[BUG] Routines panel missing from Claude Code Desktop left sidebar (1.7196.3) — MCP data intact, panel surface absent

Summary

The Routines panel — previously a top-level entry in the left-hand sidebar of Claude Code Desktop, sitting alongside Pinned and Recents — has disappeared and there is no UI affordance to bring it back. The underlying scheduled-tasks data is intact (MCP returns 19 tasks, daily runs are firing on schedule), but the sidebar surface is gone.

Environment

• App: Claude Code Desktop 1.7196.3 (Windows installer; also seen on 1.7196.0)
• OS: Windows 11
• CLI: 2.1.138 (separate, fine, not the surface affected)
• Account: regular Pro/Max account with active scheduled tasks (mix of cron + one-shot)

What used to work

Routines appeared as a fixed entry in the left sidebar of CC Desktop, alongside:

• New session
• Routines ← this
• Customize
• More
• Pinned / Recents

Clicking it opened the local scheduled-tasks list and exposed run history.

What's broken

• No "Routines" entry in the left sidebar anywhere
• Not under "More" either
• No matching slash command brings it back:
• /background → "not available in this environment" (this is CLI-only)
• /scheduled → no-op
• /agents → no-op
• /help → no panel-toggle command listed
• Restart of CC Desktop does not restore it
• Reinstalling latest 1.7196.3 does not restore it

Confirmed: data layer is intact

scheduled-tasks.json is healthy:

• 19 scheduled tasks registered
• Recent lastRunAt timestamps prove they're firing on schedule
• Calling mcp__scheduled-tasks__list_scheduled_tasks from any CC session returns the full list
• Tasks still send notifications when they finish

So the regression is purely the sidebar surface, not the daemon or MCP.

Config check

• disableAgentView is not set in ~/.claude/settings.json or any other settings file
• CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_AGENT_VIEW env var is empty
• todoFeatureEnabled is unset (default)
• No managed-settings.json overriding sidebar behaviour

There's nothing user-side I can flip to bring the panel back.

Closest analog already on file

#51426 — "Cowork 'Live Artifacts' sidebar entry point appears once, then disappears on relaunch — server-side rollout flicker". Same shape: sidebar surface vanishes despite the data layer being intact. That issue's diagnosis was a server-side feature-flag rollout. Same pattern looks plausible here.

Recent adjacent regressions (for context)

Filed in the last 5 days, all touching scheduled tasks / Cowork in 1.7196.x:

• #60443 — create_scheduled_task blocked by permissionMode gate in 1.7196.0
• #59837 — Cowork create_scheduled_task hangs silently 180s on Windows (regression in 1.7196.0)
• #58357 — Routine task did not fire at scheduled time (Windows desktop)
• #60144 — Scheduled task discarded on wake from macOS maintenance sleep

There's clearly active churn in this area for 1.7196.x — a sidebar UX regression fits the pattern.

Repro

1. Be on CC Desktop 1.7196.3 (Windows) with existing scheduled tasks
2. Open the app
3. Left sidebar shows: New session, Customize, More, Pinned, Recents — but no Routines
4. There is no command, menu item, or icon that brings it back

Expected

Routines should appear in the left sidebar as before, listing local scheduled tasks with their next/last run times and a click-through to the task session.

Asks

1. Confirm whether this is a server-side feature-flag rollback (à la #51426) or a true client regression
2. If it's a flag, restore for accounts with non-empty scheduled-tasks.json
3. If it's a client regression in 1.7196.x, target a fix in the next desktop release
4. In the meantime, a slash command or settings.json toggle to force-show the panel would unblock users with active scheduled work