discover_claude_sessions
Scan ~/.claude/projects for projects Claude Code has touched on this machine, decode each directory name back to its absolute path, and report which ones still exist plus session-file count and last activity. With add_as_subprojects=true, every existing project is registered as a subproject in on...
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What discover_claude_sessions does on Trace
AI agents call discover_claude_sessions to retrieve information from Trace without modifying anything. It is typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.
Why discover_claude_sessions is rated Low
Primary function is information retrieval—discovering and reporting on existing Claude projects and their metadata (path, session count, last activity). While the optional add_as_subprojects flag can register subprojects, this remains a Write-like metadata registration within the tool's own state management, not a destructive or risky external operation.
From the tool's definition Tool explicitly states it 'Reads local filesystem' and 'Scans ~/.claude/projects' to report on projects and sessions. The add_as_subprojects mutation is secondary and operates within the MCP topology store (creating references, not modifying external state).
Risk signalsBulk/mass operation — affects multiple targets
Attacks that exploit this kind of access
The rule that runs discover_claude_sessions safely
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway: it sits between your AI agents and Trace, and checks every tool call against a rule you set before the call runs. Nothing changes on the server itself. For discover_claude_sessions, this is the rule to start with:
discover_claude_sessions is read-only, so it stays allowed. Everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.
The button opens the PolicyLayer dashboard: create your workspace, connect Trace, apply this rule, and every discover_claude_sessions call is checked against it from then on.
Questions about discover_claude_sessions
Scan ~/.claude/projects for projects Claude Code has touched on this machine, decode each directory name back to its absolute path, and report which ones still exist plus session-file count and last activity. With add_as_subprojects=true, every existing project is registered as a subproject in one call — useful for spinning up multi-repo intelligence after a fresh clone. Reads local filesystem; with add_as_subprojects=true also mutates topology store. Returns JSON: { projects: [{ path, sessions, lastActivity }], total }. It is categorised as a Read tool in the Trace MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
Register the Trace MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for discover_claude_sessions: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches Trace. Nothing to install.
discover_claude_sessions is a Read tool with low risk. Read-only tools are generally safe to allow by default.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the discover_claude_sessions rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.
Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for discover_claude_sessions. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.
discover_claude_sessions is provided by the Trace MCP server (nikolai-vysotskyi/trace-mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
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