Feature Request: Support Claude Desktop / Cowork sessions on Windows

[seb937]

Problem

CodeBurn currently supports Claude Desktop sessions on macOS (~/Library/Application Support/Claude/local-agent-mode-sessions/), but not on Windows, where the equivalent path is:

%APPDATA%\Claude\local-agent-mode-sessions\

Running npx codeburn on a Windows machine with active Cowork/Claude Desktop sessions shows zero usage — the provider doesn't scan the Windows data directory.

Expected Behavior

CodeBurn should detect and parse Claude Desktop / Cowork session data on Windows, just as it does on macOS.

Suggested Implementation

In the Claude Desktop provider, add the Windows path alongside the existing macOS one:

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/local-agent-mode-sessions/
• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\local-agent-mode-sessions\
• Linux (if applicable): ~/.config/Claude/local-agent-mode-sessions/

This is similar to how the Cursor provider already handles cross-platform paths.

Environment

• OS: Windows 11
• Node.js: 20+
• CodeBurn: latest (via npx codeburn)
• Claude Desktop: active Cowork sessions present at %APPDATA%\Claude\local-agent-mode-sessions\

Workaround Attempted

Setting CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR to %APPDATA%\Claude — no effect, as the provider looks for projects/ subfolder structure which doesn't match Cowork's local-agent-mode-sessions/ layout.

[ozymandiashh]

Thanks for the detailed report, @seb937. You were right about the Windows Claude Desktop / Cowork path.

I opened #615 with a fix.

What was wrong:

• CodeBurn was discovering Claude Desktop sessions on macOS, but on Windows it was approximating the roaming profile with homedir()/AppData/Roaming.
• On Windows, the canonical location is %APPDATA%, and that can be redirected or customized.
• Setting CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR=%APPDATA%\Claude does not help for Cowork sessions because that code path expects the standard Claude CLI projects/ layout, while Cowork uses local-agent-mode-sessions.

What #615 changes:

• Windows now uses %APPDATA%\Claude\local-agent-mode-sessions first.
• CODEBURN_DESKTOP_SESSIONS_DIR still takes priority as an explicit override.
• If APPDATA is missing or blank, CodeBurn falls back to the previous homedir()/AppData/Roaming path.
• macOS and Linux behavior are unchanged.
• Added regression tests for APPDATA discovery, fallback behavior, and override precedence.

Validation:

npm test -- --run tests/providers/claude-config-dirs.test.ts tests/parser-claude-cwd.test.ts
npm run build

Both pass locally, and the PR checks are green. I will keep this issue open until #615 is merged, then it should close via the Fixes #611 link in the PR body.

[seb937]

Glad I could help! I'll test as soon as its merged.
Thanks for the fix !

[iamtoruk]

Partial fix shipped in #615: the Windows Desktop sessions root now resolves from %APPDATA% (with the old homedir fallback), which covers redirected roaming profiles.

Keeping this open because Microsoft Store (MSIX) installs of Claude Desktop virtualize %APPDATA% writes into AppData\Local\Packages<Claude package>\LocalCache\Roaming, so an unpackaged process like codeburn still cannot see those sessions through either path. Supporting that needs the resolver to return multiple candidate dirs and probe the Packages location. If you are on a Store install, that is why your usage may still show zero after #615.

[seb937]

Hey, just reporting on my tests following the update, as it was indeed not working due to the Microsoft store.
TLDR: The junction worked to compute and codeburn worked, but it broke Claude document access in the process, so I rolled it back.

MSIX install: junction workaround attempted (and rolled back)

Confirmed that on a Microsoft Store (MSIX) install of Claude Desktop on Windows 11, session data lives at:

%LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages\Claude_pzs8sxrjxfjjc\LocalCache\Roaming\Claude\local-agent-mode-sessions\

You can find your package folder with:

ls "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Packages" | Where-Object { $_.Name -like "*Claude*" }

What I tried

Created a directory junction from the expected path to the MSIX-virtualized path:

mkdir "$env:APPDATA\Claude" -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
cmd /c mklink /J "$env:APPDATA\Claude\local-agent-mode-sessions" "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Packages\Claude_pzs8sxrjxfjjc\LocalCache\Roaming\Claude\local-agent-mode-sessions"

Result: codeburn picked up all Cowork sessions immediately — dashboard worked perfectly.

Why I rolled it back

Creating a real %APPDATA%\Claude directory with a junction inside it disrupted Cowork's own file access within the active session. Cowork's internal tools (file read/write/edit) lost access to the session's working directory, likely because the junction interferes with MSIX's virtual filesystem overlay on that path. Removing the junction and the %APPDATA%\Claude directory restored normal Cowork behavior.

Conclusion

The data is there and the format is compatible — codeburn parses it fine once it can see it. But a filesystem junction is not a safe workaround on MSIX installs. The fix needs to come from codeburn's resolver probing %LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages\<Claude package>\LocalCache\Roaming\Claude\local-agent-mode-sessions\ directly.

[ozymandiashh]

Fix is up: #800

@seb937 thank you for the MSIX investigation, it pinpointed the fix. The junction result (codeburn works, Cowork breaks) confirmed the resolver itself had to probe the virtualized path, so that is what the PR does:

• The desktop sessions resolver now returns multiple candidates: the classic %APPDATA%\Claude\local-agent-mode-sessions plus any %LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages\<pkg>\LocalCache\Roaming\Claude\local-agent-mode-sessions where <pkg> matches Claude_* or *.Claude_*. The package hash is discovered at runtime, never hardcoded.
• No junction needed, nothing is written to %APPDATA%, so Cowork's own file access is untouched.
• Results are memoized, so the Packages directory is not rescanned per session file.

If you get a chance to run the branch (fix/611-desktop-msix-sessions) on your Windows 11 MSIX install, that would be the real-world confirmation: npx codeburn should show your Cowork sessions with no workaround.

[seb937]

Confirmed working on Windows 11 MSIX install (Claude_pzs8sxrjxfjjc) with branch fix/611-desktop-msix-sessions.

Couldn't use npx with the branch as corporate npm blocks git fetches (EALLOWGIT). So I downloaded the branch zip, built locally, and ran node dist/cli.js. All Cowork sessions picked up immediately: full dashboard with project/model/activity breakdowns. No junction needed, Cowork file access unaffected.

Thanks!

[ozymandiashh]

Thanks for taking the time to test it on a real MSIX install, @seb937 — that's exactly the confirmation the fix needed. Good to know the zip + local build route works around the corporate EALLOWGIT restriction too. Once #800 is reviewed and merged this will close automatically.