[App/Linux] ChatGPT Project source names appear, but source files never sync locally and Work has incomplete context

What version of the Codex / ChatGPT Desktop App are you using?

ChatGPT Desktop package version: 26.810.52044 (chatgpt Debian package)

What subscription do you have?

ChatGPT Plus

What platform is your computer?

Linux Mint x86_64 (Ubuntu 24.04 / noble based)

Kernel currently in use: 6.8.0-137-generic

What issue are you seeing?

Existing cloud ChatGPT Projects and their source files are correct and fully available on chatgpt.com, but the Linux desktop app fails to materialize/sync the project source files for Work/local context.

I have 5 ChatGPT Projects, and the issue reproduces across all of them.

In the desktop app:

• The Project Settings UI can see the project and lists the correct source names (PDF, Markdown, Google Drive synced source, etc.).
• When entering Work for a project, the app shows an error such as:

5 project files could not be synced; the task may have incomplete context

• The local project mirror is created under:

~/.codex/.chatgpt-projects/<project-id>/

• However, the sources/ directory remains empty.
• The corresponding metadata file contains:

{"files":[],"version":1}

So the desktop UI appears to receive project/source metadata from the cloud, but the actual source-file synchronization/materialization step fails.

The same projects and all source files are present and usable in the web version with the same account.

Steps to reproduce

1. Sign in to the Linux ChatGPT Desktop app with the same account used on chatgpt.com.
2. Open an existing cloud ChatGPT Project that contains uploaded/synced source files.
3. Open Project Settings.
4. Observe that the source names are listed correctly.
5. Switch to Work / try to start a Work chat using that project.
6. Observe the warning that project files could not be synced.
7. Inspect the local mirror:

cat ~/.codex/.chatgpt-projects/.metadata/*.json
find ~/.codex/.chatgpt-projects -type d -name sources -exec ls -la {} \;

1. Metadata reports an empty file list and the sources directory is empty.

Troubleshooting already performed

The problem persists after the following checks:

• Confirmed the desktop app is already the newest installed package (26.810.52044).
• Confirmed all source files are present and correct on chatgpt.com.
• Confirmed directory ownership/permissions are normal for the logged-in Linux user.
• Confirmed there is ample free disk space (~241 GB).
• Fully quit the desktop app.
• Moved the entire local mirror out of the way:

~/.codex/.chatgpt-projects → ~/.codex/.chatgpt-projects.backup-20260817

• Relaunched the desktop app and let it create a completely fresh .chatgpt-projects tree.
• The clean mirror reproduces the same problem: it creates AGENTS.md, .metadata/<project-id>.json, and an empty sources/ directory, but does not sync any actual project source files.

Example from the freshly regenerated mirror:

4533 bytes  .../.chatgpt-projects/<project-id>/AGENTS.md
25 bytes    .../.chatgpt-projects/.metadata/<project-id>.json

Metadata:

{"files":[],"version":1}

sources/:

total 8
drwxrwxr-x 2 <user> <user> 4096 ... .
drwxrwxr-x 3 <user> <user> 4096 ... ..

This strongly suggests the problem is not stale local project-cache state.

Expected behavior

For an existing cloud ChatGPT Project, the desktop app should synchronize/materialize the project's source files into the local project mirror (or otherwise make them available to Work), and Work should receive the same project context that is available on chatgpt.com.

Actual behavior

Project/source metadata is visible in the desktop UI, but the actual source files are never synchronized into the local project mirror. Work therefore reports incomplete project context and cannot reliably use the project sources.

Additional information

• Reproduces across all 5 cloud projects on this account, not just one project.
• Web ChatGPT is unaffected.
• Deleting/rebuilding only the local .chatgpt-projects mirror does not fix the problem.
• I can provide screenshots and additional sanitized logs if useful.
• Possibly related to #35127 (Windows: local/Work chat fails to sync ChatGPT project context), but this report is specifically for the Linux desktop app and shows the project-source mirror staying empty after a clean rebuild.