Installer does not update launcher symlink when upgrading versions
Resolved 💬 4 comments Opened Apr 17, 2026 by pythoninthegrass Closed Apr 17, 2026
Description
When upgrading Claude Code via the install script, the new binary is downloaded and placed in ~/.local/share/claude/versions/<version>, but the launcher symlink at ~/.local/bin/claude is not updated to point to the new version.
Steps to reproduce
# Starting from 2.1.97, install 2.1.112
curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash -s -- 2.1.112
Installer output says success:
Setting up Claude Code...
✔ Claude Code successfully installed!
Version: 2.1.112
Location: ~/.local/bin/claude
But:
$ claude --version
2.1.97 (Claude Code)
$ ls -l ~/.local/bin/claude
lrwxr-xr-x lance staff ~/.local/bin/claude -> ~/.local/share/claude/versions/2.1.97
$ ls ~/.local/share/claude/versions/
2.1.92 2.1.97 2.1.112
The new binary exists on disk but the symlink still points to the old version.
Expected behavior
After a successful install, ~/.local/bin/claude should be a symlink to the newly installed version (~/.local/share/claude/versions/2.1.112).
Workaround
ln -sfn ~/.local/share/claude/versions/2.1.112 ~/.local/bin/claude
Environment
- macOS (Darwin arm64)
- Shell: zsh
- Claude Code 2.1.97 -> 2.1.112 upgrade
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