diff --git a/core/artwork/processor_test.go b/core/artwork/processor_test.go
index bdb208562..3d145ff71 100644
--- a/core/artwork/processor_test.go
+++ b/core/artwork/processor_test.go
@@ -257,7 +257,7 @@ var _ = Describe("processItem", func() {
 		Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
 		Expect(iaA.Source).To(Equal("folder"))
 		Expect(filepath.ToSlash(iaA.SourcePath)).To(HaveSuffix("album-a/cover.jpg"))
-		Expect(iaA.RefMtime).To(Equal(int64(1000)))
+		Expect(iaA.RefMtime).To(Equal(time.Unix(1000, 0).UnixNano()))
 
 		// Poison the shared row's blurhash: the second item must dedup on hash, not re-decode.
 		poisoned := artRepo.Data[iaA.Hash]
@@ -270,13 +270,13 @@ var _ = Describe("processItem", func() {
 		Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
 		Expect(iaB.Hash).To(Equal(iaA.Hash))
 		Expect(filepath.ToSlash(iaB.SourcePath)).To(HaveSuffix("album-b/cover.jpg"))
-		Expect(iaB.RefMtime).To(Equal(int64(2000)))
+		Expect(iaB.RefMtime).To(Equal(time.Unix(2000, 0).UnixNano()))
 
 		// The first item's provenance survives the second item processing identical bytes.
 		iaAafter, err := artRepo.GetItemArtwork("al", "alA", model.ImageTypePrimary)
 		Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
 		Expect(filepath.ToSlash(iaAafter.SourcePath)).To(HaveSuffix("album-a/cover.jpg"))
-		Expect(iaAafter.RefMtime).To(Equal(int64(1000)))
+		Expect(iaAafter.RefMtime).To(Equal(time.Unix(1000, 0).UnixNano()))
 
 		// One shared artwork row, and dedup preserved it untouched.
 		Expect(artRepo.Data).To(HaveLen(1))
diff --git a/core/artwork/resolve.go b/core/artwork/resolve.go
index 862d0bee7..ff095bf24 100644
--- a/core/artwork/resolve.go
+++ b/core/artwork/resolve.go
@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ type resolution struct {
 	reader     io.ReadCloser // nil when no source yielded an image
 	source     string        // model.ItemArtwork.Source value: "folder", "embedded", "external", "upload", "generated"
 	sourcePath string        // backing library/upload file (folder/upload: the image; embedded: the audio file); "" otherwise
-	refMtime   int64         // mtime of sourcePath at resolution time; 0 when no sourcePath
+	refMtime   int64         // sourcePath mtime (unix-nanoseconds) at resolution; 0 when no sourcePath
 	// external source errored/timed out. With no reader: forces failed (never absent).
 	// On a hit: a higher-priority external step failed—serve this, but retry later.
 	extError bool
@@ -410,7 +410,7 @@ func mtimeOf(path string) int64 {
 	if err != nil {
 		return 0
 	}
-	return info.ModTime().Unix()
+	return info.ModTime().UnixNano()
 }
 
 // mtimeViaFS stats through the library FS instead of a joined absolute path,
@@ -423,7 +423,7 @@ func mtimeViaFS(fsys fs.FS, name string) int64 {
 	if err != nil {
 		return 0
 	}
-	return info.ModTime().Unix()
+	return info.ModTime().UnixNano()
 }
 
 // decodeTile and assembleTiles mirror playlistArtworkReader's createTile/
diff --git a/core/artwork/serving.go b/core/artwork/serving.go
index 9ba5647d7..4a1b9737a 100644
--- a/core/artwork/serving.go
+++ b/core/artwork/serving.go
@@ -145,7 +145,7 @@ func openOriginal(ia *model.ItemArtwork, mime string, store *ImageStore) (io.Rea
 			f.Close()
 			return nil, err
 		}
-		if ia.RefMtime != 0 && info.ModTime().Unix() != ia.RefMtime {
+		if ia.RefMtime != 0 && info.ModTime().UnixNano() != ia.RefMtime {
 			f.Close()
 			return nil, errStaleSource
 		}
@@ -158,7 +158,7 @@ func openOriginal(ia *model.ItemArtwork, mime string, store *ImageStore) (io.Rea
 		if err != nil {
 			return nil, err
 		}
-		if info.ModTime().Unix() != ia.RefMtime {
+		if info.ModTime().UnixNano() != ia.RefMtime {
 			return nil, errStaleSource
 		}
 	}
@@ -232,6 +232,16 @@ func (s *service) serveBytes(ctx context.Context, hash string, data []byte, last
 // serveMediaFile serves a track: own found art wins; an absent row delegates to the album;
 // a missing row extracts embedded art (if eligible, enqueuing) else delegates without enqueue.
 func (s *service) serveMediaFile(ctx context.Context, artID model.ArtworkID, size int, square bool) (*Image, error) {
+	// Per-track art can be disabled after mf rows were resolved (the setting is not in the
+	// config fingerprint). Honor it at serve time so a direct mf- URL falls back to disc/album
+	// instead of serving stale persisted embedded art.
+	if !conf.Server.EnableMediaFileCoverArt {
+		mf, err := s.ds.MediaFile(ctx).Get(artID.ID)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+		return s.Get(ctx, mf.DiscCoverArtID(), size, square)
+	}
 	ia, err := s.ds.Artwork(ctx).GetItemArtwork("mf", artID.ID, model.ImageTypePrimary)
 	switch {
 	case err == nil && ia.Hash != "":
@@ -362,7 +372,7 @@ func unixMtime(mtime int64) time.Time {
 	if mtime <= 0 {
 		return time.Time{}
 	}
-	return time.Unix(mtime, 0)
+	return time.Unix(0, mtime) // RefMtime is unix-nanoseconds
 }
 
 // resizedItem is an artworkReader that resizes bytes opened by open() and caches the
diff --git a/core/artwork/serving_test.go b/core/artwork/serving_test.go
index 35e92b522..9dc4db90d 100644
--- a/core/artwork/serving_test.go
+++ b/core/artwork/serving_test.go
@@ -219,6 +219,18 @@ var _ = Describe("Service", func() {
 			Expect(readAll(img)).To(Equal(coverBytes))
 		})
 
+		It("ignores a resolved mf row and delegates to the album when per-track art is disabled", func() {
+			conf.Server.EnableMediaFileCoverArt = false
+			// A resolved mf row exists (from when the setting was on) but must not be served.
+			seedFoundStore("mf", "mf7", []byte("stale embedded track art"))
+			seedFoundStore("al", "albz", coverBytes)
+			mfRepo.SetData(model.MediaFiles{{ID: "mf7", AlbumID: "albz"}})
+
+			img, err := svc.Get(ctx, model.MustParseArtworkID("mf-mf7"), 0, false)
+			Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+			Expect(readAll(img)).To(Equal(coverBytes), "album art, not the persisted embedded art")
+		})
+
 		It("delegates to the album when the track's state is absent", func() {
 			seedFoundStore("al", "albm", coverBytes)
 			Expect(artRepo.PutItemArtwork(&model.ItemArtwork{ItemKind: "mf", ItemID: "mf2"})).To(Succeed())
@@ -348,5 +360,5 @@ func fileMtime(path string) int64 {
 	GinkgoHelper()
 	info, err := os.Stat(path)
 	Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
-	return info.ModTime().Unix()
+	return info.ModTime().UnixNano()
 }
diff --git a/model/artwork.go b/model/artwork.go
index 6d343946e..a21936535 100644
--- a/model/artwork.go
+++ b/model/artwork.go
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@ type ItemArtwork struct {
 	Source    string `structs:"source"`
 	// SourcePath is the backing file (folder/upload: the image; embedded: the audio file); "" otherwise.
 	SourcePath string `structs:"source_path"`
-	// RefMtime is SourcePath's mtime at resolution; 0 when there is no SourcePath.
+	// RefMtime is SourcePath's mtime (unix-nanoseconds) at resolution; 0 when there is no SourcePath.
 	RefMtime int64 `structs:"ref_mtime"`
 	// attempted_at/updated_at are nullable in the schema but always set by PutItemArtwork;
 	// raw inserts must set them too, since these non-pointer time.Time fields fail to scan NULL.