Claude Code 2.1.323 is out, and the notes have some real user-facing changes, not just chores.
The headline is Code Mode, an experimental opt-in in which Claude writes JavaScript to call its tools instead of making those calls the usual way. Anthropic has a docs page on how to turn it on, and how an organization can turn it off. Plugins can now declare an engines["claude-code"] range in plugin.json: versions outside that range won’t install, update or load, and install/update will pick the newest version that fits. claude plugin validate also type-checks a plugin’s TypeScript hooks, with --strict failing on those warnings.
Other additions include an options menu when a model needs usage credits that are off or used up, a progress heartbeat so long-running hooks in claude -p and SDK sessions are less likely to look hung, .docx support for Artifact uploads, a startup warning for Bash allow rules that put a * inside a variable’s value, and a warning when a plugin language server can’t start. There are also a few new environment-variable knobs, including one to turn off subagent progress summaries.
Review before you install: read the release notes yourself, back up your config, and try new versions somewhere you can afford to break first.
My take
Code Mode is interesting, and it’s also marked experimental for a reason. Try it on a throwaway repo before you let it become the default way your tools get called. Plugin version ranges are the quieter change I’ll be glad exists the next time a plugin and a CLI update get out of sync.
God Bless, and May the Source Be with You!
