# Claude Code — official CLI with Pro OAuth (Rob's setup)

Captured 2026-07-19 when Rob upgraded from free-claude-code to a paid Claude Pro subscription.

## What changed

Rob was using `fcc-server` (free-claude-code proxy → OpenRouter free tier) to run Claude-shaped traffic because he had no paid Claude account. As of 2026-07-19 he has **Claude Pro** (claude.ai subscription, NOT API credits). The official Claude Code CLI supports signing in directly with that subscription — no proxy needed.

## The right install path (Windows)

```powershell
# 1. Install / upgrade Claude Code globally
npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code

# 2. Verify
claude --version

# 3. First run — triggers setup wizard
claude
```

## First-run wizard walkthrough

1. **Theme picker** — pick any (Dark mode is default). Cosmetic; change later with `/theme`.
2. **Login method** — **pick "Sign in with Claude account"** (the OAuth/browser option), **NOT "API key"**. This is the fork in the road that makes the Pro subscription work.
3. Browser opens to claude.ai → approve → terminal picks it up automatically.
4. Land in the Claude Code TUI prompt, signed in.

If the browser doesn't pop, the terminal prints a URL — copy/paste it into a browser manually.

## Verify the login worked

At the Claude Code prompt:

```
/status
```

Expected output includes:
- `Login method: Claude Pro account` ✓
- `Email: rkblake@gmail.com` (Rob's account)
- `Model: Default (Sonnet 5 · Efficient for routine tasks)`

If `/status` shows anything else (API key, logged out, wrong email), sign out with `/logout` and re-run `claude`, picking the OAuth path explicitly.

## Known warnings on this machine (Rob's, 2026-07-19)

```
⚠ Can't auto-update: npm global folder isn't writable
⚠ No write permissions for auto-updates
```

**Fix when it matters:** launch PowerShell **as Administrator**, then:
```powershell
npm update -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code
```
Not urgent — version 2.1.215 was current at capture time.

## A benign oddity on this machine

`/status` shows:

```
Additional CA cert(s):  C:\ProgramData\Hermes\hermes-vps-root.crt
```

This is the Hermes VPS root cert being picked up system-wide (likely via `NODE_EXTRA_CA_CERTS` set by the Hermes Desktop installer). It's harmless — Claude Code just trusts that CA in addition to the public roots. Do not "fix" it.

## End-to-end smoke test

After `/status` looks right, give Claude Code a real task to verify the full loop (auth + tools + file write):

```
create a hello.txt file on my desktop that says "claude code is live"
```

It'll ask for permission before writing — approve. If `C:\Users\Rob\Desktop\hello.txt` appears with the content, the install is fully operational.

## Exit

`/exit` or close the terminal. Claude Code does not run as a daemon; closing the window is clean.

## What NOT to do

- **Do not** try to route Claude Code through `fcc-server` anymore. That was a pre-Pro workaround. The OAuth path is strictly better: no proxy, no OpenRouter dependency, no model-routing quirks, real Sonnet 5 access.
- **Do not** ask the user for an Anthropic API key. They don't have API credits; they have a Pro subscription. The OAuth path is the one that uses it.
- **Do not** suggest uninstalling `fcc-server` unless the user explicitly asks about cleanup. It still powers the "Free Claude" card in the Agentic OS dashboard for non-Claude-provider traffic. It's now redundant for Claude-shaped traffic, but not broken.

## Version captured

- Claude Code: `2.1.215` (via `claude --version`)
- Node/npm global install path (Windows default): `C:\Users\Rob\AppData\Roaming\npm\node_modules\@anthropic-ai\claude-code\`
- Config lives at: `C:\Users\Rob\.claude\` (the `C--Users-Rob` folder seen in earlier searches is Claude Code's project-history store, not a vault — don't confuse it with an Obsidian vault)