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Claude Code Setup

Claude Code is the more technical Claude-based path for Automation Agent.

If you want to use it inside the desktop app, install Claude Desktop first and then use the Code tab.

This page is for the Codex / Claude Code mode in the Automation Agent panel, which uses the panel-managed local HTTP MCP server.

Use this path when you want Claude Code as the Assistant that inspects Premiere project state through MCP, validates Runtime DSL, and runs permission-scoped workflows with the Automation Agent guidance layer installed.

Claude Code CLI can also be configured as Workflow AI. In that role, a saved workflow can call claude later from an askAgent step.

If the two roles are new to you, read AI Setup Roles first.

Claude Desktop Code tab

Important clarification:

  • the Claude Desktop app currently has three tabs: Chat, Cowork, and Code
  • the Code tab is Claude Code running inside the Desktop app
  • Claude Code is also available outside the Desktop app, including the terminal and IDE integrations
  • the Chat tab uses the separate Claude Desktop local-extension path
  • the Cowork tab is currently not a supported local Automation Agent workflow

For the most stable Claude-based local MCP workflow, use Claude Code with the panel-managed local HTTP MCP server.

Use Claude Desktop Chat Setup only when you specifically need MCP in the Chat tab of Claude Desktop.

This page applies whether you use Claude Code in the Code tab of the Desktop app, in the terminal, or through IDE integrations.

Which Role Does This Set Up?​

RoleSupported with Claude?What needs to be configured
AssistantyesClaude Code MCP config plus the Automation Agent Claude Skill where your Claude surface supports Skills
Workflow AIyes, through Claude Code CLIclaude executable, claude auth login, provider profile, and provider test

Important naming detail:

  • Claude Desktop Code tab is an Assistant surface.
  • Claude Code CLI is the command-line provider Automation Agent uses for Workflow AI.
  • Installing Claude Desktop does not automatically mean the claude CLI is installed and authenticated.

What You Need​

For Claude Code as your Assistant, these things need to be true:

  1. the local Automation Agent MCP server is available
  2. Claude Code has an MCP server entry for Automation Agent
  3. the Automation Agent Claude Skill is installed as a personal local Claude Code skill

The panel covers both required local setup steps:

  • MCP configuration for Claude Code
  • installation and status verification of the personal Claude Code skill under ~/.claude/skills/automation-agent/

For Claude Code CLI as Workflow AI, these things need to be true:

  1. the claude command-line tool is installed
  2. Claude Code CLI is authenticated with claude auth login
  3. Automation Agent has a saved Claude Code CLI Workflow AI provider profile
  4. the provider test passes in AI Setup

Best Setup Path​

The easiest setup path is from inside the Automation Agent panel:

  1. open AI Setup
  2. click Start Guided Setup
  3. choose Anthropic / Claude
  4. follow the Claude Assistant and Claude Code CLI Workflow AI steps

The manual Assistant setup path is:

  1. open the MCP Server tab
  2. start or connect MCP
  3. open the Agent Setup section
  4. use Set Up in the Claude Code card to install or update the MCP config
  5. use Install in the Automation Agent Claude Skill step
  6. restart Claude Code only if the newly created skills directory or updated MCP config is not detected in the current session
  7. return to the panel and verify the status

For Workflow AI, use AI Setup > Workflow AI or Advanced Provider Setup:

  1. find or select the claude executable
  2. run claude auth login if the CLI is not authenticated yet
  3. use Test & Save

Important:

  • use the panel in Codex / Claude Code mode
  • that mode uses the panel-managed HTTP MCP server
  • this is different from Claude Desktop Chat, which uses a client-launched local stdio runtime

The Claude Skill is the guidance layer. It teaches Claude how to use Automation Agent correctly, including when to inspect first, how to author valid DSL, and how to avoid drifting into invented function names or argument shapes.

You do not need the .mcpb desktop extension for Claude Code. The .mcpb file is only for the Claude Desktop Chat tab / stdio workflow.

Where The MCP Config Lives​

For Claude Code, the same config model applies in the terminal and in the Code tab of the Claude Desktop app.

The panel currently installs Claude Code using user scope in:

~/.claude.json

The relevant Automation Agent entry looks like:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "automation_agent": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "http://127.0.0.1:53125/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Older Automation Agent versions used the alias automation_blocks. Running Update in AI Setup migrates that entry to automation_agent and removes the old alias.

Scope Notes​

Claude Code supports multiple MCP scopes:

  • local: stored in ~/.claude.json under the current project path
  • project: stored in .mcp.json in the project root
  • user: stored in ~/.claude.json and available across projects

For now, the Automation Agent panel writes the safer user-scope entry so users do not need to manage project-specific Claude config files manually.

Where The Claude Code Skill Lives​

The panel installs the packaged skill as a personal Claude Code skill:

~/.claude/skills/automation-agent/
  SKILL.md
  references/
  metadata/

Claude Code makes personal skills available across local projects and can invoke them automatically from their descriptions. The panel verifies the required files after installation and offers Update when a newer packaged skill should replace the installed copy.

Claude Code normally detects edits to an existing SKILL.md during a session. Restart Claude Code when the top-level ~/.claude/skills/ directory was created after that session started, or when the MCP configuration changed.

The generated ZIP remains available separately for Claude Desktop Chat and Claude Cowork/account skill surfaces. Those surfaces do not read the machine-local ~/.claude/skills/ directory; follow Claude Desktop Chat Setup when using that path.

Workflow AI Notes​

Claude Code CLI Workflow AI is used by saved workflows, not by the Claude Desktop chat tab.

For example, a saved workflow might use Premiere and Automation Agent blocks to collect project data, then call Claude Code CLI only for a bounded reasoning step such as classifying transcript chunks, producing review notes, or returning structured text.

If a provider test fails, check:

  • the selected claude executable path
  • that claude auth login has completed
  • whether Claude Code CLI can be run from the same user account that runs Automation Agent

If Claude Code Was Already Open​

Restart Claude Code after installing or updating the MCP config if it does not reconnect. Skill-file updates are normally live, except when the top-level skills directory did not exist when the session started.