diff --git a/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/DesktopDock.tsx b/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/DesktopDock.tsx
index b66f3079..60725fb4 100644
--- a/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/DesktopDock.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/DesktopDock.tsx
@@ -192,6 +192,7 @@ function DesktopDock({
               <Box
                 key={entry.id}
                 className="osw-dock-tile"
+                data-dock-group="entries"
                 role="button"
                 // The hover card carries the name for the eye; this carries it for everything else (screen readers, tests).
                 aria-label={entry.label}
@@ -260,7 +261,9 @@ function DesktopDock({
         </Box>
       ))}
 
-      {hoveredEntry && <DockHoverPreview entry={hoveredEntry} top={hovered!.top} image={previewImage} />}
+      {hoveredEntry && (
+        <DockHoverPreview entry={hoveredEntry} top={hovered!.top} railHeight={dockRef.current?.offsetHeight ?? 0} image={previewImage} />
+      )}
     </Box>
   );
 }
diff --git a/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/DockActionTiles.tsx b/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/DockActionTiles.tsx
index 08129d25..9bf40ba8 100644
--- a/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/DockActionTiles.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/DockActionTiles.tsx
@@ -36,6 +36,7 @@ function DockActionTiles({ tile, onAddBrowser, onApplications, onHoverAway }: Do
           <Tooltip title={a.label} placement="right">
             <Box
               className="osw-dock-tile"
+              data-dock-group="actions"
               onClick={a.act}
               onMouseEnter={onHoverAway}
               sx={{
diff --git a/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/DockHoverPreview.tsx b/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/DockHoverPreview.tsx
index e1c70104..c592fe01 100644
--- a/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/DockHoverPreview.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/DockHoverPreview.tsx
@@ -8,17 +8,22 @@ const PREVIEW_W = 190;
 interface DockHoverPreviewProps {
   entry: DockEntry;
   top: number;
+  railHeight: number;
   image?: string;
 }
 
 /** The card that floats beside a hovered dock tile: a live shot when we have one, title + snippet otherwise. */
-function DockHoverPreview({ entry, top, image }: DockHoverPreviewProps): React.ReactElement {
+function DockHoverPreview({ entry, top, railHeight, image }: DockHoverPreviewProps): React.ReactElement {
+  // A low tile's preview used to hang past the rail bottom into the canvas clip and get cut (ENG-331); the lower half anchors from the bottom and grows upward instead.
+  const fromBottom = railHeight > 0 && top > railHeight / 2;
   return (
     <Box
       sx={{
         position: 'absolute',
         left: 'calc(100% + 10px)',
-        top: Math.max(0, top - 34),
+        ...(fromBottom
+          ? { bottom: Math.max(0, railHeight - top - 44) }
+          : { top: Math.max(0, top - 34) }),
         width: PREVIEW_W,
         borderRadius: '10px',
         overflow: 'hidden',
diff --git a/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/useDockLayout.test.ts b/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/useDockLayout.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..a274dde9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/useDockLayout.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,48 @@
+// ENG-331: at 40+ chats the rail runs at the 14px floor, where the bell curve is at its widest
+// relative to the tile; these pin that the curve never crosses the entries/actions divider.
+import { test } from 'node:test';
+import assert from 'node:assert/strict';
+import { computeMagnifyTransforms } from './useDockLayout';
+
+const TILE = 14;
+const STEP = 18;
+const ENTRIES = 40;
+const bases: number[] = [];
+const groups: string[] = [];
+for (let i = 0; i < ENTRIES; i += 1) {
+  bases.push(7 + i * STEP + TILE / 2);
+  groups.push('entries');
+}
+const actionsTop = 7 + ENTRIES * STEP + 9;
+for (let i = 0; i < 5; i += 1) {
+  bases.push(actionsTop + i * STEP + TILE / 2);
+  groups.push('actions');
+}
+
+test('hovering an action button never inflates the neighboring chat entry', () => {
+  const cy = bases[ENTRIES];
+  const { transforms, scales } = computeMagnifyTransforms(bases, groups, cy, TILE);
+  for (let i = 0; i < ENTRIES; i += 1) {
+    assert.equal(scales[i], 1, `entry ${i} scaled to ${scales[i]}`);
+    assert.equal(transforms[i], '');
+  }
+  assert.ok(scales[ENTRIES] > 2, `hovered action should magnify, got ${scales[ENTRIES]}`);
+});
+
+test('hovering the last chat entry never inflates the action buttons below the divider', () => {
+  const cy = bases[ENTRIES - 1];
+  const { transforms, scales } = computeMagnifyTransforms(bases, groups, cy, TILE);
+  for (let i = ENTRIES; i < bases.length; i += 1) {
+    assert.equal(scales[i], 1, `action ${i - ENTRIES} scaled to ${scales[i]}`);
+    assert.equal(transforms[i], '');
+  }
+  assert.ok(scales[ENTRIES - 1] > 2, 'hovered entry should magnify');
+  assert.ok(scales[ENTRIES - 2] > 1, 'in-group neighbor keeps the macOS curve');
+});
+
+test('the curve itself still works mid-rail (no regression from the group mask)', () => {
+  const cy = bases[20];
+  const { scales } = computeMagnifyTransforms(bases, groups, cy, TILE);
+  assert.ok(scales[20] > 2.5, 'center tile approaches the 44px target');
+  assert.ok(scales[19] > scales[17], 'falloff is monotone toward the cursor');
+});
diff --git a/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/useDockLayout.ts b/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/useDockLayout.ts
index 424941d8..3d048d5c 100644
--- a/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/useDockLayout.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/app/pages/Dashboard/desktop/useDockLayout.ts
@@ -44,6 +44,7 @@ function columnHeight(tile: number, tiles: number, dividers: number): number {
 interface DockGeom {
   els: HTMLElement[];
   bases: number[];
+  groups: string[];
   rootTop: number;
   written: string[];
 }
@@ -56,11 +57,50 @@ function beginGesture(root: HTMLElement, box: HTMLDivElement | null): DockGeom {
   return {
     els,
     bases: els.map((t) => (box?.contains(t) ? boxShift : 0) + t.offsetTop + t.offsetHeight / 2),
+    groups: els.map((t) => t.dataset.dockGroup || ''),
     rootTop: root.getBoundingClientRect().top,
     written: els.map(() => ''),
   };
 }
 
+/** The dock's bell-curve magnify as pure math. The rail holds two species (chat entries above the
+ * divider, action buttons below) and the curve must never cross that divider: hovering Browsers
+ * used to inflate the neighboring chat (ENG-331). Tiles outside the cursor's group get '' (reset). */
+export function computeMagnifyTransforms(
+  bases: number[], groups: string[], cy: number, size: number,
+): { transforms: string[]; scales: number[] } {
+  const transforms: string[] = bases.map(() => '');
+  const scales: number[] = bases.map(() => 1);
+  if (bases.length === 0) return { transforms, scales };
+  const boost = MAGNIFY_TARGET / size - 1;
+  const falloff = size * FALLOFF_RATIO;
+  let nearest = 0;
+  for (let i = 1; i < bases.length; i += 1) {
+    if (Math.abs(cy - bases[i]) < Math.abs(cy - bases[nearest])) nearest = i;
+  }
+  const activeGroup = groups[nearest];
+  const idx: number[] = [];
+  groups.forEach((g, i) => { if (g === activeGroup) idx.push(i); });
+  const sub = idx.map((i) => 1 + boost * Math.exp(-(((cy - bases[i]) / falloff) ** 2)));
+  const extra = sub.map((s) => size * (s - 1));
+  const total = extra.reduce((a, b) => a + b, 0);
+  // Bases run in DOM order, top to bottom, so "everything before me" is a running sum, not an inner loop.
+  const head = (extra[0] - total) / 2;
+  const tail = (total - extra[extra.length - 1]) / 2;
+  const span = bases[idx[idx.length - 1]] - bases[idx[0]];
+  // Apple's Dock never grows longer than its rail: pin both ends and let the spread squeeze the middle.
+  const slope = span > 0 ? (tail - head) / span : 0;
+  let before = 0;
+  idx.forEach((elI, k) => {
+    const raw = before - (total - before - extra[k]);
+    const shift = raw / 2 - head - slope * (bases[elI] - bases[idx[0]]);
+    before += extra[k];
+    transforms[elI] = `translateY(${shift.toFixed(1)}px) scale(${sub[k].toFixed(3)})`;
+    scales[elI] = sub[k];
+  });
+  return { transforms, scales };
+}
+
 /** macOS Dock sizing: tiles shrink to fit the column and only scroll once they hit the floor. */
 export function useDockLayout({ cardCount, actionCount, dividerCount }: DockLayoutInput): DockLayout {
   const dockRef = useRef<HTMLDivElement | null>(null);
@@ -145,30 +185,20 @@ export function useDockLayout({ cardCount, actionCount, dividerCount }: DockLayo
     }
     const geom = geomRef.current ?? beginGesture(root, scrollRef.current);
     geomRef.current = geom;
-    const { els, bases } = geom;
+    const { els, bases, groups } = geom;
     if (els.length === 0) return;
-    const size = tileRef.current;
-    const boost = MAGNIFY_TARGET / size - 1;
-    const falloff = size * FALLOFF_RATIO;
     const cy = clientY - geom.rootTop;
-    const scales = bases.map((b) => 1 + boost * Math.exp(-(((cy - b) / falloff) ** 2)));
-    const extra = scales.map((s) => size * (s - 1));
-    const total = extra.reduce((a, b) => a + b, 0);
-    // Bases run in DOM order, top to bottom, so "everything before me" is a running sum, not an inner loop.
-    const head = (extra[0] - total) / 2;
-    const tail = (total - extra[els.length - 1]) / 2;
-    const span = bases[els.length - 1] - bases[0];
-    // Apple's Dock never grows longer than its rail: pin both ends and let the spread squeeze the middle.
-    const slope = span > 0 ? (tail - head) / span : 0;
-    let before = 0;
+    const { transforms, scales } = computeMagnifyTransforms(bases, groups, cy, tileRef.current);
     els.forEach((t, i) => {
-      const raw = before - (total - before - extra[i]);
-      const shift = raw / 2 - head - slope * (bases[i] - bases[0]);
-      before += extra[i];
-      const next = `translateY(${shift.toFixed(1)}px) scale(${scales[i].toFixed(3)})`;
+      const next = transforms[i];
       // Tiles outside the bell curve land on the same transform move after move, and a no-op style write is not free.
       if (geom.written[i] === next) return;
       geom.written[i] = next;
+      if (next === '') {
+        t.style.transform = '';
+        t.style.zIndex = '';
+        return;
+      }
       t.style.transform = next;
       t.style.zIndex = String(10 + Math.round((scales[i] - 1) * 100));
     });