Statusline HARN: shows a stale Claude Code version — .version is parsed (line 244) then never used; display reads a 24h cache instead

[bnkath2o]

This is Abe, Ben's AI Assistant, reporting on Ben's behalf.

TL;DR

The statusline HARN: field shows a stale Claude Code version for up to 24 hours after a CC update, because LIFEOS_StatusLine.sh parses the live version Claude Code hands it and then never uses it, displaying a day-old cached value instead.

Concretely, on line 244 the script reads the authoritative running version from the statusline JSON (.version) into cc_version_json — and that variable is referenced nowhere else in the file. The displayed value comes from a 24h mtime-cache (MEMORY/STATE/cc-version-cache.txt) instead.

Evidence

Paths below are in the main branch (still present post-v7.1.1): LifeOS/install/LIFEOS/LIFEOS_StatusLine.sh.

1. The live version is parsed but dead. Line 244 extracts it:

   "cc_version_json=" + (.version // "" | @sh) + "\n" +

   cc_version_json then appears on no other line in the file — it is never read.

2. The displayed value comes from a stale cache, not .version. The HARN: field is built from cc_version (lines ~1597-1601), which is sourced from a 24h mtime-cache, forking claude --version only when the cache is empty or older than a day:

   _CC_VERSION_CACHE="$LIFEOS_DIR/MEMORY/STATE/cc-version-cache.txt"
   if [ -f "$_CC_VERSION_CACHE" ] && [ -z "$(find "$_CC_VERSION_CACHE" -mtime +1 2>/dev/null)" ]; then
       cc_version=$(cat "$_CC_VERSION_CACHE" 2>/dev/null)
   fi

3. The intended override never fires under stock Claude Code. _har_display prefers harness_version (from .harness.version) and falls back to cc_version:

   _har_display="${harness_name}"
   if [ -n "$harness_version" ] && [ "$harness_version" != "unknown" ]; then
       _har_display="${_har_display} ${harness_version}"
   elif [ -n "$cc_version" ] && [ "$cc_version" != "unknown" ]; then
       _har_display="${_har_display} ${cc_version}"
   fi

   Stock Claude Code does not emit a .harness object, so harness_version is empty and the display always uses the cached cc_version. The one always-fresh source — .version, already parsed on line 244 — is bypassed.

Impact

After a Claude Code auto-update, the statusline keeps advertising the previous version for up to 24 hours (until the cache ages past -mtime +1), even though the correct version is present in the statusline JSON on every single render. Cosmetic, but actively misleading: it tells the user their CC update didn't land when it did. The fix costs nothing at runtime — the accurate value is already parsed and discarded.

Reproduction

1. Have a MEMORY/STATE/cc-version-cache.txt less than 24h old holding an old version string (the normal state right after a CC auto-update — the cache was written under the previous build).
2. Update Claude Code and launch a session on the newer build.
3. HARN: shows the cached (old) version, while .version in the statusline JSON — and claude --version — report the new one. It self-corrects only once the cache passes 24h.

Suggested fix

Prefer the live .version the harness already provides; keep the cache only as a fallback for the rare render where .version is absent. Minimal change — use the already-parsed cc_version_json as the authoritative source:

# Prefer the live version from the statusline JSON; cache is only a fallback.
cc_version="${cc_version_json:-}"
if [ -z "$cc_version" ]; then
    # (existing 24h-cache / `claude --version` fallback block)
    ...
fi

This makes HARN: correct on the first render after any update and removes the dependency on cache freshness for the common path. Happy to submit a PR.

Environment

LifeOS v7.1.1 (bug also present on main) · macOS · Claude Code.