Desktop App: Allow choosing working directory before first message
Open 💬 3 comments Opened Jul 3, 2026 by altnersven
Problem
When starting a new session in the Claude Code Desktop App (Windows), there is no way to choose or change the working directory:
- Before the first message: No folder picker is shown. The app automatically uses the last-used directory.
- After the first message: The directory path appears but cannot be changed.
This means every new session is locked to whatever directory was used previously. For users working across multiple projects (e.g. Unity, Python tools, C# projects), this forces them into the wrong project context every time.
Impact
- Wrong
CLAUDE.mdand memory files are loaded - Claude wastes tokens trying to orient itself in an unrelated codebase
- Users cannot correct the directory once the session has started
Expected behavior
- A folder picker should be available before sending the first message, or
- The working directory should be changeable at any point during the session
Current workaround
Use the CLI instead: claude --cwd "C:\path\to\project"
Environment
- Claude Code Desktop App on Windows 10
- Version: 1.x (latest)
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