[BUG] Cowork can't mount paths inside Dropbox on macOS.

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?

I am on latest version of Mac. When i attempt to create a new or existing request, i get the following This is the error.

"Something went wrong Try sending your message again. If it keeps happening, share feedback so we can investigate. RPC error: failed to mount /mnt/.virtiofs-root/shared/Users/david_stricklin/Library/CloudStorage/OneDrive-Premier,Inc/Documents/Claude/Artifacts/thr-playbook-dashboard as .artifacts/thr-playbook-dashboard: source path is not accessible: /mnt/.virtiofs-root/shared/Users/david_stricklin/Library/CloudStorage/OneDrive-Premier,Inc/Documents/Claude/Artifacts/thr-playbook-dashboard: stat /mnt/.virtiofs-root/shared/Users/david_stricklin/Library/CloudStorage/OneDrive-Premier,Inc/Documents/Claude/Artifacts/thr-playbook-dashboard: operation not permitted You can restart the conversation from an earlier message."

What Should Happen?

Claude should be able to work with DropBox and onedrive files. It is not viable to manage files between the folders as the workflow is considerably affected.

Error Messages/Logs

Something went wrong Try sending your message again. If it keeps happening, share feedback so we can investigate. `RPC error: failed to mount /mnt/.virtiofs-root/shared/Users/david_stricklin/Library/CloudStorage/OneDrive-Premier,Inc/Documents/Claude/Artifacts/thr-playbook-dashboard as .artifacts/thr-playbook-dashboard: source path is not accessible: /mnt/.virtiofs-root/shared/Users/david_stricklin/Library/CloudStorage/OneDrive-Premier,Inc/Documents/Claude/Artifacts/thr-playbook-dashboard: stat /mnt/.virtiofs-root/shared/Users/david_stricklin/Library/CloudStorage/OneDrive-Premier,Inc/Documents/Claude/Artifacts/thr-playbook-dashboard: operation not permitted` You can restart the conversation from an earlier message.

Steps to Reproduce

Request an task and receiving the error

Claude Model

Sonnet (default)

Is this a regression?

Yes, this worked in a previous version

Last Working Version

_No response_

Claude Code Version

Version 1.9255.2 (1dc8f7)

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

macOS

Terminal/Shell

Terminal.app (macOS)

Additional Information

This error is very specific and fixable! The problem is that Cowork can't access your OneDrive folder — macOS is blocking the app's virtual machine from reaching files stored in OneDrive's cloud sync path.
Why it's happening:
Cowork runs inside a lightweight VM, and macOS restricts its access to cloud-synced folders (OneDrive, iCloud, Dropbox, etc.) via the virtiofs file sharing layer.

Fix options (try in order):

1. Grant Full Disk Access to Claude

Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Full Disk Access
Add Claude to the list and enable it
Restart Claude Desktop and try again

1. Move your Artifacts folder out of OneDrive

This is the most reliable fix. Move your artifacts to a local path like:
/Users/david_stricklin/Documents/Claude/Artifacts/
(not inside OneDrive or any other cloud sync folder)
Then in Cowork, point it to the new local path.

1. Make sure the OneDrive folder is fully downloaded locally

If the folder is cloud-only (not downloaded to disk), the VM can't see it at all. In Finder, right-click the folder → "Always keep on this device" to force a local copy. Then retry.

Recommended approach: Option 2 (move to a local folder) is the cleanest long-term fix, since cloud sync folders can cause intermittent issues with Cowork's VM even after granting permissions.
Would you like help setting up a new local artifacts path in Cowork?You said: i did this and it didni did this and it didn4:43 PMClaude responded: It sounds like your message got cut off!It sounds like your message got cut off! What happened after you moved the folder or changed the settings? Did you get the same error, a different error, or something else?You said: i did option 2 and it did not resolve the errori did option 2 and it did not resolve the error4:43 PMClaude responded: Got it.Got it. Let's dig deeper. A few follow-up questions:

After moving the folder, did you update the path inside Cowork to point to the new local location, or did it still reference the old OneDrive path?
When you moved the folder, where exactly did you put it? (e.g., /Users/david_stricklin/Documents/Claude/Artifacts/)
Did you also try Full Disk Access (option 1) in addition to moving the folder?

The error message still shows the OneDrive path, which suggests Cowork may still be referencing the old location. The most likely fix at this point is:
Force Cowork to start fresh:

In Cowork, restart the conversation from an earlier message (the error itself offers this option)
Or start a brand new Cowork session so it doesn't try to re-mount the old path at all

If the old path is baked into the current session, moving the folder won't help until Cowork stops trying to mount the original OneDrive location. Starting fresh with a new session pointed at the local folder should clear it.You said: moving the folders between DropBox and the claude/artifacts folder is not a long term viable option.moving the folders between DropBox and the claude/artifacts folder is not a long term viable option. all new data is populated in Dropbox which complicates the workflow and having to constantly manage old and new files4:46 PMClaude responded: That's a completely valid point — manually shuffling files between Dropbox and a local folder defeats the purpose of an automated workflow tool.That's a completely valid point — manually shuffling files between Dropbox and a local folder defeats the purpose of an automated workflow tool.
The real fix here needs to come from Anthropic. Cowork's VM should be able to access cloud-synced folders, and right now it can't reliably do that on Mac.
What I'd recommend:

Submit feedback directly in the error dialog — the error message has a "share feedback" link. Use it and paste the exact error. This is the fastest way to get it in front of Anthropic's engineering team.
File a bug report on GitHub at github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues — describe that Cowork can't mount paths inside Dropbox on macOS. The more users report it, the faster it gets prioritized.

In the meantime, a workaround without moving files:
You could try creating a symbolic link from a local path to your Dropbox folder. This tricks Cowork's VM into seeing a local path while the files actually live in Dropbox:
bashln -s "/Users/david_stricklin/Dropbox/..." "/Users/david_stricklin/Documents/Claude/Artifacts/thr-playbook-dashboard"
This isn't perfect but avoids manually copying files back and forth.
Would you like help setting up the symbolic link, or would you rather just work directly in claude.ai while this gets resolved?