Run Claude Code in the cloud

Claude Code can also run in the cloud instead of on your computer. You start a task from your browser or phone, Claude works on a copy of your GitHub repository in a secure virtual machine, and you review the result when it is done, even if you closed your laptop in the meantime. This article covers setup, your first task and when the cloud is the better choice.

What you need

• A Claude plan with cloud sessions: Pro, Max or Team, or an Enterprise seat that includes Claude Code.
• A GitHub account and a repository. Cloud sessions clone and push through GitHub.
• On Team and Enterprise plans, an Owner may first need to turn on the GitHub connector for the organisation.

Cloud or local?

	Cloud session	Local session
Runs on	A virtual machine managed by Anthropic	Your computer
Start from	claude.ai/code, the mobile app, the desktop app (Cloud), or claude --cloud	Terminal, editor or desktop app (Local)
Keeps going when you disconnect	Yes	No
Uses your local files and settings	No, only what is in the repository	Yes
Needs GitHub	Yes	No

Cloud sessions shine for well-defined tasks you do not need to steer constantly, for running several tasks in parallel, and for working on repositories you do not have on your computer. For work that depends on local tools or files, run Claude Code locally.

Connect GitHub

You only do this once.

1. Go to claude.ai/code and sign in with your Claude account.
2. Follow the prompt to connect GitHub and approve the authorisation on GitHub.
3. For private repositories, install the Claude GitHub App on the GitHub account or organisation that owns them. A GitHub organisation owner may need to approve this.
4. Let onboarding create your Default environment (on Team and Enterprise you may see a short form; the prefilled values are fine).

Note: If your repository does not show up after connecting, the Claude GitHub App is usually not installed on that account or does not have access to that repository. Check the app’s repository access settings on GitHub.

Understand environments

An environment is the saved setup every cloud session runs in. You can edit it or create more from the environment selector.

Setting	What it controls
Network access	Which websites the session can reach. Trusted (the default) allows package registries, GitHub and other common developer domains. None, Full and Custom are the other options.
Environment variables	Values the project needs, in .env format
Setup script	A Bash script that runs before Claude starts, for example to install dependencies

A simple setup script for a Node.js project:

#!/bin/bash
npm install

Warning: Environment variables are visible to anyone who can use that environment. Do not put production passwords or secret keys there. Use test credentials, or keep tasks that need real secrets local.

Start your first task

1. At claude.ai/code, pick the repository and, if needed, a branch.
2. Choose a permission mode. Plan proposes an approach and waits for your approval. Accept edits works through the task without stopping. Some accounts also see Auto.
3. Describe the task specifically, as you would to a colleague. Name files, paste error messages and describe the expected result.
4. Submit. Each task gets its own session and its own branch, so you can start another task straight away.

A good cloud task:

In src/content/pages/, find all pages without a meta description and
add one of 140 to 155 characters based on the page content. Run
npm run build to confirm nothing breaks. Do not change any other files.

Review and create a pull request

1. When Claude is done, open the diff (shown as something like +42 -18).
2. Read the changes file by file. Click a line to leave a comment, then send your next message; Claude gets the comments with it.
3. When the diff looks right, choose Create PR.
4. The session stays open after the PR. Paste reviewer comments or failing checks into the chat and ask Claude to fix them. If the Claude GitHub App is installed, you can also turn on auto-fix so Claude responds to failing checks and review comments by itself.

Work across devices

• Check on running sessions from the Claude mobile app and answer Claude’s questions there.
• From the terminal, start a cloud task with claude --cloud "your task".
• Pull a cloud session into your terminal with claude --teleport to continue locally. This needs a clean Git state and the same Claude account.

Limits to keep in mind

• Cloud sessions use the same usage allowance as the rest of your Claude account. Parallel tasks use it faster.
• Repository cloning and pull requests need GitHub.
• Sessions go idle after a period of inactivity. Reopening one restores the conversation, but not background work that was still running.

Next steps

• Install Claude Code
• Write a CLAUDE.md
• Deploy to Netlify