diff --git a/server/src/crdt_state.rs b/server/src/crdt_state.rs
index 317ab5eb..0a9ac38a 100644
--- a/server/src/crdt_state.rs
+++ b/server/src/crdt_state.rs
@@ -78,6 +78,7 @@ static ALL_OPS: OnceLock<Mutex<Vec<String>>> = OnceLock::new();
 #[derive(Clone, CrdtNode, Debug)]
 pub struct PipelineDoc {
     pub items: ListCrdt<PipelineItemCrdt>,
+    pub nodes: ListCrdt<NodePresenceCrdt>,
 }
 
 #[add_crdt_fields]
@@ -92,6 +93,20 @@ pub struct PipelineItemCrdt {
     pub depends_on: LwwRegisterCrdt<String>,
 }
 
+/// CRDT node that holds a single peer's presence entry.
+#[add_crdt_fields]
+#[derive(Clone, CrdtNode, Debug)]
+pub struct NodePresenceCrdt {
+    /// Hex-encoded Ed25519 public key — stable identity across restarts.
+    pub node_id: LwwRegisterCrdt<String>,
+    /// WebSocket URL this peer advertises, e.g. `ws://192.168.1.10:3001/crdt-sync`.
+    pub address: LwwRegisterCrdt<String>,
+    /// Unix timestamp (seconds) of the last heartbeat written by this node.
+    pub last_seen: LwwRegisterCrdt<f64>,
+    /// `false` once a stale-detection pass has tombstoned this node.
+    pub alive: LwwRegisterCrdt<bool>,
+}
+
 // ── Read-side view types ─────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 /// A snapshot of a single pipeline item derived from the CRDT document.
@@ -106,13 +121,25 @@ pub struct PipelineItemView {
     pub depends_on: Option<Vec<u32>>,
 }
 
+/// A snapshot of a single node presence entry derived from the CRDT document.
+#[derive(Clone, Debug)]
+pub struct NodePresenceView {
+    pub node_id: String,
+    pub address: String,
+    /// Unix timestamp (seconds).
+    pub last_seen: f64,
+    pub alive: bool,
+}
+
 // ── Internal state ───────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 struct CrdtState {
     crdt: BaseCrdt<PipelineDoc>,
     keypair: Ed25519KeyPair,
-    /// Maps story_id → index in the ListCrdt for O(1) lookup.
+    /// Maps story_id → index in the items ListCrdt for O(1) lookup.
     index: HashMap<String, usize>,
+    /// Maps node_id (hex) → index in the nodes ListCrdt for O(1) lookup.
+    node_index: HashMap<String, usize>,
     /// Channel sender for fire-and-forget op persistence.
     persist_tx: mpsc::UnboundedSender<SignedOp>,
 }
@@ -158,13 +185,15 @@ pub async fn init(db_path: &Path) -> Result<(), sqlx::Error> {
     }
     let _ = ALL_OPS.set(Mutex::new(all_ops_vec));
 
-    // Build the index from the reconstructed state.
+    // Build the indices from the reconstructed state.
     let index = rebuild_index(&crdt);
+    let node_index = rebuild_node_index(&crdt);
 
     slog!(
-        "[crdt] Initialised: {} ops replayed, {} items indexed",
+        "[crdt] Initialised: {} ops replayed, {} items indexed, {} nodes indexed",
         rows.len(),
-        index.len()
+        index.len(),
+        node_index.len()
     );
 
     // Spawn background persistence task.
@@ -205,6 +234,7 @@ pub async fn init(db_path: &Path) -> Result<(), sqlx::Error> {
         crdt,
         keypair,
         index,
+        node_index,
         persist_tx,
     };
 
@@ -234,11 +264,13 @@ pub fn init_for_test() {
     let keypair = make_keypair();
     let crdt = BaseCrdt::<PipelineDoc>::new(&keypair);
     let index = HashMap::new();
+    let node_index = HashMap::new();
     let (persist_tx, _rx) = mpsc::unbounded_channel();
     let state = CrdtState {
         crdt,
         keypair,
         index,
+        node_index,
         persist_tx,
     };
     let _ = CRDT_STATE.set(Mutex::new(state));
@@ -285,6 +317,17 @@ fn rebuild_index(crdt: &BaseCrdt<PipelineDoc>) -> HashMap<String, usize> {
     map
 }
 
+/// Rebuild the node_id → nodes list index mapping from the current CRDT state.
+fn rebuild_node_index(crdt: &BaseCrdt<PipelineDoc>) -> HashMap<String, usize> {
+    let mut map = HashMap::new();
+    for (i, node) in crdt.doc.nodes.iter().enumerate() {
+        if let JsonValue::String(ref nid) = node.node_id.view() {
+            map.insert(nid.clone(), i);
+        }
+    }
+    map
+}
+
 // ── Write path ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 /// Create a CRDT op via `op_fn`, sign it, apply it, and send it to the
@@ -490,8 +533,9 @@ pub fn apply_remote_op(op: SignedOp) -> bool {
         v.push(json);
     }
 
-    // Rebuild index (new items may have been inserted).
+    // Rebuild indices (new items or nodes may have been inserted).
     state.index = rebuild_index(&state.crdt);
+    state.node_index = rebuild_node_index(&state.crdt);
 
     // Detect and broadcast stage transitions.
     for (sid, &idx) in &state.index {
@@ -518,6 +562,103 @@ pub fn apply_remote_op(op: SignedOp) -> bool {
     true
 }
 
+// ── Node presence API ────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+/// Return the hex-encoded Ed25519 public key for this node.
+///
+/// Used as the stable identity written into the CRDT nodes list.
+/// Returns `None` before `init()`.
+pub fn our_node_id() -> Option<String> {
+    let state = CRDT_STATE.get()?.lock().ok()?;
+    Some(hex::encode(&state.crdt.id))
+}
+
+/// Write or update a node presence entry in the CRDT.
+///
+/// If a node with the given `node_id` already exists, only `last_seen`,
+/// `alive`, and `address` are updated.  If not, a new entry is inserted.
+///
+/// This is the write path for both local heartbeats and tombstoning.
+pub fn write_node_presence(node_id: &str, address: &str, last_seen: f64, alive: bool) {
+    let Some(state_mutex) = CRDT_STATE.get() else {
+        return;
+    };
+    let Ok(mut state) = state_mutex.lock() else {
+        return;
+    };
+
+    if let Some(&idx) = state.node_index.get(node_id) {
+        // Update existing entry — three separate ops so peers can merge independently.
+        apply_and_persist(&mut state, |s| {
+            s.crdt.doc.nodes[idx].last_seen.set(last_seen)
+        });
+        apply_and_persist(&mut state, |s| {
+            s.crdt.doc.nodes[idx].alive.set(alive)
+        });
+        apply_and_persist(&mut state, |s| {
+            s.crdt.doc.nodes[idx].address.set(address.to_string())
+        });
+    } else {
+        // Insert new node entry.
+        let node_json: JsonValue = json!({
+            "node_id": node_id,
+            "address": address,
+            "last_seen": last_seen,
+            "alive": alive,
+        })
+        .into();
+
+        apply_and_persist(&mut state, |s| {
+            s.crdt.doc.nodes.insert(ROOT_ID, node_json)
+        });
+
+        // Rebuild node index after insertion.
+        state.node_index = rebuild_node_index(&state.crdt);
+    }
+}
+
+/// Read all node presence entries from the CRDT document.
+///
+/// Returns `None` before `init()`.
+pub fn read_all_node_presence() -> Option<Vec<NodePresenceView>> {
+    let state_mutex = CRDT_STATE.get()?;
+    let state = state_mutex.lock().ok()?;
+
+    let mut nodes = Vec::new();
+    for node_crdt in state.crdt.doc.nodes.iter() {
+        if let Some(view) = extract_node_view(node_crdt) {
+            nodes.push(view);
+        }
+    }
+    Some(nodes)
+}
+
+/// Extract a `NodePresenceView` from a `NodePresenceCrdt`.
+fn extract_node_view(node: &NodePresenceCrdt) -> Option<NodePresenceView> {
+    let node_id = match node.node_id.view() {
+        JsonValue::String(s) if !s.is_empty() => s,
+        _ => return None,
+    };
+    let address = match node.address.view() {
+        JsonValue::String(s) if !s.is_empty() => s,
+        _ => return None,
+    };
+    let last_seen = match node.last_seen.view() {
+        JsonValue::Number(n) => n,
+        _ => 0.0,
+    };
+    let alive = match node.alive.view() {
+        JsonValue::Bool(b) => b,
+        _ => true,
+    };
+    Some(NodePresenceView {
+        node_id,
+        address,
+        last_seen,
+        alive,
+    })
+}
+
 // ── Debug dump ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 /// A raw dump of a single CRDT list entry, including deleted items.
@@ -1452,6 +1593,7 @@ mod tests {
             crdt,
             keypair: kp,
             index: HashMap::new(),
+            node_index: HashMap::new(),
             persist_tx,
         };