diff --git a/app-shell/src/main.js b/app-shell/src/main.js
index 4d92aa9aed4..4d348dc847d 100644
--- a/app-shell/src/main.js
+++ b/app-shell/src/main.js
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ function startUp() {
 
   // wire modules to UI dispatches
   const dispatch = action => {
-    log.debug('Sending action via IPC to renderer', { action })
+    log.silly('Sending action via IPC to renderer', { action })
     mainWindow.webContents.send('dispatch', action)
   }
 
diff --git a/app-shell/src/preload.js b/app-shell/src/preload.js
index e01b0d11157..f47a87fb4d0 100644
--- a/app-shell/src/preload.js
+++ b/app-shell/src/preload.js
@@ -3,11 +3,19 @@
 // defines subset of Electron API that renderer process is allowed to access
 // for security reasons
 import { ipcRenderer, remote } from 'electron'
+import cloneDeep from 'lodash/cloneDeep'
+
+const { getConfig } = remote.require('./config')
+const { getRobots } = remote.require('./discovery')
+const { CURRENT_VERSION, CURRENT_RELEASE_NOTES } = remote.require('./update')
 
 global.APP_SHELL_REMOTE = {
   ipcRenderer,
+  CURRENT_VERSION,
+  CURRENT_RELEASE_NOTES,
+  INITIAL_CONFIG: cloneDeep(getConfig()),
+  INITIAL_ROBOTS: getRobots(),
+
+  // TODO(mc, 2019-08-05): remove when we remove __buildrootEnabled FF
   apiUpdate: remote.require('./api-update'),
-  config: remote.require('./config'),
-  discovery: remote.require('./discovery'),
-  update: remote.require('./update'),
 }
diff --git a/app/src/config/__tests__/config.test.js b/app/src/config/__tests__/config.test.js
index db4414e2cf6..0d588afa4f6 100644
--- a/app/src/config/__tests__/config.test.js
+++ b/app/src/config/__tests__/config.test.js
@@ -1,9 +1,7 @@
 // config tests
 import { updateConfig, configReducer, getConfig } from '..'
 
-import * as mockShell from '../../shell'
-
-jest.mock('../../shell', () => ({ getShellConfig: jest.fn() }))
+jest.mock('../../shell/remote', () => ({ INITIAL_CONFIG: { isConfig: true } }))
 
 describe('config', () => {
   let state
@@ -36,8 +34,6 @@ describe('config', () => {
     })
 
     test('gets store and overrides from remote for initial state', () => {
-      mockShell.getShellConfig.mockReturnValue({ isConfig: true })
-
       expect(configReducer(null, {})).toEqual({ isConfig: true })
     })
 
diff --git a/app/src/config/index.js b/app/src/config/index.js
index e4fbd424998..65d7c945e82 100644
--- a/app/src/config/index.js
+++ b/app/src/config/index.js
@@ -3,104 +3,12 @@
 import { setIn } from '@thi.ng/paths'
 import remove from 'lodash/remove'
 
-import { getShellConfig } from '../shell'
+import remote from '../shell/remote'
 
 import type { State, Action, ThunkAction } from '../types'
-import type { LogLevel } from '../logger'
+import type { Config, UpdateConfigAction } from './types'
 
-type UrlProtocol = 'file:' | 'http:'
-
-export type UpdateChannel = 'latest' | 'beta' | 'alpha'
-
-export type DiscoveryCandidates = string | Array<string>
-
-// TODO(mc, 2018-05-17): put this type somewhere common to app and app-shell
-export type Config = {
-  devtools: boolean,
-
-  // app update config
-  update: {
-    channel: UpdateChannel,
-  },
-
-  // robot update config
-  buildroot: {
-    manifestUrl: string,
-  },
-
-  // logging config
-  log: {
-    level: {
-      file: LogLevel,
-      console: LogLevel,
-    },
-  },
-
-  // ui and browser config
-  ui: {
-    width: number,
-    height: number,
-    url: {
-      protocol: UrlProtocol,
-      path: string,
-    },
-    webPreferences: {
-      webSecurity: boolean,
-    },
-  },
-
-  analytics: {
-    appId: string,
-    optedIn: boolean,
-    seenOptIn: boolean,
-  },
-
-  // deprecated; remove with first migration
-  p10WarningSeen: {
-    [id: string]: ?boolean,
-  },
-
-  support: {
-    userId: string,
-    createdAt: number,
-    name: string,
-    email: ?string,
-  },
-
-  discovery: {
-    candidates: DiscoveryCandidates,
-  },
-
-  // internal development flags
-  devInternal?: {
-    allPipetteConfig?: boolean,
-    tempdeckControls?: boolean,
-    enableThermocycler?: boolean,
-    enablePipettePlus?: boolean,
-    enableBuildRoot?: boolean,
-  },
-}
-
-type UpdateConfigAction = {|
-  type: 'config:UPDATE',
-  payload: {|
-    path: string,
-    value: any,
-  |},
-  meta: {|
-    shell: true,
-  |},
-|}
-
-type SetConfigAction = {|
-  type: 'config:SET',
-  payload: {|
-    path: string,
-    value: any,
-  |},
-|}
-
-export type ConfigAction = UpdateConfigAction | SetConfigAction
+export * from './types'
 
 // trigger a config value update to the app-shell via shell middleware
 export function updateConfig(path: string, value: any): UpdateConfigAction {
@@ -113,9 +21,8 @@ export function updateConfig(path: string, value: any): UpdateConfigAction {
 
 // config reducer
 export function configReducer(state: ?Config, action: Action): Config {
-  // initial state
-  // getShellConfig makes a sync RPC call, so use sparingly
-  if (!state) return getShellConfig()
+  // initial state from app-shell preloaded remote
+  if (!state) return remote.INITIAL_CONFIG
 
   switch (action.type) {
     case 'config:SET':
@@ -142,6 +49,7 @@ export function addManualIp(ip: string): ThunkAction {
     const previous: ?string = [].concat(candidates).find(i => i === ip)
     let nextCandidatesList = candidates
     if (!previous) nextCandidatesList = nextCandidatesList.concat(ip)
+
     return dispatch(updateConfig('discovery.candidates', nextCandidatesList))
   }
 }
@@ -149,9 +57,9 @@ export function addManualIp(ip: string): ThunkAction {
 export function removeManualIp(ip: string): ThunkAction {
   return (dispatch, getState) => {
     const candidates = [].concat(getConfig(getState()).discovery.candidates)
-    remove(candidates, c => {
-      return c === ip
-    })
+
+    remove(candidates, c => c === ip)
+
     return dispatch(updateConfig('discovery.candidates', candidates))
   }
 }
diff --git a/app/src/config/types.js b/app/src/config/types.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..14a6d6784c7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/src/config/types.js
@@ -0,0 +1,95 @@
+// @flow
+import type { LogLevel } from '../logger'
+
+export type UrlProtocol = 'file:' | 'http:'
+
+export type UpdateChannel = 'latest' | 'beta' | 'alpha'
+
+export type DiscoveryCandidates = string | Array<string>
+
+export type Config = {
+  devtools: boolean,
+
+  // app update config
+  update: {
+    channel: UpdateChannel,
+  },
+
+  // robot update config
+  buildroot: {
+    manifestUrl: string,
+  },
+
+  // logging config
+  log: {
+    level: {
+      file: LogLevel,
+      console: LogLevel,
+    },
+  },
+
+  // ui and browser config
+  ui: {
+    width: number,
+    height: number,
+    url: {
+      protocol: UrlProtocol,
+      path: string,
+    },
+    webPreferences: {
+      webSecurity: boolean,
+    },
+  },
+
+  analytics: {
+    appId: string,
+    optedIn: boolean,
+    seenOptIn: boolean,
+  },
+
+  // deprecated; remove with first migration
+  p10WarningSeen: {
+    [id: string]: ?boolean,
+  },
+
+  support: {
+    userId: string,
+    createdAt: number,
+    name: string,
+    email: ?string,
+  },
+
+  discovery: {
+    candidates: DiscoveryCandidates,
+  },
+
+  // internal development flags
+  devInternal?: {
+    allPipetteConfig?: boolean,
+    tempdeckControls?: boolean,
+    enableThermocycler?: boolean,
+    enablePipettePlus?: boolean,
+    enableBuildRoot?: boolean,
+  },
+}
+
+export type UpdateConfigAction = {|
+  type: 'config:UPDATE',
+  payload: {|
+    path: string,
+    value: any,
+  |},
+  meta: {|
+    shell: true,
+  |},
+|}
+
+export type SetConfigAction = {|
+  type: 'config:SET',
+  payload: {|
+    path: string,
+    value: any,
+  |},
+|}
+
+export type ConfigAction = UpdateConfigAction | SetConfigAction
diff --git a/app/src/discovery/__tests__/reducer.test.js b/app/src/discovery/__tests__/reducer.test.js
index 7b9fceca24a..7d315330c98 100644
--- a/app/src/discovery/__tests__/reducer.test.js
+++ b/app/src/discovery/__tests__/reducer.test.js
@@ -1,8 +1,8 @@
 // discovery reducer test
 import { discoveryReducer } from '..'
 
-jest.mock('../../shell', () => ({
-  getShellRobots: () => [
+jest.mock('../../shell/remote', () => ({
+  INITIAL_ROBOTS: [
     { name: 'foo', ip: '192.168.1.1', port: 31950 },
     { name: 'bar', ip: '192.168.1.2', port: 31950 },
   ],
diff --git a/app/src/discovery/index.js b/app/src/discovery/index.js
index 5d5ca318a8d..d8e4545af74 100644
--- a/app/src/discovery/index.js
+++ b/app/src/discovery/index.js
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ import groupBy from 'lodash/groupBy'
 import mapValues from 'lodash/mapValues'
 import some from 'lodash/some'
 
-import { getShellRobots } from '../shell'
+import remote from '../shell/remote'
 import * as actions from './actions'
 
 import type { Service } from '@opentrons/discovery-client'
@@ -29,15 +29,14 @@ export type DiscoveryState = {|
 export const RESTART_PENDING: RestartStatus = 'pending'
 export const RESTART_DOWN: RestartStatus = 'down'
 
-// getShellRobots makes a sync RPC call, so use sparingly
-const initialState: DiscoveryState = {
+const INITIAL_STATE: DiscoveryState = {
   scanning: false,
-  robotsByName: normalizeRobots(getShellRobots()),
   restartsByName: {},
+  robotsByName: normalizeRobots(remote.INITIAL_ROBOTS),
 }
 
 export function discoveryReducer(
-  state: DiscoveryState = initialState,
+  state: DiscoveryState = INITIAL_STATE,
   action: Action
 ): DiscoveryState {
   switch (action.type) {
diff --git a/app/src/epic.js b/app/src/epic.js
index aa91b664da8..ed93fa3c81c 100644
--- a/app/src/epic.js
+++ b/app/src/epic.js
@@ -2,8 +2,8 @@
 // root application epic
 import { combineEpics } from 'redux-observable'
 
-import { buildrootUpdateEpic } from './shell'
 import { discoveryEpic } from './discovery'
 import { robotApiEpic } from './robot-api'
+import { shellEpic } from './shell'
 
-export default combineEpics(buildrootUpdateEpic, discoveryEpic, robotApiEpic)
+export default combineEpics(discoveryEpic, robotApiEpic, shellEpic)
diff --git a/app/src/index.js b/app/src/index.js
index b4f3a5f002c..b800cfc6b93 100644
--- a/app/src/index.js
+++ b/app/src/index.js
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ import { ConnectedRouter, routerMiddleware } from 'connected-react-router'
 import { createEpicMiddleware } from 'redux-observable'
 
 import createLogger from './logger'
-import { checkShellUpdate, shellMiddleware } from './shell'
+import { checkShellUpdate } from './shell'
 
 import { apiClientMiddleware as robotApiMiddleware } from './robot'
 import { initializeAnalytics, analyticsMiddleware } from './analytics'
@@ -31,7 +31,6 @@ const middleware = applyMiddleware(
   thunk,
   epicMiddleware,
   robotApiMiddleware(),
-  shellMiddleware,
   analyticsMiddleware,
   supportMiddleware,
   routerMiddleware(history)
diff --git a/app/src/shell/__mocks__/remote.js b/app/src/shell/__mocks__/remote.js
index 5a56b3d4ad4..2d49b738202 100644
--- a/app/src/shell/__mocks__/remote.js
+++ b/app/src/shell/__mocks__/remote.js
@@ -2,23 +2,20 @@
 // keep in sync with app-shell/src/preload.js
 'use strict'
 
+const EventEmitter = require('events')
+
+class MockIpcRenderer extends EventEmitter {
+  send = jest.fn()
+}
+
 module.exports = {
-  ipcRenderer: {
-    on: jest.fn(),
-    send: jest.fn(),
-  },
+  ipcRenderer: new MockIpcRenderer(),
   apiUpdate: {
     getUpdateInfo: jest.fn(),
     getUpdateFileContents: jest.fn(),
   },
-  config: {
-    getConfig: jest.fn(),
-  },
-  discovery: {
-    getRobots: jest.fn(),
-  },
-  update: {
-    CURRENT_VERSION: '0.0.0',
-    CURRENT_RELEASE_NOTES: 'Release notes for 0.0.0',
-  },
+  CURRENT_VERSION: '0.0.0',
+  CURRENT_RELEASE_NOTES: 'Release notes for 0.0.0',
+  INITIAL_CONFIG: {},
+  INITIAL_ROBOTS: [],
 }
diff --git a/app/src/shell/__tests__/epics.test.js b/app/src/shell/__tests__/epics.test.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..e79e72b3474
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/src/shell/__tests__/epics.test.js
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+// tests for the shell module
+import { TestScheduler } from 'rxjs/testing'
+import { take } from 'rxjs/operators'
+
+import mockRemote from '../remote'
+import { sendActionToShellEpic, receiveActionFromShellEpic } from '..'
+
+const { ipcRenderer: mockIpc } = mockRemote
+
+describe('shell epics', () => {
+  let testScheduler
+
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    testScheduler = new TestScheduler((actual, expected) => {
+      expect(actual).toEqual(expected)
+    })
+  })
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    jest.resetAllMocks()
+  })
+
+  test('sendActionToShellEpic "dispatches" actions to IPC if meta.shell', () => {
+    const shellAction = { type: 'foo', meta: { shell: true } }
+
+    testScheduler.run(({ hot, expectObservable }) => {
+      const action$ = hot('-a', { a: shellAction })
+      const output$ = sendActionToShellEpic(action$)
+
+      expectObservable(output$).toBe('--')
+    })
+
+    // NOTE: this expectation has to outside the testScheduler scope or else
+    // everything breaks for some reason
+    expect(mockIpc.send).toHaveBeenCalledWith('dispatch', shellAction)
+  })
+
+  // due to the use of `fromEvent`, this test doesn't work well as a marble
+  // test. `toPromise` based expectation should be sufficient
+  test('catches actions from main', () => {
+    const shellAction = { type: 'bar' }
+    const result = receiveActionFromShellEpic()
+      .pipe(take(1))
+      .toPromise()
+
+    mockIpc.emit('dispatch', {}, shellAction)
+
+    return expect(result).resolves.toEqual(shellAction)
+  })
+})
diff --git a/app/src/shell/__tests__/shell.test.js b/app/src/shell/__tests__/shell.test.js
deleted file mode 100644
index fc3770cc90a..00000000000
--- a/app/src/shell/__tests__/shell.test.js
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,47 +0,0 @@
-// tests for the shell module
-import configureMockStore from 'redux-mock-store'
-import thunk from 'redux-thunk'
-
-import mockRemote from '../remote'
-import { shellMiddleware, getShellConfig } from '..'
-
-const middlewares = [thunk, shellMiddleware]
-const mockStore = configureMockStore(middlewares)
-const { ipcRenderer: mockIpc, config: mockConfig } = mockRemote
-
-describe('app shell module', () => {
-  afterEach(() => {
-    jest.clearAllMocks()
-  })
-
-  describe('shell middleware', () => {
-    test('"dispatches" actions to the app shell if meta.shell', () => {
-      const store = mockStore({})
-      const action = { type: 'foo', meta: { shell: true } }
-
-      store.dispatch(action)
-      expect(mockIpc.send).toHaveBeenCalledWith('dispatch', action)
-    })
-
-    test('catches actions from main and dispatches them to redux', () => {
-      const store = mockStore({})
-      const action = { type: 'foo' }
-
-      expect(mockIpc.on).toHaveBeenCalledWith('dispatch', expect.any(Function))
-
-      const dispatchHandler = mockIpc.on.mock.calls.find(call => {
-        return call[0] === 'dispatch' && typeof call[1] === 'function'
-      })[1]
-
-      dispatchHandler({}, action)
-      expect(store.getActions()).toEqual([action])
-    })
-  })
-
-  describe('config remote', () => {
-    test('getShellConfig', () => {
-      mockConfig.getConfig.mockReturnValue({ isConfig: true })
-      expect(getShellConfig()).toEqual({ isConfig: true })
-    })
-  })
-})
diff --git a/app/src/shell/api-update.js b/app/src/shell/api-update.js
index 3c9da917bf8..cb1cae0d610 100644
--- a/app/src/shell/api-update.js
+++ b/app/src/shell/api-update.js
@@ -8,8 +8,8 @@ export type ApiUpdateInfo = {
 }
 
 const {
+  CURRENT_VERSION,
   apiUpdate: { getUpdateInfo, getUpdateFileContents },
-  update: { CURRENT_VERSION },
 } = remote
 
 export function apiUpdateReducer(state: ?ApiUpdateInfo): ApiUpdateInfo {
diff --git a/app/src/shell/buildroot/selectors.js b/app/src/shell/buildroot/selectors.js
index 2a10d9acae0..c495509b414 100644
--- a/app/src/shell/buildroot/selectors.js
+++ b/app/src/shell/buildroot/selectors.js
@@ -112,7 +112,7 @@ export function compareRobotVersionToUpdate(
 ): BuildrootUpdateType {
   const currentVersion = getRobotApiVersion(robot)
   // TODO(mc, 2019-07-23): get this from state once BR state info can come in piecemeal
-  const updateVersion: string = remote.update.CURRENT_VERSION
+  const updateVersion: string = remote.CURRENT_VERSION
 
   const validCurrent: string | null = semver.valid(currentVersion)
   const validUpdate: string | null = semver.valid(updateVersion)
diff --git a/app/src/shell/index.js b/app/src/shell/index.js
index 7b4636f5d3d..5d9c7c8213b 100644
--- a/app/src/shell/index.js
+++ b/app/src/shell/index.js
@@ -1,59 +1,41 @@
 // @flow
 // desktop shell module
 import { combineReducers } from 'redux'
+import { combineEpics } from 'redux-observable'
+import { fromEvent } from 'rxjs'
+import { filter, tap, ignoreElements } from 'rxjs/operators'
 
 import createLogger from '../logger'
 import remote from './remote'
 import { updateReducer } from './update'
 import { apiUpdateReducer } from './api-update'
-import { buildrootReducer } from './buildroot'
+import { buildrootReducer, buildrootUpdateEpic } from './buildroot'
 
 import type { Reducer } from 'redux'
-import type { Service } from '@opentrons/discovery-client'
+
 import type {
-  Middleware,
+  LooseEpic,
   ThunkAction,
   Action,
+  ActionLike,
   Dispatch,
   GetState,
 } from '../types'
+
 import type { ViewableRobot } from '../discovery'
-import type { Config } from '../config'
-import type { ApiUpdateInfo as ApiUpdateState } from './api-update'
-import type { ShellUpdateState, ShellUpdateAction } from './update'
-import type { BuildrootState, BuildrootAction } from './buildroot'
-
-type ShellLogsDownloadAction = {|
-  type: 'shell:DOWNLOAD_LOGS',
-  payload: {| logUrls: Array<string> |},
-  meta: {| shell: true |},
-|}
-
-export type ShellState = {|
-  update: ShellUpdateState,
-  apiUpdate: ApiUpdateState,
-  buildroot: BuildrootState,
-|}
-
-export type ShellAction =
-  | ShellUpdateAction
-  | ShellLogsDownloadAction
-  | BuildrootAction
-
-const {
-  ipcRenderer,
-  config: { getConfig },
-  discovery: { getRobots },
-} = remote
+import type { ShellState } from './types'
+
+const { ipcRenderer } = remote
 
 const log = createLogger(__filename)
 
 export * from './update'
 export * from './api-update'
 export * from './buildroot'
+export * from './types'
 
-const CURRENT_VERSION: string = remote.update.CURRENT_VERSION
-const CURRENT_RELEASE_NOTES: string = remote.update.CURRENT_RELEASE_NOTES
+const CURRENT_VERSION: string = remote.CURRENT_VERSION
+const CURRENT_RELEASE_NOTES: string = remote.CURRENT_RELEASE_NOTES
 const API_RELEASE_NOTES = CURRENT_RELEASE_NOTES.replace(
   /<!-- start:@opentrons\/app -->([\S\s]*?)<!-- end:@opentrons\/app -->/,
   ''
@@ -70,30 +52,35 @@ export const shellReducer: Reducer<ShellState, Action> = combineReducers<
   buildroot: buildrootReducer,
 })
 
-export const shellMiddleware: Middleware = store => {
-  const { dispatch } = store
-
-  ipcRenderer.on('dispatch', (_, action) => {
-    log.debug('Received action from main via IPC', { action })
-    dispatch(action)
-  })
-
-  return next => action => {
-    if (action.meta && action.meta.shell) ipcRenderer.send('dispatch', action)
-
-    return next(action)
-  }
-}
-
-// getShellConfig makes a sync RPC call, so use sparingly
-export function getShellConfig(): Config {
-  return getConfig()
-}
+export const sendActionToShellEpic: LooseEpic = action$ =>
+  action$.pipe(
+    filter<ActionLike>((action: ActionLike) => action.meta?.shell === true),
+    tap<ActionLike>((shellAction: ActionLike) =>
+      ipcRenderer.send('dispatch', shellAction)
+    ),
+    ignoreElements()
+  )
+
+export const receiveActionFromShellEpic = () =>
+  // IPC event listener: (IpcRendererEvent, ...args) => void
+  // our action is the only argument, so pluck it out from index 1
+  fromEvent<ActionLike>(
+    ipcRenderer,
+    'dispatch',
+    (_: mixed, incoming: ActionLike) => incoming
+  ).pipe<ActionLike>(
+    tap(incoming => {
+      log.debug('Received action from main via IPC', {
+        actionType: incoming.type,
+      })
+    })
+  )
 
-// getShellRobots makes a sync RPC call, so use sparingly
-export function getShellRobots(): Array<Service> {
-  return getRobots()
-}
+export const shellEpic = combineEpics(
+  sendActionToShellEpic,
+  receiveActionFromShellEpic,
+  buildrootUpdateEpic
+)
 
 export function downloadLogs(robot: ViewableRobot): ThunkAction {
   return (dispatch: Dispatch, getState: GetState) => {
diff --git a/app/src/shell/types.js b/app/src/shell/types.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..75777aa0464
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/src/shell/types.js
@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+// @flow
+import type { ApiUpdateInfo as ApiUpdateState } from './api-update'
+import type { BuildrootState, BuildrootAction } from './buildroot/types'
+import type { ShellUpdateState, ShellUpdateAction } from './update'
+
+export type ShellState = {|
+  update: ShellUpdateState,
+  apiUpdate: ApiUpdateState,
+  buildroot: BuildrootState,
+|}
+
+export type ShellLogsDownloadAction = {|
+  type: 'shell:DOWNLOAD_LOGS',
+  payload: {| logUrls: Array<string> |},
+  meta: {| shell: true |},
+|}
+
+export type ShellAction =
+  | ShellUpdateAction
+  | ShellLogsDownloadAction
+  | BuildrootAction