diff --git a/components/ImagePickerModal.vue b/components/ImagePickerModal.vue
index ca7af6c..2b2c0a2 100644
--- a/components/ImagePickerModal.vue
+++ b/components/ImagePickerModal.vue
@@ -90,7 +90,8 @@
             <article
               v-for="still in visibleStills"
               :key="still.id"
-              class="library-thumb overflow-hidden rounded-2xl border border-white/10 bg-zinc-950"
+              class="library-thumb cursor-pointer overflow-hidden rounded-2xl border border-white/10 bg-zinc-950"
+              @click="pickStill(still)"
             >
               <div class="relative h-28 overflow-hidden bg-zinc-900">
                 <img
@@ -108,7 +109,7 @@
                     type="button"
                     class="rounded-full bg-zinc-950/80 p-1.5 text-amber-100 hover:bg-zinc-900"
                     :title="isRevealed(still.id) ? 'Hide thumbnail' : 'Reveal thumbnail'"
-                    @click="toggleReveal(still.id)"
+                    @click.stop="toggleReveal(still.id)"
                   >
                     <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" class="h-4 w-4">
                       <template v-if="isRevealed(still.id)">
@@ -125,7 +126,7 @@
                     type="button"
                     class="rounded-full bg-amber-400 p-1.5 text-zinc-950 hover:bg-amber-300"
                     title="Use as input"
-                    @click="pickStill(still)"
+                    @click.stop="pickStill(still)"
                   >
                     <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2.5" class="h-4 w-4">
                       <path stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" d="M5 13l4 4L19 7" />
@@ -135,7 +136,7 @@
               </div>
               <div class="flex items-center justify-between gap-2 px-3 py-2">
                 <span class="truncate text-xs text-zinc-400">{{ still.name || still.filename }}</span>
-                <button type="button" class="text-[10px] text-red-300 hover:text-red-200" @click="removeStill(still)">Delete</button>
+                <button type="button" class="text-[10px] text-red-300 hover:text-red-200" @click.stop="removeStill(still)">Delete</button>
               </div>
             </article>
           </div>
@@ -190,6 +191,7 @@ const activeFolderId = ref(props.folderId)
 const tab = ref<'input' | 'output'>('input')
 const revealAll = ref(false)
 const revealedIds = ref<string[]>([])
+const picking = ref(false)
 
 function onKey(event: KeyboardEvent) {
   if (event.key === 'Escape') emit('close')
@@ -266,7 +268,10 @@ async function ingest(file: File) {
   try {
     const result = await $fetch<{ still?: { id: string; filename: string; hideInput?: boolean } }>('/api/library/stills', { method: 'POST', body })
     emit('updated', result)
-    if (result.still?.id) emit('pick', result.still)
+    if (props.stillOnly) {
+      if (result.still?.id) emit('pick', result.still)
+      return
+    }
     emit('select', file, props.hideInputPreview === true, result.still?.id)
   } catch (error: any) {
     emit('error', error?.data?.statusMessage || 'Could not save image')
@@ -287,14 +292,20 @@ function onDrop(event: DragEvent) {
 }
 
 async function pickStill(still: PickerStill) {
-  emit('pick', { id: still.id, filename: still.filename, hideInput: still.hideInput })
-  if (props.stillOnly) return
+  if (picking.value) return
+  picking.value = true
   try {
+    if (props.stillOnly) {
+      emit('pick', { id: still.id, filename: still.filename, hideInput: still.hideInput })
+      return
+    }
     const blob = await $fetch<Blob>(`/api/library/stills/${still.id}`, { responseType: 'blob' })
     const file = new File([blob], still.filename, { type: blob.type || 'image/png' })
     emit('select', file, still.hideInput === true, still.id)
   } catch (error: any) {
     emit('error', error?.data?.statusMessage || 'Could not load that still')
+  } finally {
+    picking.value = false
   }
 }
 
diff --git a/pages/index.vue b/pages/index.vue
index f568b86..d343d10 100644
--- a/pages/index.vue
+++ b/pages/index.vue
@@ -874,7 +874,10 @@
               :autoplay="autoplayEnabled && !awaitingReveal"
               loop
               playsinline
+              preload="metadata"
               @play="onPlayed"
+              @loadedmetadata="onVideoMeta"
+              @durationchange="onVideoMeta"
             />
             <button
               v-if="awaitingReveal && !lockedSave"
@@ -899,6 +902,12 @@
             Generated MP4 appears here
           </div>
           </div>
+          <p v-if="videoUrl && !lockedSave && !videoSeekable" class="mt-3 text-xs text-amber-200/80">
+            Encoding… this file cannot be scrubbed until Comfy finishes writing it.
+          </p>
+          <p v-else-if="playingLastSavedWhileBusy" class="mt-3 text-xs text-zinc-500">
+            Playing the last saved part. The shot still encoding cannot be scrubbed until it saves.
+          </p>
           <div v-if="videoUrl && !lockedSave" class="mt-4 flex flex-wrap gap-3">
             <a
               v-if="!awaitingReveal"
@@ -1648,6 +1657,7 @@ const activeChainPlan = ref<{ label: string; prompt: string; duration: number }[
 const expandedFamilies = ref<Record<string, boolean>>({})
 const elapsedMs = ref(0)
 const videoUrl = ref('')
+const videoSeekable = ref(true)
 const editResultUrl = ref('')
 const editProgress = ref(0)
 const editStatusMessage = ref('Waiting for a still.')
@@ -1800,6 +1810,9 @@ const outputPreviewKind = computed<'video' | 'edit'>(() => {
 const liveElapsedLabel = computed(() => (
   outputProgressKind.value === 'edit' ? editElapsedLabel.value : elapsedLabel.value
 ))
+const playingLastSavedWhileBusy = computed(() => (
+  videoBusy.value && Boolean(videoUrl.value) && !watchingLibrary.value && !lockedSave.value
+))
 const liveStatusMessage = computed(() => (
   outputProgressKind.value === 'edit' ? editStatusMessage.value : statusMessage.value
 ))
@@ -2481,6 +2494,10 @@ watch(withSound, (value) => {
   } catch { /* ignore */ }
 })
 
+watch(videoUrl, () => {
+  videoSeekable.value = true
+})
+
 watch(autoplayEnabled, (value) => {
   try {
     localStorage.setItem('aigen-autoplay', String(value))
@@ -2809,6 +2826,7 @@ function updateClipRefLabel(clip: LibraryClip, index: number, label: string) {
 
 function onPickedPermanence(still: { id: string }) {
   const slot = pickerSlot.value
+  if (slot === 'main' || slot === 'editRef' || typeof slot === 'number') return
   pickerOpen.value = false
   if (typeof slot === 'string' && slot.startsWith('clip:')) {
     const clipId = slot.slice(5)
@@ -3883,6 +3901,16 @@ function onPlayed() {
   awaitingReveal.value = false
 }
 
+function onVideoMeta() {
+  const el = player.value
+  if (!el) {
+    videoSeekable.value = true
+    return
+  }
+  const duration = el.duration
+  videoSeekable.value = Number.isFinite(duration) && duration > 0
+}
+
 function revealAndPlay() {
   awaitingReveal.value = false
   nextTick(() => {
diff --git a/server/api/library/clips/[id]/video.get.ts b/server/api/library/clips/[id]/video.get.ts
index ea64e6a..acb37ec 100644
--- a/server/api/library/clips/[id]/video.get.ts
+++ b/server/api/library/clips/[id]/video.get.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
-import { existsSync, readFileSync } from 'node:fs'
+import { existsSync } from 'node:fs'
+import { sendPathWithRange } from '~/server/utils/httpRange'
 
 export default defineEventHandler((event) => {
   const { owner } = assertLibraryOwner(event)
@@ -9,8 +10,8 @@ export default defineEventHandler((event) => {
   if (!existsSync(path)) {
     throw createError({ statusCode: 404, statusMessage: 'Video file is missing' })
   }
-  setHeader(event, 'Content-Type', 'video/mp4')
-  setHeader(event, 'Content-Disposition', `inline; filename="${safeDownloadName(clipTitle(clip))}.mp4"`)
-  setHeader(event, 'Cache-Control', 'private, no-store')
-  return readFileSync(path)
+  return sendPathWithRange(event, path, 'video/mp4', {
+    'Content-Disposition': `inline; filename="${safeDownloadName(clipTitle(clip))}.mp4"`,
+    'Cache-Control': 'private, max-age=0, must-revalidate'
+  })
 })
diff --git a/server/api/media.get.ts b/server/api/media.get.ts
index 9561ea1..58a001b 100644
--- a/server/api/media.get.ts
+++ b/server/api/media.get.ts
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+import { sendBufferWithRange } from '~/server/utils/httpRange'
+
 export default defineEventHandler(async (event) => {
   const query = getQuery(event)
   const filename = String(query.filename || '')
@@ -12,8 +14,8 @@ export default defineEventHandler(async (event) => {
     throw createError({ statusCode: res.status, statusMessage: 'Failed to fetch video from ComfyUI' })
   }
   const buf = Buffer.from(await res.arrayBuffer())
-  setHeader(event, 'Content-Type', res.headers.get('content-type') || 'video/mp4')
-  setHeader(event, 'Content-Disposition', `inline; filename="${filename}"`)
-  setHeader(event, 'Cache-Control', 'private, max-age=3600')
-  return buf
+  return sendBufferWithRange(event, buf, res.headers.get('content-type') || 'video/mp4', {
+    'Content-Disposition': `inline; filename="${filename}"`,
+    'Cache-Control': 'private, max-age=0, must-revalidate'
+  })
 })
diff --git a/server/plugins/resume-queues.ts b/server/plugins/resume-queues.ts
index 4a92eab..09c0e7c 100644
--- a/server/plugins/resume-queues.ts
+++ b/server/plugins/resume-queues.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import { listPendingJobs } from '~/server/utils/pending'
 import { listOwnersWithQueues, listShotQueues, pendingSegmentCount } from '~/server/utils/shotQueue'
-import { kickStudioQueue, listOwnersWithStudioQueues, listStudioJobs } from '~/server/utils/studioQueue'
+import { isStudioQueuePaused, kickStudioQueue, listOwnersWithStudioQueues, listStudioJobs } from '~/server/utils/studioQueue'
 import { startQueueBurst } from '~/server/utils/videoChain'
 
 export default defineNitroPlugin(() => {
@@ -15,11 +15,12 @@ export default defineNitroPlugin(() => {
     }
   }
   for (const owner of listOwnersWithQueues()) {
+    if (isStudioQueuePaused(owner)) continue
     for (const queue of listShotQueues(owner)) {
       if (claimedQueueIds.has(queue.id)) continue
       if (!queue.autoRun) continue
       if (queue.stopAfterCurrent) continue
-      if (queue.status === 'complete') continue
+      if (queue.status === 'paused' || queue.status === 'complete' || queue.status === 'error') continue
       if (pendingQueueIds.has(queue.id)) continue
       if (!queue.currentClipId || pendingSegmentCount(queue) === 0) continue
       void startQueueBurst(owner, queue.id, 'all').catch(() => null)
diff --git a/server/utils/ffmpeg.ts b/server/utils/ffmpeg.ts
index a300cff..baab1ac 100644
--- a/server/utils/ffmpeg.ts
+++ b/server/utils/ffmpeg.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import { existsSync, writeFileSync, readFileSync, unlinkSync } from 'node:fs'
+import { existsSync, writeFileSync, readFileSync, unlinkSync, statSync, openSync, readSync, closeSync, copyFileSync } from 'node:fs'
 import { dirname, join } from 'node:path'
 import { spawn } from 'node:child_process'
 
@@ -171,6 +171,58 @@ async function probeSize(filePath: string) {
   }
 }
 
+function mp4MoovIsAtStart(filePath: string) {
+  const fd = openSync(filePath, 'r')
+  try {
+    let offset = 0
+    const header = Buffer.alloc(16)
+    for (let i = 0; i < 12; i++) {
+      if (readSync(fd, header, 0, 8, offset) < 8) return false
+      let size = header.readUInt32BE(0)
+      const type = header.toString('ascii', 4, 8)
+      if (size === 1) {
+        if (readSync(fd, header, 8, 8, offset + 8) < 8) return false
+        size = Number(header.readBigUInt64BE(8))
+      }
+      if (!size || size < 8) return false
+      if (type === 'moov') return true
+      if (type === 'mdat') return false
+      offset += size
+    }
+    return false
+  } finally {
+    closeSync(fd)
+  }
+}
+
+export async function remuxFaststart(inputPath: string) {
+  if (!existsSync(inputPath)) return
+  try {
+    if (mp4MoovIsAtStart(inputPath)) return
+  } catch {
+    // Fall through and try a remux anyway.
+  }
+  const tmp = `${inputPath}.faststart.tmp.mp4`
+  try {
+    await runFfmpeg([
+      '-y',
+      '-i', inputPath,
+      '-c', 'copy',
+      '-map', '0',
+      '-movflags', '+faststart',
+      tmp
+    ], 120000)
+    if (!existsSync(tmp) || statSync(tmp).size < 32) {
+      try { unlinkSync(tmp) } catch { /* ignore */ }
+      return
+    }
+    copyFileSync(tmp, inputPath)
+    try { unlinkSync(tmp) } catch { /* ignore */ }
+  } catch {
+    try { unlinkSync(tmp) } catch { /* ignore */ }
+  }
+}
+
 function encodeArgs(outputPath: string, withAudio: boolean) {
   const args = [
     '-c:v', 'libx264',
@@ -271,7 +323,7 @@ export async function concatMp4(part1Path: string, part2Path: string, outputPath
   const listPath = join(dirname(outputPath), 'concat_list.txt')
   writeFileSync(listPath, `file '${concatPath(part1Path)}'\nfile '${concatPath(part2Path)}'\n`)
   try {
-    await runFfmpeg(['-y', '-f', 'concat', '-safe', '0', '-i', listPath, '-c', 'copy', outputPath], 180000)
+    await runFfmpeg(['-y', '-f', 'concat', '-safe', '0', '-i', listPath, '-c', 'copy', '-movflags', '+faststart', outputPath], 180000)
     await assertStitchLength(part1Path, part2Path, outputPath)
   } catch {
     await concatReencode(part1Path, part2Path, outputPath)
diff --git a/server/utils/httpRange.ts b/server/utils/httpRange.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..769db54
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/utils/httpRange.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,69 @@
+import { createReadStream, statSync } from 'node:fs'
+import { createError, getHeader, sendStream, setHeader, setResponseStatus, type H3Event } from 'h3'
+
+function parseBytesRange(header: string | undefined, size: number) {
+  if (!header) return null
+  const match = /^bytes=(\d*)-(\d*)$/i.exec(header.trim())
+  if (!match) return null
+  const startToken = match[1]
+  const endToken = match[2]
+  if (!startToken && !endToken) return { unsatisfiable: true as const, start: 0, end: 0 }
+  let start: number
+  let end: number
+  if (!startToken) {
+    const suffix = Number(endToken)
+    if (!Number.isFinite(suffix) || suffix <= 0) return { unsatisfiable: true as const, start: 0, end: 0 }
+    start = Math.max(0, size - suffix)
+    end = size - 1
+  } else {
+    start = Number(startToken)
+    end = endToken ? Number(endToken) : size - 1
+  }
+  if (!Number.isFinite(start) || !Number.isFinite(end) || start < 0 || start >= size || end < start) {
+    return { unsatisfiable: true as const, start: 0, end: 0 }
+  }
+  return { start, end: Math.min(end, size - 1) }
+}
+
+function applyRangeHeaders(event: H3Event, contentType: string, extraHeaders?: Record<string, string>) {
+  setHeader(event, 'Accept-Ranges', 'bytes')
+  setHeader(event, 'Content-Type', contentType)
+  for (const [key, value] of Object.entries(extraHeaders || {})) {
+    setHeader(event, key, value)
+  }
+}
+
+function rejectUnsatisfiable(event: H3Event, size: number) {
+  setHeader(event, 'Content-Range', `bytes */${size}`)
+  throw createError({ statusCode: 416, statusMessage: 'Range Not Satisfiable' })
+}
+
+export function sendPathWithRange(event: H3Event, path: string, contentType: string, extraHeaders?: Record<string, string>) {
+  const size = statSync(path).size
+  applyRangeHeaders(event, contentType, extraHeaders)
+  const range = parseBytesRange(getHeader(event, 'range'), size)
+  if (!range) {
+    setHeader(event, 'Content-Length', String(size))
+    return sendStream(event, createReadStream(path))
+  }
+  if ('unsatisfiable' in range && range.unsatisfiable) rejectUnsatisfiable(event, size)
+  setResponseStatus(event, 206)
+  setHeader(event, 'Content-Range', `bytes ${range.start}-${range.end}/${size}`)
+  setHeader(event, 'Content-Length', String(range.end - range.start + 1))
+  return sendStream(event, createReadStream(path, { start: range.start, end: range.end }))
+}
+
+export function sendBufferWithRange(event: H3Event, buf: Buffer, contentType: string, extraHeaders?: Record<string, string>) {
+  const size = buf.length
+  applyRangeHeaders(event, contentType, extraHeaders)
+  const range = parseBytesRange(getHeader(event, 'range'), size)
+  if (!range) {
+    setHeader(event, 'Content-Length', String(size))
+    return buf
+  }
+  if ('unsatisfiable' in range && range.unsatisfiable) rejectUnsatisfiable(event, size)
+  setResponseStatus(event, 206)
+  setHeader(event, 'Content-Range', `bytes ${range.start}-${range.end}/${size}`)
+  setHeader(event, 'Content-Length', String(range.end - range.start + 1))
+  return buf.subarray(range.start, range.end + 1)
+}
diff --git a/server/utils/library.ts b/server/utils/library.ts
index aefe879..9a3966a 100644
--- a/server/utils/library.ts
+++ b/server/utils/library.ts
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ import { spawn } from 'node:child_process'
 import { randomBytes, scrypt, timingSafeEqual } from 'node:crypto'
 import { promisify } from 'node:util'
 import type { H3Event } from 'h3'
-import { extractFirstFrame, extractLastFrame } from '~/server/utils/ffmpeg'
+import { extractFirstFrame, extractLastFrame, remuxFaststart } from '~/server/utils/ffmpeg'
 import { normalizePermanenceRefs, type PermanenceRef } from '~/utils/globalLocks'
 
 const scryptAsync = promisify(scrypt)
@@ -1348,6 +1348,7 @@ export async function saveClip(params: {
   mkdirSync(clipDir(params.ownerKey, clip.id), { recursive: true })
   const videoPath = clipVideoPath(params.ownerKey, clip.id)
   writeFileSync(videoPath, params.video)
+  await remuxFaststart(videoPath)
   if (typeof params.duration === 'number' && params.duration > 0) {
     clip.duration = params.duration
   } else {
diff --git a/server/utils/pending.ts b/server/utils/pending.ts
index 6ccaea0..30aa554 100644
--- a/server/utils/pending.ts
+++ b/server/utils/pending.ts
@@ -52,6 +52,7 @@ export interface PendingJob {
   queueId?: string
   queueAutoRun?: boolean
   queueBudget?: number
+  stopAfterCurrent?: boolean
 }
 
 function pendingRoot() {
@@ -140,6 +141,7 @@ export function pendingFromJob(job: Job, overrides: Partial<PendingJob> = {}): P
     queueId: library.queueId,
     queueAutoRun: library.queueAutoRun,
     queueBudget: library.queueBudget,
+    stopAfterCurrent: library.stopAfterCurrent,
     ...overrides
   }
 }
@@ -185,6 +187,7 @@ export function libraryFromPending(pending: PendingJob): NonNullable<Job['librar
     queueId: pending.queueId,
     queueAutoRun: pending.queueAutoRun,
     queueBudget: pending.queueBudget,
+    stopAfterCurrent: pending.stopAfterCurrent,
     globalLocks: pending.globalLocks,
     permanenceRefs: pending.permanenceRefs,
     shotPermanenceRefs: pending.shotPermanenceRefs
@@ -198,6 +201,14 @@ export function writePendingJob(job: PendingJob) {
   renameSync(tmp, pendingPath(job.jobId))
 }
 
+export function patchPendingJob(jobId: string, patch: Partial<PendingJob>) {
+  const existing = readPendingJob(jobId)
+  if (!existing) return null
+  const next = { ...existing, ...patch }
+  writePendingJob(next)
+  return next
+}
+
 export function readPendingJob(jobId: string): PendingJob | null {
   const path = pendingPath(jobId)
   if (!existsSync(path)) return null
diff --git a/server/utils/studioQueue.ts b/server/utils/studioQueue.ts
index 781a8a8..9197101 100644
--- a/server/utils/studioQueue.ts
+++ b/server/utils/studioQueue.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
 import { existsSync, mkdirSync, readdirSync, readFileSync, renameSync, writeFileSync } from 'node:fs'
 import { join } from 'node:path'
 import { getJob, listJobs, type Job } from '~/server/utils/jobs'
+import { listPendingJobs, patchPendingJob, readPendingJob } from '~/server/utils/pending'
+import { getShotQueue } from '~/server/utils/shotQueue'
 import { parseVideoWorkflow, type VideoWorkflowId } from '~/utils/videoModels'
 import type { PermanenceRef } from '~/utils/globalLocks'
 
@@ -181,7 +183,29 @@ export function summarizeStudioJob(job: StudioJob) {
 }
 
 export function videoJobsBusy() {
-  return listJobs().some(job => job.kind !== 'edit' && (job.status === 'queued' || job.status === 'uploading' || job.status === 'running'))
+  if (listJobs().some(job => job.kind !== 'edit' && (job.status === 'queued' || job.status === 'uploading' || job.status === 'running'))) {
+    return true
+  }
+  return listPendingJobs().some(job => Boolean(job.promptId))
+}
+
+export function applyPersistedPauseToJob(job: Job) {
+  const library = job.library
+  if (!library) return false
+  const store = readStore(library.ownerKey)
+  const row = store.jobs.find(item => item.liveJobId === job.id)
+    || (library.queueId ? store.jobs.find(item => item.shotQueueId === library.queueId) : undefined)
+  const queue = library.queueId ? getShotQueue(library.ownerKey, library.queueId) : null
+  const paused = store.paused === true
+    || row?.pauseAfterCurrent === true
+    || row?.pausedByUser === true
+    || queue?.stopAfterCurrent === true
+    || queue?.status === 'paused'
+  if (paused) {
+    library.stopAfterCurrent = true
+    library.queueAutoRun = false
+  }
+  return paused
 }
 
 export async function addStudioJob(params: {
@@ -370,21 +394,42 @@ export function kickStudioQueue() {
   return run
 }
 
-function repairStaleJobs(jobs: StudioJob[]) {
+function pendingAlive(job: StudioJob) {
+  if (job.liveJobId && readPendingJob(job.liveJobId)?.promptId) return true
+  if (!job.shotQueueId) return false
+  return listPendingJobs().some(pending => (
+    pending.ownerKey === job.ownerKey
+    && pending.queueId === job.shotQueueId
+    && Boolean(pending.promptId)
+  ))
+}
+
+function repairStaleJobs(jobs: StudioJob[], paused: boolean) {
   for (const job of jobs) {
     if (job.status !== 'running') continue
     const live = job.liveJobId ? getJob(job.liveJobId) : undefined
     const liveBusy = live && (live.status === 'queued' || live.status === 'uploading' || live.status === 'running')
-    if (liveBusy) continue
+    if (liveBusy || pendingAlive(job)) continue
+    const holdPause = paused || job.pauseAfterCurrent === true || job.pausedByUser === true
     if (job.shotQueueId) {
       job.status = 'held'
       job.liveJobId = undefined
-      job.holdForCutIn = true
-      job.resumeAutoRun = job.payload.queueAutoRun === true || job.resumeAutoRun === true
+      if (holdPause) {
+        job.pausedByUser = true
+        job.pauseAfterCurrent = false
+        job.holdForCutIn = false
+      } else {
+        job.holdForCutIn = true
+        job.resumeAutoRun = job.payload.queueAutoRun === true || job.resumeAutoRun === true
+      }
       job.updatedAt = Date.now()
     } else {
-      job.status = 'complete'
+      job.status = holdPause ? 'held' : 'complete'
       job.liveJobId = undefined
+      if (holdPause) {
+        job.pausedByUser = true
+        job.pauseAfterCurrent = false
+      }
       job.updatedAt = Date.now()
     }
   }
@@ -394,7 +439,7 @@ async function dispatchStudioQueue() {
   if (videoJobsBusy()) return
   for (const owner of listOwnersWithStudioQueues()) {
     const store = await mutateStore(owner, (current) => {
-      repairStaleJobs(current.jobs)
+      repairStaleJobs(current.jobs, current.paused === true)
       const next = pruneDone(current.jobs)
       current.jobs.splice(0, current.jobs.length, ...next)
       return {
@@ -402,12 +447,12 @@ async function dispatchStudioQueue() {
         jobs: current.jobs.map(item => structuredClone(item))
       }
     })
+    if (store.paused) return
     const cutIn = pickCutIn(store.jobs)
     if (cutIn) {
       await startStudioJob(cutIn)
       return
     }
-    if (store.paused) return
     const held = pickHeld(store.jobs)
     if (held?.shotQueueId) {
       await resumeHeldStudioJob(held)
@@ -606,7 +651,9 @@ export async function onLiveVideoSettled(job: Job) {
     : 0
   const failed = job.status === 'error' || job.status === 'cancelled'
   const snapshot = readStore(owner)
-  const rowNow = snapshot.jobs.find(item => item.liveJobId === job.id) || snapshot.jobs.find(item => item.status === 'running')
+  const rowNow = snapshot.jobs.find(item => item.liveJobId === job.id)
+    || snapshot.jobs.find(item => item.status === 'running' && item.shotQueueId && item.shotQueueId === job.library?.queueId)
+    || snapshot.jobs.find(item => item.status === 'running' && !job.library?.queueId)
   const userPause = !failed && (
     rowNow?.pauseAfterCurrent === true
     || (snapshot.paused && !rowNow?.holdForCutIn)
@@ -674,6 +721,10 @@ function applyLiveJobPause(live: Job | undefined, pause: boolean, restoreAutoRun
   live.library.stopAfterCurrent = pause
   if (pause) live.library.queueAutoRun = false
   else if (restoreAutoRun) live.library.queueAutoRun = true
+  patchPendingJob(live.id, {
+    stopAfterCurrent: pause,
+    queueAutoRun: live.library.queueAutoRun
+  })
 }
 
 export async function toggleStudioQueuePause(owner: string, options: {
@@ -754,10 +805,16 @@ export async function toggleStudioQueuePause(owner: string, options: {
     }
   })
 
+  const queueId = updated.job?.shotQueueId || options.queueId
   if (updated.job?.liveJobId) {
     applyLiveJobPause(getJob(updated.job.liveJobId), true)
+    patchPendingJob(updated.job.liveJobId, { stopAfterCurrent: true, queueAutoRun: false })
+  }
+  for (const pending of listPendingJobs()) {
+    if (pending.ownerKey !== owner) continue
+    if (queueId && pending.queueId && pending.queueId !== queueId) continue
+    patchPendingJob(pending.jobId, { stopAfterCurrent: true, queueAutoRun: false })
   }
-  const queueId = updated.job?.shotQueueId || options.queueId
   const queued = queueId ? getShotQueue(owner, queueId) : null
   if (updated.job && queued?.autoRun) {
     await patchStudioJob(owner, updated.job.id, (job) => {
diff --git a/server/utils/videoChain.ts b/server/utils/videoChain.ts
index 3b1c0b5..d2f1cdb 100644
--- a/server/utils/videoChain.ts
+++ b/server/utils/videoChain.ts
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ import { isLtxWorkflow, isTextToVideo, parseVideoWorkflow, workflowForExtension,
 import { clipVideoPath, clipTitle, deleteRetryDraft, extendTempDir, getClip, nextClipPartName, removeExtendTemp, stillPath } from '~/server/utils/library'
 import { extractLastFrame, probeHasAudio } from '~/server/utils/ffmpeg'
 import { ensureComfyReady } from '~/server/utils/comfyLifecycle'
-import { onLiveVideoSettled, onStudioQueueBurstStarted } from '~/server/utils/studioQueue'
+import { onLiveVideoSettled, onStudioQueueBurstStarted, isStudioQueuePaused } from '~/server/utils/studioQueue'
 import {
   finishQueueBurst,
   getShotQueue,
@@ -238,6 +238,17 @@ function seedCurrentVideo(job: Job) {
   return { tmpDir, currentPath, part1Path: join(tmpDir, 'part1.mp4'), framePath: join(tmpDir, 'last_frame.png') }
 }
 
+function chainShouldHold(job: Job) {
+  if (!job.library) return false
+  if (job.library.stopAfterCurrent) return true
+  if (isStudioQueuePaused(job.library.ownerKey)) return true
+  const queue = job.library.queueId
+    ? getShotQueue(job.library.ownerKey, job.library.queueId)
+    : null
+  if (queue?.stopAfterCurrent || queue?.status === 'paused') return true
+  return false
+}
+
 export async function continueQueuedExtensions(
   job: Job,
   params: VideoChainParams,
@@ -269,14 +280,22 @@ export async function continueQueuedExtensions(
     for (let i = startFrom; i < extensions.length; i++) {
       if (shotsLeft <= 0) break
       assertJobActive(job)
-      if (job.library.stopAfterCurrent) break
+      if (chainShouldHold(job)) {
+        job.library.stopAfterCurrent = true
+        break
+      }
 
       const liveQueue = job.library.queueId
         ? getShotQueue(job.library.ownerKey, job.library.queueId)
         : null
-      if (liveQueue?.stopAfterCurrent) job.library.stopAfterCurrent = true
-      if (liveQueue?.autoRun === false) job.library.queueAutoRun = false
-      if (job.library.stopAfterCurrent) break
+      if (liveQueue?.stopAfterCurrent || liveQueue?.autoRun === false) {
+        if (liveQueue.stopAfterCurrent) job.library.stopAfterCurrent = true
+        if (liveQueue.autoRun === false) job.library.queueAutoRun = false
+      }
+      if (chainShouldHold(job)) {
+        job.library.stopAfterCurrent = true
+        break
+      }
       const live = liveQueue ? liveSegmentPrompt(liveQueue, i) : extensions[i]
       const ext = {
         prompt: live.prompt || extensions[i].prompt,
@@ -289,10 +308,7 @@ export async function continueQueuedExtensions(
       emitChainJob(job, { type: 'status', message: 'Waiting 3s buffer...', progress: 1 })
       await sleep(3000)
       assertJobActive(job)
-      const pausedQueue = job.library.queueId
-        ? getShotQueue(job.library.ownerKey, job.library.queueId)
-        : null
-      if (job.library.stopAfterCurrent || pausedQueue?.stopAfterCurrent) {
+      if (chainShouldHold(job)) {
         job.library.stopAfterCurrent = true
         break
       }
@@ -376,7 +392,10 @@ export async function continueQueuedExtensions(
         job.library.extendPart1Path = undefined
       }
 
-      if (shotsLeft <= 0 || job.library.stopAfterCurrent) break
+      if (shotsLeft <= 0 || chainShouldHold(job)) {
+        if (chainShouldHold(job)) job.library.stopAfterCurrent = true
+        break
+      }
     }
   } finally {
     if (job.library) job.library.chainContinuing = false
@@ -398,7 +417,10 @@ export async function continueQueuedExtensions(
 export async function continueQueuedExtensionsIfNeeded(job: Job) {
   if (!job.library) return
   if (job.status === 'error' || job.status === 'cancelled' || job.status === 'complete') return
-  if (job.library.stopAfterCurrent) return
+  if (chainShouldHold(job)) {
+    job.library.stopAfterCurrent = true
+    return
+  }
   const remaining = remainingAfterCurrentShot(job.library)
   if (!remaining.length) return
   const queue = job.library.queueId
@@ -440,10 +462,7 @@ export async function runGeneration(job: Job, params: VideoChainParams) {
       persist: extensions.length === 0 || !autoRun
     })
 
-    const stopNow = job.library?.stopAfterCurrent === true
-      || (job.library?.queueId
-        ? getShotQueue(job.library.ownerKey, job.library.queueId)?.stopAfterCurrent === true
-        : false)
+    const stopNow = chainShouldHold(job)
     const keepGoing = Boolean(autoRun && !stopNow && extensions.length && job.library)
     if (job.library?.queueId && !keepGoing) {
       await finishQueueBurst(job.library.ownerKey, job.library.queueId, true).catch(() => null)
diff --git a/server/utils/watch.ts b/server/utils/watch.ts
index cda5172..111093e 100644
--- a/server/utils/watch.ts
+++ b/server/utils/watch.ts
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ import { getJob, restoreJob } from '~/server/utils/jobs'
 import type { PendingJob } from '~/server/utils/pending'
 import { isLastChainShot, libraryFromPending, pendingFromJob, remainingAfterCurrentShot, writePendingJob, deletePendingJob } from '~/server/utils/pending'
 import { syncQueueFromJob } from '~/server/utils/shotQueue'
+import { isEncodingNode, NODE_LABELS } from '~/server/utils/workflow'
 import { mergePermanenceRefs, type PermanenceRef } from '~/utils/globalLocks'
 
 function clipRefsFromJob(library: NonNullable<Job['library']>): PermanenceRef[] | undefined {
@@ -52,6 +53,9 @@ export function mapChainProgress(job: Job, localPct: number) {
 export function formatChainMessage(job: Job, message: string, samplePct?: number) {
   const { chained, step, total, label } = chainMeta(job)
   if (!chained) return message
+  if (/checkpoint saved|segment saved/i.test(message)) {
+    return `Shot ${step}/${total} saved`
+  }
   if (typeof samplePct === 'number') {
     return `Step ${step}/${total}: Generating ${label} (${samplePct}%)`
   }
@@ -78,6 +82,13 @@ export function emitChainJob(job: Job, event: JobEvent, samplePct?: number) {
   emitJob(job, next)
 }
 
+function isNonSamplerProgress(node: string) {
+  if (!node) return false
+  if (isEncodingNode(node)) return true
+  const label = NODE_LABELS[node] || ''
+  return /save|checkpoint|video combine|vhs/i.test(label) && !/sampler/i.test(label)
+}
+
 export function watchComfyJob(job: Job, options: { persist?: boolean } = {}): Promise<void> {
   const persist = options.persist !== false
   job.socketReady = false
@@ -350,6 +361,11 @@ export function watchComfyJob(job: Job, options: { persist?: boolean } = {}): Pr
       if (job.promptId && data.prompt_id && data.prompt_id !== job.promptId) return
 
       if (payload.type === 'progress') {
+        const node = data.node ? String(data.node) : ''
+        if (isNonSamplerProgress(node)) {
+          markActivity()
+          return
+        }
         const value = Number(data.value || 0)
         const max = Number(data.max || 1)
         const pct = 12 + Math.round((value / Math.max(max, 1)) * 70)
@@ -360,7 +376,7 @@ export function watchComfyJob(job: Job, options: { persist?: boolean } = {}): Pr
           step: value,
           maxStep: max,
           progress: pct,
-          node: data.node ? String(data.node) : null,
+          node: node || null,
           message: `Sampling step ${value}/${max} (${samplePct}%)`
         }, samplePct)
       }
@@ -424,20 +440,41 @@ export function ensurePendingWatch(pending: PendingJob) {
     pendingWatches.add(job.id)
     const resume = async () => {
       try {
+        const { applyPersistedPauseToJob, onLiveVideoSettled } = await import('~/server/utils/studioQueue')
+        applyPersistedPauseToJob(job)
+        const holdNow = () => job.library?.stopAfterCurrent === true
         if (pending.promptId) {
-          await watchComfyJob(job, { persist: lastShot })
+          await watchComfyJob(job, { persist: lastShot || holdNow() })
+        }
+        applyPersistedPauseToJob(job)
+        if (job.status === 'error' || job.status === 'cancelled') {
+          await onLiveVideoSettled(job)
+          return
+        }
+        if (holdNow()) {
+          await onLiveVideoSettled(job)
+          return
+        }
+        if (job.status === 'complete') {
+          await onLiveVideoSettled(job)
+          return
         }
-        if (job.status === 'error' || job.status === 'cancelled' || job.status === 'complete') return
         if (!lastShot) {
           const { continueQueuedExtensionsIfNeeded } = await import('~/server/utils/videoChain')
           await continueQueuedExtensionsIfNeeded(job)
         }
+        applyPersistedPauseToJob(job)
+        if (job.status === 'error' || job.status === 'cancelled' || job.status === 'complete' || holdNow()) {
+          await onLiveVideoSettled(job)
+        }
       } catch (error) {
         const message = error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error)
         if (job.status === 'error' || job.status === 'cancelled') return
         job.status = 'error'
         job.error = message
         emitChainJob(job, { type: 'error', error: message, message })
+        const { onLiveVideoSettled } = await import('~/server/utils/studioQueue')
+        await onLiveVideoSettled(job).catch(() => null)
       } finally {
         pendingWatches.delete(job.id)
       }