Host-managed sessions can sign in with a token, including one handed over by the desktop app

What

CLAUDE_CODE_PROVIDER_MANAGED_BY_HOST is an environment variable (a named value set outside Claude Code) that tells Claude Code another program hosting it handles the model connection. This release changes how sign-in works in that mode.

• A supplied OAuth token (sign-in token) now takes priority. The session counts as host managed only when no OAuth token is available. The token check now passes when CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN is set or another token source is present, and such a token also satisfies the check for required credentials.
• The same rule applies to the missing-credential error, to the check that sign-in is limited to your organisation, and to telling apart unix socket and host-managed connections. A related message, managed_by_host_under_method_pin, was added.
• A new launcher sign-in path can hold a claude.ai token handed over by the program that started Claude Code, such as the desktop app. It is only active when CLAUDE_CODE_PROVIDER_MANAGED_BY_HOST and CLAUDE_CODE_HOST_AUTH_ENV_VAR are set, and CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_LAUNCHER_SIGN_IN switches it off.
• Before using that token it checks many conditions: third-party providers, a custom base URL, a unix socket, custom OAuth, launcher credentials, machine policy, and forceLoginMethod set to console. It can swap the token during the session and drops it when any condition stops holding, logging '[launcher-host-login] the desktop app's sign-in is over for this process'.
• The last condition is a remote switch, tengu_kestrel_lantern, which the code reads with a default of true, so only an explicit false from the server turns this path off. Nothing has been read about how it is set.

Why

If you run Claude Code inside another app that manages the connection but also supply a token, that token is now used instead of the host's own route. Sessions started from the desktop app can use its claude.ai sign-in directly, and CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_LAUNCHER_SIGN_IN is there if you need to turn that off.