🧠 Close the laptop, keep the session — Claude Code lives in one LXC

Tutorials & Methods
, , ,
1

Close the lid - the AI coding session keeps running on your own always-on box
Close the lid - the AI coding session keeps running on your own always-on box5504×3072 1010 KB

One box runs your AI coder. Your laptop is just a window into it.

digraph g { rankdir=TB; bgcolor="transparent"; nodesep=0.8; ranksep=0.6; node [shape=box style="rounded,filled" fillcolor="#ffffff" color="#0b1622" penwidth=2 margin="0.35,0.2" fontname="sans-serif" fontsize=14 fontcolor="#0b1622"]; edge [color="#2f7d52" penwidth=2 fontname="sans-serif" fontsize=12 fontcolor="#0b1622"]; laptop [label="💤 laptop - lid closed"]; host [label="🖥️ Proxmox VE host"]; lxc [label="📦 Debian 13 LXC"]; sess [label="♻️ tmux: forge"]; code [label="🧠 Claude Code"]; client [label="📱 any device"]; laptop -> host [label="ssh"]; host -> lxc; lxc -> sess; sess -> code; {rank=same; sess; client;} client -> sess [style=dashed, label="attach", constraint=false]; }
  • :zzz: close the lid mid-thought → :recycling_symbol: the session keeps running
  • :desktop_computer::mobile_phone: desktop, laptop, phone on ssh → one live session
  • :prohibited: no Docker, no cloud account, no port-forwarding
  • :electric_plug: your move → Proxmox Console, one pasted line, two minutes

:white_check_mark: 8 checks passed · :hourglass_not_done: 2 honest gaps - both lists inside the drawer

the whole build - 6 stages, every command, the trap that ate my first launch, and what I have not verified

:package: ① prep the container (example id 260)

pct exec 260 -- apt-get update
pct exec 260 -- apt-get install -y tmux curl git ca-certificates

→ Node.js, Claude Code and the FCC wrapper need their own installers · the /opt/fcc-… path below is mine, not a default

:bust_in_silhouette: ② its own user, and proof Claude Code runs

pct exec 260 -- useradd -m -s /bin/bash claude        # skip if it exists
pct exec 260 -- /usr/local/bin/claude --version

→ this user owns the project, never root · a printed version = pass, a missing binary or permission error = fail · then log Claude Code in

:recycling_symbol: ③ the session that survives disconnects — tmux

pct exec 260 -- runuser -u claude -- tmux new-session -d -s forge -c /var/www/claude-site /bin/bash
pct exec 260 -- runuser -u claude -- tmux list-sessions     # → forge: 1 windows
ssh -tt root@YOUR-PROXMOX-HOST 'pct exec 260 -- runuser -u claude -- tmux attach-session -t forge'
printf 'TMUX=%s\n' "${TMUX:-NOT_ATTACHED}"                  # → a session id, or NOT_ATTACHED = you are outside tmux

→ leave it alive: Ctrl+B then D · never /exit inside Claude Code · re-check list-sessions after disconnecting · it beats a disconnect, not a reboot

:warning: ④ the PATH trap, and the wrapper

export PATH="/usr/local/bin:/opt/fcc-6.16.2/bin:$PATH"
/opt/fcc-6.16.2/bin/fcc-claude

→ first try: Could not find Claude Code command: claude

printf 'PATH=%s\n' "$PATH"     →  PATH=/sbin:/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin
ls -l /usr/local/bin/claude    →  /usr/local/bin/claude -> /usr/local/lib/node_modules/@anthropic-ai/claude-code/bin/claude.exe

→ nothing was missing · /usr/local/bin was not on PATH · add it, retry, it opens · real output: Claude Code v2.1.296 · Opus 5.5 · API Usage Billing · /var/www/claude-site · check PATH before reinstalling anything

:desktop_computer: ⑤ no workstation needed

pct enter 260
su - claude
tmux attach-session -t forge

→ or a second Claude Code in another project directory · never edit one project from two sessions without a Git worktree or another isolation scheme

:brick: how the pieces sit (his sketch, from the original)

Linux workstation
       |
       | SSH
       |
Proxmox VE host
       |
       +--- Debian 13 LXC
                 |
                 +--- Dedicated Linux user
                 |
                 +--- Project directory
                 |
                 +--- Claude Code
                 |
                 +--- FCC wrapper
                 |
                 +--- tmux
                        |
                        +--- Persistent session

→ his own one-line goal: disconnect the client without intentionally terminating the interactive AI coding session

:white_check_mark: verified · Proxmox→LXC exec · SSH from a Linux workstation · tmux installed · dedicated account · claude --version · FCC wrapper launch · interactive Claude Code in tmux · project dir reachable

:hourglass_not_done: not yet · reconnect after client shutdown · LXC reboot recovery · Proxmox reboot recovery · all MCP integrations and auth paths

:brain: ⑥ what this taught me
→ a clean install is not proof of a working environment
→ a running background process is not proof the session is still reachable
→ a missing command is not missing software
→ tmux is not a backup - keep the project files backed up, credentials private
→ install once · connect from authorized clients · detach safely · verify the running session

2 Likes
2

This, my friend, is one of those things that people need but never create. This is gonna be a LIFESAVER.

1 Like