diff --git a/backend/app/demo.py b/backend/app/demo.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..80f2d10f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/app/demo.py
@@ -0,0 +1,77 @@
+"""Demo-account service: reset the shared demo sandbox to a clean, seeded baseline.
+
+Shared by the admin's manual reset endpoint (routes/admin.py) and the scheduled demo-reset job
+(scheduler.py). Lives in the service layer, not routes, so the scheduler can call it without an
+`app.routes -> app.scheduler` import cycle (the reason its import used to be lazy).
+"""
+from sqlalchemy import delete, func, select
+from sqlalchemy.orm import Session
+
+from app.models import Playlist, PlaylistItem, Subscription, User, Video, VideoState
+
+
+def _seed_demo_playlists(db: Session, demo: User) -> int:
+    """Seed a few sample playlists from the shared catalog so a freshly-reset demo isn't
+    empty — gives visitors something to play with. Best-effort: skips silently if the
+    catalog is too small."""
+    recent = (
+        db.execute(
+            select(Video.id)
+            .where(Video.is_short.is_(False), Video.live_status == "none")
+            .order_by(Video.published_at.desc().nullslast())
+            .limit(60)
+        )
+        .scalars()
+        .all()
+    )
+    if not recent:
+        return 0
+    samples = [
+        ("Fresh picks", recent[0:10]),
+        ("Quick watch", recent[10:18]),
+        ("Saved for later", recent[18:26]),
+    ]
+    created = 0
+    for pos, (name, vids) in enumerate(samples):
+        if not vids:
+            continue
+        pl = Playlist(user_id=demo.id, name=name, position=pos)
+        db.add(pl)
+        db.flush()
+        for ipos, vid in enumerate(vids):
+            db.add(PlaylistItem(playlist_id=pl.id, video_id=vid, position=ipos))
+        created += 1
+    return created
+
+
+def _seed_demo_subscriptions(db: Session, demo: User, n: int = 14) -> int:
+    """Seed the demo with a handful of catalog channels (the ones with the most videos) so its
+    Channel manager isn't empty — gives visitors something to explore and matches the landing-page
+    screenshot. Idempotent: clears the demo's subscriptions first, then re-adds the top N."""
+    db.execute(delete(Subscription).where(Subscription.user_id == demo.id))
+    top = db.execute(
+        select(Video.channel_id)
+        .where(Video.channel_id.is_not(None))
+        .group_by(Video.channel_id)
+        .order_by(func.count().desc())
+        .limit(n)
+    ).scalars().all()
+    for channel_id in top:
+        db.add(Subscription(user_id=demo.id, channel_id=channel_id))
+    return len(top)
+
+
+def reset_demo_state(db: Session, demo: User) -> int:
+    """Wipe the demo account's per-user state (watch/save/hide states, playlists, preferences)
+    back to a clean baseline and re-seed a few sample playlists + channel subscriptions. Returns
+    the seeded playlist count. Shared by the admin's manual reset button and the scheduled demo
+    reset (see scheduler)."""
+    db.execute(delete(VideoState).where(VideoState.user_id == demo.id))
+    # Playlist items cascade on playlist delete (ondelete="CASCADE").
+    db.execute(delete(Playlist).where(Playlist.user_id == demo.id))
+    demo.preferences = {"language": "en"}
+    db.commit()
+    seeded = _seed_demo_playlists(db, demo)
+    _seed_demo_subscriptions(db, demo)
+    db.commit()
+    return seeded
diff --git a/backend/app/downloads/backfill.py b/backend/app/downloads/backfill.py
index de99c412..af751966 100644
--- a/backend/app/downloads/backfill.py
+++ b/backend/app/downloads/backfill.py
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ from app.db import SessionLocal
 from app.downloads import edit as editmod
 from app.downloads import formats, service
 from app.models import MediaAsset
-from app.worker import _uploader_url
+from app.worker import uploader_url
 
 log = logging.getLogger("siftlode.backfill")
 
@@ -73,7 +73,7 @@ def run() -> dict:
             if a.uploader_url is None and _should_refetch(a):
                 url = a.source_webpage_url or service.source_url(a.source_kind, a.source_ref)
                 info = _extract_meta(url)
-                uu = _uploader_url(info) if info else None
+                uu = uploader_url(info) if info else None
                 if uu:
                     a.uploader_url = uu
                     filled_url += 1
diff --git a/backend/app/downloads/service.py b/backend/app/downloads/service.py
index 1e4514de..d6fe7a17 100644
--- a/backend/app/downloads/service.py
+++ b/backend/app/downloads/service.py
@@ -12,8 +12,9 @@ from sqlalchemy import func, select
 from sqlalchemy.exc import IntegrityError
 from sqlalchemy.orm import Session
 
+from app.config import settings
 from app.downloads import edit as editmod
-from app.downloads import formats, quota
+from app.downloads import formats, quota, storage
 from app.models import Channel, DownloadJob, MediaAsset, Video
 
 
@@ -220,3 +221,30 @@ def enqueue_edit(
     db.commit()
     db.refresh(job)
     return job
+
+
+def release_asset(db: Session, job: DownloadJob) -> None:
+    """Drop this job's hold on its asset when it leaves a holding state. Once NO job holds the
+    asset anymore, delete the file + row immediately — a deleted download should free its disk,
+    and the shared cache only needs to span *overlapping* holders (a later re-add just downloads
+    again). `error` counts as holding: enqueue always +1'd ref_count and the worker never
+    decrements on failure (ref_count is the route's job), so an errored job releases here on
+    delete — else its +1 leaks and a later resume→ready keeps the file pinned past its last holder.
+    Idempotent for the cancel path: cancel already released while the job was holding, then set it
+    `canceled` (∉ the set below), so delete-after-cancel is a no-op and never double-releases.
+
+    We DON'T delete an errored asset row here even at ref==0: another request may be concurrently
+    re-enqueuing the same (source,format) — get_or_create_asset would reset that row to `pending` and
+    +1 it, and deleting it under that would FK-null the new job's asset (a lost update on ref_count).
+    A ready asset is still freed at ref==0 (its file is the point); an orphaned errored row is cheap
+    (no file) and gets reused+reset by the next enqueue, or reclaimed by a later GC pass."""
+    if not job.asset_id or job.status not in ("queued", "running", "paused", "done", "error"):
+        return
+    asset = db.get(MediaAsset, job.asset_id)
+    if asset is None:
+        return
+    asset.ref_count = max(0, (asset.ref_count or 0) - 1)
+    if asset.ref_count == 0 and asset.status == "ready":
+        if asset.rel_path:
+            storage.delete_asset_files(settings.download_root, asset.rel_path)
+        db.delete(asset)
diff --git a/backend/app/plex/people.py b/backend/app/plex/people.py
index 1142e7dd..7f5652c7 100644
--- a/backend/app/plex/people.py
+++ b/backend/app/plex/people.py
@@ -74,7 +74,7 @@ def enrich_row_people(db: Session, row, cast: list[dict]) -> bool:
         # items in the same batch: SessionLocal is autoflush=False, so the ORM query above can't see a
         # same-batch pending insert, and this path also races the concurrent info-page enrichment. The
         # Core execute runs immediately (not deferred to the caller's commit), so a later row in the
-        # batch sees the row and skips it. Mirrors app/sync/videos.py:_insert_stubs.
+        # batch sees the row and skips it. Mirrors app/sync/videos.py:insert_stubs.
         db.execute(
             pg_insert(PlexPerson)
             .values([{"name": nm, "photo_thumb": th} for nm, th in missing.items()])
diff --git a/backend/app/routes/admin.py b/backend/app/routes/admin.py
index 3a1f5ad9..c4bbfa3b 100644
--- a/backend/app/routes/admin.py
+++ b/backend/app/routes/admin.py
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ from datetime import datetime, timezone
 
 from fastapi import APIRouter, BackgroundTasks, Depends, HTTPException
 from pydantic import BaseModel
-from sqlalchemy import delete, func, select
+from sqlalchemy import select
 from sqlalchemy.orm import Session
 
 from app import audit
@@ -18,15 +18,11 @@ from app.auth import (
     purge_user,
 )
 from app.db import get_db
+from app.demo import reset_demo_state
 from app.models import (
     DemoWhitelist,
     Invite,
-    Playlist,
-    PlaylistItem,
-    Subscription,
     User,
-    Video,
-    VideoState,
 )
 from app.utils import iso, valid_email
 
@@ -365,73 +361,6 @@ def remove_demo_whitelist(
     return {"deleted": entry_id}
 
 
-def _seed_demo_playlists(db: Session, demo: User) -> int:
-    """Seed a few sample playlists from the shared catalog so a freshly-reset demo isn't
-    empty — gives visitors something to play with. Best-effort: skips silently if the
-    catalog is too small."""
-    recent = (
-        db.execute(
-            select(Video.id)
-            .where(Video.is_short.is_(False), Video.live_status == "none")
-            .order_by(Video.published_at.desc().nullslast())
-            .limit(60)
-        )
-        .scalars()
-        .all()
-    )
-    if not recent:
-        return 0
-    samples = [
-        ("Fresh picks", recent[0:10]),
-        ("Quick watch", recent[10:18]),
-        ("Saved for later", recent[18:26]),
-    ]
-    created = 0
-    for pos, (name, vids) in enumerate(samples):
-        if not vids:
-            continue
-        pl = Playlist(user_id=demo.id, name=name, position=pos)
-        db.add(pl)
-        db.flush()
-        for ipos, vid in enumerate(vids):
-            db.add(PlaylistItem(playlist_id=pl.id, video_id=vid, position=ipos))
-        created += 1
-    return created
-
-
-def _seed_demo_subscriptions(db: Session, demo: User, n: int = 14) -> int:
-    """Seed the demo with a handful of catalog channels (the ones with the most videos) so its
-    Channel manager isn't empty — gives visitors something to explore and matches the landing-page
-    screenshot. Idempotent: clears the demo's subscriptions first, then re-adds the top N."""
-    db.execute(delete(Subscription).where(Subscription.user_id == demo.id))
-    top = db.execute(
-        select(Video.channel_id)
-        .where(Video.channel_id.is_not(None))
-        .group_by(Video.channel_id)
-        .order_by(func.count().desc())
-        .limit(n)
-    ).scalars().all()
-    for channel_id in top:
-        db.add(Subscription(user_id=demo.id, channel_id=channel_id))
-    return len(top)
-
-
-def reset_demo_state(db: Session, demo: User) -> int:
-    """Wipe the demo account's per-user state (watch/save/hide states, playlists, preferences)
-    back to a clean baseline and re-seed a few sample playlists + channel subscriptions. Returns
-    the seeded playlist count. Shared by the admin's manual reset button and the scheduled demo
-    reset (see scheduler)."""
-    db.execute(delete(VideoState).where(VideoState.user_id == demo.id))
-    # Playlist items cascade on playlist delete (ondelete="CASCADE").
-    db.execute(delete(Playlist).where(Playlist.user_id == demo.id))
-    demo.preferences = {"language": "en"}
-    db.commit()
-    seeded = _seed_demo_playlists(db, demo)
-    _seed_demo_subscriptions(db, demo)
-    db.commit()
-    return seeded
-
-
 @router.post("/demo/reset")
 def reset_demo(
     admin: User = Depends(admin_user), db: Session = Depends(get_db)
diff --git a/backend/app/routes/downloads.py b/backend/app/routes/downloads.py
index 7c1c9655..aa10e5ce 100644
--- a/backend/app/routes/downloads.py
+++ b/backend/app/routes/downloads.py
@@ -511,9 +511,9 @@ def redownload_download(
     asset = service.get_or_create_asset(db, job.source_kind, job.source_ref, sig)
     service.populate_from_catalog(db, asset)
 
-    # Now drop the old hold — `_release_asset` deletes the old file + row only if this job was its
+    # Now drop the old hold — `service.release_asset` deletes the old file + row only if this job was its
     # last holder (a co-held asset is left intact for its other holders).
-    _release_asset(db, job)
+    service.release_asset(db, job)
 
     asset.ref_count = (asset.ref_count or 0) + 1
     job.asset_id = asset.id
@@ -538,7 +538,7 @@ def cancel_download(
 ) -> dict:
     job = _own_job(db, user, job_id)
     if job.status not in ("done", "canceled"):
-        _release_asset(db, job)  # release while the job still counts as holding
+        service.release_asset(db, job)  # release while the job still counts as holding
         job.status = "canceled"
         db.commit()
     return _serialize_job(db, job)
@@ -549,39 +549,12 @@ def delete_download(
     job_id: int, user: User = Depends(require_human), db: Session = Depends(get_db)
 ) -> dict:
     job = _own_job(db, user, job_id)
-    _release_asset(db, job)
+    service.release_asset(db, job)
     db.delete(job)
     db.commit()
     return {"deleted": job_id}
 
 
-def _release_asset(db: Session, job: DownloadJob) -> None:
-    """Drop this job's hold on its asset when it leaves a holding state. Once NO job holds the
-    asset anymore, delete the file + row immediately — a deleted download should free its disk,
-    and the shared cache only needs to span *overlapping* holders (a later re-add just downloads
-    again). `error` counts as holding: enqueue always +1'd ref_count and the worker never
-    decrements on failure (ref_count is the route's job), so an errored job releases here on
-    delete — else its +1 leaks and a later resume→ready keeps the file pinned past its last holder.
-    Idempotent for the cancel path: cancel already released while the job was holding, then set it
-    `canceled` (∉ the set below), so delete-after-cancel is a no-op and never double-releases.
-
-    We DON'T delete an errored asset row here even at ref==0: another request may be concurrently
-    re-enqueuing the same (source,format) — get_or_create_asset would reset that row to `pending` and
-    +1 it, and deleting it under that would FK-null the new job's asset (a lost update on ref_count).
-    A ready asset is still freed at ref==0 (its file is the point); an orphaned errored row is cheap
-    (no file) and gets reused+reset by the next enqueue, or reclaimed by a later GC pass."""
-    if not job.asset_id or job.status not in ("queued", "running", "paused", "done", "error"):
-        return
-    asset = db.get(MediaAsset, job.asset_id)
-    if asset is None:
-        return
-    asset.ref_count = max(0, (asset.ref_count or 0) - 1)
-    if asset.ref_count == 0 and asset.status == "ready":
-        if asset.rel_path:
-            storage.delete_asset_files(settings.download_root, asset.rel_path)
-        db.delete(asset)
-
-
 # --- file download (range-aware, custom display name) --------------------------------------
 
 def _accessible_job(db: Session, user: User, job_id: int) -> DownloadJob:
diff --git a/backend/app/routes/feed.py b/backend/app/routes/feed.py
index 89d0367a..5591ee77 100644
--- a/backend/app/routes/feed.py
+++ b/backend/app/routes/feed.py
@@ -91,7 +91,7 @@ def feed_columns(user: User, state) -> list:
     ]
 
 
-def _serialize(row) -> dict:
+def serialize(row) -> dict:
     return {
         "id": row.id,
         "title": row.title,
@@ -258,7 +258,7 @@ def _filtered_query(
     # channel searches work. `rank_expr` (weight-aware ts_rank) drives the "relevance" sort.
     rank_expr = None
     if q:
-        ts_str = _to_tsquery_str(q)
+        ts_str = to_tsquery_str(q)
         if ts_str:
             tsq = func.to_tsquery("public.unaccent_simple", ts_str)
             query = query.where(
@@ -341,7 +341,7 @@ def _filtered_query(
     return query, rank_expr
 
 
-def _to_tsquery_str(q: str) -> str | None:
+def to_tsquery_str(q: str) -> str | None:
     """Turn free-text into a to_tsquery() string: word runs ANDed together, the LAST word
     prefix-matched (`:*`) for as-you-type search — e.g. "ti amo magyar" → "ti & amo & magyar:*".
     Only `\\w` runs containing an alphanumeric are kept, so no tsquery operators can leak in
@@ -512,7 +512,7 @@ def get_feed(
     has_more = len(rows) > limit
     page = rows[:limit]
     return {
-        "items": [_serialize(r) for r in page],
+        "items": [serialize(r) for r in page],
         "next_cursor": _encode_cursor(keys, page[-1]) if (has_more and page) else None,
         "has_more": has_more,
         "limit": limit,
diff --git a/backend/app/routes/playlists.py b/backend/app/routes/playlists.py
index d61a1078..08621ea8 100644
--- a/backend/app/routes/playlists.py
+++ b/backend/app/routes/playlists.py
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ from app import quota
 from app.auth import current_user, has_read_scope, has_write_scope, require_write_scope
 from app.db import get_db
 from app.models import Channel, Playlist, PlaylistItem, User, Video, VideoState
-from app.routes.feed import _serialize, feed_columns
+from app.routes.feed import serialize, feed_columns
 from app.sync.playlists import (
     plan_push,
     push_playlist,
@@ -400,7 +400,7 @@ def get_playlist(
         "source": pl.source,
         "yt_playlist_id": pl.yt_playlist_id,
         "dirty": pl.dirty,
-        "items": [_serialize(r) for r in rows],
+        "items": [serialize(r) for r in rows],
     }
 
 
diff --git a/backend/app/routes/plex/_shared.py b/backend/app/routes/plex/_shared.py
index 53c68c58..ecd7f8c2 100644
--- a/backend/app/routes/plex/_shared.py
+++ b/backend/app/routes/plex/_shared.py
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ from app.models import (
 log = logging.getLogger("siftlode.plex")
 
 
-def _item_or_404(db: Session, rating_key: str) -> PlexItem:
+def item_or_404(db: Session, rating_key: str) -> PlexItem:
     it = db.query(PlexItem).filter_by(rating_key=str(rating_key)).first()
     if it is None:
         raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="Unknown Plex item")
diff --git a/backend/app/routes/plex/browse.py b/backend/app/routes/plex/browse.py
index 54a46ef2..9d0efef1 100644
--- a/backend/app/routes/plex/browse.py
+++ b/backend/app/routes/plex/browse.py
@@ -32,8 +32,8 @@ from app.plex import sync as plex_sync
 from app.plex.client import PlexClient, PlexError, PlexNotConfigured
 from app.routes._common import owned_or_404
 from app.routes.admin import admin_user
-from app.routes.feed import _to_tsquery_str
-from app.routes.plex._shared import _item_or_404
+from app.routes.feed import to_tsquery_str
+from app.routes.plex._shared import item_or_404
 
 router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/plex", tags=["plex"])
 
@@ -258,7 +258,7 @@ def unified_library(
     want_movies = scope in ("movie", "both") and bool(movie_lib_ids)
     want_shows = scope in ("show", "both") and bool(show_lib_ids)
 
-    ts = _to_tsquery_str(q) if q else None
+    ts = to_tsquery_str(q) if q else None
     tsq = func.to_tsquery(_TS_CONFIG, ts) if ts else None
 
     selects = []
@@ -1561,7 +1561,7 @@ def item_detail(
 ) -> dict:
     """Everything the player needs: metadata, cast, intro/credit markers (from Plex), episode
     prev/next, and the per-user resume position + watch status."""
-    it = _item_or_404(db, rating_key)
+    it = item_or_404(db, rating_key)
     st = db.query(PlexState).filter_by(user_id=user.id, item_id=it.id).first()
 
     rich: dict = {}
diff --git a/backend/app/routes/plex/playback.py b/backend/app/routes/plex/playback.py
index eb0523ac..cbb7d6e2 100644
--- a/backend/app/routes/plex/playback.py
+++ b/backend/app/routes/plex/playback.py
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ from app.plex import people as plex_people
 from app.plex import stream as plex_stream
 from app.plex import watch_sync as plex_watch
 from app.plex.client import PlexClient, PlexError, PlexNotConfigured
-from app.routes.plex._shared import _item_or_404
+from app.routes.plex._shared import item_or_404
 
 router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/plex", tags=["plex"])
 
@@ -105,7 +105,7 @@ def subtitle(
         return Response(subtitles.shift_vtt(hit, offset), media_type="text/vtt")
     try:
         with SessionLocal() as db:
-            it = _item_or_404(db, rating_key)
+            it = item_or_404(db, rating_key)
             with PlexClient(db) as plex:
                 part = ((plex.metadata(it.rating_key) or {}).get("Media") or [{}])[
                     0
@@ -236,7 +236,7 @@ def item_progress(
     `final` (sent on the pause/pagehide/unmount flush, not the periodic 10s checkpoint) is what
     debounces the Plex resume push: we mirror the settled position to Plex only on a final flush, so
     a single watch doesn't spray `/:/timeline` calls at the server every 10 seconds."""
-    it = _item_or_404(db, rating_key)
+    it = item_or_404(db, rating_key)
     position = max(0, int(body.position_seconds))
     duration = int(body.duration_seconds)
     final = body.final
@@ -307,7 +307,7 @@ def item_state(
     """Set the per-user watch status (new|watched|hidden). watched→scrobble / →new→unscrobble push
     to a linked Plex account immediately; `hidden` is a Siftlode-only concept with no Plex analogue,
     so it never touches Plex."""
-    it = _item_or_404(db, rating_key)
+    it = item_or_404(db, rating_key)
     status = body.status
     if status not in ("new", "watched", "hidden"):
         raise HTTPException(status_code=400, detail="Invalid status")
@@ -434,7 +434,7 @@ def stream_session(
     non-default audio track (`audio` = stream ordinal) forces the HLS path so the chosen audio can be
     muxed in. Subtitles are independent WebVTT tracks (GET /subtitle) — no session restart."""
     plex_stream.reap_idle()  # opportunistic cleanup of idle sessions on each new playback
-    it = _item_or_404(db, rating_key)
+    it = item_or_404(db, rating_key)
     if it.playable == "transcode":
         raise HTTPException(
             status_code=501, detail="This format needs transcoding (a later phase)."
@@ -471,7 +471,7 @@ def stream_file(
     """Serve the raw local media file with HTTP range support. Used both for direct-play (inline)
     and for the player's "download original" button (`?download=1` → attachment). The download is
     the untouched physical file — no re-encode/repackage."""
-    it = _item_or_404(db, rating_key)
+    it = item_or_404(db, rating_key)
     src = plex_paths.local_media_path(db, it.file_path)
     if src is None:
         raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="Media file not found on disk")
@@ -512,7 +512,7 @@ def stream_hls_file(
     if s is None:
         # No session yet (e.g. reaped): the ENTRY playlist may auto-start one at 0 — master.m3u8 for a
         # multi-audio item, index.m3u8 for a single-audio remux item.
-        it = _item_or_404(db, rating_key)
+        it = item_or_404(db, rating_key)
         if filename == "master.m3u8":
             s = plex_stream.start_session(db, it, 0.0, multi=True)
         elif filename == "index.m3u8" and it.playable == "remux":
diff --git a/backend/app/routes/search.py b/backend/app/routes/search.py
index 7f4809a4..8c860ac3 100644
--- a/backend/app/routes/search.py
+++ b/backend/app/routes/search.py
@@ -36,9 +36,9 @@ from app.models import (
     Video,
     VideoState,
 )
-from app.routes.feed import _serialize, feed_columns
+from app.routes.feed import serialize, feed_columns
 from app.sync.subscriptions import apply_channel_details
-from app.sync.videos import _insert_stubs, apply_video_details, parse_dt
+from app.sync.videos import insert_stubs, apply_video_details, parse_dt
 from app.youtube import search_scrape
 from app.youtube.client import YouTubeClient, YouTubeError
 from app.youtube.shorts import make_client, probe_is_short
@@ -102,7 +102,7 @@ def _serialize_ids(db: Session, user: User, ids: list[str]) -> list[dict]:
         .outerjoin(state, and_(state.video_id == Video.id, state.user_id == user.id))
         .where(Video.id.in_(ids))
     ).all()
-    by_id = {r.id: _serialize(r) for r in rows}
+    by_id = {r.id: serialize(r) for r in rows}
     return [by_id[i] for i in ids if i in by_id]
 
 
@@ -136,7 +136,7 @@ def _ingest_candidates(
 
     # 2) Video stubs, flagged via_search. Existing rows keep their flags (ON CONFLICT DO
     #    NOTHING), so an organically-synced video stays organic.
-    _insert_stubs(
+    insert_stubs(
         db,
         [
             {
diff --git a/backend/app/scheduler.py b/backend/app/scheduler.py
index 2bf5a660..1723cfc3 100644
--- a/backend/app/scheduler.py
+++ b/backend/app/scheduler.py
@@ -13,8 +13,9 @@ from app import audit, progress, quota
 from app.audit import AuditAction
 from app.config import settings
 from app.db import SessionLocal
+from app.demo import reset_demo_state
 from app.downloads.gc import run_download_gc
-from app.models import SchedulerSetting
+from app.models import SchedulerSetting, User
 from app.plex.sync import sync as run_plex_sync
 from app.plex.watch_sync import run_plex_watch_reconcile, run_plex_watch_sync
 from app.notifications import create_notification
@@ -310,14 +311,11 @@ def _maintenance_job() -> None:
 
 
 def _demo_reset_job() -> None:
-    # Auto-clean the shared demo sandbox. No-op (and never creates one) if there's no demo
-    # account. Lazy import avoids a routes<->scheduler import cycle.
+    # Auto-clean the shared demo sandbox. No-op (and never creates one) if there's no demo account.
     def work(db):
-        from app.models import User
         demo = db.query(User).filter(User.is_demo.is_(True)).one_or_none()
         if demo is None:
             return {"skipped": "no demo account"}
-        from app.routes.admin import reset_demo_state
         return {"playlists_seeded": reset_demo_state(db, demo)}
 
     _job("demo_reset", work)
diff --git a/backend/app/sync/explore.py b/backend/app/sync/explore.py
index 9faf8007..b9c8ee93 100644
--- a/backend/app/sync/explore.py
+++ b/backend/app/sync/explore.py
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ from app.models import (
     Video,
     VideoState,
 )
-from app.sync.videos import _insert_stubs, _stub_from_playlist_item, apply_video_details
+from app.sync.videos import insert_stubs, stub_from_playlist_item, apply_video_details
 from app.utils import now_utc as _now
 from app.youtube.client import YouTubeClient
 
@@ -71,11 +71,11 @@ def explore_ingest_page(
     data = yt.get_playlist_items(channel.uploads_playlist_id, page_token)
     stubs: list[dict] = []
     for item in data.get("items", []):
-        stub = _stub_from_playlist_item(item, channel.id)
+        stub = stub_from_playlist_item(item, channel.id)
         if stub is not None:
             stub["via_explore"] = True
             stubs.append(stub)
-    inserted = _insert_stubs(db, stubs)
+    inserted = insert_stubs(db, stubs)
     self_enriched = _enrich_new(db, yt, [s["id"] for s in stubs])
     log.info(
         "explore ingest channel=%s ingested=%s enriched=%s", channel.id, inserted, self_enriched
diff --git a/backend/app/sync/videos.py b/backend/app/sync/videos.py
index 2a8cba93..3b2f605f 100644
--- a/backend/app/sync/videos.py
+++ b/backend/app/sync/videos.py
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ def parse_dt(value: str | None) -> datetime | None:
         return None
 
 
-def _insert_stubs(db: Session, rows: list[dict]) -> int:
+def insert_stubs(db: Session, rows: list[dict]) -> int:
     """Idempotently insert video stubs; returns the number of newly inserted rows.
 
     Uses RETURNING so the count is exact (ON CONFLICT DO NOTHING leaves rowcount
@@ -76,7 +76,7 @@ def apply_rss_feed(db: Session, channel: Channel, entries: list[dict]) -> int:
     """Insert new video stubs from an already-fetched feed and stamp the channel's last RSS
     time. DB-only — must run on the session's own thread; the network fetch
     (fetch_channel_feed) is kept separate so callers like run_rss_poll can parallelise it."""
-    inserted = _insert_stubs(db, entries)
+    inserted = insert_stubs(db, entries)
     channel.last_rss_at = _now()
     db.add(channel)
     db.commit()
@@ -84,7 +84,7 @@ def apply_rss_feed(db: Session, channel: Channel, entries: list[dict]) -> int:
 
 
 # --- Backfill (uploads playlist; costs quota) ---
-def _stub_from_playlist_item(item: dict, channel_id: str) -> dict | None:
+def stub_from_playlist_item(item: dict, channel_id: str) -> dict | None:
     content = item.get("contentDetails", {})
     snippet = item.get("snippet", {})
     video_id = content.get("videoId")
@@ -120,7 +120,7 @@ def backfill_channel_recent(db: Session, yt: YouTubeClient, channel: Channel) ->
         data = yt.get_playlist_items(channel.uploads_playlist_id, page_token)
         stopped_mid_page = False
         for item in data.get("items", []):
-            stub = _stub_from_playlist_item(item, channel.id)
+            stub = stub_from_playlist_item(item, channel.id)
             if stub is None:
                 continue
             if stub["published_at"] and stub["published_at"] < cutoff:
@@ -147,7 +147,7 @@ def backfill_channel_recent(db: Session, yt: YouTubeClient, channel: Channel) ->
     channel.recent_synced_at = _now()
     channel.backfill_cursor = next_cursor
     channel.backfill_done = done
-    inserted = _insert_stubs(db, collected)
+    inserted = insert_stubs(db, collected)
     db.add(channel)
     db.commit()
     return inserted
@@ -166,11 +166,11 @@ def backfill_channel_deep(
         rows = [
             s
             for s in (
-                _stub_from_playlist_item(it, channel.id) for it in data.get("items", [])
+                stub_from_playlist_item(it, channel.id) for it in data.get("items", [])
             )
             if s is not None
         ]
-        total += _insert_stubs(db, rows)
+        total += insert_stubs(db, rows)
         page_token = data.get("nextPageToken")
         channel.backfill_cursor = page_token
         if not page_token:
diff --git a/backend/app/worker.py b/backend/app/worker.py
index 846f7d7b..aecd3432 100644
--- a/backend/app/worker.py
+++ b/backend/app/worker.py
@@ -262,7 +262,7 @@ def _finish_from_cache(job_id: int, asset_id: int) -> None:
         db.commit()
 
 
-def _uploader_url(info: dict) -> str | None:
+def uploader_url(info: dict) -> str | None:
     """The channel/uploader page URL for the auto-clickable channel line. YouTube gives a
     `channel_url`/`uploader_url` directly; Facebook gives neither but exposes a numeric
     `uploader_id` (the page id) that resolves at facebook.com/<id>. Returns None for sources with
@@ -290,7 +290,7 @@ def _fill_asset_meta_early(asset_id: int, info: dict) -> None:
         # the final title with its own source_ref fallback.
         asset.title = normalize_title(info.get("title")) or info.get("id")
         asset.uploader = info.get("uploader") or info.get("channel")
-        asset.uploader_url = _uploader_url(info)
+        asset.uploader_url = uploader_url(info)
         asset.thumbnail_url = info.get("thumbnail")
         asset.duration_s = int(info["duration"]) if info.get("duration") else None
         asset.upload_date = _parse_upload_date(info.get("upload_date"))
@@ -638,7 +638,7 @@ def _download(job_id: int, asset_id: int, source_kind: str, source_ref: str, spe
                 asset.acodec = info.get("acodec") if info.get("acodec") not in (None, "none") else None
                 asset.title = meta.title
                 asset.uploader = meta.uploader
-                asset.uploader_url = _uploader_url(info)
+                asset.uploader_url = uploader_url(info)
                 asset.upload_date = meta.upload_date
                 asset.thumbnail_url = meta.thumbnail_url
                 # Record a self-hosted poster for every download: it's the reliable link-preview