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codex

Use the OpenAI Codex CLI (codex exec) as a coding agent for writing code, debugging, code review, and automated refactoring. Always runs with high reasoning effort for maximum depth.

personAuthor: jakexiaohubgithub
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Codex CLI Skill

Use the OpenAI Codex CLI to delegate coding tasks that benefit from fast, focused code generation, debugging, and review.

When to Use Codex

  • Code review — reviewing diffs, files, or modules for bugs and edge cases
  • Writing new functions or modules where requirements are clear
  • Debugging — Codex has found nuanced bugs that are easy to miss
  • Targeted refactors — renaming, restructuring single files or small groups
  • Boilerplate generation — tests, config files, repetitive patterns

When NOT to Use Codex

  • Tasks requiring multi-file architectural reasoning across the whole repo
  • Interactive exploration or codebase understanding (use Claude directly)
  • Tasks that need internet access on an airgapped cluster
  • When Codex is not installed (which codex returns nothing)

Installation

npm i -g @openai/codex

Requires Node.js 20+. Authenticate on first run (ChatGPT Plus/Pro/API key).

Required Flags

Every invocation MUST include these flags:

| Flag | Value | Why | |------|-------|-----| | --full-auto | (no value) | Non-interactive, no approval prompts | | -m | gpt-5.3-codex | Best model for code reasoning | | -c | reasoning_effort="high" | Maximum depth for catching subtle bugs |

Core Usage

Non-Interactive Execution

# Basic task
codex exec --full-auto -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" "your task here"

# Set working directory
codex exec --full-auto -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" \
  -C ~/binom-abstain "your task here"

# Read prompt from stdin
echo "fix the failing test in tests/test_eval.py" | codex exec --full-auto \
  -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" -

# Save output to file
codex exec --full-auto -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" \
  -o result.md "explain what src/train/sft.py does"

Code Review Patterns

Quick Diff Review

Review only what changed — fast, focused.

codex exec --full-auto -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" \
  "Review the uncommitted changes. Look for bugs, edge cases, and correctness issues."

Deep File Review

Review an entire file for latent bugs, not just recent changes.

codex exec --full-auto -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" \
  "Do a thorough review of src/pipeline/run_pipeline.py. Check for bugs, race conditions, and edge cases."

Read-Only Review (No Edits)

Use --sandbox read-only to ensure Codex only reads and reports, never modifies files.

codex exec --full-auto -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" \
  -s read-only \
  "Review src/train/sft.py. Report issues but do not modify any files."

Multi-File Module Review

codex exec --full-auto -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" \
  "Review all files in src/eval/ for correctness and consistency."

Staged / PR Review

# Review staged changes (pre-commit)
codex exec --full-auto -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" \
  "Review the staged git changes. Flag any issues before I commit."

# Review a PR diff against main
codex exec --full-auto -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" \
  "Review the diff between main and HEAD. Summarize changes and flag problems."

Debugging Patterns

# Point Codex at a failing test
codex exec --full-auto -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" \
  "the test tests/test_sft.py::test_lora_training is failing. diagnose and fix the bug."

# Focused debugging on a specific issue
codex exec --full-auto -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" \
  "Review src/sampling/generate.py focusing on OOM risks and GPU memory usage."

Writing & Refactoring Patterns

# Implement a new function
codex exec --full-auto -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" \
  "Implement function X that does Y. File: src/module/file.py"

# Targeted refactor
codex exec --full-auto -m gpt-5.3-codex -c reasoning_effort="high" \
  "Refactor src/train/sft.py to extract the data loading into a separate function."

All Flags Reference

| Flag | Short | Description | |------|-------|-------------| | --model | -m | Model to use (always gpt-5.3-codex) | | --full-auto | | No approvals, workspace-write sandbox | | --config | -c | Inline config (e.g., reasoning_effort="high") | | --cd | -C | Set working directory | | --output-last-message | -o | Write final response to file | | --sandbox | -s | read-only, workspace-write, danger-full-access | | --ask-for-approval | -a | untrusted, on-failure, on-request, never | | --image | -i | Attach screenshot/image to prompt | | --json | | Emit newline-delimited JSON events | | --skip-git-repo-check | | Run outside a git repo | | --search | | Enable live web search |

Resuming Sessions

codex exec resume --last        # Most recent session
codex exec resume <SESSION_ID>  # Specific session

Guidelines

  • Always verify Codex is installed first: which codex
  • Always use high reasoning — research code demands maximum scrutiny
  • Use --sandbox read-only when you only want a report, not fixes
  • Use -o review.md to capture reviews for later reference
  • Break large tasks into focused chunks (one module or file group at a time)
  • After Codex makes changes, run python -m pytest tests/ -v to verify
  • Review Codex output before committing — it may introduce subtle issues in unfamiliar codebases
  • Codex cannot access the internet — it works only with local files