Codex Desktop on Windows becomes unstartable after a second root is added
tm-iands · ghdev · 2026-07-24
What happened
Another OpenAI Codex bug report says the Windows desktop app becomes unstartable after adding a second root path to an existing project. Restarting keeps landing on the same generic error screen until the broken project state is manually repaired.
Key findings
- The issue reproduces with two normal local folders on the same drive.
- The project JSON remains valid.
- Removing the second root from %USERPROFILE%\.codex\.codex-global-state.json and its backup restores normal startup.
- The reporter ruled out the project name as the cause; a special character in the name was not the problem.
Impact
The bug effectively bricks Codex Desktop until the saved multi-root state is edited.
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