[BUG] Title: Desktop app OOM crash on launch (~5s) when sidebarMode: "code" is set on 8 GB Mac

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?

[Desktop App] OOM crash on launch (~5s) when sidebarMode: "code" is set on 8 GB Mac

Environment:

• macOS Tahoe 26.4.1 (build 25E253)
• MacBook Air, M2, 8 GB RAM
• Claude desktop app (latest, fresh reinstall)

Symptom:
App window opens, then quits cleanly after ~5 seconds. No .ips crash report generated. Reproducible across reinstalls.

Root cause (confirmed via bisection):
The preference "sidebarMode": "code" in ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json triggers OOM in the renderer on launch. Removing that single key makes the app launch and stay open (though without the Code tab UI auto-loaded).

Crash output (from launching binary directly via Terminal):

<--- Last few GCs --->
[2059:0x11c00640000]     8645 ms: Incremental Mark-Compact (reduce) 2046.4 (2055.7) -> 2045.6 (2054.5) MB
[2059:0x11c00640000]     8665 ms: Incremental Mark-Compact (reduce) 2046.8 (2054.7) -> 2046.1 (2053.7) MB
[2059:0415/101412.569811:ERROR:electron/shell/common/node_bindings.cc:185] OOM error in V8: Ineffective mark-compacts near heap limit Allocation failed - JavaScript heap out of memory
[0415/101412.613251:WARNING:third_party/crashpad/crashpad/util/process/process_memory_mac.cc:94] mach_vm_read(0x16b168000, 0x8000): (os/kern) invalid address (1)
Trace/BPT trap: 5

V8 heap pinned at the ~2 GB default ceiling. Launching with NODE_OPTIONS="--max-old-space-size=4096" did not resolve, suggesting the actual hydration cost on launch substantially exceeds 4 GB (likely the full Code tab session/worktree state being loaded eagerly).

Adjacent warnings emitted before the crash:

(node:2059) MaxListenersExceededWarning: Possible EventEmitter memory leak detected. 11 change listeners added to [jin]. MaxListeners is 10.
Error occurred in handler for '$eipc_message$_..._claude.buddy_$_BuddyBleTransport_$_reportState': No handler registered

Workaround:
Edit ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json and remove "sidebarMode": "code" (or change to "chat"). App then launches but tabs at top (Chat/Cowork/Code) are not visible — falls back to a stripped-down chat-only mode.

Suggested investigation:

• Lazy-load Code tab session list (don't hydrate all sessions/worktrees on launch).
• Cap session list size with pagination/virtualization.
• Raise default V8 heap for Electron renderer, or detect OOM and offer a recovery mode.
• Investigate the BuddyBleTransport listener leak — may be an adjacent contributor.
• For low-RAM Macs (8 GB), consider a "lite mode" toggle that disables eager hydration.

Impact:
On 8 GB Macs (the standard MacBook Air config), the app becomes unusable as session history grows. Users have to manually edit the JSON config to recover, which is not discoverable.

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What Should Happen?

The app should launch and remain open with the full UI (Chat / Cowork / Code tabs visible at the top), regardless of which sidebarMode is set. Loading the Code tab's session/worktree list should be lazy or paginated so it doesn't exceed V8's heap limit on launch — particularly on 8 GB Macs where the app currently becomes unusable as session history accumulates.

Error Messages/Logs

Steps to Reproduce

Reproduction:

1. Use the desktop app for several weeks of active Claude Code sessions (so session/worktree history accumulates).
2. update to latest version
3. App quits at ~5s with the OOM above.

Claude Model

Opus

Is this a regression?

Yes, this worked in a previous version

Last Working Version

one version ago from 1.2581.0

Claude Code Version

1.2581.0

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

macOS

Terminal/Shell

Other

Additional Information

_No response_