diff --git a/plugins/alignments/src/LinearPileupDisplay/SharedLinearPileupDisplayMixin.ts b/plugins/alignments/src/LinearPileupDisplay/SharedLinearPileupDisplayMixin.ts
index 2b45d71c3c..b581890442 100644
--- a/plugins/alignments/src/LinearPileupDisplay/SharedLinearPileupDisplayMixin.ts
+++ b/plugins/alignments/src/LinearPileupDisplay/SharedLinearPileupDisplayMixin.ts
@@ -680,6 +680,7 @@ export function SharedLinearPileupDisplayMixin(
       },
     }))
     .preProcessSnapshot(snap => {
+      // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-unnecessary-condition
       if (snap) {
         // @ts-expect-error
         const { colorBy, filterBy, ...rest } = snap
diff --git a/plugins/alignments/src/LinearPileupDisplay/components/GroupByDialog.tsx b/plugins/alignments/src/LinearPileupDisplay/components/GroupByDialog.tsx
index 7cd0ffb236..b4e62a702b 100644
--- a/plugins/alignments/src/LinearPileupDisplay/components/GroupByDialog.tsx
+++ b/plugins/alignments/src/LinearPileupDisplay/components/GroupByDialog.tsx
@@ -23,8 +23,7 @@ import { LinearGenomeViewModel } from '@jbrowse/plugin-linear-genome-view'
 
 // locals
 import { getUniqueTags } from '../../shared/getUniqueTags'
-import { LinearAlignmentsDisplayModel } from '../../LinearAlignmentsDisplay/model'
-import { defaultFilterFlags } from '../../shared/util'
+import { defaultFilterFlags, negFlags, posFlags } from '../../shared/util'
 
 function clone(c: unknown) {
   return JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(c))
@@ -42,7 +41,6 @@ const GroupByTagDialog = observer(function (props: {
   const [tagSet, setGroupByTagSet] = useState<string[]>()
   const [loading, setLoading] = useState(false)
   const [error, setError] = useState<unknown>()
-  const [includeUndefined, setIncludeUndefined] = useState(true)
 
   const validTag = /^[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9]$/.exec(tag)
   const isInvalid = tag.length === 2 && !validTag
@@ -75,10 +73,16 @@ const GroupByTagDialog = observer(function (props: {
   return (
     <Dialog open onClose={handleClose} title="Group by">
       <DialogContent>
+        <Typography>
+          NOTE: this will create new session tracks with the "filter by" set to
+          the values chosen here rather than affecting the current track state
+        </Typography>
         <TextField
           fullWidth
           value={type}
-          onChange={event => setType(event.target.value)}
+          onChange={event => {
+            setType(event.target.value)
+          }}
           label="Group by..."
           select
         >
@@ -87,25 +91,10 @@ const GroupByTagDialog = observer(function (props: {
         </TextField>
         {type === 'tag' ? (
           <>
-            <Typography>
-              NOTE: this will create new session tracks with the "filter by" set
-              to the values chosen here rather than affecting the current track
-              state
-            </Typography>
             <Typography color="textSecondary">
               Examples: HP for haplotype, RG for read group, etc.
             </Typography>
-            <FormControlLabel
-              control={
-                <Checkbox
-                  checked={includeUndefined}
-                  onChange={() => {
-                    setIncludeUndefined(!includeUndefined)
-                  }}
-                />
-              }
-              label="Make a new subtrack for undefined values of tag as well?"
-            />
+
             <TextField
               value={tag}
               onChange={event => {
@@ -150,10 +139,7 @@ const GroupByTagDialog = observer(function (props: {
             const view = getContainingView(model) as LinearGenomeViewModel
             if (type === 'tag') {
               if (tagSet) {
-                const ret = [...tagSet] as (string | undefined)[]
-                if (includeUndefined) {
-                  ret.push(undefined)
-                }
+                const ret = [...tagSet, undefined] as (string | undefined)[]
                 for (const tagValue of ret) {
                   const t1 = `${trackConf.trackId}-${tag}:${tagValue}-${+Date.now()}-sessionTrack`
                   // @ts-expect-error
@@ -185,6 +171,7 @@ const GroupByTagDialog = observer(function (props: {
             } else if (type === 'strand') {
               const t1 = `${trackConf.trackId}-${tag}:(-)-${+Date.now()}-sessionTrack`
               const t2 = `${trackConf.trackId}-${tag}:(+)-${+Date.now()}-sessionTrack`
+
               // @ts-expect-error
               session.addTrackConf({
                 ...trackConf,
@@ -197,12 +184,14 @@ const GroupByTagDialog = observer(function (props: {
                     pileupDisplay: {
                       displayId: `${t1}-LinearAlignmentsDisplay-LinearPileupDisplay`,
                       type: 'LinearPileupDisplay',
-                      filterBy: {
-                        flagInclude: 16,
-                        flagExclude: 1540,
-                      },
+                      filterBy: negFlags,
                     },
                   },
+                  {
+                    displayId: `${t1}-LinearSNPCoverageDisplay`,
+                    type: 'LinearSNPCoverageDisplay',
+                    filterBy: negFlags,
+                  },
                 ],
               })
               // @ts-expect-error
@@ -217,12 +206,14 @@ const GroupByTagDialog = observer(function (props: {
                     pileupDisplay: {
                       displayId: `${t2}-LinearAlignmentsDisplay-LinearPileupDisplay`,
                       type: 'LinearPileupDisplay',
-                      filterBy: {
-                        flagInclude: 0,
-                        flagExclude: 1556,
-                      },
+                      filterBy: posFlags,
                     },
                   },
+                  {
+                    displayId: `${t2}-LinearSNPCoverageDisplay`,
+                    type: 'LinearSNPCoverageDisplay',
+                    filterBy: posFlags,
+                  },
                 ],
               })
               view.showTrack(t1)
diff --git a/plugins/alignments/src/LinearReadArcsDisplay/configSchema.ts b/plugins/alignments/src/LinearReadArcsDisplay/configSchema.ts
index 3ba8e453a2..e5b3ff90cd 100644
--- a/plugins/alignments/src/LinearReadArcsDisplay/configSchema.ts
+++ b/plugins/alignments/src/LinearReadArcsDisplay/configSchema.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 import PluginManager from '@jbrowse/core/PluginManager'
 import { ConfigurationSchema } from '@jbrowse/core/configuration'
 import { linearBasicDisplayConfigSchemaFactory } from '@jbrowse/plugin-linear-genome-view'
-import { types } from 'mobx-state-tree'
 import { defaultFilterFlags } from '../shared/util'
 
 /**
diff --git a/plugins/alignments/src/LinearReadCloudDisplay/model.ts b/plugins/alignments/src/LinearReadCloudDisplay/model.ts
index 68895b6854..48625055bb 100644
--- a/plugins/alignments/src/LinearReadCloudDisplay/model.ts
+++ b/plugins/alignments/src/LinearReadCloudDisplay/model.ts
@@ -19,7 +19,6 @@ import FilterListIcon from '@mui/icons-material/ClearAll'
 // locals
 import { ColorBy, FilterBy } from '../shared/types'
 import { ChainData } from '../shared/fetchChains'
-import { defaultFilterFlags } from '../shared/util'
 
 // async
 const FilterByTagDialog = lazy(
diff --git a/plugins/alignments/src/LinearSNPCoverageDisplay/configSchema.ts b/plugins/alignments/src/LinearSNPCoverageDisplay/configSchema.ts
index 17db5c43f0..d873416ef7 100644
--- a/plugins/alignments/src/LinearSNPCoverageDisplay/configSchema.ts
+++ b/plugins/alignments/src/LinearSNPCoverageDisplay/configSchema.ts
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ import { ConfigurationSchema } from '@jbrowse/core/configuration'
 import { baseLinearDisplayConfigSchema } from '@jbrowse/plugin-linear-genome-view'
 import { types } from 'mobx-state-tree'
 import PluginManager from '@jbrowse/core/PluginManager'
+import { defaultFilterFlags } from '../shared/util'
 
 /**
  * #config LinearSNPCoverageDisplay
@@ -52,7 +53,8 @@ export default function SNPCoverageConfigFactory(pluginManager: PluginManager) {
       },
       /**
        * #slot
-       */ inverted: {
+       */
+      inverted: {
         type: 'boolean',
         description: 'draw upside down',
         defaultValue: false,
@@ -73,6 +75,25 @@ export default function SNPCoverageConfigFactory(pluginManager: PluginManager) {
           'SNPCoverageRenderer',
         )!.configSchema,
       }),
+      /**
+       * #slot
+       */
+      colorBy: {
+        type: 'frozen',
+        description: 'color scheme to use',
+        defaultValue: {
+          type: 'normal',
+        },
+      },
+
+      /**
+       * #slot
+       */
+      filterBy: {
+        type: 'frozen',
+        description: 'default filters to use',
+        defaultValue: defaultFilterFlags,
+      },
     },
     {
       /**
diff --git a/plugins/alignments/src/LinearSNPCoverageDisplay/model.ts b/plugins/alignments/src/LinearSNPCoverageDisplay/model.ts
index 3a987b8c9c..1cfeb9f0d7 100644
--- a/plugins/alignments/src/LinearSNPCoverageDisplay/model.ts
+++ b/plugins/alignments/src/LinearSNPCoverageDisplay/model.ts
@@ -62,14 +62,11 @@ function stateModelFactory(
         /**
          * #property
          */
-        filterBy: types.optional(types.frozen<FilterBy>(), {
-          flagInclude: 0,
-          flagExclude: 1540,
-        }),
+        filterBySetting: types.frozen<FilterBy | undefined>(),
         /**
          * #property
          */
-        colorBy: types.frozen<ColorBy | undefined>(),
+        colorBySetting: types.frozen<ColorBy | undefined>(),
         /**
          * #property
          */
@@ -88,6 +85,21 @@ function stateModelFactory(
        */
       modificationsReady: false,
     }))
+    .views(self => ({
+      /**
+       * #getter
+       */
+      get colorBy() {
+        return self.colorBySetting ?? getConf(self, 'colorBy')
+      },
+
+      /**
+       * #getter
+       */
+      get filterBy() {
+        return self.filterBySetting ?? getConf(self, 'filterBy')
+      },
+    }))
     .actions(self => ({
       /**
        * #action
@@ -99,7 +111,7 @@ function stateModelFactory(
        * #action
        */
       setFilterBy(filter: FilterBy) {
-        self.filterBy = {
+        self.filterBySetting = {
           ...filter,
         }
       },
@@ -107,7 +119,7 @@ function stateModelFactory(
        * #action
        */
       setColorScheme(colorBy?: ColorBy) {
-        self.colorBy = colorBy
+        self.colorBySetting = colorBy
           ? {
               ...colorBy,
             }
diff --git a/plugins/alignments/src/shared/util.ts b/plugins/alignments/src/shared/util.ts
index ea5b257549..86e7a73dc9 100644
--- a/plugins/alignments/src/shared/util.ts
+++ b/plugins/alignments/src/shared/util.ts
@@ -22,6 +22,14 @@ export const defaultFilterFlags = {
   flagInclude: 0,
   flagExclude: 1540,
 }
+export const negFlags = {
+  flagInclude: 16,
+  flagExclude: 1540,
+}
+export const posFlags = {
+  flagInclude: 0,
+  flagExclude: 1556,
+}
 
 export function cacheGetter<T>(ctor: { prototype: T }, prop: keyof T): void {
   const desc = Object.getOwnPropertyDescriptor(ctor.prototype, prop)!
diff --git a/test_data/volvox/config.json b/test_data/volvox/config.json
index f03e884036..db228fdb93 100644
--- a/test_data/volvox/config.json
+++ b/test_data/volvox/config.json
@@ -330,7 +330,7 @@
     {
       "type": "AlignmentsTrack",
       "trackId": "volvox_cram_pileup",
-      "name": "volvox-sorted.cram (contigA, LinearPileupDisplay, large height)",
+      "name": "volvox-sorted.cram (contigA, LinearPileupDisplay, large height, colorBy mappingQual)",
       "category": ["Integration test"],
       "metadata": {
         "description": "this is a metadata description",
@@ -490,7 +490,7 @@
     {
       "type": "AlignmentsTrack",
       "trackId": "volvox_alignments",
-      "name": "volvox-sorted.bam (ctgA, larger default height)",
+      "name": "volvox-sorted.bam (ctgA, larger default height, colorBy mappingQual)",
       "category": ["Integration test"],
       "assemblyNames": ["volvox", "volvox2"],
       "adapter": {