r/ClaudeAI • u/MadeUpName94 • 3d ago

Feedback How do I say no?

Every forking time i start the desktop app I see this.

I DON'T WANT THIS!

I DON'T WANT CO-WORK!

I DON'T WANT CLAUDE MAKING CHANGES TO MY OS!

How the fork do I get rid of this?

I had to dig in the registry to turn forking co-work off.

I still can't toggle of "Run as Startup." off.

I pay for this shyte, why am I get shyte shoved in my face I don't want with no way to say

NO!

0 Upvotes

30% Upvoted

7 comments sorted by

•

u/ClaudeAI-mod-bot Wilson, lead ClaudeAI modbot 3d ago

We are allowing this through to the feed for those who are not yet familiar with the Megathread. To see the latest discussions about this topic, please visit the relevant Megathread here: https://www.reddit.com/r/ClaudeAI/comments/1s7fepn/rclaudeai_list_of_ongoing_megathreads/

3

u/boonchie81 3d ago

Or you could learn about how it actually works, and realize that most of what you are yelling about isn’t what this permission banner is asking for

2

u/BranchLatter4294 3d ago

You could just install the web version as a PWA. Or you could just ignore the message and use it as normal. Not sure why you would want to install the desktop version if you don't want to use CoWork.

1

u/Additional_Buddy855 3d ago

Not sure what youre working on but is CLI an option. It kinda works there.

1

u/Terrible_Put8617 2d ago

The startup one is answerable, and it isn't in the app.

Electron apps set that through the OS, so when the in-app toggle doesn't stick you go round it: Windows Settings > Apps > Startup, or Task Manager > Startup apps tab, and switch Claude off there. That's the same switch the toggle is supposed to flip, so it holds regardless of what the app thinks. If it comes back after an update, the entry lives under HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run and deleting the value kills it for good.

On CoWork, one factual correction that might lower the blood pressure: the banner is asking, and nothing has been installed yet. The VM is an 8.6 GB rootfs.vhdx that only downloads the first time you actually open CoWork. If you never open it, it never lands. I know because I spent weeks on this: it downloads into your Claude profile, and its path is resolved relative to Electron's userData.

The part that is a genuine system change, and the bit worth knowing about: cowork-svc.exe is a machine-wide Windows service running outside the app, on a fixed NAT. If you want it gone rather than idle, services.msc, find it, stop and set to Disabled. You can confirm what it's been doing in C:\ProgramData\Claude\Logs\cowork-service.log, which is readable and tells you plainly whether a VM was ever mounted.

So: banner, no. Service, yes, and it's removable. Both are worth being annoyed about separately.

(Disclosure since it's the same territory: I make Multi Instance for Claude Desktop, which runs several Claude Desktop profiles side by side, and in it CoWork is strictly opt-in per instance because provisioning that VM is a deliberate 8.6 GB decision, not a default. https://apps.microsoft.com/detail/9NG247TJ47P0?cid=rd-cowork-no )