[bug] Auto-downloading of unwanted pipes after software restart

[forkmax]

I've encountered an issue with the latest version of ScreenPipe regarding the automatic downloading of pipes that I've previously removed.

Current Behavior:

• When I remove certain pipes (specifically Data Table, Identify Speakers, and Memories), they automatically re-download upon software restart
• This happens consistently every time I restart the application
• I only need to use the "search" and "timeline" pipes for my current workflow

Steps to Reproduce:

1. Launch ScreenPipe
2. Remove Data Table, Identify Speakers, and Memories pipes
3. Close and restart ScreenPipe
4. Observe that the previously removed pipes are automatically downloaded again

Expected Behavior:

• The software should maintain my pipe preferences across restarts
• Only the pipes I specifically choose to keep should remain installed
• No automatic re-downloading of removed pipes should occur

Question:
Is this behavior intentional? If these are core pipes, it would be helpful to either:

• Make them optional and respect user removal choices
• Clearly indicate which pipes are core/required and cannot be removed

system info

• os: [macos 15.2]
• screenpipe version: [0.23.8 (20250110.003649)]

[louis030195]

yeah it's intentional, ill see how to improve this, maybe just disable these?

[forkmax]

yeah it's intentional, ill see how to improve this, maybe just disable these?

Thank you for the clarification! I now understand the design intention better.

You're right - disabling these core pipes instead of allowing deletion makes perfect sense. Before the pipe feature was introduced, these functionalities were simply built-in features that users wouldn't expect to remove completely.

The introduction of the pipe system created an impression similar to an app store, where I incorrectly assumed all features were modular and could be freely added or removed. I now understand that some pipes are actually core functionalities that should remain in the system.

Perhaps treating these essential pipes like "system apps" would be a better approach - they could be disabled but not uninstalled. This would help prevent confusion for other users who might also assume all pipes are optional modules.

This UI pattern would be more intuitive and consistent with how most users understand system vs optional components. Thanks for considering this feedback!