fix(cli-resolve): expand leading ~ in CLAUDE_CODE_PATH before spawn

[posthog]

Summary

A user-configured CLAUDE_CODE_PATH with a leading ~ (e.g. ~/.local/bin/claude) broke memory capture entirely. The value was passed verbatim to existsSync() and then to posix_spawn via execFileSync — neither expands ~ — so the capability probe died with ENOENT ... posix_spawn '~/.local/bin/claude', findClaudeExecutable() threw, and no Claude CLI ever resolved.

The fix adds a shared expandTilde() helper and applies it:

• defensively at read time in find-claude-executable.ts, so both the existence check and every probe spawn see a real absolute path (covers hand-edited settings files);
• at write time in SettingsRoutes.ts, so the stored value is already resolved.

For the reported path this turns ~/.local/bin/claude back into exactly the candidate the resolver already probes via join(homedir(), '.local', 'bin', 'claude').

Why

Putting a ~ in a config path is a natural mistake, and when a user makes it the failure is total and silent — claude-mem's core observation flow stops. The only workaround was to use an absolute path.

Test plan

• Added a find-claude-executable test asserting a tilde CLAUDE_CODE_PATH resolves to the expanded home path and that every probe spawn sees the expanded path (never the literal ~).
• bun test tests/shared/find-claude-executable.test.ts — 21 pass.

---

Created with PostHog Code from an inbox report.

[greptile-apps]

Greptile Summary

This PR fixes Claude CLI resolution when users configure a path with a leading tilde. The main changes are:

• Adds a shared expandTilde() helper for ~, ~/, and Windows-style ~\ prefixes.
• Expands CLAUDE_CODE_PATH before resolver existence checks and capability probe spawns.
• Normalizes CLAUDE_CODE_PATH when settings are saved through the worker HTTP route.
• Adds test coverage for the reported ~/.local/bin/claude path and stabilizes a worker test mock.

Confidence Score: 5/5

Safe to merge with minimal risk.

The change is narrow and applies tilde expansion at both settings write time and resolver read time. Focused tests cover the reported path and confirm probe spawns receive the expanded path. No security concerns or runtime bugs were identified.

No files require special attention.

T-Rex Logs

What T-Rex did

• Ran Bun test on tests/shared/find-claude-executable.test.ts to exercise tilde path expansion; the command completed with exit code 0.
• Inspected tests/shared/find-claude-executable.test.ts:248-256 to verify tilde path handling and the expanded spawn assertion.

_{Ran code and verified through T-Rex}

Important Files Changed

Filename	Overview
src/shared/paths.ts	Adds a shared expandTilde helper with injectable home directory support; no issues found.
src/shared/find-claude-executable.ts	Expands configured Claude CLI paths before existence checks, capability probing, logging, caching, and returning; no issues found.
src/services/worker/http/routes/SettingsRoutes.ts	Normalizes CLAUDE_CODE_PATH on settings writes by expanding a leading tilde before persisting; no issues found.
tests/shared/find-claude-executable.test.ts	Adds coverage proving tilde-configured Claude paths resolve and all probe spawns receive the expanded path; no issues found.
tests/worker/claude-setup-gate.test.ts	Makes the Bun module mock preserve real exports and reset the override after the suite to avoid cross-test leakage; no issues found.

Sequence Diagram

%%{init: {'theme': 'neutral'}}%%
sequenceDiagram
participant User
participant SettingsRoutes
participant SettingsFile as settings.json
participant Resolver as findClaudeExecutable
participant FS as existsSync
participant CLI as Claude CLI probe

User->>SettingsRoutes: POST /api/settings with CLAUDE_CODE_PATH
SettingsRoutes->>SettingsRoutes: expandTilde(path)
SettingsRoutes->>SettingsFile: Persist expanded absolute path
Resolver->>SettingsFile: loadSettings()
Resolver->>Resolver: expandTilde(configured path defensively)
Resolver->>FS: existsSync(expanded path)
Resolver->>CLI: execFileSync(expanded path, capability probe)
CLI-->>Resolver: version and capability result
Resolver-->>User: resolved Claude executable path

Loading

%%{init: {'theme': 'base', 'themeVariables': {"darkMode": true, "background": "#0d1117", "primaryColor": "#21262d", "primaryTextColor": "#e6edf3", "primaryBorderColor": "#8b949e", "lineColor": "#8b949e", "textColor": "#e6edf3", "edgeLabelBackground": "#161b22", "actorBkg": "#21262d", "actorBorder": "#8b949e", "actorTextColor": "#e6edf3", "actorLineColor": "#8b949e", "signalColor": "#8b949e", "signalTextColor": "#e6edf3", "noteBkgColor": "#373320", "noteBorderColor": "#d4a72c", "noteTextColor": "#f0e6c0", "labelBoxBkgColor": "#21262d", "labelBoxBorderColor": "#8b949e", "labelTextColor": "#e6edf3", "loopTextColor": "#e6edf3", "activationBkgColor": "#30363d", "activationBorderColor": "#8b949e"}}}%%
sequenceDiagram
participant User
participant SettingsRoutes
participant SettingsFile as settings.json
participant Resolver as findClaudeExecutable
participant FS as existsSync
participant CLI as Claude CLI probe

User->>SettingsRoutes: POST /api/settings with CLAUDE_CODE_PATH
SettingsRoutes->>SettingsRoutes: expandTilde(path)
SettingsRoutes->>SettingsFile: Persist expanded absolute path
Resolver->>SettingsFile: loadSettings()
Resolver->>Resolver: expandTilde(configured path defensively)
Resolver->>FS: existsSync(expanded path)
Resolver->>CLI: execFileSync(expanded path, capability probe)
CLI-->>Resolver: version and capability result
Resolver-->>User: resolved Claude executable path

Loading

_{Reviews (2): Last reviewed commit: "test: stop claude-setup-gate's find-clau..." | Re-trigger Greptile}