Claude Desktop App: AGENTS.md in Code, Wider Cowork Folder Access, and macOS 13 Required
The Claude desktop app's September and early October 2026 releases added AGENTS.md support in the Code tab, Opus 5.5 and Sonnet 5.5, attaching your home folder or whole drives to Cowork, built-in browser controls, file comments and Office previews in Code, Google Docs creation from Chat — and moved to Electron 44, which requires macOS 13 or later.
The Claude desktop app — home of Chat, Cowork and the Code tab — shipped a long list of releases in September and early October 2026. These are the changes most people will notice. (Claude Code vs Claude Desktop)
In the Code tab
- AGENTS.md support (21 September). If your repository has an
AGENTS.mdinstruction file — the cross-tool convention used by several coding agents — Claude Code in the desktop app now reads it. (AGENTS.md vs CLAUDE.md) - Opus 5.5 (21 September) and Sonnet 5.5 (27 September) support. (Claude Opus 5.5 Released)
- File comments in the Files pane and Office document previews (1 October).
- Keep-awake while Claude works, so your Mac or PC doesn't sleep mid-task (4 September).
- Queued messages with a "Send now" option (10 September).
- OpenSSH used by default for SSH connections on macOS and Linux (15 September).
In Cowork
- Attach your home folder, Documents, AppData or whole drives to a task, with protected system locations excluded (4 September). Wider access is convenient — but connect the smallest folder that works. (What Is Claude Cowork?)
- Built-in browser controls (17 September).
- Scheduled tasks controls and settings for admins.
- A Windows update on 8 September blocked Cowork's file access for a few days; it was resolved by a Microsoft update on 14 September with no app update needed.
In Chat
- Create Google Docs, Sheets and Slides directly from Chat (29 September).
- A unified Claude experience in beta (8 October).
Requirements change: macOS 13+
The 8 September release moved the app to Electron 44, which requires macOS 13 (Ventura) or later. Older Macs stay on the last supported version. The same release included breaking configuration changes for managed deployments — notably, unreadable managed settings now block Claude Code from starting. IT admins should review managed settings files.
Also for admins
New managed-settings keys arrived throughout the month, including controls for plugin MCP servers (allowedPluginMcpServers, deniedPluginMcpServers), scheduled tasks, keep-awake, egress proxies and Microsoft sign-in defaults. (Claude Code Settings Explained)
Source: Claude desktop changelog
EasySpawn works with the Claude desktop app and the CLI alike: point either at a persistent server where your projects, database and Claude Code keep running. See how it works or join the waitlist.
Related: Claude Code vs Cowork · Claude Code: Web, Desktop or Terminal? · How to Write a CLAUDE.md · Claude Code October 2026 Updates
Keep reading
Replit Can Now Be Driven From Desktop MCP Clients, and Agent Gets Custom API Connectors
In September 2026 Replit made its platform usable from any compatible desktop MCP client — create, find, inspect, update and publish apps from your AI tool of choice (11 September) — and launched custom API connectors in beta for Pro and Enterprise teams (18 September). Plus newer models in Agent. What it enables and what to watch.
OpenAI DevDay 2026: Codex Gets Persistent Cloud Environments, Voice and Security Scanning
At DevDay on 29 September 2026, OpenAI expanded Codex with reusable, persistent cloud environments reachable from any device, a refreshed CLI with voice control and an /agents view, a new code review experience, and Codex Security Cloud for scanning repositories. What was announced and what it signals about where coding agents run.