CLAUDE_CODE_PROCESS_WRAPPER

Updated October 13, 2026 by Alex Sorokoletov

CLAUDE_CODE_PROCESS_WRAPPER is a Claude Code environment variable: Names an executable that Claude Code must launch itself through. When the CLI spawns a copy of itself — the background daemon, agent-view workers, subagents — it no longer runs the claude binary directly; it runs the wrapper first, and the wrapper runs claude. Added between v2.1.143 and v2.1.212 and still present in v2.1.294. It is listed in the official reference.

Status	Present in v2.1.294
Added	Added between v2.1.143 and v2.1.212
Category	Other
Official docs	Listed

How to set it

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

export CLAUDE_CODE_PROCESS_WRAPPER=<value>
claude

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

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

Release notes that mention it

Related variables

CLAUDE_CODE_INSTALLED_VIA_NPM_WRAPPER
ANTHROPIC_BETAS: Comma-separated beta feature headers.
ANTHROPIC_CUSTOM_HEADERS: Custom HTTP headers (newline-separated Key: Value).
ANTHROPIC_FEDERATION_RULE_ID
ANTHROPIC_ORGANIZATION_ID
ANTHROPIC_WORKSPACE_ID
BETA_TRACING_ENDPOINT: Custom endpoint for beta tracing.
CLAUDE_AFK_COUNTDOWN_MS

Frequently asked questions

What does CLAUDE_CODE_PROCESS_WRAPPER do?

Names an executable that Claude Code must launch itself through. When the CLI spawns a copy of itself — the background daemon, agent-view workers, subagents — it no longer runs the claude binary directly; it runs the wrapper first, and the wrapper runs claude.

Which Claude Code version has CLAUDE_CODE_PROCESS_WRAPPER?

Added between v2.1.143 and v2.1.212 and still present in v2.1.294.

How do I set CLAUDE_CODE_PROCESS_WRAPPER?

Export it before starting Claude Code (export CLAUDE_CODE_PROCESS_WRAPPER=value), or add it to the "env" object in ~/.claude/settings.json to apply it to every session.

All variables, searchable: Claude Code environment variables.