Read tool: pdftoppm not found despite being installed (PATH not inherited)

Description

The Read tool fails to render PDF pages with the error:

pdftoppm is not installed. Install poppler-utils (e.g. brew install poppler or apt-get install poppler-utils) to enable PDF page rendering.

However, pdftoppm is installed and works correctly from the Bash tool and the user's shell.

Environment

• macOS (Darwin 24.6.0)
• Claude Code CLI
• poppler 26.03.0 installed via Homebrew
• pdftoppm located at /usr/local/bin/pdftoppm (symlink to ../Cellar/poppler/26.03.0/bin/pdftoppm)
• /usr/local/bin is in the shell PATH

Steps to Reproduce

1. Install poppler: brew install poppler
2. Confirm which pdftoppm returns /usr/local/bin/pdftoppm
3. Use the Read tool on any PDF with pages parameter
4. Read tool returns "pdftoppm is not installed" error
5. Use Bash tool to run pdftoppm — works fine

Root Cause (suspected)

The Read tool's internal process uses a minimal/stripped PATH that doesn't include /usr/local/bin (standard Homebrew prefix on Intel Macs) or /opt/homebrew/bin (Apple Silicon). It likely only searches /usr/bin, /bin, etc.

Expected Behavior

The Read tool should find pdftoppm when it's installed in standard Homebrew locations (/usr/local/bin, /opt/homebrew/bin).

Workaround

Use Bash to run pdftoppm or pdftotext directly.