diff --git a/crates/automation/src/lib.rs b/crates/automation/src/lib.rs
index 6e631b708..4a34909de 100644
--- a/crates/automation/src/lib.rs
+++ b/crates/automation/src/lib.rs
@@ -879,6 +879,7 @@ impl Automation {
         // A save that adds or removes encryption, or must not keep the old revision (Sanitize,
         // redaction), is rewritten in full even when an incremental save was asked for.
         let incremental = !full && bytes.starts_with(&self.doc(a)?.saved_bytes());
+        self.session.check_save(id, &bytes).map_err(failed)?;
         write(&target, &bytes)?;
         let path = target.to_string_lossy().into_owned();
         self.session.mark_saved(id, bytes.clone(), Some(path.clone())).map_err(failed)?;
diff --git a/crates/automation/tests/automation.rs b/crates/automation/tests/automation.rs
index 5b9050dbd..e788d9610 100644
--- a/crates/automation/tests/automation.rs
+++ b/crates/automation/tests/automation.rs
@@ -524,6 +524,44 @@ fn an_in_place_save_reports_a_required_rewrite_as_not_incremental() {
     }
 }
 
+/// Issue #1698: a save whose bytes don't reopen is refused before it touches the file. The
+/// catalog's `/Pages` is not a page tree, so the reader finds the page by scanning, while a
+/// full rewrite keeps only what the catalog reaches and drops it.
+#[test]
+fn a_save_that_does_not_reopen_leaves_the_file_as_it_was() {
+    let dir = workdir("save-verify-before-write");
+    let objs: [&[u8]; 4] = [
+        b"<< /Type /Catalog /Pages 3 0 R >>",
+        b"<< /Type /Page /MediaBox [0 0 200 300] /Contents 4 0 R >>",
+        b"[ 0 ]",
+        b"<< /Length 18 >>\nstream\n0 0 m 100 100 l S\nendstream",
+    ];
+    let mut original = b"%PDF-1.7\n".to_vec();
+    let mut offsets = Vec::new();
+    for (i, o) in objs.iter().enumerate() {
+        offsets.push(original.len());
+        original.extend_from_slice(format!("{} 0 obj\n", i + 1).as_bytes());
+        original.extend_from_slice(o);
+        original.extend_from_slice(b"\nendobj\n");
+    }
+    let xref = original.len();
+    original.extend_from_slice(b"xref\n0 5\n0000000000 65535 f \n");
+    for o in offsets {
+        original.extend_from_slice(format!("{o:010} 00000 n \n").as_bytes());
+    }
+    original.extend_from_slice(format!("trailer\n<< /Size 5 /Root 1 0 R >>\nstartxref\n{xref}\n%%EOF\n").as_bytes());
+    std::fs::write(dir.join("damaged.pdf"), &original).unwrap();
+
+    let mut a = auto(&dir);
+    let opened = ok(&mut a, "doc_open", json!({ "path": "damaged.pdf" }));
+    assert_eq!(opened["pages"], 1, "{opened}");
+    let doc = opened["doc"].as_u64().unwrap();
+    let e = err(&mut a, "doc_save", json!({ "doc": doc, "full": true }));
+    assert!(e.to_string().contains("could not be reopened"), "{e}");
+    let on_disk = std::fs::read(dir.join("damaged.pdf")).unwrap();
+    assert!(on_disk == original, "the file was replaced by {} bytes that don't reopen", on_disk.len());
+}
+
 /// organize.field-name-conflicts: combining files whose forms share a field name keeps the
 /// fields separate by renaming, says so in the result, and can be told to merge instead; any
 /// other policy is an argument error.
diff --git a/crates/engine/src/lib.rs b/crates/engine/src/lib.rs
index 15c0551b1..fbe62b2c2 100644
--- a/crates/engine/src/lib.rs
+++ b/crates/engine/src/lib.rs
@@ -3741,6 +3741,16 @@ impl Session {
         guard(|| write_full(&editor.cos, &opts)).map_err(EditError::Write)?.map(Arc::new).map_err(|e| EditError::Write(e.to_string()))
     }
 
+    /// Check that `bytes`, from [`Self::save_bytes`] or [`Self::save_full_bytes`], reopen as this
+    /// document before they are written (#1698): [`Self::mark_saved`] only finds out after the
+    /// file has been replaced. Same error as `mark_saved`.
+    pub fn check_save(&self, id: DocId, bytes: &Arc<Vec<u8>>) -> Result<(), EditError> {
+        let doc = self.get(id).ok_or(EditError::NoDocument)?;
+        let Some(editor) = doc.editor.as_ref() else { return Ok(()) };
+        pdfcraft_cos::Document::open_with_password(bytes.clone(), editor.keys.reopen.as_deref()).map_err(|e| EditError::Reopen(e.to_string()))?;
+        pdfcraft_render::check_pages(bytes.clone(), doc.password.as_deref(), doc.info.pages.len()).map_err(|e| EditError::Reopen(e.to_string()))
+    }
+
     /// Record a successful save of `bytes` (to `path`, if any): rebase editing on the saved file
     /// so the next save appends only newer edits. Undo history is kept.
     pub fn mark_saved(&mut self, id: DocId, bytes: Arc<Vec<u8>>, path: Option<String>) -> Result<(), EditError> {
diff --git a/crates/ui-egui/src/editing.rs b/crates/ui-egui/src/editing.rs
index 9b1b35b19..dc7226ef6 100644
--- a/crates/ui-egui/src/editing.rs
+++ b/crates/ui-egui/src/editing.rs
@@ -664,7 +664,7 @@ impl PdfCraftApp {
             self.notify_tr("The document was closed before it could be saved.");
             return false;
         };
-        let bytes = match self.session.save_bytes(id) {
+        let bytes = match self.session.save_bytes(id).and_then(|b| self.session.check_save(id, &b).map(|()| b)) {
             Ok(b) => b,
             Err(e) => {
                 self.notify_fmt("Couldn't save {name}: {e}", &[("name", &name), ("e", &e.to_string())]);