Our review
Diagnose and manage Samara.app, the message broker connecting iMessage to Claude, including checking status, viewing logs, restarting, and verifying Full Disk Access.
Strengths
- Provides clear commands to check if Samara is running and view logs.
- Offers specific steps to verify and restore Full Disk Access after updates.
- Includes a diagnostic report checklist for systematic troubleshooting.
Limitations
- Only works on macOS systems with Samara.app installed.
- Requires familiarity with command-line and macOS permissions.
- The rebuild section warns against certain methods but does not automate the rebuild process.
Use when iMessage messages are not being detected by Claude, Samara has crashed, or after a macOS update that may have revoked Full Disk Access.
Not suitable for general iMessage troubleshooting unrelated to Samara, or for users who prefer GUI-based management.
Security analysis
SafeThe skill uses Bash for process management and file checks, but does not instruct any destructive, exfiltrating, or obfuscated actions. It references local helper scripts that appear to be safety measures (blocking DerivedData copy). No sensitive data is exposed or transmitted.
No concerns found
Examples
Check if Samara is running and show recent logs.Restart Samara.app because messages are not being detected.I think Full Disk Access for Samara was revoked after an update. Check it and fix if needed.name: samara description: Debug, check, or restart Samara.app - the message broker. Use when messages aren't being detected, Samara crashed, need to view logs, check Full Disk Access, or restart the app. Trigger words: samara, messages not working, restart, logs, FDA, broker. context: fork allowed-tools:
- Bash
- Read
- Grep
- Glob
- Write
hooks:
PreToolUse:
- matcher: "Bash"
hooks:
- type: command command: "/Users/claude/Developer/samara-main/.claude/hooks/block-deriveddata-copy.sh" timeout: 5
- matcher: "Bash"
hooks:
Samara Debug and Control
Diagnose and manage Samara.app, the message broker that connects iMessage to Claude.
Quick Actions
Check if Running
pgrep -fl Samara
ps aux | grep -i [S]amara
View Recent Logs
# Samara's own logs
tail -50 ~/.claude-mind/logs/samara.log 2>/dev/null
# System logs for Samara
log show --predicate 'process == "Samara"' --last 5m 2>/dev/null | tail -30
Restart Samara
# Kill if running
pkill -f Samara
# Wait a moment
sleep 2
# Relaunch
open /Applications/Samara.app
Tip: This sequence is a good candidate for the Bash subagent (Task tool with subagent_type=Bash) to avoid polluting context with intermediate steps.
Check Full Disk Access
# This will work if FDA is granted
ls ~/Library/Messages/chat.db && echo "FDA: OK" || echo "FDA: MISSING"
# Check code signature (Team ID must be stable)
codesign -d -r- /Applications/Samara.app 2>&1 | head -5
Common Issues
Messages Not Being Detected
- Check Samara is running
- Check FDA is intact
- Check chat.db is readable
- Look for errors in logs
Samara Crashed
- Check system logs for crash reason
- Restart with
open /Applications/Samara.app - If repeated crashes, may need rebuild
FDA Revoked After Update
This happens if Team ID changed during rebuild:
# Check current signature - MUST show G4XVD3J52J
codesign -d -r- /Applications/Samara.app 2>&1 | grep "subject.OU"
# If shows 7V9XLQ8YNQ or any other team: WRONG CERTIFICATE USED
# Must rebuild properly and re-grant FDA
Rebuild Samara
CRITICAL: ONLY use the update-samara script. NEVER copy from DerivedData.
A Claude instance previously broke FDA by copying a Debug build from
~/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/. This used automatic signing which picked the WRONG certificate and revoked all permissions.
The ONLY correct way to rebuild:
~/.claude-mind/bin/update-samara
FORBIDDEN (will break FDA):
cp -R ~/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/.../Samara.app /Applications/xcodebuild -configuration Debugfor deployment- Any manual copy of Samara.app to /Applications
Verify after rebuild:
codesign -d -r- /Applications/Samara.app 2>&1 | grep "subject.OU"
# Must show: G4XVD3J52J
# If shows: 7V9XLQ8YNQ - WRONG! FDA will be revoked
Diagnostic Report
When troubleshooting, gather:
- Is Samara running?
- FDA status
- Recent log errors
- Last successful message detection
- Code signature validity
Present findings clearly with recommended actions.
Related Skills
For specific issues, use these specialized skills:
/diagnose-leaks— Debug thinking traces or session IDs leaking into messages/debug-session— Debug session management, batching, and task routing/status— Quick system health check
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