What
Claude Code scans certain directories to discover IDE lockfiles (used to detect a running IDE integration). That scan already included the home .claude/ide directory when CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR was set; it now also includes it whenever the resolved working directory is an empty string.
Why
This closes a gap where IDE lockfile discovery could miss the home directory location in cases where no working directory was resolved, helping the IDE integration connect reliably in more situations.
Names in the bundleCLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR
The entry above is what we published on the day. These lines were added later, as Anthropic's own pages caught up, and they sit beside the original rather than replacing it.
Added since
A small documentation edit on Hosting the Agent SDK touched a line naming CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR after this was published.
* Point `CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR` at a per-tenant directory so tenants do not share the `~/.claude.json` global config. When each config directory serves one working directory and you don't pass a [`SessionStore`](/docs/en/agent-sdk/session-stor…agent-sdk/hosting see the edit
Confirmed since
Anthropic's documentation has since written up CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR, on Claude Code changelog.
* \[VSCode] Fixed an empty `CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR` entry in the `environmentVariables` setting making Claude Code keep its files in the workspacechangelog see the edit
Two sources agreeTwo things we can check say the same as this entry.
Anthropic's documentation agrees
Anthropic's documentation has since written up CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR, on Claude Code changelog.
Anthropic's release notes agree
[VSCode] Fixed sign-ins and sign-outs made in a terminal not showing until a reload after CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR changed in the Environment…