[BUG] Claude Code crashes on startup with TypeError: Cannot read properties of null (reading 'history') when .claude.json contains project entries with null array fields

Resolved 💬 2 comments Opened Jun 11, 2026 by SintJohn Closed Jun 16, 2026

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?

The symptom is claude code desktop is unresponsive when prompting even in new sessions, for Claude Code CLI the issue was mitigated by doing a rollback to an older version

Version: 2.1.170 (desktop bundled), 2.1.161 (npm)
Platform: Windows 11
Error: TypeError: Cannot read properties of null (reading 'history') at g1B in cli.js:242
Root cause: g1B migration function iterates Object.entries(projects) but doesn't null-check individual project values before accessing .history
Reproduction: Have a .claude.json with project entries containing null array fields (allowedTools, mcpContextUris, etc.) from an older version, then upgrade to 2.1.x

What Should Happen?

It should respond

Error Messages/Logs

TypeError: Cannot read properties of null (reading 'history')
    at g1B (cli.js:242:2112)
    at m0 (cli.js:242:1513)
    at cg (cli.js:256:1670)

Steps to Reproduce

  1. Create ~/.claude/.claude.json with this content:

{
"projects": {
"C:\\any\\path": {
"allowedTools": null,
"mcpContextUris": null,
"enabledMcpjsonServers": null,
"disabledMcpjsonServers": null,
"hasTrustDialogAccepted": true
}
}
}

  1. Run claude
  2. Observe crash with TypeError: Cannot read properties of null (reading 'history')

Claude Model

None

Is this a regression?

Yes, this worked in a previous version

Last Working Version

2.0.0

Claude Code Version

2.1.173 (Claude Code)

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

Windows

Terminal/Shell

PowerShell

Additional Information

<img width="1911" height="1072" alt="Image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/bc66f6d0-5a0b-4451-9e59-74956c791d6f" />

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