Feature request: Optional import syntax for CLAUDE.md

Resolved 💬 2 comments Opened Feb 3, 2026 by michaelprather Closed Mar 4, 2026

Problem

Shared project repos often reference external files via @path/to/file syntax in CLAUDE.md. When collaborators don't have these files (e.g., personal dotfiles at ~/Developer/dotfiles/profiles/vue.md), the import fails.

This prevents a useful pattern: maintaining a single source of truth for rules/profiles that multiple projects can reference, while still working for collaborators who don't have the external files.

Proposed Solution

Add optional import syntax that gracefully skips missing files:

@~/Developer/dotfiles/profiles/vue.md?

The trailing ? would indicate: "include if exists, skip silently if missing."

Use Case

  • Personal dotfiles repo with frequently-updated rules/profiles
  • Multiple shared project repos referencing these profiles
  • Collaborators who clone the project don't have the dotfiles
  • Current behavior: errors on missing files
  • Desired behavior: graceful degradation (skip missing optional imports)

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