diff --git a/src/commands/gateway-install-token.test.ts b/src/commands/gateway-install-token.test.ts
index 6df9d3afa36..bd544e57069 100644
--- a/src/commands/gateway-install-token.test.ts
+++ b/src/commands/gateway-install-token.test.ts
@@ -199,7 +199,10 @@ describe("resolveGatewayInstallToken", () => {
           },
         },
       }),
-      expect.objectContaining({ baseSnapshot: expect.any(Object) }),
+      expect.objectContaining({
+        baseSnapshot: expect.any(Object),
+        skipRuntimeSnapshotRefresh: true,
+      }),
     );
   });
 
diff --git a/src/commands/gateway-install-token.ts b/src/commands/gateway-install-token.ts
index 3304963eb90..56fa0acbcf7 100644
--- a/src/commands/gateway-install-token.ts
+++ b/src/commands/gateway-install-token.ts
@@ -80,6 +80,7 @@ async function maybePersistAutoGeneratedGatewayInstallToken(params: {
           baseSnapshot: snapshot,
           ...prepared.writeOptions,
           ...params.configWriteOptions,
+          skipRuntimeSnapshotRefresh: true,
         },
       );
       return params.token;
diff --git a/src/config/io.ts b/src/config/io.ts
index 789009ddeae..ad2bab19a2a 100644
--- a/src/config/io.ts
+++ b/src/config/io.ts
@@ -79,6 +79,7 @@ import {
   registerRuntimeConfigWriteListener,
   resetConfigRuntimeState as resetConfigRuntimeStateState,
   setRuntimeConfigSnapshot as setRuntimeConfigSnapshotState,
+  getRuntimeConfigSnapshotRefreshHandler as getRuntimeConfigSnapshotRefreshHandlerState,
   setRuntimeConfigSnapshotRefreshHandler as setRuntimeConfigSnapshotRefreshHandlerState,
   type RuntimeConfigWriteNotification,
 } from "./runtime-snapshot.js";
@@ -154,6 +155,11 @@ export type ConfigWriteOptions = {
    * Avoids rereading the full config just to prepare an immediate write.
    */
   baseSnapshot?: ConfigFileSnapshot;
+  /**
+   * Internal one-shot CLI fast path. When no runtime snapshot is active, skip
+   * the post-write runtime snapshot refresh/reload tail entirely.
+   */
+  skipRuntimeSnapshotRefresh?: boolean;
 };
 
 export type ReadConfigFileSnapshotForWriteResult = {
@@ -1799,7 +1805,15 @@ export async function writeConfigFile(
       envSnapshotForRestore: options.envSnapshotForRestore,
     }),
     unsetPaths: options.unsetPaths,
+    skipRuntimeSnapshotRefresh: options.skipRuntimeSnapshotRefresh,
   });
+  if (
+    options.skipRuntimeSnapshotRefresh &&
+    !hadRuntimeSnapshot &&
+    !getRuntimeConfigSnapshotRefreshHandlerState()
+  ) {
+    return;
+  }
   const notifyCommittedWrite = () => {
     const currentRuntimeConfig = getRuntimeConfigSnapshotState();
     if (!currentRuntimeConfig) {