Codex Desktop Windows: node_repl/js fails before execution with missing sandboxPolicy metadata

Resolved 💬 4 comments Opened Jun 20, 2026 by Maxwin14 Closed Aug 6, 2026

💡 Likely answer: A maintainer (github-actions[bot], contributor) responded on this thread — see the highlighted reply below.

What version of the Codex App are you using (From “About Codex” dialog)?

26.616.5445.0

What subscription do you have?

Plus

What platform is your computer?

Windows_NT, Windows PowerShell 5.1, x64

What issue are you seeing?

Codex Desktop Computer Use / browser tools fail on Windows before execution.

Error:

Mcp error: -32602:
js: codex/sandbox-state-meta: missing field `sandboxPolicy`

I also tested node_repl/js directly. The tool is exposed in the session, but execution fails before JavaScript runs because the required sandboxPolicy metadata is missing.

Environment:

Codex Desktop: 26.616.5445.0
Codex CLI: 0.141.0
OS: Windows_NT
Shell: Windows PowerShell 5.1
Mode: Windows native / PowerShell
WSL: disabled
runCodexInWindowsSubsystemForLinux = false
Windows sandbox = unelevated

What I verified:

[desktop]
runCodexInWindowsSubsystemForLinux = false

[windows]
sandbox = "unelevated"

[plugins."browser@openai-bundled"]
enabled = true

[plugins."chrome@openai-bundled"]
enabled = true

[plugins."computer-use@openai-bundled"]
enabled = true

I already tried:

- Updated Codex CLI to 0.141.0
- Ran Windows sandbox setup successfully
- Confirmed native Windows / PowerShell mode
- Confirmed WSL environment variables were empty
- Confirmed Codex sandbox files and logs exist under %USERPROFILE%\.codex
- Confirmed browser@openai-bundled, chrome@openai-bundled, and computer-use@openai-bundled are installed and enabled
- Confirmed openai-bundled plugin version is 26.616.41845
- Confirmed current Desktop package is OpenAI.Codex 26.616.5445.0

Diagnosis:

This does not appear to be a Chrome extension issue, LinkedIn issue, local config issue, plugin cache issue, or failed Windows sandbox installation.

The failure happens before Computer Use, Chrome, browser tools, or JavaScript execution begins. It appears that Codex Desktop exposes the node_repl/js tool, but the Desktop MCP/tool bridge does not pass the required sandboxPolicy metadata into the tool request.

Impact:

Computer Use, browser tools, and Chrome integration cannot start. sky.list_apps() cannot list visible apps. Chrome, LinkedIn, and websites were not opened.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

Feedback ID: 019ee5d8-d07b-7ba0-9ef9-abbfa7d3dc8d

What is the expected behavior?

Expected behavior:

Codex Desktop should pass the required sandboxPolicy metadata from the active Windows native sandbox session into the MCP / JavaScript / tool bridge request.

node_repl/js should execute normally when exposed in the session. Computer Use and browser tools should then be able to initialize normally, and a safe test such as listing available apps should work without failing at sandbox metadata validation.

The expected result is that JavaScript execution starts successfully, or Computer Use returns a normal available/unavailable result. It should not fail before execution with:

js: codex/sandbox-state-meta: missing field `sandboxPolicy`

Additional information

Additional information:

This appears to be a Codex Desktop app / MCP tool-bridge metadata issue, not a local setup issue.

Verified environment:

Codex Desktop: 26.616.5445.0
Codex CLI: 0.141.0
OS: Windows_NT
Shell: Windows PowerShell 5.1
Mode: Windows native / PowerShell
WSL: disabled
runCodexInWindowsSubsystemForLinux = false
Windows sandbox = unelevated

Verified checks:

- Native Windows / PowerShell mode works
- WSL environment variables are empty
- Windows sandbox config is present and valid
- Codex sandbox setup completed successfully
- Sandbox files/logs exist under %USERPROFILE%\.codex
- browser@openai-bundled is installed and enabled
- chrome@openai-bundled is installed and enabled
- computer-use@openai-bundled is installed and enabled
- openai-bundled plugin version is 26.616.41845
- Current Desktop package is OpenAI.Codex 26.616.5445.0
- Packaged marketplace and local plugin cache were checked

Diagnosis:

The tool is exposed, but the request fails before JavaScript execution because sandboxPolicy is missing from the metadata passed to the tool bridge. This suggests Codex Desktop is not forwarding required sandbox metadata into the JS / MCP tool request.

Impact:

Computer Use, browser tools, and Chrome integration cannot start. Chrome, LinkedIn, and websites were not opened.

View original on GitHub ↗

4 Comments

github-actions[bot] contributor · 2 months ago

Potential duplicates detected. Please review them and close your issue if it is a duplicate.

#29215
#29212
#29193
#29211
#29226

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yuwenjie058-boop · 2 months ago

这个问题是新版本更新后导致的希望尽快修复

3VILALLIUM · 2 months ago

Adding my Windows repro here too. Feedback/session ID: 019ee5d3-7653-7870-95c3-5841e75db374.

Sanitized environment:

Codex Desktop: 26.616.5445.0, Windows x64 Store package.
Bundled Browser/Chrome/Computer Use plugin runtime observed: 26.616.41845.
Bundled node_repl runtime observed under cua_node/a89897d3d9baa117/bin/node_repl.exe.
Chrome is installed and running; Chrome version observed: 149.0.7827.116.
Codex Chrome Extension is installed in the selected Default profile; extension version observed: 1.1.5_0.
browser@openai-bundled, chrome@openai-bundled, and computer-use@openai-bundled are enabled.
Windows sandbox setting is unelevated.

What I am seeing:

@Chrome, Browser, and Computer Use are all blocked because they depend on the same node_repl/js route.
Browser Playwright can still work for public pages, but it is not a substitute for the logged-in/default-profile Chrome workflows I need.
Multiple Codex restarts and troubleshooting passes have not recovered Chrome or Computer Use for me.

Troubleshooting I tried:

Retried the official mcp__node_repl route after rediscovery:
js_reset -> Transport closed
minimal js smoke test nodeRepl.write('official-node-repl-ok') -> Transport closed
js_add_node_module_dir -> Transport closed
Checked Chrome/plugin wiring:
Chrome process is running.
Codex native messaging host process is running.
Native messaging manifest exists, points to extension-host.exe, the target exists, and the allowed origin matches the Codex Chrome extension ID.
Codex Chrome Extension directory exists in Default profile with version 1.1.5_0.
Named pipes for chrome.nativeMessaging, codex-browser-use, and codex-computer-use are present.
Checked local plugin/runtime cache:
Chrome latest points to 26.616.41845.
Browser and Computer Use only have 26.616.41845 cached locally, so I do not have an obvious local rollback target.
Checked update path:
winget list --name Codex reports Store package 26.616.5445.0.
winget upgrade --id 9PLM9XGG6VKS --source msstore --exact reports no available upgrade.

Additional diagnostic result:

A disposable standalone MCP probe against the bundled node_repl.exe can execute minimal JS when launched with the metadata shape it expects: sandboxPolicy.type = "workspace-write" plus sandboxCwd. That returned manual-node-repl-ok. Omitting required metadata fields fails validation before JS runs, and using workspaceWrite as the type value is rejected because the runtime expects kebab-case values such as workspace-write.

However, using that standalone working node_repl to bootstrap the bundled Chrome browser-client.mjs fails with:

privileged native pipe bridge is not available; browser-client is not trusted

My current read is that the bundled node_repl.exe binary itself can run JavaScript with valid metadata, but the Desktop-managed MCP route is stuck/broken, and a standalone process cannot replace it because it lacks the trusted privileged bridge required by Browser/Chrome/Computer Use. This does not look like a normal Chrome install, extension, native-host, or local website issue.

I am intentionally not attaching screenshots, raw logs, account/profile data, repo names, local username, browser history, cookies, or full local paths here for privacy.

3VILALLIUM · 2 months ago

Follow-up to my earlier Windows repro with a newer, separate diagnostic trace.

Feedback ID: 019ee64c-3000-7332-8030-a22cfd39505e. I also submitted a Codex Desktop performance/reliability trace from the same session logs, so OpenAI should be able to correlate the private telemetry from that ID.

What this later trace adds beyond my earlier Transport closed / standalone-probe notes:

The failure began for me after the latest Codex Desktop update.
In the affected trace, node_repl/js was visible and js_reset succeeded, but minimal JS execution failed before user code ran with:

Mcp error: -32602: js: codex/sandbox-state-meta: missing field `sandboxPolicy`

A same-host, same-project new-thread comparison reproduced the same error.
The trace checked model/auth, shell, Windows sandbox, node_repl/js, MCP/tool inventory, skills, @Chrome, in-app browser comparison, Computer Use, network/proxy, AV/security signals, and config/dependency state.
Shell, CMD, Git, ordinary local Node, DNS, HTTPS, and a public unauthenticated browser comparison path worked.
Chrome was installed/running; the Codex Chrome extension, native messaging manifest, and native host process were visible locally.
Computer Use plugin/client files were visible locally.
@Chrome and Computer Use failed before initialization because node_repl/js rejected the call first.

Most actionable new observation: local user-level config/environment visible to the trace included NODE_REPL_REQUEST_META with codex/sandbox-state-meta.sandboxPolicy, but the live node_repl/js MCP call still failed as if sandboxPolicy was absent. That points at the Desktop app-server / live MCP request marshalling path, not just static config, Chrome setup, plugin install, network, AV, or active desktop visibility.

Privacy note: I am intentionally not posting local usernames, full paths, repo/project names, raw logs, thread IDs, tokens, cookies, screenshots, account identifiers, or subscription details. Please use the feedback ID plus same-session performance trace to inspect the raw data privately.