AIv0.145BEGINNEROpenAI Codex
OpenAI Codex cheat sheet covering CLI startup, built-in slash commands, session control, permissions, tools, and troubleshooting.
11 min read
codexopenaiai-codingclislash-commandsproductivity
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Installation & Setup
Choose the desktop app or CLI, sign in, and start using Codex.
Install ChatGPT for desktop and open Codex for local software work.
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Download: https://chatgpt.com/download/
1. Install ChatGPT for macOS or Windows.
2. Open the app and sign in.
3. Select Codex from the top-left menu.
4. Open a local folder or project.
# Continue a CLI session on desktop
/app🟢 The desktop app is available for macOS and Windows
📌 Select Codex for repositories, terminals, and developer tools
💡 Desktop and CLI are separate interfaces for the same coding workflow
⚡ Use /app to continue a CLI session on desktop
desktopinstallationappcodex
Install with the standalone installer, verify the CLI, and sign in.
bash
# Standalone installer: macOS and Linux
curl -fsSL https://chatgpt.com/codex/install.sh | sh
# Standalone installer: Windows PowerShell
powershell -ExecutionPolicy ByPass -c "irm https://chatgpt.com/codex/install.ps1 | iex"
# Verify the installed release
codex --version
# Start Codex and choose Sign in with ChatGPT
codex🟢 The official quickstart leads with the standalone installers
⚡ Rerun the standalone installer to update Codex
📌 npm and Homebrew remain supported alternatives
🔐 Run codex and choose Sign in with ChatGPT on first launch
installationauthenticationclistandalone
Start a session and discover commands from the composer.
bash
# Start the interactive terminal UI
codex
# Start with an initial task
codex "Explain this repository structure"
# Inside the composer
/ # Open the slash command popup
/status # Inspect the active session
/model # Change the active model
/permissions # Change approval behavior💡 Type / to discover available commands
⚡ Start typing a command name to filter the popup
📌 Press Tab to queue a command while a turn is running
🔍 Use /status after startup to verify the session
basicsslash-commandstui
Essential Slash Commands
Control sessions, context, files, and code review.
Create, resume, organize, archive, or exit sessions.
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/new Start a fresh chat
/clear Clear the terminal and start fresh
/resume Resume a saved chat
/fork Fork the current chat
/rename NAME Rename the current chat
/archive Archive the session and exit
/delete Permanently delete the session
/logout Clear local credentials
/quit Exit the CLI
/exit Exit the CLI📌 /new and /clear both start a fresh chat
💡 /fork preserves the original transcript
⚠️ /delete is permanent and removes descendant sessions
🔐 Use /logout before leaving a shared machine
commandssessionsaccount
Manage the context window and inspect session usage.
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/compact Summarize the chat to free context
/copy Copy the latest completed response
/raw Toggle raw scrollback mode
/raw on Enable raw scrollback
/raw off Disable raw scrollback
/status Show session configuration and tokens
/usage Open account usage actions
/usage daily Show daily token activity
/usage weekly Show weekly token activity
/usage cumulative Show cumulative token activity📌 /compact keeps key context from a long chat
⚡ /copy uses the latest completed response
🔍 /status confirms the model, permissions, and workspace
💡 /usage requires Codex service account authentication
commandscontextusageoutput
Attach project context and inspect code changes.
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/mention src/lib/api.ts
/ide Review the selected function
/diff
/review📌 /mention points Codex at an exact file or folder
💡 /ide avoids re-explaining active editor context
🔍 /diff includes untracked files
🧪 /review focuses on defects, behavior changes, and missing tests
commandsfilesdiffreview
Models, Modes & Permissions
Change model behavior, planning state, goals, and access.
Switch models, speed tiers, personality, and memory.
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/model Choose model and reasoning effort
/fast Toggle the Fast service tier
/personality Choose a communication style
/memories Configure memory use and generation📌 /model changes the active session model
⚡ /fast appears only when the model catalog supports it
💬 /personality changes style without replacing instructions
🧠 /memories controls memory use and generation
commandsmodelspersonalitymemory
Plan before editing and track a persistent objective.
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/plan
/plan Propose a migration plan for this service
/goal Finish the migration and keep tests green
/goal
/goal edit
/goal pause
/goal resume
/goal clear💡 /plan is best before multi-step implementation
📌 /plan is unavailable while Codex is already working
🎯 /goal keeps a larger objective attached to the chat
⚠️ Goal text must be non-empty and at most 4,000 characters
commandsplangoalworkflow
Adjust approvals and platform sandbox access.
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/permissions
/approve
/experimental
# Windows-only commands
/setup-default-sandbox
/sandbox-add-read-dir C:\absolute\directory🔐 /permissions changes what Codex can do without asking
⚠️ /approve retries only a recent automatic-review denial
🧪 /experimental features may require a restart
🪟 Sandbox setup and extra read directories are Windows-only
commandspermissionssandboxwindows
Tools & Integrations
Use skills, custom commands, apps, plugins, MCP, and hooks.
Invoke reusable workflows from the slash menu.
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/skills
$focused-review Review the current change
# Deprecated custom prompt command
/prompts:draftpr FILES="src/app/page.tsx"🟢 /skills browses reusable task workflows
⚡ A $ mention invokes a skill explicitly
📌 Custom prompt commands use the /prompts:name prefix
⚠️ Custom prompts are deprecated in favor of skills
commandsskillscustom-prompts
Browse connected apps and installable capability bundles.
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/apps
/plugins🔌 /apps inserts a selected app into the prompt
📦 /plugins opens the plugin browser
📌 Plugins can bundle skills, tools, and integrations
🔐 App access may require authorization or workspace approval
commandsappspluginsconnectors
Inspect external tools and lifecycle handlers.
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/mcp
/mcp verbose
/hooks🔍 /mcp shows tools available in the current session
🧰 /mcp verbose adds server diagnostics
⚙️ /hooks opens lifecycle hook management
🔐 Managed hooks cannot be disabled from the user browser
commandsmcphookstools
Agents & Background Work
Switch agent threads and manage long-running terminals.
Inspect delegated work without losing the main conversation.
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/agent
/subagents
/side Check whether this plan has an obvious risk
/btw Explain the last command🤖 /agent and /subagents open the same thread picker
💡 /side preserves the main transcript
⚡ /btw is an alias for /side
📌 Side chats are temporary focused detours
commandsagentssubagentsside-chat
Inspect and stop terminals launched by the active session.
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/ps
/stop
/clean🔍 /ps shows recent output from background terminals
⏹️ /stop ends all background terminals for the session
📌 /clean is an alias for /stop
💡 Check /ps before stopping long-running work
commandsbackgroundprocessesterminals
Customization & Migration
Customize the terminal UI and move work between surfaces.
Customize visible session information and terminal styling.
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/statusline
/title
/theme
/pets
/pet
/pets off📊 /statusline controls persistent footer fields
🪟 /title controls terminal title fields
🎨 /theme previews syntax highlighting before saving
🐾 /pet and /pets open the same picker
commandsstatuslinethemetui
Remap TUI shortcuts and change composer editing mode.
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/keymap
/vim⌨️ /keymap updates shortcuts immediately
📌 Context-specific bindings override global bindings
💡 /vim toggles composer editing behavior
⚙️ Persistent keybindings are stored in config.toml
commandskeymapvimtui
Continue in the app, create project guidance, or import setup.
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/app
/init
/import🖥️ /app continues the same chat in the desktop app
📌 /init creates a starting point for project instructions
🔍 Review generated AGENTS.md content before keeping it
⚠️ /import is unavailable in remote or active-task sessions
commandsdesktopagents-mdimport
Troubleshooting
Inspect configuration, report problems, and recover context.
Inspect active state, configuration layers, and tool health.
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/status
/debug-config
/mcp verbose
/feedback🔍 Start with /status for unexpected session behavior
⚙️ /debug-config explains configuration precedence
🧰 /mcp verbose diagnoses external tool connections
🐛 /feedback can include logs for maintainers
commandsdiagnosticsconfigfeedback
Choose the least disruptive way to recover a long session.
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# Preserve the current chat but free context
/compact
# Start a new chat and keep the terminal view
/new
# Clear the terminal and start a new chat
/clear
# Continue a saved chat
/resume
# Branch the current approach
/fork📌 /compact is the least disruptive context reset
💡 /new keeps the visible terminal history
🧹 /clear resets both the chat and visible terminal
🔀 /fork is safest for exploring a competing approach
commandscontextrecoverysessions