diff --git a/src/app/actions/ingest.ts b/src/app/actions/ingest.ts
index 9fcb0bf..b5e6483 100644
--- a/src/app/actions/ingest.ts
+++ b/src/app/actions/ingest.ts
@@ -77,4 +77,44 @@ export async function backfillProject(input: {
 
   revalidatePath(`/admin/projects/${input.projectId}`);
   return { created: result.created, skipped: result.skipped };
+}
+
+/**
+ * Pull whatever is new from Forgejo for one project.
+ *
+ * Same code path as the hourly `/api/cron/reconcile`, scoped to a single
+ * project and gated behind the same `requireOwner` the backfill uses. Stops at
+ * the first fully-known page — the dashboard button is for "did anything push
+ * since the last reconcile?" rather than for restoring a lost history, and
+ * reading only what has changed keeps it interactive.
+ *
+ * The cached metrics are refreshed inside `ingestProject`, so a successful
+ * call here both populates Recent Work and updates the headline numbers.
+ */
+export async function refreshCommitsAction(input: {
+  projectId: string;
+  clientSlug: string;
+  projectSlug: string;
+}): Promise<{ created: number; skipped: number; pagesRead: number }> {
+  await requireOwner();
+
+  const pb = await getAdminPb();
+  const project = await pb
+    .collection("projects")
+    .getOne<ProjectRecord>(input.projectId);
+
+  if (!project.repo_owner || !project.repo_name) {
+    throw new Error("Link a repository to this project first");
+  }
+
+  if (!(await repoExists(project.repo_owner, project.repo_name))) {
+    throw new Error(
+      `Forgejo has no repository ${project.repo_owner}/${project.repo_name}, or it is not readable`
+    );
+  }
+
+  const result = await ingestProject(project, { stopAfterKnownPages: 1 });
+
+  revalidatePath(`/p/${input.clientSlug}/${input.projectSlug}/dashboard`);
+  return result;
 }
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/app/p/[clientSlug]/[projectSlug]/dashboard/page.tsx b/src/app/p/[clientSlug]/[projectSlug]/dashboard/page.tsx
index 4ebe17c..48509f1 100644
--- a/src/app/p/[clientSlug]/[projectSlug]/dashboard/page.tsx
+++ b/src/app/p/[clientSlug]/[projectSlug]/dashboard/page.tsx
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ import { MonthBars } from "@/components/dashboard/month-bars";
 import { Methodology } from "@/components/dashboard/methodology";
 import { RecentActivity } from "@/components/dashboard/recent-activity";
 import { RecomputeButton } from "@/components/dashboard/recompute-button";
+import { RefreshCommitsButton } from "@/components/dashboard/refresh-commits-button";
 import { getSession } from "@/lib/auth/session";
 import { getServerPb } from "@/lib/pb/server";
 import { loadBoard } from "@/lib/data/board";
@@ -53,11 +54,18 @@ export default async function DashboardPage({
     <AppShell role={session.role} currentPath={boardHref}>
       <TopBar title={board.project.name} subtitle={board.client.name}>
         {session.role === "owner" && (
-          <RecomputeButton
-            projectId={board.project.id}
-            clientSlug={clientSlug}
-            projectSlug={projectSlug}
-          />
+          <span className="flex items-center gap-2">
+            <RefreshCommitsButton
+              projectId={board.project.id}
+              clientSlug={clientSlug}
+              projectSlug={projectSlug}
+            />
+            <RecomputeButton
+              projectId={board.project.id}
+              clientSlug={clientSlug}
+              projectSlug={projectSlug}
+            />
+          </span>
         )}
       </TopBar>
 
diff --git a/src/components/dashboard/refresh-commits-button.tsx b/src/components/dashboard/refresh-commits-button.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..901f4d0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/components/dashboard/refresh-commits-button.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+"use client";
+
+import { useState, useTransition } from "react";
+import { CloudDownload } from "lucide-react";
+
+import { refreshCommitsAction } from "@/app/actions/ingest";
+
+/**
+ * "Fetch whatever is new from Forgejo" — sibling to {@link RecomputeButton}.
+ *
+ * Recompute reads cached commits and re-aggregates them into the metrics
+ * table; this one actually talks to Forgejo. It is the same code path as the
+ * hourly cron, scoped to one project and stopped at the first known page so it
+ * stays interactive on the dashboard.
+ */
+export function RefreshCommitsButton({
+  projectId,
+  clientSlug,
+  projectSlug,
+}: {
+  projectId: string;
+  clientSlug: string;
+  projectSlug: string;
+}) {
+  const [pending, startTransition] = useTransition();
+  const [status, setStatus] = useState<string | null>(null);
+  const [error, setError] = useState<string | null>(null);
+
+  return (
+    <span className="flex items-center gap-2">
+      <button
+        type="button"
+        disabled={pending}
+        onClick={() =>
+          startTransition(async () => {
+            setStatus(null);
+            setError(null);
+            try {
+              const result = await refreshCommitsAction({
+                projectId,
+                clientSlug,
+                projectSlug,
+              });
+              if (result.created === 0) {
+                setStatus("Already up to date");
+              } else {
+                setStatus(
+                  `${result.created} new commit${result.created === 1 ? "" : "s"}`
+                );
+              }
+            } catch (e) {
+              setError(e instanceof Error ? e.message : "Refresh failed");
+            }
+          })
+        }
+        className="inline-flex items-center gap-1.5 rounded-lg border border-border-subtle px-2.5 py-1.5 text-xs text-text-secondary hover:bg-surface-raised disabled:opacity-50"
+      >
+        <CloudDownload size={13} strokeWidth={2} />
+        {pending ? "Refreshing…" : "Refresh commits"}
+      </button>
+      {status && !error && (
+        <span className="text-xs text-text-muted">{status}</span>
+      )}
+      {error && (
+        <span role="alert" className="text-xs text-accent">
+          {error}
+        </span>
+      )}
+    </span>
+  );
+}