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claude-code - 💡(How to fix) Fix [BUG] Cowork fails with "Claude Code process exited with code 1" — persists through reboot and clean reinstall (Windows 10, v1.3036.0) [4 comments, 5 participants]

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anthropics/claude-code#49442•Fetched 2026-04-17 08:41:05
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Error Message

Every attempt to start a Cowork session crashes immediately with the error: Claude Code process exited with code 1. The crash persists through a full system reboot and a complete uninstall/reinstall of Claude Desktop.

Error Messages/Logs

Code Example

Claude Code process exited with code 1.
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Preflight Checklist

  • I have searched existing issues and this hasn't been reported yet
  • This is a single bug report (please file separate reports for different bugs)
  • I am using the latest version of Claude Code

What's Wrong?

Every attempt to start a Cowork session crashes immediately with the error: Claude Code process exited with code 1. The crash persists through a full system reboot and a complete uninstall/reinstall of Claude Desktop. Environment

OS: Windows 10 Claude Desktop version: Feature affected: Cowork

Troubleshooting attempted (all unsuccessful)

Confirmed no ANTHROPIC_API_KEY environment variable set at User or Machine scope Full Windows restart Uninstall of Claude Desktop via Windows Settings → Apps Deleted leftover %LOCALAPPDATA%\Claude folder Fresh download and install from claude.com/download Signed in on fresh install, retried Cowork — same crash

What Should Happen?

Function without errors

Error Messages/Logs

Claude Code process exited with code 1.

Steps to Reproduce

Reproduction

Open Claude Desktop Start a new Cowork session Crash occurs immediately with Claude Code process exited with code 1

Claude Model

Opus

Is this a regression?

Yes, this worked in a previous version

Last Working Version

No response

Claude Code Version

1.3036.0 (cf521c)

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

Windows

Terminal/Shell

PowerShell

Additional Information

Additional observations

The %LOCALAPPDATA%\Claude\Logs directory contains only chrome-native-host.log. No main.log, renderer.log, or Cowork/VM-related log files exist, so no detailed crash information is available on the client side. The chrome-native-host.log shows healthy start/stop cycles with no errors, indicating the Claude-in-Chrome bridge is working normally — this is specific to Cowork. An earlier attempt to rename %LOCALAPPDATA%\Claude returned "Access denied" even with no Claude processes running (per Get-Process laude), suggesting a file lock from something other than the visible Claude processes at that time. This was before the reinstall; post-reinstall the folder is accessible.

Impact Cowork is completely unusable on this machine. Other Claude surfaces (claude.ai in browser, Claude CLI in terminal) work normally. Request Guidance on where Cowork's main/VM logs should be written on Windows 10, or a fix for whatever is preventing the Cowork process from starting.

extent analysis

TL;DR

The issue is likely related to a file lock or permission issue preventing the Cowork process from starting, and checking the log file locations and permissions may help resolve the issue.

Guidance

  • Check the permissions and ownership of the %LOCALAPPDATA%\Claude directory and its contents to ensure that the Claude Desktop application has the necessary access rights.
  • Verify that there are no other processes or services running in the background that may be locking the files or directories used by Cowork.
  • Investigate the chrome-native-host.log file for any clues about the crash, even though it shows healthy start/stop cycles with no errors.
  • Consider checking the Windows Event Viewer logs for any system-level errors related to the Claude Desktop application or the Cowork process.

Example

No code snippet is provided as it is not clearly supported by the issue.

Notes

The issue may be related to a regression in the Claude Code version 1.3036.0, and checking the release notes or changelog for this version may provide more information about potential fixes or workarounds.

Recommendation

Apply workaround: Check the file permissions and ownership, and investigate the system logs to identify the root cause of the issue, as the problem is likely related to a file lock or permission issue rather than a version-specific bug.

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