claude-code capabilities

Agent view lets you dispatch and monitor many Claude Code sessions in parallel from a single screen. Each background session is a full Claude Code conversation that keeps running without a terminal attached; you can come back, reply, and continue at any time. Research preview as of late 2025/early 2026.

Claude Code is built on top of the Claude Agent SDK. Anthropic exposes the same SDK (TypeScript and Python references) so developers can build custom agentic apps and workflows that share Claude Code's loop (tool use, sub-agents, MCP, skills, hooks). The GitHub Action is itself a thin wrapper around the SDK.

Beyond the terminal/IDE, Claude Code is available as a web surface and on iOS as research previews. The web surface connects to your GitHub repos and runs sessions on Anthropic-managed cloud infrastructure; the iOS app brings the same agent to mobile. Web sessions can be resumed locally from the VS Code extension (Remote tab in Session history).

File editing is the agent's core loop: dedicated Read, Write, and Edit tools perform exact string replacements across single or multiple files; changes are previewed as inline diffs and require approval (or auto-accept) under the active permission mode. Plan mode lets you review and tweak the agent's plan before any code is touched. Checkpoints let you rewind code state to any prior message.

Official GitHub Action lets Claude Code respond to `@claude` mentions in issues and PRs, run on schedules, or be invoked as automation steps. It can implement features, create PRs, fix bugs, and answer questions, all following the repo's CLAUDE.md.

Hooks are user-defined shell commands that run deterministically at specific points in Claude Code's lifecycle (e.g., `PreToolUse`, `PostToolUse`, session start/stop), letting you enforce policy, log activity, or block tool calls regardless of what the model decides.

N/A. Claude Code is a terminal-first agentic CLI, not an inline code-completion engine. It does not provide AI ghost-text/tab completions as you type in an editor; instead, code changes flow through the agent's Read/Write/Edit tools and a diff-review surface. The CLI itself offers shell-style tab completion for command names and file paths, and the VS Code extension explicitly lists 'Tab completion' as a CLI-only feature that is NOT available in the graphical panel.

Claude Code's primary surface is an interactive terminal REPL launched with `claude`. You converse in natural language; the agent plans, reads files, edits them, runs shell commands, and reports back. Slash commands modify session state (clear, compact, model switch, plan mode, etc.) and `@`-mentions inject file contents.

Claude Code is available as a JetBrains plugin (beta) covering IntelliJ IDEA, PyCharm, Android Studio, WebStorm, PhpStorm, and GoLand. Brings IDE diff viewer, selection/active-tab context sharing, and Cmd/Ctrl+Esc launch.

Claude Code is an MCP host. Users add Model Context Protocol servers to connect external tools, databases, and APIs (e.g., GitHub, Slack, Google Drive, Asana). MCP servers are managed via CLI and the in-app `/mcp` dialog. The VS Code extension itself also runs a small built-in `ide` MCP server that the CLI connects to for native diff viewing, selection sharing, and Jupyter cell execution.

Claude Code lets users switch between Anthropic's frontier models per session: Sonnet (default, fast & capable, for the bulk of coding), Opus (deepest reasoning, for hard debugging / large refactors / architecture), Haiku (fastest/cheapest, for mechanical work). Mid-session switching preserves the conversation. A bundled `opusplan` mode plans with Opus and executes with Sonnet.

Claude Code is included in every paid consumer Claude plan (Pro, Max 5x, Max 20x), in Team and Enterprise, and is also accessible via direct API pay-as-you-go billing using an Anthropic Console key. Usage limits are shared between web Claude and Claude Code on the same subscription.

Plugins package slash commands, sub-agents, skills, MCP servers, and hooks into a single installable unit, distributed through plugin marketplaces (Git repos, URLs, or local paths). Installed plugins work across the terminal and the VS Code extension.

Claude Code automatically loads CLAUDE.md memory files as persistent project/user context on every turn, supports @-file mentions to inject file contents, and uses agentic Glob/Grep/Read tools to explore a codebase on demand. Memory layering: enterprise > project > user > local.

Skills are organized folders containing a SKILL.md (YAML frontmatter + Markdown instructions, optional scripts and reference files). Claude loads them automatically when relevant, or the user invokes them with `/skill-name`. Custom commands have been merged into skills: files in `.claude/commands/*.md` still work, but `.claude/skills/<name>/SKILL.md` is the new recommended form. Follows the Agent Skills open standard (agentskills.io).

Sub-agents are specialized AI workers with their own isolated context window, system prompt, tool allowlist, model, and permissions. The orchestrator delegates side tasks (exploration, research, code review) to a sub-agent, which returns only a summary, preserving the main conversation's context.

Claude Code IS a terminal application. It can run arbitrary shell commands through its built-in Bash tool inside the user's working directory, subject to the active permission mode and per-command allow/deny rules. Sandboxing controls and `bypassPermissions` mode let advanced users run Claude with reduced friction in isolated environments.

Native VS Code extension provides a graphical Claude Code panel with inline diffs, plan-mode review, @-mentions with line ranges, session history, multiple parallel conversations in tabs/windows, checkpoints (rewind code), and a GUI plugin/marketplace manager. Same conversation history is shared with the CLI via `claude --resume`. Also installs on Cursor, Windsurf, and Kiro through Open VSX.