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Anthropicapi
November 6, 2026·Source

Background MCP Tasks in Claude Code

Claude Code now runs long tool jobs from connected MCP servers in the background and reports back when they finish. Mostly matters to people using MCP servers.

Details

  • When an MCP server runs a tool call as a task, Claude Code moves it to the background and reports the result when it finishes.
  • Set CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_MCP_TASK_BACKGROUND to wait inside the tool call instead.
  • Set CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_MCP_TASKS=1 to turn tasks off entirely.
  • Shipped in Claude Code 2.1.319.

Best for

Keeping a Claude Code session moving while a slow connected tool finishes its job.

When to use it

When an MCP server runs a tool call as a long task, such as a big export or build.

Who benefits

Developers who connect Claude Code to MCP servers with slow tools.

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