'/init' prompt shown even when .claude/CLAUDE.md exists

Resolved 💬 3 comments Opened Apr 8, 2026 by RanFeldesh Closed Apr 12, 2026

Description

When starting a new session in a repo that has a .claude/CLAUDE.md file (but no root-level CLAUDE.md), Claude Code displays:

Run /init to create a CLAUDE.md file with instructions for Claude

This is misleading because .claude/CLAUDE.md is a supported and documented location — and it loads correctly. The startup check only looks for a root-level CLAUDE.md.

Expected behavior

The /init prompt should not appear if .claude/CLAUDE.md exists, since that's a valid (and arguably preferred) location for project instructions.

Steps to reproduce

  1. Create a repo with instructions at .claude/CLAUDE.md (no root-level CLAUDE.md)
  2. Start a new Claude Code session in that repo
  3. Observe the /init prompt despite instructions loading correctly

Environment

  • Claude Code CLI
  • Linux (also likely reproducible on macOS)

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