codex

Delegate coding to OpenAI Codex CLI (features, PRs).

Install

openclaw skills install @doggofroggo/codex

Codex CLI

Delegate coding tasks to Codex via the Hermes terminal. Codex is OpenAI's autonomous coding agent CLI.

When to use

Building features
Refactoring
PR reviews
Batch issue fixing

Requires the codex CLI and a git repository.

Prerequisites

Codex installed: npm install -g @openai/codex
OpenAI auth configured: either OPENAI_API_KEY or Codex OAuth credentials from the Codex CLI login flow
Must run inside a git repository — Codex refuses to run outside one
Use pty=true in terminal calls — Codex is an interactive terminal app

For Hermes itself, model.provider: openai-codex uses Hermes-managed Codex OAuth from ~/.hermes/auth.json after hermes auth add openai-codex. For the standalone Codex CLI, a valid CLI OAuth session may live under ~/.codex/auth.json; do not treat a missing OPENAI_API_KEY alone as proof that Codex auth is missing.

One-Shot Tasks

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terminal(command="codex exec 'Add dark mode toggle to settings'", workdir="~/project", pty=true)

For scratch work (Codex needs a git repo):

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terminal(command="cd $(mktemp -d) && git init && codex exec 'Build a snake game in Python'", pty=true)

Background Mode (Long Tasks)

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# Start in background with PTY
terminal(command="codex exec --sandbox workspace-write 'Refactor the auth module'", workdir="~/project", background=true, pty=true)
# Returns session_id

# Monitor progress
process(action="poll", session_id="<id>")
process(action="log", session_id="<id>")

# Send input if Codex asks a question
process(action="submit", session_id="<id>", data="yes")

# Kill if needed
process(action="kill", session_id="<id>")

Key Flags

Flag	Effect
`exec "prompt"`	One-shot execution, exits when done
`--sandbox workspace-write` (`-s`)	Sandboxed but auto-approves file changes in the workspace (the recommended auto-build mode)
`--dangerously-bypass-approvals-and-sandbox`	No sandbox, no approvals (fastest, most dangerous; `--yolo` still works as a hidden alias)
`--sandbox danger-full-access`	No Codex sandbox; useful when the host service context breaks bubblewrap

Deprecated: --full-auto still works but the live CLI warns to use --sandbox workspace-write instead.

Hermes Gateway Caveat

When invoking the Codex CLI from a Hermes gateway/service context (for example, Telegram-driven agent sessions), Codex workspace-write sandboxing may fail even when the same command works in the user's interactive shell. A typical symptom is bubblewrap/user-namespace errors such as setting up uid map: Permission denied or loopback: Failed RTM_NEWADDR: Operation not permitted.

In that context, prefer:

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codex exec --sandbox danger-full-access "<task>"

Use process boundaries as the safety layer instead: explicit workdir, clean git status before launch, narrow task prompts, git diff review, targeted tests, and human/agent confirmation before committing broad changes.

PR Reviews

Clone to a temp directory for safe review:

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terminal(command="REVIEW=$(mktemp -d) && git clone https://github.com/user/repo.git $REVIEW && cd $REVIEW && gh pr checkout 42 && codex review --base origin/main", pty=true)

Parallel Issue Fixing with Worktrees

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# Create worktrees
terminal(command="git worktree add -b fix/issue-78 ~/.hermes/cache/scratch/issue-78 main", workdir="~/project")
terminal(command="git worktree add -b fix/issue-99 ~/.hermes/cache/scratch/issue-99 main", workdir="~/project")

# Launch Codex in each
terminal(command="codex --sandbox workspace-write exec 'Fix issue #78: <description>. Commit when done.'", workdir="~/.hermes/cache/scratch/issue-78", background=true, pty=true)
terminal(command="codex --sandbox workspace-write exec 'Fix issue #99: <description>. Commit when done.'", workdir="~/.hermes/cache/scratch/issue-99", background=true, pty=true)

# Monitor
process(action="list")

# After completion, push and create PRs
terminal(command="cd ~/.hermes/cache/scratch/issue-78 && git push -u origin fix/issue-78")
terminal(command="gh pr create --repo user/repo --head fix/issue-78 --title 'fix: ...' --body '...'")

# Cleanup
terminal(command="git worktree remove ~/.hermes/cache/scratch/issue-78", workdir="~/project")

Batch PR Reviews

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# Fetch all PR refs
terminal(command="git fetch origin '+refs/pull/*/head:refs/remotes/origin/pr/*'", workdir="~/project")

# Review multiple PRs in parallel
terminal(command="codex exec 'Review PR #86. git diff origin/main...origin/pr/86'", workdir="~/project", background=true, pty=true)
terminal(command="codex exec 'Review PR #87. git diff origin/main...origin/pr/87'", workdir="~/project", background=true, pty=true)

# Post results
terminal(command="gh pr comment 86 --body '<review>'", workdir="~/project")

Rules

Always use pty=true — Codex is an interactive terminal app and hangs without a PTY
Git repo required — Codex won't run outside a git directory. Use mktemp -d && git init for scratch
Use exec for one-shots — codex exec "prompt" runs and exits cleanly
--sandbox workspace-write for building — auto-approves changes within the sandbox (--full-auto is deprecated for this)
Background for long tasks — use background=true and monitor with process tool
Don't interfere — monitor with poll/log, be patient with long-running tasks
Parallel is fine — run multiple Codex processes at once for batch work