diff --git a/src/components/ide/Ide/Ide.js b/src/components/ide/Ide/Ide.js
index bffe0112..52f98c52 100644
--- a/src/components/ide/Ide/Ide.js
+++ b/src/components/ide/Ide/Ide.js
@@ -57,6 +57,7 @@ import initHedgehogSdk from '../../../sdk/hedgehog';
 import PluginManager from '../../../sdk/PluginManager';
 
 import useProjectInfo from './projectInfo';
+import useProjectCache from './projectCache';
 import usePersistentState from './persistentState';
 import useLayoutModel from './layoutModel';
 
@@ -120,10 +121,13 @@ type Props = {|
 |};
 
 function Ide({ projectName }: Props) {
-  const [projectInfo, refreshProject] = useProjectInfo(projectName);
+  const projectInfo = useProjectInfo(projectName);
   const [pluginsLoaded, setPluginsLoaded] = React.useState<boolean>(false);
   const [runningTask, setRunningTask] = React.useState<Task | null>(null);
 
+  const [projectCache, refreshProject] = useProjectCache(
+    projectInfo && projectInfo.project,
+  );
   const [state, dispatch] = usePersistentState(
     projectInfo && projectInfo.projectUid,
   );
@@ -148,7 +152,13 @@ function Ide({ projectName }: Props) {
   // TODO this has a potential race condition with the initialization
   // of executorRef.current.
   React.useEffect(() => {
-    if (projectInfo === null || layoutModel === null || pluginsLoaded) return;
+    if (
+      projectInfo === null ||
+      projectCache === null ||
+      layoutModel === null ||
+      pluginsLoaded
+    )
+      return;
 
     (async () => {
       const pluginManager = new PluginManager(
@@ -161,10 +171,10 @@ function Ide({ projectName }: Props) {
       pluginManagerRef.current = pluginManager;
       setPluginsLoaded(true);
     })();
-  }, [projectInfo, layoutModel, pluginsLoaded]);
+  }, [projectInfo, projectCache, layoutModel, pluginsLoaded]);
 
   // load the project's simulator schema if it or the simulator changes
-  const simulatorXml = projectInfo && projectInfo.simulatorXml;
+  const simulatorXml = projectCache && projectCache.simulatorXml;
 
   function refreshSimulatorFromSchema(
     schema: SimulationSchema.SimulatorJson | null,
@@ -198,7 +208,7 @@ function Ide({ projectName }: Props) {
 
   function getFile(path: string): FileReference {
     // eslint-disable-next-line no-throw-literal
-    if (projectInfo === null) throw 'unreachable';
+    if (projectCache === null) throw 'unreachable';
 
     const [_root, ...fragments] = path.split('/');
 
@@ -217,7 +227,7 @@ function Ide({ projectName }: Props) {
       return child;
     };
 
-    const file = fragments.reduce(reducer, projectInfo.files);
+    const file = fragments.reduce(reducer, projectCache.files);
     return { path, file };
   }
 
@@ -535,9 +545,9 @@ function Ide({ projectName }: Props) {
     const path = file.path.split('/').slice(1, -1);
 
     // eslint-disable-next-line no-throw-literal
-    if (projectInfo === null) throw 'unreachable';
+    if (projectCache === null) throw 'unreachable';
 
-    const root = projectInfo.files;
+    const root = projectCache.files;
 
     // the project root is always a directory. assert and cast
     // eslint-disable-next-line no-throw-literal
@@ -775,7 +785,8 @@ function Ide({ projectName }: Props) {
   useStyles(FlexLayoutTheme);
   const classes = useStylesMaterial();
 
-  if (projectInfo === null || state === null) return null;
+  if (projectInfo === null || projectCache === null || state === null)
+    return null;
 
   const { fileTreeState, showMetadataFolder } = state;
 
@@ -920,7 +931,7 @@ function Ide({ projectName }: Props) {
           <hr />
         </div>
         <FileTree
-          files={projectInfo.files}
+          files={projectCache.files}
           {...fileTreeState}
           filter={filter}
           onFileAction={handleFileAction}
diff --git a/src/components/ide/Ide/projectCache.js b/src/components/ide/Ide/projectCache.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..8426fcf9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/components/ide/Ide/projectCache.js
@@ -0,0 +1,57 @@
+// @flow
+
+import * as React from 'react';
+
+import filer, { fs } from 'filer';
+
+import {
+  type FilerRecursiveStatInfo,
+  Project,
+} from '../../../core/store/projects';
+
+type ProjectCache = {|
+  files: FilerRecursiveStatInfo,
+  simulatorXml: string | null,
+|};
+
+export default function useProjectCache(
+  project: Project | null,
+): [ProjectCache | null, () => void] {
+  const [state, setState] = React.useState<ProjectCache | null>(null);
+
+  function refreshProject() {
+    if (project === null) {
+      setState(null);
+      return;
+    }
+
+    async function loadSimulatorXml(): Promise<string | null> {
+      const absolutePath = project.resolve('./.metadata/simulator');
+      try {
+        const workspaceXml = await fs.promises.readFile(absolutePath, 'utf8');
+        if (workspaceXml === '') return null;
+        return workspaceXml;
+      } catch (ex) {
+        if (!(ex instanceof filer.Errors.ENOENT)) {
+          throw ex;
+        }
+        return null;
+      }
+    }
+
+    (async () => {
+      // load project from the file system
+      const files = await project.getFiles();
+      const simulatorXml = await loadSimulatorXml();
+
+      setState({ files, simulatorXml });
+    })();
+  }
+
+  // refresh project when projectName changes
+  React.useEffect(() => {
+    refreshProject();
+  }, [project]);
+
+  return [state, refreshProject];
+}
diff --git a/src/components/ide/Ide/projectInfo.js b/src/components/ide/Ide/projectInfo.js
index 892e5553..89101ceb 100644
--- a/src/components/ide/Ide/projectInfo.js
+++ b/src/components/ide/Ide/projectInfo.js
@@ -2,55 +2,28 @@
 
 import * as React from 'react';
 
-import filer, { fs } from 'filer';
-
-import {
-  type FilerRecursiveStatInfo,
-  Project,
-} from '../../../core/store/projects';
+import { Project } from '../../../core/store/projects';
 
 type ProjectInfo = {|
   project: Project,
-  files: FilerRecursiveStatInfo,
   projectUid: string,
-  simulatorXml: string | null,
 |};
 
 export default function useProjectInfo(
   projectName: string,
-): [ProjectInfo | null, () => void] {
+): ProjectInfo | null {
   const [state, setState] = React.useState<ProjectInfo | null>(null);
 
-  function refreshProject() {
-    async function loadSimulatorXml(project: Project): Promise<string | null> {
-      const absolutePath = project.resolve('./.metadata/simulator');
-      try {
-        const workspaceXml = await fs.promises.readFile(absolutePath, 'utf8');
-        if (workspaceXml === '') return null;
-        return workspaceXml;
-      } catch (ex) {
-        if (!(ex instanceof filer.Errors.ENOENT)) {
-          throw ex;
-        }
-        return null;
-      }
-    }
-
+  // refresh project when projectName changes
+  React.useEffect(() => {
     (async () => {
       // load project from the file system
       const project = await Project.getProject(projectName);
-      const files = await project.getFiles();
       const projectUid = await project.getUid();
-      const simulatorXml = await loadSimulatorXml(project);
 
-      setState({ project, files, projectUid, simulatorXml });
+      setState({ project, projectUid });
     })();
-  }
-
-  // refresh project when projectName changes
-  React.useEffect(() => {
-    refreshProject();
   }, [projectName]);
 
-  return [state, refreshProject];
+  return state;
 }