Claude Code CLI: OAuth token not auto-refreshed on headless server (refreshToken ignored)

[kubasiak]

Description

Claude Code CLI does not auto-refresh OAuth tokens when running on a headless Linux server (GCP VM). The .credentials.json file contains a valid refreshToken, but when the accessToken expires, the CLI returns a 401 instead of refreshing.

Steps to reproduce

1. Run claude login interactively on a server, authenticate via browser
2. Wait for accessToken to expire (~6 hours, expiresAt in .credentials.json)
3. Run claude -p "hello" --output-format stream-json --verbose --dangerously-skip-permissions
4. Expected: token auto-refreshes using refreshToken
5. Actual: 401 authentication_error "Invalid authentication credentials"

Environment

• Claude Code version: 2.1.114
• OS: Debian 12 (GCP e2-micro VM, headless, no X/display)
• .credentials.json has valid refreshToken and subscriptionType: "max"
• No browser available (headless server)

Context

Running Claude Code as a backend agent (called via -p mode from a FastAPI app). The CLI works perfectly when the token is fresh, but silently fails after expiry. Manual token refresh via the OAuth endpoint returns 403 (Cloudflare blocks non-browser requests).

Expected behavior

The CLI should auto-refresh the token using the refreshToken in .credentials.json, similar to how the interactive CLI handles it on desktop machines.

Workaround

Currently falling back to a different agent framework (Kenzan) when OAuth is expired, but this means losing access to Claude Code's full toolset (Read, Write, Edit, Bash).

[github-actions]

Found 3 possible duplicate issues:

1. OAuth token not persisted/refreshed for --print mode, breaks automation #37402
2. [BUG] OAuth token expiration disrupts autonomous workflows – refresh token handling needed #12447
3. OAuth refresh token not used when credentials are copied to remote/headless machines #21765

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[github-actions]

This issue has been automatically closed as a duplicate of #37402.

If this is incorrect, please re-open this issue or create a new one.

🤖 Generated with Claude Code

[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.