Claude Opus 4.6 Breaks CLAUDE.md File References

A significant regression has been reported in Claude Opus 4.6 affecting how the AI agent handles CLAUDE.md configuration files.

According to user reports on r/ClaudeAI, Claude Code on version 4.5 would automatically parse CLAUDE.md and follow all referenced files — including WORKFLOW.md, architecture documentation, coding standards in .CLAUDE/standards/, and other linked resources. The agent would load this context before generating code or making decisions.

On Opus 4.6, users observe:

• CLAUDE.md is sometimes read, but referenced files are not followed
• Standards, coding rules, license templates, and security hooks in linked files are ignored
• The agent proceeds without loading the context it was explicitly pointed to
• Users must manually instruct Claude to read each file, defeating the purpose of CLAUDE.md

One user specifically noted that their WORKFLOW.md — which defines sub-agent orchestration rules — is no longer automatically followed. On 4.5, Claude Code would spawn sub-agents according to these rules. On 4.6, it never does unless explicitly told.

This regression impacts users who rely on CLAUDE.md for project-wide configuration, coding standards enforcement, and automated workflows. The workaround is to manually reference each file in your prompts until Anthropic addresses the issue.