[Desktop latest] Goal mode cannot be reliably set or used across multiple machines

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

Locally verified on this MacBook today, Sunday, August 16, 2026:

• ChatGPT desktop app 26.810.52044
• build 6662
• bundled Codex CLI 0.148.0-alpha.9

The same user-facing problem is being seen on every machine currently running the latest desktop app available as of August 16, 2026. I did not capture the exact About-box values from the other machines before filing this public report.

What subscription do you have?

Not provided.

What platform is your computer?

Cross-machine report:

• macOS on Apple silicon (locally verified)
• at least one Windows desktop host (user-reported)

This is not limited to one repository or one thread.

What issue are you seeing?

Goal mode is documented and expected to work in the desktop app, but on the latest desktop app we cannot reliably set a goal and then continue working under that goal.

In plain user-facing terms: the app won’t let us set and work to a goal.

This is not being reported as one isolated old thread or one unusual SSH/remote-only scenario. The same class of failure is happening across multiple machines on the latest desktop app.

Local inspection performed on the MacBook

I did a narrow local inspection on the currently affected MacBook before filing:

• ~/.codex/goals_1.sqlite integrity check: ok
• ~/.codex/state_5.sqlite integrity check: ok
• ~/.codex/logs_2.sqlite integrity check: ok
• thread_goals table exists
• current thread_goals row count at inspection time: 0
• current thread_goal_continuation_deferrals row count at inspection time: 0

So, on the inspected machine, the obvious explanation is not a broken or unreadable goals database file.

That points more toward the desktop goal UI / RPC / continuation path than simple local SQLite corruption.

I am intentionally not attaching raw local logs or session files publicly because they contain private paths, thread identifiers, and conversation metadata.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

1. Open the latest ChatGPT desktop app and switch to Codex.
2. Start a new task/thread or open a normal existing one.
3. Try to start Goal mode using /goal or the current desktop goal affordance.
4. Attempt to continue working in that same thread under the active goal.
5. Observe that Goal mode cannot be reliably set or does not become usable for actual work.
6. Repeat on another machine running the latest desktop app.
7. Observe the same class of failure there as well.

What is the expected behavior?

Goal mode should:

• let the user set a persistent goal successfully
• show a reliable active goal state/progress row
• allow continued work in the same thread while that goal remains active
• fail with a clear actionable error if the goal cannot be created

It should not silently or generically fail across multiple latest-version desktop installs.

Additional information

I searched existing open issues before filing. The most relevant related reports I found include:

• #29693 - /goal continuation can reuse stale permission context after Full Access/custom permissions
• #25455 - Goal mode fails ambiguously in Windows-to-SSH sessions with local attachments
• #33886 - active Goal reverts from Full Access to on-request after account switch/resume
• #30630 - Goal pause state exists but the agent contract can misreport it
• #34215 - Goal mode cannot increase token budget and resume after budget_limited

Those all look related, but this report is narrower and current: latest desktop build, cross-machine, basic inability to set and work to a goal in normal desktop use.

If maintainers want private follow-up, I can provide redacted session/log evidence through an OpenAI-controlled support or in-app feedback channel rather than posting raw artifacts publicly.