Directory marketplace plugins not auto-enabled in settings.json

[sm18lr88]

Bug Description

When installing a plugin from a directory-based marketplace, Claude Code adds the plugin to installed_plugins.json but does NOT add it to settings.json enabledPlugins. This requires manual intervention to enable the plugin.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Create a directory-based marketplace in known_marketplaces.json:

   "local-dev": {
     "source": {"source": "directory", "path": "C:\path\to\marketplace"},
     "installLocation": "C:\Users\Me\.claude\plugins\marketplaces\local-dev"
   }

2. Install a plugin: claude plugin install rlm@local-dev
3. Check ~/.claude/installed_plugins.json - plugin is listed ✓
4. Check ~/.claude/settings.json enabledPlugins - plugin is NOT listed ✗
5. Plugin hooks don't work until manually added to settings.json

Expected Behavior

Plugin should be auto-enabled in settings.json just like GitHub marketplace plugins.

Actual Behavior

Plugin is installed but not enabled. Manual edit required:

"enabledPlugins": {
  "rlm@local-dev": true
}

Environment

• Claude Code Version: v2.1.6
• OS: Windows

Workaround

Manually add plugin to settings.json after installation.

Impact

Plugins appear "installed" but don't function, causing confusion. Hooks silently fail to load without clear error messages.

[PCJones]

Not stale, just came here because I experienced the same problem. Thanks for the workaround

[mookechee]

Still experiencing this on Linux (Ubuntu, Claude Code latest as of March 2026).

My case is worse — the plugin is not written to installed_plugins.json either, not just missing from enabledPlugins.

Steps to reproduce:

1. Have a Git-based marketplace with multiple plugins (e.g., plugin-a and plugin-b in the same repo)
2. plugin-a was installed earlier and works fine (present in both installed_plugins.json and enabledPlugins)
3. Install plugin-b via /plugins — UI reports success
4. Restart Claude Code
5. plugin-b is not in installed_plugins.json, not in settings.json enabledPlugins, and the cache directory either doesn't exist or gets marked with .orphaned_at
6. Repeated install attempts all silently fail the same way

Additional observation: Clearing the orphaned cache (~/.claude/plugins/cache/<marketplace>/<plugin>/) and reinstalling still does not fix it — the plugin is never registered.

Workaround: Manually adding "plugin-b@marketplace": true to enabledPlugins in settings.json works. The plugin loads correctly from the marketplace directory after that.

Environment:

• OS: Linux (Ubuntu 24.04)
• Claude Code: latest (March 2026)

[github-actions]

Closing for now — inactive for too long. Please open a new issue if this is still relevant.

[github-actions]

This issue has been automatically locked since it was closed and has not had any activity for 7 days. If you're experiencing a similar issue, please file a new issue and reference this one if it's relevant.