Force Console Tuned

Restrict Claude Code authentication to Anthropic Console accounts only, ensuring all usage is billed through the API billing system.

When to Use This Setting

Apply this setting when you need to:

• Route all Claude Code usage through Anthropic Console for centralized API-based billing and usage tracking
• Prevent team members from using personal Claude.ai subscriptions for work-related coding tasks
• Maintain clear separation between personal and organizational AI usage for accounting purposes

Consider alternatives when:

• Your team prefers subscription-based billing through Claude.ai accounts
• You need to support mixed authentication methods for different user roles

Quick Start

Configuration

Copy
name: force-console-tuned
type: setting
category: authentication

Example Application

Copy
claude setting:apply force-console-tuned

Example Output

Setting applied successfully. Configuration changes:
- forceLoginMethod: console
- Authentication: Anthropic Console only
- Claude.ai login: disabled

Core Concepts

Console Authentication Overview

Aspect	Details
Method	Anthropic Console API key login
Billing	Usage-based API billing
Claude.ai Access	Blocked at login prompt
Cost Tracking	Per-token metering via Console
Organization	Multi-seat Console workspace

Console Login Architecture

┌──────────────┐     ┌──────────────────┐
│  Claude Code │────>│  Auth Gateway    │
│  Login       │     │                  │
│              │     │  forceLoginMethod │
│              │     │  = "console"     │
│              │     │                  │
│              │     │  Console ─── OK  │
│              │     │  Claude.ai ─ NO  │
│              │     │                  │
└──────────────┘     │  ┌────────────┐  │
                     │  │ API Key    │  │
                     │  │ Validated  │──>│ Billing
                     │  └────────────┘  │ Dashboard
                     └──────────────────┘

Configuration

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
forceLoginMethod	string	none	Set to "console" to restrict to Console
apiKeyValidation	boolean	true	Validate API key format on login
billingWorkspace	string	default	Console workspace for billing attribution
usageAlerts	boolean	false	Enable usage threshold notifications
maxTokensPerSession	number	unlimited	Optional per-session token spending cap

Best Practices

1. Distribute API Keys Securely - Use your organization's secret management system to distribute Console API keys to developers. Never share keys through email, chat, or version control. Consider using the apiKeyHelper setting alongside this one for automated key distribution.

2. Set Usage Budgets Per Team - Configure workspace-level budgets in the Anthropic Console to prevent runaway costs. Each team or project should have its own API key with appropriate spending limits to maintain cost accountability.

3. Track Per-Developer Usage - Issue individual API keys to each developer rather than sharing a single team key. This provides granular usage analytics in the Console dashboard and helps identify optimization opportunities.

4. Rotate Keys Regularly - Establish a quarterly key rotation schedule. Update the distributed keys through your secret management system and invalidate old keys promptly to maintain security hygiene.

5. Configure Fallback Behavior - Define what happens when API quota is exhausted: either block Claude Code entirely or fall back to a rate-limited mode. Clear fallback behavior prevents developer confusion during quota exceeded situations.

Common Issues

1. API key format rejected - Console API keys follow a specific format starting with "sk-ant-". Ensure developers are using Console API keys and not Claude.ai session tokens, which have a different format.

2. Unexpected billing spikes - Without per-session limits, intensive coding sessions can consume significant tokens. Enable usage alerts in the Console and consider setting maxTokensPerSession as a safety net.

3. New team members cannot authenticate - New developers need Console workspace invitations before they can generate API keys. Streamline onboarding by including Console access provisioning in your developer setup checklist.