Is pxpipe mitm (PR #42) still wanted? I have a working Windows port

[DivyeshPatro]

Hi — before I open a PR I want to check the feature is still wanted, since
#42 (the mitm CONNECT-proxy for Claude Desktop) was closed .

What I'm asking

1. Was feat(mitm): transparent Fable compression for Claude Desktop (CONNECT proxy) #42 closed because the transparent-MITM approach was rejected on principle,
   or just parked / superseded? If the approach itself is a no-go, I'll stop here.
2. If it's still of interest, would you accept a Windows support PR built on
   top of that branch?

What I have

A working Windows implementation of the mitm mode, verified end-to-end against
a real Claude Desktop (Code tab) session on Windows 11:

• CA + leaf minted with node-forge on win32 (no openssl — it isn't present
  by default there, and Git-for-Windows' MSYS openssl silently mangles
  -subj "/CN=..."). macOS/Linux openssl path left byte-for-byte unchanged.
• Task Scheduler (schtasks /Create … /SC ONLOGON) as the launchd-keepalive
  equivalent, gated to win32.
• Test-isolation fixes so the suite runs on Windows (os.homedir() reads
  USERPROFILE, not HOME).

One caveat I want to be upfront about

On the newer "Cowork"/agent build of Claude Desktop, the app rewrites
~/.claude/settings.json on its own schedule, which wipes the injected
HTTPS_PROXY / NODE_EXTRA_CA_CERTS block. Interception works perfectly while
the patch is in place (confirmed compressed Fable 5 /v1/messages at 200), but
the install isn't durable on that variant without re-patching. Happy to discuss
whether that's a blocker or acceptable-with-docs.

Repo owner's call — I don't want to spend effort polishing a PR for a feature
that's intentionally shelved. Thanks!

[teamchong]

Honest answer: I don't run Windows anywhere, so I can't test or maintain a Windows-specific path. it'd rot the first time something shifts and I couldn't tell. So I don't want it in core.

What I'll do instead: add a "Related projects" section to the README and link your version there.

[DivyeshPatro]

Totally fair - not maintaining a platform you can't test is the right call, and I'd rather own the Windows path than have it rot silently in your tree. Thanks for offering to link it.

Here's the fork: https://github.com/DivyeshPatro/pxpipe-windows

It's your mitm branch with one additive commit for Windows — openssl swapped for node-forge on win32 (Git-for-Windows' openssl mangles -subj, so shelling out isn't reliable there), a schtasks autostart in place of the launchd agent, and test-isolation fixes for USERPROFILE. The macOS/Linux paths are untouched — every Windows branch is behind a process.platform === 'win32' gate. I've wired your repo as upstream and documented a rebase-on-upstream workflow in MAINTAINING.md, so I can pull your changes forward without dragging you into Windows issues.

The settings.json-rewrite caveat I mentioned is documented up front in WINDOWS.md — it's a Desktop-side behavior, not something the proxy can fix, and I'd rather users know than get surprised. Appreciate the pointer to your repo — happy to be listed whenever you get to that README section.

If it's easier for you, I'm happy to send a tiny PR adding it to a "Related projects" section — just say the word and I'll keep it to a single link line. Otherwise no rush, whenever you get to it. Thanks again!

[DivyeshPatro]

Went ahead and drafted the Related-projects link as a one-click PR to save you the effort: #108. Docs-only, single line — merge or close as you like, no pressure given the maintenance notice. Thanks again!

[Artemonim]

Independent confirmation: the Windows MITM approach works end-to-end with the current Claude Desktop Code tab and pxpipe 0.9.0.

In this setup, Desktop-managed ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL remains untouched. A localhost-only CONNECT front-end is configured with HTTPS_PROXY, NODE_EXTRA_CA_CERTS, and NO_PROXY; it TLS-terminates exactly api.anthropic.com:443, forwards decrypted requests into pxpipe, and raw-tunnels all other CONNECT targets. pxpipe events and compression appear in the dashboard after a full Desktop restart.

This is another data point that the direction from #42 is viable on Windows and worth maintaining upstream. The durable-install caveat is real: Desktop may rewrite ~/.claude/settings.json, so an upstream installer should check and repair its proxy entries.

Verified implementation; this comment was written by Codex GPT-5.6 Terra.