### Preflight Checklist - [x] I have searched [existing issues](https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues?q=is%3Aissue%20state%3Aopen%20label%3Amodel) for similar behavior reports - [x] This report does NOT contain sensitive information (API keys, passwords, etc.) ### Type of Behavior Issue Claude modified files I didn't ask it to modify ### What You Asked Claude to Do Let it go!!!!!!! ### What Claude Actually Did Starting with 2.1.277, Claude Code claims support for AGENTS.md — "i

[MODEL] Claude Code's AGENTS.md Support: A Local Feature Locked Behind a Remote Switch

Status Open

Reported on v2.1.277

Maintainer reply None cached

Activity 5 comments · opened Sep 20, 2026

Preflight Checklist

[x] I have searched existing issues for similar behavior reports
[x] This report does NOT contain sensitive information (API keys, passwords, etc.)

Type of Behavior Issue

Claude modified files I didn't ask it to modify

What You Asked Claude to Do

Let it go!!!!!!!

What Claude Actually Did

Starting with 2.1.277, Claude Code claims support for AGENTS.md — "in a project with no CLAUDE.md, Claude Code reads AGENTS.md instead." But the feature is implemented as a built-in plugin that is off by default and gated behind a remote Anthropic feature flag (Statsig gate tengu_agents_md_mod). If you disable telemetry traffic (CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_NONESSENTIAL_TRAFFIC=1), or use Claude Code through a third-party gateway / Bedrock / Vertex, that gate can never evaluate to true — and so reading a local markdown file, an act that requires no network whatsoever, is silently locked away by a server-side switch. No error. No warning. It just doesn't load.

Expected Behavior

Stop doing ewwww thing.

Files Affected

Permission Mode

Accept Edits was ON (auto-accepting changes)

Can You Reproduce This?

Yes, every time with the same prompt

Steps to Reproduce

_No response_

Claude Model

Sonnet

Relevant Conversation

Impact

Critical - Data loss or corrupted project

Claude Code Version

2.1.277

Platform

Other

Additional Context

_No response_

View original on GitHub ↗

4 Comments

bluehorizon8848-ai · 22 days ago

I ran into similar issues with AI coding agents in real projects.

One thing that helped me was making the agent's loaded context visible. For example, some tools show which project rules were loaded before a task starts.

I think showing:

which instruction files were loaded
their priority/order
the effective context used by the agent

would make agent behavior much more predictable and easier to debug.

pszypowicz · 21 days ago

I can reproduce this on 2.1.280 on macOS. Here are a few more details.

My test uses a new directory that holds only an AGENTS.md with a canary word. I then ask claude -p for the word, in two sessions per setup.

DISABLE_TELEMETRY also blocks the feature. With either DISABLE_TELEMETRY or CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_NONESSENTIAL_TRAFFIC set, AGENTS.md never loads. I had to clear both.
Setting either variable to 0 keeps the block in place. The env-vars docs say so, but it is easy to miss when you try to turn the feature on.
An env block in the project .claude/settings.json that clears both variables does not help, so there is no way to turn the feature on for one repo.
A session-level claude --settings '{"env":{"DISABLE_TELEMETRY":"","CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_NONESSENTIAL_TRAFFIC":""}}' works from the second session on, because the first session only fetches the flag.

Reading a local file should not depend on telemetry. If the gate has to stay, a startup warning when an AGENTS.md is present and skipped would help. For now I use a one-line CLAUDE.md with @AGENTS.md, which works with telemetry off.

mmailhos · 21 days ago

Confirmed on 2.1.278 with fresh isolated homes: AGENTS.md is skipped in the very first session after install, and skipped every time when feature-flag fetching is disabled (DISABLE_GROWTHBOOK=1 or nonessential traffic off), which is exactly what CI runners do. It loads fine once the flag is cached locally, so this is a rollout-gating gap rather than a parser bug. Could the instructionFiles setting (or an env var) be honoured without the remote flag, so headless and CI sessions can opt in deterministically?

foma-agent · 21 days ago

DISABLE_TELEMETRY=0 still turns feature-flag fetching off, so native AGENTS.md stays skipped. Live env-vars (dateModified 2026-09-23T01:47:01.480Z): any non-empty value, including 0 and false. DO_NOT_TRACK is the boolean one — 0 leaves fetching on.

Live memory docs (dateModified 2026-09-22T17:25:51.616Z) now name the skip list: no flag fetch (telemetry off, Bedrock and other third-party hosts), the first session after install or upgrade, and a disabled agents-md plugin. In those sessions /config hides Project instructions. instructionFiles is ignored in project and local settings files; it only applies in user settings, --settings, or managed settings.

A CLAUDE.md containing @AGENTS.md does not wait on the flag. The interactive receipt when the native loader actually ran is no CLAUDE.md found; AGENTS.md loaded: /home/you/repo/AGENTS.md. I did not run 2.1.280.

https://bokonon.ai/notes/2026-09-23-zero-still-skips-agents-md/

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