diff --git a/Composer/packages/client/src/ShellApi.ts b/Composer/packages/client/src/ShellApi.ts
index a9bb3c989f..d9a4fb1c5b 100644
--- a/Composer/packages/client/src/ShellApi.ts
+++ b/Composer/packages/client/src/ShellApi.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import React, { useEffect, useContext, useRef, useMemo } from 'react';
+import React, { useEffect, useContext, useRef, useMemo, useState } from 'react';
 import { debounce, isEqual, get } from 'lodash';
 
 import { parseLgTemplate, checkLgContent, updateTemplateInContent } from '../src/store/action/lg';
@@ -65,6 +65,10 @@ const shellNavigator = (shellPage: string, opts: { id?: string } = {}) => {
 };
 
 export const ShellApi: React.FC = () => {
+  // HACK: `onSelect` should actually change some states
+  // TODO: (leilei, ze) fix it when refactoring shell state management.
+  const [, forceUpdate] = useState();
+
   const { state, actions } = useContext(StoreContext);
   const { dialogs, schemas, lgFiles, luFiles, designPageLocation, focusPath, breadcrumb } = state;
   const updateDialog = actions.updateDialog;
@@ -101,6 +105,7 @@ export const ShellApi: React.FC = () => {
     apiClient.registerApi('navTo', navTo);
     apiClient.registerApi('onFocusEvent', focusEvent);
     apiClient.registerApi('onFocusSteps', focusSteps);
+    apiClient.registerApi('onSelect', onSelect);
     apiClient.registerApi('shellNavigate', ({ shellPage, opts }) => shellNavigator(shellPage, opts));
     apiClient.registerApi('isExpression', ({ expression }) => isExpression(expression));
     apiClient.registerApi('createDialog', () => {
@@ -308,5 +313,9 @@ export const ShellApi: React.FC = () => {
     actions.focusTo(dataPath);
   }
 
+  function onSelect(ids) {
+    forceUpdate(ids);
+  }
+
   return null;
 };
diff --git a/Composer/packages/client/src/extension-container/ExtensionContainer.tsx b/Composer/packages/client/src/extension-container/ExtensionContainer.tsx
index 84306e5d61..038e1973cb 100644
--- a/Composer/packages/client/src/extension-container/ExtensionContainer.tsx
+++ b/Composer/packages/client/src/extension-container/ExtensionContainer.tsx
@@ -56,6 +56,10 @@ const shellApi = {
     return apiClient.apiCall('onFocusSteps', { subPaths });
   },
 
+  onSelect: (ids: string[]) => {
+    return apiClient.apiCall('onSelect', { ids });
+  },
+
   shellNavigate: (shellPage, opts = {}) => {
     return apiClient.apiCall('shellNavigate', { shellPage, opts });
   },
diff --git a/Composer/packages/client/src/messenger/FrameAPI.ts b/Composer/packages/client/src/messenger/FrameAPI.ts
index ce5a1303dc..568871516f 100644
--- a/Composer/packages/client/src/messenger/FrameAPI.ts
+++ b/Composer/packages/client/src/messenger/FrameAPI.ts
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ export const VisualEditorAPI = (() => {
 
   return {
     hasElementFocused: () => visualEditorFrameAPI.invoke('hasElementFocused'),
-    hasElementSelected: () => visualEditorFrameAPI.invoke('hasElementSelected'),
+    hasElementSelected: () => visualEditorFrameAPI.invoke('hasElementSelected').catch(() => false),
     copySelection: () => visualEditorFrameAPI.invoke('copySelection'),
     cutSelection: () => visualEditorFrameAPI.invoke('cutSelection'),
     deleteSelection: () => visualEditorFrameAPI.invoke('deleteSelection'),
diff --git a/Composer/packages/client/src/pages/design/index.js b/Composer/packages/client/src/pages/design/index.js
index 4ce215d8cf..40b3365b5f 100644
--- a/Composer/packages/client/src/pages/design/index.js
+++ b/Composer/packages/client/src/pages/design/index.js
@@ -184,13 +184,15 @@ function DesignPage(props) {
     }
   };
 
-  VisualEditorAPI.hasElementSelected()
-    .then(selected => {
-      setNodeOperationAvailability(selected);
-    })
-    .catch(() => {
-      setNodeOperationAvailability(false);
-    });
+  useEffect(() => {
+    // HACK: wait until visual editor finish rerender.
+    // TODO: (ze) expose visual editor store to Shell and (leilei) intercept store events.
+    setTimeout(() => {
+      VisualEditorAPI.hasElementSelected().then(selected => {
+        setNodeOperationAvailability(selected);
+      });
+    }, 100);
+  });
 
   const toolbarItems = [
     {
diff --git a/Composer/packages/extensions/visual-designer/src/editors/ObiEditor.tsx b/Composer/packages/extensions/visual-designer/src/editors/ObiEditor.tsx
index 6d85a78745..ff2e7e2210 100644
--- a/Composer/packages/extensions/visual-designer/src/editors/ObiEditor.tsx
+++ b/Composer/packages/extensions/visual-designer/src/editors/ObiEditor.tsx
@@ -33,6 +33,7 @@ export const ObiEditor: FC<ObiEditorProps> = ({
   onFocusSteps,
   onOpen,
   onChange,
+  onSelect,
 }): JSX.Element | null => {
   let divRef;
 
@@ -159,11 +160,10 @@ export const ObiEditor: FC<ObiEditorProps> = ({
     } else {
       setKeyBoardStatus('normal');
     }
-  }, [focusedId, selectionContext]);
 
-  useEffect(() => {
-    onChange(data);
-  }, [selectionContext]);
+    // Notify container at every selection change.
+    onSelect(selectionContext.selectedIds);
+  }, [focusedId, selectionContext]);
 
   useEffect(
     (): void => {
@@ -309,6 +309,7 @@ ObiEditor.defaultProps = {
   onFocusEvent: () => {},
   onOpen: () => {},
   onChange: () => {},
+  onSelect: () => {},
 };
 
 interface ObiEditorProps {
@@ -321,4 +322,5 @@ interface ObiEditorProps {
   onFocusEvent: (eventId: string) => any;
   onOpen: (calleeDialog: string, callerId: string) => any;
   onChange: (newDialog: any) => any;
+  onSelect: (selection: any) => any;
 }
diff --git a/Composer/packages/extensions/visual-designer/src/index.tsx b/Composer/packages/extensions/visual-designer/src/index.tsx
index 52f393b59f..99b63661b7 100644
--- a/Composer/packages/extensions/visual-designer/src/index.tsx
+++ b/Composer/packages/extensions/visual-designer/src/index.tsx
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ const VisualDesigner: React.FC<VisualDesignerProps> = ({
   }
 
   const data = dataCache.current;
-  const { navTo, onFocusEvent, onFocusSteps, saveData, getLgTemplates, removeLgTemplate } = shellApi;
+  const { navTo, onFocusEvent, onFocusSteps, onSelect, saveData, getLgTemplates, removeLgTemplate } = shellApi;
 
   const focusedId = Array.isArray(focusedSteps) && focusedSteps[0] ? focusedSteps[0] : '';
 
@@ -63,6 +63,7 @@ const VisualDesigner: React.FC<VisualDesignerProps> = ({
           onFocusEvent={onFocusEvent}
           onOpen={(x, rest) => navTo(x, rest)}
           onChange={x => saveData(x)}
+          onSelect={onSelect}
         />
       </div>
     </NodeRendererContext.Provider>
@@ -87,6 +88,7 @@ VisualDesigner.defaultProps = {
     navTo: () => {},
     onFocusEvent: (eventId: string) => {},
     onFocusSteps: (stepIds: string[]) => {},
+    onSelect: (ids: string[]) => {},
     saveData: () => {},
   },
 };