DemchaAV · DemchaAV · Jun 25, 2026 · Jun 25, 2026
@@ -12,6 +12,17 @@ PDF `GoTo` actions. External links are unchanged.
 
 ### Public API
 
+- **`addPageReference(anchor)` + `PageReferenceNode`** (`@since 1.9.0`). Prints the
+  page a declared `anchor(...)` lands on — a native "see page N" cross-reference —
+  in a single authoring pass. A document that contains a page reference is laid
+  out twice: the first pass resolves every anchor's page, the second renders the
+  references with the resolved numbers; the reference reserves only its content
+  width in both passes, so its own footprint does not shift the pages it reports.
+  Available on flows (`addPageReference(anchor)`) and inside rows (the number
+  column of a table-of-contents row). Documents without a page reference are
+  unaffected (single pass, byte-identical). `pageIndex()` remains for programmatic
+  access.
+
 - **`RowBuilder.columns(...)` + `DocumentRowColumn`** (`@since 1.9.0`). Size each row
   column explicitly: `DocumentRowColumn.fixed(pt)`, `auto()` (intrinsic content
   width), or `weight(w)` (a share of the space left after the fixed and intrinsic

@@ -101,7 +101,7 @@ are with the canonical DSL, then jump to its detailed section below.
 | [Charts](#charts) | Native vector bar, line, and pie/donut charts — data/spec/style layers, axis & grid toggles, point markers, value labels, legend | [PDF](../assets/readme/examples/chart-showcase.pdf) · [Source](src/main/java/com/demcha/examples/features/charts/ChartShowcaseExample.java) |
 | [PDF chrome](#pdf-chrome) | `DocumentMetadata`, `DocumentWatermark`, `DocumentHeaderFooter`, `DocumentBookmarkOptions` | [PDF](../assets/readme/examples/pdf-chrome.pdf) · [Source](src/main/java/com/demcha/examples/features/chrome/PdfChromeExample.java) |
 | [Page numbering](#page-numbering) | `DocumentPageNumbering` — offset / restart / roman / suppress-on-first-page for `{page}` / `{pages}` footer tokens | [PDF](../assets/readme/examples/page-numbering.pdf) · [Source](src/main/java/com/demcha/examples/features/chrome/PageNumberingExample.java) |
-| [Page references](#page-references) | `DocumentSession.pageIndex()` — resolve an `anchor(...)` to its page for a two-pass "see page N" cross-reference | [PDF](../assets/readme/examples/page-reference.pdf) · [Source](src/main/java/com/demcha/examples/features/navigation/PageReferenceExample.java) |
+| [Page references](#page-references) | `addPageReference(anchor)` — print the page an `anchor(...)` lands on (a native "see page N" cross-reference), resolved in one authoring pass | [PDF](../assets/readme/examples/page-reference.pdf) · [Source](src/main/java/com/demcha/examples/features/navigation/PageReferenceExample.java) |
 | [HTTP streaming](#http-streaming) | `writePdf(OutputStream)` for Servlet / S3 / GCS — caller's stream is not closed | [PDF](../assets/readme/examples/invoice-http-stream.pdf) · [Source](src/main/java/com/demcha/examples/features/streaming/HttpStreamingExample.java) |
 | [Word export (DOCX)](#word-export-docx) | `DocxSemanticBackend` — the same session renders a fixed-layout PDF and an editable Word file; paragraphs / lists / tables / images map 1:1, charts fall back to their data table | [PDF](../assets/readme/examples/word-export-companion.pdf) · [DOCX](../assets/readme/examples/word-export-companion.docx) · [Source](src/main/java/com/demcha/examples/features/docx/WordExportExample.java) |
 | [Layout snapshot regression](#layout-snapshot-regression) | Deterministic `layoutSnapshot()` workflow with baseline + drift report — production regression-testing pattern | [PDF](../assets/readme/examples/invoice-snapshot-regression.pdf) · [Source](src/main/java/com/demcha/examples/features/snapshots/LayoutSnapshotRegressionExample.java) |
@@ -704,16 +704,19 @@ session.chrome().footer(DocumentHeaderFooter.builder()
 
 ### Page references
 
-`DocumentSession.pageIndex()` resolves every declared `anchor(...)` to its final
-page, so a document can print a real "see page N" cross-reference. It is a
-two-pass workflow — a throwaway first pass lays the document out and reads the
-anchor's page; the second renders the same document with the resolved number.
-Computed from the layout graph (not from rendered bytes), so it is backend-neutral
-and consistent with where a `linkTo(anchor)` jumps.
+`addPageReference(anchor)` prints the page a declared `anchor(...)` lands on — a
+native "see page N" cross-reference — in a single authoring pass. The engine
+resolves the number from the laid-out document automatically (a second layout
+pass under the hood), so there is no manual probe-then-render. It is
+backend-neutral (read from the layout graph, not rendered bytes) and consistent
+with where a `linkTo(anchor)` jumps; `pageIndex()` remains for programmatic
+access.
 
 ```java
-int page = probe.pageIndex().pageNumberOf("appendix").orElse(0);
-// ... render again, printing "see page " + page
+flow.addRow(r -> r.columns(auto(), weight(1), auto())
+    .addParagraph("Appendix")
+    .addLine(l -> l.fill().dashed(0.1, 4).lineCap(DocumentLineCap.ROUND))  // dot leader
+    .addPageReference("appendix", style, TextAlign.RIGHT));                // resolves to the page
 ```
 
 [📄 View PDF](../assets/readme/examples/page-reference.pdf) ·

@@ -2,25 +2,28 @@
 
 import com.demcha.compose.GraphCompose;
 import com.demcha.compose.document.api.DocumentSession;
+import com.demcha.compose.document.node.TextAlign;
 import com.demcha.compose.document.style.DocumentColor;
 import com.demcha.compose.document.style.DocumentInsets;
+import com.demcha.compose.document.style.DocumentLineCap;
+import com.demcha.compose.document.style.DocumentRowColumn;
+import com.demcha.compose.document.style.DocumentStroke;
 import com.demcha.compose.document.style.DocumentTextStyle;
 import com.demcha.examples.support.ExampleOutputPaths;
 
 import java.nio.file.Path;
 
 /**
- * Runnable showcase for v1.9 page references: {@code DocumentSession.pageIndex()}
- * resolves a declared {@code anchor(...)} to its final page, so a document can
- * print a real "see page N" cross-reference.
- *
- * <p>It is a two-pass workflow — exactly what {@code pageIndex()} exists for. A
- * throwaway first pass lays out the document and reads the anchor's page; the
- * second pass renders the same document with the resolved number substituted.</p>
+ * Runnable showcase for v1.9 native page references: {@code addPageReference(anchor)}
+ * prints the page a declared {@code anchor(...)} lands on — the "see page N"
+ * cross-reference — in a single authoring pass. The engine resolves the number
+ * from the laid-out document automatically (a second layout pass), so there is no
+ * manual probe-then-render; {@code pageIndex()} remains for programmatic access.
  *
  * <pre>{@code
- * int page = probe.pageIndex().pageNumberOf("appendix").orElse(0);
- * // ... render again, printing "see page " + page
+ * flow.addRow(r -> r.columns(auto(), auto())
+ *     .addParagraph("Configuration is in the Appendix on page")
+ *     .addPageReference("appendix", style, TextAlign.LEFT));   // resolves to the real page
  * }</pre>
  *
  * @author Artem Demchyshyn
@@ -35,57 +38,45 @@ private PageReferenceExample() {
 
     /**
      * Renders a two-page note whose first page cross-references the appendix by
-     * its resolved page number.
+     * its resolved page number, in one authoring pass.
      *
      * @return path to the generated PDF
      * @throws Exception if rendering or file IO fails
      */
     public static Path generate() throws Exception {
         Path pdfFile = ExampleOutputPaths.prepare("features/navigation", "page-reference.pdf");
 
-        // Pass 1 — throwaway layout to resolve the anchor's page. The appendix is
-        // forced onto its own page by the break, so its page is stable regardless
-        // of the (still-unresolved) reference text on page 1.
-        int appendixPage;
-        try (DocumentSession probe = newSession(null)) {
-            compose(probe, 0);
-            appendixPage = probe.pageIndex().pageNumberOf("appendix").orElse(0);
-        }
-
-        // Pass 2 — render with the resolved cross-reference.
-        try (DocumentSession document = newSession(pdfFile)) {
-            compose(document, appendixPage);
-            document.buildPdf();
-        }
-        return pdfFile;
-    }
-
-    private static DocumentSession newSession(Path output) {
-        return (output == null ? GraphCompose.document() : GraphCompose.document(output))
-                .pageSize(320, 240)
-                .margin(DocumentInsets.of(30))
-                .create();
-    }
-
-    private static void compose(DocumentSession session, int appendixPage) {
         DocumentTextStyle title = DocumentTextStyle.DEFAULT.withSize(18).withColor(INK);
         DocumentTextStyle body = DocumentTextStyle.DEFAULT.withSize(11).withColor(INK);
         DocumentTextStyle ref = DocumentTextStyle.DEFAULT.withSize(11).withColor(MUTED);
 
-        session.pageFlow(page -> {
-            page.addParagraph(p -> p.text("Release notes").textStyle(title));
-            String reference = appendixPage > 0
-                    ? "Full configuration options are listed in the Appendix on page " + appendixPage + "."
-                    : "Full configuration options are listed in the Appendix.";
-            page.addParagraph(p -> p.text(reference).textStyle(ref).padding(DocumentInsets.top(10)));
+        try (DocumentSession document = GraphCompose.document(pdfFile)
+                .pageSize(320, 240)
+                .margin(DocumentInsets.of(30))
+                .create()) {
+            DocumentStroke dots = DocumentStroke.of(MUTED, 1.2);
+            document.pageFlow(page -> {
+                page.addParagraph(p -> p.text("Release notes").textStyle(title));
+                page.addParagraph(p -> p.text("Where to read more — the page resolves itself:")
+                        .textStyle(ref).padding(DocumentInsets.top(10)));
 
-            page.addPageBreak(b -> b.name("toAppendix"));
+                // One authoring pass: the reference resolves to the appendix's real page.
+                page.addRow(r -> r.gap(6).columns(DocumentRowColumn.auto(), DocumentRowColumn.weight(1), DocumentRowColumn.auto())
+                        .padding(DocumentInsets.top(8))
+                        .addParagraph(p -> p.text("Appendix").textStyle(body))
+                        .addLine(l -> l.fill().height(11).stroke(dots).dashed(0.1, 4).lineCap(DocumentLineCap.ROUND))
+                        .addPageReference("appendix", body, TextAlign.RIGHT));
 
-            page.addSection(s -> s.anchor("appendix")
-                    .addParagraph(p -> p.text("Appendix").textStyle(title)));
-            page.addParagraph(p -> p.text("Configuration keys, defaults, and units.")
-                    .textStyle(body).padding(DocumentInsets.top(6)));
-        });
+                page.addPageBreak(b -> b.name("toAppendix"));
+
+                page.addSection(s -> s.anchor("appendix")
+                        .addParagraph(p -> p.text("Appendix").textStyle(title)));
+                page.addParagraph(p -> p.text("Configuration keys, defaults, and units.")
+                        .textStyle(body).padding(DocumentInsets.top(6)));
+            });
+            document.buildPdf();
+        }
+        return pdfFile;
     }
 
     public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {

@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@
 import com.demcha.compose.document.layout.*;
 import com.demcha.compose.document.node.ContainerNode;
 import com.demcha.compose.document.node.DocumentNode;
+import com.demcha.compose.document.node.PageReferenceNode;
 import com.demcha.compose.document.output.*;
 import com.demcha.compose.document.snapshot.LayoutSnapshot;
 import com.demcha.compose.document.snapshot.PageIndex;
@@ -32,7 +33,9 @@
 import java.nio.file.Path;
 import java.util.ArrayList;
 import java.util.Collection;
+import java.util.HashMap;
 import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Map;
 import java.util.Objects;
 import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
 import java.util.function.Consumer;
@@ -63,6 +66,13 @@
 public final class DocumentSession implements AutoCloseable {
     private static final Logger LIFECYCLE_LOG = LoggerFactory.getLogger("com.demcha.compose.document.lifecycle");
 
+    /**
+     * Cap on page-reference recompiles after the first resolve. A table of
+     * contents converges in one recompile; the cap bounds a pathological document
+     * whose numbers keep shifting pages, falling back to the last layout.
+     */
+    private static final int MAX_PAGE_REFERENCE_PASSES = 5;
+
     private final String sessionId = Integer.toHexString(System.identityHashCode(this));
     private final Path defaultOutputFile;
     private final NodeRegistry registry;
@@ -754,8 +764,7 @@ public LayoutGraph layoutGraph() {
         long startNanos = System.nanoTime();
         LIFECYCLE_LOG.debug("document.layout.start sessionId={} revision={} roots={}", sessionId, revision, roots.size());
         try {
-            DocumentLayoutPassContext context = new DocumentLayoutPassContext(registry, canvas, measurementResources.fontLibrary(), measurementResources.textMeasurementSystem(), markdown);
-            LayoutGraph computed = layoutCache.layout(() -> DocumentPageBackgrounds.apply(compiler.compile(documentGraph(), context, context), pageBackgrounds));
+            LayoutGraph computed = layoutCache.layout(this::computeLayout);
             LIFECYCLE_LOG.debug("document.layout.end sessionId={} revision={} roots={} pages={} nodes={} fragments={} durationMs={}", sessionId, revision, roots.size(), computed.totalPages(), computed.nodes().size(), computed.fragments().size(), elapsedMillis(startNanos));
             return computed;
         } catch (RuntimeException ex) {
@@ -764,6 +773,57 @@ public LayoutGraph layoutGraph() {
         }
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Compiles the semantic graph for one layout revision. A document that
+     * contains a {@link PageReferenceNode} is compiled in two passes — the first
+     * resolves every anchor's page, the next renders the references with the
+     * resolved numbers — then re-resolved to a fixed point: if rendering the
+     * numbers shifted any anchor's page (a reference whose own width re-wrapped a
+     * neighbour and pushed content across a boundary), it recompiles with the new
+     * numbers until the pages stop moving, capped at {@link #MAX_PAGE_REFERENCE_PASSES}
+     * recompiles. All passes run inside the cache compute, so the result is cached
+     * once per revision. Documents without a page reference compile once and are
+     * byte-identical to before.
+     */
+    private LayoutGraph computeLayout() {
+        LayoutGraph graph = compilePass(Map.of());
+        if (!containsPageReference(roots)) {
+            return DocumentPageBackgrounds.apply(graph, pageBackgrounds);
+        }
+        Map<String, Integer> resolved = resolvedPageNumbers(graph);
+        for (int pass = 0; pass < MAX_PAGE_REFERENCE_PASSES; pass++) {
+            graph = compilePass(resolved);
+            Map<String, Integer> rendered = resolvedPageNumbers(graph);
+            if (rendered.equals(resolved)) {
+                return DocumentPageBackgrounds.apply(graph, pageBackgrounds);
+            }
+            resolved = rendered;
+        }
+        LIFECYCLE_LOG.debug("document.layout.pageReference.unconverged sessionId={} passes={}", sessionId, MAX_PAGE_REFERENCE_PASSES);
+        return DocumentPageBackgrounds.apply(graph, pageBackgrounds);
+    }
+
+    private LayoutGraph compilePass(Map<String, Integer> resolvedPages) {
+        DocumentLayoutPassContext context = new DocumentLayoutPassContext(registry, canvas,
+                measurementResources.fontLibrary(), measurementResources.textMeasurementSystem(), markdown, resolvedPages);
+        return compiler.compile(documentGraph(), context, context);
+    }
+
+    private static boolean containsPageReference(List<DocumentNode> nodes) {
+        for (DocumentNode node : nodes) {
+            if (node instanceof PageReferenceNode || containsPageReference(node.children())) {
+                return true;
+            }
+        }
+        return false;
+    }
+
+    private static Map<String, Integer> resolvedPageNumbers(LayoutGraph graph) {
+        Map<String, Integer> pages = new HashMap<>();
+        PageIndexExtractor.from(graph).all().forEach((anchor, reference) -> pages.put(anchor, reference.pageNumber()));
+        return pages;
+    }
+
     /**
      * Extracts the current deterministic layout snapshot used by regression tests.
      *

@@ -7,6 +7,8 @@
 import com.demcha.compose.document.node.ChartNode;
 import com.demcha.compose.document.node.DocumentLinkOptions;
 import com.demcha.compose.document.node.DocumentNode;
+import com.demcha.compose.document.node.PageReferenceNode;
+import com.demcha.compose.document.node.TextAlign;
 import com.demcha.compose.document.style.*;
 
 import java.awt.*;
@@ -958,6 +960,33 @@ public T addSection(String name, Consumer<SectionBuilder> spec) {
         return add(BuilderSupport.configure(new SectionBuilder().name(name), spec).build());
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Adds a page reference that prints the page number a named {@code anchor(...)}
+     * lands on — the "see page N" cross-reference. The number is resolved from the
+     * laid-out document automatically (a second layout pass), so no manual
+     * probe-then-render is needed. Uses the default text style, left-aligned.
+     *
+     * @param anchor the anchor whose page number is printed
+     * @return this builder
+     * @since 1.9.0
+     */
+    public T addPageReference(String anchor) {
+        return add(new PageReferenceNode(anchor, DocumentTextStyle.DEFAULT, TextAlign.LEFT));
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Adds a styled page reference (see {@link #addPageReference(String)}).
+     *
+     * @param anchor    the anchor whose page number is printed
+     * @param textStyle text style for the number
+     * @param align     horizontal alignment within the node box
+     * @return this builder
+     * @since 1.9.0
+     */
+    public T addPageReference(String anchor, DocumentTextStyle textStyle, TextAlign align) {
+        return add(new PageReferenceNode(anchor, textStyle, align));
+    }
+
     /**
      * Adds a heading bar with the default light-grey band look.
      *