[Windows] Codex launches ChatGPT.exe processes but the desktop UI does not appear after Windows updates

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

Version: 26.707.8168.0 PackageFullName: OpenAI.Codex_26.707.8168.0_x64__2p2nqsd0c76g0

What subscription do you have?

ChatGPT Plus

What platform is your computer?

Microsoft Windows NT 10.0.26100.0 x64

What issue are you seeing?

After installing Windows system updates and restarting the computer, the Codex desktop app sometimes starts its background processes but does not display any UI window.

When the problem occurs:

• Task Manager shows multiple Codex-related ChatGPT.exe processes.
• In the attached screenshot, there are 6 related processes.
• The main ChatGPT.exe process uses approximately 1 GB of memory and around 5% CPU.
• No Codex window appears on the desktop or taskbar.
• There is no error dialog or visible crash message.
• Reopening Codex or clicking the application icon does not immediately display the window.
• After waiting approximately [填写等待时间，例如 20–30 minutes], the Codex UI may suddenly appear without any additional action.

This has happened multiple times, and it often occurs after Windows system updates. I cannot confirm that Windows Update is the root cause, but the occurrences appear to be correlated with system updates or the first restart after an update.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

1. Install a Windows cumulative update or system update.
2. Restart Windows after the update is installed.
3. Launch Codex from the Start menu or taskbar.
4. Open Task Manager.
5. Observe that multiple Codex-related ChatGPT.exe processes are running.
6. Observe that no Codex desktop window is displayed.
7. Click the Codex icon again, but the UI still does not appear.
8. Wait for approximately [填写实际分钟数] minutes.
9. In some cases, the Codex UI suddenly appears without any further action.

The problem is intermittent and may not reproduce after every Windows update, but it has occurred multiple times on this computer.

What is the expected behavior?

Codex should display its desktop UI within a few seconds after launch.

If startup initialization takes longer than expected, the app should display a loading window or startup progress indicator.

If startup fails or becomes blocked, Codex should show an actionable error message or diagnostic information instead of silently running background processes for tens of minutes without displaying a window.

Additional information

<img width="956" height="484" alt="Image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/ea62203d-1137-413c-b93a-5aef94123cc4" />
The attached Task Manager screenshot was captured while the Codex desktop UI was not visible.

It shows:

• 6 Codex-related processes running under the ChatGPT process group
• All related executables are named ChatGPT.exe
• The main process is using approximately 1002.7 MB of memory
• The main process is using approximately 4.5% CPU
• Disk activity is approximately 7.6 MB/s
• No Codex window was visible at the time of capture

This indicates that the application processes started successfully, but the desktop UI did not appear.