[BUG] Cowork archived conversations disappear permanently — no way to retrieve them

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?

When I archive Cowork conversations using "Move to Archive", they permanently disappear from the sidebar. There is no "Archived" section, filter, or any way to view or restore archived conversations. I lost 3+ hours of conversation data with no recovery option. Additionally, after the workspace crashed (from pasting a large file) and I reinstalled, all remaining conversation history was also wiped.

What Should Happen?

An "Archived" section or filter should exist in the Cowork sidebar so users can view, restore, or permanently delete archived conversations. This is standard UX in every major app (Gmail, Slack, Discord). Archive should never mean permanent deletion.

Error Messages/Logs

Failed to start Claude's workspace
VM service not running. The service failed to start.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Open Claude Desktop App → Cowork tab
2. Have a conversation (I had 3+ hours of content)
3. Click on the conversation → select "Move to Archive"
4. Conversation disappears from sidebar permanently
5. No "Archived" section exists anywhere to retrieve it
6. Separately: workspace crashed after pasting a 111k word file, reinstalling wiped all remaining history

Claude Model

Opus

Is this a regression?

I don't know

Last Working Version

_No response_

Claude Code Version

N/A - Claude Desktop App (Cowork)

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

Windows

Terminal/Shell

Non-interactive/CI environment

Additional Information

This bug occurs in Claude Desktop App's Cowork mode, not Claude Code CLI. The archive feature exists as a UI option but has no corresponding "Archived" inbox to retrieve conversations. This is a known issue — see also #22931 and #50042. Multiple users have reported the same problem.