copilot --resume hangs at Resuming session on cold start in Windows
- Dominant language
- Shell
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Description
### Describe the bug
On Windows, running `copilot --resume` directly from PowerShell starts the Copilot CLI TUI but remains indefinitely at `Resuming session...`. The resumed session never becomes interactive and no visible error is displayed.
The same sessions can be resumed successfully by first starting `copilot` normally and then running `/resume` from inside the active CLI. This appears specific to the cold-start command-line resume path.
### Affected version
```text
GitHub Copilot CLI 1.0.72-0
```
Installed through WinGet.
### Steps to reproduce the behavior
1. Have at least one existing Copilot CLI session available to resume.
2. Exit Copilot CLI completely.
3. From PowerShell, run `copilot --resume`.
4. Select a session if the session picker is displayed.
5. Observe that the TUI remains at `Resuming session...` and never becomes usable.
6. Terminate the hung process.
7. Run `copilot` without the resume flag.
8. From inside the running CLI, use `/resume` and select the same session.
9. Observe that the session resumes successfully.
### Expected behavior
`copilot --resume` should resume the selected session and become interactive, matching the behavior of `/resume` inside an already-running CLI.
### Additional context
- OS: Microsoft Windows 11 Enterprise, version 10.0.26200, build 26200
- CPU architecture: x86_64
- Terminal: Windows Terminal
- Shell: PowerShell 7.4.17
- No visible error is shown. The status line remains at `Resuming session...` indefinitely.
- Possibly related to #3458, which reported a previous Windows cold-start resume failure. That issue exited silently on version 1.0.51, whereas version 1.0.72-0 reaches the TUI and then hangs.
Contributor guide
Research direction
Reproduce the cold-start path from PowerShell with `copilot --resume`, then compare it with starting `copilot` and using `/resume` inside the CLI. Investigate the resume flow that differs between these entry points; done means the selected session becomes interactive instead of remaining at `Resuming session...`.
Written by the indexing model from the issue text.
Assessment
- Tech stack
- powershell
- Domain
- cli, operating-systems
- Issue type
- Bug
- Difficulty
- 4/5
- Estimated time
- 3-5 days
- Activity status
- Quiet
- Clarity
- Mostly clear
- Newbie friendliness
- 52/100