claude-scrollback

A lightweight viewer for Claude Code session transcripts. Converts .jsonl session files into readable, interactive HTML — with a built-in server for browsing and a static site generator for archiving.

Pure python, no dependencies to install.

Live demo →

Install

pip (recommended)

pip install claude-scrollback

from source:

git clone https://github.com/alexdej/claude-scrollback
pip install -e claude-scrollback/

Or use generator.py standalone:

git clone https://github.com/alexdej/claude-scrollback
python claude-scrollback/claude_scrollback/generator.py <dir>

Usage

Quick start

Installation installs a claude-scrollback command.

# Browse all your Claude Code sessions (uses ~/.claude/projects/ automatically)
claude-scrollback view

# Browse sessions for the current Claude Code project directory
claude-scrollback view .

# Browse sessions for a specific project
claude-scrollback view ~/projects/myapp

# View a single session file
claude-scrollback view path/to/session.jsonl

All directory modes start a local server and open your browser automatically.

claude-scrollback is the command installed by pip install claude-scrollback. If you're running from a clone without installing, use python -m claude_scrollback in place of claude-scrollback throughout. Add a shell alias if you want something shorter:

alias sb='claude-scrollback'

Subcommands

claude-scrollback view [path] [-p PORT] [-n]
claude-scrollback show [uuid]
claude-scrollback generate [path] [-o OUTDIR]

view      start a local server and open the session browser
show      find and open a session by UUID
generate  generate static HTML from session files

view

claude-scrollback view                        # all projects, port 8080, opens browser
claude-scrollback view . -p 9000             # current project, custom port
claude-scrollback view . -n                  # start server without opening browser
claude-scrollback view session.jsonl         # convert single file, open in browser

Options: -p/--port PORT (default: 8080), -n/--no-open

show

Find a session by UUID and open it in the browser. Searches ~/.claude/projects/ automatically.

claude-scrollback show abc123de-f456-7890-abcd-ef1234567890

# Pipe in any text containing UUIDs — all matching sessions are opened
git log --format="%B" | claude-scrollback show
git show HEAD | claude-scrollback show

generate

Generate a static HTML site from session files.

claude-scrollback generate                        # all projects -> ./_site/
claude-scrollback generate . -o ~/my-archive/    # current project, custom output dir
claude-scrollback generate session.jsonl          # single file -> session.html

Options: -o/--out-dir DIR (default: _site/)

Path resolution

When you pass a project directory (like .), scrollback maps it to the corresponding Claude Code sessions folder automatically. Claude Code stores sessions under ~/.claude/projects/ with the project path encoded as the directory name (colons, slashes, and backslashes replaced with -):

~/projects/myapp        ->  ~/.claude/projects/-home-you-projects-myapp/
~/work/another-project  ->  ~/.claude/projects/-home-you-work-another-project/

If the path you give already contains .jsonl files (directly or in subdirectories), it's used as-is.

What it renders

Each session page shows:

• Human messages and Claude responses in distinct styled bubbles
• Tool calls (Read, Edit, Bash, Glob, Write, etc.) collapsible with full inputs
• Tool results collapsible, truncated for large outputs
• Thinking blocks collapsible when present
• Context compaction markers when Claude Code summarised the context mid-session
• API errors (rate limits, auth failures) surfaced inline
• Token usage per response
• Session metadata: working directory, git branch, start/end time, message and tool call counts
• Resume command — one click copies cd <project> and claude --resume <session-id> to clipboard

The index page lists all sessions sorted newest-first with a live filter box and per-session metadata pills.

Note: Session transcripts include everything shown to Claude during the conversation — file contents, command output, environment details, and more. Review before sharing or publishing.

Linking sessions to commits

Include the session ID as a git trailer when committing AI-assisted work:

Fix authentication token refresh race condition

Claude-Session: abc123de-f456-7890-abcd-ef1234567890

The session ID is shown in the metadata card on each session page with a copy button. The resume command (also one-click copyable) lets you pick up the conversation right where it left off.

To find and open sessions referenced in your git log:

# Open all Claude-sessions from recent history
git log --format="%B" | claude-scrollback show

# Open the session from a specific commit
git show <commit> | claude-scrollback show

# Or open a session directly by UUID
claude-scrollback show <uuid>

Session directory layout

Claude Code organises sessions by project under ~/.claude/projects/:

~/.claude/projects/
  -home-you-projects-myapp/
    abc123.jsonl
    def456.jsonl
  -home-you-work-another-project/
    ...

scrollback handles both flat directories (one project) and nested trees (all projects).

Example sessions

The example/projects/ directory contains synthetic sessions demonstrating the viewer across different scenarios. To browse them:

claude-scrollback view example/projects/

Requirements

Python 3.8+, standard library only.