csm — Claude Code Session Manager

Switch between multiple Claude Code subscription logins on a single host. Each profile runs with its own isolated login (CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR), stored in ~/.claude-sessions/profiles by default.

Why csm?

You have multiple Claude Code subscriptions (work, personal, partner accounts). Without csm, switching between them means manually logging out and in, clearing credentials, or maintaining separate machines. csm isolates each login to a named profile so plain claude runs against your current account — switching is instant and safe.

Install

Requires Node.js >= 20.

Linux & macOS

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ilomon10/csm/main/scripts/install.sh | sh

Windows (PowerShell)

irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ilomon10/csm/main/scripts/install.ps1 | iex

Install Options

Add flags to the one-liner:

# sh: version pinning
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ilomon10/csm/main/scripts/install.sh | sh -s -- --version 0.1.0-beta.1

# sh: skip shell setup
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ilomon10/csm/main/scripts/install.sh | sh -s -- --no-setup

# PowerShell: version pinning
& ([scriptblock]::Create((irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ilomon10/csm/main/scripts/install.ps1))) -Version 0.1.0-beta.1

# PowerShell: skip shell setup
& ([scriptblock]::Create((irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ilomon10/csm/main/scripts/install.ps1))) -NoSetup

Pin the installer itself

The installers are also attached to every release, so you can pin the exact script that runs:

curl -fsSL https://github.com/ilomon10/csm/releases/download/v0.1.0-beta.1/install.sh | sh -s -- --version 0.1.0-beta.1

& ([scriptblock]::Create((irm https://github.com/ilomon10/csm/releases/download/v0.1.0-beta.1/install.ps1))) -Version 0.1.0-beta.1

The installer only downloads over HTTPS, verifies every binary against the release's SHA256SUMS, and refuses to run as root (override with --allow-root).

Manual download and verification

VER=v0.1.0-beta.1
ASSET=csm-linux-x64   # or csm-linux-arm64, csm-darwin-x64, csm-darwin-arm64
curl -fsSLO "https://github.com/ilomon10/csm/releases/download/$VER/$ASSET"
curl -fsSLO "https://github.com/ilomon10/csm/releases/download/$VER/SHA256SUMS"
grep " $ASSET\$" SHA256SUMS | sha256sum -c -     # macOS: shasum -a 256 -c -
chmod +x "$ASSET" && mv "$ASSET" ~/.local/bin/csm

$Ver = 'v0.1.0-beta.1'; $Asset = 'csm-windows-x64.exe'
irm "https://github.com/ilomon10/csm/releases/download/$Ver/$Asset" -OutFile $Asset
$sums = irm "https://github.com/ilomon10/csm/releases/download/$Ver/SHA256SUMS"
$want = (($sums -split "`n") | Where-Object { $_ -match " \*?$([regex]::Escape($Asset))$" }).Split(' ')[0]
(Get-FileHash $Asset -Algorithm SHA256).Hash -eq $want.ToUpper()

Release binaries also carry build provenance: verify with gh attestation verify <file> --repo ilomon10/csm.

From npm (Node users)

npm install -g https://github.com/ilomon10/csm/releases/download/v0.1.0-beta.1/claude-session-manager-0.1.0-beta.1.tgz

From Source

git clone https://github.com/ilomon10/csm.git
cd csm
corepack enable  # or install pnpm 9
pnpm install
pnpm build
pnpm add -g "$PWD"

Quick Start

Create two profiles and switch between them:

csm add work          # Creates profile, launches claude to log in
csm add personal      # Create another profile with a different account
csm use work          # Switch to work account
claude                # Runs Claude Code with the work profile
csm use personal
claude                # Runs Claude Code with the personal profile

Shell Setup (Required)

Before plain claude will use your selected profile, add a shell initialization snippet to your shell's rc file and restart your shell.

Run this once to auto-detect your shell and add the block:

csm setup

Or add manually:

Bash

Add to ~/.bashrc (and ~/.bash_profile on macOS/Windows):

if command -v csm >/dev/null 2>&1; then eval "$(csm shell-init bash)"; fi

Zsh

Add to ~/.zshrc:

if command -v csm >/dev/null 2>&1; then eval "$(csm shell-init zsh)"; fi

Fish

Add to ~/.config/fish/conf.d/csm.fish (create the file):

if command -q csm; csm shell-init fish | source; end

PowerShell

Add to your PowerShell profile ($PROFILE):

if (Get-Command csm -CommandType Application -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue) { csm shell-init pwsh | Out-String | Invoke-Expression }

Then restart your shell:

exec $SHELL

Verify Shell Setup

To confirm shell integration is active:

type claude   # Should show a function (bash/zsh) or definition (fish/pwsh), not a command

Commands

Profile Management

csm add <name> [--no-login]

Create a profile and launch Claude Code to log in.

csm add work          # Creates profile and opens login
csm add test --no-login  # Creates profile without logging in yet

csm use <name>

Set the current profile. Plain claude will use this after shell init.

csm use work

csm list or csm ls

List all profiles. The * marks the current profile.

$ csm list
* work          user@work.com
  personal      user@personal.com
  testing       (not logged in)

csm current

Print the name of the current profile.

$ csm current
work

csm run [name] [-- args...]

Run Claude Code with a specific profile (default: current profile).

csm run work          # Uses work profile
csm run work -- -p    # Pass arguments to claude
csm run -- -p         # Uses current profile

csm env [name]

Print a shell export statement to temporarily set CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR for a profile. Use with eval.

eval "$(csm env work)"
claude -p

csm rm <name> [--yes|-y]

Delete a profile and its login.

csm rm work           # Prompts for confirmation
csm rm work --yes     # Deletes without prompting

Logins & Import

csm import <name> [--move] [--force]

Import an existing file-based login (e.g., from ~/.claude) into a new profile.

csm import work                  # Copies login from ~/.claude to profile "work"
csm import work --move           # Also removes the source, so login exists only in the profile
csm import work --force          # Force import even if source is another csm profile

Note: On macOS, logins stored in the Keychain cannot be imported — use csm add instead.

Shared Config

csm sync [name] [--repair=adopt|discard]

Detect and repair shared config drift (see Shared Config).

csm sync work                     # Report any drift in the work profile
csm sync --repair=discard         # Fix all profiles by discarding their drifted copies
csm sync work --repair=adopt      # Fix work profile by adopting its drifted copy as shared

csm share-history <from-profile>

Enable cross-profile session history sharing. All profiles will share transcripts, allowing --resume to access prior sessions from any account.

csm share-history work

csm adopt-config [--from <dir>] [--history] [--dry-run]

Share an existing config dir (default ~/.claude) with every profile. Settings, commands, agents, and skills are linked into shared/; profiles' own copies are backed up.

csm adopt-config --dry-run        # Show what would change
csm adopt-config                  # Share settings, skills, agents, commands, CLAUDE.md
csm adopt-config --history        # Also pool transcripts and history.jsonl

Shell & Setup

csm shell-init [shell]

Print a shell snippet for rc files. Detects your shell automatically.

csm shell-init              # Auto-detect bash/zsh/fish/pwsh
csm shell-init bash         # Explicitly output bash snippet

csm setup [bash|zsh|fish|pwsh] [--yes|-y]

Add the csm block to your shell rc (default: detected shell).

csm setup                   # Auto-detect and setup
csm setup zsh --yes         # Setup zsh without prompting

Diagnostic & Admin

csm doctor [--json]

Diagnose install, shell wrapper, links and profiles.

csm doctor              # Human-readable output
csm doctor --json       # Machine-readable JSON

csm uninstall [--purge] [--yes|-y]

Remove every csm rc block; --purge also deletes CSM_HOME (all logins).

csm uninstall           # Remove rc blocks only
csm uninstall --purge   # Also delete all profiles and logins
csm uninstall --yes     # Don't prompt for confirmation

csm --version or csm -v

Print the installed version.

$ csm --version
0.1.0-beta.1

Shared Config

Several settings are shared across all profiles via links from ~/.claude-sessions/shared:

• settings.json — General preferences
• CLAUDE.md — Custom instructions
• commands/ — Custom commands
• agents/ — Custom agents
• skills/ — Custom skills

Per-profile items (not shared):

• .credentials.json — Login credentials
• .claude.json — Account info and per-profile MCP servers
• projects/ — Session transcripts (unless history sharing is enabled)
• history.jsonl — Prompt history (unless shared with adopt-config --history)
• policy-limits.json — Account usage limits

Shared Config Drift

Claude Code can replace symlinks with regular files (e.g., when saving settings after permission approvals). This causes profiles to have different copies, losing the intent of sharing.

When drift is detected, csm sync reports it:

$ csm sync
work: settings.json drifted, agents drifted
personal: settings.json drifted — run "csm sync personal --repair=adopt|discard" to fix.

Fix drift with --repair:

# Discard work's copy (backed up) and relink to shared
csm sync work --repair=discard

# Adopt work's copy as the new shared version for all profiles
csm sync work --repair=adopt

Windows Linking Behavior

On Windows, csm uses junctions instead of symlinks (no admin required). Junction behavior:

• Symlink shorthand: junctions point to directories; they act like symlinks but don't require Developer Mode.
• Developer Mode: With Developer Mode enabled (Settings > System > For developers), csm prefers true symlinks.
• Hardlink fallback: For files, when symlinks fail, csm falls back to hardlinks. If those fail too, an error is reported.
• Stale detection: If a hardlinked file is edited by Claude Code (which breaks the inode), csm sync detects it as "stale" and can refresh it.

See csm doctor to check link support on your system.

Troubleshooting

"I switched profile but claude still uses my main account"

1. Run type claude — it must report a shell function, not a command path. If it shows a path, the rc line is missing or your shell wasn't restarted: add it and run exec $SHELL.
2. Verify csm shell-init works: csm shell-init should output shell code, not "Unknown command".
3. Check that your profile is logged in: csm list shows the email for each profile. A profile showing (not logged in) never finished login — run csm run <name> and log in.

"My skills/settings from ~/.claude don't show in a profile"

Profiles only see what is in ~/.claude-sessions/shared/. By default, csm import copies only the login. Run csm adopt-config to link your original ~/.claude config into every profile. Add --history to also pool transcripts and memory.

"csm setup" or "csm shell-init" fails on PowerShell

If Out-String | Invoke-Expression fails (error about piping), try piping differently:

csm shell-init pwsh | Out-String | Invoke-Expression

This converts the multi-line script to a single string before invoking it. The installers do this automatically; if you're running manually, use this form.

Run csm doctor first

For any other issue, run csm doctor. It checks:

• Runtime version (Node 20+)
• Claude Code installation
• Shell wrapper integration
• Shell rc file blocks
• Profile directory permissions
• Linked shared config
• Profile login status

csm doctor      # Human-readable
csm doctor --json  # JSON for scripting

Uninstall

Linux & macOS

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ilomon10/csm/main/scripts/install.sh | sh -s -- --uninstall [--purge]

Add --purge to also delete all profiles and logins.

Windows (PowerShell)

& ([scriptblock]::Create((irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ilomon10/csm/main/scripts/install.ps1))) -Uninstall [-Purge]

Using the installed binary

csm uninstall [--purge] [--yes]

Caveats

macOS Keychain Logins

On macOS, Claude Code stores logins in the system Keychain by default. csm import only works with file-based logins (the fallback when Keychain write fails). To import a Keychain login:

1. Use csm add <name> to log in fresh
2. Or run csm import after manually creating a file-based fallback (unset CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR, log in once to create a .credentials.json file, then import)

Importing Shares a Refresh Token

csm import copies a refresh token. If the source login (e.g., ~/.claude) is later refreshed, the profile's copy becomes invalid. Solutions:

• Use csm import --move to remove the source after copying
• Log out from the source (~/.claude)
• Or accept that only one copy can stay logged in at a time

History Sharing Pools Accounts

csm share-history moves a profile's projects/ to shared/, visible to all profiles. If you later log out of one account, its transcripts remain accessible from another account. This is intentional but worth knowing.

Windows PowerShell Notes

• csm shell-init pwsh generates PowerShell script; cmd.exe is not supported (install PowerShell 7 or run csm run directly)
• On Windows, csm uses junctions and hardlinks instead of symlinks (no admin required)
• If csm was installed with npm (a csm.cmd shim), PowerShell drops empty-string arguments such as claude "" before they reach csm. This is PowerShell's legacy handling of batch files; the standalone csm.exe from the installer is not affected.

Environment Variables

• CSM_HOME — Override the data directory (default: ~/.claude-sessions)
• CSM_CLAUDE_BIN — Override the claude binary path (default: claude on PATH)
• CSM_DEBUG=1 — Print stack traces on errors
• NO_COLOR — Disable colored output in csm doctor

Contributing

Contributions are welcome. See CONTRIBUTING.md for dev setup, testing, and coding style.

Security

For security issues, see SECURITY.md.

License

MIT. See LICENSE.

Status

This is a beta release (v0.1.0-beta.1). The CLI and shell integration are stable, but the feature set may evolve. Please report bugs at github.com/ilomon10/csm/issues.