[Bug] CLAUDE.md loaded twice when multiple junction links point to the same directory on Windows

Bug Description

When using Windows junction links (mklink /J) to create multiple symlinks pointing to the same .claude directory, Claude Code loads the global CLAUDE.md file multiple times — once for each junction link path — instead of deduplicating by real path.

Environment

• Claude Code version: 2.1.45
• Subscription: Max 5
• OS: Windows 10
• Terminal: Windows Terminal

Setup

I have two junction links both pointing to the same physical directory:

C:\Users\Tony\.claude  →  D:\Tony\ubuntu_settings\.claude\  (mklink /J)
D:\Tony\.claude        →  D:\Tony\ubuntu_settings\.claude\  (mklink /J)

Both symlinks resolve to the same underlying directory D:\Tony\ubuntu_settings\.claude.

Observed Behavior

Running /context shows the global CLAUDE.md loaded twice, consuming ~20k tokens:

Memory files
└ C:\Users\Tony\.claude\CLAUDE.md: 10.1k tokens
└ D:\Tony\.claude\CLAUDE.md: 10.1k tokens

Expected Behavior

Claude Code should resolve junction links / symlinks to their real path before loading memory files. Duplicate real paths should only be loaded once:

Memory files
└ D:\Tony\ubuntu_settings\.claude\CLAUDE.md: 10.1k tokens

Impact

• ~10k tokens wasted per conversation due to duplicate loading
• In a 200k context window, this represents ~5% waste from a single duplicated file
• Users with junction links on Windows are silently penalized

Suggested Fix

Before loading CLAUDE.md files, resolve each candidate path to its real/canonical path (e.g., using fs.realpathSync on Node.js). Deduplicate by real path before loading.

Workaround

None currently available — removing one of the junction links would break other tooling that depends on the standard C:\Users\Tony\.claude location.