Codex App links cannot open in browser or external browser on Windows

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

26.707.3748.0

What subscription do you have?

ChatGPT Plus

What platform is your computer?

Windows 11 x64

What issue are you seeing?

In the Codex / ChatGPT desktop app on Windows, link opening actions are not working.

Observed issues:

1. Links in assistant responses do not open.

The context menu shows:

• Open in browser
• Open in external browser
• Copy link

But both "Open in browser" and "Open in external browser" do not actually open the link. Only "Copy link" works.

1. Generated website/file result cards cannot be opened.

For a local HTML report card, the "Open with" menu only shows:

• ChatGPT
• Copy link

Clicking "ChatGPT" does nothing. I remember older versions having an option similar to "Open with default app" or "Open in system browser", but it is no longer available.

1. Local HTML / file:// links cannot be opened from the app.

Example local report:
D:\football\world-cup-2026-07-10-spain-belgium-preview.html

The file exists and opens correctly in Chrome when opened manually. The issue only happens inside the Codex / ChatGPT desktop app.

1. Changing the local config preference to external browser did not fix the issue.

I tried changing the link-opening preference from in-app browser to external browser and restarted/retested, but the result card and link menu still did not work.

Expected behavior:

• "Open in browser" should open links in the in-app browser.
• "Open in external browser" should open links in the system default browser.
• For local HTML files, localhost previews, and file:// links, if the in-app browser blocks them for security reasons, there should still be a user-initiated option to open them with the system default browser/default app.
• If opening fails, the app should show a clear error instead of silently doing nothing.

Actual behavior:

• Clicking the open actions often does nothing.
• Copy link works.
• Manually pasting the copied link into Chrome works.
• Opening the local HTML file directly with the system browser works.

Impact:

This makes Codex-generated reports, local HTML previews, GitHub links, Help Center links, and other links difficult to open from the desktop app. It looks like a regression in the desktop app link handling rather than a Windows/browser issue.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

1. In Codex / ChatGPT desktop app on Windows, create or view a message containing a link.
2. Open the link context menu.
3. Click "Open in browser" or "Open in external browser".
4. Observe that nothing opens.
5. Click "Copy link" and paste the same link into Chrome.
6. Observe that the link opens normally.

For local HTML result cards:

1. Generate or attach a local HTML report.
2. Open the "Open with" menu on the result card.
3. Click "ChatGPT".
4. Observe that nothing happens.
5. Open the same local HTML file directly in Chrome.
6. Observe that it opens normally.

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What is the expected behavior?

• "Open in browser" should open links in the in-app browser.
• "Open in external browser" should open links in the system default browser.
• For local HTML files, localhost previews, and file:// links, if the in-app browser blocks them for security reasons, there should still be a user-initiated option to open them with the system default browser/default app.
• If opening fails, the app should show a clear error instead of silently doing nothing.

Additional information

This looks like a regression in desktop app link handling rather than a Windows/browser issue.

Evidence:

• Copy link works.
• Manually pasting the copied link into Chrome works.
• The local HTML file exists and opens correctly in Chrome.
• Opening the same local HTML file directly with the system browser works.
• The issue only happens inside the Codex / ChatGPT desktop app.

Example local file:
D:\football\world-cup-2026-07-10-spain-belgium-preview.html

I also tried changing the local config preference from in-app browser to external browser and restarted/retested, but it did not fix the issue.

Screenshots attached:

• Link context menu showing "Open in browser" and "Open in external browser"
• Result card "Open with" menu showing only "ChatGPT" and "Copy link"