diff --git a/core/application/application.go b/core/application/application.go
index 026ad279df..0e4bad5ecf 100644
--- a/core/application/application.go
+++ b/core/application/application.go
@@ -203,6 +203,7 @@ type Application struct {
 	studioFilesIndex      io.Closer          // closes the workspace index: ends pending blob removals, frees the JSON folder
 	studioFilesTemp       string             // blob cache folder of a cluster with no data path; removed at shutdown
 	studioTextIndex       *textindex.Indexer // the text of the documents in the files; nil when files are off
+	studioTextIndexStop   func()             // stops the indexer's loop and waits for it; nil when it does not run
 	authDB                *gorm.DB
 	metricsService        *monitoring.LocalAIMetricsService
 	statsRecorder         *billing.Recorder
@@ -727,6 +728,13 @@ func (a *Application) Shutdown() error {
 		if a.studioTempDir != "" {
 			_ = os.RemoveAll(a.studioTempDir)
 		}
+		// Before the folders go: a pass in flight would write into them.
+		if a.studioTextIndexStop != nil {
+			a.studioTextIndexStop()
+		}
+		if c, ok := a.studioStore.(io.Closer); ok {
+			_ = c.Close() // ends the background indexing of earlier chats
+		}
 		if a.studioFilesIndex != nil {
 			_ = a.studioFilesIndex.Close()
 		}
diff --git a/core/application/studio_files.go b/core/application/studio_files.go
index 40241708ce..0ce1aa2664 100644
--- a/core/application/studio_files.go
+++ b/core/application/studio_files.go
@@ -160,7 +160,13 @@ func (a *Application) initStudioTextIndex(f *files.Service, root string) {
 	if cfg.Distributed.ChatWorker {
 		return
 	}
-	go ix.Run(a.backgroundContext())
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithCancel(a.backgroundContext())
+	done := make(chan struct{})
+	a.studioTextIndexStop = func() { cancel(); <-done }
+	go func() {
+		defer close(done)
+		ix.Run(ctx)
+	}()
 }
 
 // syncAddonSkills lets the add-on owner keep the add-on skill layer in step
diff --git a/core/services/studio/changemode_test.go b/core/services/studio/changemode_test.go
index def972db97..daf8ba7dbc 100644
--- a/core/services/studio/changemode_test.go
+++ b/core/services/studio/changemode_test.go
@@ -476,6 +476,9 @@ var _ = Describe("how a memory note is saved", func() {
 				Expect(r.conns.Ingest(ctx, "telegram", contract.ConnectorInbound{BindingID: b.ID, ConnectorMessage: contract.ConnectorMessage{
 					Chat: "11", Direct: true, SenderID: "11", SenderName: "S", Text: "remember"}})).To(Succeed())
 				waitFor("the answer", func() bool { return len(bot.answers()) >= 1 })
+				// The harness records a tool result after the turn's events went
+				// out, so the answer can reach the bot first: wait for the result.
+				waitFor("the tool result", func() bool { return len(r.h.ResultsFor("propose_change")) >= 1 })
 				res := r.h.ResultsFor("propose_change")
 				Expect(res).To(HaveLen(1))
 				Expect(res[0].Err).To(BeNil(), "%+v", res)
diff --git a/core/services/studio/store/gorm.go b/core/services/studio/store/gorm.go
index 122055cc02..23bd14e42a 100644
--- a/core/services/studio/store/gorm.go
+++ b/core/services/studio/store/gorm.go
@@ -139,6 +139,22 @@ func (pendingRow) TableName() string { return "studio_pending" }
 type gormStore struct {
 	db   *gorm.DB
 	text textIndex
+
+	// The backfill of the chat search index runs in the background: Close
+	// stops it and waits, so nothing writes once the owner of the database
+	// (or of its folder) is gone.
+	stopBackfill context.CancelFunc
+	backfillDone chan struct{}
+}
+
+// Close stops the background indexing of earlier chats and waits for it. It
+// does not close the database, which the caller owns.
+func (s *gormStore) Close() error {
+	if s.stopBackfill != nil {
+		s.stopBackfill()
+		<-s.backfillDone
+	}
+	return nil
 }
 
 // NewGORM returns a Store on db (SQLite or PostgreSQL) and creates its tables.
@@ -158,7 +174,13 @@ func NewGORM(db *gorm.DB) (Store, error) {
 	// Indexing is true from here, so a search never reports the index as
 	// complete before the first look at the history.
 	s.text.indexing.Store(true)
-	go s.backfillTexts()
+	var ctx context.Context
+	ctx, s.stopBackfill = context.WithCancel(context.Background())
+	s.backfillDone = make(chan struct{})
+	go func() {
+		defer close(s.backfillDone)
+		s.backfillTexts(ctx)
+	}()
 	return s, nil
 }
 
diff --git a/core/services/studio/store/gormsearch.go b/core/services/studio/store/gormsearch.go
index 608e7a273e..ea07245559 100644
--- a/core/services/studio/store/gormsearch.go
+++ b/core/services/studio/store/gormsearch.go
@@ -338,9 +338,8 @@ func (s *gormStore) titleChats(ctx context.Context, q chatsearch.Query, terms []
 // from the chat it reached. A message written while it runs is indexed by the
 // write itself, and a row that backfill adds for a message that was just
 // removed is ignored by every search (it joins the entry).
-func (s *gormStore) backfillTexts() {
+func (s *gormStore) backfillTexts(ctx context.Context) {
 	defer s.text.indexing.Store(false)
-	ctx := context.Background()
 	var st textStateRow
 	if err := s.db.Where("id = ?", 1).Limit(1).Find(&st).Error; err != nil {
 		xlog.Warn("Chat search: could not read the backfill state", "error", err)
@@ -359,6 +358,9 @@ func (s *gormStore) backfillTexts() {
 	}
 	last, started, logged := st.LastChat, time.Now(), time.Now()
 	for {
+		if ctx.Err() != nil {
+			return
+		}
 		var ids []string
 		if err := s.db.Model(&chatRow{}).Where("id > ?", last).Order("id").Limit(backfillStep).Pluck("id", &ids).Error; err != nil {
 			xlog.Debug("Chat search: backfill stopped", "error", err)
@@ -368,6 +370,9 @@ func (s *gormStore) backfillTexts() {
 			break
 		}
 		for _, id := range ids {
+			if ctx.Err() != nil {
+				return
+			}
 			if err := s.backfillChat(ctx, id); err != nil {
 				xlog.Debug("Chat search: backfill stopped", "error", err)
 				return
@@ -383,7 +388,11 @@ func (s *gormStore) backfillTexts() {
 			logged = time.Now()
 			xlog.Info("Chat search: indexing earlier chats", "done", s.text.done.Load(), "of", total)
 		}
-		time.Sleep(10 * time.Millisecond) // leave the database to the chats being written
+		select { // leave the database to the chats being written
+		case <-ctx.Done():
+			return
+		case <-time.After(10 * time.Millisecond):
+		}
 	}
 	// Rows of a chat deleted while the backfill read it.
 	_ = s.db.Exec(`DELETE FROM studio_entry_texts WHERE NOT EXISTS (SELECT 1 FROM studio_chats c WHERE c.id = studio_entry_texts.chat_id)`).Error