diff --git a/src/main/computer/desktop-script-serve-channel.test.ts b/src/main/computer/desktop-script-serve-channel.test.ts
index 2eca213e451..aeb1f85f928 100644
--- a/src/main/computer/desktop-script-serve-channel.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/computer/desktop-script-serve-channel.test.ts
@@ -91,6 +91,73 @@ describe('DesktopScriptServeChannel', () => {
     expect(handlers.onLine.mock.calls.map(([line]) => line)).toEqual(['first'])
   })
 
+  it('keeps the retained tail free of newlines after every drain', () => {
+    const { channel, child } = createChannel()
+    const retained = channel as unknown as { buffer: string }
+    for (const chunk of ['a\nb', 'c\r\n\n\nd\ne', '\n', 'f\n\ng', Buffer.from('h\r\ni😀')]) {
+      child.stdout.emit('data', chunk)
+      // The fast path in readStdout scans only the new chunk, which is sound only if this holds.
+      expect(retained.buffer).not.toContain('\n')
+    }
+    expect(retained.buffer).toBe('i😀')
+  })
+
+  it('scans only the new chunk for the first newline of a pending line', () => {
+    const { child, handlers } = createChannel()
+    const pending = 'p'.repeat(1024 * 1024)
+    child.stdout.emit('data', pending)
+    const chunk = 'q\n'
+    const indexOf = vi.spyOn(String.prototype, 'indexOf')
+    let scanned: number[]
+    try {
+      child.stdout.emit('data', chunk)
+      scanned = indexOf.mock.contexts.map((self) => String(self).length)
+    } finally {
+      indexOf.mockRestore()
+    }
+    expect(handlers.onLine).toHaveBeenCalledWith(`${pending}q`)
+    // Locating the delimiter must not rescan the megabytes already known to hold none.
+    expect(scanned.length).toBeGreaterThan(0)
+    expect(Math.max(...scanned)).toBeLessThanOrEqual(chunk.length)
+  })
+
+  it('releases the drained response that a retained tail was sliced from', () => {
+    const gc = (globalThis as { gc?: () => void }).gc
+    if (!gc) {
+      throw new Error('global.gc unavailable - config/vitest.config.ts must pass --expose-gc')
+    }
+    const collectHeap = (): number => {
+      gc()
+      gc()
+      return process.memoryUsage().heapUsed
+    }
+    const tails: string[] = []
+    const feed = (index: number): void => {
+      const child = new FakeChild()
+      const channel = new DesktopScriptServeChannel(child as unknown as RuntimeChildProcess, {
+        onLine: () => {},
+        onGone: () => {},
+        onOverflow: () => {}
+      })
+      const line = String.fromCharCode(65 + (index % 26)).repeat(1024 * 1024)
+      child.stdout.emit('data', `${line}\n{"partial":${index}`)
+      tails.push((channel as unknown as { buffer: string }).buffer)
+    }
+    for (let index = 0; index < 8; index += 1) {
+      feed(index)
+    }
+    tails.length = 0
+    const before = collectHeap()
+    for (let index = 0; index < 32; index += 1) {
+      feed(index)
+    }
+    const used = collectHeap() - before
+    expect(tails).toHaveLength(32)
+    expect(tails[5]).toBe('{"partial":5')
+    // 32 pending tails, each sliced from a 1 Mi-char line; an un-owned tail pins the whole line.
+    expect(used).toBeLessThan(4 * 1024 * 1024)
+  })
+
   describe('once stopped', () => {
     /**
      * The channel's half of the stale-callback guard, pinned here rather than
diff --git a/src/main/computer/desktop-script-serve-channel.ts b/src/main/computer/desktop-script-serve-channel.ts
index ce46dc6ab5f..03c224cef31 100644
--- a/src/main/computer/desktop-script-serve-channel.ts
+++ b/src/main/computer/desktop-script-serve-channel.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 import { StringDecoder } from 'node:string_decoder'
 import type { ProcessSpec } from '../../shared/child-process/process-spec'
 import type { spawnProcess } from '../../shared/child-process/run-process'
+import { ownRetainedString } from '../../shared/own-retained-string'
 
 /** The all-pipes child `spawnProcess` returns; avoids a node:child_process import. */
 export type RuntimeChildProcess = ReturnType<typeof spawnProcess>
@@ -113,17 +114,19 @@ export class DesktopScriptServeChannel {
       return
     }
     const decoded = typeof chunk === 'string' ? chunk : this.decoder.write(chunk)
+    const retainedLength = this.buffer.length
     this.buffer += decoded
     if (this.buffer.length > MAX_RESPONSE_CHARS) {
       this.buffer = ''
       this.handlers.onOverflow()
       return
     }
-    // The retained tail has no newline; avoid rescanning and flattening it for every chunk.
-    if (!decoded.includes('\n')) {
+    // The retained tail has no newline, so only the new chunk needs scanning for the first one.
+    const firstNewline = decoded.indexOf('\n')
+    if (firstNewline === -1) {
       return
     }
-    for (let newline = this.buffer.indexOf('\n'); newline >= 0;) {
+    for (let newline = retainedLength + firstNewline; newline >= 0;) {
       // Slice a trailing CR off by index; trimming copies the whole payload.
       const end = newline > 0 && this.buffer.charCodeAt(newline - 1) === 13 ? newline - 1 : newline
       const line = this.buffer.slice(0, end)
@@ -138,6 +141,8 @@ export class DesktopScriptServeChannel {
       }
       newline = this.buffer.indexOf('\n')
     }
+    // Why own: the tail is a slice that would pin the whole drained buffer until the next newline.
+    this.buffer = ownRetainedString(this.buffer)
   }
 }