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Continue local sessions from any device with Remote Control

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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://code.claude.com/docs/llms.txt Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

Continue local sessions from any device with Remote Control

Continue a local Claude Code session from your phone, tablet, or any browser using Remote Control. Works with claude.ai/code and the Claude mobile app.

Remote Control is available on all plans. On Team and Enterprise, it is off by default until an admin enables the Remote Control toggle in Claude Code admin settings.

Remote Control connects claude.ai/code or the Claude app for iOS and Android to a Claude Code session running on your machine. Start a task at your desk, then pick it up from your phone on the couch or a browser on another computer.

When you start a Remote Control session on your machine, Claude keeps running locally the entire time, so nothing moves to the cloud. With Remote Control you can:

Unlike Claude Code on the web, which runs on cloud infrastructure, Remote Control sessions run directly on your machine and interact with your local filesystem. The web and mobile interfaces are just a window into that local session.

Remote Control requires Claude Code v2.1.51 or later. Check your version with claude --version.

This page covers setup, how to start and connect to sessions, and how Remote Control compares to Claude Code on the web.

Requirements

Before using Remote Control, confirm that your environment meets these conditions:

Start a Remote Control session

You can start a Remote Control session from the CLI or the VS Code extension. The CLI offers three invocation modes; VS Code uses the /remote-control command.

Navigate to your project directory and run:

```bash theme={null}
claude remote-control
```

The process stays running in your terminal in server mode, waiting for remote connections. It displays a session URL you can use to [connect from another device](#connect-from-another-device), and you can press 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:

| Flag                                            | Description                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    |
| ----------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `--name "My Project"`                           | Set a custom session title visible in the session list at claude.ai/code.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      |
| `--remote-control-session-name-prefix <prefix>` | Prefix for auto-generated session names when no explicit name is set. Defaults to your machine's hostname, producing names like `myhost-graceful-unicorn`. Set `CLAUDE_REMOTE_CONTROL_SESSION_NAME_PREFIX` for the same effect.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                |
| `--spawn <mode>`                                | How the server creates sessions.<br />• `same-dir` (default): all sessions share the current working directory, so they can conflict if editing the same files.<br />• `worktree`: each on-demand session gets its own [git worktree](https://code.claude.com/en/common-workflows#run-parallel-claude-code-sessions-with-git-worktrees). Requires a git repository.<br />• `session`: single-session mode. Serves exactly one session and rejects additional connections. Set at startup only.<br />Press `w` at runtime to toggle between `same-dir` and `worktree`. |
| `--capacity <N>`                                | Maximum number of concurrent sessions. Default is 32. Cannot be used with `--spawn=session`.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   |
| `--verbose`                                     | Show detailed connection and session logs.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     |
| `--sandbox` / `--no-sandbox`                    | Enable or disable [sandboxing](https://code.claude.com/en/sandboxing) for filesystem and network isolation. Off by default.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           |

To start a normal interactive Claude Code session with Remote Control enabled, use the --remote-control flag (or --rc):

```bash theme={null}
claude --remote-control
```

Optionally pass a name for the session:

```bash theme={null}
claude --remote-control "My Project"
```

This gives you a full interactive session in your terminal that you can also control from claude.ai or the Claude app. Unlike `claude remote-control` (server mode), you can type messages locally while the session is also available remotely.

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

```text theme={null}
/remote-control
```

Pass a name as an argument to set a custom session title:

```text theme={null}
/remote-control My Project
```

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](#connect-from-another-device). The `--verbose`, `--sandbox`, and `--no-sandbox` flags are not available with this command.

In the Claude Code VS Code extension, type /remote-control or /rc in the prompt box, or open the command menu with / and select it. Requires Claude Code v2.1.79 or later.

```text theme={null}
/remote-control
```

A banner appears above the prompt box showing connection status. Once connected, click **Open in browser** in the banner to go directly to the session, or find it in the session list at [claude.ai/code](https://claude.ai/code). The session URL is also posted in the conversation.

To disconnect, click the close icon on the banner or run `/remote-control` again.

Unlike the CLI, the VS Code command does not accept a name argument or display a QR code. The session title is derived from your conversation history or first prompt.

Connect from another device

Once a Remote Control session is active, you have a few ways to connect from another device:

The remote session title is chosen in this order:

  1. The name you passed to --name, --remote-control, or /remote-control
  2. The title you set with /rename
  3. The last meaningful message in existing conversation history
  4. An auto-generated name like myhost-graceful-unicorn, where myhost is your machine's hostname or the prefix you set with --remote-control-session-name-prefix

If you didn't set an explicit name, the title updates to reflect your prompt once you send one.

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 or Android.

Enable Remote Control for all sessions

By default, Remote Control only activates when you explicitly run claude remote-control, claude --remote-control, or /remote-control. To enable it automatically for every interactive session, run /config inside Claude Code and set Enable Remote Control for all sessions to true. Set it back to false to disable.

With this setting on, each interactive Claude Code process registers one remote session. If you run multiple instances, each one gets its own environment and session. To run multiple concurrent sessions from a single process, use server mode instead.

Connection and security

Your local Claude Code session makes outbound HTTPS requests only and never opens inbound ports on your machine. When you start Remote Control, it registers with the Anthropic API and polls for work. When you connect from another device, the server routes messages between the web or mobile client and your local session over a streaming connection.

All traffic travels through the Anthropic API over TLS, the same transport security as any Claude Code session. The connection uses multiple short-lived credentials, each scoped to a single purpose and expiring independently.

Remote Control vs Claude Code on the web

Remote Control and Claude Code on the web both use the claude.ai/code interface. The key difference is where the session runs: Remote Control executes on your machine, so your local MCP servers, tools, and project configuration stay available. Claude Code on the web executes in Anthropic-managed cloud infrastructure.

Use Remote Control when you're in the middle of local work and want to keep going from another device. Use Claude Code on the web when you want to kick off a task without any local setup, work on a repo you don't have cloned, or run multiple tasks in parallel.

Mobile push notifications

When Remote Control is active, Claude can send push notifications to your phone.

Claude decides when to push. It typically sends one when a long-running task finishes or when it needs a decision from you to continue. You can also request a push in your prompt, for example notify me when the tests finish. Beyond the on/off toggle below, there is no per-event configuration.

Mobile push notifications require Claude Code v2.1.110 or later.

To set up mobile push notifications:

Download the Claude app for iOS or Android.

Use the same account and organization you use for Claude Code in the terminal.

Accept the notification permission prompt from the operating system.

In your terminal, run /config and enable Push when Claude decides.

If notifications don't arrive:

Limitations

Troubleshooting

"Remote Control requires a claude.ai subscription"

You're not authenticated with a claude.ai account. Run claude auth login and choose the claude.ai option. If ANTHROPIC_API_KEY is set in your environment, unset it first.

"Remote Control requires a full-scope login token"

You're authenticated with a long-lived token from claude setup-token or the CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN environment variable. These tokens are limited to inference-only and cannot establish Remote Control sessions. Run claude auth login to authenticate with a full-scope session token instead.

"Unable to determine your organization for Remote Control eligibility"

Your cached account information is stale or incomplete. Run claude auth login to refresh it.

"Remote Control is not yet enabled for your account"

The eligibility check can fail with certain environment variables present:

If none of these are set, run /logout then /login to refresh.

"Remote Control is disabled by your organization's policy"

This error has three distinct causes. Run /status first to see which login method and subscription you're using.

"Remote credentials fetch failed"

Claude Code could not obtain a short-lived credential from the Anthropic API to establish the connection. Re-run with --verbose to see the full error:

bash theme={null} claude remote-control --verbose

Common causes:

Choose the right approach

Claude Code offers several ways to work when you're not at your terminal. They differ in what triggers the work, where Claude runs, and how much you need to set up.

Trigger Claude runs on Setup Best for
Dispatch Message a task from the Claude mobile app Your machine (Desktop) Pair the mobile app with Desktop Delegating work while you're away, minimal setup
Remote Control Drive a running session from claude.ai/code or the Claude mobile app Your machine (CLI or VS Code) Run claude remote-control Steering in-progress work from another device
Channels Push events from a chat app like Telegram or Discord, or your own server Your machine (CLI) Install a channel plugin or build your own Reacting to external events like CI failures or chat messages
Slack Mention @Claude in a team channel Anthropic cloud Install the Slack app with Claude Code on the web enabled PRs and reviews from team chat
Scheduled tasks Set a schedule CLI, Desktop, or cloud Pick a frequency Recurring automation like daily reviews