Codex Desktop Chrome bridge unavailable: node_repl missing and process launch fails

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

26.623.81905 (build 4598)

What subscription do you have?

ChatGPT Pro

What platform is your computer?

Darwin 25.5.0 arm64 arm

What issue are you seeing?

Codex Desktop cannot activate or use the Chrome bridge even though Chrome is open, the Codex Chrome extension is installed/connected, and Codex Settings > Developer mode > Enable full CDP access is turned on.

In the original thread, Chrome bridge setup failed before connecting to Chrome. The node_repl js tool was initially available, but even the smallest runtime test failed:

nodeRepl.write('node_repl runtime ok')

Error:

failed to start Node runtime: No such file or directory (os error 2)

After fully quitting and restarting Codex Desktop, node_repl js was no longer exposed by tool discovery at all. Searching for node_repl js returned zero tools.

A fresh Codex thread showed the same general failure path. It could not find node_repl js, and local process launch also failed before Chrome connection initialization.

Exact fresh-thread error:

CreateProcess { message: "Rejected(\"Failed to create unified exec process: No such file or directory (os error 2)\")" }

The fresh thread reported seeing that error for /bin/zsh, /bin/bash, and /bin/sh.

The failure occurs before calling:

agent.browsers.get("extension")

So this does not appear to be a Chrome page, Chrome extension permission, login, or CDP access issue. It appears to be a Codex Desktop local tool/runtime registration or process-launch issue.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

1. Open Chrome with the Codex Chrome extension installed and connected.
2. In Codex Desktop Settings > Developer mode, enable full CDP access.
3. Start a Codex Desktop thread.
4. Ask Codex to use Chrome or explicitly ask it to discover node_repl js.
5. Observe that tool discovery either returns no node_repl js tool, or the tool appears but fails before Chrome connection initialization.
6. If the node_repl js tool is available, run this minimal test:

nodeRepl.write('node_repl runtime ok')

Expected result:
The Node-backed runtime starts, writes node_repl runtime ok, and then Codex can initialize the bundled Chrome browser-client and connect to agent.browsers.get("extension").

Actual result:
The runtime fails before any Chrome connection attempt, with:

failed to start Node runtime: No such file or directory (os error 2)

After restarting Codex Desktop, node_repl js may disappear from tool discovery entirely.

What is the expected behavior?

Codex Desktop should expose the node_repl js tool when Chrome/browser-control functionality is available.

When requested to use the connected Chrome extension, Codex should be able to start its local Node-backed runtime, initialize the bundled Chrome browser-client, connect to the existing Chrome session through agent.browsers.get("extension"), and then inspect/control the current Chrome tab according to the user’s request.

At minimum, this simple runtime test should succeed:

nodeRepl.write('node_repl runtime ok')

Additional information

This was tested after fully quitting and restarting Codex Desktop.

The Chrome extension appears connected from the Codex settings side, and full CDP access is enabled.

Local checks from a working Codex thread showed:

• /usr/local/bin/node exists
• Node version: v24.14.1
• npm version: 11.11.0
• The bundled Chrome plugin file exists at:

/Users/owner/.codex/plugins/cache/openai-bundled/chrome/26.623.81905/scripts/browser-client.mjs

Despite those local pieces existing, the Codex tool/runtime layer either fails to start the Node-backed runtime or does not expose node_repl js at all.

This affected active work where Codex needed to inspect an existing logged-in Chrome tab for manufacturer tool data. A fallback through visible Chrome/macOS automation may be possible, but the official Chrome bridge is unavailable.