diff --git a/frontend/src/desktop/DesktopWorkspace.tsx b/frontend/src/desktop/DesktopWorkspace.tsx
index f39642f..a0b53b1 100644
--- a/frontend/src/desktop/DesktopWorkspace.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/desktop/DesktopWorkspace.tsx
@@ -124,10 +124,24 @@ const DesktopWorkspace: React.FC<DesktopWorkspaceProps> = ({
 
   useEffect(() => {
     if (tenantId && viewId) {
+      // Clear store when switching views to prevent stale items
+      layoutStore.clear();
       layoutStore.loadLayout(String(tenantId), viewId);
     }
   }, [layoutStore, tenantId, viewId]);
 
+  // Sync LayoutStore items with current entries to remove stale items
+  useEffect(() => {
+    const currentIds = new Set(items.map((doc, index) => doc.id ? String(doc.id) : `temp-${index}`));
+
+    // Identify and remove items that are no longer present
+    for (const id of layoutStore.items.keys()) {
+      if (!currentIds.has(id)) {
+        layoutStore.unregister(id);
+      }
+    }
+  }, [items, layoutStore]);
+
   // Selection Context
   const {
     selectedDocumentIds,
@@ -216,8 +230,8 @@ const DesktopWorkspace: React.FC<DesktopWorkspaceProps> = ({
             const size = ensureDocumentSize(doc);
 
             const layoutCard = layoutStore.initialize(docId, null, {
-              width: size.width,
-              height: size.height
+              width: Number.isFinite(size.width) && size.width > 0 ? size.width : 200,
+              height: Number.isFinite(size.height) && size.height > 0 ? size.height : 200
             });
 
             return (
diff --git a/frontend/src/desktop/LayoutSystem.ts b/frontend/src/desktop/LayoutSystem.ts
index b19afcb..ded71b7 100644
--- a/frontend/src/desktop/LayoutSystem.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/desktop/LayoutSystem.ts
@@ -363,6 +363,12 @@ export class LayoutStore {
         this.items.delete(id);
     }
 
+    clear() {
+        this.items.clear();
+        this.zCounter = 100;
+        this.savedLayouts.clear();
+    }
+
     setContainerSize(width: number, height: number) {
         this.containerWidth = width;
         this.containerHeight = height;
diff --git a/frontend/src/desktop/hooks/usePreviewMetadata.ts b/frontend/src/desktop/hooks/usePreviewMetadata.ts
index ab8901e..86dfa04 100644
--- a/frontend/src/desktop/hooks/usePreviewMetadata.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/desktop/hooks/usePreviewMetadata.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import { useEffect, useState } from 'react';
+import { useEffect, useState, useRef } from 'react';
 import type { DocumentId } from '../../types/identifiers';
 import type { Document } from '../../types/documents';
 
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ const usePreviewMetadata = (
   ensureAssetUrl?: EnsureAssetUrl,
 ) => {
   const [metadataMap, setMetadataMap] = useState<Map<string, PreviewMetadataEntry>>(() => new Map());
+  const failedIds = useRef(new Set<string>()); // Track failed fetches to prevent loops
 
   useEffect(() => {
     let cancelled = false;
@@ -51,14 +52,23 @@ const usePreviewMetadata = (
         Number(meta.height) > 0;
 
       if (!hasDimensions(metadata) && ensureAssetUrl && docId && asset?.id) {
-        try {
-          const ensured = await ensureAssetUrl(doc.id, asset);
-          if (ensured) {
-            asset = ensured;
-            metadata = (asset?.metadata as { width?: number; height?: number } | null) || null;
+        // Skip if we already failed for this doc to avoid infinite loops
+        if (!failedIds.current.has(docId)) {
+          try {
+            const ensured = await ensureAssetUrl(doc.id, asset);
+            if (ensured) {
+              asset = ensured;
+              metadata = (asset?.metadata as { width?: number; height?: number } | null) || null;
+            }
+
+            // If still no dimensions, mark as failed so we don't try again
+            if (!hasDimensions(metadata)) {
+              failedIds.current.add(docId);
+            }
+          } catch (error) {
+            console.warn('[desk] ensureDocumentSize metadata fetch failed', error);
+            failedIds.current.add(docId);
           }
-        } catch (error) {
-          console.warn('[desk] ensureDocumentSize metadata fetch failed', error);
         }
       }