[BUG] JetBrains plugin IDE integration doesn't work in IntelliJ 2026 devcontainers (no backend architecture)

Resolved 💬 2 comments Opened Apr 2, 2026 by WhySoScherious Closed May 11, 2026

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?

IntelliJ 2026's new devcontainer architecture no longer runs a JetBrains backend process inside the container. This breaks integration:

  1. No lock file written to ~/.claude/ide/ — Claude Code can't discover the IDE
  2. No IDE bridge SSE endpoint — the plugin doesn't expose openDiff/closeAllDiffTabs MCP tools

What Should Happen?

IntelliJ should appear in /ide and provide diff viewing when Claude Code runs in a devcontainer.

Error Messages/Logs

Steps to Reproduce

  1. Install IntelliJ IDEA 2026.1 with the "Claude Code [Beta]" plugin (com.anthropic.code.plugin)
  2. Configure a devcontainer with ~/.claude bind-mounted from the host:

"mounts": [
"type=bind,source=${localEnv:HOME}/.claude,target=/home/node/.claude,consistency=cached"
],
"customizations": {
"jetbrains": {
"plugins": ["com.anthropic.code.plugin"]
}
}

  1. Open the project in IntelliJ using native devcontainer support (not JetBrains Gateway with a remote backend)
  2. Open IntelliJ's integrated terminal (which runs inside the container)
  3. Run claude in the terminal
  4. Run /ide — shows "No available IDEs detected"
  5. Verify on the host: ls ~/.claude/ide/ — directory is empty (plugin never wrote a lock file)
  6. Verify the plugin is active: IntelliJ Settings → Tools → Claude Code [Beta] is present

Claude Model

None

Is this a regression?

Yes, this worked in a previous version

Last Working Version

_No response_

Claude Code Version

v2.1.90

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

macOS

Terminal/Shell

IntelliJ IDEA terminal

Additional Information

Environment

  • IntelliJ IDEA 2026.1 (host, macOS, aarch64)
  • Claude Code CLI 2.1.90 (inside devcontainer)
  • Plugin: com.anthropic.code.plugin installed on host

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