diff --git a/src/common/__tests__/hotbar-store.test.ts b/src/common/__tests__/hotbar-store.test.ts
index f0e1b91907..267fbe3e8e 100644
--- a/src/common/__tests__/hotbar-store.test.ts
+++ b/src/common/__tests__/hotbar-store.test.ts
@@ -20,7 +20,6 @@
  */
 
 import mockFs from "mock-fs";
-import { catalogEntity } from "../../main/catalog-sources/general";
 import { ClusterStore } from "../cluster-store";
 import { HotbarStore } from "../hotbar-store";
 
@@ -41,7 +40,13 @@ jest.mock("../../main/catalog/catalog-entity-registry", () => ({
           source: "remote"
         }
       },
-      catalogEntity,
+      {
+        metadata: {
+          uid: "catalog-entity",
+          name: "Catalog",
+          source: "app"
+        },
+      },
     ]
   }
 }));
diff --git a/src/common/user-store.ts b/src/common/user-store.ts
index 61d2680818..c1e956b331 100644
--- a/src/common/user-store.ts
+++ b/src/common/user-store.ts
@@ -72,24 +72,6 @@ export class UserStore extends BaseStore<UserStoreModel> {
     makeObservable(this);
     fileNameMigration();
     this.load();
-
-    if (app) {
-      // track telemetry availability
-      reaction(() => this.allowTelemetry, allowed => {
-        appEventBus.emit({ name: "telemetry", action: allowed ? "enabled" : "disabled" });
-      });
-
-      // open at system start-up
-      reaction(() => this.openAtLogin, openAtLogin => {
-        app.setLoginItemSettings({
-          openAtLogin,
-          openAsHidden: true,
-          args: ["--hidden"]
-        });
-      }, {
-        fireImmediately: true,
-      });
-    }
   }
 
   @observable lastSeenAppVersion = "0.0.0";
@@ -130,6 +112,24 @@ export class UserStore extends BaseStore<UserStoreModel> {
     return this.shell || process.env.SHELL || process.env.PTYSHELL;
   }
 
+  startMainReactions() {
+    // track telemetry availability
+    reaction(() => this.allowTelemetry, allowed => {
+      appEventBus.emit({ name: "telemetry", action: allowed ? "enabled" : "disabled" });
+    });
+
+    // open at system start-up
+    reaction(() => this.openAtLogin, openAtLogin => {
+      app.setLoginItemSettings({
+        openAtLogin,
+        openAsHidden: true,
+        args: ["--hidden"]
+      });
+    }, {
+      fireImmediately: true,
+    });
+  }
+
   /**
    * Checks if a column (by ID) for a table (by ID) is configured to be hidden
    * @param tableId The ID of the table to be checked against
diff --git a/src/extensions/__tests__/extension-discovery.test.ts b/src/extensions/__tests__/extension-discovery.test.ts
index 347487e556..6db33acf19 100644
--- a/src/extensions/__tests__/extension-discovery.test.ts
+++ b/src/extensions/__tests__/extension-discovery.test.ts
@@ -39,6 +39,12 @@ jest.mock("../extension-installer", () => ({
     installPackage: jest.fn()
   }
 }));
+jest.mock("electron", () => ({
+  app: {
+    getPath: () => "tmp",
+    setLoginItemSettings: jest.fn(),
+  },
+}));
 
 console = new Console(process.stdout, process.stderr); // fix mockFS
 const mockedWatch = watch as jest.MockedFunction<typeof watch>;
diff --git a/src/main/__test__/context-handler.test.ts b/src/main/__test__/context-handler.test.ts
index ad3b42f5d2..0ba3a2d028 100644
--- a/src/main/__test__/context-handler.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/__test__/context-handler.test.ts
@@ -22,6 +22,14 @@
 import { UserStore } from "../../common/user-store";
 import { ContextHandler } from "../context-handler";
 import { PrometheusProvider, PrometheusProviderRegistry, PrometheusService } from "../prometheus";
+import mockFs from "mock-fs";
+
+jest.mock("electron", () => ({
+  app: {
+    getPath: () => "tmp",
+    setLoginItemSettings: jest.fn(),
+  },
+}));
 
 enum ServiceResult {
   Success,
@@ -70,6 +78,10 @@ function getHandler() {
 
 describe("ContextHandler", () => {
   beforeEach(() => {
+    mockFs({
+      "tmp": {}
+    });
+
     PrometheusProviderRegistry.createInstance();
     UserStore.createInstance();
   });
@@ -77,6 +89,7 @@ describe("ContextHandler", () => {
   afterEach(() => {
     PrometheusProviderRegistry.resetInstance();
     UserStore.resetInstance();
+    mockFs.restore();
   });
 
   describe("getPrometheusService", () => {
diff --git a/src/main/__test__/kube-auth-proxy.test.ts b/src/main/__test__/kube-auth-proxy.test.ts
index 5006859637..e0dd7f73c6 100644
--- a/src/main/__test__/kube-auth-proxy.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/__test__/kube-auth-proxy.test.ts
@@ -46,7 +46,8 @@ jest.mock("winston", () => ({
 
 jest.mock("electron", () => ({
   app: {
-    getPath: () => "/foo",
+    getPath: () => "tmp",
+    setLoginItemSettings: jest.fn(),
   },
 }));
 
@@ -77,8 +78,6 @@ const mockWaitUntilUsed = waitUntilUsed as jest.MockedFunction<typeof waitUntilU
 describe("kube auth proxy tests", () => {
   beforeEach(() => {
     jest.clearAllMocks();
-    UserStore.resetInstance();
-    UserStore.createInstance();
 
     const mockMinikubeConfig = {
       "minikube-config.yml": JSON.stringify({
@@ -102,13 +101,16 @@ describe("kube auth proxy tests", () => {
         }],
         kind: "Config",
         preferences: {},
-      })
+      }),
+      "tmp": {},
     };
 
     mockFs(mockMinikubeConfig);
+    UserStore.createInstance();
   });
 
   afterEach(() => {
+    UserStore.resetInstance();
     mockFs.restore();
   });
 
diff --git a/src/main/index.ts b/src/main/index.ts
index abef1e44da..0599f820cb 100644
--- a/src/main/index.ts
+++ b/src/main/index.ts
@@ -138,7 +138,7 @@ app.on("ready", async () => {
 
   logger.info("💾 Loading stores");
 
-  UserStore.createInstance();
+  UserStore.createInstance().startMainReactions();
   ClusterStore.createInstance().provideInitialFromMain();
   HotbarStore.createInstance();
   ExtensionsStore.createInstance();
diff --git a/src/main/protocol-handler/__test__/router.test.ts b/src/main/protocol-handler/__test__/router.test.ts
index 42e9bda3c6..045e05c127 100644
--- a/src/main/protocol-handler/__test__/router.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/protocol-handler/__test__/router.test.ts
@@ -28,9 +28,17 @@ import { LensExtension } from "../../../extensions/main-api";
 import { ExtensionLoader } from "../../../extensions/extension-loader";
 import { ExtensionsStore } from "../../../extensions/extensions-store";
 import { LensProtocolRouterMain } from "../router";
+import mockFs from "mock-fs";
 
 jest.mock("../../../common/ipc");
 
+jest.mock("electron", () => ({
+  app: {
+    getPath: () => "tmp",
+    setLoginItemSettings: jest.fn(),
+  },
+}));
+
 function throwIfDefined(val: any): void {
   if (val != null) {
     throw val;
@@ -39,6 +47,9 @@ function throwIfDefined(val: any): void {
 
 describe("protocol router tests", () => {
   beforeEach(() => {
+    mockFs({
+      "tmp": {}
+    });
     ExtensionsStore.createInstance();
     ExtensionLoader.createInstance();
 
@@ -53,6 +64,7 @@ describe("protocol router tests", () => {
     ExtensionsStore.resetInstance();
     ExtensionLoader.resetInstance();
     LensProtocolRouterMain.resetInstance();
+    mockFs.restore();
   });
 
   it("should throw on non-lens URLS", () => {
diff --git a/src/migrations/user-store/file-name-migration.ts b/src/migrations/user-store/file-name-migration.ts
index 122cd78102..fc7784d2c2 100644
--- a/src/migrations/user-store/file-name-migration.ts
+++ b/src/migrations/user-store/file-name-migration.ts
@@ -22,8 +22,14 @@
 import fse from "fs-extra";
 import { app, remote } from "electron";
 import path from "path";
+import { isTestEnv } from "../../common/vars";
 
 export function fileNameMigration() {
+  if (isTestEnv) {
+    // hack: to make unit testing easier just ignore the following code
+    return;
+  }
+
   const userDataPath = (app || remote.app).getPath("userData");
   const configJsonPath = path.join(userDataPath, "config.json");
   const lensUserStoreJsonPath = path.join(userDataPath, "lens-user-store.json");
diff --git a/src/renderer/components/dock/__test__/log-resource-selector.test.tsx b/src/renderer/components/dock/__test__/log-resource-selector.test.tsx
index 62566b868a..17ebb92d09 100644
--- a/src/renderer/components/dock/__test__/log-resource-selector.test.tsx
+++ b/src/renderer/components/dock/__test__/log-resource-selector.test.tsx
@@ -30,10 +30,11 @@ import type { LogTabData } from "../log-tab.store";
 import { dockerPod, deploymentPod1 } from "./pod.mock";
 import { ThemeStore } from "../../../theme.store";
 import { UserStore } from "../../../../common/user-store";
+import mockFs from "mock-fs";
 
 jest.mock("electron", () => ({
   app: {
-    getPath: () => "/foo",
+    getPath: () => "tmp",
   },
 }));
 
@@ -71,6 +72,9 @@ const getFewPodsTabData = (): LogTabData => {
 
 describe("<LogResourceSelector />", () => {
   beforeEach(() => {
+    mockFs({
+      "tmp": {}
+    });
     UserStore.createInstance();
     ThemeStore.createInstance();
   });
@@ -78,6 +82,7 @@ describe("<LogResourceSelector />", () => {
   afterEach(() => {
     UserStore.resetInstance();
     ThemeStore.resetInstance();
+    mockFs.restore();
   });
 
   it("renders w/o errors", () => {
diff --git a/src/renderer/components/hotbar/__tests__/hotbar-remove-command.test.tsx b/src/renderer/components/hotbar/__tests__/hotbar-remove-command.test.tsx
index dfb75ffda3..119212753d 100644
--- a/src/renderer/components/hotbar/__tests__/hotbar-remove-command.test.tsx
+++ b/src/renderer/components/hotbar/__tests__/hotbar-remove-command.test.tsx
@@ -26,6 +26,14 @@ import React from "react";
 import { ThemeStore } from "../../../theme.store";
 import { UserStore } from "../../../../common/user-store";
 import { Notifications } from "../../notifications";
+import mockFs from "mock-fs";
+
+jest.mock("electron", () => ({
+  app: {
+    getPath: () => "tmp",
+    setLoginItemSettings: jest.fn(),
+  },
+}));
 
 const mockHotbars: {[id: string]: any} = {
   "1": {
@@ -48,6 +56,9 @@ jest.mock("../../../../common/hotbar-store", () => ({
 
 describe("<HotbarRemoveCommand />", () => {
   beforeEach(() => {
+    mockFs({
+      "tmp": {}
+    });
     UserStore.createInstance();
     ThemeStore.createInstance();
   });
@@ -55,11 +66,12 @@ describe("<HotbarRemoveCommand />", () => {
   afterEach(() => {
     UserStore.resetInstance();
     ThemeStore.resetInstance();
+    mockFs.restore();
   });
 
   it("renders w/o errors", () => {
     const { container } = render(<HotbarRemoveCommand/>);
- 
+
     expect(container).toBeInstanceOf(HTMLElement);
   });
 
@@ -73,4 +85,3 @@ describe("<HotbarRemoveCommand />", () => {
     spy.mockRestore();
   });
 });
-