Issue Station
Sign In
Tools hereToolbox

claude-code - 💡(How to fix) Fix Cowork (CoworkVMService) breaks Ethernet connection on Windows 11 on startup [1 participants]

Official PRs (…)
ON THIS PAGE

Recommended Tools

×6

Utilities matched from this issue’s tags and category — try them while you read without losing context.

GitHub issue graph ai analysis

Paste a GitHub issue URL. We fetch that issue, discover linked issues from bodies/comments/timeline, collect linked pull requests, and produce a structured English report.

The report is written in English Markdown for sharing and archival.

Helpful · Quick feedback

Loading…
GitHub stats
anthropics/claude-code#45365•Fetched 2026-04-09 08:07:07
View on GitHub
Comments
0
Participants
1
Timeline
3
Reactions
0
Author
chrisboutte-bitchrisboutte-bit
Participants
chrisboutte-bitchrisboutte-bit
Timeline (top)
labeled ×3

Error Message

Error Messages/Logs

RAW_BUFFERClick to expand / collapse

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?

What happened: After enabling Cowork in Claude Desktop settings and restarting, my Ethernet connection stopped working (shows "No internet / Unidentified network") while Wi-Fi continued to work fine. Steps to reproduce:

Enable Cowork in Claude Desktop settings Restart PC Ethernet shows "No internet" in Windows Network settings

Fix that worked: Running the following in Admin PowerShell, then restarting:

netsh winsock reset netsh int ip reset ipconfig /flushdns

System info:

Windows 11 Claude Desktop Version 1.1062.0 (b81bcd) Ethernet adapter: Realtek PCIe GbE Family Controller CoworkVMService startup type is Automatic but cannot be changed (greyed out in services.msc, access denied via PowerShell -- likely due to WindowsApps installation restrictions)

Additional notes: No vEthernet or Cowork virtual adapters appeared in ipconfig /all, suggesting the interference happens at the network stack level rather than via a virtual adapter.

What Should Happen?

I should be able to use my ethernet connection

Error Messages/Logs

Steps to Reproduce

I just enabled cowork.

Claude Model

None

Is this a regression?

Yes, this worked in a previous version

Last Working Version

No response

Claude Code Version

Claude Desktop Version 1.1062.0 (b81bcd)

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

Windows

Terminal/Shell

PowerShell

Additional Information

No response

extent analysis

TL;DR

Running netsh winsock reset, netsh int ip reset, and ipconfig /flushdns in Admin PowerShell, then restarting, may resolve the Ethernet connection issue after enabling Cowork in Claude Desktop settings.

Guidance

  • The issue seems to be related to the network stack configuration, as suggested by the lack of virtual adapters and the successful workaround using netsh and ipconfig commands.
  • To verify the issue, try reproducing the steps: enable Cowork, restart, and check the Ethernet connection status.
  • The provided workaround may need to be reapplied if the issue persists after restarting or if Cowork is re-enabled.
  • Investigate potential conflicts between Cowork and the Realtek PCIe GbE Family Controller driver or Windows network settings.

Example

No specific code snippet is applicable in this case, as the issue is related to system configuration and network settings.

Notes

The root cause of the issue is unclear, but it appears to be related to the interaction between Cowork and the Windows network stack. The workaround provided may not be a permanent fix, and further investigation may be needed to resolve the issue.

Recommendation

Apply the workaround using netsh and ipconfig commands, as it has been reported to resolve the issue temporarily. This may need to be repeated if the issue persists or if Cowork is re-enabled.

Vote matrix · Quick signals

Works
Did the solution work? Tap to confirm.
Easy Fix
Was it a quick fix?
Time Saver
Did it save you time?
Blocking
Was it severely blocking?
Common Issue
Are others likely hitting this too?
Flaky / Intermittent
Is it intermittent?
Verified / Reproducible
Can you reproduce it reliably?
Loading…
#api#installation#memory optimization#batch processing#GPU compatibility

Still need to ship something?

×6

Another batch ranked right after the header list — different links, same matching logic.

Back to top recommendations

TRENDING