[Bug Solved & Solution] VS Code codex extension blank sidebar in Remote SSH on version 26.707.91948
What version of the IDE extension are you using?
26.707.91948
What subscription do you have?
Pro Max
Which IDE are you using?
VS Code
What platform is your computer?
_No response_
What issue are you seeing?
After updating the VS Code Codex extension to openai.chatgpt 26.707.91948, the Codex sidebar shows a blank panel when used in a VS Code Remote SSH window.
What steps can reproduce the bug?
- Open a project using VS Code Remote SSH.
- Install or update the Codex VS Code extension to 26.707.91948 on the remote SSH side.
- Open the Codex sidebar.
- Observe that the sidebar is blank.
What is the expected behavior?
_No response_
Additional information
Solution
I reproduced this with VS Code Remote-SSH and openai.chatgpt 26.707.91948.
The failure is caused by the bundled Zod v4 environment check accessing navigator inside the Node.js remote extension host:
typeof navigator !== "undefined"
This triggers VS Code’s PendingMigrationError and can leave the Codex webview blank or unresponsive.
Immediate workaround
Create ~/.vscode-server/data/Machine/settings.json on the remote host:
~~~json
{
"extensions.supportNodeGlobalNavigator": true
}
~~~
Then run Developer: Reload Window. Setting this only in the local VS Code user settings did not fix the remote extension host.
Required source fix
The extension/dependency should detect Node before accessing navigator:
~~~ts
const isNode =
typeof process === "object" && process?.versions?.node;
if (
!isNode &&
typeof navigator !== "undefined" &&
navigator?.userAgent?.includes("Cloudflare")
) {
return false;
}
~~~
After applying the remote setting, the unmodified official extension loaded normally and the Codex webview mounted successfully.
2 Comments
Potential duplicates detected. Please review them and close your issue if it is a duplicate.
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I reproduced the same issue on a newer extension version.
Environment
openai.chatgpt 26.803.41515Actual behavior
Opening the Codex sidebar in a Remote-SSH window initially showed only:
The actionable error was only visible in the extension-host logs:
I observed this error in both the local and remote extension-host logs. Reinstalling the extension and clearing its cache did not resolve it.
Workaround
Adding the following compatibility setting on the remote host allowed the remote extension host to start:
I also added the same setting locally to eliminate the local extension-host error, then reloaded the VS Code window.
Expected behavior
The extension or its dependency should avoid accessing
navigatorin the Node extension-host environment, so users do not need a manual compatibility setting.At minimum, the Codex UI should surface the actionable
PendingMigrationErrorinstead of the generic “couldn't load its resources” message.