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Claude Code Issues / #91381

[BUG] Desktop app's bundled Claude Code crashes on macOS 12 (dyld: _DNSServiceGetAddrInfoEx) while the standalone CLI runs fine

Status Fixed / completed
Reported on v2.1.258
Maintainer reply None cached
Workaround ✓ Mentioned in thread ↓
Activity 3 comments · opened Sep 2, 2026 · closed Sep 2, 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?

Summary

The Claude Code build managed by the Claude Desktop app fails to launch on
macOS 12.7.1 with a dyld symbol error and exit code 134. On the same machine,
the standalone CLI binary at a newer version (2.1.258) launches and runs a
full interactive session without any problem.

So this is not a general "macOS too old" limitation — it is specific to the
build the desktop app ships.

Environment

  • macOS 12.7.1 (Monterey)
  • MacBookPro13,2 (2016 13" MacBook Pro), Intel x86_64, 8 GB RAM
  • Desktop-managed build: 2.1.255
  • Standalone CLI build: 2.1.258 (works)

Error

What Should Happen?

Expected behaviour

Either the desktop-managed build should have the same minimum-OS footprint as
the standalone CLI, or the app should show a clear "unsupported macOS version"
message instead of aborting with exit code 134 and a raw dyld trace.

Error Messages/Logs

Claude Code process exited with code 134. stderr: dyld[2069]: Symbol not found: (_DNSServiceGetAddrInfoEx)
  Referenced from: '<home>/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude-code/2.1.255/claude.app/Contents/MacOS/claude'
  Expected in: '/usr/lib/libSystem.B.dylib'

dyld[2069]: Symbol not found: (_DNSServiceGetAddrInfoEx)
  Referenced from: '<home>/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude-code/2.1.255/claude.app/Contents/MacOS/claude'
  Expected in: '/usr/lib/libSystem.B.dylib'

Steps to Reproduce

Steps to reproduce

  1. On macOS 12.x, install the Claude Desktop app.
  2. Open Claude Code from within the app.
  3. The app downloads its own build into

~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude-code/<version>/ and the
process aborts immediately with the error above.

What works on the same machine

Claude Model

None

Is this a regression?

Yes, this worked in a previous version

Last Working Version

unknown for the desktop-managed build; CLI: 2.1.252 (see #91309)

Claude Code Version

2.1.255 (desktop-managed build, crashes) / 2.1.258 (Claude Code) standalone CLI, works

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

macOS

Terminal/Shell

Terminal.app (macOS)

Additional Information

Relationship to #91309

#91309 covers the same symbol (_DNSServiceGetAddrInfoEx) on macOS 12 for the standalone CLI, and pins the break exactly at 2.1.257 (2.1.252 still works).

This report is a different case, and the same fix does not cover it:

  • On this machine the standalone CLI is already fine. The auto-updater installed 2.1.258 and it launches, logs in, and runs full interactive sessions on macOS 12.7.1:
$ claude --version
2.1.258 (Claude Code)
  • The desktop app is still stuck on its own separate build, 2.1.255, in ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude-code/2.1.255/claude.app/, which carries the bad symbol and aborts with exit code 134. The app manages that download itself and has not moved off it, so unlike the CLI it does not recover on its own.

So the desktop app is pulling Claude Code builds from a track that still carries the macOS 12 regression, and there is no way for a user to pin or roll it back: DISABLE_AUTOUPDATER in ~/.claude/settings.json and curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash -s <version> only affect the standalone CLI.

Environment

  • macOS 12.7.1 (Monterey), MacBookPro13,2 (2016 13-inch MacBook Pro), Intel x64, 8 GB RAM
  • Desktop-managed build: 2.1.255 - aborts, exit code 134
  • Standalone CLI: 2.1.258 - works normally

Note on the documented floor

The setup docs state macOS 13.0+, yet the standalone CLI runs correctly on macOS 12.7.1. The documented minimum and the shipped behaviour disagree in both directions, which makes it hard to tell a genuine unsupported-OS condition from a broken build.

View original on GitHub ↗

3 Comments

fedeegriecco99-sketch · 16 hours ago

Me pasa exactamente lo mismo en un MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Two Thunderbolt 3 ports) con macOS Monterey 12.7.6. La app de escritorio (Cowork) queda atascada en la compilación 2.1.255 y crashea con el mismo error de símbolo:

dyld[10230]: Symbol not found: (_DNSServiceGetAddrInfoEx)
Referenced from: '<home>/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude-code/2.1.255/claude.app/Contents/MacOS/claude'
Expected in: '/usr/lib/libSystem.B.dylib'

Reinstalar la app no soluciona nada porque vuelve a bajar la misma build. Se ve que sigue sin resolverse del lado de la app de escritorio — dejo esto para que quede visibilidad de que sigue afectando a más gente.

hesinhthaihieucom-TQ · 15 hours ago

Confirming this happens on different hardware too — MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2020), macOS 12.7.4 (Monterey), Desktop app 1.40609.1.

Same exact error and exit code 134. I tried fully quitting the app, deleting ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude-code/2.1.255, and clearing ~/Library/Caches/Claude — Desktop always re-downloads exactly 2.1.255 again.

Also confirmed the standalone CLI works: installing via curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash gives 2.1.258, and running it explicitly (~/.local/bin/claude -p "test") works perfectly on this same machine with no dyld error.

tolulops514 · 14 hours ago

Same Error: Claude Desktop app permanently stuck on broken Claude Code 2.1.255

Summary

Claude Desktop's bundled Claude Code binary is pinned to v2.1.255 — a version with a known dyld crash on macOS 12 (Monterey) — and will not update past it despite full cache clears and reinstalls. The standalone terminal CLI install updates and runs fine, confirming this is isolated to the Desktop app's own bundled copy.

Environment

  • macOS 12 (Monterey)
  • Claude Desktop app, downloaded from claude.com/download (macOS universal DMG)
  • Claude Code CLI (terminal, separate install): working correctly, updated past the regression
  • Claude Code bundled in Desktop app: stuck at v2.1.255

Error

When the Desktop app spawns a new Claude Code process (new session, or a new command in an existing Code tab session), it fails with:

Claude Code requires a newer OS version. Update your operating system to continue.
Claude Code process exited with code 134. stderr:
dyld[<pid>]: Symbol not found: (_DNSServiceGetAddrInfoEx)
Referenced from: '<home>/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude-code/2.1.255/claude.app/Contents/MacOS/claude'
Expected in: '/usr/lib/libSystem.B.dylib'

This matches a regression Anthropic's own changelog documents as introduced in Claude Code 2.1.255 and fixed in a later release (fix shipped September 1, 2026, per the official changelog at code.claude.com/docs/en/changelog). The terminal CLI picked up that fix via claude update. The Desktop app's bundled copy did not.

Steps to reproduce

  1. Install/update Claude Desktop on macOS 12.
  2. Open the Code tab and start or continue a session.
  3. Any new process spawn (new session, or a new command sent to an existing session after inactivity/restart) fails with the error above.
  4. Note: an already-running session from before the break can continue working until it needs to spawn a new process — the failure is on process spawn, not universal within an open tab.

Troubleshooting already attempted (no effect)

  1. Quit the app fully, delete only the versioned cache folder:

rm -rf "$HOME/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude-code/2.1.255" — app re-downloaded the same 2.1.255.

  1. Uninstalled and reinstalled the Desktop app fresh from claude.com/download (confirmed this resolves to the same URL as claude.ai's macOS installer, so not a wrong-installer issue).
  2. Cleared the entire cache directory:

rm -rf "$HOME/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude-code" — app re-downloaded the same 2.1.255.

  1. Used the Claude menu's "Check for Updates" — no newer version offered.
  2. Confirmed via Settings → Claude Code and via

ls "$HOME/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude-code/"
that 2.1.255 is the only version present after every attempt above.

Why this looks server-side

The terminal CLI (separate install/update path) successfully updated past this regression via claude update. The Desktop app's bundled Claude Code, by contrast, returns to the identical 2.1.255 build every time, even from a fully cleared local cache and a clean reinstall. This suggests the Desktop app's current release is fetching a pinned/stale bundled version from Anthropic's servers, not a local caching issue.

Workaround in use

Running Claude Code via Terminal directly (cd <project> && claude) instead of the Desktop app's Code tab. This works reliably. The /desktop command can attach a working terminal session to the Desktop app's Code tab for viewing prior transcript, but does not route new commands through the working terminal binary — new commands still hit the broken bundled 2.1.255 process.

Impact

Desktop app's Code tab is currently unusable on macOS 12 for any session requiring a fresh process spawn.

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