UI: 'Germinating...' spinner doesn't clear after background task completion
Resolved 💬 3 comments Opened Jan 23, 2026 by ebmichael Closed Jan 27, 2026
Description
The "Germinating..." spinner continues to display indefinitely even after a background task has completed successfully. The UI shows "↓ 0 tokens" but doesn't return to the prompt.
Steps to Reproduce
- Start a Claude Code session
- Run a background Task agent (e.g., Council or other long-running task)
- Wait for the background task to complete
- Observe: "Background command ... completed (exit code 0)" appears
- But: "Germinating..." spinner continues with "↓ 0 tokens"
Expected Behavior
The spinner should clear and return to the normal prompt state when:
- The background task completes, OR
- No tokens have been received for a reasonable timeout period
Actual Behavior
- Spinner shows "Germinating... (esc to interrupt · Xm Xs · ↓ 0 tokens)"
- User cannot tell if Claude is still processing or stuck
- Must manually press Esc to return to prompt
Screenshot
✻ Germinating… (esc to interrupt · 12m 7s · ↓ 0 tokens)
● Background command "Council: Task Prioritization" completed (exit code 0)
Environment
- Platform: macOS (Darwin 24.6.0)
- Claude Code: Latest version
Impact
- User confusion about session state
- Uncertainty whether to wait or interrupt
- Happens "sehr häufig" (very frequently) according to user report
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