[BUG] Cowork "Virtualization is not available" — Windows 10 Home, all features enabled, VM never initializes

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?

Bug Report: Cowork "Virtualization is not available" — Windows 10 Home, all features enabled, VM never initializes

Preflight Checklist

• [x] I have searched existing issues and this hasn't been reported for my specific configuration
• [x] This is a single bug report
• [x] I am using the latest version of Claude Desktop

What's Wrong?

The Cowork tab permanently shows:

"Virtualization is not available — Claude's workspace requires Virtual Machine Platform, but the virtualization service isn't responding. Restart your computer to resolve this."

Restarting does not resolve it. A full clean reinstall as Administrator does not resolve it. The VM never attempts to initialize — %APPDATA%\Claude\logs does not exist.

This appears to be the same detection bug tracked in #29887, #32004, #40359, #45715, #51813, #52032.

Environment

| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10 Home |
| Claude Desktop version | [paste version from About screen] |
| Subscription | [Pro / Max / Team] |
| Installation method | claude.ai/download, run as Administrator |

Verification Steps Completed

| Check | Result |
|---|---|
| Virtual Machine Platform | ✅ Enabled |
| Windows Hypervisor Platform | ✅ Enabled |
| Hyper-V | ➖ Not available on Windows Home (expected) |
| CoworkVMService | ✅ Running |
| bcdedit hypervisorlaunchtype | ✅ Set to Auto |
| %APPDATA%\Claude\logs folder | ❌ Does not exist — VM never initializes |
| Clean reinstall as Administrator | ✅ Done — issue persists |

Steps to Reproduce

1. Install Claude Desktop from claude.ai/download as Administrator on Windows 10 Home
2. Enable Virtual Machine Platform and Windows Hypervisor Platform in Windows Features
3. Set bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype auto as Administrator and restart
4. Confirm CoworkVMService is Running via Get-Service CoworkVMService
5. Open Claude Desktop and navigate to the Cowork tab
6. Observe "Virtualization is not available" error — VM never starts, no logs are generated

Expected Behavior

Cowork detects that virtualization features are enabled and CoworkVMService is running, then successfully initializes the VM workspace.

Actual Behavior

Cowork permanently shows the virtualization error. The VM never attempts to initialize. %APPDATA%\Claude\logs is never created.

Notes

Regular Claude chat works fine — only Cowork is affected. This has never worked since installing. All standard troubleshooting steps have been exhausted.

What Should Happen?

Cowork should detect that Virtual Machine Platform and Windows Hypervisor Platform are enabled and that CoworkVMService is running, then successfully initialize the VM workspace — without requiring Hyper-V, which is not available on Windows Home edition.

Error Messages/Logs

No logs exist — %APPDATA%\Claude\logs directory is never created. The VM never attempts to initialize despite CoworkVMService running and all virtualization features enabled.
PowerShell output confirming service status:
Status   Name              DisplayName
------   ----              -----------
Running  CoworkVMService   Claude
Windows Features confirmed via PowerShell (admin):
FeatureName              State
-----------              -----
HypervisorPlatform       Enabled
VirtualMachinePlatform   Enabled

Steps to Reproduce

Steps to Reproduce

1. Install Claude Desktop from claude.ai/download as Administrator on Windows 10 Home
2. Enable Virtual Machine Platform and Windows Hypervisor Platform in Windows Features
3. Set bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype auto as Administrator and restart
4. Confirm CoworkVMService is Running via Get-Service CoworkVMService
5. Open Claude Desktop and navigate to the Cowork tab
6. Observe "Virtualization is not available" error — VM never starts, no logs are generated

Claude Model

None

Is this a regression?

No, this never worked

Last Working Version

_No response_

Claude Code Version

Version 1.7196.1 (abcd65)

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

Windows

Terminal/Shell

PowerShell

Additional Information

This is a Claude Desktop / Cowork issue, not a Claude Code CLI issue. The bug report form appears designed for Claude Code CLI, but Cowork bugs are tracked here per Anthropic's guidance.
This is a known detection bug affecting Windows 10 Home users. Related issues: #29887, #32004, #40359, #45715, #51813, #52032.
All standard troubleshooting has been exhausted:

Clean uninstall via Remove-AppxPackage, AppData cleanup, reinstall as Administrator
bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype auto confirmed set
CoworkVMService confirmed Running
Both required Windows features confirmed Enabled
%APPDATA%\Claude\logs never gets created — VM never attempts to initialize

Regular Claude chat works fine. Only Cowork is affected.