Claude Code on the web: how cloud sessions work with GitHub and when to use them

Claude Code on the web is Claude Code running in a browser tab at claude.ai/code, with the actual work happening on a cloud machine instead of your computer. You pick a GitHub repository, describe a task, and Claude clones the repository into an isolated virtual machine, makes the changes, and pushes a branch for you to review. You can close your laptop while it works and check the result later from any device.

Use it for well-defined website tasks that don't need much steering, such as fixing a list of broken links or updating copy across a set of templates, where you want the result as a pull request a person can review. Don't use it for work that depends on files, tools or settings that live only on your computer, or for sites whose code isn't in a GitHub repository yet. For those, a local session in the terminal, desktop app or editor is the better fit. Everything below reflects Anthropic's documentation as of October 2026.

What a cloud session is

Anthropic's cloud sessions documentation defines one as "a Claude Code session that runs on cloud infrastructure instead of on your machine." The name "Claude Code on the web" now refers only to the browser surface at claude.ai/code. The same kind of session can also be started from:

• the Code tab in the Claude mobile app,
• the desktop app, by selecting Cloud instead of Local,
• the terminal, with claude --cloud followed by a task description,
• a routine, which runs a saved prompt on a schedule or trigger. Routines are covered in our guide to Claude Code routines and scheduled tasks.

It runs the same engine as every other surface. If you are still choosing, see our comparison of the terminal, desktop, web and IDE versions.

How a task runs, step by step

Anthropic's quickstart describes what happens when you submit a task in an Anthropic-hosted environment:

1. Clone and prepare. Your repository is cloned to an Anthropic-managed virtual machine, and your setup script runs if you configured one.
2. Configure the network. Internet access is set by your environment's access level.
3. Work. Claude reads the code, makes changes and runs commands, in the permission mode you picked.
4. Push the branch. When Claude reaches a stopping point, it pushes its branch to GitHub. You review the diff, leave comments, create a pull request, or send another message.

The session doesn't end when the branch is pushed. A count such as +42 -18 opens the diff, where you can comment on specific lines and send those comments to Claude.

Three permission modes are offered in cloud sessions: Accept edits, Plan and Auto. Plan mode has Claude propose an approach and wait for your approval before it edits files. Bypass permissions is not available in cloud sessions.

What you need before your first session

If your site isn't in git yet, start there. Our git basics for Claude Code guide explains repositories, branches and pull requests in plain terms.

Connecting GitHub: the app or /web-setup

Cloud sessions need GitHub access to clone code and push branches. There are two ways to grant it.

• The Claude GitHub App. You authorize it during browser onboarding. Sessions can then reach any public repository, and private repositories only where the app is installed. On a GitHub organization, an organization owner may need to approve the install. The app is also required for auto-fix on pull requests.
• /web-setup. If you already use GitHub's command-line tool, gh, running /web-setup in a Claude Code terminal session sends your gh token to your Claude account. Sessions you start can then reach any repository that token can reach. On Team and Enterprise this command is hidden until an Owner turns on Quick setup.

For a business site, the GitHub App is usually cleaner: you install it on exactly the repositories Claude should touch.

Anthropic states that in Anthropic-hosted environments, "your GitHub credentials stay encrypted on Anthropic's servers and never enter a session's VM." GitHub operations go through a proxy that attaches the credential on the server side. To disconnect, remove GitHub at claude.ai/customize/connectors. To invalidate a gh token itself, revoke it on GitHub.

Cloud environments: network access and setup scripts

Every cloud session runs in a cloud environment, which Anthropic describes as "the saved configuration that controls network access, environment variables, and setup scripts." The Default environment uses Trusted network access: sessions can reach common package registries and other allowlisted domains, and nothing else.

A task that calls a domain outside the allowlist, such as your live site or a third-party API, fails until you change the environment's network access. Widen it only as far as the task needs.

A setup script installs what your project needs before Claude starts, for example your build tools. Anthropic notes the script is cached only when it finishes in roughly five minutes.

Keep secrets out of the repository and the prompt. Environment variables are visible to anyone who uses the environment, so Anthropic recommends storing API keys as network secrets, which sessions use without seeing the key. Our guide to keeping API keys away from Claude Code covers the wider rules.

Moving work between your terminal and the cloud

If someone on your team uses the terminal, a few commands connect the two worlds:

• claude --cloud "task" starts a new cloud session for the current repository. Anthropic's docs warn that it clones your GitHub remote "at your current branch, not your local checkout, so push first if you have local commits."
• claude --teleport (or /teleport inside a session) pulls a cloud session, its branch and its conversation into your local terminal. Your working folder must have no uncommitted changes.
• claude -p "message" --cloud with a session ID queues a follow-up message into a running cloud session and exits.

From the terminal, the handoff is one-way: you can pull a cloud session down, but you can't push an existing terminal session up. The desktop app can send a local session to the cloud from its Open in menu.

For larger jobs, Anthropic suggests planning locally and executing in the cloud: agree the approach in plan mode on your machine, commit the plan to the repository, then start a cloud session to carry it out.

Reviewing, sharing and auto-fixing pull requests

Review works as it does for any developer: open the diff, comment, ask for changes, then create a pull request. If your site deploys from GitHub to a host like Vercel, the host can usually build a preview of that branch. Our guide to deploying GitHub projects to Vercel covers that side. Check the preview in a browser, not just the diff.

If you aren't a developer, our guide to reviewing a diff when you aren't a developer walks through what to look for.

Sharing. On Team and Enterprise, a session can be Private or visible to your Team. On Pro and Max, the options are Private or Public, and Public means visible to any user logged into claude.ai. Anthropic warns that "Sessions may contain code and credentials from private GitHub repositories." Check before you share.

Auto-fix. With the Claude GitHub App installed, Claude can watch a pull request and respond to failed checks and review comments, pushing a fix when one is clear. For ambiguous comments it asks first. It can't react to merge conflicts on its own, because GitHub sends no event when the base branch moves. Treat auto-fix pushes as new changes that still need review before merge. Claude can also reply to pull request comments on your behalf, so Anthropic advises reviewing any automation that a comment can trigger, such as a deploy, before turning auto-fix on. The wider safety setup for a live site is in is Claude Code safe for production websites.

Limits and common surprises

• Shared usage. Cloud sessions share rate limits with all your other Claude and Claude Code usage. Running several tasks in parallel uses limits faster.
• No local setup. Cloud sessions start from a fresh clone and don't read your personal settings folder. Personal skills don't load, and no plugins load, including ones your repository's settings turn on. Commit project instructions, such as CLAUDE.md, and project skills to the repository.
• Some commands are missing. Commands that only run in the terminal interface, such as /plugin and /resume, aren't available, and /clear doesn't work. Start a new session instead.
• Idle sessions expire. After a period of inactivity the virtual machine is reclaimed. Reopening the session restores the conversation, but not background work that was still running.
• IP allowlisting. If your organization restricts Claude by IP allowlist, Anthropic-hosted cloud sessions fail with an authentication error.

When to use the web, and when not to

A middle path exists. Remote Control lets you steer a session running on your own computer from claude.ai/code or your phone. Your files stay on your machine, but your computer has to stay on.

One lesson from our own work applies to parallel cloud sessions. When we rebuilt eseospace.com, one session regenerated pages another had just edited, and the edits disappeared. Give parallel sessions tasks that touch different files, and check the git history for changes you didn't make before anything deploys.

Conclusion

Claude Code on the web is the hand-off surface: describe a contained task, let it run on a cloud machine, and come back to a branch you can review. It works best when your site is on GitHub, the task is clear, and a person reviews the pull request and the preview before merging. It is the wrong tool for work that depends on your computer's files or tools, or for organizations whose data rules turn cloud sessions off. If you want a team set up with GitHub access, environments and a review process that fits your site, our Claude Code development team can help. More guides are in our Claude Code Guide.

Frequently asked questions