Claude Code Remote Control

Source: Hacker News

Remote Control

Remote Control connects Claude Code (via claude.ai/code or the Claude app for iOS / Android) to a Claude Code session running locally on your machine.

Start a task at your desk, then pick it up from your phone on the couch or from a browser on another computer. While the session is active, Claude stays on your machine—nothing is sent to the cloud.

What Remote Control Gives You

• Full local environment, remotely – your filesystem, MCP servers, tools, and project configuration remain available.
• Multi‑device sync – the conversation is kept in sync across all connected devices, so you can send messages from a terminal, browser, or phone interchangeably.
• Resilience to interruptions – if your laptop sleeps or the network drops, the session automatically reconnects when the machine comes back online.

How It Differs from Claude Code on the Web

• Remote Control runs entirely on your computer and interacts with your local filesystem.
• Claude Code on the web runs on Anthropic’s cloud infrastructure; the web and mobile interfaces are just a window into that remote session.

What This Page Covers

1. Setup – installing and configuring Remote Control.
2. Starting a session – launching a local Claude Code instance.
3. Connecting from other devices – linking browsers, iOS, or Android apps.
4. Comparison – detailed differences between Remote Control and Claude Code on the web.

Requirements

Before using Remote Control, make sure your environment satisfies the following conditions:

• Subscription

  • Requires a Pro or Max plan.
  • API keys are not supported.

• Authentication

  • Run claude and execute /login to sign in through claude.ai if you haven’t already.

• Workspace trust

  • Run claude in your project directory at least once to accept the workspace‑trust dialog.

Start a Remote Control session

You can start a new session directly in Remote Control, or connect to a session that’s already running.

New session

From an existing session

Navigate to your project directory and run:

claude remote-control

The process stays running in your terminal, waiting for remote connections. It displays a session URL you can use to connect from another device, and you can press the spacebar to show a QR code for quick access from your phone. While a remote session is active, the terminal shows connection status and tool activity.

Available flags

• --verbose – Show detailed connection and session logs.
• --sandbox / --no-sandbox – Enable or disable sandboxing for filesystem and network isolation during the session (sandboxing is off by default).

If you’re already in a Claude Code session and want to continue it remotely, use the /remote-control (or /rc) command:

/remote-control

This starts a Remote Control session that carries over your current conversation history and displays a session URL and QR code you can use to connect from another device. The --verbose, --sandbox, and --no-sandbox flags are not available with this command.

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Connect from another device

Once a Remote Control session is active, you can connect from another device in several ways:

1. Open the session URL in any browser to go directly to the session on claude.ai/code. Both claude remote-control and /remote-control display this URL in the terminal.
2. Scan the QR code shown alongside the session URL to open it directly in the Claude app. With claude remote-control, press the spacebar to toggle the QR code display.
3. Open claude.ai/code or the Claude app and find the session by name in the session list. Remote Control sessions show a computer icon with a green status dot when online.

The remote session name is taken from your last message, your /rename value, or defaults to “Remote Control session” if there’s no conversation history. If the environment already has an active session, you’ll be asked whether to continue it or start a new one.

If you don’t have the Claude app yet, use the /mobile command inside Claude Code to display a download QR code for:

• iOS –
• Android –

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Enable Remote Control for all sessions

By default, Remote Control only activates when you explicitly run claude remote-control or /remote-control. To enable it automatically for every session:

1. Run /config inside Claude Code.
2. Set Enable Remote Control for all sessions to true.

Set it back to false to disable.

Note: Each Claude Code instance supports one remote session at a time. If you run multiple instances, each gets its own environment and session.

Connection and Security

• Outbound‑only HTTPS – Your local Claude Code session initiates only outbound HTTPS requests; it never opens inbound ports on your machine.
• Remote Control registration – When you start Remote Control, the session registers with the Anthropic API and begins polling for work.
• Message routing – Connections from other devices are routed through the Anthropic API, which streams messages between the web or mobile client and your local session.
• Transport security – All traffic travels over TLS (HTTPS) via the Anthropic API, providing the same level of security as any Claude Code session.
• Short‑lived credentials – The connection uses multiple short‑lived credentials, each scoped to a single purpose and expiring independently.

Remote Control vs. Claude Code on the Web

Both Remote Control and Claude Code on the web use the claude.ai/code interface. The key difference lies in where the session runs:

Quick Decision Guide

• Use Remote Control if you need local context (e.g., custom tools, environment variables, or a running development server).
• Use Claude Code on the Web for quick, cloud‑based sessions that don’t depend on your local environment.

Limitations

• One remote session at a time – each Claude Code session supports a single remote connection.
• Terminal must stay open – Remote Control runs as a local process. Closing the terminal or stopping the claude process ends the session. Run claude remote-control again to start a new one.
• Extended network outage – If your machine is awake but cannot reach the network for more than ~10 minutes, the session times out and the process exits. Run claude remote-control again to start a new session.
• Claude Code on the web – Run sessions in Anthropic‑managed cloud environments instead of on your machine:
• Authentication – Set up /login and manage credentials for claude.ai:
• CLI reference – Full list of flags and commands, including claude remote-control:
• Security – How Remote Control sessions fit into the Claude Code security model:
• Data usage – What data flows through the Anthropic API during local and remote sessions: