›_ Codex Issues
Codex Issues / #39531

[Windows][Chrome extension] Native host is outdated and browser control remains read-only

Open 💬 4 comments Opened Aug 19, 2026 by HumpyAngel
💡 Likely answer: A maintainer (github-actions[bot], contributor) responded on this thread — see the highlighted reply below.

What issue are you seeing?

The official ChatGPT Chrome extension can read the active tab, including its title, URL, and visible text, but it cannot perform interactive actions such as clicking, typing, navigating, or searching.

Every interactive request fails with a message stating that the native Chrome/Codex host is outdated or unavailable. The extension therefore remains read-only.

Example error translated from the Polish interface:

“I cannot continue or perform the search because the native Chrome control module is outdated. I only have access to the text of the current page, without the ability to click or type.”

No sensitive website data or credentials are included in this report.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

  1. Install the current ChatGPT desktop app on Windows.
  2. Install the Chrome plugin from the ChatGPT desktop app.
  3. Install the official ChatGPT extension from the Chrome Web Store.
  4. Complete the extension onboarding and confirm that the side panel loads.
  5. Open any website in Chrome.
  6. Ask ChatGPT in the Chrome side panel to navigate, click a link, type into a field, or perform a search.
  7. ChatGPT reads the page but refuses the interactive action, reporting that the native Chrome/Codex host is outdated.

Troubleshooting already completed:

  • Confirmed that the ChatGPT desktop app is up to date
  • Forced an extension update through chrome://extensions
  • Completely removed and reinstalled the Chrome extension
  • Removed and reinstalled the Chrome plugin
  • Repeated the complete extension onboarding flow
  • Restarted Chrome and the ChatGPT desktop app multiple times
  • Used Windows “Repair” for the ChatGPT desktop app
  • Confirmed that only one ChatGPT installation is present
  • Confirmed that no separate Codex desktop app is installed
  • Started new ChatGPT Work chats

The issue persists after all these steps.

What is the expected behavior?

After the Chrome plugin and official extension are installed and enabled, ChatGPT should be able to use the active Chrome session to navigate, click, type, and perform other approved browser actions.

It should not report an outdated native host when the desktop app and extension are both current.

Additional information

Environment:

  • Windows 11
  • ChatGPT desktop app version: 26.814.5517.0
  • Google Chrome version: 150
  • Official ChatGPT Chrome extension from the Chrome Web Store
  • No separate Codex desktop application installed
  • Only one ChatGPT desktop installation present

Feedback reference submitted through /feedback:

no-active-thread-01a01a82-09fe-7542-82b7-c429588b72ca

Please verify the packaged native-host version and its Windows registration for the ChatGPT Chrome extension.

View original on GitHub ↗

4 Comments

github-actions[bot] contributor · 8 days ago

Potential duplicates detected. Please review them and close your issue if it is a duplicate.

  • #39466
  • #39427

Powered by Codex Action

zemeng5208 · 8 days ago

I maintain WinBridge Recovery: https://github.com/zemeng5208/winbridge-recovery

This report looks worth checking at the local Chrome Native Host / bundled-plugin state layer before treating the “outdated native host” message as definitive.

On Windows, WinBridge can help diagnose/recover the local pieces around:

  • the bundled openai-bundled/chrome cache, active version and latest target;
  • partial/stale plugin staging after an app update or Repair;
  • %LOCALAPPDATA%\OpenAI\extension\com.openai.codexextension.json;
  • HKCU\Software\Google\Chrome\NativeMessagingHosts\com.openai.codexextension and whether it points to the expected manifest;
  • the v2 native-host state/registration and whether the manifest ultimately resolves to the intended extension-host.exe for the active plugin version.

That is relevant here because the desktop app is 26.814.5517.0, while an “outdated native component” error can also be produced when Chrome is still reaching a stale host/cache target even though the app and Web Store extension themselves are current.

Important limitation: WinBridge only repairs/diagnoses local Windows installation/cache/registration state. It does not patch the Chrome extension protocol or the upstream browser-control runtime. A closely related report (#39466) isolated a case where Native Messaging was already connected and healthy, but the host-provided runtimeConfig was missing trustedBrowserClientSha256s; if this machine has the same condition after the local manifest/registry/cache versions are verified, then this is an upstream extension/native-host compatibility issue and WinBridge would not be expected to fix it.

So the useful distinction here is: stale/mismatched local host registration or plugin cache → potentially recoverable locally; correct current host + correct registration + incompatible runtimeConfig/schema → upstream issue. I would not assume the tool will fix this case without first confirming which side of that boundary the machine is on.

AnodracCardona · 7 days ago

I can reproduce this issue on Windows with a newer, fully version-aligned installation. The native host reports a healthy connection, but Chrome control still incorrectly treats it as outdated and remains read-only.

Environment

  • ChatGPT/Codex app: 26.818.21641
  • Chrome extension: 1.2.27267.15375
  • nativeHostStatus.state: connected
  • App version: 26.818.21641
  • CLI version: 26.818.21641
  • Native host version: 26.818.21641
  • Native messaging protocol: v2
  • extension-host.exe is running

Reproduction

  1. Open https://example.com in Chrome.
  2. Start a brand-new chat directly in the Chrome side panel.
  3. Ask ChatGPT to inspect the page: it can read the page successfully.
  4. Ask it to click a link: the action is refused with an incorrect message that the native host is outdated.

This reproduces even though the connection indicator is green and the app, CLI, and native-host versions all match.

Feedback ID: 01a01f00-61c3-7a30-b161-12a5fccf4298

No local tokens, user paths, or other sensitive diagnostic data are included.

HumpyAngel · 7 days ago

Update — 21 August 2026

The problem still persists after updating the ChatGPT desktop application.

Current environment:

  • Windows 11
  • ChatGPT desktop app version: 26.818.2441.0
  • Official ChatGPT extension for Chrome
  • Chrome extension and ChatGPT Chrome plugin were removed and reinstalled
  • The ChatGPT application was repaired using Windows Settings
  • Chrome, ChatGPT and the computer were restarted
  • Only one ChatGPT desktop installation is present
  • No separate Codex desktop application is installed

Latest browser-control test:

  1. The connection to Chrome was established successfully.
  2. The browser-control runtime selected Chrome correctly.
  3. Reading the list of user-owned open tabs returned an empty list, even though Chrome was open.
  4. A second attempt to list the bound browser tabs timed out after approximately 26 seconds.
  5. The browser-control session was then reset automatically.

Exact result:

  • browser.user.openTabs() returned []
  • browser.tabs.list() ended with: js execution timed out; kernel reset, rerun your request

Therefore, full browser control is still unavailable. ChatGPT cannot reliably access the open Chrome tabs or perform navigation, clicking and typing.

Previous feedback references:

  • no-active-thread-01a01a82-09fe-7542-82b7-c429588b72ca
  • no-active-thread-01a01f85-fcb9-7601-bbd3-ec744a26824c

Please verify:

  • the packaged Windows native-host version;
  • the native-host registration;
  • compatibility between the current ChatGPT desktop app, Chrome extension and browser-control runtime;
  • why the browser connection is established but the user tab list remains empty;
  • why requesting the bound tab list causes a timeout and runtime reset.