ConfigDeckWhat claude doctor actually checks — run live on this Mac
The first move when something feels off — with a real diagnostic run on this Mac.
The first move when something feels off
`claude doctor` gives you the overall health picture — install status, updates, background server — before you dig into a specific error.
Two ways to run it
From a normal shell (`claude doctor`), or `/doctor` inside a session. `claude doctor --help` on this Mac showed only `-h/--help` — no other options.
The real result on this Mac
Running it live returned (reformatted from the on-screen layout):
Diagnostics ✔ — native (2.1.199), darwin-arm64, native install
Updates ✔ — auto-updates enabled, channel latest,
last success → 2.1.199 (2026-07-03)
Stable: 2.1.212, Latest: 2.1.220
Background server — Mode: ephemeral
Remote Control ✔
Version locks ✔ — 2.1.199 running
Still having issues? Run /feedback."Only run in trusted directories"
Per `claude doctor --help`, it spawns stdio MCP servers from `.mcp.json` for health checks — don't run it in a repo you don't trust.
Not script-friendly
In our test, `claude doctor` rendered as an interactive TUI rather than plain stdout — piping its output directly didn't work; we had to use a pseudo-TTY. For automated checks, prefer `claude --version` or `claude auth status`.
Reading the update section
Our run showed the running version (2.1.199) behind both the Stable (2.1.212) and Latest (2.1.220) versions — a reminder that enabled auto-updates still have a real-world lag.