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Sweep 22 Oct 2026 · 21:04Z Build v2.1.309 528 read Stable v2.1.308 Latest v2.1.309 Next v2.1.309 Feeds RSS JSON llms.txt llms-full.txt Unofficial

Claude Code v2.1.304 ·

Background task guidance changes when notifications only arrive during the current turn

In a new mode, Monitor and Bash guidance tells Claude that background events only arrive while it is still working on the turn

Group of 2 Under the hood Internal Changes
JSON All of v2.1.304
Under the hoodTier: how much it should matter to you
2Useful: my rating, 1 to 5
3Signal: worth watching, 1 to 5
Monitor ToolArea: what it touches
Internal ChangesKind: in v2.1.304,
Internal ChangesSection of the release

Unclear It is not clear what turns this mode on, so which sessions get the new wording is unknown.

What

Claude can run commands in the background and watch them with the Monitor tool. Claude Code now has a mode in which notifications from that background work only reach Claude while it is still working on the current turn, and the instructions given to Claude change to match:

  • The Monitor tool's description says events arrive one per occurrence 'while you work on this turn'. It drops the earlier wording that they arrive indefinitely or until the monitor expires, and the advice to re-arm it to continue.
  • The Bash tool's guidance on sleeping and waiting says Claude will be notified if a background command finishes while it is still working, and that it will not be re-invoked afterwards.
  • When backgroundShellsKeptElsewhere is set, the background-command instructions add that the user may not hear about the shell until they write again, and that it will likely be stopped a few minutes later.

Why

In this mode Claude is told not to count on being woken up later by a background command or monitor. A long-running background job may finish unnoticed, or be stopped, if the turn ends first.

How sure we are
Something disagreesSomething we can check disagrees with this entry, or the writer said they could not settle it.
The writer flagged doubtIt is not clear what turns this mode on, so which sessions get the new wording is unknown.

See this entry in the whole of v2.1.304 →

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