Claude Code Manager

A tiny Windows launcher for the Claude Code CLI. Pick a project folder, pick a shell, hit launch — a new console opens in that directory with claude already running.

Python stdlib only (tkinter, subprocess, json, pathlib). No dependencies at runtime, no installer, no background service.

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Features

• Folder switcher — remembers the last project across restarts.
• New project — pick a parent directory, name the folder, it's created and selected.
• Shell toggle — PowerShell (default, blue) or CMD (grey), one click.
• Dark theme — VS Code #1E1E1E surfaces with Claude orange #D97757 accents.
• Keyboard driven — Enter launch, Ctrl+T toggle shell, Esc close.
• DPI aware — sharp text on scaled displays.

Requirements

• Windows 10 or 11
• Python 3.11+ (only to run from source or build; the packaged exe bundles its own)
• claude on PATH — see the Claude Code install docs

Run from source

git clone <repo-url> "Claude Manager"
cd "Claude Manager"
python main.py

Build the executable

pip install pyinstaller
.\build.ps1

build.ps1 cleans build/ and dist/, runs the unit tests and the UI smoke test, builds via ClaudeCodeManager.spec (onefile, windowed, icon + version resource), and writes dist\SHA256SUMS.txt. Any failing step aborts the build.

Output: dist\ClaudeCodeManager.exe

The build is unsigned, so first launch shows the SmartScreen "unknown publisher" prompt. Signing is a one-line uncomment in build.ps1 once a certificate is available. See SECURITY.md.

Usage

1. + New Project or 📁 Change Directory to select a working directory.
2. Toggle PS / CMD for the shell you want.
3. ⚡ Launch Claude Code — the button is disabled until a valid directory is selected.

Key	Action
Enter	Launch
Ctrl+T	Toggle PowerShell / CMD
Esc	Close

Configuration

State lives in %APPDATA%\ClaudeCodeManager\config.json:

{
  "current_dir": "C:\\Project\\MyApp",
  "terminal": "powershell"
}

Hand-edits are type-checked on load; unknown or malformed values fall back to defaults rather than reaching the launcher. An unwritable config degrades to non-persistence instead of erroring.

Project layout

main.py                  entry point (DPI awareness, Tk root)
src/app_state.py         config load/save, launch-readiness
src/launcher.py          shell argv construction + spawn
src/ui.py                Tkinter window, theme, folder-name validation
src/win_theme.py         DPI awareness, dark title bar
tests/                   unit tests, UI smoke test, exe verification
tools/make_icon.py       generates assets/icon.ico
build.ps1                test + build + hash pipeline
ClaudeCodeManager.spec   PyInstaller config

Tests

python tests\run_tests.py     # unit tests (stdlib runner, no pytest needed)
python tests\smoke_ui.py      # builds and tears down the window headlessly
.\tests\verify_exe.ps1        # post-build checks on dist\

Covers config persistence and corruption handling, PowerShell/CMD command construction, absolute System32 interpreter resolution, apostrophe escaping in paths, and folder-name validation.

Security

SECURITY.md documents the full posture: what the app touches, the unsigned-binary gap, fixed findings (interpreter hijack via unqualified argv[0], PowerShell quote escape), and one accepted residual risk (CMD resolves claude from the project directory first — PowerShell mode is unaffected and is the default).

Report issues to the repository owner directly.

Contributing

Keep it dependency-free and keep the diff small. Before opening a PR:

1. python tests\run_tests.py and python tests\smoke_ui.py pass.
2. New non-trivial logic ships with a test in tests/.
3. Colors come from the COLOR_* tokens in src/ui.py, not literals.
4. Anything touching path handling or process spawning gets a note in SECURITY.md.

By submitting a contribution you agree it is licensed under the MIT License.

License

MIT © 2026 Claude Code Manager contributors.

Bundled third-party components in the packaged executable keep their own licenses: CPython (PSF), Tcl/Tk (BSD-style), and the PyInstaller bootloader (GPL-2.0 with a linking exception permitting proprietary and permissively licensed applications).