Codex Desktop: stable deep link or app-server API to open a local conversation by ID

Open 💬 1 comment Opened May 8, 2026 by killmidi

What feature would you like to see?

Please expose a stable way for local tools to open a specific Codex Desktop conversation by conversation ID.

Useful forms could include one or more of:

codex://local/<conversationId>
codex://open?conversationId=<id>&cwd=<path>

or an authenticated local app-server method such as:

openConversation(conversationId)

Problem

External local task managers and personal operating systems need to link work items back to the exact Codex thread where the work is happening.

Today, Codex Desktop appears to have internal local conversation routing, but there does not appear to be a documented public contract for external apps to safely invoke that route. The result is that local systems can store raw session files and companion notes, but cannot reliably bring the user back into the correct Codex conversation from a task surface.

Use case

I am building a local-first command center that tracks tasks, communications, project state, and long-running Codex work sessions. Each task needs to preserve:

  • the task context,
  • the associated project/workspace,
  • the Codex conversation ID,
  • the durable Markdown bridge file,
  • the raw Codex session path when available,
  • and a one-click way to resume the exact Codex thread.

The critical missing piece is the final one-click resume action.

Why this matters

As Codex becomes a multi-agent work surface, users will accumulate many active and historical conversations. Without stable conversation deep links, it becomes hard to treat Codex threads as durable work objects from external systems.

A stable deep link or app-server API would let tools build reliable workflows around Codex without relying on reverse-engineered internals, raw JSONL files, or manual search inside the Codex UI.

Suggested acceptance criteria

A minimal version would allow:

  • an external local app to open Codex Desktop,
  • navigate to a known local conversation ID,
  • fail gracefully if the conversation no longer exists,
  • avoid exposing secrets or raw session content in the URL.

A stronger version would also support:

  • opening a conversation in a specific workspace/cwd,
  • creating a new conversation from a supplied task file or prompt,
  • returning a stable conversation ID when a new Codex Desktop conversation is created from another local app.

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