[BUG] Windows Store/MSIX: Cowork workspace blocked by PlantDetectedError, still reproducible on Claude Desktop 1.34493.1

### Preflight Checklist

- [x] I have searched [existing issues](https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues?q=is%3Aissue%20state%3Aopen%20label%3Abug) and this hasn't been reported yet
- [x] This is a single bug report (please file separate reports for different bugs)
- [x] I am using the latest version of Claude Code

### What's Wrong?

Claude Cowork cannot start its workspace on the Microsoft Store/MSIX version of Claude Desktop for Windows.

The failure was first captured after Claude Desktop automatically updated from `1.26832.0` to `1.28929.0`, when Cowork began requiring Claude Code VM SDK `2.1.227`.

The problem remained after updating to `1.30096.5`. Claude Desktop has now automatically updated again to:

```text
Claude 1.34493.1 (255293)
2026-08-21T02:05:20.000Z
```

However, Cowork still cannot start its workspace.

The application continuously displays:

```text
Failed to start Claude’s workspace

Download failed. Check your internet connection and try again.
Restarting Claude or your computer sometimes resolves this.
If it persists, you can reinstall the workspace.
```

The captured logs show that the Cowork VM SDK updater (`ClaudeCodeManager-VM`) fails all three installation attempts with `PlantDetectedError`.

The logical target path:

```text
C:\Users\\AppData\Local\Claude-3p\
claude-code-vm\2.1.227
```

canonicalizes to the application’s MSIX-private path:

```text
C:\Users\\AppData\Local\Packages\
Claude_pzs8sxrjxfjjc\LocalCache\Local\Claude-3p\
claude-code-vm\2.1.227
```

The updater expects the original logical path and classifies Windows’ legitimate MSIX AppData virtualization as a possible planted junction.

The app itself logs that it recognizes the Store/MSIX installation:

```text
[updater] MSIX detected:
windowsStore=true
appPathMatch=true
source=windowsStore
```

The regular Windows `win32-x64` Claude Code binary downloads and installs successfully from `downloads.claude.ai`. Only the Cowork VM SDK installation fails, so this does not appear to be a general network, DNS, TLS, proxy, or download failure.

This appears to be a continuing reproduction of #84841, which is closed without a linked fix or pull request.

It is also related to #84865, but the user-visible impact and affected path are different:

* #84865 primarily concerns the regular Claude Code updater under `Roaming\Claude\claude-code`, which can silently leave Code on an older version.
* This report concerns the Cowork VM SDK updater under `Local\Claude-3p\claude-code-vm`, where the failure prevents Cowork from starting at all.

The issue remains reproducible on Claude Desktop `1.34493.1`.

### What Should Happen?

On a recognized Microsoft Store/MSIX installation, Claude Desktop should treat Windows’ package-managed AppData virtualization as legitimate.

The updater should either:

1. resolve and validate the canonical MSIX-private `LocalCache\Local` path; or
2. explicitly allow the expected Windows-managed redirection when `windowsStore=true`, while continuing to reject redirects that escape the application’s own package container.

Cowork should then download, verify, and install the correct VM SDK and create `.verified` through its normal trusted installation process.

If the underlying failure is `PlantDetectedError`, the user-facing message should report a local path-validation or installation failure instead of incorrectly telling the user to check the internet connection.

### Error Messages/Logs

```shell
Current affected Claude Desktop build:

Claude 1.34493.1 (255293)
2026-08-21T02:05:20.000Z

Current user-facing error:

Failed to start Claude’s workspace

Download failed. Check your internet connection and try again.
Restarting Claude or your computer sometimes resolves this.
If it persists, you can reinstall the workspace.

Originally captured failure after the update from 1.26832.0 to 1.28929.0:

[updater] Version changed since last launch:
1.26832.0 → 1.28929.0

[CCD] Initialized with version 2.1.227

[ClaudeCodeManager-VM] Download attempt 1/3 failed
[PlantDetectedError]: Private dir leaf redirects
(junction/substitute-name plant):

C:\Users\AppData\Local\Claude-3p
claude-code-vm\2.1.227

leaf canonicalizes to:

C:\Users\AppData\Local\Packages
Claude_pzs8sxrjxfjjc\LocalCache\Local\Claude-3p
claude-code-vm\2.1.227

expected:

C:\Users\AppData\Local\Claude-3p
claude-code-vm\2.1.227

Attempts 2/3 and 3/3 failed with the same PlantDetectedError.

The application recognized the Store/MSIX installation:

[updater] MSIX detected:
windowsStore=true
appPathMatch=true
source=windowsStore
```

### Steps to Reproduce

1. Install Claude Desktop through Microsoft Store/MSIX on Windows.
2. Start with a previously working Cowork installation using VM SDK `2.1.222`.
3. Allow Claude Desktop to update from `1.26832.0` to `1.28929.0`.
4. Open an existing Cowork Project or attempt to start a new Cowork workspace.
5. Observe three failed `ClaudeCodeManager-VM` attempts while installing VM SDK `2.1.227`.
6. Observe the persistent “Failed to start Claude’s workspace” and “Download failed” messages.
7. Inspect the MSIX-private `claude-code-vm\2.1.227` directory and observe that it exists but remains empty and does not contain `.verified`.
8. Allow Claude Desktop to update to `1.30096.5` and retry Cowork.
9. Observe that the workspace startup failure remains.
10. Allow Claude Desktop to update to `1.34493.1`.
11. Fully quit Claude Desktop, including the system-tray process, and restart it.
12. Retry the same Cowork workspace.
13. Observe that Cowork still cannot start and continues to report the workspace download/startup failure.

### Claude Model

None

### Is this a regression?

Yes, this worked in a previous version

### Last Working Version

Claude Desktop 1.26832.0 (Cowork VM SDK 2.1.222)

### Claude Code Version

N/A — Claude Desktop Cowork 1.34493.1 (255293); originally affected bundled Cowork VM SDK 2.1.227

### Platform

Other

### Operating System

Windows

### Terminal/Shell

Windows Terminal

### Additional Information

### Environment

* OS: Windows 10 Pro, version 22H2, OS build 19045.5608, x64
* Installation source: Microsoft Store
* Package type: MSIX/AppX
* Package family: `Claude_pzs8sxrjxfjjc`
* Previous working Claude Desktop version: `1.26832.0`
* First failing Claude Desktop version observed: `1.28929.0`
* Intermediate failing version: `1.30096.5` (`6e1346`)
* Current failing version: `1.34493.1` (`255293`)
* Current build timestamp shown by the app: `2026-08-21T02:05:20.000Z`
* Previously working Cowork VM SDK: `2.1.222`
* VM SDK required in the originally captured failure: `2.1.227`

The selected API platform is “Other” only because this is a Claude Desktop/Cowork startup failure that occurs before any model or API request is reached.

### Observed filesystem state

After the originally captured failure:

```text
MSIX-private claude-code-vm\2.1.222
- Contains the previously working SDK
- Contains .verified

MSIX-private claude-code-vm\2.1.227
- Directory exists
- Contains no SDK files
- Does not contain .verified
```

The application recreated the empty `2.1.227` directory on subsequent attempts.

I did not manually create any junction, symbolic link, or hard link.

### Troubleshooting already attempted

The following actions did not resolve the problem:

1. Fully quit and restart Claude Desktop.
2. Restart Windows.
3. Wait for the download to retry.
4. Run “Reinstall workspace” once.
5. Allow the application to recreate the empty `2.1.227` directory.
6. Allow Claude Desktop to update to `1.30096.5` and retry Cowork.
7. Allow Claude Desktop to update to `1.34493.1` and retry Cowork.

The workspace reinstall rebuilt or migrated the VM bundle, but the VM SDK installation still failed.

The following unsafe workarounds were deliberately not attempted:

* No manually created `.verified` file.
* No junction or symbolic link between the two AppData paths.
* No copying SDK `2.1.222` into a directory named `2.1.227`.
* No copying the Windows `claude.exe` into the Linux VM SDK directory.
* No modification of files under `WindowsApps`.
* No disabling of Defender, memory integrity, or other Windows security features.

### Why this does not appear to be a general network failure

The regular Windows Claude Code `2.1.227` binary successfully downloaded from the official Anthropic download domain.

Only the Cowork VM SDK installation failed, and the captured exception was the local path-validation `PlantDetectedError`, not an HTTP, DNS, TLS, or timeout error.

The UI message saying “Check your internet connection” is therefore misleading for this failure mode.

### Possibly related broader impact

The same logical-to-MSIX-private path mismatch also appears to affect Project Memory directories under:

```text
Local\Claude-3p\local-agent-mode-sessions\
\\spaces\\memory
```

Existing Memory files are physically present under the MSIX-private `LocalCache\Local` directory, but read/write attempts can fail with messages such as:

```text
failed to resolve path
resolves outside allowed folders
Write → block
Edit → block
```

The Memory problem was observable before the update to `1.28929.0`, while the new VM SDK requirement turned the same class of path problem into a complete workspace startup failure.

This observation is included only as possible supporting evidence of the same MSIX path-handling problem. The single primary bug reported here is the Cowork VM SDK installation failure that prevents the workspace from starting.

### Related issues and documentation

* https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues/84841
* https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues/84865
* https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/msix/desktop/flexible-virtualization

I previously added reproduction information to the related issues, but there has been no maintainer response. The problem remains reproducible on the latest Microsoft Store version available to this device as of 2026-08-22.

I can provide additional sanitized log excerpts if needed. I cannot safely post the complete raw diagnostic archive publicly because it contains local paths, account and session identifiers, proxy information, project names, and other personal data.

Start at the ClaudeCodeManager-VM updater and its PlantDetectedError path checks; compare the logical Local\Claude-3p path with the MSIX-private LocalCache\Local path using the windowsStore detection shown in the logs. Reproduce with the listed MSIX steps and verify that Cowork installs SDK 2.1.227, creates .verified, and reports a path-validation error rather than a network failure.

Escrito por el modelo de indexación a partir del texto del issue.