diff --git a/.changeset/20044-services-title-pointers.md b/.changeset/20044-services-title-pointers.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..971e2f97747
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changeset/20044-services-title-pointers.md
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+---
+"@objectstack/plugin-approvals": patch
+"@objectstack/plugin-security": patch
+"@objectstack/service-messaging": patch
+"@objectstack/service-realtime": patch
+---
+
+fix(plugin-approvals, plugin-security, service-messaging, service-realtime): nine system objects that relied on `titleFormat` declare a title pointer, so their record title is no longer the raw id (#20044)
+
+Clause-②: no
+
+ADR-0079 resolves a record's title as `nameField`, then `displayNameField`, then a derivation, and an explicit `nameField` takes precedence over the render-only `titleFormat`. Nine system objects declared a `titleFormat` and no pointer. When such an object is registered, the registry's designate-only pass picks the first title-eligible field as `nameField`, and for these nine that field is `id`. A `/meta` read serves that pointer as if it had been declared, so a renderer that follows ADR-0079's order showed the raw record id as the record page's title.
+
+Eight of the titles are composites. Each of those objects now declares `display_title`, a formula field with `returnType: 'text'` over the same columns, and points `nameField` and `displayNameField` at it:
+
+- `sys_approval_delegation`: `{delegator_id} → {delegate_id}`;
+- `sys_position_permission_set`: `{position_id} → {permission_set_id}`;
+- `sys_user_permission_set`: `{user_id} → {permission_set_id}`;
+- `sys_user_position`: `{user_id} → {position}`;
+- `sys_notification_delivery`: `{channel} → {recipient_id}`;
+- `sys_notification_preference`: `{user_id} · {topic} · {channel}`;
+- `sys_notification_subscription`: `{principal} · {topic}`;
+- `sys_presence`: `{user_id} ({status})`.
+
+`sys_notification_receipt`'s title is the single column `{state}`, so its `nameField` and `displayNameField` now name `state` directly.
+
+This is the migration the `titleFormat` schema text prescribes: "Migrate a single-field title to nameField, a composite to a formula field designated as nameField". The record title is now the text the `titleFormat` described. Every column these titles read is required, so the formulas carry no null guard. Each formula reads only its own row's columns, never a field of a looked-up record.
+
+A formula field is computed when a record is read. It adds no database column, so no schema migration runs. Record reads and write responses of the eight objects now carry `display_title`, and the server-side title accessor (`resolveRecordTitle`) returns the title text instead of the raw id. No row scope, permission set or API method changes.
+
+`titleFormat` stays on all nine objects, unchanged, for renderers that still read it first. The set of fields `$search` scans is unchanged: a formula field is never a search target, and neither was `id`. On `sys_notification_receipt`, `state` was already in the set and now leads it. No search-companion column is provisioned for any of the nine.
+
+The new `display_title` label and help text are in each package's English bundle. The zh-CN, ja-JP and es-ES bundles carry the generator's English fill for them, recorded in the source-hash companions.
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/sys-approval-delegation-display-title.test.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/sys-approval-delegation-display-title.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..0c6cfe49cd1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/sys-approval-delegation-display-title.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,165 @@
+// Copyright (c) 2026 ObjectStack. Licensed under the Apache-2.0 license.
+
+/**
+ * The record title of `sys_approval_delegation`, which declared a
+ * `titleFormat` and no title pointer (#20044).
+ *
+ * ADR-0079 resolves a record's title as `nameField ?? displayNameField ??
+ * derivation`, and an explicit `nameField` takes precedence over the
+ * render-only `titleFormat`. With no pointer declared, the registry's
+ * designate-only pass (`provisionPrimary(…, { synthesize: false })`) stamped
+ * `nameField: 'id'` — the first title-eligible field — onto the registered
+ * body, and a `/meta` read serves that stamp as if the author had written it.
+ * A renderer honouring the order therefore drew the raw id as the record
+ * page's H1.
+ *
+ * The object now points at `display_title`, a text formula over the columns
+ * `titleFormat` names. Through the real engine this file asserts:
+ *
+ *  1. the body the registry holds after registration names `display_title`;
+ *  2. a seeded row's H1 is the `titleFormat` text, not the id, and the
+ *     server-side accessor (`resolveRecordTitle`) agrees;
+ *  3. a row missing a title column is refused by the write path, so the
+ *     formula never sees a NULL part (the sibling of #20015's nullable legs:
+ *     here every title column is required);
+ *  4. the formula reads exactly the columns `titleFormat` names, on this row
+ *     only, each required and none withheld from a reader of the row;
+ *  5. the formula adds no stored column, and no search companion column
+ *     either — not even where pinyin search provisions one (a formula is
+ *     never a companion source).
+ */
+
+import { describe, it, expect, beforeAll, afterAll } from 'vitest';
+import {
+  ObjectQL,
+  SEARCH_COMPANION_FIELD,
+  provisionSearchCompanion,
+  resolveRecordTitle,
+  resolveSearchCompanionSources,
+} from '@objectstack/objectql';
+import { SqlDriver } from '@objectstack/driver-sql';
+import { resolveDisplayField } from '@objectstack/spec/data';
+import { SysApprovalDelegation } from './sys-approval-delegation.object.js';
+
+const SYS = { context: { isSystem: true } } as any;
+const OBJECT = 'sys_approval_delegation';
+
+/** The `titleFormat` source: the parsed schema carries it as an envelope. */
+function titleFormatSource(schema: unknown): string {
+  const tf = (schema as { titleFormat?: unknown }).titleFormat;
+  const source = typeof tf === 'string' ? tf : (tf as { source?: unknown })?.source;
+  if (typeof source !== 'string') throw new Error(`titleFormat carries no template source: ${JSON.stringify(tf)}`);
+  return source;
+}
+
+/**
+ * The H1 a `titleFormat`-first renderer draws: each `{field}` placeholder
+ * substituted with the row's value. It is the reference the formula has to
+ * reproduce, not a second title resolver.
+ */
+function renderTitleFormat(schema: unknown, row: Record<string, unknown>): string {
+  return titleFormatSource(schema).replace(/\{\{?\s*([a-zA-Z0-9_.]+)\s*\}?\}/g, (_m, key: string) => String(row[key] ?? ''));
+}
+
+/** The columns `titleFormat` names. */
+function titleFormatColumns(schema: unknown): string[] {
+  return [...titleFormatSource(schema).matchAll(/\{\{?\s*([a-zA-Z0-9_.]+)\s*\}?\}/g)].map((m) => m[1]).sort();
+}
+
+/** Every `record.<path>` the `display_title` expression reads, as written. */
+function formulaReads(schema: { fields: Record<string, any> }): string[] {
+  const source = schema.fields.display_title?.expression?.source;
+  if (typeof source !== 'string') throw new Error('display_title carries no expression source');
+  return [...source.matchAll(/record\.([A-Za-z_][A-Za-z0-9_.]*)/g)].map((m) => m[1]).sort();
+}
+
+/** The stored row as a hook body holds it: no formula value on it. */
+function storedOnly(row: Record<string, unknown>): Record<string, unknown> {
+  const { display_title: _omit, ...rest } = row;
+  return rest;
+}
+
+describe('[#20044] sys_approval_delegation resolves a real record title under ADR-0079 order', () => {
+  let engine: ObjectQL;
+  let driver: SqlDriver;
+
+  beforeAll(async () => {
+    engine = new ObjectQL();
+    driver = new SqlDriver({
+      client: 'better-sqlite3',
+      connection: { filename: ':memory:' },
+      useNullAsDefault: true,
+    });
+    engine.registerDriver(driver, true);
+    await engine.init();
+    engine.registry.registerObject(SysApprovalDelegation as any, 'com.objectstack.test.20044');
+    await engine.syncSchemas();
+  });
+
+  afterAll(async () => {
+    try { await engine?.destroy(); } catch { /* noop */ }
+  });
+
+  it('the registered body points at display_title, a text formula — not the id the designation pass stamped', () => {
+    const registered = engine.registry.getObject(OBJECT) as any;
+    expect(registered.nameField).toBe('display_title');
+    expect(registered.displayNameField).toBe('display_title');
+    expect(resolveDisplayField(registered)).toBe('display_title');
+    expect(registered.fields.display_title?.type).toBe('formula');
+    expect(registered.fields.display_title?.returnType).toBe('text');
+  });
+
+  it('the H1 is "{delegator_id} → {delegate_id}", not the id', async () => {
+    const registered = engine.registry.getObject(OBJECT) as any;
+    const created = await engine.insert(OBJECT, { delegator_id: 'usr_alice', delegate_id: 'usr_bob' }, SYS);
+    // The write response carries the title too (read-your-write).
+    expect(created.display_title).toBe('usr_alice → usr_bob');
+    const row = await engine.findOne(OBJECT, { where: { id: created.id } }, SYS);
+    expect(row).not.toBeNull();
+
+    const h1 = row![resolveDisplayField(registered)!];
+    expect(h1).toBe('usr_alice → usr_bob');
+    expect(h1).not.toBe(row!.id);
+    expect(h1).toBe(renderTitleFormat(SysApprovalDelegation, row!));
+    expect(resolveRecordTitle(registered, storedOnly(row!))).toBe('usr_alice → usr_bob');
+  });
+
+  it('a row missing a title column is refused, so the formula never sees a NULL part', async () => {
+    for (const [omit, keep] of [['delegator_id', { delegate_id: 'usr_bob' }], ['delegate_id', { delegator_id: 'usr_alice' }]] as const) {
+      await expect(engine.insert(OBJECT, keep, SYS)).rejects.toMatchObject({
+        code: 'VALIDATION_FAILED',
+        fields: expect.arrayContaining([expect.objectContaining({ field: omit, code: 'required' })]),
+      });
+    }
+  });
+
+  it('the formula reads exactly the titleFormat columns, on this row, each required and none withheld', () => {
+    const fields = SysApprovalDelegation.fields as Record<string, any>;
+    const reads = formulaReads(SysApprovalDelegation as any);
+    // One level deep: a dotted path would read a looked-up record's field.
+    expect(reads).toEqual(titleFormatColumns(SysApprovalDelegation));
+    for (const column of reads) {
+      expect(fields[column], column).toBeDefined();
+      expect(fields[column].required, column).toBe(true);
+      expect(fields[column].hidden ?? false, column).toBe(false);
+      expect(fields[column].requiredPermissions ?? [], column).toEqual([]);
+      expect(fields[column].maskingRule, column).toBeUndefined();
+    }
+  });
+
+  it('adds no stored column: the formula is computed on read', async () => {
+    const columns = Object.keys(await driver.getKnex()(OBJECT).columnInfo());
+    expect(columns).toContain('delegator_id');
+    expect(columns).not.toContain('display_title');
+  });
+
+  it('provisions no search companion column, even where pinyin search is on', () => {
+    // The companion (`__search`) is a real column fed by the title field. A
+    // registry provisions it only where pinyin search is on, by running
+    // `provisionSearchCompanion` over the body it has just designated, so run
+    // that step over the registered body. A formula title is never a source.
+    const registered = engine.registry.getObject(OBJECT) as any;
+    expect(resolveSearchCompanionSources(registered)).toEqual([]);
+    expect(provisionSearchCompanion(registered).fields[SEARCH_COMPANION_FIELD]).toBeUndefined();
+  });
+});
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/sys-approval-delegation.object.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/sys-approval-delegation.object.ts
index a0faafbaf97..777291e3a6e 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/sys-approval-delegation.object.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/sys-approval-delegation.object.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 // Copyright (c) 2026 ObjectStack. Licensed under the Apache-2.0 license.
 
 import { ObjectSchema, Field } from '@objectstack/spec/data';
+import { F } from '@objectstack/spec';
 
 /**
  * sys_approval_delegation — self-service out-of-office (OOO) delegation (#1322 M1).
@@ -40,6 +41,15 @@ export const SysApprovalDelegation = ObjectSchema.create({
   managedBy: 'system-data',
   description:
     'Self-service out-of-office rule: route this user\'s approver slots to a delegate within a time window (#1322 M1).',
+  // [ADR-0079] The record title is `display_title`, a text formula over the
+  // same two columns `titleFormat` names. With no pointer declared, the
+  // registry's designate-only pass stamped `nameField: 'id'` (the first
+  // title-eligible field), so a renderer honouring ADR-0079's order (an
+  // explicit `nameField` wins over `titleFormat`) drew the raw id as the record
+  // page's H1. `titleFormat` stays for renderers that still read it first;
+  // `sys-approval-delegation-display-title.test.ts` holds the two to the same text.
+  displayNameField: 'display_title',
+  nameField: 'display_title', // [ADR-0079] canonical primary-title pointer (mirrors deprecated displayNameField)
   titleFormat: '{delegator_id} → {delegate_id}',
   highlightFields: ['delegator_id', 'delegate_id', 'valid_from', 'valid_until'],
 
@@ -62,6 +72,17 @@ export const SysApprovalDelegation = ObjectSchema.create({
   fields: {
     id: Field.text({ label: 'Delegation ID', required: true, readonly: true, group: 'System' }),
 
+    // [ADR-0079] The record title (`nameField` above). A formula is computed on
+    // read and has no stored column. Both source columns are required, so the
+    // expression needs no null guard.
+    display_title: Field.formula({
+      label: 'Title',
+      returnType: 'text',
+      expression: F`record.delegator_id + ' → ' + record.delegate_id`,
+      description: 'Record title: the delegator and the delegate (computed on read)',
+      group: 'Delegation',
+    }),
+
     delegator_id: Field.lookup('sys_user', {
       label: 'Delegator',
       required: true,
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts
index 31cb44d26b9..36b05f628d8 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts
@@ -302,6 +302,10 @@ export const enObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "Delegation ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the delegator and the delegate (computed on read)"
+      },
       delegator_id: {
         label: "Delegator",
         help: "The user going out of office; their individually-routed approver slots are rerouted while active."
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts
index 946b5aef792..2076285dd1c 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts
@@ -302,6 +302,10 @@ export const esESObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "Delegation ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the delegator and the delegate (computed on read)"
+      },
       delegator_id: {
         label: "Delegator",
         help: "The user going out of office; their individually-routed approver slots are rerouted while active."
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts
index 5cc4abc43f3..f48e8b04945 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts
@@ -28,6 +28,8 @@ export const esESGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
   "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.delegate_id.label": "afd6d8733dc5bc14",
   "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.delegator_id.help": "c4686c5c9f24e0be",
   "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.delegator_id.label": "f76b1f95f2fdabff",
+  "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.display_title.help": "2831a1ffde72b425",
+  "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
   "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.id.label": "3383564051b4b76d",
   "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.organization_id.help": "f02982e88229d9ca",
   "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.organization_id.label": "3e55836156e1c1de",
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts
index ff60085bfae..0d88fd82f7e 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts
@@ -302,6 +302,10 @@ export const jaJPObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "Delegation ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the delegator and the delegate (computed on read)"
+      },
       delegator_id: {
         label: "Delegator",
         help: "The user going out of office; their individually-routed approver slots are rerouted while active."
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts
index 1ae3cd1db98..9e9a64105b0 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts
@@ -27,6 +27,8 @@ export const jaJPGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
   "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.delegate_id.label": "afd6d8733dc5bc14",
   "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.delegator_id.help": "c4686c5c9f24e0be",
   "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.delegator_id.label": "f76b1f95f2fdabff",
+  "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.display_title.help": "2831a1ffde72b425",
+  "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
   "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.id.label": "3383564051b4b76d",
   "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.organization_id.help": "f02982e88229d9ca",
   "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.organization_id.label": "3e55836156e1c1de",
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts
index 85f126e8122..b0fc03ce2e5 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts
@@ -302,6 +302,10 @@ export const zhCNObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "委派 ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the delegator and the delegate (computed on read)"
+      },
       delegator_id: {
         label: "委派人",
         help: "即将不在岗的用户；规则生效期间，路由到其个人的审批人槽位将被改派。"
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts
index db1ec71ba19..08320d78c50 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-approvals/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts
@@ -18,6 +18,8 @@
  */
 
 export const zhCNGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
+  "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.display_title.help": "2831a1ffde72b425",
+  "objects.sys_approval_delegation.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
   "objects.sys_approval_request.fields.flow_node_id.help": "154aa23b4eee4cae",
   "objects.sys_approval_request.fields.flow_node_id.label": "052ad568aa41227c",
   "objects.sys_approval_request.fields.flow_run_id.help": "35c92818f5e11090",
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-position-permission-set.object.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-position-permission-set.object.ts
index 22a3b781910..e4966389f16 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-position-permission-set.object.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-position-permission-set.object.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 // Copyright (c) 2025 ObjectStack. Licensed under the Apache-2.0 license.
 
 import { ObjectSchema, Field } from '@objectstack/spec/data';
+import { F } from '@objectstack/spec';
 
 /**
  * sys_position_permission_set — Position ↔ PermissionSet binding.
@@ -30,6 +31,15 @@ export const SysPositionPermissionSet = ObjectSchema.create({
   // `userActions` block is needed — the DelegatedAdminGate is the authz.
   managedBy: 'system-data',
   description: 'Binds a permission set to a position.',
+  // [ADR-0079] The record title is `display_title`, a text formula over the
+  // same two columns `titleFormat` names. With no pointer declared, the
+  // registry's designate-only pass stamped `nameField: 'id'` (the first
+  // title-eligible field), so a renderer honouring ADR-0079's order (an
+  // explicit `nameField` wins over `titleFormat`) drew the raw id as the record
+  // page's H1. `titleFormat` stays for renderers that still read it first;
+  // `sys-security-assignment-display-title.test.ts` holds the two to the same text.
+  displayNameField: 'display_title',
+  nameField: 'display_title', // [ADR-0079] canonical primary-title pointer (mirrors deprecated displayNameField)
   titleFormat: '{position_id} → {permission_set_id}',
   highlightFields: ['position_id', 'permission_set_id'],
 
@@ -41,6 +51,19 @@ export const SysPositionPermissionSet = ObjectSchema.create({
       description: 'UUID of the position-permission-set binding.',
     }),
 
+    // [ADR-0079] The record title (`nameField` above). A formula is computed on
+    // read and has no stored column. It reads only this row's own columns —
+    // the two foreign keys, never a field of the looked-up records — and
+    // neither is hidden, permission-guarded or masked on this object, so the
+    // title carries nothing the declared read path withholds. Both are
+    // required, so the expression needs no null guard.
+    display_title: Field.formula({
+      label: 'Title',
+      returnType: 'text',
+      expression: F`record.position_id + ' → ' + record.permission_set_id`,
+      description: 'Record title: the position and the permission set bound to it (computed on read)',
+    }),
+
     position_id: Field.lookup('sys_position', {
       label: 'Position',
       required: true,
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-security-assignment-display-title.test.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-security-assignment-display-title.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..366072aea6b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-security-assignment-display-title.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,206 @@
+// Copyright (c) 2026 ObjectStack. Licensed under the Apache-2.0 license.
+
+/**
+ * The record title of the three permission-assignment tables, which declared a
+ * `titleFormat` and no title pointer (#20044): `sys_position_permission_set`,
+ * `sys_user_permission_set` and `sys_user_position`.
+ *
+ * ADR-0079 resolves a record's title as `nameField ?? displayNameField ??
+ * derivation`, and an explicit `nameField` takes precedence over the
+ * render-only `titleFormat`. With no pointer declared, the registry's
+ * designate-only pass (`provisionPrimary(…, { synthesize: false })`) stamped
+ * `nameField: 'id'` — the first title-eligible field — onto each registered
+ * body, and a `/meta` read serves that stamp as if the author had written it.
+ * A renderer honouring the order therefore drew the raw id as the record
+ * page's H1.
+ *
+ * Each object now points at `display_title`, a text formula over the columns
+ * its `titleFormat` names. Through the real engine this file asserts, per
+ * object:
+ *
+ *  1. the body the registry holds after registration names `display_title`;
+ *  2. a seeded row's H1 is the `titleFormat` text, not the id, and the
+ *     server-side accessor (`resolveRecordTitle`) agrees;
+ *  3. a row missing a title column is refused by the write path, so the
+ *     formula never sees a NULL part;
+ *  4. the formula adds no stored column, and no search companion column
+ *     either — not even where pinyin search provisions one (a formula is
+ *     never a companion source).
+ *
+ * And, because these are permission-assignment tables, the property the new
+ * field must not break: the formula reads exactly the columns `titleFormat`
+ * names, on this row only — a foreign key, never a field of the record it
+ * points at — and none of them is hidden, guarded by `requiredPermissions` or
+ * masked. So the title carries nothing the object's declared read path
+ * withholds from a reader of the row. No row scope, permission set or
+ * `apiMethods` entry changes; the formula is a read-only computed field.
+ */
+
+import { describe, it, expect, beforeAll, afterAll } from 'vitest';
+import {
+  ObjectQL,
+  SEARCH_COMPANION_FIELD,
+  provisionSearchCompanion,
+  resolveRecordTitle,
+  resolveSearchCompanionSources,
+} from '@objectstack/objectql';
+import { SqlDriver } from '@objectstack/driver-sql';
+import { resolveDisplayField } from '@objectstack/spec/data';
+import { SysPositionPermissionSet } from './sys-position-permission-set.object.js';
+import { SysUserPermissionSet } from './sys-user-permission-set.object.js';
+import { SysUserPosition } from './sys-user-position.object.js';
+
+const SYS = { context: { isSystem: true } } as any;
+
+interface Case {
+  schema: any;
+  row: Record<string, string>;
+  title: string;
+}
+
+const CASES: Case[] = [
+  {
+    schema: SysPositionPermissionSet,
+    row: { position_id: 'pos_sales', permission_set_id: 'ps_crm_edit' },
+    title: 'pos_sales → ps_crm_edit',
+  },
+  {
+    schema: SysUserPermissionSet,
+    row: { user_id: 'usr_alice', permission_set_id: 'ps_crm_edit' },
+    title: 'usr_alice → ps_crm_edit',
+  },
+  {
+    schema: SysUserPosition,
+    row: { user_id: 'usr_alice', position: 'sales_manager' },
+    title: 'usr_alice → sales_manager',
+  },
+];
+
+/** The `titleFormat` source: the parsed schema carries it as an envelope. */
+function titleFormatSource(schema: unknown): string {
+  const tf = (schema as { titleFormat?: unknown }).titleFormat;
+  const source = typeof tf === 'string' ? tf : (tf as { source?: unknown })?.source;
+  if (typeof source !== 'string') throw new Error(`titleFormat carries no template source: ${JSON.stringify(tf)}`);
+  return source;
+}
+
+/**
+ * The H1 a `titleFormat`-first renderer draws: each `{field}` placeholder
+ * substituted with the row's value. It is the reference the formula has to
+ * reproduce, not a second title resolver.
+ */
+function renderTitleFormat(schema: unknown, row: Record<string, unknown>): string {
+  return titleFormatSource(schema).replace(/\{\{?\s*([a-zA-Z0-9_.]+)\s*\}?\}/g, (_m, key: string) => String(row[key] ?? ''));
+}
+
+/** The columns `titleFormat` names. */
+function titleFormatColumns(schema: unknown): string[] {
+  return [...titleFormatSource(schema).matchAll(/\{\{?\s*([a-zA-Z0-9_.]+)\s*\}?\}/g)].map((m) => m[1]).sort();
+}
+
+/** Every `record.<path>` the `display_title` expression reads, as written. */
+function formulaReads(schema: { fields: Record<string, any> }): string[] {
+  const source = schema.fields.display_title?.expression?.source;
+  if (typeof source !== 'string') throw new Error('display_title carries no expression source');
+  return [...source.matchAll(/record\.([A-Za-z_][A-Za-z0-9_.]*)/g)].map((m) => m[1]).sort();
+}
+
+/** The stored row as a hook body holds it: no formula value on it. */
+function storedOnly(row: Record<string, unknown>): Record<string, unknown> {
+  const { display_title: _omit, ...rest } = row;
+  return rest;
+}
+
+describe('[#20044] permission-assignment tables resolve a real record title under ADR-0079 order', () => {
+  let engine: ObjectQL;
+  let driver: SqlDriver;
+
+  beforeAll(async () => {
+    engine = new ObjectQL();
+    driver = new SqlDriver({
+      client: 'better-sqlite3',
+      connection: { filename: ':memory:' },
+      useNullAsDefault: true,
+    });
+    engine.registerDriver(driver, true);
+    await engine.init();
+    for (const { schema } of CASES) {
+      engine.registry.registerObject(schema, 'com.objectstack.test.20044');
+    }
+    await engine.syncSchemas();
+  });
+
+  afterAll(async () => {
+    try { await engine?.destroy(); } catch { /* noop */ }
+  });
+
+  for (const { schema, row: data, title } of CASES) {
+    const object: string = schema.name;
+
+    it(`${object}: the registered body points at display_title, a text formula — not the id the designation pass stamped`, () => {
+      const registered = engine.registry.getObject(object) as any;
+      expect(registered.nameField).toBe('display_title');
+      expect(registered.displayNameField).toBe('display_title');
+      expect(resolveDisplayField(registered)).toBe('display_title');
+      expect(registered.fields.display_title?.type).toBe('formula');
+      expect(registered.fields.display_title?.returnType).toBe('text');
+    });
+
+    it(`${object}: the H1 is "${titleFormatSource(schema)}", not the id`, async () => {
+      const registered = engine.registry.getObject(object) as any;
+      const created = await engine.insert(object, data, SYS);
+      expect(created.display_title).toBe(title);
+      const row = await engine.findOne(object, { where: { id: created.id } }, SYS);
+      expect(row).not.toBeNull();
+
+      const h1 = row![resolveDisplayField(registered)!];
+      expect(h1).toBe(title);
+      expect(h1).not.toBe(row!.id);
+      expect(h1).toBe(renderTitleFormat(schema, row!));
+      expect(resolveRecordTitle(registered, storedOnly(row!))).toBe(title);
+    });
+
+    it(`${object}: a row missing a title column is refused, so the formula never sees a NULL part`, async () => {
+      for (const omit of Object.keys(data)) {
+        const partial: Record<string, string> = { ...data };
+        delete partial[omit];
+        await expect(engine.insert(object, partial, SYS)).rejects.toMatchObject({
+          code: 'VALIDATION_FAILED',
+          fields: expect.arrayContaining([expect.objectContaining({ field: omit, code: 'required' })]),
+        });
+      }
+    });
+
+    it(`${object}: the formula reads exactly the titleFormat columns, on this row, each required and none withheld`, () => {
+      const fields = schema.fields as Record<string, any>;
+      const reads = formulaReads(schema);
+      // One level deep: a dotted path would read a looked-up record's field,
+      // which a reader of this row may not be allowed to see.
+      expect(reads).toEqual(titleFormatColumns(schema));
+      for (const column of reads) {
+        expect(fields[column], column).toBeDefined();
+        expect(fields[column].required, column).toBe(true);
+        expect(fields[column].hidden ?? false, column).toBe(false);
+        expect(fields[column].requiredPermissions ?? [], column).toEqual([]);
+        expect(fields[column].maskingRule, column).toBeUndefined();
+      }
+    });
+
+    it(`${object}: adds no stored column — the formula is computed on read`, async () => {
+      const columns = Object.keys(await driver.getKnex()(object).columnInfo());
+      expect(columns).toContain(Object.keys(data)[0]);
+      expect(columns).not.toContain('display_title');
+    });
+
+    it(`${object}: provisions no search companion column, even where pinyin search is on`, () => {
+      // The companion (`__search`) is a real column fed by the title field. A
+      // registry provisions it only where pinyin search is on, by running
+      // `provisionSearchCompanion` over the body it has just designated, so
+      // run that step over the registered body. A formula title is never a
+      // source.
+      const registered = engine.registry.getObject(object) as any;
+      expect(resolveSearchCompanionSources(registered)).toEqual([]);
+      expect(provisionSearchCompanion(registered).fields[SEARCH_COMPANION_FIELD]).toBeUndefined();
+    });
+  }
+});
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-user-permission-set.object.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-user-permission-set.object.ts
index 5982129da6c..a73696a9e46 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-user-permission-set.object.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-user-permission-set.object.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 // Copyright (c) 2025 ObjectStack. Licensed under the Apache-2.0 license.
 
 import { ObjectSchema, Field } from '@objectstack/spec/data';
+import { F } from '@objectstack/spec';
 
 /**
  * sys_user_permission_set — User ↔ PermissionSet assignment.
@@ -29,6 +30,15 @@ export const SysUserPermissionSet = ObjectSchema.create({
   // needed — the DelegatedAdminGate is the authz.
   managedBy: 'system-data',
   description: 'Direct assignment of a permission set to a user (optionally scoped to an organization).',
+  // [ADR-0079] The record title is `display_title`, a text formula over the
+  // same two columns `titleFormat` names. With no pointer declared, the
+  // registry's designate-only pass stamped `nameField: 'id'` (the first
+  // title-eligible field), so a renderer honouring ADR-0079's order (an
+  // explicit `nameField` wins over `titleFormat`) drew the raw id as the record
+  // page's H1. `titleFormat` stays for renderers that still read it first;
+  // `sys-security-assignment-display-title.test.ts` holds the two to the same text.
+  displayNameField: 'display_title',
+  nameField: 'display_title', // [ADR-0079] canonical primary-title pointer (mirrors deprecated displayNameField)
   titleFormat: '{user_id} → {permission_set_id}',
   highlightFields: ['user_id', 'permission_set_id', 'organization_id'],
 
@@ -40,6 +50,19 @@ export const SysUserPermissionSet = ObjectSchema.create({
       description: 'UUID of the assignment.',
     }),
 
+    // [ADR-0079] The record title (`nameField` above). A formula is computed on
+    // read and has no stored column. It reads only this row's own columns —
+    // the two foreign keys, never a field of the looked-up records — and
+    // neither is hidden, permission-guarded or masked on this object, so the
+    // title carries nothing the declared read path withholds. Both are
+    // required, so the expression needs no null guard.
+    display_title: Field.formula({
+      label: 'Title',
+      returnType: 'text',
+      expression: F`record.user_id + ' → ' + record.permission_set_id`,
+      description: 'Record title: the user and the permission set assigned to them (computed on read)',
+    }),
+
     user_id: Field.lookup('sys_user', {
       label: 'User',
       required: true,
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-user-position.object.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-user-position.object.ts
index c142203555c..8b19ca3064c 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-user-position.object.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/objects/sys-user-position.object.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 // Copyright (c) 2026 ObjectStack. Licensed under the Apache-2.0 license.
 
 import { ObjectSchema, Field } from '@objectstack/spec/data';
+import { F } from '@objectstack/spec';
 import { reservedIdentityNamesCelList, reservedIdentityNameMessage } from './reserved-identity-names.js';
 
 /**
@@ -41,6 +42,15 @@ export const SysUserPosition = ObjectSchema.create({
   // a declaration only; the DelegatedAdminGate is the authz.
   managedBy: 'system-data',
   description: 'Assigns a position (sys_position.name) to a user. Platform-owned (ADR-0057 D4, ADR-0090 D3).',
+  // [ADR-0079] The record title is `display_title`, a text formula over the
+  // same two columns `titleFormat` names. With no pointer declared, the
+  // registry's designate-only pass stamped `nameField: 'id'` (the first
+  // title-eligible field), so a renderer honouring ADR-0079's order (an
+  // explicit `nameField` wins over `titleFormat`) drew the raw id as the record
+  // page's H1. `titleFormat` stays for renderers that still read it first;
+  // `sys-security-assignment-display-title.test.ts` holds the two to the same text.
+  displayNameField: 'display_title',
+  nameField: 'display_title', // [ADR-0079] canonical primary-title pointer (mirrors deprecated displayNameField)
   titleFormat: '{user_id} → {position}',
   highlightFields: ['user_id', 'position', 'business_unit_id', 'organization_id'],
 
@@ -52,6 +62,19 @@ export const SysUserPosition = ObjectSchema.create({
       description: 'UUID of the user-position assignment.',
     }),
 
+    // [ADR-0079] The record title (`nameField` above). A formula is computed on
+    // read and has no stored column. It reads only this row's own columns —
+    // the user foreign key and the position name, never a field of the user
+    // record — and neither is hidden, permission-guarded or masked on this
+    // object, so the title carries nothing the declared read path withholds.
+    // Both are required, so the expression needs no null guard.
+    display_title: Field.formula({
+      label: 'Title',
+      returnType: 'text',
+      expression: F`record.user_id + ' → ' + record.position`,
+      description: 'Record title: the user and the position they hold (computed on read)',
+    }),
+
     user_id: Field.lookup('sys_user', {
       label: 'User',
       required: true,
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts
index 018f2123a14..0d7ac44750f 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts
@@ -318,6 +318,10 @@ export const enObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
         label: "Assignment ID",
         help: "UUID of the assignment."
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user and the permission set assigned to them (computed on read)"
+      },
       user_id: {
         label: "User",
         help: "Foreign key to sys_user."
@@ -371,6 +375,10 @@ export const enObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
         label: "Binding ID",
         help: "UUID of the position-permission-set binding."
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the position and the permission set bound to it (computed on read)"
+      },
       position_id: {
         label: "Position",
         help: "Foreign key to sys_position."
@@ -396,6 +404,10 @@ export const enObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
         label: "Assignment ID",
         help: "UUID of the user-position assignment."
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user and the position they hold (computed on read)"
+      },
       user_id: {
         label: "User",
         help: "Foreign key to sys_user."
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts
index 3485d07ba03..ce61465e6b6 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts
@@ -318,6 +318,10 @@ export const esESObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
         label: "ID de asignación",
         help: "UUID de la asignación."
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user and the permission set assigned to them (computed on read)"
+      },
       user_id: {
         label: "Usuario",
         help: "Clave foránea a sys_user."
@@ -371,6 +375,10 @@ export const esESObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
         label: "ID de vinculación",
         help: "UUID de la vinculación puesto-conjunto de permisos."
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the position and the permission set bound to it (computed on read)"
+      },
       position_id: {
         label: "Puesto",
         help: "Clave foránea a sys_position."
@@ -396,6 +404,10 @@ export const esESObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
         label: "ID de asignación",
         help: "UUID de la asignación usuario-puesto."
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user and the position they hold (computed on read)"
+      },
       user_id: {
         label: "Usuario",
         help: "Clave foránea a sys_user."
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts
index 859f9d0ddd0..ea72549b538 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts
@@ -30,5 +30,11 @@ export const esESGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
   "objects.sys_permission_set.fields.drift_status.options.overlay_shadow": "7371472481b55b52",
   "objects.sys_permission_set.fields.drift_status.options.provenance_skip": "fdd5f01e69fa0245",
   "objects.sys_position._validations.reserved_identity_name.message": "a23aa7c06745cc95",
+  "objects.sys_position_permission_set.fields.display_title.help": "b99cbdc42ee68f06",
+  "objects.sys_position_permission_set.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
+  "objects.sys_user_permission_set.fields.display_title.help": "ee7ef063488cd6c3",
+  "objects.sys_user_permission_set.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
   "objects.sys_user_position._validations.reserved_identity_position.message": "f35df6c1ef1493b0",
+  "objects.sys_user_position.fields.display_title.help": "39b5571b48e7d800",
+  "objects.sys_user_position.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
 };
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts
index a9a05673a9f..b2ff622896f 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts
@@ -318,6 +318,10 @@ export const jaJPObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
         label: "割り当て ID",
         help: "割り当ての UUID。"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user and the permission set assigned to them (computed on read)"
+      },
       user_id: {
         label: "ユーザー",
         help: "sys_user への外部キー。"
@@ -371,6 +375,10 @@ export const jaJPObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
         label: "バインド ID",
         help: "ポジション権限セットバインドの UUID。"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the position and the permission set bound to it (computed on read)"
+      },
       position_id: {
         label: "ポジション",
         help: "sys_position への外部キー。"
@@ -396,6 +404,10 @@ export const jaJPObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
         label: "割り当て ID",
         help: "ユーザーポジション割り当ての UUID。"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user and the position they hold (computed on read)"
+      },
       user_id: {
         label: "ユーザー",
         help: "sys_user への外部キー。"
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts
index 606307a04fd..fdc3773b416 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts
@@ -30,5 +30,11 @@ export const jaJPGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
   "objects.sys_permission_set.fields.drift_status.options.overlay_shadow": "7371472481b55b52",
   "objects.sys_permission_set.fields.drift_status.options.provenance_skip": "fdd5f01e69fa0245",
   "objects.sys_position._validations.reserved_identity_name.message": "a23aa7c06745cc95",
+  "objects.sys_position_permission_set.fields.display_title.help": "b99cbdc42ee68f06",
+  "objects.sys_position_permission_set.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
+  "objects.sys_user_permission_set.fields.display_title.help": "ee7ef063488cd6c3",
+  "objects.sys_user_permission_set.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
   "objects.sys_user_position._validations.reserved_identity_position.message": "f35df6c1ef1493b0",
+  "objects.sys_user_position.fields.display_title.help": "39b5571b48e7d800",
+  "objects.sys_user_position.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
 };
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts
index deed8c1448f..c9f175a080a 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts
@@ -318,6 +318,10 @@ export const zhCNObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
         label: "分配 ID",
         help: "该分配记录的 UUID。"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user and the permission set assigned to them (computed on read)"
+      },
       user_id: {
         label: "用户",
         help: "指向 sys_user 的外键。"
@@ -371,6 +375,10 @@ export const zhCNObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
         label: "绑定 ID",
         help: "岗位-权限集绑定记录的 UUID。"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the position and the permission set bound to it (computed on read)"
+      },
       position_id: {
         label: "岗位",
         help: "指向 sys_position 的外键。"
@@ -396,6 +404,10 @@ export const zhCNObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
         label: "分配 ID",
         help: "用户-岗位分配的 UUID。"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user and the position they hold (computed on read)"
+      },
       user_id: {
         label: "用户",
         help: "指向 sys_user 的外键。"
diff --git a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts
index 828abf2f582..1151b17de31 100644
--- a/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/plugins/plugin-security/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts
@@ -30,5 +30,11 @@ export const zhCNGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
   "objects.sys_permission_set.fields.drift_status.options.overlay_shadow": "7371472481b55b52",
   "objects.sys_permission_set.fields.drift_status.options.provenance_skip": "fdd5f01e69fa0245",
   "objects.sys_position._validations.reserved_identity_name.message": "a23aa7c06745cc95",
+  "objects.sys_position_permission_set.fields.display_title.help": "b99cbdc42ee68f06",
+  "objects.sys_position_permission_set.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
+  "objects.sys_user_permission_set.fields.display_title.help": "ee7ef063488cd6c3",
+  "objects.sys_user_permission_set.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
   "objects.sys_user_position._validations.reserved_identity_position.message": "f35df6c1ef1493b0",
+  "objects.sys_user_position.fields.display_title.help": "39b5571b48e7d800",
+  "objects.sys_user_position.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
 };
diff --git a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-delivery.object.ts b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-delivery.object.ts
index 1a4df874968..0d903749211 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-delivery.object.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-delivery.object.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 // Copyright (c) 2025 ObjectStack. Licensed under the Apache-2.0 license.
 
 import { ObjectSchema, Field } from '@objectstack/spec/data';
+import { F } from '@objectstack/spec';
 
 /**
  * `sys_notification_delivery` — the durable outbox (ADR-0030 Layer 4).
@@ -69,12 +70,31 @@ export const NotificationDelivery = ObjectSchema.create({
         },
     },
     description: 'Durable per-recipient × channel delivery outbox (ADR-0030 Layer 4).',
+    // [ADR-0079] The record title is `display_title`, a text formula over the
+    // same two columns `titleFormat` names. With no pointer declared, the
+    // registry's designate-only pass stamped `nameField: 'id'` (the first
+    // title-eligible field), so a renderer honouring ADR-0079's order (an
+    // explicit `nameField` wins over `titleFormat`) drew the raw id as the
+    // record page's H1. `titleFormat` stays for renderers that still read it
+    // first; `notification-display-title.test.ts` holds the two to the same text.
+    displayNameField: 'display_title',
+    nameField: 'display_title', // [ADR-0079] canonical primary-title pointer (mirrors deprecated displayNameField)
     titleFormat: '{channel} → {recipient_id}',
     highlightFields: ['notification_id', 'recipient_id', 'channel', 'status', 'attempts'],
 
     fields: {
         id: Field.text({ label: 'Delivery ID', required: true, readonly: true }),
 
+        // [ADR-0079] The record title (`nameField` above). A formula is computed
+        // on read and has no stored column. `channel` and `recipient_id` are
+        // both required, so the expression needs no null guard.
+        display_title: Field.formula({
+            label: 'Title',
+            returnType: 'text',
+            expression: F`record.channel + ' → ' + record.recipient_id`,
+            description: 'Record title: the delivery channel and its recipient (computed on read)',
+        }),
+
         notification_id: Field.text({
             label: 'Notification Event',
             required: true,
diff --git a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-display-title.test.ts b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-display-title.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..aaae125e24c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-display-title.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,251 @@
+// Copyright (c) 2026 ObjectStack. Licensed under the Apache-2.0 license.
+
+/**
+ * The record title of the four notification objects that declared a
+ * `titleFormat` and no title pointer (#20044): `sys_notification_delivery`,
+ * `sys_notification_preference`, `sys_notification_subscription` and
+ * `sys_notification_receipt`.
+ *
+ * ADR-0079 resolves a record's title as `nameField ?? displayNameField ??
+ * derivation`, and an explicit `nameField` takes precedence over the
+ * render-only `titleFormat`. With no pointer declared, the registry's
+ * designate-only pass (`provisionPrimary(…, { synthesize: false })`) stamped
+ * `nameField: 'id'` — the first title-eligible field — onto each registered
+ * body, and a `/meta` read serves that stamp as if the author had written it.
+ * A renderer honouring the order therefore drew the raw id as the record
+ * page's H1.
+ *
+ * The three composite titles now point at `display_title`, a text formula over
+ * the columns `titleFormat` names. `sys_notification_receipt`'s title is one
+ * column (`{state}`), so its `nameField` names that column directly — the
+ * describe's own migration for a single-field title. An explicit pointer is
+ * honoured whatever the field's type (ADR-0079 D4); `select` is only kept out
+ * of DERIVATION, which is why the pass skipped `state` and stamped `id`.
+ *
+ * Through the real engine this file asserts, per object:
+ *
+ *  1. the body the registry holds after registration names the new pointer;
+ *  2. a seeded row's H1 is the `titleFormat` text, not the id, and the
+ *     server-side accessor (`resolveRecordTitle`) agrees;
+ *  3. a row missing a title column never gives the title a NULL part: the
+ *     write path refuses it, or fills the column's declared default;
+ *  4. the formula reads exactly the columns `titleFormat` names, on this row
+ *     only, each required and none withheld from a reader of the row;
+ *  5. nothing adds a stored column: no formula column, and no search
+ *     companion column even where pinyin search provisions one (a formula is
+ *     never a companion source, and a `select` is not title text).
+ */
+
+import { describe, it, expect, beforeAll, afterAll } from 'vitest';
+import {
+  ObjectQL,
+  SEARCH_COMPANION_FIELD,
+  provisionSearchCompanion,
+  resolveRecordTitle,
+  resolveSearchCompanionSources,
+} from '@objectstack/objectql';
+import { SqlDriver } from '@objectstack/driver-sql';
+import { resolveDisplayField } from '@objectstack/spec/data';
+import { NotificationDelivery } from './notification-delivery.object.js';
+import { NotificationPreference } from './notification-preference.object.js';
+import { NotificationReceipt } from './notification-receipt.object.js';
+import { NotificationSubscription } from './notification-subscription.object.js';
+
+const SYS = { context: { isSystem: true } } as any;
+const NOW = new Date('2026-09-25T00:00:00Z');
+
+interface Case {
+  schema: any;
+  /** The title pointer the object declares. */
+  pointer: string;
+  /** A row carrying every column the object requires. */
+  row: () => Record<string, unknown>;
+  title: string;
+  /** Title columns the write path REFUSES to omit (no declared default). */
+  refused: string[];
+  /** Title columns an omission fills from the declared default, with the H1 that yields. */
+  defaulted: Record<string, string>;
+}
+
+// `notification_id` is part of the delivery and receipt unique keys and of
+// neither title, so each row gets its own.
+let seq = 0;
+const unique = (prefix: string) => `${prefix}_${++seq}`;
+
+const CASES: Case[] = [
+  {
+    schema: NotificationDelivery,
+    pointer: 'display_title',
+    row: () => ({
+      notification_id: unique('ntf'), recipient_id: 'usr_alice', channel: 'email',
+      status: 'pending', created_at: NOW, updated_at: NOW,
+    }),
+    title: 'email → usr_alice',
+    refused: ['channel', 'recipient_id'],
+    defaulted: {},
+  },
+  {
+    schema: NotificationPreference,
+    pointer: 'display_title',
+    row: () => ({ user_id: 'usr_alice', topic: 'billing.invoice', channel: 'email', created_at: NOW }),
+    title: 'usr_alice · billing.invoice · email',
+    refused: ['user_id'],
+    // `topic` / `channel` default to the '*' wildcard (ADR-0030 Layer 3).
+    defaulted: { topic: 'usr_alice · * · email', channel: 'usr_alice · billing.invoice · *' },
+  },
+  {
+    schema: NotificationSubscription,
+    pointer: 'display_title',
+    row: () => ({ topic: 'billing.invoice', principal: 'role:sales_manager', created_at: NOW }),
+    title: 'role:sales_manager · billing.invoice',
+    refused: ['principal', 'topic'],
+    defaulted: {},
+  },
+  {
+    schema: NotificationReceipt,
+    pointer: 'state',
+    row: () => ({ notification_id: unique('ntf'), user_id: 'usr_alice', channel: 'inbox', state: 'read', created_at: NOW }),
+    title: 'read',
+    refused: [],
+    // `state` defaults to 'delivered': the receipt a channel writes on delivery.
+    defaulted: { state: 'delivered' },
+  },
+];
+
+/** The `titleFormat` source: the parsed schema carries it as an envelope. */
+function titleFormatSource(schema: unknown): string {
+  const tf = (schema as { titleFormat?: unknown }).titleFormat;
+  const source = typeof tf === 'string' ? tf : (tf as { source?: unknown })?.source;
+  if (typeof source !== 'string') throw new Error(`titleFormat carries no template source: ${JSON.stringify(tf)}`);
+  return source;
+}
+
+/**
+ * The H1 a `titleFormat`-first renderer draws: each `{field}` placeholder
+ * substituted with the row's value. It is the reference the title has to
+ * reproduce, not a second title resolver.
+ */
+function renderTitleFormat(schema: unknown, row: Record<string, unknown>): string {
+  return titleFormatSource(schema).replace(/\{\{?\s*([a-zA-Z0-9_.]+)\s*\}?\}/g, (_m, key: string) => String(row[key] ?? ''));
+}
+
+/** The columns `titleFormat` names. */
+function titleFormatColumns(schema: unknown): string[] {
+  return [...titleFormatSource(schema).matchAll(/\{\{?\s*([a-zA-Z0-9_.]+)\s*\}?\}/g)].map((m) => m[1]).sort();
+}
+
+/** Every `record.<path>` the `display_title` expression reads, as written. */
+function formulaReads(schema: { fields: Record<string, any> }): string[] {
+  const source = schema.fields.display_title?.expression?.source;
+  if (typeof source !== 'string') throw new Error('display_title carries no expression source');
+  return [...source.matchAll(/record\.([A-Za-z_][A-Za-z0-9_.]*)/g)].map((m) => m[1]).sort();
+}
+
+/** The stored row as a hook body holds it: no formula value on it. */
+function storedOnly(row: Record<string, unknown>): Record<string, unknown> {
+  const { display_title: _omit, ...rest } = row;
+  return rest;
+}
+
+describe('[#20044] notification objects resolve a real record title under ADR-0079 order', () => {
+  let engine: ObjectQL;
+  let driver: SqlDriver;
+
+  beforeAll(async () => {
+    engine = new ObjectQL();
+    driver = new SqlDriver({
+      client: 'better-sqlite3',
+      connection: { filename: ':memory:' },
+      useNullAsDefault: true,
+    });
+    engine.registerDriver(driver, true);
+    await engine.init();
+    for (const { schema } of CASES) {
+      engine.registry.registerObject(schema, 'com.objectstack.test.20044');
+    }
+    await engine.syncSchemas();
+  });
+
+  afterAll(async () => {
+    try { await engine?.destroy(); } catch { /* noop */ }
+  });
+
+  for (const c of CASES) {
+    const object: string = c.schema.name;
+
+    it(`${object}: the registered body points at ${c.pointer} — not the id the designation pass stamped`, () => {
+      const registered = engine.registry.getObject(object) as any;
+      expect(registered.nameField).toBe(c.pointer);
+      expect(registered.displayNameField).toBe(c.pointer);
+      expect(resolveDisplayField(registered)).toBe(c.pointer);
+      if (c.pointer === 'display_title') {
+        expect(registered.fields.display_title?.type).toBe('formula');
+        expect(registered.fields.display_title?.returnType).toBe('text');
+      }
+    });
+
+    it(`${object}: the H1 is "${titleFormatSource(c.schema)}", not the id`, async () => {
+      const registered = engine.registry.getObject(object) as any;
+      const created = await engine.insert(object, c.row(), SYS);
+      const row = await engine.findOne(object, { where: { id: created.id } }, SYS);
+      expect(row).not.toBeNull();
+
+      const h1 = row![resolveDisplayField(registered)!];
+      expect(h1).toBe(c.title);
+      expect(h1).not.toBe(row!.id);
+      expect(h1).toBe(renderTitleFormat(c.schema, row!));
+      expect(resolveRecordTitle(registered, storedOnly(row!))).toBe(c.title);
+    });
+
+    it(`${object}: a row missing a title column never gives the title a NULL part`, async () => {
+      const registered = engine.registry.getObject(object) as any;
+      for (const omit of c.refused) {
+        const partial = c.row();
+        delete partial[omit];
+        await expect(engine.insert(object, partial, SYS)).rejects.toMatchObject({
+          code: 'VALIDATION_FAILED',
+          fields: expect.arrayContaining([expect.objectContaining({ field: omit, code: 'required' })]),
+        });
+      }
+      for (const [omit, expected] of Object.entries(c.defaulted)) {
+        const partial = c.row();
+        delete partial[omit];
+        const created = await engine.insert(object, partial, SYS);
+        const row = await engine.findOne(object, { where: { id: created.id } }, SYS);
+        expect(row![resolveDisplayField(registered)!]).toBe(expected);
+        expect(row![resolveDisplayField(registered)!]).toBe(renderTitleFormat(c.schema, row!));
+      }
+      expect([...c.refused, ...Object.keys(c.defaulted)].sort()).toEqual(titleFormatColumns(c.schema));
+    });
+
+    it(`${object}: the title reads exactly the titleFormat columns, on this row, each required and none withheld`, () => {
+      const fields = c.schema.fields as Record<string, any>;
+      // One level deep: a dotted path would read a looked-up record's field.
+      const reads = c.pointer === 'display_title' ? formulaReads(c.schema) : [c.pointer];
+      expect(reads).toEqual(titleFormatColumns(c.schema));
+      for (const column of reads) {
+        expect(fields[column], column).toBeDefined();
+        expect(fields[column].required, column).toBe(true);
+        expect(fields[column].hidden ?? false, column).toBe(false);
+        expect(fields[column].requiredPermissions ?? [], column).toEqual([]);
+        expect(fields[column].maskingRule, column).toBeUndefined();
+      }
+    });
+
+    it(`${object}: adds no stored column for the title`, async () => {
+      const columns = Object.keys(await driver.getKnex()(object).columnInfo());
+      expect(columns).toContain(titleFormatColumns(c.schema)[0]);
+      expect(columns).not.toContain('display_title');
+    });
+
+    it(`${object}: provisions no search companion column, even where pinyin search is on`, () => {
+      // The companion (`__search`) is a real column fed by the title field. A
+      // registry provisions it only where pinyin search is on, by running
+      // `provisionSearchCompanion` over the body it has just designated, so
+      // run that step over the registered body.
+      const registered = engine.registry.getObject(object) as any;
+      expect(resolveSearchCompanionSources(registered)).toEqual([]);
+      expect(provisionSearchCompanion(registered).fields[SEARCH_COMPANION_FIELD]).toBeUndefined();
+    });
+  }
+});
diff --git a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-preference.object.ts b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-preference.object.ts
index 79a19d9ef02..2e3381cba6b 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-preference.object.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-preference.object.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 // Copyright (c) 2025 ObjectStack. Licensed under the Apache-2.0 license.
 
 import { ObjectSchema, Field } from '@objectstack/spec/data';
+import { F } from '@objectstack/spec';
 
 /**
  * `sys_notification_preference` — per-user × topic × channel delivery toggle
@@ -31,12 +32,31 @@ export const NotificationPreference = ObjectSchema.create({
     // default is full CRUD, so no `userActions` block is needed — RLS is the authz.
     managedBy: 'system-data',
     description: 'Per-user × topic × channel notification toggle (mute/allow), with admin-global defaults.',
+    // [ADR-0079] The record title is `display_title`, a text formula over the
+    // same three columns `titleFormat` names. With no pointer declared, the
+    // registry's designate-only pass stamped `nameField: 'id'` (the first
+    // title-eligible field), so a renderer honouring ADR-0079's order (an
+    // explicit `nameField` wins over `titleFormat`) drew the raw id as the
+    // record page's H1. `titleFormat` stays for renderers that still read it
+    // first; `notification-display-title.test.ts` holds the two to the same text.
+    displayNameField: 'display_title',
+    nameField: 'display_title', // [ADR-0079] canonical primary-title pointer (mirrors deprecated displayNameField)
     titleFormat: '{user_id} · {topic} · {channel}',
     highlightFields: ['user_id', 'topic', 'channel', 'enabled', 'digest'],
 
     fields: {
         id: Field.text({ label: 'Preference ID', required: true, readonly: true }),
 
+        // [ADR-0079] The record title (`nameField` above). A formula is computed
+        // on read and has no stored column. `user_id`, `topic` and `channel`
+        // are all required, so the expression needs no null guard.
+        display_title: Field.formula({
+            label: 'Title',
+            returnType: 'text',
+            expression: F`record.user_id + ' · ' + record.topic + ' · ' + record.channel`,
+            description: 'Record title: the user, the topic and the channel this toggle covers (computed on read)',
+        }),
+
         user_id: Field.text({
             label: 'User',
             required: true,
diff --git a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-receipt.object.ts b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-receipt.object.ts
index b6a3fb0d154..85f87356c06 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-receipt.object.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-receipt.object.ts
@@ -34,6 +34,17 @@ export const NotificationReceipt = ObjectSchema.create({
         ttl: { field: 'created_at', expireAfter: '90d' },
     },
     description: 'Per-recipient × channel receipt; the source of truth for notification read-state.',
+    // [ADR-0079] The record title is `state`, the one column `titleFormat`
+    // names: a single-field title migrates to `nameField` directly, with no
+    // formula. With no pointer declared, the registry's designate-only pass
+    // stamped `nameField: 'id'` (the first title-eligible field; a `select` is
+    // never DERIVED), so a renderer honouring ADR-0079's order (an explicit
+    // `nameField` wins over `titleFormat`) drew the raw id as the record page's
+    // H1. An explicit pointer is honoured whatever the field's type (ADR-0079
+    // D4). `titleFormat` stays for renderers that still read it first;
+    // `notification-display-title.test.ts` holds the two to the same text.
+    displayNameField: 'state',
+    nameField: 'state', // [ADR-0079] canonical primary-title pointer (mirrors deprecated displayNameField)
     titleFormat: '{state}',
     highlightFields: ['notification_id', 'user_id', 'channel', 'state', 'at'],
 
diff --git a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-subscription.object.ts b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-subscription.object.ts
index d244fdf976c..12a6a9041a7 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-subscription.object.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/objects/notification-subscription.object.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 // Copyright (c) 2025 ObjectStack. Licensed under the Apache-2.0 license.
 
 import { ObjectSchema, Field } from '@objectstack/spec/data';
+import { F } from '@objectstack/spec';
 
 /**
  * `sys_notification_subscription` — who is subscribed to a topic (ADR-0030
@@ -35,12 +36,31 @@ export const NotificationSubscription = ObjectSchema.create({
     // default is full CRUD, so no `userActions` block is needed.
     managedBy: 'system-data',
     description: 'Standing subscription of a principal (role/team/user) to a notification topic.',
+    // [ADR-0079] The record title is `display_title`, a text formula over the
+    // same two columns `titleFormat` names. With no pointer declared, the
+    // registry's designate-only pass stamped `nameField: 'id'` (the first
+    // title-eligible field), so a renderer honouring ADR-0079's order (an
+    // explicit `nameField` wins over `titleFormat`) drew the raw id as the
+    // record page's H1. `titleFormat` stays for renderers that still read it
+    // first; `notification-display-title.test.ts` holds the two to the same text.
+    displayNameField: 'display_title',
+    nameField: 'display_title', // [ADR-0079] canonical primary-title pointer (mirrors deprecated displayNameField)
     titleFormat: '{principal} · {topic}',
     highlightFields: ['topic', 'principal', 'enabled', 'created_at'],
 
     fields: {
         id: Field.text({ label: 'Subscription ID', required: true, readonly: true }),
 
+        // [ADR-0079] The record title (`nameField` above). A formula is computed
+        // on read and has no stored column. `principal` and `topic` are both
+        // required, so the expression needs no null guard.
+        display_title: Field.formula({
+            label: 'Title',
+            returnType: 'text',
+            expression: F`record.principal + ' · ' + record.topic`,
+            description: 'Record title: the subscribing principal and the topic (computed on read)',
+        }),
+
         topic: Field.text({
             label: 'Topic',
             required: true,
diff --git a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts
index f1d9938dc5c..4aefa150907 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts
@@ -121,6 +121,10 @@ export const enObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "Delivery ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the delivery channel and its recipient (computed on read)"
+      },
       notification_id: {
         label: "Notification Event",
         help: "FK → sys_notification (L2 event)"
@@ -191,6 +195,10 @@ export const enObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "Preference ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user, the topic and the channel this toggle covers (computed on read)"
+      },
       user_id: {
         label: "User",
         help: "Recipient user id, or '*' for the admin-global default."
@@ -236,6 +244,10 @@ export const enObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "Subscription ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the subscribing principal and the topic (computed on read)"
+      },
       topic: {
         label: "Topic",
         help: "Notification topic this principal subscribes to."
diff --git a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts
index f4233f24290..cfd50c8c321 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts
@@ -121,6 +121,10 @@ export const esESObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "Delivery ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the delivery channel and its recipient (computed on read)"
+      },
       notification_id: {
         label: "Notification Event",
         help: "FK → sys_notification (L2 event)"
@@ -191,6 +195,10 @@ export const esESObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "Preference ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user, the topic and the channel this toggle covers (computed on read)"
+      },
       user_id: {
         label: "User",
         help: "Recipient user id, or '*' for the admin-global default."
@@ -236,6 +244,10 @@ export const esESObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "Subscription ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the subscribing principal and the topic (computed on read)"
+      },
       topic: {
         label: "Topic",
         help: "Notification topic this principal subscribes to."
diff --git a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts
index 4b63ef7de7c..d418c2f7faf 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts
@@ -68,6 +68,8 @@ export const esESGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
   "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.created_at.label": "1f02d416befb595b",
   "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.digest_key.help": "6277161d780a5a7f",
   "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.digest_key.label": "c67774ec9d8352cd",
+  "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.display_title.help": "0803d3f90a14907c",
+  "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
   "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.error.label": "786fed84bd8d5a32",
   "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.id.label": "05179727cb19255c",
   "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.last_attempted_at.label": "2123f8266be603b8",
@@ -98,6 +100,8 @@ export const esESGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
   "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.digest.options.daily": "1dd810d2b5a02102",
   "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.digest.options.none": "f0ac498bc08c6383",
   "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.digest.options.weekly": "18ffbbec919e0d35",
+  "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.display_title.help": "13aff17d09067e30",
+  "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
   "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.enabled.help": "94e2727fd8c18296",
   "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.enabled.label": "41fb04f20e64dc4f",
   "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.id.label": "429cdf8675ce2833",
@@ -131,6 +135,8 @@ export const esESGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
   "objects.sys_notification_receipt.pluralLabel": "405256a600be0880",
   "objects.sys_notification_subscription.description": "00de4abdcb0d43a8",
   "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.created_at.label": "1f02d416befb595b",
+  "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.display_title.help": "1100bd46caf9cb17",
+  "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
   "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.enabled.help": "37dd96827553974c",
   "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.enabled.label": "41fb04f20e64dc4f",
   "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.id.label": "9dd5d9fded88d363",
diff --git a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts
index d902bf925e6..138da5fc2e7 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts
@@ -121,6 +121,10 @@ export const jaJPObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "Delivery ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the delivery channel and its recipient (computed on read)"
+      },
       notification_id: {
         label: "Notification Event",
         help: "FK → sys_notification (L2 event)"
@@ -191,6 +195,10 @@ export const jaJPObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "Preference ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user, the topic and the channel this toggle covers (computed on read)"
+      },
       user_id: {
         label: "User",
         help: "Recipient user id, or '*' for the admin-global default."
@@ -236,6 +244,10 @@ export const jaJPObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "Subscription ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the subscribing principal and the topic (computed on read)"
+      },
       topic: {
         label: "Topic",
         help: "Notification topic this principal subscribes to."
diff --git a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts
index b81556dd76c..9dea67fbc6e 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts
@@ -67,6 +67,8 @@ export const jaJPGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
   "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.created_at.label": "1f02d416befb595b",
   "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.digest_key.help": "6277161d780a5a7f",
   "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.digest_key.label": "c67774ec9d8352cd",
+  "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.display_title.help": "0803d3f90a14907c",
+  "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
   "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.error.label": "786fed84bd8d5a32",
   "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.id.label": "05179727cb19255c",
   "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.last_attempted_at.label": "2123f8266be603b8",
@@ -97,6 +99,8 @@ export const jaJPGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
   "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.digest.options.daily": "1dd810d2b5a02102",
   "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.digest.options.none": "f0ac498bc08c6383",
   "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.digest.options.weekly": "18ffbbec919e0d35",
+  "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.display_title.help": "13aff17d09067e30",
+  "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
   "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.enabled.help": "94e2727fd8c18296",
   "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.enabled.label": "41fb04f20e64dc4f",
   "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.id.label": "429cdf8675ce2833",
@@ -130,6 +134,8 @@ export const jaJPGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
   "objects.sys_notification_receipt.pluralLabel": "405256a600be0880",
   "objects.sys_notification_subscription.description": "00de4abdcb0d43a8",
   "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.created_at.label": "1f02d416befb595b",
+  "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.display_title.help": "1100bd46caf9cb17",
+  "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
   "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.enabled.help": "37dd96827553974c",
   "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.enabled.label": "41fb04f20e64dc4f",
   "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.id.label": "9dd5d9fded88d363",
diff --git a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts
index 08bf60680bf..3b7bdf6dd6a 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts
@@ -121,6 +121,10 @@ export const zhCNObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "投递 ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the delivery channel and its recipient (computed on read)"
+      },
       notification_id: {
         label: "通知事件",
         help: "外键 → sys_notification(L2 事件)"
@@ -191,6 +195,10 @@ export const zhCNObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "偏好 ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user, the topic and the channel this toggle covers (computed on read)"
+      },
       user_id: {
         label: "用户",
         help: "接收用户 ID,'*' 表示管理员全局默认值。"
@@ -236,6 +244,10 @@ export const zhCNObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "订阅 ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the subscribing principal and the topic (computed on read)"
+      },
       topic: {
         label: "主题",
         help: "该主体订阅的通知主题。"
diff --git a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts
index 8e3ba6ad751..32e25116645 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-messaging/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts
@@ -21,4 +21,10 @@ export const zhCNGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
   "objects.sys_http_delivery.fields.error.help": "3edd3406757bedcf",
   "objects.sys_http_delivery.fields.headers_json.help": "b14e8e640874e0a6",
   "objects.sys_http_delivery.fields.status.help": "e437ecf81dfb4715",
+  "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.display_title.help": "0803d3f90a14907c",
+  "objects.sys_notification_delivery.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
+  "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.display_title.help": "13aff17d09067e30",
+  "objects.sys_notification_preference.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
+  "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.display_title.help": "1100bd46caf9cb17",
+  "objects.sys_notification_subscription.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
 };
diff --git a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/objects/sys-presence-display-title.test.ts b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/objects/sys-presence-display-title.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..5ec8c42d0dd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/objects/sys-presence-display-title.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,81 @@
+// Copyright (c) 2026 ObjectStack. Licensed under the Apache-2.0 license.
+
+/**
+ * The record title of `sys_presence`, which declared a `titleFormat` and no
+ * title pointer (#20044).
+ *
+ * ADR-0079 resolves a record's title as `nameField ?? displayNameField ??
+ * derivation`, and an explicit `nameField` takes precedence over the
+ * render-only `titleFormat`. With no pointer declared, the registry's
+ * designate-only pass stamped `nameField: 'id'` — the first title-eligible
+ * field — onto the registered body, and a `/meta` read serves that stamp as if
+ * the author had written it. A renderer honouring the order therefore drew the
+ * raw id as the record page's H1.
+ *
+ * The object now points at `display_title`, a text formula over the columns
+ * `titleFormat` names. This file asserts:
+ *
+ *  1. the designate-only pass the registry runs at registration
+ *     (`provisionPrimary(…, { synthesize: false })`, ADR-0079 D7) keeps
+ *     `display_title` and no longer lands on `id`;
+ *  2. the formula reads exactly the columns `titleFormat` names, on this row
+ *     only, each required and none withheld from a reader of the row.
+ *
+ * What it does NOT assert, deliberately: the rendered text. That needs the
+ * engine to evaluate the formula, and this package's dependency closure has
+ * none (`@objectstack/objectql` and `@objectstack/driver-sql` are not among its
+ * dependencies). The sibling objects' suites in plugin-security and
+ * service-messaging hold the same formula shape to the `titleFormat` text
+ * through the real engine.
+ */
+
+import { describe, it, expect } from 'vitest';
+import { provisionPrimary, resolveDisplayField } from '@objectstack/spec/data';
+import { SysPresence } from './sys-presence.object.js';
+
+/** The `titleFormat` source: the parsed schema carries it as an envelope. */
+function titleFormatSource(schema: unknown): string {
+  const tf = (schema as { titleFormat?: unknown }).titleFormat;
+  const source = typeof tf === 'string' ? tf : (tf as { source?: unknown })?.source;
+  if (typeof source !== 'string') throw new Error(`titleFormat carries no template source: ${JSON.stringify(tf)}`);
+  return source;
+}
+
+/** The columns `titleFormat` names. */
+function titleFormatColumns(schema: unknown): string[] {
+  return [...titleFormatSource(schema).matchAll(/\{\{?\s*([a-zA-Z0-9_.]+)\s*\}?\}/g)].map((m) => m[1]).sort();
+}
+
+/** Every `record.<path>` the `display_title` expression reads, as written. */
+function formulaReads(schema: { fields: Record<string, any> }): string[] {
+  const source = schema.fields.display_title?.expression?.source;
+  if (typeof source !== 'string') throw new Error('display_title carries no expression source');
+  return [...source.matchAll(/record\.([A-Za-z_][A-Za-z0-9_.]*)/g)].map((m) => m[1]).sort();
+}
+
+describe('[#20044] sys_presence declares a real record title under ADR-0079 order', () => {
+  it('the designation pass keeps display_title, a text formula — it no longer stamps the id', () => {
+    const designated = provisionPrimary(SysPresence as any, { synthesize: false }) as any;
+    expect(designated.nameField).toBe('display_title');
+    expect(designated.nameField).not.toBe('id');
+    expect(SysPresence.displayNameField).toBe('display_title');
+    expect(resolveDisplayField(SysPresence as any)).toBe('display_title');
+    const field = (SysPresence.fields as Record<string, any>).display_title;
+    expect(field?.type).toBe('formula');
+    expect(field?.returnType).toBe('text');
+  });
+
+  it('the formula reads exactly the titleFormat columns, on this row, each required and none withheld', () => {
+    const fields = SysPresence.fields as Record<string, any>;
+    const reads = formulaReads(SysPresence as any);
+    // One level deep: a dotted path would read a looked-up record's field.
+    expect(reads).toEqual(titleFormatColumns(SysPresence));
+    for (const column of reads) {
+      expect(fields[column], column).toBeDefined();
+      expect(fields[column].required, column).toBe(true);
+      expect(fields[column].hidden ?? false, column).toBe(false);
+      expect(fields[column].requiredPermissions ?? [], column).toEqual([]);
+      expect(fields[column].maskingRule, column).toBeUndefined();
+    }
+  });
+});
diff --git a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/objects/sys-presence.object.ts b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/objects/sys-presence.object.ts
index 039ac421f32..04530921b7c 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/objects/sys-presence.object.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/objects/sys-presence.object.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 // Copyright (c) 2025 ObjectStack. Licensed under the Apache-2.0 license.
 
 import { ObjectSchema, Field } from '@objectstack/spec/data';
+import { F } from '@objectstack/spec';
 
 /**
  * sys_presence — System Presence Object
@@ -22,6 +23,16 @@ export const SysPresence = ObjectSchema.create({
   isSystem: true,
   managedBy: 'append-only',
   description: 'Real-time user presence and activity tracking',
+  // [ADR-0079] The record title is `display_title`, a text formula over the
+  // same two columns `titleFormat` names. With no pointer declared, the
+  // registry's designate-only pass stamped `nameField: 'id'` (the first
+  // title-eligible field), so a renderer honouring ADR-0079's order (an
+  // explicit `nameField` wins over `titleFormat`) drew the raw id as the record
+  // page's H1. `titleFormat` stays for renderers that still read it first;
+  // `sys-presence-display-title.test.ts` pins the pointer and the formula's
+  // inputs.
+  displayNameField: 'display_title',
+  nameField: 'display_title', // [ADR-0079] canonical primary-title pointer (mirrors deprecated displayNameField)
   titleFormat: '{user_id} ({status})',
   highlightFields: ['user_id', 'status', 'last_seen'],
 
@@ -32,6 +43,17 @@ export const SysPresence = ObjectSchema.create({
       readonly: true,
     }),
 
+    // [ADR-0079] The record title (`nameField` above). A formula is computed on
+    // read and has no stored column. It reads only this row's own columns —
+    // the user foreign key and the status token, never a field of the user
+    // record. Both are required, so the expression needs no null guard.
+    display_title: Field.formula({
+      label: 'Title',
+      returnType: 'text',
+      expression: F`record.user_id + ' (' + record.status + ')'`,
+      description: 'Record title: the user and their presence status (computed on read)',
+    }),
+
     created_at: Field.datetime({
       label: 'Created At',
       defaultValue: 'NOW()',
diff --git a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts
index e29bd4a38e2..b632528d4c7 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/en.objects.generated.ts
@@ -23,6 +23,10 @@ export const enObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "Presence ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user and their presence status (computed on read)"
+      },
       created_at: {
         label: "Created At"
       },
diff --git a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts
index 3b656e84c5a..602fc83f514 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/es-ES.objects.generated.ts
@@ -23,6 +23,10 @@ export const esESObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "ID de presencia"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user and their presence status (computed on read)"
+      },
       created_at: {
         label: "Creado el"
       },
diff --git a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts
index 854c8b71cb2..0dc56d6d456 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/es-ES.source-hashes.generated.ts
@@ -18,4 +18,6 @@
  */
 
 export const esESGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
+  "objects.sys_presence.fields.display_title.help": "fe510885df94967c",
+  "objects.sys_presence.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
 };
diff --git a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts
index 29bdfc34909..75467521d69 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/ja-JP.objects.generated.ts
@@ -23,6 +23,10 @@ export const jaJPObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "在席 ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user and their presence status (computed on read)"
+      },
       created_at: {
         label: "作成日時"
       },
diff --git a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts
index 517826c13df..5118a655731 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/ja-JP.source-hashes.generated.ts
@@ -18,4 +18,6 @@
  */
 
 export const jaJPGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
+  "objects.sys_presence.fields.display_title.help": "fe510885df94967c",
+  "objects.sys_presence.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
 };
diff --git a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts
index e41f5399f72..32991adb613 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/zh-CN.objects.generated.ts
@@ -23,6 +23,10 @@ export const zhCNObjects: NonNullable<TranslationData['objects']> = {
       id: {
         label: "在线状态 ID"
       },
+      display_title: {
+        label: "Title",
+        help: "Record title: the user and their presence status (computed on read)"
+      },
       created_at: {
         label: "创建时间"
       },
diff --git a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts
index f74e0d3d8a1..50d030178a4 100644
--- a/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts
+++ b/packages/services/service-realtime/src/translations/zh-CN.source-hashes.generated.ts
@@ -18,4 +18,6 @@
  */
 
 export const zhCNGeneratedSourceHashes: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
+  "objects.sys_presence.fields.display_title.help": "fe510885df94967c",
+  "objects.sys_presence.fields.display_title.label": "70f7aadecce647a5",
 };