx)
+	}
+	ps.mu.Unlock()
+
+	b.ResetTimer()
+	for i := 0; i < b.N; i++ {
+		ps.GetPerfStoreStatsTyped()
+	}
+}

cmd/server/cache_invalidation_test.go

@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ func newTestStore(t *testing.T) *PacketStore {
 		distCache:    make(map[string]*cachedResult),
 		subpathCache: make(map[string]*cachedResult),
 		rfCacheTTL:   15 * time.Second,
+		invCooldown:  10 * time.Second,
 	}
 }
 
@@ -169,3 +170,164 @@ func TestInvalidateCachesFor_NoFlags(t *testing.T) {
 		}
 	}
 }
+
+// TestInvalidationRateLimited verifies that rapid ingest cycles don't clear
+// caches immediately — they accumulate dirty flags during the cooldown period
+// and apply them on the next call after cooldown expires (fixes #533).
+func TestInvalidationRateLimited(t *testing.T) {
+	s := newTestStore(t)
+	s.invCooldown = 100 * time.Millisecond // short cooldown for testing
+
+	// First invalidation should go through immediately
+	populateAllCaches(s)
+	s.invalidateCachesFor(cacheInvalidation{hasNewObservations: true})
+	state := cachePopulated(s)
+	if state["rf"] {
+		t.Error("rf cache should be cleared on first invalidation")
+	}
+	if !state["topo"] {
+		t.Error("topo cache should survive (no path changes)")
+	}
+
+	// Repopulate and call again within cooldown — should NOT clear
+	populateAllCaches(s)
+	s.invalidateCachesFor(cacheInvalidation{hasNewObservations: true})
+	state = cachePopulated(s)
+	if !state["rf"] {
+		t.Error("rf cache should survive during cooldown period")
+	}
+
+	// Wait for cooldown to expire
+	time.Sleep(150 * time.Millisecond)
+
+	// Next call should apply accumulated + current flags
+	populateAllCaches(s)
+	s.invalidateCachesFor(cacheInvalidation{hasNewPaths: true})
+	state = cachePopulated(s)
+	if state["rf"] {
+		t.Error("rf cache should be cleared (pending from cooldown)")
+	}
+	if state["topo"] {
+		t.Error("topo cache should be cleared (current call has hasNewPaths)")
+	}
+	if !state["hash"] {
+		t.Error("hash cache should survive (no transmission changes)")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestInvalidationCooldownAccumulatesFlags verifies that multiple calls during
+// cooldown merge their flags correctly.
+func TestInvalidationCooldownAccumulatesFlags(t *testing.T) {
+	s := newTestStore(t)
+	s.invCooldown = 200 * time.Millisecond
+
+	// Initial invalidation (goes through, starts cooldown)
+	s.invalidateCachesFor(cacheInvalidation{hasNewObservations: true})
+
+	// Several calls during cooldown with different flags
+	s.invalidateCachesFor(cacheInvalidation{hasNewPaths: true})
+	s.invalidateCachesFor(cacheInvalidation{hasNewTransmissions: true})
+	s.invalidateCachesFor(cacheInvalidation{hasChannelData: true})
+
+	// Verify pending has all flags
+	s.cacheMu.Lock()
+	if s.pendingInv == nil {
+		t.Fatal("pendingInv should not be nil during cooldown")
+	}
+	if !s.pendingInv.hasNewPaths || !s.pendingInv.hasNewTransmissions || !s.pendingInv.hasChannelData {
+		t.Error("all flags should be accumulated in pendingInv")
+	}
+	// hasNewObservations was applied immediately, not accumulated
+	if s.pendingInv.hasNewObservations {
+		t.Error("hasNewObservations was already applied, should not be in pending")
+	}
+	s.cacheMu.Unlock()
+
+	// Wait for cooldown, then trigger — all accumulated flags should apply
+	time.Sleep(250 * time.Millisecond)
+	populateAllCaches(s)
+	s.invalidateCachesFor(cacheInvalidation{}) // empty trigger
+	state := cachePopulated(s)
+
+	// Pending had paths, transmissions, channels — all those caches should clear
+	if state["topo"] {
+		t.Error("topo should be cleared (pending hasNewPaths)")
+	}
+	if state["hash"] {
+		t.Error("hash should be cleared (pending hasNewTransmissions)")
+	}
+	if state["chan"] {
+		t.Error("chan should be cleared (pending hasChannelData)")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestEvictionBypassesCooldown verifies eviction always clears immediately.
+func TestEvictionBypassesCooldown(t *testing.T) {
+	s := newTestStore(t)
+	s.invCooldown = 10 * time.Second // long cooldown
+
+	// Start cooldown
+	s.invalidateCachesFor(cacheInvalidation{hasNewObservations: true})
+
+	// Eviction during cooldown should still clear everything
+	populateAllCaches(s)
+	s.invalidateCachesFor(cacheInvalidation{eviction: true})
+	state := cachePopulated(s)
+	for name, has := range state {
+		if has {
+			t.Errorf("%s cache should be cleared on eviction even during cooldown", name)
+		}
+	}
+	// pendingInv should be cleared
+	s.cacheMu.Lock()
+	if s.pendingInv != nil {
+		t.Error("pendingInv should be nil after eviction")
+	}
+	s.cacheMu.Unlock()
+}
+
+// BenchmarkCacheHitDuringIngestion simulates rapid ingestion and verifies
+// that cache hits now occur thanks to rate-limited invalidation.
+func BenchmarkCacheHitDuringIngestion(b *testing.B) {
+	s := &PacketStore{
+		rfCache:      make(map[string]*cachedResult),
+		topoCache:    make(map[string]*cachedResult),
+		hashCache:    make(map[string]*cachedResult),
+		chanCache:    make(map[string]*cachedResult),
+		distCache:    make(map[string]*cachedResult),
+		subpathCache: make(map[string]*cachedResult),
+		rfCacheTTL:   15 * time.Second,
+		invCooldown:  50 * time.Millisecond,
+	}
+
+	// Trigger first invalidation to start cooldown timer
+	s.invalidateCachesFor(cacheInvalidation{hasNewObservations: true})
+
+	var hits, misses int64
+	for i := 0; i < b.N; i++ {
+		// Populate cache (simulates an analytics query filling the cache)
+		s.cacheMu.Lock()
+		s.rfCache["global"] = &cachedResult{
+			data:      map[string]interface{}{"test": true},
+			expiresAt: time.Now().Add(time.Hour),
+		}
+		s.cacheMu.Unlock()
+
+		// Simulate rapid ingest invalidation (should be rate-limited)
+		s.invalidateCachesFor(cacheInvalidation{hasNewObservations: true})
+
+		// Check if cache survived the invalidation
+		s.cacheMu.Lock()
+		if len(s.rfCache) > 0 {
+			hits++
+		} else {
+			misses++
+		}
+		s.cacheMu.Unlock()
+	}
+
+	if hits == 0 {
+		b.Errorf("expected cache hits > 0 with rate-limited invalidation, got 0 hits / %d misses", misses)
+	}
+	b.ReportMetric(float64(hits)/float64(hits+misses)*100, "hit%")
+}

cmd/server/coverage_test.go

@@ -3811,3 +3811,105 @@ func BenchmarkIndexByNode(b *testing.B) {
 		}
 	})
 }
+
+// --- Multi-observer comma-separated filter tests ---
+
+func TestTransmissionsForObserverMultiCSV(t *testing.T) {
+	db := setupTestDB(t)
+	defer db.Close()
+	seedTestData(t, db)
+	store := NewPacketStore(db, nil)
+	store.Load()
+
+	t.Run("comma-separated returns union via index", func(t *testing.T) {
+		result := store.transmissionsForObserver("obs1,obs2", nil)
+		if len(result) == 0 {
+			t.Fatal("expected results for obs1,obs2")
+		}
+		// obs1 has transmissions 1,2,3; obs2 has transmission 1
+		// Union should include all unique transmissions
+		obs1Only := store.transmissionsForObserver("obs1", nil)
+		obs2Only := store.transmissionsForObserver("obs2", nil)
+		if len(result) < len(obs1Only) || len(result) < len(obs2Only) {
+			t.Errorf("union (%d) should be >= each individual set (obs1=%d, obs2=%d)",
+				len(result), len(obs1Only), len(obs2Only))
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("comma-separated with spaces via index", func(t *testing.T) {
+		result := store.transmissionsForObserver("obs1, obs2", nil)
+		if len(result) == 0 {
+			t.Fatal("expected results for 'obs1, obs2' (with space)")
+		}
+		noSpace := store.transmissionsForObserver("obs1,obs2", nil)
+		if len(result) != len(noSpace) {
+			t.Errorf("with-space (%d) should equal no-space (%d)", len(result), len(noSpace))
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("comma-separated returns union via filter path", func(t *testing.T) {
+		allTx := store.packets
+		result := store.transmissionsForObserver("obs1,obs2", allTx)
+		if len(result) == 0 {
+			t.Fatal("expected results for obs1,obs2 via filter path")
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("comma-separated with spaces via filter path", func(t *testing.T) {
+		allTx := store.packets
+		withSpace := store.transmissionsForObserver("obs1, obs2", allTx)
+		noSpace := store.transmissionsForObserver("obs1,obs2", allTx)
+		if len(withSpace) != len(noSpace) {
+			t.Errorf("filter path: with-space (%d) should equal no-space (%d)", len(withSpace), len(noSpace))
+		}
+	})
+}
+
+func TestBuildTransmissionWhereMultiObserver(t *testing.T) {
+	db := setupTestDB(t)
+	defer db.Close()
+	seedTestData(t, db)
+
+	t.Run("comma-separated produces IN clause", func(t *testing.T) {
+		q := PacketQuery{Observer: "obs1,obs2"}
+		where, args := db.buildTransmissionWhere(q)
+		if len(where) != 1 {
+			t.Fatalf("expected 1 WHERE clause, got %d", len(where))
+		}
+		clause := where[0]
+		if !strings.Contains(clause, "IN (?,?)") {
+			t.Errorf("expected IN (?,?) in clause, got: %s", clause)
+		}
+		if len(args) != 2 {
+			t.Fatalf("expected 2 args, got %d", len(args))
+		}
+		if args[0] != "obs1" || args[1] != "obs2" {
+			t.Errorf("expected [obs1, obs2], got %v", args)
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("comma-separated with spaces trims IDs", func(t *testing.T) {
+		q := PacketQuery{Observer: "obs1, obs2"}
+		_, args := db.buildTransmissionWhere(q)
+		if len(args) != 2 {
+			t.Fatalf("expected 2 args, got %d", len(args))
+		}
+		if args[0] != "obs1" || args[1] != "obs2" {
+			t.Errorf("expected trimmed [obs1, obs2], got %v", args)
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("single observer still works", func(t *testing.T) {
+		q := PacketQuery{Observer: "obs1"}
+		where, args := db.buildTransmissionWhere(q)
+		if len(where) != 1 {
+			t.Fatalf("expected 1 WHERE clause, got %d", len(where))
+		}
+		if !strings.Contains(where[0], "IN (?)") {
+			t.Errorf("expected IN (?) for single observer, got: %s", where[0])
+		}
+		if len(args) != 1 || args[0] != "obs1" {
+			t.Errorf("expected [obs1], got %v", args)
+		}
+	})
+}

cmd/server/db.go

@@ -608,12 +608,17 @@ func (db *DB) buildTransmissionWhere(q PacketQuery) ([]string, []interface{}) {
 		args = append(args, "%"+pk+"%")
 	}
 	if q.Observer != "" {
+		ids := strings.Split(q.Observer, ",")
+		placeholders := strings.Repeat("?,", len(ids))
+		placeholders = placeholders[:len(placeholders)-1]
 		if db.isV3 {
-			where = append(where, "EXISTS (SELECT 1 FROM observations oi JOIN observers obi ON obi.rowid = oi.observer_idx WHERE oi.transmission_id = t.id AND obi.id = ?)")
+			where = append(where, "EXISTS (SELECT 1 FROM observations oi JOIN observers obi ON obi.rowid = oi.observer_idx WHERE oi.transmission_id = t.id AND obi.id IN ("+placeholders+"))")
 		} else {
-			where = append(where, "EXISTS (SELECT 1 FROM observations oi WHERE oi.transmission_id = t.id AND oi.observer_id = ?)")
+			where = append(where, "EXISTS (SELECT 1 FROM observations oi WHERE oi.transmission_id = t.id AND oi.observer_id IN ("+placeholders+"))")
+		}
+		for _, id := range ids {
+			args = append(args, strings.TrimSpace(id))
 		}
-		args = append(args, q.Observer)
 	}
 	if q.Region != "" {
 		if db.isV3 {

cmd/server/helpers_test.go

@@ -2,6 +2,8 @@ package main
 
 import (
 	"encoding/json"
+	"fmt"
+	"math/rand"
 	"net/http"
 	"net/http/httptest"
 	"os"
@@ -220,6 +222,44 @@ func TestSortedCopy(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+func TestSortedCopyLarge(t *testing.T) {
+	// Regression: verify correct sort on larger input
+	rng := rand.New(rand.NewSource(42))
+	n := 1000
+	input := make([]float64, n)
+	for i := range input {
+		input[i] = rng.Float64() * 1000
+	}
+	result := sortedCopy(input)
+	if len(result) != n {
+		t.Fatalf("expected %d elements, got %d", n, len(result))
+	}
+	for i := 1; i < len(result); i++ {
+		if result[i] < result[i-1] {
+			t.Fatalf("not sorted at index %d: %v > %v", i, result[i-1], result[i])
+		}
+	}
+	// Original unchanged
+	if input[0] == result[0] && input[1] == result[1] && input[2] == result[2] {
+		// Could be coincidence but very unlikely with random data
+	}
+}
+
+func BenchmarkSortedCopy(b *testing.B) {
+	rng := rand.New(rand.NewSource(42))
+	for _, size := range []int{256, 1000, 10000} {
+		data := make([]float64, size)
+		for i := range data {
+			data[i] = rng.Float64() * 1000
+		}
+		b.Run(fmt.Sprintf("n=%d", size), func(b *testing.B) {
+			for i := 0; i < b.N; i++ {
+				sortedCopy(data)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
 func TestLastN(t *testing.T) {
 	arr := []map[string]interface{}{
 		{"id": 1}, {"id": 2}, {"id": 3}, {"id": 4}, {"id": 5},

cmd/server/obs_dedup_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,134 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"fmt"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+// TestObsDedupCorrectness verifies that the map-based dedup produces correct
+// results: no duplicate observations (same observerID + pathJSON) on a single
+// transmission.
+func TestObsDedupCorrectness(t *testing.T) {
+	tx := &StoreTx{
+		ID:      1,
+		Hash:    "abc123",
+		obsKeys: make(map[string]bool),
+	}
+
+	// Add 5 unique observations
+	for i := 0; i < 5; i++ {
+		obsID := fmt.Sprintf("obs-%d", i)
+		pathJSON := fmt.Sprintf(`["path-%d"]`, i)
+		dk := obsID + "|" + pathJSON
+		if tx.obsKeys[dk] {
+			t.Fatalf("observation %d should not be a duplicate", i)
+		}
+		tx.Observations = append(tx.Observations, &StoreObs{
+			ID:         i,
+			ObserverID: obsID,
+			PathJSON:   pathJSON,
+		})
+		tx.obsKeys[dk] = true
+		tx.ObservationCount++
+	}
+
+	if tx.ObservationCount != 5 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected 5 observations, got %d", tx.ObservationCount)
+	}
+
+	// Try to add duplicates of each — all should be rejected
+	for i := 0; i < 5; i++ {
+		obsID := fmt.Sprintf("obs-%d", i)
+		pathJSON := fmt.Sprintf(`["path-%d"]`, i)
+		dk := obsID + "|" + pathJSON
+		if !tx.obsKeys[dk] {
+			t.Fatalf("observation %d should be detected as duplicate", i)
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Same observer, different path — should NOT be a duplicate
+	dk := "obs-0" + "|" + `["different-path"]`
+	if tx.obsKeys[dk] {
+		t.Fatal("different path should not be a duplicate")
+	}
+
+	// Different observer, same path — should NOT be a duplicate
+	dk = "obs-new" + "|" + `["path-0"]`
+	if tx.obsKeys[dk] {
+		t.Fatal("different observer should not be a duplicate")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestObsDedupNilMapSafety ensures obsKeys lazy init works for pre-existing
+// transmissions that may not have the map initialized.
+func TestObsDedupNilMapSafety(t *testing.T) {
+	tx := &StoreTx{ID: 1, Hash: "abc"}
+	// obsKeys is nil — the lazy init pattern used in IngestNewFromDB/IngestNewObservations
+	if tx.obsKeys == nil {
+		tx.obsKeys = make(map[string]bool)
+	}
+	dk := "obs1|path1"
+	if tx.obsKeys[dk] {
+		t.Fatal("should not be duplicate on empty map")
+	}
+	tx.obsKeys[dk] = true
+	if !tx.obsKeys[dk] {
+		t.Fatal("should be duplicate after insert")
+	}
+}
+
+// BenchmarkObsDedupMap benchmarks the map-based O(1) dedup approach.
+func BenchmarkObsDedupMap(b *testing.B) {
+	for _, obsCount := range []int{10, 50, 100, 500} {
+		b.Run(fmt.Sprintf("obs=%d", obsCount), func(b *testing.B) {
+			// Pre-populate a tx with obsCount observations
+			tx := &StoreTx{
+				ID:      1,
+				obsKeys: make(map[string]bool),
+			}
+			for i := 0; i < obsCount; i++ {
+				obsID := fmt.Sprintf("obs-%d", i)
+				pathJSON := fmt.Sprintf(`["hop-%d"]`, i)
+				dk := obsID + "|" + pathJSON
+				tx.Observations = append(tx.Observations, &StoreObs{
+					ObserverID: obsID,
+					PathJSON:   pathJSON,
+				})
+				tx.obsKeys[dk] = true
+			}
+
+			// Benchmark: check dedup for a new observation (not duplicate)
+			newDK := "new-obs|new-path"
+			b.ResetTimer()
+			for i := 0; i < b.N; i++ {
+				_ = tx.obsKeys[newDK]
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+// BenchmarkObsDedupLinear benchmarks the old O(n) linear scan for comparison.
+func BenchmarkObsDedupLinear(b *testing.B) {
+	for _, obsCount := range []int{10, 50, 100, 500} {
+		b.Run(fmt.Sprintf("obs=%d", obsCount), func(b *testing.B) {
+			tx := &StoreTx{ID: 1}
+			for i := 0; i < obsCount; i++ {
+				tx.Observations = append(tx.Observations, &StoreObs{
+					ObserverID: fmt.Sprintf("obs-%d", i),
+					PathJSON:   fmt.Sprintf(`["hop-%d"]`, i),
+				})
+			}
+
+			newObsID := "new-obs"
+			newPath := "new-path"
+			b.ResetTimer()
+			for i := 0; i < b.N; i++ {
+				for _, existing := range tx.Observations {
+					if existing.ObserverID == newObsID && existing.PathJSON == newPath {
+						break
+					}
+				}
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}

cmd/server/routes.go

@@ -1958,13 +1958,7 @@ func percentile(sorted []float64, p float64) float64 {
 func sortedCopy(arr []float64) []float64 {
 	cp := make([]float64, len(arr))
 	copy(cp, arr)
-	for i := 0; i < len(cp); i++ {
-		for j := i + 1; j < len(cp); j++ {
-			if cp[j] < cp[i] {
-				cp[i], cp[j] = cp[j], cp[i]
-			}
-		}
-	}
+	sort.Float64s(cp)
 	return cp
 }
 

cmd/server/routes_test.go

@@ -3059,11 +3059,11 @@ func TestHashCollisionsWithCollision(t *testing.T) {
 	now := time.Now().UTC()
 	recent := now.Add(-1 * time.Hour).Format(time.RFC3339)
 
-	// Two nodes with same first byte 'CC', no adverts so hash_size=0 (included in all buckets)
+	// Two repeater nodes with same first byte 'CC' and hash_size=1
 	db.conn.Exec(`INSERT INTO nodes (public_key, name, role, lat, lon, last_seen, first_seen, advert_count)
-		VALUES ('CC11223344556677', 'Node1', 'repeater', 37.5, -122.0, ?, '2026-01-01T00:00:00Z', 0)`, recent)
+		VALUES ('CC11223344556677', 'Node1', 'repeater', 37.5, -122.0, ?, '2026-01-01T00:00:00Z', 5)`, recent)
 	db.conn.Exec(`INSERT INTO nodes (public_key, name, role, lat, lon, last_seen, first_seen, advert_count)
-		VALUES ('CC99887766554433', 'Node2', 'repeater', 37.51, -122.01, ?, '2026-01-01T00:00:00Z', 0)`, recent)
+		VALUES ('CC99887766554433', 'Node2', 'repeater', 37.51, -122.01, ?, '2026-01-01T00:00:00Z', 5)`, recent)
 
 	cfg := &Config{Port: 3000}
 	hub := NewHub()
@@ -3072,6 +3072,14 @@ func TestHashCollisionsWithCollision(t *testing.T) {
 	if err := store.Load(); err != nil {
 		t.Fatalf("store.Load failed: %v", err)
 	}
+	// Inject hash_size=1 for both nodes so they appear in the 1-byte bucket
+	store.hashSizeInfoMu.Lock()
+	store.hashSizeInfoCache = map[string]*hashSizeNodeInfo{
+		"CC11223344556677": {HashSize: 1, AllSizes: map[int]bool{1: true}},
+		"CC99887766554433": {HashSize: 1, AllSizes: map[int]bool{1: true}},
+	}
+	store.hashSizeInfoAt = time.Now()
+	store.hashSizeInfoMu.Unlock()
 	srv.store = store
 	router := mux.NewRouter()
 	srv.RegisterRoutes(router)
@@ -3186,3 +3194,86 @@ func TestHashCollisionsMissingCoordinates(t *testing.T) {
 		}
 	}
 }
+
+// TestHashCollisionsOnlyRepeaters verifies that only repeater nodes
+// are included in collision analysis. Companions, rooms, sensors, and
+// hash_size==0 nodes are excluded — per firmware analysis, only repeaters
+// forward packets and appear in path[] arrays. (#441)
+func TestHashCollisionsOnlyRepeaters(t *testing.T) {
+	db := setupTestDB(t)
+
+	// Insert nodes sharing the same 1-byte prefix "AA":
+	//   1. repeater with hash_size=1 → should be counted
+	//   2. repeater with hash_size=0 (unknown) → should be excluded
+	//   3. companion with hash_size=1 → should be excluded
+	//   4. room with hash_size=1 → should be excluded
+	//   5. sensor with hash_size=1 → should be excluded
+	now := time.Now().Format("2006-01-02 15:04:05")
+	db.conn.Exec(`INSERT INTO nodes (public_key, name, role, last_seen) VALUES
+		('aa11223344556677', 'Repeater1', 'repeater', ?),
+		('aa99887766554433', 'UnknownNode', 'repeater', ?),
+		('aadeadbeefcafe01', 'Companion1', 'companion', ?),
+		('aabbcc1122334455', 'Room1', 'room', ?),
+		('aabbcc9988776655', 'Sensor1', 'sensor', ?)`, now, now, now, now, now)
+
+	// We also need a second repeater with hash_size=1 and same prefix to
+	// confirm that genuine collisions ARE still detected.
+	db.conn.Exec(`INSERT INTO nodes (public_key, name, role, last_seen) VALUES
+		('aa00112233445566', 'Repeater2', 'repeater', ?)`, now)
+
+	cfg := &Config{Port: 3000}
+	hub := NewHub()
+	srv := NewServer(db, cfg, hub)
+	store := NewPacketStore(db, nil)
+	store.Load()
+	srv.store = store
+
+	// Inject hash size info directly into the cache
+	store.hashSizeInfoMu.Lock()
+	store.hashSizeInfoCache = map[string]*hashSizeNodeInfo{
+		"aa11223344556677": {HashSize: 1, AllSizes: map[int]bool{1: true}},
+		"aa00112233445566": {HashSize: 1, AllSizes: map[int]bool{1: true}},
+		"aa99887766554433": {HashSize: 0, AllSizes: map[int]bool{}},       // unknown
+		"aadeadbeefcafe01": {HashSize: 1, AllSizes: map[int]bool{1: true}}, // companion
+		"aabbcc1122334455": {HashSize: 1, AllSizes: map[int]bool{1: true}}, // room
+		"aabbcc9988776655": {HashSize: 1, AllSizes: map[int]bool{1: true}}, // sensor
+	}
+	store.hashSizeInfoAt = time.Now()
+	store.hashSizeInfoMu.Unlock()
+
+	result := store.computeHashCollisions("")
+
+	bySize, ok := result["by_size"].(map[string]interface{})
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatal("missing by_size")
+	}
+
+	size1, ok := bySize["1"].(map[string]interface{})
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatal("missing by_size[1]")
+	}
+
+	stats, ok := size1["stats"].(map[string]interface{})
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatal("missing stats")
+	}
+
+	// Only Repeater1 and Repeater2 should be in nodesForByte (hash_size=1, role=repeater).
+	// UnknownNode (hash_size=0), Companion1, Room1, Sensor1 must all be excluded.
+	nodesForByte := stats["nodes_for_byte"]
+	if nodesForByte != 2 {
+		t.Errorf("expected nodes_for_byte=2 (only repeaters with hash_size=1), got %v", nodesForByte)
+	}
+
+	// They share prefix "AA", so there should be exactly 1 collision entry.
+	collisions, ok := size1["collisions"].([]collisionEntry)
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("collisions is not []collisionEntry")
+	}
+	if len(collisions) != 1 {
+		t.Errorf("expected 1 collision entry, got %d", len(collisions))
+	}
+	if len(collisions) == 1 && len(collisions[0].Nodes) != 2 {
+		t.Errorf("expected 2 nodes in collision, got %d", len(collisions[0].Nodes))
+	}
+}

cmd/server/store.go

@@ -43,6 +43,8 @@ type StoreTx struct {
 	// Cached parsed fields (set once, read many)
 	parsedPath []string // cached parsePathJSON result
 	pathParsed bool     // whether parsedPath has been set
+	// Dedup map: "observerID|pathJSON" → true for O(1) duplicate checks
+	obsKeys map[string]bool
 }
 
 // StoreObs is a lean in-memory observation (no duplication of transmission fields).
@@ -88,6 +90,10 @@ type PacketStore struct {
 	collisionCacheTTL time.Duration
 	cacheHits    int64
 	cacheMisses  int64
+	// Rate-limited invalidation (fixes #533: caches cleared faster than hit)
+	lastInvalidated time.Time
+	pendingInv      *cacheInvalidation // accumulated dirty flags during cooldown
+	invCooldown     time.Duration      // minimum time between invalidations
 	// Short-lived cache for QueryGroupedPackets (avoids repeated full sort)
 	groupedCacheMu  sync.Mutex
 	groupedCacheKey string
@@ -111,12 +117,18 @@ type PacketStore struct {
 	// computed during Load() and incrementally updated on ingest.
 	distHops  []distHopRecord
 	distPaths []distPathRecord
+	distDirty bool      // set when paths change; cleared after rebuild
+	distLast  time.Time // last time distance index was rebuilt
 
 	// Cached GetNodeHashSizeInfo result — recomputed at most once every 15s
 	hashSizeInfoMu    sync.Mutex
 	hashSizeInfoCache map[string]*hashSizeNodeInfo
 	hashSizeInfoAt    time.Time
 
+	// Precomputed distinct advert pubkey count (refcounted for eviction correctness).
+	// Updated incrementally during Load/Ingest/Evict — avoids JSON parsing in GetPerfStoreStats.
+	advertPubkeys map[string]int // pubkey → number of advert packets referencing it
+
 	// Eviction config and stats
 	retentionHours float64 // 0 = unlimited
 	maxMemoryMB    int     // 0 = unlimited
@@ -182,7 +194,9 @@ func NewPacketStore(db *DB, cfg *PacketStoreConfig) *PacketStore {
 		subpathCache:  make(map[string]*cachedResult),
 		rfCacheTTL:         15 * time.Second,
 		collisionCacheTTL: 60 * time.Second,
+		invCooldown:       10 * time.Second,
 		spIndex:       make(map[string]int, 4096),
+		advertPubkeys: make(map[string]int),
 	}
 	if cfg != nil {
 		ps.retentionHours = cfg.RetentionHours
@@ -253,6 +267,7 @@ func (s *PacketStore) Load() error {
 				RouteType:   nullIntPtr(routeType),
 				PayloadType: nullIntPtr(payloadType),
 				DecodedJSON: nullStrVal(decodedJSON),
+				obsKeys:     make(map[string]bool),
 			}
 			s.byHash[hashStr] = tx
 			s.packets = append(s.packets, tx)
@@ -262,6 +277,7 @@ func (s *PacketStore) Load() error {
 				pt := *tx.PayloadType
 				s.byPayloadType[pt] = append(s.byPayloadType[pt], tx)
 			}
+			s.trackAdvertPubkey(tx)
 		}
 
 		if obsID.Valid {
@@ -269,15 +285,9 @@ func (s *PacketStore) Load() error {
 			obsIDStr := nullStrVal(observerID)
 			obsPJ := nullStrVal(pathJSON)
 
-			// Dedup: skip if same observer + same path already loaded
-			isDupe := false
-			for _, existing := range tx.Observations {
-				if existing.ObserverID == obsIDStr && existing.PathJSON == obsPJ {
-					isDupe = true
-					break
-				}
-			}
-			if isDupe {
+			// Dedup: skip if same observer + same path already loaded (O(1) map lookup)
+			dk := obsIDStr + "|" + obsPJ
+			if tx.obsKeys[dk] {
 				continue
 			}
 
@@ -295,6 +305,7 @@ func (s *PacketStore) Load() error {
 			}
 
 			tx.Observations = append(tx.Observations, obs)
+			tx.obsKeys[dk] = true
 			tx.ObservationCount++
 			if obs.Timestamp > tx.LatestSeen {
 				tx.LatestSeen = obs.Timestamp
@@ -320,6 +331,7 @@ func (s *PacketStore) Load() error {
 
 	// Precompute distance analytics (hop distances, path totals)
 	s.buildDistanceIndex()
+	s.distLast = time.Now()
 
 	s.loaded = true
 	elapsed := time.Since(t0)
@@ -392,6 +404,52 @@ func (s *PacketStore) indexByNode(tx *StoreTx) {
 	}
 }
 
+// trackAdvertPubkey increments the advertPubkeys refcount for ADVERT packets.
+// Must be called under s.mu write lock.
+func (s *PacketStore) trackAdvertPubkey(tx *StoreTx) {
+	if tx.PayloadType == nil || *tx.PayloadType != 4 || tx.DecodedJSON == "" {
+		return
+	}
+	var d map[string]interface{}
+	if json.Unmarshal([]byte(tx.DecodedJSON), &d) != nil {
+		return
+	}
+	pk := ""
+	if v, ok := d["pubKey"].(string); ok {
+		pk = v
+	} else if v, ok := d["public_key"].(string); ok {
+		pk = v
+	}
+	if pk != "" {
+		s.advertPubkeys[pk]++
+	}
+}
+
+// untrackAdvertPubkey decrements the advertPubkeys refcount for ADVERT packets.
+// Must be called under s.mu write lock.
+func (s *PacketStore) untrackAdvertPubkey(tx *StoreTx) {
+	if tx.PayloadType == nil || *tx.PayloadType != 4 || tx.DecodedJSON == "" {
+		return
+	}
+	var d map[string]interface{}
+	if json.Unmarshal([]byte(tx.DecodedJSON), &d) != nil {
+		return
+	}
+	pk := ""
+	if v, ok := d["pubKey"].(string); ok {
+		pk = v
+	} else if v, ok := d["public_key"].(string); ok {
+		pk = v
+	}
+	if pk != "" {
+		if s.advertPubkeys[pk] <= 1 {
+			delete(s.advertPubkeys, pk)
+		} else {
+			s.advertPubkeys[pk]--
+		}
+	}
+}
+
 // QueryPackets returns filtered, paginated packets from memory.
 func (s *PacketStore) QueryPackets(q PacketQuery) *PacketResult {
 	atomic.AddInt64(&s.queryCount, 1)
@@ -579,30 +637,8 @@ func (s *PacketStore) GetPerfStoreStats() map[string]interface{} {
 	nodeIdx := len(s.byNode)
 	ptIdx := len(s.byPayloadType)
 
-	// Count distinct pubkeys with ADVERT observations (matches Node.js _advertByObserver.size)
-	advertByObsCount := 0
-	if adverts, ok := s.byPayloadType[4]; ok {
-		seen := make(map[string]bool)
-		for _, tx := range adverts {
-			if tx.DecodedJSON == "" {
-				continue
-			}
-			var d map[string]interface{}
-			if json.Unmarshal([]byte(tx.DecodedJSON), &d) != nil {
-				continue
-			}
-			pk := ""
-			if v, ok := d["pubKey"].(string); ok {
-				pk = v
-			} else if v, ok := d["public_key"].(string); ok {
-				pk = v
-			}
-			if pk != "" && !seen[pk] {
-				seen[pk] = true
-				advertByObsCount++
-			}
-		}
-	}
+	// Distinct advert pubkey count — precomputed incrementally (see trackAdvertPubkey).
+	advertByObsCount := len(s.advertPubkeys)
 	s.mu.RUnlock()
 
 	// Realistic estimate: ~5KB per packet + ~500 bytes per observation
@@ -690,15 +726,16 @@ type cacheInvalidation struct {
 }
 
 // invalidateCachesFor selectively clears only the analytics caches affected
-// by the kind of data that changed. This avoids the previous behaviour of
-// wiping every cache on every ingest cycle, which defeated caching under
-// continuous ingestion (issue #375).
+// by the kind of data that changed. To prevent continuous ingestion from
+// defeating caching entirely (issue #533), invalidation is rate-limited:
+// if called within invCooldown of the last invalidation, the flags are
+// accumulated in pendingInv and applied on the next call after cooldown.
 func (s *PacketStore) invalidateCachesFor(inv cacheInvalidation) {
 	s.cacheMu.Lock()
 	defer s.cacheMu.Unlock()
 
+	// Eviction bypasses rate-limiting — data was removed, caches must clear.
 	if inv.eviction {
-		// Eviction can affect any analytics — clear everything
 		s.rfCache = make(map[string]*cachedResult)
 		s.topoCache = make(map[string]*cachedResult)
 		s.hashCache = make(map[string]*cachedResult)
@@ -709,9 +746,40 @@ func (s *PacketStore) invalidateCachesFor(inv cacheInvalidation) {
 		s.channelsCacheMu.Lock()
 		s.channelsCacheRes = nil
 		s.channelsCacheMu.Unlock()
+		s.lastInvalidated = time.Now()
+		s.pendingInv = nil
 		return
 	}
 
+	now := time.Now()
+	if now.Sub(s.lastInvalidated) < s.invCooldown {
+		// Within cooldown — accumulate dirty flags
+		if s.pendingInv == nil {
+			s.pendingInv = &cacheInvalidation{}
+		}
+		s.pendingInv.hasNewObservations = s.pendingInv.hasNewObservations || inv.hasNewObservations
+		s.pendingInv.hasNewPaths = s.pendingInv.hasNewPaths || inv.hasNewPaths
+		s.pendingInv.hasNewTransmissions = s.pendingInv.hasNewTransmissions || inv.hasNewTransmissions
+		s.pendingInv.hasChannelData = s.pendingInv.hasChannelData || inv.hasChannelData
+		return
+	}
+
+	// Cooldown expired — merge any pending flags and apply
+	if s.pendingInv != nil {
+		inv.hasNewObservations = inv.hasNewObservations || s.pendingInv.hasNewObservations
+		inv.hasNewPaths = inv.hasNewPaths || s.pendingInv.hasNewPaths
+		inv.hasNewTransmissions = inv.hasNewTransmissions || s.pendingInv.hasNewTransmissions
+		inv.hasChannelData = inv.hasChannelData || s.pendingInv.hasChannelData
+		s.pendingInv = nil
+	}
+
+	s.applyCacheInvalidation(inv)
+	s.lastInvalidated = now
+}
+
+// applyCacheInvalidation performs the actual cache clearing. Must be called
+// with cacheMu held.
+func (s *PacketStore) applyCacheInvalidation(inv cacheInvalidation) {
 	if inv.hasNewObservations {
 		s.rfCache = make(map[string]*cachedResult)
 	}
@@ -726,7 +794,6 @@ func (s *PacketStore) invalidateCachesFor(inv cacheInvalidation) {
 	}
 	if inv.hasChannelData {
 		s.chanCache = make(map[string]*cachedResult)
-		// Also invalidate the separate channels list cache
 		s.channelsCacheMu.Lock()
 		s.channelsCacheRes = nil
 		s.channelsCacheMu.Unlock()
@@ -742,29 +809,7 @@ func (s *PacketStore) GetPerfStoreStatsTyped() PerfPacketStoreStats {
 	observerIdx := len(s.byObserver)
 	nodeIdx := len(s.byNode)
 
-	advertByObsCount := 0
-	if adverts, ok := s.byPayloadType[4]; ok {
-		seen := make(map[string]bool)
-		for _, tx := range adverts {
-			if tx.DecodedJSON == "" {
-				continue
-			}
-			var d map[string]interface{}
-			if json.Unmarshal([]byte(tx.DecodedJSON), &d) != nil {
-				continue
-			}
-			pk := ""
-			if v, ok := d["pubKey"].(string); ok {
-				pk = v
-			} else if v, ok := d["public_key"].(string); ok {
-				pk = v
-			}
-			if pk != "" && !seen[pk] {
-				seen[pk] = true
-				advertByObsCount++
-			}
-		}
-	}
+	advertByObsCount := len(s.advertPubkeys)
 	s.mu.RUnlock()
 
 	estimatedMB := math.Round(float64(totalLoaded*5120+totalObs*500)/1048576*10) / 10
@@ -779,7 +824,7 @@ func (s *PacketStore) GetPerfStoreStatsTyped() PerfPacketStoreStats {
 		SqliteOnly:        false,
 		MaxPackets:        2386092,
 		EstimatedMB:       estimatedMB,
-		MaxMB:             1024,
+		MaxMB:             s.maxMemoryMB,
 		Indexes: PacketStoreIndexes{
 			ByHash:           hashIdx,
 			ByObserver:       observerIdx,
@@ -1061,6 +1106,7 @@ func (s *PacketStore) IngestNewFromDB(sinceID, limit int) ([]map[string]interfac
 				RouteType:   r.routeType,
 				PayloadType: r.payloadType,
 				DecodedJSON: r.decodedJSON,
+				obsKeys:     make(map[string]bool),
 			}
 			s.byHash[r.hash] = tx
 			s.packets = append(s.packets, tx) // oldest-first; new items go to tail
@@ -1072,6 +1118,7 @@ func (s *PacketStore) IngestNewFromDB(sinceID, limit int) ([]map[string]interfac
 				// so GetChannelMessages reverse iteration stays correct
 				s.byPayloadType[pt] = append(s.byPayloadType[pt], tx)
 			}
+			s.trackAdvertPubkey(tx)
 
 			if _, exists := broadcastTxs[r.txID]; !exists {
 				broadcastTxs[r.txID] = tx
@@ -1081,15 +1128,12 @@ func (s *PacketStore) IngestNewFromDB(sinceID, limit int) ([]map[string]interfac
 
 		if r.obsID != nil {
 			oid := *r.obsID
-			// Dedup
-			isDupe := false
-			for _, existing := range tx.Observations {
-				if existing.ObserverID == r.observerID && existing.PathJSON == r.pathJSON {
-					isDupe = true
-					break
-				}
+			// Dedup (O(1) map lookup)
+			dk := r.observerID + "|" + r.pathJSON
+			if tx.obsKeys == nil {
+				tx.obsKeys = make(map[string]bool)
 			}
-			if isDupe {
+			if tx.obsKeys[dk] {
 				continue
 			}
 
@@ -1106,6 +1150,7 @@ func (s *PacketStore) IngestNewFromDB(sinceID, limit int) ([]map[string]interfac
 				Timestamp:      normalizeTimestamp(r.obsTS),
 			}
 			tx.Observations = append(tx.Observations, obs)
+			tx.obsKeys[dk] = true
 			tx.ObservationCount++
 			if obs.Timestamp > tx.LatestSeen {
 				tx.LatestSeen = obs.Timestamp
@@ -1326,15 +1371,12 @@ func (s *PacketStore) IngestNewObservations(sinceObsID, limit int) []map[string]
 			continue // transmission not yet in store
 		}
 
-		// Dedup by observer + path
-		isDupe := false
-		for _, existing := range tx.Observations {
-			if existing.ObserverID == r.observerID && existing.PathJSON == r.pathJSON {
-				isDupe = true
-				break
-			}
+		// Dedup by observer + path (O(1) map lookup)
+		dk := r.observerID + "|" + r.pathJSON
+		if tx.obsKeys == nil {
+			tx.obsKeys = make(map[string]bool)
 		}
-		if isDupe {
+		if tx.obsKeys[dk] {
 			continue
 		}
 
@@ -1351,6 +1393,7 @@ func (s *PacketStore) IngestNewObservations(sinceObsID, limit int) []map[string]
 			Timestamp:      normalizeTimestamp(r.timestamp),
 		}
 		tx.Observations = append(tx.Observations, obs)
+		tx.obsKeys[dk] = true
 		tx.ObservationCount++
 		if obs.Timestamp > tx.LatestSeen {
 			tx.LatestSeen = obs.Timestamp
@@ -1430,13 +1473,19 @@ func (s *PacketStore) IngestNewObservations(sinceObsID, limit int) []map[string]
 		}
 	}
 
-	// Rebuild distance index if any paths changed (distances depend on path hops)
+	// Mark distance index dirty if any paths changed (rebuild is debounced)
 	for txID, tx := range updatedTxs {
 		if tx.PathJSON != oldPaths[txID] {
-			s.buildDistanceIndex()
+			s.distDirty = true
 			break
 		}
 	}
+	// Rebuild at most every 30s to avoid hot-looping on busy meshes
+	if s.distDirty && time.Since(s.distLast) > 30*time.Second {
+		s.buildDistanceIndex()
+		s.distDirty = false
+		s.distLast = time.Now()
+	}
 
 	if len(updatedTxs) > 0 {
 		// Targeted cache invalidation: new observations always affect RF
@@ -1572,32 +1621,36 @@ func (s *PacketStore) filterPackets(q PacketQuery) []*StoreTx {
 }
 
 // transmissionsForObserver returns unique transmissions for an observer.
-func (s *PacketStore) transmissionsForObserver(observerID string, from []*StoreTx) []*StoreTx {
+func (s *PacketStore) transmissionsForObserver(observerIDs string, from []*StoreTx) []*StoreTx {
+	ids := strings.Split(observerIDs, ",")
+	idSet := make(map[string]bool, len(ids))
+	for i, id := range ids {
+		ids[i] = strings.TrimSpace(id)
+		idSet[ids[i]] = true
+	}
 	if from != nil {
 		return filterTxSlice(from, func(tx *StoreTx) bool {
 			for _, obs := range tx.Observations {
-				if obs.ObserverID == observerID {
+				if idSet[obs.ObserverID] {
 					return true
 				}
 			}
 			return false
 		})
 	}
-	// Use byObserver index
-	observations := s.byObserver[observerID]
-	if len(observations) == 0 {
-		return nil
-	}
-	seen := make(map[int]bool, len(observations))
+	// Use byObserver index: union transmissions for all IDs
+	seen := make(map[int]bool)
 	var result []*StoreTx
-	for _, obs := range observations {
-		if seen[obs.TransmissionID] {
-			continue
-		}
-		seen[obs.TransmissionID] = true
-		tx := s.byTxID[obs.TransmissionID]
-		if tx != nil {
-			result = append(result, tx)
+	for _, id := range ids {
+		for _, obs := range s.byObserver[id] {
+			if seen[obs.TransmissionID] {
+				continue
+			}
+			seen[obs.TransmissionID] = true
+			tx := s.byTxID[obs.TransmissionID]
+			if tx != nil {
+				result = append(result, tx)
+			}
 		}
 	}
 	return result
@@ -1939,6 +1992,7 @@ func (s *PacketStore) EvictStale() int {
 		}
 
 		// Remove from byPayloadType
+		s.untrackAdvertPubkey(tx)
 		if tx.PayloadType != nil {
 			pt := *tx.PayloadType
 			ptList := s.byPayloadType[pt]
@@ -4473,10 +4527,16 @@ func (s *PacketStore) computeHashCollisions(region string) map[string]interface{
 	// Compute collisions for each byte size (1, 2, 3)
 	collisionsBySize := make(map[string]interface{})
 	for _, bytes := range []int{1, 2, 3} {
-		// Filter nodes relevant to this byte size
+		// Filter nodes relevant to this byte size.
+		// - Exclude hash_size==0 nodes: no adverts seen, so actual hash
+		//   size is unknown. Including them in every bucket inflates
+		//   collision counts.
+		// - Exclude companions: they are mobile/temporary and don't form
+		//   the mesh backbone, so collisions with them aren't meaningful.
+		// (Fixes #441)
 		var nodesForByte []collisionNode
 		for _, cn := range allCNodes {
-			if cn.HashSize == bytes || cn.HashSize == 0 {
+			if cn.HashSize == bytes && cn.Role == "repeater" {
 				nodesForByte = append(nodesForByte, cn)
 			}
 		}

public/app.js

@@ -463,6 +463,9 @@ function navigate() {
   currentPage = basePage;
 
   const app = document.getElementById('app');
+  // Pages with fixed-height containers (maps, virtual-scroll, split-panels)
+  const fixedPages = { packets: 1, nodes: 1, map: 1, live: 1, channels: 1, 'audio-lab': 1 };
+  app.classList.toggle('app-fixed', basePage in fixedPages);
   if (pages[basePage]?.init) {
     const t0 = performance.now();
     pages[basePage].init(app, routeParam);

public/compare.js

@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ if (typeof window !== 'undefined') window.comparePacketSets = comparePacketSets;
     packetsB = [];
     currentView = 'summary';
 
-    app.innerHTML = '<div class="compare-page" style="overflow-y:auto;height:calc(100vh - 56px);padding:16px">' +
+    app.innerHTML = '<div class="compare-page" style="padding:16px">' +
       '<div class="page-header" style="display:flex;align-items:center;gap:12px;margin-bottom:16px">' +
         '<a href="#/observers" class="btn-icon" title="Back to Observers" aria-label="Back">\u2190</a>' +
         '<h2 style="margin:0">\uD83D\uDD0D Observer Comparison</h2>' +

public/home.css

@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 /* === CoreScope — home.css === */
 
-/* Override #app overflow:hidden for home page scrolling */
-#app:has(.home-hero), #app:has(.home-chooser) { overflow-y: auto; }
+/* Home page now uses body scroll (no #app override needed — see style.css) */
 
 /* Chooser */
 .home-chooser {

public/hop-resolver.js

@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ window.HopResolver = (function() {
   let nodesList = [];
   let observerIataMap = {}; // observer_id → iata
   let iataCoords = {};  // iata → {lat, lon}
+  let affinityMap = {}; // pubkey → { neighborPubkey → score }
 
   function dist(lat1, lon1, lat2, lon2) {
     return Math.sqrt((lat1 - lat2) ** 2 + (lon1 - lon2) ** 2);
@@ -67,6 +68,34 @@ window.HopResolver = (function() {
     return null; // no GPS — can't geo-filter client-side
   }
 
+  /**
+   * Pick the best candidate using affinity first, then geo-distance fallback.
+   * @param {Array} candidates - candidates with lat/lon/pubkey/name
+   * @param {string|null} adjacentPubkey - pubkey of the previously/next resolved hop
+   * @param {Object|null} anchor - {lat, lon} for geo fallback
+   * @param {number|null} fallbackLat - fallback anchor lat (e.g. observer)
+   * @param {number|null} fallbackLon - fallback anchor lon
+   * @returns {Object} best candidate
+   */
+  function pickByAffinity(candidates, adjacentPubkey, anchor, fallbackLat, fallbackLon) {
+    // If we have affinity data and an adjacent hop, prefer neighbors
+    if (adjacentPubkey && Object.keys(affinityMap).length > 0) {
+      const withAffinity = candidates
+        .map(c => ({ ...c, affinity: getAffinity(adjacentPubkey, c.pubkey) }))
+        .filter(c => c.affinity > 0);
+      if (withAffinity.length > 0) {
+        withAffinity.sort((a, b) => b.affinity - a.affinity);
+        return withAffinity[0];
+      }
+    }
+    // Fallback: geo-distance sort (existing behavior)
+    const effectiveAnchor = anchor || (fallbackLat != null ? { lat: fallbackLat, lon: fallbackLon } : null);
+    if (effectiveAnchor) {
+      candidates.sort((a, b) => dist(a.lat, a.lon, effectiveAnchor.lat, effectiveAnchor.lon) - dist(b.lat, b.lon, effectiveAnchor.lat, effectiveAnchor.lon));
+    }
+    return candidates[0];
+  }
+
   /**
    * Resolve an array of hex hop prefixes to node info.
    * Returns a map: { hop: {name, pubkey, lat, lon, ambiguous, unreliable} }
@@ -139,40 +168,50 @@ window.HopResolver = (function() {
 
     // Forward pass
     let lastPos = (originLat != null && originLon != null) ? { lat: originLat, lon: originLon } : null;
+    let lastResolvedPubkey = null;
     for (let i = 0; i < hops.length; i++) {
       const hop = hops[i];
-      if (hopPositions[hop]) { lastPos = hopPositions[hop]; continue; }
+      if (hopPositions[hop]) {
+        lastPos = hopPositions[hop];
+        lastResolvedPubkey = resolved[hop] ? resolved[hop].pubkey : null;
+        continue;
+      }
       const r = resolved[hop];
       if (!r || !r.ambiguous) continue;
       const withLoc = r.candidates.filter(c => c.lat && c.lon && !(c.lat === 0 && c.lon === 0));
       if (!withLoc.length) continue;
-      let anchor = lastPos;
-      if (!anchor && i === hops.length - 1 && observerLat != null) {
-        anchor = { lat: observerLat, lon: observerLon };
-      }
-      if (anchor) {
-        withLoc.sort((a, b) => dist(a.lat, a.lon, anchor.lat, anchor.lon) - dist(b.lat, b.lon, anchor.lat, anchor.lon));
-      }
-      r.name = withLoc[0].name;
-      r.pubkey = withLoc[0].pubkey;
-      hopPositions[hop] = { lat: withLoc[0].lat, lon: withLoc[0].lon };
+
+      // Affinity-aware: prefer candidates that are neighbors of the previous hop
+      const picked = pickByAffinity(withLoc, lastResolvedPubkey, lastPos, i === hops.length - 1 ? observerLat : null, i === hops.length - 1 ? observerLon : null);
+      r.name = picked.name;
+      r.pubkey = picked.pubkey;
+      hopPositions[hop] = { lat: picked.lat, lon: picked.lon };
       lastPos = hopPositions[hop];
+      lastResolvedPubkey = picked.pubkey;
     }
 
     // Backward pass
     let nextPos = (observerLat != null && observerLon != null) ? { lat: observerLat, lon: observerLon } : null;
+    let nextResolvedPubkey = null;
     for (let i = hops.length - 1; i >= 0; i--) {
       const hop = hops[i];
-      if (hopPositions[hop]) { nextPos = hopPositions[hop]; continue; }
+      if (hopPositions[hop]) {
+        nextPos = hopPositions[hop];
+        nextResolvedPubkey = resolved[hop] ? resolved[hop].pubkey : null;
+        continue;
+      }
       const r = resolved[hop];
       if (!r || !r.ambiguous) continue;
       const withLoc = r.candidates.filter(c => c.lat && c.lon && !(c.lat === 0 && c.lon === 0));
       if (!withLoc.length || !nextPos) continue;
-      withLoc.sort((a, b) => dist(a.lat, a.lon, nextPos.lat, nextPos.lon) - dist(b.lat, b.lon, nextPos.lat, nextPos.lon));
-      r.name = withLoc[0].name;
-      r.pubkey = withLoc[0].pubkey;
-      hopPositions[hop] = { lat: withLoc[0].lat, lon: withLoc[0].lon };
+
+      // Affinity-aware: prefer candidates that are neighbors of the next hop
+      const picked = pickByAffinity(withLoc, nextResolvedPubkey, nextPos, null, null);
+      r.name = picked.name;
+      r.pubkey = picked.pubkey;
+      hopPositions[hop] = { lat: picked.lat, lon: picked.lon };
       nextPos = hopPositions[hop];
+      nextResolvedPubkey = picked.pubkey;
     }
 
     // Sanity check: drop hops impossibly far from neighbors
@@ -203,5 +242,28 @@ window.HopResolver = (function() {
     return nodesList.length > 0;
   }
 
-  return { init: init, resolve: resolve, ready: ready, haversineKm: haversineKm };
+  /**
+   * Load neighbor-graph affinity data.
+   * @param {Object} graph - { edges: [{source, target, score, weight}, ...] }
+   */
+  function setAffinity(graph) {
+    affinityMap = {};
+    if (!graph || !graph.edges) return;
+    for (const e of graph.edges) {
+      if (!affinityMap[e.source]) affinityMap[e.source] = {};
+      affinityMap[e.source][e.target] = e.score || e.weight || 1;
+      if (!affinityMap[e.target]) affinityMap[e.target] = {};
+      affinityMap[e.target][e.source] = e.score || e.weight || 1;
+    }
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Get the affinity score between two pubkeys (0 if not neighbors).
+   */
+  function getAffinity(pubkeyA, pubkeyB) {
+    if (!pubkeyA || !pubkeyB || !affinityMap[pubkeyA]) return 0;
+    return affinityMap[pubkeyA][pubkeyB] || 0;
+  }
+
+  return { init: init, resolve: resolve, ready: ready, haversineKm: haversineKm, setAffinity: setAffinity, getAffinity: getAffinity };
 })();

public/live.js

@@ -43,6 +43,7 @@
     timelineScope: 3600000, // 1h default ms
     timelineTimestamps: [], // historical timestamps from DB for sparkline
     timelineFetchedScope: 0, // last fetched scope to avoid redundant fetches
+    replayGen: 0,            // generation counter — incremented on each replay/rewind to discard stale async results
   };
 
   // ROLE_COLORS loaded from shared roles.js (includes 'unknown')
@@ -116,6 +117,7 @@
 
   function vcrResumeLive() {
     stopReplay();
+    VCR.replayGen++; // invalidate any in-flight async chunk processing
     VCR.playhead = -1;
     VCR.speed = 1;
     VCR.missedCount = 0;
@@ -142,6 +144,8 @@
   function vcrReplayFromTs(targetTs) {
     const fetchFrom = new Date(targetTs).toISOString();
     stopReplay();
+    VCR.replayGen++;
+    var gen = VCR.replayGen;
     vcrSetMode('REPLAY');
 
     // Reload map nodes to match the replay time
@@ -153,7 +157,10 @@
       .then(r => r.json())
       .then(data => {
         const pkts = data.packets || [];
-        const replayEntries = expandToBufferEntries(pkts);
+        return expandToBufferEntriesAsync(pkts);
+      })
+      .then(function(replayEntries) {
+        if (gen !== VCR.replayGen) return; // stale async result — user changed mode
         if (replayEntries.length === 0) {
           vcrSetMode('PAUSED');
           return;
@@ -202,6 +209,8 @@
 
   function vcrRewind(ms) {
     stopReplay();
+    VCR.replayGen++;
+    var gen = VCR.replayGen;
     // Fetch packets from DB for the time window
     const now = Date.now();
     const from = new Date(now - ms).toISOString();
@@ -212,8 +221,11 @@
         // Prepend to buffer (avoid duplicates by ID)
         const existingIds = new Set(VCR.buffer.map(b => b.pkt.id).filter(Boolean));
         const filtered = pkts.filter(p => !existingIds.has(p.id));
-        const newEntries = expandToBufferEntries(filtered);
-        VCR.buffer = [...newEntries, ...VCR.buffer];
+        return expandToBufferEntriesAsync(filtered);
+      })
+      .then(function(newEntries) {
+        if (gen !== VCR.replayGen) return; // stale async result
+        VCR.buffer = [].concat(newEntries, VCR.buffer);
         VCR.playhead = 0;
         VCR.speed = 1;
         vcrSetMode('REPLAY');
@@ -274,15 +286,18 @@
     // Get timestamp of last packet in buffer to fetch the next page
     const last = VCR.buffer[VCR.buffer.length - 1];
     if (!last) return Promise.resolve(false);
+    var gen = VCR.replayGen;
     const since = new Date(last.ts + 1).toISOString(); // +1ms to avoid dupe
     return fetch(`/api/packets?limit=10000&grouped=false&expand=observations&since=${encodeURIComponent(since)}&order=asc`)
       .then(r => r.json())
       .then(data => {
         const pkts = data.packets || [];
         if (pkts.length === 0) return false;
-        const newEntries = expandToBufferEntries(pkts);
-        VCR.buffer = VCR.buffer.concat(newEntries);
-        return true;
+        return expandToBufferEntriesAsync(pkts).then(function(newEntries) {
+          if (gen !== VCR.replayGen) return false; // stale
+          VCR.buffer = VCR.buffer.concat(newEntries);
+          return true;
+        });
       })
       .catch(() => false);
   }
@@ -449,11 +464,53 @@
   }
 
   // Expand a DB packet (with optional observations[]) into VCR buffer entries
+  /**
+   * Process packets into buffer entries in chunks to avoid blocking the main thread.
+   * Returns a Promise that resolves with the entries array.
+   * Each chunk processes CHUNK_SIZE packets, then yields to the event loop via setTimeout(0).
+   */
+  var VCR_CHUNK_SIZE = 200;
+  function expandToBufferEntriesAsync(pkts) {
+    return new Promise(function(resolve) {
+      var entries = [];
+      var i = 0;
+      function processChunk() {
+        var end = Math.min(i + VCR_CHUNK_SIZE, pkts.length);
+        for (; i < end; i++) {
+          var p = pkts[i];
+          if (p.observations && p.observations.length > 0) {
+            for (var j = 0; j < p.observations.length; j++) {
+              var obs = p.observations[j];
+              entries.push({
+                ts: new Date(obs.timestamp || p.timestamp || p.created_at).getTime(),
+                pkt: dbPacketToLive(Object.assign({}, p, obs, { hash: p.hash, raw_hex: p.raw_hex, decoded_json: p.decoded_json }))
+              });
+            }
+          } else {
+            entries.push({
+              ts: new Date(p.timestamp || p.created_at).getTime(),
+              pkt: dbPacketToLive(p)
+            });
+          }
+        }
+        if (i < pkts.length) {
+          setTimeout(processChunk, 0);
+        } else {
+          resolve(entries);
+        }
+      }
+      processChunk();
+    });
+  }
+
+  // Synchronous version kept for small datasets and backward compat (tests)
   function expandToBufferEntries(pkts) {
-    const entries = [];
-    for (const p of pkts) {
+    var entries = [];
+    for (var k = 0; k < pkts.length; k++) {
+      var p = pkts[k];
       if (p.observations && p.observations.length > 0) {
-        for (const obs of p.observations) {
+        for (var j = 0; j < p.observations.length; j++) {
+          var obs = p.observations[j];
           entries.push({
             ts: new Date(obs.timestamp || p.timestamp || p.created_at).getTime(),
             pkt: dbPacketToLive(Object.assign({}, p, obs, { hash: p.hash, raw_hex: p.raw_hex, decoded_json: p.decoded_json }))
@@ -1286,7 +1343,7 @@
         html += `<h4 style="font-size:12px;margin:12px 0 6px;color:var(--text-muted);">Recent Packets</h4>
           <div style="font-size:11px;max-height:200px;overflow-y:auto;">` +
           recent.slice(0, 10).map(p => `<div style="padding:2px 0;display:flex;justify-content:space-between;">
-            <a href="#/packets/${encodeURIComponent(p.hash || '')}" style="color:var(--accent);text-decoration:none;">${escapeHtml(p.payload_type || '?')}${p.observation_count > 1 ? ' <span class="badge badge-obs" style="font-size:9px">👁 ' + p.observation_count + '</span>' : ''}</a>
+            <a href="#/packets/${encodeURIComponent(p.hash || '')}" style="color:var(--accent);text-decoration:none;">${escapeHtml(p.payload_type || '?')}${transportBadge(p.route_type)}${p.observation_count > 1 ? ' <span class="badge badge-obs" style="font-size:9px">👁 ' + p.observation_count + '</span>' : ''}</a>
             <span style="color:var(--text-muted)">${formatLiveTimestampHtml(p.timestamp)}</span>
           </div>`).join('') +
           '</div>';
@@ -1359,9 +1416,29 @@
       const _el2 = document.getElementById('liveNodeCount'); if (_el2) _el2.textContent = Object.keys(nodeMarkers).length;
       // Initialize shared HopResolver with loaded nodes
       if (window.HopResolver) HopResolver.init(list);
+      // Fetch affinity data for hop disambiguation
+      fetchAffinityData();
+      startAffinityRefresh();
     } catch (e) { console.error('Failed to load nodes:', e); }
   }
 
+  let _affinityInterval = null;
+
+  async function fetchAffinityData() {
+    try {
+      const resp = await fetch('/api/analytics/neighbor-graph');
+      const graph = await resp.json();
+      if (window.HopResolver && HopResolver.setAffinity) {
+        HopResolver.setAffinity(graph);
+      }
+    } catch (e) { console.warn('Failed to fetch affinity data:', e); }
+  }
+
+  function startAffinityRefresh() {
+    if (_affinityInterval) clearInterval(_affinityInterval);
+    _affinityInterval = setInterval(fetchAffinityData, 60000);
+  }
+
   function clearNodeMarkers() {
     if (nodesLayer) nodesLayer.clearLayers();
     if (animLayer) animLayer.clearLayers();
@@ -1471,7 +1548,7 @@
       item.innerHTML = `
         <span class="feed-icon" style="color:${color}">${icon}</span>
         <span class="feed-type" style="color:${color}">${typeName}</span>
-        ${hopStr}${obsBadge}
+        ${transportBadge(pkt.route_type)}${hopStr}${obsBadge}
         <span class="feed-text">${escapeHtml(preview)}</span>
         <span class="feed-time">${formatLiveTimestampHtml(group.latestTs || Date.now())}</span>
       `;
@@ -1573,6 +1650,7 @@
           }
           delete nodeMarkers[key];
           delete nodeData[key];
+          delete nodeActivity[key];
           pruned = true;
         }
       } else if (marker && marker._staleDimmed) {
@@ -1588,15 +1666,21 @@
       if (_el2) _el2.textContent = Object.keys(nodeMarkers).length;
       if (window.HopResolver) HopResolver.init(Object.values(nodeData));
     }
+    // Prune orphaned nodeActivity entries (nodes removed above or never tracked)
+    for (var aKey in nodeActivity) {
+      if (!(aKey in nodeData)) delete nodeActivity[aKey];
+    }
   }
 
   // Expose for testing
   window._livePruneStaleNodes = pruneStaleNodes;
   window._liveNodeMarkers = function() { return nodeMarkers; };
   window._liveNodeData = function() { return nodeData; };
+  window._liveNodeActivity = function() { return nodeActivity; };
   window._vcrFormatTime = vcrFormatTime;
   window._liveDbPacketToLive = dbPacketToLive;
   window._liveExpandToBufferEntries = expandToBufferEntries;
+  window._liveExpandToBufferEntriesAsync = expandToBufferEntriesAsync;
   window._liveSEG_MAP = SEG_MAP;
   window._liveBufferPacket = bufferPacket;
   window._liveVCR = function() { return VCR; };
@@ -2406,7 +2490,7 @@
     item.innerHTML = `
       <span class="feed-icon" style="color:${color}">${icon}</span>
       <span class="feed-type" style="color:${color}">${typeName}</span>
-      ${hopStr}${obsBadge}
+      ${transportBadge(pkt.route_type)}${hopStr}${obsBadge}
       <span class="feed-text">${escapeHtml(preview)}</span>
       <span class="feed-time">${formatLiveTimestampHtml(pkt._ts || Date.now())}</span>
     `;
@@ -2474,7 +2558,7 @@
     item.innerHTML = `
       <span class="feed-icon" style="color:${color}">${icon}</span>
       <span class="feed-type" style="color:${color}">${typeName}</span>
-      ${hopStr}${obsBadge}
+      ${transportBadge(pkt.route_type)}${hopStr}${obsBadge}
       <span class="feed-text">${escapeHtml(preview)}</span>
       <span class="feed-time">${formatLiveTimestampHtml(pkt._ts || Date.now())}</span>
     `;
@@ -2552,6 +2636,7 @@
     if (_lcdClockInterval) { clearInterval(_lcdClockInterval); _lcdClockInterval = null; }
     if (_rateCounterInterval) { clearInterval(_rateCounterInterval); _rateCounterInterval = null; }
     if (_pruneInterval) { clearInterval(_pruneInterval); _pruneInterval = null; }
+    if (_affinityInterval) { clearInterval(_affinityInterval); _affinityInterval = null; }
     if (ws) { ws.onclose = null; ws.close(); ws = null; }
     if (map) { map.remove(); map = null; }
     if (_onResize) {
@@ -2584,7 +2669,7 @@
     packetCount = 0; activeAnims = 0;
     nodeActivity = {}; pktTimestamps = [];
     feedDedup.clear();
-    VCR.buffer = []; VCR.playhead = -1; VCR.mode = 'LIVE'; VCR.missedCount = 0; VCR.speed = 1;
+    VCR.buffer = []; VCR.playhead = -1; VCR.mode = 'LIVE'; VCR.missedCount = 0; VCR.speed = 1; VCR.replayGen = 0;
   }
 
   let _themeRefreshHandler = null;

public/node-analytics.js

@@ -51,7 +51,7 @@
     const nodeName = escapeHtml(n.name || n.public_key.slice(0, 12));
 
     container.innerHTML = `
-      <div style="max-width:1000px;margin:0 auto;padding:12px 16px;height:100%;overflow-y:auto">
+      <div style="max-width:1000px;margin:0 auto;padding:12px 16px">
         <div style="margin-bottom:12px">
           <a href="#/nodes/${encodeURIComponent(n.public_key)}" style="color:var(--accent);text-decoration:none;font-size:12px">← Back to ${nodeName}</a>
           <h2 style="margin:4px 0 2px;font-size:18px">📊 ${nodeName} — Analytics</h2>

public/observer-detail.js

@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@
     }
 
     app.innerHTML = `
-      <div class="observer-detail-page" style="overflow-y:auto;height:calc(100vh - 56px);padding:16px">
+      <div class="observer-detail-page" style="padding:16px">
         <div class="page-header" style="display:flex;align-items:center;gap:12px;margin-bottom:16px">
           <a href="#/observers" class="btn-icon" title="Back to Observers" aria-label="Back">←</a>
           <h2 style="margin:0" id="obsTitle">Observer Detail</h2>

public/packet-helpers.js

@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@
  */
 
 window.getParsedPath = function getParsedPath(p) {
-  if (p._parsedPath !== undefined) return p._parsedPath;
+  if (p._parsedPath !== undefined) return p._parsedPath || [];
   var raw = p.path_json;
   if (typeof raw !== 'string') {
     p._parsedPath = Array.isArray(raw) ? raw : [];
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ window.clearParsedCache = function clearParsedCache(p) {
 };
 
 window.getParsedDecoded = function getParsedDecoded(p) {
-  if (p._parsedDecoded !== undefined) return p._parsedDecoded;
+  if (p._parsedDecoded !== undefined) return p._parsedDecoded || {};
   var raw = p.decoded_json;
   if (typeof raw !== 'string') {
     p._parsedDecoded = (raw && typeof raw === 'object') ? raw : {};

public/packets.js

@@ -53,6 +53,7 @@
   let _displayPackets = [];       // filtered packets for current view
   let _displayGrouped = false;    // whether _displayPackets is in grouped mode
   let _rowCounts = [];            // per-entry DOM row counts (1 for flat, 1+children for expanded groups)
+  let _rowCountsDirty = false;    // set when _rowCounts may be stale (e.g. WS added children) (#410)
   let _cumulativeOffsetsCache = null; // cached cumulative offsets, invalidated on _rowCounts change
   let _lastVisibleStart = -1;     // last rendered start index (for dirty checking)
   let _lastVisibleEnd = -1;       // last rendered end index (for dirty checking)
@@ -357,7 +358,7 @@
           if (pktTime && pktTime < cutoff) return false;
         }
         if (filters.type) { const types = filters.type.split(',').map(Number); if (!types.includes(p.payload_type)) return false; }
-        if (filters.observer) { const obsSet = new Set(filters.observer.split(',')); if (!obsSet.has(p.observer_id)) return false; }
+        if (filters.observer) { const obsSet = new Set(filters.observer.split(',')); if (!obsSet.has(p.observer_id) && !(p._children && p._children.some(c => obsSet.has(String(c.observer_id))))) return false; }
         if (filters.hash && p.hash !== filters.hash) return false;
         if (RegionFilter.getRegionParam()) {
           const selectedRegions = RegionFilter.getRegionParam().split(',');
@@ -396,6 +397,9 @@
                 existing._children.unshift(p);
                 if (existing._children.length > 200) existing._children.length = 200;
                 sortGroupChildren(existing);
+                // Invalidate row counts — child count changed, so virtual scroll
+                // heights are stale until next renderTableRows() (#410)
+                _invalidateRowCounts();
               }
             } else {
               // New group
@@ -442,6 +446,7 @@
     clearTimeout(_wsRenderTimer);
     _displayPackets = [];
     _rowCounts = [];
+    _rowCountsDirty = false;
     _cumulativeOffsetsCache = null;
     _observerFilterSet = null;
     _lastVisibleStart = -1;
@@ -488,6 +493,7 @@
       if (regionParam) params.set('region', regionParam);
       if (filters.hash) params.set('hash', filters.hash);
       if (filters.node) params.set('node', filters.node);
+      if (filters.observer) params.set('observer', filters.observer);
       params.set('groupByHash', 'true'); // always fetch grouped
 
       const data = await api('/packets?' + params.toString());
@@ -541,19 +547,22 @@
       // Ambiguous hops are already resolved by HopResolver client-side
       // No need for per-observer server API calls
 
-      // Restore expanded group children
+      // Restore expanded group children (parallel fetch, Map lookup)
       if (groupByHash && expandedHashes.size > 0) {
-        for (const hash of expandedHashes) {
-          const group = packets.find(p => p.hash === hash);
-          if (group) {
-            try {
-              const childData = await api(`/packets?hash=${hash}&limit=20`);
-              group._children = childData.packets || [];
-              sortGroupChildren(group);
-            } catch {}
-          } else {
-            // Group no longer in results — remove from expanded
+        const expandedArr = [...expandedHashes];
+        const results = await Promise.all(expandedArr.map(hash => {
+          const group = hashIndex.get(hash);
+          if (!group) return { hash, group: null, data: null };
+          return api(`/packets?hash=${hash}&limit=20`)
+            .then(data => ({ hash, group, data }))
+            .catch(() => ({ hash, group, data: null }));
+        }));
+        for (const { hash, group, data } of results) {
+          if (!group) {
             expandedHashes.delete(hash);
+          } else if (data) {
+            group._children = data.packets || [];
+            sortGroupChildren(group);
           }
         }
       }
@@ -1006,7 +1015,7 @@
         }
         else if (action === 'select-observation') {
           const parentHash = row.dataset.parentHash;
-          const group = packets.find(p => p.hash === parentHash);
+          const group = hashIndex.get(parentHash);
           const child = group?._children?.find(c => String(c.id) === String(value));
           if (child) {
             const parentData = group._fetchedData;
@@ -1099,8 +1108,8 @@
 
   // Build HTML for a single flat (ungrouped) packet row
   function buildFlatRowHtml(p) {
-    const decoded = getParsedDecoded(p);
-    const pathHops = getParsedPath(p);
+    const decoded = getParsedDecoded(p) || {};
+    const pathHops = getParsedPath(p) || [];
     const region = p.observer_id ? (observerMap.get(p.observer_id)?.iata || '') : '';
     const typeName = payloadTypeName(p.payload_type);
     const typeClass = payloadTypeColor(p.payload_type);
@@ -1122,6 +1131,21 @@
       </tr>`;
   }
 
+  // Mark _rowCounts as stale so renderVisibleRows() recomputes them lazily.
+  // Called when expanded group children change outside renderTableRows() (#410).
+  function _invalidateRowCounts() {
+    _rowCountsDirty = true;
+    _cumulativeOffsetsCache = null;
+  }
+
+  // Recompute _rowCounts from _displayPackets if they've been invalidated.
+  function _refreshRowCountsIfDirty() {
+    if (!_rowCountsDirty || !_displayPackets.length) return;
+    _rowCounts = _displayPackets.map(function(p) { return _getRowCount(p); });
+    _cumulativeOffsetsCache = null;
+    _rowCountsDirty = false;
+  }
+
   // Compute the number of DOM <tr> rows a single entry produces.
   // Used by both row counting and renderVisibleRows to avoid divergence (#424).
   function _getRowCount(p) {
@@ -1160,6 +1184,9 @@
     const scrollContainer = document.getElementById('pktLeft');
     if (!scrollContainer) return;
 
+    // Recompute row counts if they were invalidated (e.g. WS added children) (#410)
+    _refreshRowCountsIfDirty();
+
     // Compute total DOM rows accounting for expanded groups
     const offsets = _cumulativeRowOffsets();
     const totalDomRows = offsets[offsets.length - 1];
@@ -1291,7 +1318,11 @@
     }
     if (filters.observer) {
       const obsIds = new Set(filters.observer.split(','));
-      displayPackets = displayPackets.filter(p => obsIds.has(p.observer_id));
+      displayPackets = displayPackets.filter(p => {
+        if (obsIds.has(p.observer_id)) return true;
+        if (p._children) return p._children.some(c => obsIds.has(String(c.observer_id)));
+        return false;
+      });
     }
 
     // Packet Filter Language
@@ -1312,6 +1343,7 @@
     if (!displayPackets.length) {
       _displayPackets = [];
       _rowCounts = [];
+      _rowCountsDirty = false;
       _cumulativeOffsetsCache = null;
       _observerFilterSet = null;
       _lastVisibleStart = -1;
@@ -1331,6 +1363,7 @@
     _displayGrouped = groupByHash;
     _observerFilterSet = filters.observer ? new Set(filters.observer.split(',')) : null;
     _rowCounts = displayPackets.map(p => _getRowCount(p));
+    _rowCountsDirty = false;
     _cumulativeOffsetsCache = null;
 
     attachVScrollListener();
@@ -1436,8 +1469,8 @@
     const pkt = data.packet;
     const breakdown = data.breakdown || {};
     const ranges = breakdown.ranges || [];
-    const decoded = getParsedDecoded(pkt);
-    const pathHops = getParsedPath(pkt);
+    const decoded = getParsedDecoded(pkt) || {};
+    const pathHops = getParsedPath(pkt) || [];
 
     // Resolve sender GPS — from packet directly, or from known node in DB
     let senderLat = decoded.lat != null ? decoded.lat : (decoded.latitude || null);
@@ -1979,7 +2012,7 @@
       const data = await api(`/packets/${hash}`);
       const pkt = data.packet;
       if (!pkt) return;
-      const group = packets.find(p => p.hash === hash);
+      const group = hashIndex.get(hash);
       if (group && data.observations) {
         group._children = data.observations.map(o => clearParsedCache({...pkt, ...o, _isObservation: true}));
         group._fetchedData = data;
@@ -2039,6 +2072,8 @@
       renderPath,
       _getRowCount,
       _cumulativeRowOffsets,
+      _invalidateRowCounts,
+      _refreshRowCountsIfDirty,
       buildGroupRowHtml,
       buildFlatRowHtml,
     };

public/perf.js

@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
   let interval = null;
 
   async function render(app) {
-    app.innerHTML = '<div id="perfWrapper" style="height:100%;overflow-y:auto;padding:16px 24px;"><h2>⚡ Performance Dashboard</h2><div id="perfContent">Loading...</div></div>';
+    app.innerHTML = '<div id="perfWrapper" style="padding:16px 24px;"><h2>⚡ Performance Dashboard</h2><div id="perfContent">Loading...</div></div>';
     await refresh();
   }
 

public/style.css

@@ -181,7 +181,12 @@ a:focus-visible, button:focus-visible, input:focus-visible, select:focus-visible
 }
 
 /* === Layout === */
-#app { height: calc(100vh - 52px); height: calc(100dvh - 52px); overflow: hidden; }
+/* Default: body-scroll mode — content pushes beyond viewport, iOS status-bar
+   tap-to-scroll works because <body> is the scroll container.  Pages that need
+   a fixed-height container (maps, virtual-scroll, split-panels) add
+   .app-fixed via the router so their children can use height:100%. */
+#app { min-height: calc(100vh - 52px); min-height: calc(100dvh - 52px); }
+#app.app-fixed { height: calc(100vh - 52px); height: calc(100dvh - 52px); min-height: 0; overflow: hidden; }
 
 .split-layout {
   display: flex; height: 100%; overflow: hidden;
@@ -674,7 +679,7 @@ button.ch-item.selected { background: var(--selected-bg); }
 .advert-info { font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5; }
 
 /* === Traces Page === */
-.traces-page { padding: 16px; max-width: var(--trace-max-width, 95vw); margin: 0 auto; overflow-y: auto; height: 100%; }
+.traces-page { padding: 16px; max-width: var(--trace-max-width, 95vw); margin: 0 auto; }
 .trace-search {
   display: flex; gap: 8px; margin-bottom: 20px;
 }
@@ -746,7 +751,7 @@ button.ch-item.selected { background: var(--selected-bg); }
 ::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb:hover { background: var(--text-muted); }
 
 /* === Observers Page === */
-.observers-page { padding: 20px; max-width: 1200px; margin: 0 auto; overflow-y: auto; height: calc(100vh - 56px); }
+.observers-page { padding: 20px; max-width: 1200px; margin: 0 auto; }
 .obs-summary { display: flex; gap: 20px; margin-bottom: 16px; flex-wrap: wrap; }
 .obs-stat { display: flex; align-items: center; gap: 6px; font-size: 14px; color: var(--text-muted); }
 .health-dot { width: 10px; height: 10px; border-radius: 50%; display: inline-block; flex-shrink: 0; }
@@ -947,7 +952,9 @@ button.ch-item.selected { background: var(--selected-bg); }
   .filter-bar { flex-direction: row; flex-wrap: wrap; gap: 4px; }
   .filter-toggle-btn { display: inline-flex !important; }
   .filter-bar > *:not(.filter-toggle-btn):not(.col-toggle-wrap) { display: none; }
-  .filter-bar.filters-expanded > * { display: inline-flex; }
+  /* Must match :not() specificity of the hide rule above, otherwise .filters-expanded loses
+     the specificity battle and filter children stay hidden (see issue #534). */
+  .filter-bar.filters-expanded > *:not(.filter-toggle-btn):not(.col-toggle-wrap) { display: inline-flex; }
   .filter-bar.filters-expanded > .col-toggle-wrap { display: inline-block; }
   .filter-bar.filters-expanded input { width: 100%; }
   .filter-bar.filters-expanded select { width: 100%; }
@@ -1136,7 +1143,7 @@ button.ch-item.ch-item-encrypted .ch-badge { filter: grayscale(0.6); }
 .node-activity-time { color: var(--text-muted); white-space: nowrap; min-width: 70px; font-size: 12px; }
 
 /* Analytics page */
-.analytics-page { padding: 16px 24px; max-width: 1600px; margin: 0 auto; overflow-y: auto; height: 100%; }
+.analytics-page { padding: 16px 24px; max-width: 1600px; margin: 0 auto; }
 .analytics-header { margin-bottom: 20px; }
 .analytics-header h2 { margin: 0 0 4px; }
 .analytics-card { background: var(--card-bg); border: 1px solid var(--border); border-radius: 8px; padding: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px; }

test-e2e-playwright.js

@@ -1573,6 +1573,47 @@ async function run() {
 
   // ─── End affinity debug tests ─────────────────────────────────────────────
 
+  // ─── Mobile filter dropdown tests (#534) ──────────────────────────────────
+
+  await test('Mobile: filter toggle expands filter bar on packets page (#534)', async () => {
+    // Use a mobile viewport
+    await page.setViewportSize({ width: 480, height: 800 });
+    await page.goto(`${BASE}/#/packets`);
+    await page.waitForTimeout(500);
+
+    const filterBar = await page.$('.filter-bar');
+    assert(filterBar, 'Filter bar should exist on packets page');
+
+    // Before clicking toggle, filter inputs should be hidden
+    const toggleBtn = await page.$('.filter-toggle-btn');
+    assert(toggleBtn, 'Filter toggle button should exist on mobile');
+
+    await toggleBtn.click();
+    await page.waitForTimeout(300);
+
+    // After clicking, .filters-expanded should be on the filter bar
+    const expanded = await filterBar.evaluate(el => el.classList.contains('filters-expanded'));
+    assert(expanded, 'Filter bar should have filters-expanded class after toggle');
+
+    // Filter inputs should now be visible
+    const filterInput = await page.$('.filter-bar input');
+    if (filterInput) {
+      const display = await filterInput.evaluate(el => getComputedStyle(el).display);
+      assert(display !== 'none', `Filter input should be visible when expanded, got display: ${display}`);
+    }
+
+    const filterSelect = await page.$('.filter-bar select');
+    if (filterSelect) {
+      const display = await filterSelect.evaluate(el => getComputedStyle(el).display);
+      assert(display !== 'none', `Filter select should be visible when expanded, got display: ${display}`);
+    }
+
+    // Reset viewport
+    await page.setViewportSize({ width: 1280, height: 720 });
+  });
+
+  // ─── End mobile filter tests ──────────────────────────────────────────────
+
   // Extract frontend coverage if instrumented server is running
   try {
     const coverage = await page.evaluate(() => window.__coverage__);

test-frontend-helpers.js

@@ -998,6 +998,56 @@ console.log('\n=== live.js: pruneStaleNodes ===');
     assert.ok(markers['apiNode'], 'API stale node should NOT be removed');
     assert.ok(data['apiNode'], 'API stale node data should NOT be removed');
   });
+
+  test('pruneStaleNodes cleans up nodeActivity for removed nodes', () => {
+    const { ctx } = makeLiveSandbox();
+    const prune = ctx.window._livePruneStaleNodes;
+    const markers = ctx.window._liveNodeMarkers();
+    const data = ctx.window._liveNodeData();
+    const activity = ctx.window._liveNodeActivity();
+
+    // WS-only stale node
+    markers['staleNode'] = { _glowMarker: null };
+    data['staleNode'] = { public_key: 'staleNode', role: 'companion', _liveSeen: Date.now() - 48 * 3600000 };
+    activity['staleNode'] = 5;
+
+    // Active node
+    markers['activeNode'] = { setStyle: function() {}, _glowMarker: null };
+    data['activeNode'] = { public_key: 'activeNode', role: 'companion', _liveSeen: Date.now() };
+    activity['activeNode'] = 3;
+
+    prune();
+
+    assert.ok(!markers['staleNode'], 'stale node marker removed');
+    assert.ok(!data['staleNode'], 'stale node data removed');
+    assert.ok(!activity['staleNode'], 'stale node activity removed');
+    assert.ok(markers['activeNode'], 'active node marker preserved');
+    assert.ok(data['activeNode'], 'active node data preserved');
+    assert.strictEqual(activity['activeNode'], 3, 'active node activity preserved');
+  });
+
+  test('pruneStaleNodes removes orphaned nodeActivity entries', () => {
+    const { ctx } = makeLiveSandbox();
+    const prune = ctx.window._livePruneStaleNodes;
+    const markers = ctx.window._liveNodeMarkers();
+    const data = ctx.window._liveNodeData();
+    const activity = ctx.window._liveNodeActivity();
+
+    // Add an active node
+    markers['existingNode'] = { setStyle: function() {}, _glowMarker: null };
+    data['existingNode'] = { public_key: 'existingNode', role: 'companion', _liveSeen: Date.now() };
+    activity['existingNode'] = 2;
+
+    // Add orphaned activity (no corresponding nodeData)
+    activity['ghostNode'] = 10;
+
+    prune();
+
+    assert.ok(markers['existingNode'], 'existing node preserved');
+    assert.ok(data['existingNode'], 'existing node data preserved');
+    assert.strictEqual(activity['existingNode'], 2, 'existing node activity preserved');
+    assert.ok(!activity['ghostNode'], 'orphaned activity entry removed');
+  });
 }
 
 // ===== live.js: vcrFormatTime respects UTC/local setting =====
@@ -2695,6 +2745,63 @@ console.log('\n=== packets.js: savedTimeWindowMin defaults ===');
       'buildGroupRowHtml should use hoisted _observerFilterSet');
   });
 
+  test('observer filter in grouped mode includes packet when child matches (#537)', () => {
+    // The display filter should keep a grouped packet whose primary observer_id
+    // does NOT match, but one of its _children does.
+    const obsIds = new Set(['OBS_B']);
+    const packets = [
+      { observer_id: 'OBS_A', _children: [{ observer_id: 'OBS_A' }, { observer_id: 'OBS_B' }] },
+      { observer_id: 'OBS_C', _children: [{ observer_id: 'OBS_C' }] },
+    ];
+    const result = packets.filter(p => {
+      if (obsIds.has(p.observer_id)) return true;
+      if (p._children) return p._children.some(c => obsIds.has(String(c.observer_id)));
+      return false;
+    });
+    assert.strictEqual(result.length, 1, 'should keep packet with matching child observer');
+    assert.strictEqual(result[0].observer_id, 'OBS_A');
+  });
+
+  test('observer filter in grouped mode hides packet with no matching observations (#537)', () => {
+    const obsIds = new Set(['OBS_X']);
+    const packets = [
+      { observer_id: 'OBS_A', _children: [{ observer_id: 'OBS_A' }, { observer_id: 'OBS_B' }] },
+    ];
+    const result = packets.filter(p => {
+      if (obsIds.has(p.observer_id)) return true;
+      if (p._children) return p._children.some(c => obsIds.has(String(c.observer_id)));
+      return false;
+    });
+    assert.strictEqual(result.length, 0, 'should hide packet with no matching observers');
+  });
+
+  test('WS observer filter checks children for grouped packets (#537)', () => {
+    const filters = { observer: 'OBS_B' };
+    const obsSet = new Set(filters.observer.split(','));
+    const p = { observer_id: 'OBS_A', _children: [{ observer_id: 'OBS_B' }] };
+    const passes = obsSet.has(p.observer_id) || (p._children && p._children.some(c => obsSet.has(String(c.observer_id))));
+    assert.ok(passes, 'WS filter should pass grouped packet when child matches');
+
+    const p2 = { observer_id: 'OBS_C', _children: [{ observer_id: 'OBS_D' }] };
+    const passes2 = obsSet.has(p2.observer_id) || (p2._children && p2._children.some(c => obsSet.has(String(c.observer_id))));
+    assert.ok(!passes2, 'WS filter should reject grouped packet with no matching observers');
+  });
+
+  test('packets.js display filter checks _children for observer match (#537)', () => {
+    // Verify the actual source code has the children check
+    assert.ok(
+      packetsSource.includes('p._children) return p._children.some(c => obsIds.has(String(c.observer_id))'),
+      'display filter should check _children for observer match'
+    );
+  });
+
+  test('packets.js WS filter checks _children for observer match (#537)', () => {
+    assert.ok(
+      packetsSource.includes('p._children && p._children.some(c => obsSet.has(String(c.observer_id)))'),
+      'WS filter should check _children for observer match'
+    );
+  });
+
   test('buildFlatRowHtml has null-safe decoded_json', () => {
     const flatBuilderMatch = packetsSource.match(/function buildFlatRowHtml[\s\S]*?(?=\n  function )/);
     assert.ok(flatBuilderMatch, 'buildFlatRowHtml should exist');
@@ -4126,7 +4233,17 @@ console.log('\n=== app.js: routeTypeName/payloadTypeName edge cases ===');
     assertJsonEqual(getParsedPath(p), []);
   });
 
+  test('getParsedPath: cached null _parsedPath returns empty array (#538)', () => {
+    const p = { path_json: '["a"]', _parsedPath: null };
+    assertJsonEqual(getParsedPath(p), []);
+  });
+
   // --- getParsedDecoded ---
+  test('getParsedDecoded: cached null _parsedDecoded returns empty object (#538)', () => {
+    const p = { decoded_json: '{"x":1}', _parsedDecoded: null };
+    assertJsonEqual(getParsedDecoded(p), {});
+  });
+
   test('getParsedDecoded: valid JSON object', () => {
     const p = { decoded_json: '{"type":"GRP_TXT","text":"hello"}' };
     const result = getParsedDecoded(p);

test-hop-resolver-affinity.js

@@ -0,0 +1,99 @@
+/**
+ * Unit tests for HopResolver affinity-aware hop resolution.
+ */
+'use strict';
+const fs = require('fs');
+const vm = require('vm');
+
+// Load hop-resolver.js in a sandboxed context
+const code = fs.readFileSync(__dirname + '/public/hop-resolver.js', 'utf8');
+const sandbox = { window: {}, console, Math, Object, Array, Number, Date, Map, Set, parseInt, parseFloat, encodeURIComponent };
+vm.createContext(sandbox);
+vm.runInContext(code, sandbox);
+const HopResolver = sandbox.window.HopResolver;
+
+let passed = 0;
+let failed = 0;
+
+function assert(condition, msg) {
+  if (condition) { passed++; console.log('  ✓ ' + msg); }
+  else { failed++; console.error('  ✗ ' + msg); }
+}
+
+// ── Test nodes ──
+// Two nodes share the same 1-byte prefix "ab"
+const nodeA = { public_key: 'ab1111', name: 'NodeA', lat: 37.0, lon: -122.0 };
+const nodeB = { public_key: 'ab2222', name: 'NodeB', lat: 38.0, lon: -123.0 };
+const nodeC = { public_key: 'cd3333', name: 'NodeC', lat: 37.5, lon: -122.5 };
+
+console.log('\n=== HopResolver Affinity Tests ===\n');
+
+// Test 1: Affinity prefers neighbor candidate over geo-closest
+console.log('Test 1: Affinity prefers neighbor over geo-closest');
+HopResolver.init([nodeA, nodeB, nodeC]);
+HopResolver.setAffinity({
+  edges: [
+    { source: 'cd3333', target: 'ab2222', score: 0.8 }
+    // NodeC is a neighbor of NodeB but NOT NodeA
+  ]
+});
+
+// Resolve hop "ab" after NodeC was resolved — should pick NodeB (neighbor) not NodeA (geo-closer)
+// Origin at NodeC's position so forward pass runs with NodeC as anchor
+const result1 = HopResolver.resolve(['cd33', 'ab'], nodeC.lat, nodeC.lon, null, null, null);
+assert(result1['ab'].name === 'NodeB', 'Should pick NodeB (affinity neighbor of NodeC) — got: ' + result1['ab'].name);
+
+// Test 2: Without affinity, falls back to geo-closest
+console.log('\nTest 2: Cold start (no affinity) falls back to geo-closest');
+HopResolver.init([nodeA, nodeB, nodeC]);
+HopResolver.setAffinity({}); // No edges
+
+// With anchor at NodeC's position, NodeA is closer to NodeC than NodeB
+const result2 = HopResolver.resolve(['cd33', 'ab'], nodeC.lat, nodeC.lon, null, null, null);
+// NodeA (37, -122) is closer to NodeC (37.5, -122.5) than NodeB (38, -123)
+assert(result2['ab'].name === 'NodeA', 'Should pick NodeA (geo-closest) — got: ' + result2['ab'].name);
+
+// Test 3: setAffinity with null/undefined doesn't crash
+console.log('\nTest 3: setAffinity with null/undefined is safe');
+HopResolver.setAffinity(null);
+HopResolver.setAffinity(undefined);
+HopResolver.setAffinity({});
+assert(true, 'No crash on null/undefined/empty affinity');
+
+// Test 4: getAffinity returns correct scores
+console.log('\nTest 4: getAffinity returns correct scores');
+HopResolver.setAffinity({
+  edges: [
+    { source: 'aaa', target: 'bbb', score: 0.95 },
+    { source: 'ccc', target: 'ddd', weight: 5 }
+  ]
+});
+assert(HopResolver.getAffinity('aaa', 'bbb') === 0.95, 'aaa→bbb = 0.95');
+assert(HopResolver.getAffinity('bbb', 'aaa') === 0.95, 'bbb→aaa = 0.95 (bidirectional)');
+assert(HopResolver.getAffinity('ccc', 'ddd') === 5, 'ccc→ddd = 5 (weight fallback)');
+assert(HopResolver.getAffinity('aaa', 'zzz') === 0, 'unknown pair = 0');
+assert(HopResolver.getAffinity(null, 'bbb') === 0, 'null pubkey = 0');
+
+// Test 5: Affinity with multiple neighbors — highest score wins
+console.log('\nTest 5: Highest affinity score wins among neighbors');
+HopResolver.init([nodeA, nodeB, nodeC]);
+HopResolver.setAffinity({
+  edges: [
+    { source: 'cd3333', target: 'ab1111', score: 0.3 },
+    { source: 'cd3333', target: 'ab2222', score: 0.9 }
+  ]
+});
+const result5 = HopResolver.resolve(['cd33', 'ab'], nodeC.lat, nodeC.lon, null, null, null);
+assert(result5['ab'].name === 'NodeB', 'Should pick NodeB (highest affinity 0.9) — got: ' + result5['ab'].name);
+
+// Test 6: Unambiguous hops are not affected by affinity
+console.log('\nTest 6: Unambiguous hops unaffected by affinity');
+const nodeD = { public_key: 'ee4444', name: 'NodeD', lat: 36.0, lon: -121.0 };
+HopResolver.init([nodeA, nodeB, nodeC, nodeD]);
+HopResolver.setAffinity({ edges: [] });
+const result6 = HopResolver.resolve(['ee44'], null, null, null, null, null);
+assert(result6['ee44'].name === 'NodeD', 'Unique prefix resolves directly — got: ' + result6['ee44'].name);
+assert(!result6['ee44'].ambiguous, 'Should not be marked ambiguous');
+
+console.log('\n' + (passed + failed) + ' tests, ' + passed + ' passed, ' + failed + ' failed\n');
+process.exit(failed > 0 ? 1 : 0);

test-live.js

@@ -272,6 +272,48 @@ console.log('\n=== live.js: expandToBufferEntries ===');
   });
 }
 
+// ===== expandToBufferEntriesAsync (chunked, non-blocking) =====
+console.log('\n=== live.js: expandToBufferEntriesAsync ===');
+{
+  // Build a sandbox with packet-helpers loaded so expandToBufferEntries can call dbPacketToLive
+  const ctx = makeSandbox();
+  addLiveGlobals(ctx);
+  loadInCtx(ctx, 'public/roles.js');
+  loadInCtx(ctx, 'public/packet-helpers.js');
+  try { loadInCtx(ctx, 'public/live.js'); } catch (e) {
+    for (const k of Object.keys(ctx.window)) ctx[k] = ctx.window[k];
+  }
+  const expandSync = ctx.window._liveExpandToBufferEntries;
+  const expandAsync = ctx.window._liveExpandToBufferEntriesAsync;
+  assert.ok(expandAsync, '_liveExpandToBufferEntriesAsync must be exposed');
+
+  const pkts = [];
+  for (let i = 0; i < 500; i++) {
+    pkts.push({
+      id: i, hash: 'h' + i, timestamp: new Date(1700000000000 + i * 1000).toISOString(),
+      decoded_json: '{"type":"GRP_TXT"}', path_json: '[]',
+      observations: [
+        { timestamp: new Date(1700000000000 + i * 1000 + 100).toISOString(), snr: 5, observer_name: 'O1' },
+        { timestamp: new Date(1700000000000 + i * 1000 + 200).toISOString(), snr: 8, observer_name: 'O2' },
+      ],
+    });
+  }
+
+  test('sync expand handles 500 packets (1000 entries) correctly', () => {
+    const result = expandSync(pkts);
+    assert.strictEqual(result.length, 1000, '500 packets * 2 observations = 1000 entries');
+    assert.strictEqual(result[0].pkt.hash, 'h0');
+    assert.strictEqual(result[999].pkt.hash, 'h499');
+  });
+
+  test('VCR_CHUNK_SIZE is defined and async function yields via setTimeout', () => {
+    const src = fs.readFileSync(__dirname + '/public/live.js', 'utf8');
+    assert.ok(src.includes('VCR_CHUNK_SIZE'), 'VCR_CHUNK_SIZE constant must exist');
+    assert.ok(src.includes('expandToBufferEntriesAsync'), 'async version must exist');
+    assert.ok(src.includes('setTimeout(processChunk, 0)'), 'must yield via setTimeout between chunks');
+  });
+}
+
 // ===== SEG_MAP (7-segment display) =====
 console.log('\n=== live.js: SEG_MAP ===');
 {
@@ -839,6 +881,17 @@ console.log('\n=== live.js: source-level safety checks ===');
     assert.ok(src.includes('const existingIds = new Set(VCR.buffer.map(b => b.pkt.id)'),
       'vcrRewind should dedup by packet ID');
   });
+
+  test('feed items include transport badge', () => {
+    const count = (src.match(/transportBadge\(pkt\.route_type\)/g) || []).length;
+    assert.ok(count >= 3,
+      `feed rendering should call transportBadge(pkt.route_type) in at least 3 places (found ${count})`);
+  });
+
+  test('node detail recent packets include transport badge', () => {
+    assert.ok(src.includes('transportBadge(p.route_type)'),
+      'node detail recent packets should call transportBadge(p.route_type)');
+  });
 }
 
 // ===== SUMMARY =====

test-packets.js

@@ -757,6 +757,33 @@ console.log('\n=== packets.js: page registration ===');
   });
 }
 
+console.log('\n=== packets.js: _invalidateRowCounts / _refreshRowCountsIfDirty (#410) ===');
+{
+  const ctx = loadPacketsSandbox();
+  const api = ctx._packetsTestAPI;
+
+  test('_invalidateRowCounts and _refreshRowCountsIfDirty are exported', () => {
+    assert(typeof api._invalidateRowCounts === 'function');
+    assert(typeof api._refreshRowCountsIfDirty === 'function');
+  });
+
+  test('_invalidateRowCounts does not throw', () => {
+    api._invalidateRowCounts();
+  });
+
+  test('_refreshRowCountsIfDirty does not throw when no display packets', () => {
+    api._invalidateRowCounts();
+    api._refreshRowCountsIfDirty();
+  });
+
+  test('_cumulativeRowOffsets returns valid offsets after invalidation cycle', () => {
+    // Even with no display packets, should return valid array
+    const offsets = api._cumulativeRowOffsets();
+    assert(Array.isArray(offsets));
+    assert(offsets[0] === 0);
+  });
+}
+
 // ===== SUMMARY =====
 console.log(`\n${'='.repeat(40)}`);
 console.log(`packets.js tests: ${passed} passed, ${failed} failed`);