Feature request: /reload command to reload settings without exiting

Resolved 💬 3 comments Opened Mar 1, 2026 by k5qkop-bot Closed Mar 5, 2026

Problem

When ~/.claude/settings.json is modified during a session (e.g. adding permissions, changing hooks, updating MCP servers), the changes don't take effect until the session is restarted.

The current workflow requires three manual steps:

  1. /exit the session
  2. Copy the session ID
  3. Run claude --resume <session-id> to restart with the new settings

This is a common operation — hooks, permissions, and plugin configs are frequently tweaked during development.

Proposed solution

Add a /reload (or /restart) slash command that:

  1. Saves the current session state
  2. Re-reads settings.json, hooks, and plugin configs
  3. Continues the conversation with the updated settings applied

Ideally this would be a hot reload (no process restart), but even an automatic exit-and-resume (equivalent to the manual steps above) would be a significant improvement.

Alternatives considered

  • Shell alias: cr() { claude --resume "$1"; } — still requires manual /exit + copy-paste of session ID
  • Custom skill: Can display the session ID but can't automate the exit-and-resume cycle

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