[BUG] VS Code extension: remoteControlAtStartup silently ignored — auto-enable is implemented but disabled behind ide_rc_auto_enable_gate

What's Wrong?

"remoteControlAtStartup": true in ~/.claude/settings.json is honored by the terminal CLI but silently ignored by the VS Code extension — sessions started from the extension never auto-start Remote Control.

Inspecting the shipped bundle (anthropic.claude-code-2.1.220-win32-x64/extension.js), the auto-enable logic is already implemented, but it is disabled behind a server-side rollout gate:

remoteControlAutoEnableOn(e){return e.ide_rc_auto_enable_gate===!0}

and at the session-launch call site:

if (this.remoteControlAutoEnableOn(g) && g.remote_control_auto_enable
    && this.channels.get(e)?.remoteControlState.status === "disconnected"
    && /* not a teleported session */)
  this.toggleRemoteControl(e, !0)

g is the CLI's initializationResult(), whose remote_control_auto_enable field appears to reflect the user's remoteControlAtStartup setting. So the local setting does flow through this path — but nothing happens unless the ide_rc_auto_enable_gate feature flag is enabled server-side. Given that Remote Control connects fine when toggled manually (/remote-control) and the setting is set, the gate being off is the most likely cause of the silent no-op. From the user's perspective the setting just doesn't work in the IDE, with no indication why.

What Should Happen?

Sessions launched from the VS Code extension should start with Remote Control connected when remoteControlAtStartup: true is set — the same behavior as the terminal CLI. If the feature must stay gated during rollout, then either:

• let the explicit local opt-in (remoteControlAtStartup: true) bypass the gate — the user has already opted in; or
• document that the setting does not yet apply to IDE extension sessions, so the failure isn't silent.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Set "remoteControlAtStartup": true in ~/.claude/settings.json
2. Open a terminal session (claude) → Remote Control auto-connects (as documented; also confirmed by reporters in #41036)
3. Start a session from the VS Code extension (native UI) → Remote Control stays disconnected; /remote-control works when run manually

Environment

• Extension: anthropic.claude-code v2.1.220 (win32-x64), native UI mode
• OS: Windows 11 Pro
• Auth: claude.ai subscription login (not API key)

Prior reports (all closed without reaching this diagnosis)

• #41036 — same symptom; auto-closed as duplicate of #29929, which is a different bug (CLI toggle resetting), as a commenter noted before the thread was locked
• #53647 — same symptom; auto-closed as duplicate of #41036
• #50444 / #50059 — Desktop-app variant of the same behavior; closed as duplicate / not planned

Since all of the above are closed and locked, filing this fresh report with the bundle-level diagnosis.