[BUG] Cowork VM connection timeout on Windows 11 Home — worked previously, broke after update to v1.1617.0.0

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?

Environment

• OS: Windows 11 Home
• Claude Desktop version: 1.1617.0.0
• Installed via: Microsoft Store (MSIX)

Description
Cowork was working correctly on this machine (Windows 11 Home) and stopped
working approximately 2 days ago, coinciding with an auto-update to v1.1617.0.0.
No other changes were made to the system.

The VM boots partially but never establishes a guest connection.
Claude in Chrome also crashes on complex tasks.

Error message
"Failed to start Claude's workspace — VM connection timeout after 60 seconds"

Log evidence
Last completed step before timeout: add_plan9_shares

2026-04-10 19:03:35 [info] [VM:start] Still waiting for guest connection... 10280ms elapsed
2026-04-10 19:04:25 [error] [VM:start] Connection timeout, last completed step: add_plan9_shares
2026-04-10 19:04:25 [info] Dispatching startup error: VM connection timeout after 60 seconds
2026-04-10 19:04:25 [info] [VM:start] Skipping auto-reinstall (already attempted once)

Steps to reproduce

1. Run Claude Desktop v1.1617.0.0 on Windows 11 Home
2. Open Cowork tab
3. Result: VM times out after 60 seconds at add_plan9_shares step

What I tried

• Multiple app restarts
• Multiple full system restarts
• In-app workspace reinstall
• Full uninstall and reinstall of Claude Desktop

Nothing resolves the issue.

Expected behavior
Cowork starts successfully, as it did before the update.

Additional context

• vmcompute service: Running
• vmms service: Not found (not available on Windows Home)
• Hyper-V: Not available on Windows Home edition
• Related issues: #42784, #44007

What Should Happen?

Claude shouldn't crash.

Error Messages/Logs

VM Connection timeout on windows personal.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Open Cowork (which was always working)
2. Write a task.
3. VM connection timed out.

Claude Model

Sonnet (default)

Is this a regression?

Yes, this worked in a previous version

Last Working Version

anything before 1.1617.0.0

Claude Code Version

1.1617.0.0

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

Windows

Terminal/Shell

Windows Terminal

Additional Information

_No response_