[BUG] Windows + WSL: VS Code extension fails to detect Git Bash and always picks System32 bash.exe

Preflight Checklist

• [x] I have searched existing issues and this hasn't been reported yet
• [x] This is a single bug report (please file separate reports for different bugs)
• [x] I am using the latest version of Claude Code

What's Wrong?

On Windows systems with WSL enabled, the Claude Code VS Code extension
fails to detect Git Bash even when Git for Windows is correctly installed.

The extension always resolves bash to:
C:\Windows\System32\bash.exe (WSL shim)

As a result, it throws the error:
"Claude Code on Windows requires git-bash..."

This happens even though:

• Git Bash exists at C:\Program Files\Git\bin\bash.exe
• claude CLI works correctly in PowerShell
• PATH order, environment variables, and restarts were verified

There is currently no working way to force the extension
to use Git Bash instead of the System32 bash.exe.

What Should Happen?

On Windows, the VS Code extension should either:

• Correctly detect Git Bash (Git for Windows) when it is installed, OR
• Provide a reliable configuration option to explicitly specify

the Git Bash executable path.

The presence of WSL (System32 bash.exe) should not cause
the extension to fail when Git Bash is available.

Error Messages/Logs

Steps to Reproduce

Steps to reproduce:

1. Enable WSL on Windows
2. Install Git for Windows
3. Install Claude Code for VS Code
4. Run the extension

Result:
The extension always detects System32 bash.exe and fails.

Claude Model

None

Is this a regression?

Yes, this worked in a previous version

Last Working Version

_No response_

Claude Code Version

2.1.25

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

Windows

Terminal/Shell

PowerShell

Additional Information

_No response_