[claude-trace] Windows compatibility: getClaudeAbsolutePath() fails

[thomas-jimmy-chen]

Component

apps/claude-trace — src/cli.ts → getClaudeAbsolutePath()

Problem

claude-trace fails to start on Windows with two separate errors:

Error 1: which not found

'which' is not recognized as an internal or external command
❌ Claude CLI not found in PATH

Cause: Uses which claude, but Windows doesn't have which. The equivalent is where claude.

Error 2: Bash wrapper parsed as JavaScript

SyntaxError: missing ) after argument list
    at wrapSafe (node:internal/modules/cjs/loader:1638:18)

Cause: On Windows, where claude returns the npm global bin path (e.g. C:\Users\...\AppData\Roaming\npm\claude), which is a bash shell wrapper (starts with #!/bin/sh), not a JavaScript file. When Node.js tries to execute it via spawn("node", [..., claudePath]), it fails.

The actual Node.js entry point is at:

...\npm\node_modules\@anthropic-ai\claude-code\cli.js

Suggested Fix

In getClaudeAbsolutePath():

1. Use process.platform === "win32" ? "where claude" : "which claude" for cross-platform lookup
2. Add .split(/\r?\n/)[0] since Windows where may return multiple lines
3. Add a resolveToJS() helper that detects shell wrappers (file starts with #!/ or @ECHO) and resolves to the actual @anthropic-ai/claude-code/cli.js entry point via the npm node_modules path

Full fix code available in the related issue: loki-zhou/claude-trace#4

Environment

• Windows 11 Enterprise 10.0.22631
• Node.js 22.x, npm global install
• Claude Code 2.1.72