App-level Codex Assistant for Help, Worktree State, and Operational Explanation - AKA the Shoemakers Children Shoes Never get done

Feature Request: Add an App-Level Codex Assistant for Help, State, and Operational Explanation

Summary

Codex Desktop needs an app-level assistant that explains Codex itself.

Today, Codex is excellent at working inside a project, repo, thread, worktree, or cloud task. But there is no clear place to ask Codex questions about the Codex app, its state, its settings, its worktree behavior, or why it changed the local filesystem.

This creates confusion when Codex performs powerful local actions such as creating Git worktrees, creating sibling folders, changing branches, or generating artifacts.

Problem

Codex currently centers the user experience around projects and threads.

That works for code execution.

It does not work well for app-level understanding.

Examples of questions the user should be able to ask inside Codex Desktop:

• Why did Codex create these folders?
• Which Codex task created this worktree?
• Where is CODEX_HOME resolved?
• Where are my Codex-managed worktrees?
• Which folders are local checkouts, linked worktrees, clones, or non-Git folders?
• Which branch is each worktree using?
• Which worktrees have uncommitted changes?
• Which worktrees are safe to remove?
• Which worktree maps back to which thread?
• What does this “What’s New” item mean for my workflow?
• Why is this Codex change interesting to me based on my usage?

The current experience makes the user leave Codex, use ChatGPT in a browser, read documentation, inspect Git manually, and run PowerShell commands.

That breaks trust.

Requested Feature

Add a global “Ask Codex About Codex” assistant inside the Codex Desktop app.

This assistant should exist outside any single project or thread.

It should answer questions about:

• Codex app behavior
• local settings
• CODEX_HOME
• trusted projects
• local environments
• worktree locations
• project-to-worktree relationships
• branch and HEAD state
• dirty files
• task history
• Codex-created artifacts
• recent changes from “What’s New”
• cleanup recommendations

Required Capabilities

1. App-Level Help Chat

Add a help/chat box at the Codex application level, not only inside a project.

The user should be able to ask:

Why are there five ArticleMngrSLN folders beside my original folder?

Codex should answer with local context, not generic documentation.

2. Worktree State Inspector

Codex should show a table like:

| Folder | Type | Branch | HEAD | Dirty Files | Created By | Thread | Safe To Remove |
|---|---|---|---|---:|---|---|---|
| ArticleMngrSLN | Local checkout | main | abc123 | 0 | User | n/a | No |
| ArticleMngrSLN-session-governance-spec | Codex worktree | detached | def456 | 3 | Codex | Thread name | No |
| ArticleMngrSLN-prod-6151d8f | Codex worktree | detached | 6151d8f | 0 | Codex | Thread name | Yes |

3. Explain Before Acting

Before creating a visible local worktree outside a hidden or configured Codex worktree location, Codex should explain:

• where the folder will be created
• why it needs a worktree
• whether it will create a sibling folder
• which branch or detached HEAD it will use
• how the user will merge or discard the result

4. Cleanup Plan

Codex should provide a safe cleanup plan.

It should separate:

• clean worktrees
• dirty worktrees
• branches with unmerged commits
• detached worktrees with uncommitted changes
• folders that are not managed by Codex

Codex should never make the user guess which folder contains important work.

5. “What’s New” Personalization

The “What’s New” experience should not only link to raw change records or documentation.

It should explain:

• what changed
• why it matters
• who it affects
• what action the user should take
• how it affects current projects, settings, worktrees, or workflows

Example:

This matters to you because you use local worktrees. Codex now creates managed worktrees under this location. Your current setup has existing sibling worktrees outside that location. Review them here.

Why This Matters

Codex has local execution power.

It creates files, edits code, creates worktrees, runs commands, and changes local development state.

A user should not need external tools to understand what Codex did.

When the app creates multiple folders beside a project, the user needs an immediate explanation inside the app.

Without this, Codex feels less agentic. It performs actions but does not maintain an understandable operational model for the user.

Expected Outcome

Codex Desktop should include an app-level assistant that explains Codex behavior using live local context.

The user should be able to ask Codex:

What did you create, where is it, why did you create it, and what should I do next?

And Codex should answer from actual app state, Git state, worktree state, and task history.

Acceptance Criteria

• Codex Desktop includes an app-level help assistant outside project/thread scope.
• The assistant has read access to Codex app settings and worktree metadata.
• The assistant identifies Codex-managed worktrees and maps them to threads or tasks.
• The assistant shows branch, HEAD, dirty file count, and merge/discard status.
• The assistant explains “What’s New” items in user workflow terms.
• The assistant provides safe cleanup recommendations.
• The assistant distinguishes between Codex-managed folders, Git worktrees, normal clones, and non-Git folders.
• Codex warns before creating visible sibling worktree folders beside a user’s project.