MCP server works well with Claude Code CLI but fails with Codex when using the same configuration
What version of Codex is running?
codex-cli 0.30.0
Which model were you using?
gpt-5
What platform is your computer?
Darwin 24.4.0 arm64 arm
What steps can reproduce the bug?
Hi!
I'm trying to setup https://github.com/cjo4m06/mcp-shrimp-task-manager as a MCP using the same configuration that already works well for the Claude Code CLI. Here's the one for Claude (from ~/.claude.json):
"mcpServers": {
"shrimp-task-manager-global": {
"type": "stdio",
"command": "node",
"args": [
"/Users/foobar/workspace/code/mcp-shrimp-task-manager/dist/index.js"
],
"env": {
"DATA_DIR": "/Users/foobar/workspace/shrimp-mcp-data",
"TEMPLATES_USE": "en",
"ENABLE_GUI": "true"
}
},
This works well for the CC CLI. However, I tried setting up the same server as MCP for Codex but it can't setup the connection for some reason. Here's my full ~/.codex/config.toml just in case:
[projects."/Users/foobar/workspace/code/test"]
trust_level = "trusted"
[projects."/Users/foobar/worksapce/code/mcp-shrimp-task-manager"]
trust_level = "trusted"
approval_policy = "never"
sandbox_mode = "danger-full-access"
[tui.theme]
name = "dark-shinobi-dusk"
[mcp_servers_disabled]
[mcp_servers]
[mcp_servers."shrimp-task-manager-global"]
name = "shrimp-task-manager-global"
# Prefer absolute node path
command = "/Users/foobar/.nvm/versions/node/v20.19.3/bin/node"
args = ["/Users/foobar/workspace/code/mcp-shrimp-task-manager/dist/index.js"]
transport = "stdio"
[mcp_servers."shrimp-task-manager-global".env]
DATA_DIR = "/Users/foobar/workspace/shrimp-mcp-data"
TEMPLATES_USE = "en"
ENABLE_GUI = "false"
What is the expected behavior?
I expect that the shrimp MCP server to connect/work well just like it does with the Claude Code CLI.
What do you see instead?
I get a 🖐 Failed to create MCP connection manager: request timed out error message without further debugging info a a while after I start codex :(
Additional information
_No response_
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