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Codex Issues / #33463

macOS 26.5: New Chat fails with "DeviceCheck token generation is unavailable" after updating to ChatGPT 26.707.72221

Resolved 💬 8 comments Opened Jul 16, 2026 by mervinweber Closed Jul 16, 2026

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

Version 26.707.72221

What subscription do you have?

20 Dollar Plan

What platform is your computer?

ProductName: macOS ProductVersion: 26.5 BuildVersion: 25F71

What issue are you seeing?

FeedbackID 019f3cb8-d5f5-7461-afa2-ad826eaecc39

Summary

After updating the ChatGPT macOS desktop app via the built-in updater to version 26.707.72221, starting a normal Chat fails with:

DeviceCheck token generation is unavailable

Existing Projects continue to work normally, and ChatGPT works normally in the browser.

Environment

  • ChatGPT Desktop: 26.707.72221
  • Release date: Jul 14, 2026
  • macOS: 26.5 (25F71)
  • Hardware: Apple M3 MacBook Air

Reproduction

  1. Update ChatGPT using the built-in updater.
  2. Launch the application.
  3. Attempt to start a normal Chat.

Expected

A new chat opens normally.

Actual

The app reports:

DeviceCheck token generation is unavailable

Projects continue to function normally.

The browser version (chatgpt.com) also works normally.

Relevant log output

Repeated failures attempting to connect to Apple's DeviceCheck daemon:

failed to do a bootstrap look-up:
xpc_error=[3: No such process]

Failed to connect to daemon.

Failed to check if client is supported.

The app repeatedly attempts to connect to:

com.apple.devicecheckd

Verification

Running:

launchctl print system/com.apple.devicecheckd

returns:

Could not find service "com.apple.devicecheckd" in domain for system

Likewise:

launchctl print gui/$(id -u)/com.apple.devicecheckd

returns:

Could not find service "com.apple.devicecheckd"

Additional Notes

  • Browser works normally.
  • Existing Projects work normally.
  • Only the New Chat flow fails.
  • The issue began immediately after updating via the built-in updater.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

Feedback ID: 019f3cb8-d5f5-7461-afa2-ad826eaecc39

What is the expected behavior?

_No response_

Additional information

_No response_

View original on GitHub ↗

8 Comments

SetsuRinsyou · 1 month ago

Hi @mervinweber thanks for reporting this issue. I’m experiencing the same problem on a newer version of the app(26.715.21425) with macOS 26.5.2.

I noticed that this issue was closed as completed. Could you please confirm whether the problem was resolved on your side? If so, would you mind sharing what fixed it—such as an app update, macOS update, restart, network change, or another workaround?

leonis13579 · 1 month ago

Hi, @mervinweber

Facing same issue on MacOS ChatGPT app 26.715.70719. Can't start any Chat and no sync with my history and projects. Is there any instructions or guides how to resolve this problem?

May be log from web version of ChatGPT could help you...

Bug Report: ChatGPT desktop cannot initialize Chat (DeviceCheck token generation is unavailable), while Codex continues to work

Summary

The official ChatGPT desktop application launches successfully and restores the authenticated session automatically.

However, the ChatGPT experience fails to initialize.

The application displays the following error when attempting to open Chat:

DeviceCheck token generation is unavailable

The same account works normally in the web version of ChatGPT.

Interestingly, Codex continues to function normally inside the desktop application, while the ChatGPT functionality does not.

---

Environment

Hardware

  • MacBook Pro (M1)
  • Model Identifier: MacBookPro17,1
  • 16 GB RAM

Operating System

  • macOS 26.5.1 (Build 25F80)

Security

  • System Integrity Protection (SIP): Enabled
  • Activation Lock: Disabled

---

Expected Behavior

After launching the application, ChatGPT should load normally:

  • Chat should open.
  • Chat history should be displayed.
  • Projects should be displayed.

---

Actual Behavior

The application starts successfully.

The existing authenticated session is restored automatically.

Inside the desktop application:

  • ✅ Codex works normally.
  • ❌ Chat cannot be opened.
  • ❌ Chat history is not displayed.
  • ❌ Projects are not displayed.

Opening Chat immediately results in:

DeviceCheck token generation is unavailable

Using the same account in the web application works correctly:

  • Chat works.
  • Chat history is available.
  • Projects are available.

---

Reproduction Steps

  1. Install the latest official ChatGPT for macOS.
  2. Launch the application.
  3. The application restores the authenticated session automatically.
  4. Open Chat.
  5. Chat fails with:
DeviceCheck token generation is unavailable

The issue reproduces consistently.

---

Troubleshooting Already Performed

The following actions have already been completed:

  • Completely removed the ChatGPT application.
  • Deleted all application containers.
  • Deleted Application Support.
  • Deleted Caches.
  • Deleted Preferences.
  • Deleted Saved Application State.
  • Deleted LaunchAgents.
  • Deleted Group Containers.
  • Deleted HTTPStorages.
  • Deleted Widget containers.
  • Removed all ChatGPT/OpenAI Keychain entries.
  • Rebooted macOS.
  • Installed the latest official ChatGPT again.

The issue reproduces after a completely clean installation.

---

Diagnostic Findings

Authentication itself appears to succeed.

The application launches successfully and restores the authenticated session.

No authentication failures were observed:

  • no HTTP 401 responses
  • no HTTP 403 responses
  • no TLS failures

The failure occurs after authentication, during ChatGPT initialization.

System logs consistently contain:

preauth_cookie_failed=APIClient.DeviceCheckError: Token generation failed

followed by:

MobileActivation.ErrorDomain Code=-4
UCRT is unavailable.

and repeated messages:

Failed to fetch client certificate

The logs indicate that DeviceCheck token generation fails before the ChatGPT interface becomes available.

---

Important Observation

The issue does not affect the entire application.

Using the same authenticated desktop session:

  • Codex works correctly.

However, the ChatGPT experience does not initialize:

  • Chat is unavailable.
  • Chat history is unavailable.
  • Projects are unavailable.

The same account works normally in the web application.

This suggests that:

  • authentication is successful;
  • the account itself is healthy;
  • network connectivity is functioning correctly;
  • the failure occurs specifically during the initialization of the ChatGPT experience, after authentication has already completed.

---

Additional Information

A similar DeviceCheck-related issue has recently been reported by another macOS 26.5.x user.

OpenAI Help Center also recently published documentation specifically addressing DeviceCheck-related failures.

Based on the collected diagnostics, this appears to be a regression affecting the ChatGPT desktop application during initialization on macOS 26.5.x.

---

Attachments

Attached:

  • Desktop application logs
  • DeviceCheck logs
  • MobileActivation logs
  • System logs

If additional debug logging or a debug build would help identify the root cause, I would be happy to provide more information or test a candidate fix.

mervinweber · 1 month ago

A reboot fixed my existing issue

Get Outlook for Android<https://aka.ms/AAb9ysg>
________________________________
From: SetsuRinsyou @.*>
Sent: Friday, 17 July 2026 11:44:33
To: openai/codex @.*>
Cc: Mervin Weber @.>; Mention @.>
Subject: Re: [openai/codex] macOS 26.5: New Chat fails with "DeviceCheck token generation is unavailable" after updating to ChatGPT 26.707.72221 (Issue #33463)

[https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/227521339?s=20&v=4]SetsuRinsyou left a comment (openai/codex#33463)<https://github.com/openai/codex/issues/33463#issuecomment-5004957737>

Hi @mervinweber<https://github.com/mervinweber> thanks for reporting this issue. I’m experiencing the same problem on a newer version of the app(26.715.21425) with macOS 26.5.2.

I noticed that this issue was closed as completed. Could you please confirm whether the problem was resolved on your side? If so, would you mind sharing what fixed it—such as an app update, macOS update, restart, network change, or another workaround?

—
Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub<https://github.com/openai/codex/issues/33463?email_source=notifications&email_token=AUHPEJ52YNKMXQV2JOP4E4D5FJCWDA5CNFSNUABFM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2JONZXKZKDN5WW2ZLOOQXTKMBQGQ4TKNZXGM32M4TFMFZW63VHNVSW45DJN5XKKZLWMVXHJLDGN5XXIZLSL5RWY2LDNM#issuecomment-5004957737>, or unsubscribe<https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AUHPEJ7CBZ4M2BLTCNUWOWT5FJCWDAVCNFSNUABFKJSXA33TNF2G64TZHM4TMNJUGE2TMNBZHNEXG43VMU5TIOBZG43DQNRTGQ3KC5QC>.
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mervinweber · 1 month ago

A reboot fixed my issue on the older version. Not sure if it was a caching issue or something else that caused my problem.

Get Outlook for Android<https://aka.ms/AAb9ysg>
________________________________
From: Leonid Sheshukov @.*>
Sent: Tuesday, 21 July 2026 18:10:10
To: openai/codex @.*>
Cc: Mervin Weber @.>; Mention @.>
Subject: Re: [openai/codex] macOS 26.5: New Chat fails with "DeviceCheck token generation is unavailable" after updating to ChatGPT 26.707.72221 (Issue #33463)

[https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/24594844?s=20&v=4]leonis13579 left a comment (openai/codex#33463)<https://github.com/openai/codex/issues/33463#issuecomment-5039534900>

Hi, @mervinweber<https://github.com/mervinweber>

Facing same issue on MacOS ChatGPT app 26.715.70719. Can't start any Chat and no sync with my history and projects& Is there any instructions or guides how to resolve this problem?

—
Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub<https://github.com/openai/codex/issues/33463?email_source=notifications&email_token=AUHPEJ2ATKVAGDBWSFGTGID5F7S4FA5CNFSNUABFM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2JONZXKZKDN5WW2ZLOOQXTKMBTHE2TGNBZGAYKM4TFMFZW63VHNVSW45DJN5XKKZLWMVXHJLDGN5XXIZLSL5RWY2LDNM#issuecomment-5039534900>, or unsubscribe<https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AUHPEJ3YK7MPMHHVEA7QQZT5F7S4FAVCNFSNUABFKJSXA33TNF2G64TZHM4TMNJUGE2TMNBZHNEXG43VMU5TIOBZG43DQNRTGQ3KC5QC>.
Triage notifications, keep track of coding agent tasks and review pull requests on the go with GitHub Mobile for iOS<https://github.com/notifications/mobile/ios/AUHPEJ3KHLYKGGN2MWT5FYD5F7S4FA5CNFSNUABFM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2JONZXKZKDN5WW2ZLOOQXTKMBTHE2TGNBZGAYKM4TFMFZW63VHNVSW45DJN5XKKZLWMVXHJKTGN5XXIZLSL5UW64Y> and Android<https://github.com/notifications/mobile/android/AUHPEJ32QG6BFJVJVJICU6D5F7S4FA5CNFSNUABFM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2JONZXKZKDN5WW2ZLOOQXTKMBTHE2TGNBZGAYKM4TFMFZW63VHNVSW45DJN5XKKZLWMVXHJLTGN5XXIZLSL5QW4ZDSN5UWI>. Download it today!
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leonis13579 · 1 month ago

I tried restarting the application and the computer several times, but that didn't solve the problem.

deinspanjer · 25 days ago

I'm having the exact same problem. reinstalling didn't work, rebooting didn't work, hard powering down didn't work, updating from Tahoe 26.5 to 26.6 had no effect. Upgraded the ChatGPT unified app several times as well and no change.

no-active-thread-019fc3e3-60ef-7f31-91f8-8e7eceba758d

deinspanjer · 25 days ago

Update from a persistent case, with additional system-level diagnostics.

This problem first appeared on macOS 26.5 with an earlier version of the unified ChatGPT/Codex app. It has persisted through multiple app updates and the upgrade to:

  • M1 iMac
  • macOS 26.6 (25G72)
  • ChatGPT unified app 26.727.51351
  • Chat and history fail; Work/Codex continue working
  • The same failure occurs in a newly created macOS user account

I have narrowed my instance of this problem to Apple’s DeviceCheck/MobileActivation UCRT path. I am not claiming every report here necessarily has the same underlying cause.

Signal 1: DeviceCheck cannot obtain its Apple client certificate

At the timestamp of a failed Chat prompt, the system logs show devicecheckd reaching mobileactivationd, followed by:

MobileActivation.ErrorDomain Code=-4 "UCRT is unavailable."
devicecheckd: Failed to fetch client certificate.

The Secure Enclave key-generation and attestation steps appear to succeed. The failure occurs when MobileActivation attempts to supply the client certificate required by DeviceCheck.

A separate UCRT reissue attempt with owner credentials reached Apple but failed with:

com.apple.MobileActivation.ServerErrorDomain Code=403
Identity pre-check has failed.
Could not get UCRT with activationLock = true.

Signal 2: Find My is enabled, but Activation Lock/UCRT provisioning is incomplete

System Settings reports Find My Mac and the Find My network as On. The Mac appears online exactly once in iCloud Find Devices. However, System Report says:

Activation Lock Status: Disabled

I verified the documented prerequisites:

  • Full Security confirmed with bputil
  • SIP and Signed System Volume enabled
  • Two-factor authentication enabled
  • Find My and its Location Services permissions enabled
  • No MDM or DEP enrollment
  • No system extensions or custom boot-policy overrides

I then turned Find My Mac off and back on. findmydeviced attempted to register with Apple repeatedly, but every attempt received Apple’s nonstandard response status 433 and entered an increasing retry backoff. Activation Lock remains Disabled.

This makes the ChatGPT error appear to be a consequence of a missing or currently unissuable Apple UCRT rather than an OpenAI login, application-cache, or per-user macOS problem. What remains unclear is why Apple’s services are rejecting or failing to recreate the UCRT.

A separate macOS 26.6 report describes the same unusual Find My registration status 433, with Find My shown as enabled locally but not properly registered. That case reportedly began working again after approximately two days without a clear local fix:

https://www.reddit.com/r/MacOS/comments/1v9yek3/macbook_pro_m4_with_macos_266_find_my_mac_not/

There is no proven fix yet. I am leaving Find My enabled so its automatic registration retries can continue, and monitoring whether Activation Lock changes to Enabled and DeviceCheck subsequently recovers.

deinspanjer · 19 days ago

Update: the problem has now gone away, although I cannot identify the exact fix.

The failure persisted after upgrading from macOS 26.5 to 26.6. It began working after I upgraded to macOS 26.6.1 and restarted. I had also changed my Apple Account password, following Apple guidance mentioning that as a possible recovery step for account/device-lock problems.

The logs confirm that the underlying condition changed:

Performing UCRT OOB.
Successfully performed UCRT OOB.

Immediately afterward, devicecheckd obtained new attestation certificates and could generate DeviceCheck tokens again.

Find My was still off when UCRT was acquired successfully. I enabled it shortly afterward, but its registration continued returning status 433. Therefore, enabling Find My was not what restored ChatGPT.

For anyone experiencing this error, upgrading to macOS 26.6.1 and restarting—or refreshing the Apple Account password—may be worth trying. I cannot tell which action, if either individually, caused Apple’s UCRT request to start succeeding.