diff --git a/zsh/.zshrc b/zsh/.zshrc
index ea35422..07e5d27 100644
--- a/zsh/.zshrc
+++ b/zsh/.zshrc
@@ -31,6 +31,9 @@ fi
 # Per-branch, so `server` on each device fast-forwards to origin/server.
 update_dotfiles() {
     local repo="$HOME/dotfiles"
+    local cache_dir="${ZDOTDIR:-$HOME}/.cache/zsh"
+    local notice_file="$cache_dir/dotfiles-update-notice"
+    local notice_tmp="$notice_file.$$.tmp"
     # Bound the network call so a stalled fetch can't wedge this backgrounded
     # (&!) job into a days-long orphan holding unreaped children. `timeout` is
     # absent on macOS, so only use it when present. Disable ssh multiplexing so
@@ -40,8 +43,11 @@ update_dotfiles() {
         $TO git -C "$repo" fetch --quiet </dev/null 2>/dev/null || return
     git -C "$repo" rev-parse --abbrev-ref '@{u}' >/dev/null 2>&1 || return    # no upstream
     git -C "$repo" merge-base --is-ancestor '@{u}' HEAD 2>/dev/null && return # already current
-    git -C "$repo" merge --ff-only --quiet '@{u}' 2>/dev/null \
-        || print -u2 "⚠ dotfiles: $(git -C "$repo" symbolic-ref --short HEAD) can't fast-forward to @{u} — run: git -C ~/dotfiles pull"
+    git -C "$repo" merge --ff-only --quiet '@{u}' 2>/dev/null && return
+    local notice="⚠ dotfiles: $(git -C "$repo" symbolic-ref --short HEAD) can't fast-forward to @{u} — run: git -C ~/dotfiles pull"
+    mkdir -p "$cache_dir" || return
+    print -r -- "$notice" >| "$notice_tmp" || return
+    mv -f "$notice_tmp" "$notice_file"
 }
 
 update_dotfiles &!
@@ -93,17 +99,19 @@ check_tools_repo() {
 }
 check_tools_repo &!
 
-show_tools_repo_notice() {
+show_update_notices() {
     local cache_dir="${ZDOTDIR:-$HOME}/.cache/zsh"
-    local notice_file="$cache_dir/tools-update-notice"
-    local claimed_notice="$notice_file.$$.show"
-    [[ -s "$notice_file" ]] || return
-    mv "$notice_file" "$claimed_notice" 2>/dev/null || return
-    command cat "$claimed_notice"
-    command rm -f "$claimed_notice"
+    local notice_file claimed_notice
+    for notice_file in "$cache_dir"/{dotfiles,tools}-update-notice; do
+        [[ -s "$notice_file" ]] || continue
+        claimed_notice="$notice_file.$$.show"
+        mv "$notice_file" "$claimed_notice" 2>/dev/null || continue
+        command cat "$claimed_notice"
+        command rm -f "$claimed_notice"
+    done
 }
 autoload -Uz add-zsh-hook
-add-zsh-hook precmd show_tools_repo_notice
+add-zsh-hook precmd show_update_notices
 
 # Load Antidote
 mkdir -p ${ZDOTDIR:-~}/.cache/zsh