CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_MCP_TASKS

Updated November 2, 2026 by Alex Sorokoletov

CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_MCP_TASKS is a Claude Code environment variable: When set to any value, disables the MCP tasks feature; when unset, availability is decided by a server-side setting together with other session conditions. Added between v2.1.315 and v2.1.317 and still present in v2.1.317. It is not in the official reference.

How to set it

For one session, export it in the shell that starts Claude Code:

export CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_MCP_TASKS=<value>
claude

To apply it to every session, add it to the env object of a settings file:

// ~/.claude/settings.json
{
  "env": {
    "CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_MCP_TASKS": "<value>"
  }
}

Release notes that mention it

• Claude Code Version Tracker: Undocumented Env Vars, Feature Gates & Models
• claude-code-env-vars-v2-1-317

Related variables

• CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_MCP_TASK_BACKGROUND: Turns off automatic backgrounding of MCP tool tasks.
• CLAUDE_CODE_ARTIFACT_MCP: Enables MCP runtime-capability support for artifacts; on by default.
• CLAUDE_CODE_CHROME_LATE_MCP_SERVER: When true, loads the alternate late Claude-in-Chrome MCP server module and skips installing the Chrome native host early.
• CLAUDE_CODE_CHROME_MCP_ORG_DENIED: When set, forces Claude-in-Chrome to be treated as denied by organization policy, with the cause reported as parent_org_policy.
• CLAUDE_CODE_ENABLE_REFRESH_MCP_TOOLS: Enables an on-demand MCP-tool refresh capability, grouped with CLAUDE_CODE_ENABLE_TASKS and CLAUDE_CODE_ENABLE_REMOTE_RECAP.
• CLAUDE_CODE_HOST_GUARDS_ARTIFACTS_MCP: On a desktop host, the artifacts MCP entry is skipped unless this is set to true, which keeps that entry enabled.
• CLAUDE_CODE_MAX_MCP_DESCRIPTION_LENGTH
• CLAUDE_CODE_MCP_ALLOWLIST_ENV: Specifies an allowlist of environment variables that MCP servers can access.

Frequently asked questions

All variables, searchable: Claude Code environment variables.