diff --git a/.changeset/fn-7082-live-running-agent-count-seam.md b/.changeset/fn-7082-live-running-agent-count-seam.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..b3ff4df522
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changeset/fn-7082-live-running-agent-count-seam.md
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+---
+"@runfusion/fusion": patch
+---
+
+summary: Concurrency panels now read running-agent counts from a single live source shared across the app.
+category: internal
+dev: Adds a side-effect-safe CentralCore.getLiveRunningAgentCounts() seam (DI source via setRunningAgentCountSource) that derives counts from in-progress task columns of already-open project stores without starting engines/watchers or mutating slot/health bookkeeping; GET /api/global-concurrency is rewired onto it, preserving globalMaxConcurrent/queuedCount and acquireGlobalSlot/releaseGlobalSlot semantics.
diff --git a/docs/multi-project.md b/docs/multi-project.md
index 9f31b5a5c7..29be655d24 100644
--- a/docs/multi-project.md
+++ b/docs/multi-project.md
@@ -110,7 +110,7 @@ Central health tracking keeps mutable project metrics, including:
 
 ## Global Concurrency Management
 
-A singleton central record enforces system-wide limits so one project cannot monopolize all execution slots.
+A singleton central record enforces system-wide limits so one project cannot monopolize all execution slots. Slot acquire/release bookkeeping remains separate from read-only running-agent displays: live read surfaces derive `currentlyActive` and per-project active counts from `in-progress` tasks in already-open project stores, while the persisted `globalMaxConcurrent` cap and `queuedCount` continue to come from central concurrency state.
 
 ## Plugin Scope in Multi-Project Mode
 
diff --git a/packages/core/src/__tests__/central-core.test.ts b/packages/core/src/__tests__/central-core.test.ts
index 32e18aa812..df549523df 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/__tests__/central-core.test.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/__tests__/central-core.test.ts
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
 import { join } from "node:path";
 import { createHash } from "node:crypto";
 import { CentralCore } from "../central-core.js";
+import { setRunningAgentCountSource } from "../live-agent-count.js";
 import { NodeDiscovery } from "../node-discovery.js";
 import { NodeConnection, type ConnectionResult } from "../node-connection.js";
 import { getAppVersion } from "../app-version.js";
@@ -32,6 +33,7 @@ describe("CentralCore", () => {
   });
 
   afterEach(async () => {
+    setRunningAgentCountSource(undefined);
     await central.close();
     vi.useRealTimers();
     vi.restoreAllMocks();
@@ -2663,6 +2665,110 @@ describe("CentralCore", () => {
     it("should throw when releasing for non-existent project", async () => {
       await expect(central.releaseGlobalSlot("nonexistent")).rejects.toThrow("not found");
     });
+
+    async function registerProjectForLiveCount(name: string) {
+      const projectPath = join(tempDir, name);
+      mkdirSync(projectPath);
+      projectPaths.push(projectPath);
+      return central.registerProject({ name, path: projectPath });
+    }
+
+    it("derives live running-agent counts from a side-effect-safe source across project data states", async () => {
+      const projectA = await registerProjectForLiveCount("live-count-a");
+      const projectB = await registerProjectForLiveCount("live-count-b");
+      const unopenedProject = await registerProjectForLiveCount("live-count-unopened");
+      await central.updateGlobalConcurrency({ globalMaxConcurrent: 2 });
+
+      const source = vi.fn(async (projectIds: readonly string[]) => {
+        expect(projectIds).toEqual([projectA.id, projectB.id, unopenedProject.id]);
+        return {
+          [projectA.id]: 3,
+          [projectB.id]: 2,
+          [unopenedProject.id]: 0,
+        };
+      });
+
+      const counts = await central.getLiveRunningAgentCounts({ source });
+
+      expect(source).toHaveBeenCalledOnce();
+      expect(counts).toEqual({
+        currentlyActive: 5,
+        projectsActive: {
+          [projectA.id]: 3,
+          [projectB.id]: 2,
+        },
+      });
+      expect(counts.currentlyActive).toBeGreaterThan(2);
+    });
+
+    it.each([
+      { name: "zero in-progress", perProject: { a: 0 }, expected: { currentlyActive: 0, projectsActive: {} } },
+      { name: "one in-progress", perProject: { a: 1 }, expected: { currentlyActive: 1, projectsActive: { a: 1 } } },
+      { name: "multiple in one project", perProject: { a: 4 }, expected: { currentlyActive: 4, projectsActive: { a: 4 } } },
+      { name: "multiple projects", perProject: { a: 2, b: 3, c: 0 }, expected: { currentlyActive: 5, projectsActive: { a: 2, b: 3 } } },
+    ])("normalizes live running-agent count data state: $name", async ({ perProject, expected }) => {
+      await registerProjectForLiveCount("live-count-state");
+
+      await expect(central.getLiveRunningAgentCounts({ source: async () => perProject })).resolves.toEqual(expected);
+    });
+
+    it("falls back to persisted slot and health bookkeeping when no live source is registered", async () => {
+      const project = await registerProjectForLiveCount("live-count-fallback");
+      await central.acquireGlobalSlot(project.id);
+      await central.acquireGlobalSlot(project.id);
+
+      const persisted = await central.getGlobalConcurrencyState();
+      const counts = await central.getLiveRunningAgentCounts();
+
+      expect(counts).toEqual({
+        currentlyActive: persisted.currentlyActive,
+        projectsActive: persisted.projectsActive,
+      });
+      expect(counts.projectsActive).toEqual({ [project.id]: 2 });
+    });
+
+    it("does not mutate slot or health bookkeeping during a live-count read", async () => {
+      const project = await registerProjectForLiveCount("live-count-no-mutation");
+      await central.acquireGlobalSlot(project.id);
+      await central.updateGlobalConcurrency({ queuedCount: 4 });
+      const beforeGlobal = await central.getGlobalConcurrencyState();
+      const beforeHealth = await central.getProjectHealth(project.id);
+      const watchSpy = vi.fn();
+      const engineStartSpy = vi.fn();
+
+      const counts = await central.getLiveRunningAgentCounts({
+        source: async () => {
+          expect(watchSpy).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+          expect(engineStartSpy).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+          return { [project.id]: 7 };
+        },
+      });
+
+      expect(counts).toEqual({ currentlyActive: 7, projectsActive: { [project.id]: 7 } });
+      expect(await central.getGlobalConcurrencyState()).toEqual(beforeGlobal);
+      expect(await central.getProjectHealth(project.id)).toEqual(beforeHealth);
+      expect(watchSpy).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+      expect(engineStartSpy).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    });
+
+    it("keeps acquire and release slot bookkeeping isolated from live count reads", async () => {
+      const project = await registerProjectForLiveCount("live-count-limiter-isolation");
+      const source = vi.fn(async () => ({ [project.id]: 5 }));
+      await central.acquireGlobalSlot(project.id);
+
+      expect((await central.getGlobalConcurrencyState()).currentlyActive).toBe(1);
+      expect(await central.getLiveRunningAgentCounts({ source })).toEqual({
+        currentlyActive: 5,
+        projectsActive: { [project.id]: 5 },
+      });
+
+      await central.releaseGlobalSlot(project.id);
+      expect((await central.getGlobalConcurrencyState()).currentlyActive).toBe(0);
+      expect(await central.getLiveRunningAgentCounts({ source })).toEqual({
+        currentlyActive: 5,
+        projectsActive: { [project.id]: 5 },
+      });
+    });
   });
 
   describe("utility methods", () => {
diff --git a/packages/core/src/central-core.ts b/packages/core/src/central-core.ts
index 98ee6a678d..309b20a426 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/central-core.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/central-core.ts
@@ -97,6 +97,12 @@ import {
   ensureGitRepositoryForProjectPath,
   type GitRepositoryEnsureOutcome,
 } from "./git-repository.js";
+import {
+  deriveRunningAgentCounts,
+  getRunningAgentCountSource,
+  type RunningAgentCountSource,
+  type RunningAgentCounts,
+} from "./live-agent-count.js";
 // ── Event Types ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 export interface CentralCoreEvents {
@@ -2649,6 +2655,28 @@ export class CentralCore extends EventEmitter<CentralCoreEvents> {
     };
   }
 
+  /**
+   * Read live running-agent counts through the side-effect-safe host seam.
+   * Falls back to persisted concurrency/health bookkeeping when no host source
+   * is registered so headless core callers keep their previous semantics.
+   */
+  async getLiveRunningAgentCounts(options?: { source?: RunningAgentCountSource }): Promise<RunningAgentCounts> {
+    this.ensureInitialized();
+
+    const source = options?.source ?? getRunningAgentCountSource();
+    if (!source) {
+      const state = await this.getGlobalConcurrencyState();
+      return {
+        currentlyActive: state.currentlyActive,
+        projectsActive: state.projectsActive,
+      };
+    }
+
+    const projectIds = (await this.listProjects()).map((project) => project.id);
+    const perProject = await source(projectIds);
+    return deriveRunningAgentCounts(perProject);
+  }
+
   /**
    * Update global concurrency settings.
    * Only allows updating globalMaxConcurrent, currentlyActive, and queuedCount.
diff --git a/packages/core/src/index.ts b/packages/core/src/index.ts
index 01f3a7ebac..5ba4a5cc44 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/index.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/index.ts
@@ -404,6 +404,13 @@ export {
   getCreateInteractiveAiSessionFactory,
   type AgentMessage,
 } from "./ai-engine-loader.js";
+export {
+  setRunningAgentCountSource,
+  getRunningAgentCountSource,
+  deriveRunningAgentCounts,
+  type RunningAgentCountSource,
+  type RunningAgentCounts,
+} from "./live-agent-count.js";
 export {
   setTaskCreatedHook,
   getTaskCreatedHook,
diff --git a/packages/core/src/live-agent-count.ts b/packages/core/src/live-agent-count.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..4ea062f7d5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/core/src/live-agent-count.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+export type RunningAgentCountSource = (projectIds: readonly string[]) => Promise<Record<string, number>> | Record<string, number>;
+
+let runningAgentCountSource: RunningAgentCountSource | undefined;
+
+/**
+ * FNXC:GlobalConcurrencyControls 2026-06-26-17:22:
+ * Live running-agent counts must come from side-effect-safe reads of `in-progress` task columns, not from stale slot or health bookkeeping. This DI seam lets dashboard, CLI, remote-node, and plugin consumers share one core path without starting project engines/runtimes, opening watchers, or mutating `globalConcurrency.currentlyActive`, `globalConcurrency.queuedCount`, or `projectHealth.inFlightAgentCount`.
+ */
+export function setRunningAgentCountSource(fn: RunningAgentCountSource | undefined): void {
+  runningAgentCountSource = fn;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Returns the registered side-effect-safe running-agent count source, if one has been wired by the host process.
+ */
+export function getRunningAgentCountSource(): RunningAgentCountSource | undefined {
+  return runningAgentCountSource;
+}
+
+export interface RunningAgentCounts {
+  currentlyActive: number;
+  projectsActive: Record<string, number>;
+}
+
+export function deriveRunningAgentCounts(perProject: Record<string, number>): RunningAgentCounts {
+  const projectsActive: Record<string, number> = {};
+  let currentlyActive = 0;
+
+  for (const [projectId, rawCount] of Object.entries(perProject)) {
+    const count = Number.isFinite(rawCount) ? Math.max(0, Math.trunc(rawCount)) : 0;
+    currentlyActive += count;
+    if (count > 0) {
+      projectsActive[projectId] = count;
+    }
+  }
+
+  return { currentlyActive, projectsActive };
+}
diff --git a/packages/dashboard/src/__tests__/project-routes.test.ts b/packages/dashboard/src/__tests__/project-routes.test.ts
index 0ff3fc016f..939dfcc3ce 100644
--- a/packages/dashboard/src/__tests__/project-routes.test.ts
+++ b/packages/dashboard/src/__tests__/project-routes.test.ts
@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ const {
   mockGetProjectHealth,
   mockGetRecentActivity,
   mockGetGlobalConcurrencyState,
+  mockGetLiveRunningAgentCounts,
   mockUpdateGlobalConcurrency,
   mockInit,
   mockClose,
@@ -94,6 +95,10 @@ const {
     queuedCount: 0,
     projectsActive: { proj_test123: 2 },
   }),
+  mockGetLiveRunningAgentCounts: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue({
+    currentlyActive: 2,
+    projectsActive: { proj_test123: 2 },
+  }),
   mockUpdateGlobalConcurrency: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue({
     globalMaxConcurrent: 10,
     currentlyActive: 2,
@@ -158,6 +163,7 @@ vi.mock("@fusion/core", async () => {
       getProjectHealth: mockGetProjectHealth,
       getRecentActivity: mockGetRecentActivity,
       getGlobalConcurrencyState: mockGetGlobalConcurrencyState,
+      getLiveRunningAgentCounts: mockGetLiveRunningAgentCounts,
       updateGlobalConcurrency: mockUpdateGlobalConcurrency,
       reconcileProjectStatuses: mockReconcileProjectStatuses,
       listNodes: mockListNodes,
@@ -176,6 +182,7 @@ vi.mock("@fusion/core", async () => {
 // Mock project-store-resolver for multi-project health tests
 vi.mock("../project-store-resolver.js", () => ({
   getOrCreateProjectStore: mockGetOrCreateProjectStore,
+  countRunningAgentsInRegisteredProjectStores: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue({}),
   invalidateAllGlobalSettingsCaches: vi.fn(),
 }));
 
@@ -1241,6 +1248,7 @@ describe("GET /api/global-concurrency route handler", () => {
   it("omits projects and reports zero when no tasks are in progress", async () => {
     const storeA = storeWithColumns(["todo", "in-review", "done", "archived"]);
     mockListProjects.mockResolvedValue([project("proj_a")]);
+    mockGetLiveRunningAgentCounts.mockResolvedValue({ currentlyActive: 0, projectsActive: {} });
     mockGetOrCreateProjectStore.mockResolvedValue(storeA);
 
     const app = await createApp(new MockStoreForRoutes());
@@ -1253,7 +1261,9 @@ describe("GET /api/global-concurrency route handler", () => {
       queuedCount: 7,
       projectsActive: {},
     });
-    expect(storeA.listTasks).toHaveBeenCalledWith({ slim: true });
+    expect(mockGetLiveRunningAgentCounts).toHaveBeenCalledWith();
+    expect(mockGetOrCreateProjectStore).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    expect(storeA.listTasks).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
   });
 
   it.each([
@@ -1300,6 +1310,7 @@ describe("GET /api/global-concurrency route handler", () => {
     const storesByProject = new Map(
       Object.entries(stores).map(([projectId, columns]) => [projectId, storeWithColumns(columns)]),
     );
+    mockGetLiveRunningAgentCounts.mockResolvedValue({ currentlyActive: expectedTotal, projectsActive: expectedProjects });
     mockGetOrCreateProjectStore.mockImplementation(async (projectId: string) => storesByProject.get(projectId) ?? storeWithColumns([]));
 
     const app = await createApp(new MockStoreForRoutes());
@@ -1314,9 +1325,10 @@ describe("GET /api/global-concurrency route handler", () => {
     });
     expect((res.body as { currentlyActive: number }).currentlyActive).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(expectedTotal);
     expect((res.body as { projectsActive: Record<string, number> }).projectsActive).not.toHaveProperty("stale_project");
-    for (const [projectId, mockStore] of storesByProject) {
-      expect(mockGetOrCreateProjectStore).toHaveBeenCalledWith(projectId);
-      expect(mockStore.listTasks).toHaveBeenCalledWith({ slim: true });
+    expect(mockGetLiveRunningAgentCounts).toHaveBeenCalledWith();
+    expect(mockGetOrCreateProjectStore).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    for (const [, mockStore] of storesByProject) {
+      expect(mockStore.listTasks).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
     }
   });
 });
diff --git a/packages/dashboard/src/__tests__/project-store-resolver.test.ts b/packages/dashboard/src/__tests__/project-store-resolver.test.ts
index 087b5b0df9..af86aca4c9 100644
--- a/packages/dashboard/src/__tests__/project-store-resolver.test.ts
+++ b/packages/dashboard/src/__tests__/project-store-resolver.test.ts
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ import { EventEmitter } from "node:events";
 import { describe, it, expect, vi, beforeEach, afterEach } from "vitest";
 import {
   getOrCreateProjectStore,
+  countRunningAgentsInRegisteredProjectStores,
   evictProjectStore,
   evictAllProjectStores,
   listRegisteredProjectStores,
@@ -353,3 +354,73 @@ describe("project-store-resolver", () => {
     expect(sseMessages[2]).toContain('"to":"todo"');
   });
 });
+
+describe("countRunningAgentsInRegisteredProjectStores", () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    evictAllProjectStores();
+    createdStores.length = 0;
+  });
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    evictAllProjectStores();
+    createdStores.length = 0;
+  });
+
+  function installTaskList(store: TaskStore, columns: string[]) {
+    const tasks = columns.map((column, index) => ({ id: `FN-${index + 1}`, column }));
+    const listTasks = vi.fn().mockImplementation(async (options?: { column?: string }) => (
+      options?.column ? tasks.filter((task) => task.column === options.column) : tasks
+    ));
+    (store as TaskStore & { listTasks: typeof listTasks }).listTasks = listTasks;
+    return listTasks;
+  }
+
+  it("counts in-progress tasks from already-open stores without opening unopened projects", async () => {
+    const openStore = await getOrCreateProjectStore("proj_open");
+    const listTasks = installTaskList(openStore, ["todo", "in-progress", "in-progress", "done"]);
+    const openEntry = createdStores.find((entry) => entry.projectId === "proj_open");
+    expect(openEntry).toBeDefined();
+    vi.clearAllMocks();
+
+    const counts = await countRunningAgentsInRegisteredProjectStores(["proj_open", "proj_unopened"]);
+
+    expect(counts).toEqual({ proj_open: 2 });
+    expect(listTasks).toHaveBeenCalledWith({ column: "in-progress", slim: true });
+    expect(createdStores).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(openEntry?.watchMock).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+
+  it("excludes cached stores that are not requested and reports zero for open stores with no running tasks", async () => {
+    const zeroStore = await getOrCreateProjectStore("proj_zero");
+    const ignoredStore = await getOrCreateProjectStore("proj_ignored");
+    const zeroListTasks = installTaskList(zeroStore, ["todo", "in-review", "done"]);
+    const ignoredListTasks = installTaskList(ignoredStore, ["in-progress", "in-progress"]);
+    const zeroEntry = createdStores.find((entry) => entry.projectId === "proj_zero");
+    const ignoredEntry = createdStores.find((entry) => entry.projectId === "proj_ignored");
+    vi.clearAllMocks();
+
+    const counts = await countRunningAgentsInRegisteredProjectStores(["proj_zero", "proj_unopened"]);
+
+    expect(counts).toEqual({ proj_zero: 0 });
+    expect(zeroListTasks).toHaveBeenCalledWith({ column: "in-progress", slim: true });
+    expect(ignoredListTasks).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    expect(createdStores).toHaveLength(2);
+    expect(zeroEntry?.watchMock).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    expect(ignoredEntry?.watchMock).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+
+  it("returns per-project counts for multiple already-open stores", async () => {
+    const storeA = await getOrCreateProjectStore("proj_a");
+    const storeB = await getOrCreateProjectStore("proj_b");
+    const listTasksA = installTaskList(storeA, ["in-progress", "todo"]);
+    const listTasksB = installTaskList(storeB, ["todo", "in-progress", "in-progress"]);
+    vi.clearAllMocks();
+
+    const counts = await countRunningAgentsInRegisteredProjectStores(["proj_a", "proj_b"]);
+
+    expect(counts).toEqual({ proj_a: 1, proj_b: 2 });
+    expect(listTasksA).toHaveBeenCalledWith({ column: "in-progress", slim: true });
+    expect(listTasksB).toHaveBeenCalledWith({ column: "in-progress", slim: true });
+    expect(createdStores).toHaveLength(2);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/packages/dashboard/src/__tests__/server.test.ts b/packages/dashboard/src/__tests__/server.test.ts
index 52312f0ca6..8101b7c0a5 100644
--- a/packages/dashboard/src/__tests__/server.test.ts
+++ b/packages/dashboard/src/__tests__/server.test.ts
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ import express from "express";
 import { createServer, setupTerminalWebSocket } from "../server.js";
 import { toSessionTag } from "../terminal-websocket-diagnostics.js";
 import { RATE_LIMITS } from "../rate-limit.js";
-import { Database, TaskStore } from "@fusion/core";
+import { Database, TaskStore, getRunningAgentCountSource, setRunningAgentCountSource, type CentralCore } from "@fusion/core";
 import { get as performGet, request as performRequest } from "../test-request.js";
 
 // Mock terminal-service before any imports that use it
@@ -190,12 +190,55 @@ async function flushStartupCleanupTasks(): Promise<void> {
 }
 
 describe("createServer options", () => {
+  afterEach(() => {
+    setRunningAgentCountSource(undefined);
+  });
+
   it("round-trips hybridExecutor on app locals", () => {
     const store = createMockStore();
     const hybridExecutor = { initialize: vi.fn(), shutdown: vi.fn() } as unknown as import("@fusion/engine").HybridExecutor;
     const app = createServer(store, { hybridExecutor });
     expect(app.locals.hybridExecutor).toBe(hybridExecutor);
   });
+
+  it("registers live counts for the already-open default store by central project id", async () => {
+    const store = createMockStore({
+      listTasks: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue([{ id: "FN-1" }, { id: "FN-2" }]),
+    });
+    const centralCore = {
+      getDefaultProjectId: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue("proj_default"),
+    };
+
+    createServer(store, { centralCore: centralCore as unknown as CentralCore });
+    const source = getRunningAgentCountSource();
+
+    expect(source).toBeDefined();
+    if (!source) throw new Error("expected running-agent count source");
+    await expect(source(["proj_default", "proj_unopened"])).resolves.toEqual({ proj_default: 2 });
+    expect(store.listTasks).toHaveBeenCalledWith({ column: "in-progress", slim: true });
+  });
+
+  it("registers live counts for already-open engine-manager stores without starting engines", async () => {
+    const store = createMockStore();
+    const engineStore = createMockStore({
+      listTasks: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue([{ id: "FN-3" }]),
+    });
+    const getEngine = vi.fn((projectId: string) => projectId === "proj_engine"
+      ? { getTaskStore: vi.fn(() => engineStore) }
+      : undefined);
+    const engineManager = { getEngine };
+
+    createServer(store, { engineManager: engineManager as unknown as import("@fusion/engine").ProjectEngineManager });
+    const source = getRunningAgentCountSource();
+
+    expect(source).toBeDefined();
+    if (!source) throw new Error("expected running-agent count source");
+    await expect(source(["proj_engine", "proj_unopened"])).resolves.toEqual({ proj_engine: 1 });
+    expect(getEngine).toHaveBeenCalledWith("proj_engine");
+    expect(getEngine).toHaveBeenCalledWith("proj_unopened");
+    expect(engineStore.listTasks).toHaveBeenCalledWith({ column: "in-progress", slim: true });
+    expect(store.listTasks).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
 });
 
 describe("createServer AI session startup cleanup diagnostics", () => {
diff --git a/packages/dashboard/src/project-store-resolver.ts b/packages/dashboard/src/project-store-resolver.ts
index e0a2490c28..cdc0f83ac0 100644
--- a/packages/dashboard/src/project-store-resolver.ts
+++ b/packages/dashboard/src/project-store-resolver.ts
@@ -158,6 +158,30 @@ export function listRegisteredProjectStores(): Array<{ projectId: string; store:
   return Array.from(storeCache.entries(), ([projectId, store]) => ({ projectId, store }));
 }
 
+export async function countRunningAgentsInStore(store: TaskStore): Promise<number> {
+  const tasks = await store.listTasks({ column: "in-progress", slim: true });
+  return tasks.length;
+}
+
+/**
+ * FNXC:GlobalConcurrencyControls 2026-06-26-17:22:
+ * The dashboard live-count source is restricted to already-open project stores so global concurrency reads never open a project, start a watcher, or start an engine/runtime just to answer currently-active counts.
+ */
+export async function countRunningAgentsInRegisteredProjectStores(projectIds: readonly string[]): Promise<Record<string, number>> {
+  const requestedProjectIds = new Set(projectIds);
+  const counts: Record<string, number> = {};
+
+  await Promise.all(listRegisteredProjectStores().map(async ({ projectId, store }) => {
+    if (!requestedProjectIds.has(projectId)) {
+      return;
+    }
+
+    counts[projectId] = await countRunningAgentsInStore(store);
+  }));
+
+  return counts;
+}
+
 export function onProjectStoreRegistered(listener: (projectId: string, store: TaskStore) => void): () => void {
   projectRegisteredListeners.add(listener);
   return () => {
diff --git a/packages/dashboard/src/routes.ts b/packages/dashboard/src/routes.ts
index ffa8bfab05..6e50a6eb66 100644
--- a/packages/dashboard/src/routes.ts
+++ b/packages/dashboard/src/routes.ts
@@ -57,7 +57,6 @@ import {
 } from "./api-error.js";
 import { createPluginRouter, resolvePluginManifest } from "./plugin-routes.js";
 import { fetchFromRemoteNode } from "./routes/register-settings-sync-helpers.js";
-import { getOrCreateProjectStore } from "./project-store-resolver.js";
 import { hermesRuntimeMetadata } from "@fusion-plugin-examples/hermes-runtime";
 import { openclawRuntimeMetadata } from "@fusion-plugin-examples/openclaw-runtime";
 
@@ -4638,30 +4637,16 @@ export function createApiRoutes(store: TaskStore, options?: ServerOptions): Rout
       if (shouldClose || (typeof central.isInitialized === "function" && !central.isInitialized())) await central.init();
       
       const state = await central.getGlobalConcurrencyState();
-      const projects = await central.listProjects();
-      const projectCounts = await Promise.all(projects.map(async (project) => {
-        const projectStore = await getOrCreateProjectStore(project.id);
-        const tasks = await projectStore.listTasks({ slim: true });
-        return [project.id, tasks.filter((task) => task.column === "in-progress").length] as const;
-      }));
-
-      const projectsActive: Record<string, number> = {};
-      let currentlyActive = 0;
-      for (const [projectId, activeCount] of projectCounts) {
-        currentlyActive += activeCount;
-        if (activeCount > 0) {
-          projectsActive[projectId] = activeCount;
-        }
-      }
+      const liveCounts = await central.getLiveRunningAgentCounts();
 
       /*
-      FNXC:GlobalConcurrencyControls 2026-06-26-12:00:
-      The footer EngineControlMenu and Command Center Concurrency card need running-agent counts from live task state. Slot bookkeeping (`globalConcurrency.currentlyActive`) and polled project health are not synced in the default in-process runtime, so derive read-only currentlyActive/projectsActive from authoritative `in-progress` task columns without mutating the slot limiter or editable cap.
+      FNXC:GlobalConcurrencyControls 2026-06-26-17:22:
+      The published global-concurrency route reads currentlyActive/projectsActive through CentralCore's live seam while preserving globalMaxConcurrent/queuedCount from slot bookkeeping. The dashboard-registered source only inspects already-open project stores, so this read stays side-effect-safe and never opens watchers or starts project runtimes.
       */
       const liveState = {
         ...state,
-        currentlyActive,
-        projectsActive,
+        currentlyActive: liveCounts.currentlyActive,
+        projectsActive: liveCounts.projectsActive,
       };
 
       if (shouldClose) await central.close();
diff --git a/packages/dashboard/src/server.ts b/packages/dashboard/src/server.ts
index 5a931558cf..cd9b8f242a 100644
--- a/packages/dashboard/src/server.ts
+++ b/packages/dashboard/src/server.ts
@@ -16,13 +16,19 @@ import type {
   AgentLogEntry,
   TaskIdIntegrityReport,
 } from "@fusion/core";
-import { AgentStore, ChatStore } from "@fusion/core";
+import { AgentStore, ChatStore, setRunningAgentCountSource } from "@fusion/core";
 import type { AuthStorageLike, ModelRegistryLike } from "./routes.js";
 import { createApiRoutes } from "./routes.js";
 import { createSSE, disconnectSSEClient, markSSEClientAlive } from "./sse.js";
 import { rateLimit, RATE_LIMITS } from "./rate-limit.js";
 import { ApiError, sendErrorResponse } from "./api-error.js";
-import { getOrCreateProjectStore, evictAllProjectStores, setOnProjectFirstCreated } from "./project-store-resolver.js";
+import {
+  countRunningAgentsInRegisteredProjectStores,
+  countRunningAgentsInStore,
+  getOrCreateProjectStore,
+  evictAllProjectStores,
+  setOnProjectFirstCreated,
+} from "./project-store-resolver.js";
 import { getOrCreateScopedChatStore } from "./chat-project-services.js";
 import { getTerminalService, STALE_SESSION_THRESHOLD_MS } from "./terminal-service.js";
 import { WebSocketServer, type WebSocket } from "ws";
@@ -826,6 +832,37 @@ export function createServer(store: TaskStore, options?: ServerOptions): ReturnT
   if (options?.onProjectFirstAccessed) {
     setOnProjectFirstCreated(options.onProjectFirstAccessed);
   }
+  /*
+  FNXC:GlobalConcurrencyControls 2026-06-26-17:22:
+  Dashboard bootstrap wires CentralCore's live running-agent source to the already-open project-store cache. This avoids duplicating route-local counting while preserving the read-path rule that unopened projects are not initialized just to compute global concurrency counts.
+
+  FNXC:GlobalConcurrencyControls 2026-06-26-23:41:
+  The default in-process TaskStore is already open but is intentionally not part of the secondary project-store cache. Include it by central default project id, and include any engine-manager stores already resident in memory, so live reads cover every already-open store without calling getOrCreateProjectStore(), watch(), or runtime startup paths.
+  */
+  setRunningAgentCountSource(async (projectIds) => {
+    const requestedProjectIds = new Set(projectIds);
+    const counts = await countRunningAgentsInRegisteredProjectStores(projectIds);
+
+    if (options?.engineManager) {
+      await Promise.all(projectIds.map(async (projectId) => {
+        if (counts[projectId] !== undefined) {
+          return;
+        }
+        const engine = options.engineManager?.getEngine(projectId);
+        if (!engine) {
+          return;
+        }
+        counts[projectId] = await countRunningAgentsInStore(engine.getTaskStore());
+      }));
+    }
+
+    const defaultProjectId = await options?.centralCore?.getDefaultProjectId?.();
+    if (defaultProjectId && requestedProjectIds.has(defaultProjectId)) {
+      counts[defaultProjectId] = await countRunningAgentsInStore(store);
+    }
+
+    return counts;
+  });
 
   const app = express();
   app.locals.hybridExecutor = options?.hybridExecutor;
@@ -2444,6 +2481,7 @@ export function setupBadgeWebSocket(
     wss.close();
     // Clean up cached project-scoped stores (stop watchers, close DB connections)
     evictAllProjectStores();
+    setRunningAgentCountSource(undefined);
     dashboardApp.terminalWsServer = null;
     dashboardApp.badgeWsServer = null;
     dashboardApp.badgeWsManager = null;