Status Line Percentage Fields — runtime test
Hands-on runtime battle-test of Status Line Percentage Fields. Result: INCONCLUSIVE.
Status Line Percentage Fields expose context window consumption as normalized percentages in the Claude Code status line.
What Was Tested
Claude Code 2.1.6 introduced two template variables for the status line: context_window.used_percentage and context_window.remaining_percentage. These complement existing raw token counters by normalizing context to 0-100 scale. The test scenario was to verify that template evaluation produces correct percentages when configured in statusLineTemplate settings.
Test Result: Inconclusive
Status: NOT RUNTIME TESTED. The feature was code-reviewed but not executed in the running environment. The test plan identified the setup requirement (configure statusLineTemplate with the percentage fields) and the success criterion (percentages appear correctly), but did not proceed to observation. No test data exists on whether the template variables resolve to valid numbers, whether they update correctly as context accumulates, or whether they maintain arithmetic consistency (used + remaining = 100).
Why It Matters
Percentages reduce cognitive load compared to raw token accounting. A user facing 2850/40000 tokens used must mentally divide to assess headroom; 7% used is immediate. For agents with tight context margins, at-a-glance percentage display surfaces warnings that might escape raw-token readout. This bridges observable context pressure and operator awareness.
Caveats
No runtime assertions exist. Edge cases remain unmapped: how percentage fields behave when context is exactly full, when timestamp or other updates occur mid-token-count read, or whether they maintain synch across concurrent status-line renders. Template syntax validation and model-specific ranges (Opus vs. Haiku context size differences) were assumed in design but not verified in execution.
Residue: Needs interactive runtime validation with a live Claude Code session running the configured template against actual token-usage scenarios.
Test Results: Status Line Percentage Fields
Feature: Added context_window.used_percentage and context_window.remaining_percentage fields to status line input
Tested: 2026-01-16 Version: 2.1.6 features on 2.1.9
Feature Description
New template variables for status line configuration:
context_window.used_percentage- How much of context window is used (0-100)context_window.remaining_percentage- How much remains (0-100)
These complement existing fields like context_window.total_tokens.
Test Result: NOT RUNTIME TESTED
Would need to:
- Configure status line template to use these fields
- Observe if percentages appear correctly
Expected Usage
In settings.json:
{
"statusLineTemplate": "{{context_window.used_percentage}}% used | {{context_window.remaining_percentage}}% free"
}
Use Cases
- Visual progress - See at a glance how full context is
- Warning thresholds - Easier to notice when approaching limits
- Simpler than tokens - Percentages more intuitive than raw token counts
Notes
Makes context window monitoring more accessible. Previously had to interpret raw token counts against model limits.
Status: CODE REVIEW (needs config to test)
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- verifies Status Line Percentage Fields Primitive