diff --git a/src/common/darktable.c b/src/common/darktable.c
index 9a48b38bc72d..1ac35ea0bf2c 100644
--- a/src/common/darktable.c
+++ b/src/common/darktable.c
@@ -1616,7 +1616,7 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
 
   if(init_gui)
   {
-    darktable_splash_screen_create(NULL, FALSE);
+    dt_splash_screen_create(FALSE);
   }
 
   // detect cpu features and decide which codepaths to enable
@@ -1629,12 +1629,12 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
   dt_datetime_init();
 
   // initialize the database
-  darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("opening image library"));
+  dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("opening image library"));
   darktable.db = dt_database_init(dbfilename_from_command, load_data, init_gui);
   if(darktable.db == NULL)
   {
     dt_print(DT_DEBUG_ALWAYS, "ERROR : cannot open database");
-    darktable_splash_screen_destroy();
+    dt_splash_screen_destroy();
     return 1;
   }
   else if(!dt_database_get_lock_acquired(darktable.db))
@@ -1642,7 +1642,7 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
     gboolean image_loaded_elsewhere = FALSE;
     if(init_gui && argc > 1)
     {
-      darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("forwarding image(s) to running instance"));
+      dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("forwarding image(s) to running instance"));
 
       // send the images to the other instance via dbus
       dt_print(DT_DEBUG_ALWAYS,
@@ -1666,22 +1666,22 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
       }
       if(connection) g_object_unref(connection);
     }
-    darktable_splash_screen_destroy(); // dismiss splash screen before potentially showing error dialog
+    dt_splash_screen_destroy(); // dismiss splash screen before potentially showing error dialog
     if(!image_loaded_elsewhere && init_gui) dt_database_show_error(darktable.db);
 
     dt_print(DT_DEBUG_ALWAYS, "ERROR: can't acquire database lock, aborting.");
     return 1;
   }
 
-  darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("preparing database"));
+  dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("preparing database"));
   dt_upgrade_maker_model(darktable.db);
 
   // init darktable tags table
-  darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("setting up tags table"));
+  dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("setting up tags table"));
   dt_set_darktable_tags();
 
   // Initialize the signal system
-  darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing signals and control"));
+  dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing signals and control"));
   darktable.signals = dt_control_signal_init();
 
   dt_control_init(init_gui);
@@ -1700,7 +1700,7 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
   if(styledir)
   {
     dt_gui_process_events();
-    darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("importing default styles"));
+    dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("importing default styles"));
     dt_import_default_styles(styledir);
     g_free(styledir);
   }
@@ -1720,14 +1720,15 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
   {
     if(dt_conf_get_bool("run_crawler_on_start") && !dt_gimpmode())
     {
-      darktable_splash_screen_create(NULL, TRUE); // force the splash screen for the crawl even if user-disabled
+      dt_splash_screen_allow_create(TRUE); // allow splash screen if a message is to be displayed
       // scan for cases where the database and xmp files have different timestamps
       changed_xmp_files = dt_control_crawler_run();
       if(!dt_conf_get_bool("show_splash_screen"))
       {
-        darktable_splash_screen_destroy();
+        dt_splash_screen_destroy();
         dt_gui_process_events(); // ensure that the splash screen is removed right away
       }
+      dt_splash_screen_allow_create(FALSE); // allow splash screen if a message is to be displayed
     }
   }
 
@@ -1800,7 +1801,7 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
   darktable.guides = dt_guides_init();
 
 #ifdef HAVE_GRAPHICSMAGICK
-  darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing GraphicsMagick"));
+  dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing GraphicsMagick"));
   /* GraphicsMagick init */
 #ifndef MAGICK_OPT_NO_SIGNAL_HANDER
   InitializeMagick(darktable.progname);
@@ -1812,16 +1813,16 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
 #endif
 #elif defined HAVE_IMAGEMAGICK
   /* ImageMagick init */
-  darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing ImageMagick"));
+  dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing ImageMagick"));
   MagickWandGenesis();
 #endif
 
 #ifdef HAVE_LIBHEIF
-  darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing libheif"));
+  dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing libheif"));
   heif_init(NULL);
 #endif
 
-  darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("starting OpenCL"));
+  dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("starting OpenCL"));
   darktable.opencl = (dt_opencl_t *)calloc(1, sizeof(dt_opencl_t));
   if(init_gui)
     dt_control_add_job(DT_JOB_QUEUE_SYSTEM_BG, _detect_opencl_job_create(exclude_opencl));
@@ -1833,7 +1834,7 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
 
   dt_wb_presets_init(NULL);
 
-  darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("loading noise profiles"));
+  dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("loading noise profiles"));
   darktable.noiseprofile_parser = dt_noiseprofile_init(noiseprofiles_from_command);
 
   // must come before mipmap_cache, because that one will need to access
@@ -1850,14 +1851,14 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
   dt_metadata_init();
   dt_pthread_mutex_unlock(&darktable.metadata_threadsafe);
 
-  darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("synchronizing local copies"));
+  dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("synchronizing local copies"));
   dt_image_local_copy_synch();
 
 #ifdef HAVE_GPHOTO2
   // Initialize the camera control.  this is done late so that the
   // gui can react to the signal sent but before switching to
   // lighttable!
-  darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing camera control"));
+  dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing camera control"));
   darktable.camctl = dt_camctl_new();
 #endif
 
@@ -1867,11 +1868,11 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
 
   if(init_gui)
   {
-    darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing GUI"));
+    dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing GUI"));
     if(dt_gui_gtk_init(darktable.gui))
     {
       dt_print(DT_DEBUG_ALWAYS, "[dt_init] ERROR: can't init gui, aborting.");
-      darktable_splash_screen_destroy();
+      dt_splash_screen_destroy();
       return 1;
     }
     dt_bauhaus_init();
@@ -1893,11 +1894,11 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
   if(!darktable.develop)
   {
     dt_print(DT_DEBUG_ALWAYS, "[dt_init] ERROR: can't init develop system, aborting.");
-    darktable_splash_screen_destroy();
+    dt_splash_screen_destroy();
     return 1;
   }
 
-  darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("loading processing modules"));
+  dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("loading processing modules"));
   darktable.imageio = (dt_imageio_t *)calloc(1, sizeof(dt_imageio_t));
   dt_imageio_init(darktable.imageio);
 
@@ -1911,7 +1912,7 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
   if(dt_ioppr_check_so_iop_order(darktable.iop, darktable.iop_order_list))
   {
     dt_print(DT_DEBUG_ALWAYS, "[dt_init] ERROR: iop order looks bad, aborting.");
-    darktable_splash_screen_destroy();
+    dt_splash_screen_destroy();
     return 1;
   }
 
@@ -1932,20 +1933,20 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
 
   if(init_gui)
   {
-    darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("loading utility modules"));
+    dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("loading utility modules"));
     darktable.lib = (dt_lib_t *)calloc(1, sizeof(dt_lib_t));
     dt_lib_init(darktable.lib);
 
     // init the gui part of views
-    darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("loading views"));
+    dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("loading views"));
     dt_view_manager_gui_init(darktable.view_manager);
   }
 
 /* init lua last, since it's user made stuff it must be in the real environment */
 #ifdef USE_LUA
-  darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing Lua"));
+  dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("initializing Lua"));
   // after the following Lua startup call, we can no longer use dt_gui_process_events() or we hang;
-  // this also means no more calls to darktable_splash_screen_set_progress()
+  // this also means no more calls to dt_splash_screen_set_progress()
   dt_lua_init(darktable.lua_state.state, lua_command);
 #endif
 
@@ -1975,7 +1976,7 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
     {
       // If only one image is listed, attempt to load it in darkroom
 #ifndef USE_LUA      // may cause UI hang since after LUA init
-      darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(_("importing image"));
+      dt_splash_screen_set_progress(_("importing image"));
 #endif
       dt_load_from_string(argv[1], TRUE, NULL);
     }
@@ -2034,7 +2035,7 @@ int dt_init(int argc,
     // show the main window and restore its geometry to that saved in the config file
     gtk_widget_show_all(dt_ui_main_window(darktable.gui->ui));
     dt_gui_gtk_load_config();
-    darktable_splash_screen_destroy();
+    dt_splash_screen_destroy();
 
     // finally set the cursor to be the default.
     // for some reason this is needed on some systems to pick up the correctly themed cursor
@@ -2094,7 +2095,7 @@ void dt_cleanup()
   const gboolean init_gui = (darktable.gui != NULL);
 
 //  if(init_gui)
-//    darktable_exit_screen_create(NULL, FALSE);
+//    darktable_exit_screen_create(NULL);
 
   dt_stop_backthumbs_crawler(TRUE);
 
@@ -2275,7 +2276,7 @@ void dt_cleanup()
   dt_exif_cleanup();
 
   if(init_gui)
-    darktable_exit_screen_destroy();
+    dt_exit_screen_destroy();
 }
 
 /* The dt_print variations can be used with a combination of DT_DEBUG_ flags.
diff --git a/src/control/crawler.c b/src/control/crawler.c
index f5bec053640a..c0fbdc6bdc71 100644
--- a/src/control/crawler.c
+++ b/src/control/crawler.c
@@ -106,7 +106,7 @@ static void _set_modification_time(char *filename,
   if(info) g_clear_object(&info);
 }
 
-// pregress update intervals in seconds
+// progress update intervals in seconds
 #define FAST_UPDATE 0.2
 #define SLOW_UPDATE 1.0
 
@@ -159,14 +159,15 @@ GList *dt_control_crawler_run(void)
     int flags = sqlite3_column_int(stmt, 4);
     ++image_count;
 
-    // update the progress message - five times per second for first four seconds, then once per second
+    // update the progress message - five times per second for first
+    // four seconds, then once per second.
     const double curr_time = dt_get_wtime();
     if(curr_time >= last_time + ((curr_time - start_time > 4.0) ? SLOW_UPDATE : FAST_UPDATE))
     {
       const double fraction = image_count / (double)total_images;
-      darktable_splash_screen_set_progress_percent(_("checking for updated sidecar files (%d%%)"),
-                                                   fraction,
-                                                   curr_time - start_time);
+      dt_splash_screen_set_progress_percent(_("checking for updated sidecar files (%d%%)"),
+                                            fraction,
+                                            curr_time - start_time);
       last_time = curr_time;
     }
 
diff --git a/src/gui/gtk.c b/src/gui/gtk.c
index 7816660a01d8..0d7ca5d765e1 100644
--- a/src/gui/gtk.c
+++ b/src/gui/gtk.c
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 /*
     This file is part of darktable,
-    Copyright (C) 2009-2025 darktable developers.
+    Copyright (C) 2009-2026 darktable developers.
 
     darktable is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
     it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
@@ -3083,7 +3083,7 @@ gboolean dt_gui_show_standalone_yes_no_dialog(const char *title,
   gtk_widget_show_all(window);
 
   // to prevent the splash screen from hiding the yes/no dialog
-  darktable_splash_screen_destroy();
+  dt_splash_screen_destroy();
 
   gtk_window_set_keep_above(GTK_WINDOW(window), TRUE);
   gtk_main();
diff --git a/src/gui/splash.c b/src/gui/splash.c
index 57f10dade8b8..5c397b3b8271 100644
--- a/src/gui/splash.c
+++ b/src/gui/splash.c
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 /*
     This file is part of darktable,
-    Copyright (C) 2024-2025 darktable developers.
+    Copyright (C) 2024-2026 darktable developers.
 
     darktable is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
     it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
@@ -51,6 +51,30 @@ static GtkWidget *remaining_box = NULL;
 
 static GtkWidget *exit_screen = NULL;
 
+static gboolean create_if_needed = FALSE;
+
+/*
+  SPLASH_DEBUG
+    1 : don't splash create
+    2 : force splash_screen reset to NULL
+    3 : force no output
+ */
+#define DTS_NO_CREATE 1
+#define DTS_RESET_NULL 2
+#define DTS_NO_PROGRESS 4
+#define DTS_NO_DESTROY 8
+static int _d_level()
+{
+  const gchar *v = g_getenv ("SPLASH_DEBUG");
+  int l = 0;
+
+  if(v)
+  {
+    l = atoi(v);
+  }
+  return l;
+}
+
 static void _process_all_gui_events()
 {
   // give Gtk a chance to update the screen; we need to let the event
@@ -126,9 +150,25 @@ static void _set_header_bar(GtkWidget *dialog)
 #endif
 }
 
-void darktable_splash_screen_create(GtkWindow *parent_window,
-                                    const gboolean force)
+void dt_splash_screen_allow_create(const gboolean allow_create)
 {
+  printf("[dt_splash_screen_allow_create] (%d)\n", allow_create);
+  create_if_needed = allow_create;
+}
+
+void dt_splash_screen_create(const gboolean force)
+{
+  printf("[dt_splash_screen_create] (force:%d) (%lx)\n", force, (size_t)splash_screen);
+
+  if(_d_level() & DTS_RESET_NULL && !force)
+  {
+    printf("   reset\n");
+    splash_screen = NULL;
+  }
+  if(_d_level() & DTS_NO_CREATE)
+  {
+    return;
+  }
   // no-op if the splash has already been created; if not, only run if
   // the splash screen is enabled in the config or we are told to
   // create it regardless.
@@ -137,9 +177,12 @@ void darktable_splash_screen_create(GtkWindow *parent_window,
      || dt_check_gimpmode("thumb")
      || (!dt_conf_get_bool("show_splash_screen") && !force))
   {
+    printf("   no create (conf)\n");
     return;
   }
 
+  printf("   do create\n");
+
   // a simple gtk_dialog_new() leaves us unable to setup the header
   // bar, so use .._with_buttons and just specify a NULL strings to
   // have no buttons.  We need to pretend to actually have one button,
@@ -151,7 +194,7 @@ void darktable_splash_screen_create(GtkWindow *parent_window,
 #endif
   splash_screen =
     gtk_dialog_new_with_buttons(_("darktable starting"),
-                                parent_window, flags,
+                                NULL, flags,
                                 NULL,
                                 GTK_RESPONSE_NONE, // <-- fake button list for compiler
                                 NULL);
@@ -241,10 +284,17 @@ void darktable_splash_screen_create(GtkWindow *parent_window,
   _process_all_gui_events();
 }
 
-void darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(const char *msg)
+void dt_splash_screen_set_progress(const char *msg)
 {
+  printf("[dt_splash_screen_set_progress] (%s)\n", msg);
+  if(_d_level() & DTS_NO_PROGRESS)
+    return;
+  if(!splash_screen && create_if_needed)
+    dt_splash_screen_create(TRUE);
+
   if(splash_screen)
   {
+    printf("   do output\n");
     gtk_label_set_text(GTK_LABEL(progress_text), msg);
     gtk_widget_show(progress_text);
     if(showing_remaining)
@@ -255,14 +305,23 @@ void darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(const char *msg)
     _process_all_gui_events();
     gdk_display_sync(gdk_display_get_default());
   }
+  else
+    printf("   not initialized\n");
 }
 
-void darktable_splash_screen_set_progress_percent(const char *msg,
-                                                  const double fraction,
-                                                  const double elapsed)
+void dt_splash_screen_set_progress_percent(const char *msg,
+                                           const double fraction,
+                                           const double elapsed)
 {
+  printf("[dt_splash_screen_set_progress_percent] (%s)\n", msg);
+  if(_d_level() & DTS_NO_PROGRESS)
+    return;
+  if(!splash_screen && create_if_needed)
+    dt_splash_screen_create(TRUE);
+
   if(splash_screen)
   {
+    printf("   do output\n");
     const int percent = round(100.0 * fraction);
     char *text = g_strdup_printf(msg, percent);
     gtk_label_set_text(GTK_LABEL(progress_text), text);
@@ -287,22 +346,31 @@ void darktable_splash_screen_set_progress_percent(const char *msg,
     showing_remaining = TRUE;
     _process_all_gui_events();
   }
+  else
+    printf("   not initialized\n");
 }
 
-void darktable_splash_screen_destroy()
+void dt_splash_screen_destroy()
 {
+  printf("[dt_splash_screen_destroy] (%lx)\n", (size_t)splash_screen);
+  if(_d_level() & DTS_NO_DESTROY)
+    return;
   if(splash_screen)
   {
+    printf("   do\n");
     gtk_widget_destroy(progress_text);
     progress_text = NULL;
     gtk_widget_destroy(splash_screen);
     splash_screen = NULL;
   }
+  else
+    printf("   not initialized\n");
 }
 
-void darktable_exit_screen_create(GtkWindow *parent_window,
-                                  const gboolean force)
+void dt_exit_screen_create(const gboolean force)
 {
+  printf("[dt_exit_screen_create] (force:%d) SHOULD NEVER BE CALLED\n", force);
+
   // no-op if the exit screen has already been created; if not, only
   // run if the splash screen is enabled in the config or we are told
   // to create it regardless
@@ -326,7 +394,7 @@ void darktable_exit_screen_create(GtkWindow *parent_window,
 #endif
 
   exit_screen =
-    gtk_dialog_new_with_buttons(_("darktable shutdown"), parent_window, flags,
+    gtk_dialog_new_with_buttons(_("darktable shutdown"), NULL, flags,
                                 NULL,
                                 GTK_RESPONSE_NONE,  // <-- fake button list for compiler
                                 NULL);
@@ -352,13 +420,19 @@ void darktable_exit_screen_create(GtkWindow *parent_window,
   dt_gui_process_events();
 }
 
-void darktable_exit_screen_destroy()
+void dt_exit_screen_destroy()
 {
+  printf("[dt_exit_screen_destroy] (%lx)\n", (size_t)exit_screen);
+  if(_d_level() & DTS_NO_DESTROY)
+    return;
   if(exit_screen)
   {
+    printf("   do\n");
     gtk_widget_destroy(exit_screen);
     exit_screen = NULL;
   }
+  else
+    printf("   not initialized\n");
 }
 
 // clang-format off
diff --git a/src/gui/splash.h b/src/gui/splash.h
index 8d10cd4753a9..3c5e408af289 100644
--- a/src/gui/splash.h
+++ b/src/gui/splash.h
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 /*
     This file is part of darktable,
-    Copyright (C) 2024 darktable developers.
+    Copyright (C) 2024-2026 darktable developers.
 
     darktable is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
     it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
@@ -18,13 +18,16 @@
 
 #include <gtk/gtk.h>
 
-void darktable_splash_screen_create(GtkWindow *parent, gboolean force);
-void darktable_splash_screen_set_progress(const char *msg);
-void darktable_splash_screen_set_progress_percent(const char *msg, double fraction, double elapsed);
-void darktable_splash_screen_destroy();
+void dt_splash_screen_create(const gboolean force);
+void dt_splash_screen_allow_create(const gboolean allow_create);
+void dt_splash_screen_set_progress(const char *msg);
+void dt_splash_screen_set_progress_percent(const char *msg,
+                                           const double fraction,
+                                           const double elapsed);
+void dt_splash_screen_destroy();
 
-void darktable_exit_screen_create(GtkWindow *parent, gboolean force);
-void darktable_exit_screen_destroy();
+void dt_exit_screen_create(const gboolean force);
+void dt_exit_screen_destroy(void);
 
 // clang-format off
 // modelines: These editor modelines have been set for all relevant files by tools/update_modelines.py