[DOCS] Install script's new out-of-memory explanation needs a troubleshooting entry in the installation pages

Open 💬 0 comments Opened Jul 3, 2026 by coygeek

Documentation Type

Missing documentation (feature not documented)

Documentation Location

https://code.claude.com/docs/en/setup

Section/Topic

The installation instructions in setup.md (especially the curl-based install path) and the matching troubleshooting page.

Current Documentation

setup.md walks through the install path with curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash and the claude install command. The current troubleshooting coverage focuses on setup, PATH, and authentication problems; it does not yet include the v2.1.200 out-of-memory installer message.

What's Wrong or Missing?

A. v2.1.200 added an explicit out-of-memory message to the install script

The v2.1.200 changelog says:

Improved the install script to explain when installation is killed by the system running out of memory

After v2.1.200, the install script surfaces an explicit message when the OS kills the installer for memory pressure, rather than failing silently or surfacing the raw Killed line from the shell. The install page would benefit from a short explanation of this message, what triggers it, and what to do next.

B. Memory-pressure troubleshooting is not covered

setup.md does not currently warn users on memory-constrained machines (small VMs, low-memory containers, shared CI runners) that the install script may need more memory than is available, nor does it explain how to free memory or run the installer with a smaller footprint.

C. The troubleshoot-install page needs an install-script failure entry

A user whose installer is killed by the system will land on a Killed line in their shell. The troubleshoot-install page already covers authentication and PATH; adding an installer-failure entry would give that user a direct next step.

Suggested Improvement

Add a paragraph under the install steps in setup.md, for example:

{/ min-version: 2.1.200 /}If your system runs out of memory during installation, the install script now prints an explicit out-of-memory explanation rather than failing silently. Free memory before retrying, or install on a host with more available RAM.

Add a matching troubleshooting entry to https://code.claude.com/docs/en/troubleshoot-install:

Installer prints an out-of-memory message and exits: the install script in v2.1.200 reports when the system kills the installer for memory pressure. Close other applications, free swap, or run the installer on a host with more available memory.

Impact

Medium - Makes feature difficult to understand

Additional Context

Affected Pages:
| Page | Line(s) | Context |
|------|---------|---------|
| https://code.claude.com/docs/en/setup | install section | Install steps via curl or claude install |
| https://code.claude.com/docs/en/troubleshoot-install | new entry | "Installer prints an out-of-memory message and exits" |

Total scope: 2 pages, both should mention the new behavior.

The release note for this improvement appears in v2.1.200 (July 3, 2026).

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