Claude Code Handoff Map

Claude Code can run a session (one conversation with Claude plus the coding work it does) on your own computer or on a machine in Anthropic's cloud. My default is a local session with Remote Control. A local session has everything on my computer in reach, including personal settings, .env files and local MCP servers, and Remote Control lets me keep working from my phone or a browser while I'm away from my computer. The work stays on my machine, so the computer has to stay on.

Read the map top to bottom: your computer, how work moves, the cloud, then the phone and browser that look in. Boxes drawn inside other boxes live inside them. Tap any box to open its explanation in the details pane on the right.

Numbered markers trace one task followed end to end: plan at your desk, hand off, walk away, check in from your phone, review, bring it back.

Your computer

Stops when it's off

Apps that run a session here

What runs in them

Reads files that exist only on this machine

Lets your phone reach this computer (it must stay on)

You act here: push or fetch your branch, and hand a session up or down with the moves below

Between them

Only used when work changes places

Ways to hand off. Each creates a new session or copy; the original stays where it was.

Where the code waits in transit. Local sessions don't need it; cloud sessions start from it.

Committed config rides along with the code

The cloud session acts here on its own: it copies the repo from GitHub when it starts and pushes its branch back, signed in through

Anthropic cloud

Keeps running when your computer is off

Inside every cloud session

You look in from anywhere

Your phone or any browser

Windows only: no code runs here

Cloud sessions: open directly, computer on or off.
Sessions on your computer: only through , while the computer is on.

Setup guide and rules for the whole map

Quick answers

If my computer is off, which options still work?

Only cloud sessions (and Projects, which run cloud sessions for you). Sessions on your computer, Remote Control, and Dispatch all need the computer on and the app running. A sleeping laptop pauses them; they reconnect when it wakes.

If my computer can stay on, do I need cloud sessions at all?

Not for the basics. Both run the same Claude Code, so a local session plus Remote Control lets you work from your phone. Local is often the better fit: it has your full setup (.env files, local tools, MCP servers) and doesn't need GitHub. Results can differ, though. A cloud session only has what's committed plus its environment's settings, so tests needing a missing tool or secret may fail there. The cloud still helps when you want many tasks in parallel on separate machines, to work on a repo you haven't cloned, to have Claude watch a pull request, or to keep heavy work off your laptop.

Do I need VS Code, or can I work from the Claude apps directly?

You don't need VS Code. The Desktop app has its own diff view, terminal, and file editor. The browser and the phone app need nothing installed. VS Code is just one more optional place to run a local session.

Why wouldn't a cloud session see my local .env file or personal settings?

A cloud session runs on a different machine that starts from a fresh copy of your repository on GitHub. Files you never commit, like .env, and settings in your home folder (~/.claude) never leave your computer. Commit shared config to the repo, and put values in the cloud environment instead.

What exactly do I do at the moment I want to walk away?

If the computer will be off: commit and push, then either run claude --cloud "…" from the terminal or use the Desktop app's menu to send the session to the web. If the computer stays on: type /remote-control in the session you're in and keep the machine awake.

What happens if I leave a session waiting for days?

A cloud session's machine pauses after a few minutes idle and can later be deleted by Anthropic. Reopening it restores the conversation on a fresh machine, but running work and uncommitted changes can be lost, so have Claude push before you leave. A local session just waits as long as its app stays open.

Can I run two projects in parallel, and how?

Yes. Start a separate cloud session for each (each gets its own machine and branch), or open several Desktop sessions with the worktree option. Projects (beta, Pro and Max) can start and track parallel cloud sessions for you. Each one draws on your plan usage.