Qwen Code 0.25.3 preview expands managed sessions and Web Shell files
Updated Qwen Code
Summary
The October 16 preview adds managed-session workflow changes, read-only snapshot children and Web Shell file actions; it is not the stable release channel.
- Tool
- Qwen Code
- Category
- Coding agents
- Date
- Open source
- Yes
- License
- Apache-2.0
- Pricing
- Not stated in the sources we cited.
QwenLM published Qwen Code v0.25.3-preview.0 on October 16, 2026. GitHub explicitly marks it as a prerelease. Readers looking for stable software should not mistake this preview for a general stable upgrade.
Managed sessions
The release notes add read-only snapshot children, static Skills and extension configuration, and resident Workspace file sessions. They also describe integrating Managed sessions into the Web Shell home workflow and displaying live trajectory executions.
Lifecycle fixes include stopping a child's running turn when the parent closes and bounding retry loops with terminal states. These are reported implementation changes, not a guarantee that every interrupted task can recover automatically.
Web Shell changes
The preview adds workspace-file access from the chat header, file creation, confirmed file-tree deletion and side-task archive controls. It also fixes touch scrolling for dialogs opened over the mobile drawer and can display response token rate when enabled.
A separately listed change adds Shell Full Access and session approval switching. That is a permission-related capability, not a recommendation to remove approvals or grant broad access.
What is and is not included
The source at this tag is Apache-2.0 licensed. The software license does not imply free hosted execution or model calls. The notes add QwenCloud as the first authentication entry, but do not establish a universal free allowance for it.
This report summarizes the named preview release. It does not duplicate the parallel nightly build as a second launch and does not claim the preview was tested on a production repository.
See Qwen Code and the earlier 0.25.1 release for context.
Alternatives
| Tool | License | Pricing note |
|---|---|---|
Qwen CodeThis launchAn open-source AI coding agent that lives in your terminal to turn ideas into code. | Apache-2.0 | Not stated |
ClineApache-2.0 coding agent published as an SDK, IDE extension, or CLI assistant in the cline/cline repository. | Apache-2.0 | The repository license is Apache-2.0. Model access is separate. |
AiderApache-2.0 terminal pair programmer. The project describes Aider as AI pair programming in your terminal. | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 software. Model access is separate. |
OpenCodeOpen-source coding agent from the anomalyco/opencode repository, MIT-licensed, with a terminal client and a site at opencode.ai. | MIT | The client is MIT-licensed. Model access is separate; this page does not quote a hosted plan. |
More from Qwen Code
Qwen Code 0.25.1 adds background shells and side tasks
Qwen CodeQwen Code 0.25.1 introduces durable background shells, Web Shell side tasks, and an experimental Kubernetes CSI-backed runtime for managed sessions.
Category: Coding agents
Pricing: Open source
Questions
What is Qwen Code?
According to the official documentation and repository description, Qwen Code is an open-source agentic coding tool that runs in your terminal and helps turn ideas into code.
Is Qwen Code open source?
Yes, according to the GitHub repository, Qwen Code is open source under the Apache-2.0 license.
Which model providers can Qwen Code use?
According to the overview documentation, Qwen Code can connect to Alibaba ModelStudio (via Token Plan or API key), third-party providers such as DeepSeek, MiniMax, Z.AI, Kimi, and OpenRouter with an API key, or custom local servers and proxies.
Filed on Agent Radar. Claims in this note are limited to the sources above.