Windows desktop app leaves stuck `taskkill.exe` and `conhost.exe` processes, causing system-wide UI delays

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

26.715.31925

What subscription do you have?

PRO

What platform is your computer?

Windows 11 Pro 25H2, 64-bit — OS build 26200.8894

What issue are you seeing?

I am experiencing Windows desktop sluggishness while using the Codex/ChatGPT desktop app. Right-clicking taskbar icons and opening context menus can take several seconds.

The app appears to leave behind large numbers of long-running taskkill.exe and conhost.exe processes. Running terminal commands from the desktop app can create additional stuck processes.

Observed results:

• Peak observed: approximately 29 taskkill.exe and 50 conhost.exe processes
• Before cleanup: 25 taskkill.exe, including 12 parented by ChatGPT (Beta) PID 45980
• After closing and cleaning: counts decreased temporarily
• After reopening and running one diagnostic command:
• 21 taskkill.exe
• 44 conhost.exe
• 17 taskkill.exe processes had unavailable/dead parents
• 4 were parented by the active ChatGPT process PID 21752
• The active parent recreates processes after cleanup
• Closing the app can leave orphaned processes behind
• The process name appeared as ChatGPT (Beta) before reopening and ChatGPT afterward

The computer has 63.7 GB of RAM, with approximately 35 GB still available during the slowdown, so this does not appear to be memory pressure.

Steps to reproduce:

1. Open the Codex/ChatGPT desktop app on Windows.
2. Use features that execute PowerShell or terminal commands.
3. Run several commands or diagnostic operations.
4. Open Task Manager and inspect taskkill.exe and conhost.exe.
5. Notice that some taskkill.exe processes do not exit and additional ones may appear after subsequent commands.
6. Close and reopen the desktop app.
7. Some orphaned processes remain, and new processes can begin accumulating again.

Expected result:

Each taskkill.exe process should exit promptly after completing its task, and its associated console host should be cleaned up.

Actual result:

taskkill.exe and conhost.exe processes remain alive and accumulate. This correlates with delayed Windows taskbar and context-menu interactions.

Workarounds attempted:

• Restarted the desktop app
• Closed the complete ChatGPT/Codex process group
• Ran cleanup externally after closing the app
• Removed verified orphaned taskkill.exe and matching console-host processes
• The issue returned after reopening the app and executing another command

Environment:

• Windows version: Windows 11 Pro 25H2, 64-bit — OS build 26200.8894
• Codex/ChatGPT app version: 26.715.31925
• Date observed: July 20, 2026
• RAM: 63.7 GB

Please investigate the Windows desktop app’s terminal-process termination and cleanup path, especially how it launches and waits for taskkill.exe and associated conhost.exe processes.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

Feedback ID: 019f7bbb-1718-71b2-9c68-3841d971b6fa

What is the expected behavior?

_No response_

Additional information

_No response_