The desktop app issues on macOS
Issues the maintainers labelled both platform:macos and area:desktop.
2,253 issues · 758 open · 1,495 resolved (66%) · first seen Nov 6, 2025
Is this getting better or worse?
This class of problem is holding steady. 1016 new reports in the last 90 days vs 891 in the 90 before — +14%. The open backlog peaked at 758 in 2026-10 and sits at 758 today.
Derived by counting each matching issue from its creation date until it closed. First-party
computation over the anthropics/claude-code tracker — the trend is not published
anywhere upstream.
Which builds report this
1,154 of these reports name the Claude Code build they were running, spanning 176 releases. Heaviest reporters:
- Claude Code v2.1.111
- Claude Code v2.1.229
- Claude Code v2.1.260
- Claude Code v2.1.286
- Claude Code v2.1.295
- Claude Code v2.1.197
- Claude Code v2.1.258
- Claude Code v2.1.296
Report volume, not a defect count: an issue can mention a build without that build having caused the failure. Versions come from the version string in the bug-report template, matched against real published tags.
Do these get fixed?
Median time to close is 35 days across 1,495 closures. Of the 1,495 closures with a recorded reason, 27% were closed as completed and 1,093 as not-planned or duplicate. The most recent completed fix landed in 2026-10.
Workarounds reported by the community
646 of these issues post a workaround someone says worked. The highest-engagement ones:
- FEATURE: Multi-window support in Claude Code Desktop
- …essions, but forcing single-window view limits productivity Workarounds (all suboptimal) 1. — works but doubles memory usage 2. Desktop + CLI terminal side by side — inconsistent experience 3. Desktop + claude.ai/code in…
Found in the description of #30154 · still open - [FEATURE] Menu Bar Only Mode (Hide Dock Icon Option)
- …s or menu bar Additional Context: This would also provide a workaround for the current quit bug (issue 14951) where Cmd+Q doesn't properly close the app, since menu bar apps typically have a "Quit" option in their menu.…
Found in the description of #16082 · still open - [BUG] Inline KaTeX math (`$...$`) no longer renders in chat output — only block `$$...$$` works (regression)
- …ub-Flavored Markdown, Obsidian, and KaTeX/MathJax defaults. In the meantime the only workaround is Unicode ( ) or accepting display blocks — neither produces real inline math.
Found in the thread of #65632 · still open - [BUG] Opus 4.6 removed from Claude Desktop Code tab model picker after Opus 4.7 release
- …he option to use Opus 4.6 but not the "Coding" tab? Anyone has a workaround for the Desktop App?
Found in the thread of #49689 · resolved - [BUG] Claude Code defaults to 1M context on fresh session with no workaround on Pro plan
- …ars immediately without any prompt or file loaded Attempted workarounds — none resolved it: - — same error - — same error - → with Pro credentials only — same error Expected behavior: Standard context window used by defa…
Found in the description of #62063 · resolved
Excerpts are quoted from the linked issue so you can judge relevance before opening it. Threads that only ask for a workaround, or report that there is none, are excluded. These are community suggestions, not official guidance from Anthropic — read the full thread before applying one.
Matching issues 1–100
Ranked by community engagement (reactions weighted over comments). Listing the top 300 of 2,253 matches; the statistics above cover all 2,253.
- FEATURE: Multi-window support in Claude Code Desktop
- [FEATURE] Menu Bar Only Mode (Hide Dock Icon Option)
- [BUG] Inline KaTeX math (`$...$`) no longer renders in chat output — only block `$$...$$` works (regression)
- [BUG] Opus 4.6 removed from Claude Desktop Code tab model picker after Opus 4.7 release
- [BUG] Inline $...$ LaTeX does not render in Claude Code desktop tab (macOS/Windows) — display $$...$$ works
- [BUG] Claude Code defaults to 1M context on fresh session with no workaround on Pro plan
- Desktop app: support custom themes / accent colors (parity with CLI custom theme system)
- [BUG] Desktop: Bypass Permissions mode can't be enabled on macOS — reverts to Accept Edits, "Permission mode couldn't be changed" (2.1.148)
- [BUG] Cowork Can't add private GitHub marketplace
- [Regression] Desktop app: session time-range filter only appears when Group by is set to State
- [FEATURE] Model switching for existing Cowork tasks within Projects
- [BUG] Claude on MacOS does not use default browser for logging in
- [BUG] Cowork: new projects lost "Choose a folder" — Context menu replaced with Chat-style upload-only knowledge menu after Chat/Cowork merge
- Desktop app ignores settings.json permissions.allow and defaultMode: bypassPermissions
- Allow reordering/pinning of session groups in the sidebar
- [FEATURE] Desktop app: setting to auto-expand Edit/Write diffs by default
- macOS: PTY file descriptors leaked across a long Bash-heavy session, exhausting kern.tty.ptmx_max (forkpty / posix_openpt fail with ENXIO system-wide)
- MCP servers declaring draft-07 outputSchema are entirely unusable: "unsupported dialect" rejected client-side before dispatch
- [FEATURE] macOS desktop app: change font size without scaling the whole UI
- [BUG] Site permissions ("Allow all websites") ignored by the built-in browser in Claude Code Desktop
- [BUG] Copy/Paste from Mac Command C/V stop working frequently in latest Claude Code desktop
- Dispatch main conversation permanently offline despite working Cowork tasks
- [BUG] Dispatch-spawned Claude Code sessions ignore user's model and permission-mode settings — no way to change from mobile
- [FEATURE] Option to disable Launch preview panel auto-open on Write/Edit
- SSH: CC_ENV_EXTRACT_LIST missing SSH_AUTH_SOCK breaks 1Password SSH agent
- [FEATURE] Allow scheduled agent / Routine runs to appear in Recents or be pinnable in the sidebar
- [BUG] Cowork crashes since v1.3036.0 is installed
- Desktop app ignores env.PATH from settings.json (sandbox overrides)
- [BUG] Claude Code process exited with code 1
- Desktop app (macOS) ignores PATH from all sources — Read tool cannot find poppler/pdftoppm
- [BUG] Desktop 1.22209.0: sidebar project filter removed — docs still document it
- Scheduled task ignores model setting, always runs Sonnet
- [BUG] Dispatch responses generated but never delivered to clients (desktop Cowork & mobile)
- [Regression, Windows+macOS] Cross-session messaging silently broken since CCD 2.1.224+ — messages dropped, recipient sessions wedged 15-20 min (hadFirstResponse=false); fixed in 2.1.237 for some installs, stable channel still affected
- [BUG] REGRESSION: Cannot switch between Opus and Sonnet mid-thread in Cowork after April 15 desktop redesign
- [Desktop] Display current worktree/cwd name in app UI (statusLine equivalent)
- [BUG] Claude Code process exited with code 1 - happening with cowork on Desktop
- [BUG] Claude Desktop: Web session mode lacks MCP server access despite configuration
- [BUG] Desktop app disallows SendMessage, so subagents cannot be messaged or resumed
- [FEATURE] Open Claude Desktop in a specific folder via CLI flag or deep link (new Code session, not Cowork home)
- Claude Desktop: 'All domains' network egress setting triggers invalid pattern error
- [BUG] Claude Desktop (Code tab) auto-denies CLI-native SendMessage, breaking subagent resumption; the desktop replacement only covers session-to-session
- [BUG] Built-in browser ignores Allowed sites for internal hostnames (*.habifino.local): "Site-level permissions are disabled for this site", prompt on every action
- [Bug] Branch picker search fails to find existing branches in Claude Code Desktop
- Desktop built-in browser can't grant standing permissions for .local hosts (WordPress Studio sites)
- Effort/model selection ("ultracode") reverts to "extra" when switching chats
- [Feature] Reconnect/restart MCP servers from Claude Code in Claude Desktop without Cmd+Q (expose /mcp UI or auto-reconnect)
- [BUG] Error on opening coworkers session and posting a new prompt
- [BUG] Permission mode toggle broken on desktop app - "Permission mode couldn't be changed" – AUTO MODE not staying on
- [BUG] Layout clipping in macOS desktop app
- [BUG] Claude Code Mac Desktop App — messages sent but no response, screen stays blank
- [BUG] No option to hide/disable the extended thinking display on desktop app (shows inconsistently: visible while streaming, hidden after restart)
- [BUG] Stale "Pull request status couldn't be checked" on archived sessions whose repo/worktree was deleted
- [BUG] Claude Desktop falls back to Safari for SSO login when default browser is Arc
- [BUG] Mac desktop app: 'Your previous message wasn't sent' toast fires after successful response, caused by postMessage origin mismatch to claudeusercontent.com
- Desktop app: session history lost when switching accounts
- Desktop: file paths outside the working directory no longer open inline ("This file is outside the working directory" → Show in Finder) — regression after update
- [BUG] Syntax Highlighting of C# disappears after a brief moment
- [Desktop] Slash-command autocomplete no longer triggers mid-message since 1.40609.0 (terminal CLI unaffected)
- Desktop Code tab doesn't honor `remoteControlAtStartup` from ~/.claude/settings.json
- [BUG] Claude Dispatch permanently showing "desktop appears offline" for multiple weeks
- [BUG] Claude Code Desktop is crashing with new version
- [FEATURE] Desktop file panel: show hidden files, resolve symlinks, and handle binary files gracefully
- [BUG] Claude Desktop code mode crashes instantly with exit code 1 — VM never boots (macOS Tahoe, v1.1.7714)
- Scheduled task (routine) runs no longer appear in the desktop sidebar or Remote Control
- [BUG] Desktop global "Auto-fix CI and address comments" toggle never applies to PRs created via gh from local sessions, and doesn't persist in claude_desktop_config.json
- [BUG] Desktop app cannot rewind the first message.
- Desktop auto-update ("stealth update") quits and relaunches the app while the user is away, dropping every Remote Control session
- [BUG] Plugin skills not appearing in `/` menu after v2.1.110 update — only `schedule` shows
- [FEATURE] Allow independent font size adjustment across Desktop modules (Chat / Cowork / Code)
- Claude Desktop Code mode crashes immediately (exit code 1) — works fine from CLI
- Claude Desktop 3p + custom gateway (`ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL`): sandbox network pinned to gateway + api.anthropic.com, `sandbox.network.allowedDomains` ignored even after full app restart
- Permission mode reverts from bypassPermissions to acceptEdits on first prompt (Claude Desktop 2.1.149 / Cowork, macOS)
- Desktop app update deletes session history (sessions-index.json + .jsonl files)
- [BUG] Cowork (macOS): since 2026-09-06 new projects bind ONE folder only ("Use a folder"); Context accepts documents only — silently breaks the multi-folder projects heavy users built on, while the docs still describe the old behaviour
- [BUG] Claude Desktop: extension install fully broken — "Install Extension" no-ops and drag-and-drop falls through the modal into the chat
- Add option to disable automatic worktree creation in Desktop app
- Opus 5: prose between tool calls returned as summarized 'narration' thinking blocks since 2026-09-11 — code blocks dropped, Desktop never shows them, model believes user saw it
- Cowork dictation stops ~2s after start on macOS Tahoe 26.4.1 — began immediately after auto-update to 1.15962.0 (039543); chat dictation unaffected
- [BUG] Claude Code in the Claude Desktop app runs UserPromptSubmit hooks and enforces blocks, but renders no user-facing hook feedback (CLI renders all)
- [BUG] Claude Desktop - Code mode - macOS: Tahoe 26.3
- Atlassian connector widgets render with a white background in dark mode and are always expanded inline
- Desktop 1.30096.1: PR status icons missing from session list after update
- [BUG] Cowork Desktop (macOS): AskUserQuestion card never reaches renderer; yellow-dot badge shows pending but no UI; on app quit, pending request silently resolves as "Dismissed"
- Scheduled routines no longer have dedicated sidebar section; sessions mixed into regular list and pinning broken
- [desktop] Add /reload-plugins command for in-process plugin refresh (parity with CLI)
- Desktop app: add split panes and numbered tab shortcuts (Cmd-1/2/3) for power users
- [BUG] Claude Code in Claude Desktop fails to work with local projects (macos)
- [BUG] Claude Desktop freezes on launch when scheduled-tasks.json exists in claude-code-sessions
- [Bug] Desktop app (Code tab) 1.9659.4: Opus 4.8 "tool call could not be parsed (retry also failed)" still reproduces
- Bug: Remote Control initialization fails with "Remote Control failed to connect: Remote Control initialization failed"
- Desktop app: no user-level way to disable the "How is Claude doing this session?" survey
- New Window option removed in desktop app — regression
- [BUG] Desktop app blocks sending message when a custom slash command is combined with a URL
- [FEATURE] Sessions should follow a renamed/moved project folder (persistent project identity)
- Claude Desktop: binaryName platform-switch causes macOS TCC prompt for 'Claude.exe'
- [BUG] Content area clipped/hidden when sidebar is open
- [BUG] Skills from ~/.claude/skills/ and plugins not shown in Customize -> Skills panel
- [BUG] Desktop Settings: "Branch prefix" (ccBranchPrefix) cannot be set empty — reverts to default "claude"
- [BUG] Claude desktop app blocks new sessions with "Git is required" despite git being fully functional