What is the desk in a Tares software factory for Claude Code and how do I clear it?

The desk in a Tares software factory for Claude Code is the list of questions the crew is waiting on you to answer. Read them in full with tares factory crew desk, then answer them in the orchestrator’s session, one at a time. Each question comes with a recommendation, so you can often confirm it or adjust it in a sentence.

How it works

The crew is a set of Claude Code sessions running in the background on your machine: an orchestrator, a reviewer and builders, plus a releaser if you ask for one. The orchestrator is the only session you talk to. When the crew reaches a decision that is really yours, it does not guess. It records a question on Tares and the question joins your desk.

• One desk for every project. The crew works on all your projects at the same time. Questions from every project reach you in the orchestrator’s session, one at a time.
• Each question has a recommendation. You see what the crew would do, so you can agree or change course.
• Other work carries on. While one project waits for you, the others keep going.
• Your answers are kept. Tares stores the questions and your answers in your own words. If the sessions restart, the crew carries on from the record.

A single project can also be set to wait for your yes before every merge, even when the rest of the crew merges on its own. See Build a software factory with Claude Code for how the crew is laid out.

Set it up

1. Make sure the crew is running. If it is not, start it with tares factory crew up.

2. See what is waiting. The status command shows the stations, the questions for you and a line per project:

   tares factory crew status

3. Read the desk. This prints the questions waiting for you, each in full:

   tares factory crew desk

4. Open the orchestrator in your terminal to answer:

   tares factory crew attach orchestrator

5. Answer each question as it appears. The orchestrator asks one at a time and gives a recommendation with each. Reply in your own words. You can accept the recommendation or say something different.

6. Run tares factory crew desk again to confirm it is empty. Once a question is answered, the crew picks the work back up.

You can also watch from the Crew page of the Tares console. It shows the question waiting for you at the top, then the stations, each open project with its builders, and the pull requests waiting for review.

If something looks wrong, such as no questions arriving or a station not responding, run tares factory doctor to check everything the crew needs.

What you get

• A short, clear list of what needs you. You are pulled in only for decisions that are really yours, not to watch terminals.
• One place to answer. Every project’s questions arrive in the orchestrator’s session, so you do not switch between sessions.
• Faster decisions. Each question comes with a recommendation, so many answers are a quick yes.
• A durable record. Your answers are stored on Tares in your own words, next to the plan, the tickets, the reviews and the assumptions the crew made. A restarted crew does not ask again.
• Progress that keeps moving. Projects that are not waiting on you keep building while you answer.

When something else fits

The desk fits best when you hand a project to the crew and want to step in only for decisions. Other commands fit other situations:

• You want to drive one project yourself. Use tares factory session to work on a project in your own Claude Code session. If the crew has the project, the session asks whether to take it over, and the crew stops only if you say yes.
• You want to stop everything for a moment. Use tares factory crew halt with a reason to stop merges, pushes and new sessions until you run tares factory crew resume.
• You want to see overall progress, not questions. Use tares factory projects for every project handed to the crew, with its progress, builders and repos.
• You decide a project is done. Use tares factory finish to mark it done yourself.

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