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To try another solution while keeping your current conversation, fork the session: in Claude Code, run /branch in the active session or resume a saved session with claude --resume <session-id> --fork-session. In Codex, type /fork in the current chat, or run codex fork to choose a saved session.
What a session fork keeps—and what it does not
A fork creates a separate conversation history so you can continue exploring an alternative without changing the original transcript. It does not, by itself, create a separate copy of your project files or isolate code changes. Conversation history and the working tree are separate concerns.
If you plan to make changes in parallel, arrange filesystem isolation separately. Anthropic recommends running multiple concurrent Claude Code sessions in their own Git worktrees. Depending on your setup, separate worktrees or branches can help keep concurrent coding tasks apart.
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Fork a Claude Code session
Branch the conversation you have open
- In the active Claude Code session, enter
/branch. - Continue in the new branch of the conversation with your alternative approach. The starting session remains available.
Fork a saved session from the CLI
- Find the session ID you want to resume.
- Run
claude --resume <session-id> --fork-session, replacing<session-id>with that ID. - Continue in the new session created from the saved conversation.
Use /branch when you are already in the conversation; use the CLI command when you want to resume and fork a saved session. Anthropic’s Agent SDK also supports creating a fork from a selected message ID, rather than necessarily including the entire source transcript; that is an SDK capability, not a required step in the interactive workflow.
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Fork a Codex session
Fork the current chat
- In the current Codex chat, enter
/fork. - Continue in the new chat. Codex gives it a fresh ID and leaves the original transcript untouched.
Fork a saved chat from the CLI
- Run
codex forkto open the session picker, then select the chat you want to fork. - To skip the picker and fork the most recent chat, run
codex fork --last. - To target a particular saved chat, provide its session ID to
codex fork.
The picker normally shows sessions associated with the current working directory. Add --all to include sessions beyond that directory in the picker.
Choose the right command
| Tool | Conversation location | How to fork | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Code | Current interactive session | /branch |
Starts a separate conversation branch; the original remains available. |
| Claude Code | Saved session | claude --resume <session-id> --fork-session |
Resumes the selected session as a new session. |
| Codex | Current chat | /fork |
Creates a new chat with a fresh ID and leaves the original transcript untouched. |
| Codex | Saved chat | codex fork, codex fork --last, or a session ID |
Opens the picker, forks the latest chat, or targets the specified saved chat. |
These commands fork conversation history, not the project’s files. If both lines of work will edit the same checkout, those edits can still affect the same files; use a separate worktree or another isolation method when you need parallel code changes to stay apart.
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Official documentation
- Anthropic: Claude Code session management
- Anthropic: Agent SDK sessions
- OpenAI: Codex CLI reference
- OpenAI: Codex documentation
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