What version of the Codex App are you using (From “About Codex” dialog)?
Affected version: 26.820.9563.0 Version observed after recovery/update: 26.825.3734.0
What subscription do you have?
Plus
What platform is your computer?
Microsoft Windows NT 10.0.26200.0 x64
What issue are you seeing?
The Codex/ChatGPT Windows desktop app intermittently failed to create or show a visible GUI window.
When I launched the app, multiple ChatGPT.exe processes appeared in Task Manager, but no foreground window appeared and no error dialog was shown. Launching the app again several times did not initially recover the window. The app eventually opened successfully later without an intentional configuration change.
Windows Event Viewer confirms that the affected app instance stopped responding:
- Time: 2026-08-28 13:34:51 (UTC+8)
- Event ID: 1002
- Provider: Application Hang
- Process: ChatGPT.exe
- Executable version: 151.0.7922.170
- Result: The program stopped interacting with Windows and was closed.
Windows Error Reporting also recorded:
- Event ID: 1001
- Event name: MoAppHangXProc
- Package: OpenAI.Codex_26.820.9563.0_x64__2p2nqsd0c76g0
- Cross-process signature: svchost.exe:SECLOGON
No visible error message was presented by the app.
What steps can reproduce the bug?
- Start the Codex Windows app from the Start menu or its shortcut.
- Observe that one or more
ChatGPT.exe background processes appear in Task Manager.
- Observe that no Codex window appears in the foreground or taskbar.
- Try launching the app again several times.
- The existing background instance remains, but the GUI still does not appear.
The issue is intermittent. I observed it on 2026-08-28 and could not reproduce it again after the application recovered.
No prompt, session ID, token usage, or context-window usage is applicable because the GUI did not open and no Codex session could be started.
What is the expected behavior?
When Codex is launched, the existing app instance should create, show, or activate its main window.
If initialization fails, the app should exit cleanly or display an actionable error message instead of remaining as background processes with no visible GUI.
Additional information
Timeline
- 2026-08-28 13:34:51 (UTC+8): Windows recorded an application hang for
ChatGPT.exe.
- Several subsequent launch attempts created or reused background processes without a visible window.
- Around 13:56 (UTC+8): a newer application build was observed running and responding normally.
Environment
- OS: Windows 11 Home, x64
- Platform command output:
Microsoft Windows NT 10.0.26200.0 x64
- System locale: Chinese (Simplified)
- Time zone: Asia/Shanghai (UTC+8)
- GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Laptop GPU
- NVIDIA driver: 566.24
- Affected package:
OpenAI.Codex_26.820.9563.0_x64__2p2nqsd0c76g0
- Affected executable version:
ChatGPT.exe 151.0.7922.170
- Version observed after recovery:
OpenAI.Codex 26.825.3734.0
The change from 26.820.9563.0 to 26.825.3734.0 suggests that a Microsoft Store update may have completed between the failure and recovery, but this was not directly confirmed.
Windows Error Reporting details
TimeCreated: 2026-08-28 13:34:51 (UTC+8)
Event ID: 1001
Provider: Windows Error Reporting
Event name: MoAppHangXProc
Fault bucket: 1480170219638552842
P1: OpenAI.Codex_26.820.9563.0_x64__2p2nqsd0c76g0
P2: praid:App
P3: 151.0.7922.170
P4: 6a83a905
P5: ed7c
P6: 2097280
P7: UNKNOWN
P8: svchost.exe:SECLOGON
P9: 0.0.0.0
P10:
Report ID: abc2b211-fce8-4318-acb1-ae993a08984c
Report status: 268435456
Bucket hash: 557cdcecf7239ca5e48a9ef8f4aaf90a
After recovery, the application displayed its GUI and all observed ChatGPT.exe processes reported as responding.
No cache deletion, app reset, reinstall, or .codex configuration change was performed before recovery.
What version of the Codex App are you using (From “About Codex” dialog)?
Affected version: 26.820.9563.0 Version observed after recovery/update: 26.825.3734.0
What subscription do you have?
Plus
What platform is your computer?
Microsoft Windows NT 10.0.26200.0 x64
What issue are you seeing?
The Codex/ChatGPT Windows desktop app intermittently failed to create or show a visible GUI window.
When I launched the app, multiple
ChatGPT.exeprocesses appeared in Task Manager, but no foreground window appeared and no error dialog was shown. Launching the app again several times did not initially recover the window. The app eventually opened successfully later without an intentional configuration change.Windows Event Viewer confirms that the affected app instance stopped responding:
Windows Error Reporting also recorded:
No visible error message was presented by the app.
What steps can reproduce the bug?
ChatGPT.exebackground processes appear in Task Manager.The issue is intermittent. I observed it on 2026-08-28 and could not reproduce it again after the application recovered.
No prompt, session ID, token usage, or context-window usage is applicable because the GUI did not open and no Codex session could be started.
What is the expected behavior?
When Codex is launched, the existing app instance should create, show, or activate its main window.
If initialization fails, the app should exit cleanly or display an actionable error message instead of remaining as background processes with no visible GUI.
Additional information
Timeline
ChatGPT.exe.Environment
Microsoft Windows NT 10.0.26200.0 x64OpenAI.Codex_26.820.9563.0_x64__2p2nqsd0c76g0ChatGPT.exe 151.0.7922.170OpenAI.Codex 26.825.3734.0The change from
26.820.9563.0to26.825.3734.0suggests that a Microsoft Store update may have completed between the failure and recovery, but this was not directly confirmed.Windows Error Reporting details
After recovery, the application displayed its GUI and all observed
ChatGPT.exeprocesses reported as responding.No cache deletion, app reset, reinstall, or
.codexconfiguration change was performed before recovery.