▍ what the claude — grouping, explained

Plain-language guide to turning a messy pile of folders into tidy “projects”. No jargon, promise.

What problem is this solving?

what the claude reads every Claude Code session you’ve had. Each session happened in a folder (a path like ~/dev/acme/api). By default, every folder is its own separate row on the calendar — so one real project that lives across a few folders gets scattered into several lines, and the time isn’t added up.

A “project” is just a label you stick on one or more folders so they share a colour and their time gets summed together. That’s the whole concept. Everything below is just a different way of sticking those labels on.

before — raw folders

~/dev/acme/api1h

~/dev/acme/web2h

~/dev/acme/infra20m

→

after — one project

acme3h 20m

api · web · infra, added up & one colour

Too lazy to read all this? (same)

Just do this: connect your folder, click ⊞ group folders → open the Auto-group tab → hit ✦ Apply. It guesses sensible projects for you. Rename anything that looks off, done. You can always change it later — nothing is permanent.

Everything else below is just other ways to do the exact same thing, for when you want more control.

The two ways — plus right-click anywhere

1Auto-group★ start here · zero effort

The app looks at your folder structure, guesses the projects for you, and shows them as cards. Tick the ones you like and Apply — or add each on its own. Need a different level? split drills into subfolders, and clicking a part of the path groups at that level.

✦ Apply cards start unchecked · check all / per-card add

☐ ● acme 2 dirs

☐ ● scout split ▸

☐ ○ notes weak guess

Best when: you’ve never set this up and just want something sensible fast. ● = confident, ○ = “check this one”. split deeper, click a path part to go shallower.

2Drag boardhands-on

A file tree of your folders on the left. Drag any folder into a project bucket on the right — drag a folder to group everything under it, or a single leaf for just that one. Drop on the dashed box to make a new project (its name is pre-filled).

FILE TREE

▾ dev

◧ acme/api

◧ acme/web

→

PROJECT

acme

drop here

Best when: you like sorting things into piles by hand. The tree + buckets each scroll on their own.

＋Right-click anywherealways on · no panel needed

Don’t even open the panel — right-click any block or the per-day project totals right on the calendar and fix it on the spot: “this is mis-labelled, group it now”. Works any time.

right-click a block →

Best when: most things are already right and you just want to fix the occasional stray while reading the calendar.

Where do my changes go? (do I lose them?)

No — they save automatically. There are three layers, from automatic to portable:

⟳Automatic

Every change is saved in your browser instantly. Close the tab, come back — it’s still there. Nothing to click.

⭳Export / Import

Download your grouping as a config.json file to back it up or move it to another computer/browser.

⊓Save to disk

Write what-the-claude.config.json straight into your folder (one permission click). This is the same file the app reads back on reload.

All three are buttons at the bottom of the grouping panel. The “Automatic” one needs no action — it’s always on.

How to open it

Open the dashboard and click ＋ connect ~/.claude/projects, then choose that folder. (It’s hidden on Mac — use the ⧉ copy path button + ⌘⇧G.)
Click ⊞ group folders in the top bar.
Lazy? Auto-group → Apply. Prefer dragging? Use the Drag board. Or skip the panel entirely and right-click a block on the calendar.
Watch the calendar re-colour live. Change your mind anytime; it’s never permanent.