Claude Code Invoke Once

Quick start (shell)

One-shot (machine-readable JSON):

claude -p "Summarize this repo" --output-format json

If you use a Claude wrapper (executable, .sh, or shell alias), substitute it for claude (example: claude-wrapper -p ...).

Streaming progress/events (JSONL):

claude -p "Explain recursion" --output-format stream-json --verbose --include-partial-messages

Persist multi-turn state and resume later (deterministic automation):

session_id="$(claude -p "Start a review" --output-format json | jq -r '.session_id')"
claude -p "Continue that review" --resume "$session_id" --output-format json

Heartbeats and deadlines

• For long-running work, prefer streaming (--output-format stream-json, optionally with --include-partial-messages) so stdout emits a steady heartbeat (one JSON object per line).
• Do not add timeouts or terminate the Claude process while it is still working unless one of these applies: (1) the user explicitly requested a deadline (for example: "up to 5 minutes"), (2) the process is clearly stalled, or (3) the process is in an error state (for example: lost connection, timeout, invalid API key, non-zero exit failure).
• Do not interrupt simply because intermediate output appears to drift from the prompt; let Claude run to normal completion and evaluate the final result afterward.

Workflow decision

1. Need a single final answer: use --output-format json and parse .result.
2. Need realtime progress: use --output-format stream-json and parse one JSON object per stdout line.
3. Need multi-turn state: persist .session_id and call --resume <session_id> for subsequent turns (prefer over --continue in automation).

Session handling (must follow)

• If the user provides a session_id, always use --resume <session_id> for the next Claude Code call.
• If the user says “continue latest chat”, “continue last chat”, or similar, use the most recently captured session_id from this conversation.
• If the user does not provide a session_id and does not explicitly request a continuation, determine from context whether they want to persist the previous Claude session. If unclear, start a new session.

Example prompts (to trigger this skill)

• “Use Claude Code to make a review report of src/ and tests/.”
• “Use Claude Code to look into the issue of: <paste error/log>.”
• “Use Claude Code to make an implementation plan for: <feature/PRD>.”

Integration rules (don’t skip)

• Treat stdout as the machine channel; treat stderr as diagnostics.
• Assume output schemas can evolve; parse defensively and avoid hard-coding event keys.
• Store the returned session_id if you will send follow-up prompts in a later process/run.

Credentials (optional)

Ensure your chosen Claude command can authenticate in your environment (for example by exporting env vars or sourcing an env file before running the command).

Resources

• Full guide: references/howto-control-claude-code-programmatically.md