Anthony is correct: it works just like 2.79 and previous versions when the Project mode is set to Above Surface.

I did some more testing. The bug is triggered by more than just an identical position:

No-one in that thread stated it was an already reported issue - only that after testing for this issue in 2.8, they discovered 2.8's behaviour is the same. Did you search for an existing bug report? I did, and I could not find it.

Thanks, I posted a bug on the respective Github page. Still, it is odd that it works in previous versions (2.78 and 2.75), and stopped working in 2.79.

I figured it out! COA Tools is the culprit. When that add-on is activated, Blender will crash.

Yes. And linking and reloading the library file using the outliner works as expected. It is just when I use the addon that Blender hits a snag.

Yes, same instance. With "open new instance" the original master blend file also closes after clicking the "update..." button.

No crash log is written. The "return to original" button does close the file correctly, but doesn't reload the original master file for some reason.