[DOCS] Remote Control docs omit the v2.1.178 "/rc failed" footer indicator and the four-reason breakdown of the "not yet enabled" error

Documentation Type

Unclear/confusing documentation

Documentation Location

https://code.claude.com/docs/en/remote-control

Section/Topic

• "Start a Remote Control session" → "From a new interactive session" tab and "From an existing session" tab (footer indicator description)
• "Troubleshooting" → "Remote Control is not yet enabled for your account" subsection

Current Documentation

The "Start a Remote Control session" section, "From a new interactive session" tab, says:

As of v2.1.162, a Remote Control indicator stays in the footer below the input box while the connection is up. {/ min-version: 2.1.172 /}From v2.1.172, the indicator reads /rc active and is hidden when the terminal is too narrow to fit it; earlier versions always show Remote Control active. The indicator text is a link to the session on claude.ai, so you can reopen it from the terminal at any time. Select the indicator with the down arrow key and press Enter to open a status panel with the session URL and a QR code.

The "From an existing session" tab repeats the same paragraph.

The Troubleshooting section says under "Remote Control is not yet enabled for your account":

The eligibility check can fail with certain environment variables present: CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_NONESSENTIAL_TRAFFIC or DISABLE_TELEMETRY: unset them and try again. CLAUDE_CODE_USE_BEDROCK, CLAUDE_CODE_USE_VERTEX, or CLAUDE_CODE_USE_FOUNDRY: Remote Control requires claude.ai authentication and does not work with third-party providers. If none of these are set, run /logout then /login to refresh.

The v2.1.178 changelog entry says:

Improved Remote Control error messages: connection failures now show a persistent red "/rc failed" indicator in the footer, and the "not yet enabled" error now explains whether it's a gate, a check failure, stale entitlement, or org policy

What's Wrong or Missing?

A. The docs only describe the /rc active footer state

The footer-indicator paragraphs in both "From a new interactive session" and "From an existing session" tabs cover the connected state and the v2.1.172 short-form, but they do not mention the new v2.1.178 persistent red /rc failed indicator that appears when a connection failure occurs. A user who sees a red /rc failed in the footer cannot match it to any guidance in the page.

B. The Troubleshooting "not yet enabled" subsection lists only environment-variable causes, not the four reasons the error now reports

The new error message distinguishes four root causes — a gate, a check failure, a stale entitlement, or an org policy. The current docs only enumerate the two environment-variable families that historically caused eligibility failures (CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_NONESSENTIAL_TRAFFIC / DISABLE_TELEMETRY and the three third-party-provider flags) and fall through to "run /logout then /login to refresh" if none of those are set. The four explicit reasons the new error surfaces are not documented, and the page gives the reader no way to tell which one they are looking at.

This is also a problem distinct from the "Remote Control is disabled by your organization's policy" subsection just below it (line 222), which already covers four org-related causes. Readers seeing the new "not yet enabled" error have no signal that "org policy" is in fact one of the four reasons, nor where to look for the other three (gate, check failure, stale entitlement).

Suggested Improvement

A. Extend the footer-indicator paragraph in both tabs

Update the indicator description in the "From a new interactive session" tab and the "From an existing session" tab to also describe the failed state. A minimal version that mirrors the existing min-version annotation style:

As of v2.1.162, a Remote Control indicator stays in the footer below the input box while the connection is up. {/ min-version: 2.1.172 /}From v2.1.172, the indicator reads /rc active and is hidden when the terminal is too narrow to fit it; earlier versions always show Remote Control active. {/ min-version: 2.1.178 /}From v2.1.178, if a connection fails the indicator turns red and reads /rc failed until you reconnect. The indicator text is a link to the session on claude.ai, so you can reopen it from the terminal at any time. Select the indicator with the down arrow key and press Enter to open a status panel with the session URL and a QR code.

B. Rewrite the "not yet enabled" subsection to match the new four-reason breakdown

Replace the current two-bullet list with a description of the four reasons the new error reports and the matching remediation for each. Suggested replacement:

The "not yet enabled" error now identifies one of four reasons. The exact reason is included in the error text; use it to pick the fix below. Gate: the request was blocked before the eligibility check ran — usually by CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_NONESSENTIAL_TRAFFIC or DISABLE_TELEMETRY. Unset them and try again. Check failure: the eligibility check could not run. Confirm you are signed in with a claude.ai account (not an API key or Console account) and that you are not routing through Bedrock, Vertex AI, Foundry, or an ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL gateway — Remote Control requires direct claude.ai authentication and does not work with third-party providers. Stale entitlement: your cached account information is out of date. Run /logout then /login to refresh. Org policy: Remote Control is not enabled for your organization. See ["Remote Control is disabled by your organization's policy"](#remote-control-is-disabled-by-your-organizations-policy) below for the four org-related causes and how to resolve them.

The last bullet preserves the existing cross-reference to the policy subsection and is the smallest change that keeps the page internally consistent.

Impact

Medium - Makes feature difficult to understand

Additional Context

Affected Pages:
| Page | Line(s) | Context |
|------|---------|---------|
| https://code.claude.com/docs/en/remote-control | 78 | "From a new interactive session" tab — footer indicator paragraph omits /rc failed state |
| https://code.claude.com/docs/en/remote-control | 96 | "From an existing session" tab — same footer indicator paragraph is repeated |
| https://code.claude.com/docs/en/remote-control | 213–220 | "Remote Control is not yet enabled for your account" troubleshooting entry — only lists environment-variable causes, does not reflect the new four-reason error text |

Total scope: 1 page affected (3 passages on that page)

Changelog reference: v2.1.178, "Improved Remote Control error messages: connection failures now show a persistent red "/rc failed" indicator in the footer, and the "not yet enabled" error now explains whether it's a gate, a check failure, stale entitlement, or org policy".

Note: The "Remote Control is disabled by your organization's policy" troubleshooting entry on the same page (line 222) already enumerates four causes and is a useful structural reference for the rewrite of the "not yet enabled" entry above.