claude-code - 💡(How to fix) Fix [FEATURE] Configurable session name color indicators in the sidebar

Preflight Checklist

• I have searched existing requests and this feature hasn't been requested yet
• This is a single feature request (not multiple features)

Problem Statement

When running multiple Claude Code sessions simultaneously, the sidebar shows nothing but session names — no status, no feedback. The only way to know what a session is doing or whether it finished is to open it and read the output.

I run parallel workflows where I need to monitor several sessions at once. Switching into each session to check its status breaks my focus and defeats the purpose of running them in parallel.

Proposed Solution

Allow sessions to set a named status (via hooks like Stop or PostToolUse, or a slash command) that the sidebar reflects as a color highlight on the session name. The user defines which statuses map to which colors in their settings.

The sidebar should show:

• Green when a session completes successfully (e.g. after /handoff finishes)
• Red when a session fails or errors
• Amber while a task is actively running
• No highlight when idle

Status should clear automatically when a new task begins in that session.

Conceptual config example: "sessionStatus": { "success": { "color": "#16a34a" }, "failed": { "color": "#dc2626" }, "running": { "color": "#d97706" } }

Alternative Solutions

Currently I open each session individually to check status — there is no passive way to monitor sessions from the sidebar.

I explored the status line at the bottom of the window, which can show dynamic content, but it only reflects the active session. It does not help when monitoring multiple sessions simultaneously.

Desktop toast notifications are possible via Stop hooks but require the session to surface to the foreground to act on them — they don't give a persistent at-a-glance indicator the way colored session names would.

Priority

High - Significant impact on productivity

Feature Category

Configuration and settings

Use Case Example

1. I have 4 Claude Code sessions open: a parent orchestrator and 3 child sessions each running a different task
2. I run /handoff in each child session and continue working in the parent
3. Without this feature, I must click into each child session to see if it finished — interrupting my work each time
4. With this feature, I glance at the sidebar: two sessions are green (done), one is still amber (running) — I know exactly where things stand without leaving my current session

Additional Context

This is especially valuable for agentic and orchestration workflows, which are a growing Claude Code use case. The sidebar is already functioning as a session dashboard — color-coded status would make it genuinely useful for monitoring parallel work in progress.