[DOCS] Agent view docs omit recovery when `←` backgrounding cannot start the background service

Documentation Type

Missing documentation (feature not documented)

Documentation Location

https://code.claude.com/docs/en/agent-view

Section/Topic

← backgrounding in "Quick start" / "Attach to a session", plus the troubleshooting guidance for background-service failures

Current Documentation

The agent view page currently says:

Press ← on an empty prompt to detach and return to the table.

To move a session you already have open into agent view, run /bg inside it, or press ← on an empty prompt to background it and open agent view in one step. The session keeps running and appears as a row alongside the ones you dispatched.

Pressing ← on an empty prompt works from any Claude Code session, not only ones you attached to from agent view. It backgrounds the current session and opens agent view with that row selected, so you can switch sessions without leaving the terminal. The row is created even from a fresh session with no conversation history, so → returns to it.

The troubleshooting section also says:

If attaching, peeking, or claude logs reports that the background service did not respond, the supervisor process has likely stalled. Stop it and let the next claude agents start a fresh one.

What's Wrong or Missing?

The docs cover the normal ← backgrounding flow and a general recovery path for an already-running supervisor, but they do not document the specific failure mode fixed in v2.1.162.

The changelog for v2.1.162 says backgrounding a session with ← no longer silently loses the conversation when the background service cannot start, and that the session stays in the list as a failed row you can wake with Enter.

That recovery path is currently undocumented:

A. The ← backgrounding docs imply only the happy path

The page says the session "keeps running" and appears as a row, but it does not explain what users should expect if the supervisor fails to start during that handoff.

B. The failed-row wake behavior is missing

Users are not told that the conversation is preserved as a failed row in agent view and can be recovered by selecting it and pressing Enter.

Without that note, this startup-failure case can still look like the conversation disappeared even though Claude Code now preserves it.

Suggested Improvement

Add a short note anywhere the docs explain ← backgrounding, and cross-link it from troubleshooting.

For example, after the ← backgrounding explanation, add guidance such as:

If the background service cannot start during the handoff, the conversation is not lost. Agent view keeps the session as a failed row; select it and press Enter to wake or reopen it once the service is available.

In troubleshooting, distinguish this startup case from the separate "background service did not respond" recovery flow for an already-stalled supervisor.

Impact

Medium - Makes feature difficult to understand

Additional Context

Affected Pages:

| Page | Line(s) | Context |
|------|---------|---------|
| https://code.claude.com/docs/en/agent-view | 61-65, 179-185, 521-529 | Documents normal ← backgrounding and generic supervisor recovery, but not the failed-row wake path when startup fails |

Total scope: 1 page affected

Version context: v2.1.162 changelog: backgrounding with ← now preserves the conversation if the background service cannot start, leaving a failed row that can be woken with Enter.