codex - 💡(How to fix) Fix Codex Desktop on Windows is extremely slow even when the computer is fine

Summary

Codex Desktop on Windows is extremely slow in day-to-day use. This appears isolated to the Codex app itself, not the machine.

Environment

• Platform: Windows desktop app
• User report date: 2026-05-17
• Repo/workspace context where it is happening: normal local app development sessions, including browser/UI work and GitHub/reporting tasks

What is happening

The Codex Windows app becomes very slow during ordinary usage. The slowdown is severe enough to be a real workflow problem, not a minor polish issue.

The important detail: this does not appear to be general computer slowness. Other apps and the machine itself remain usable; the problematic part is the Codex app experience.

Impact

• Interactions feel delayed and heavy.
• It makes iterative app work much harder, especially when switching between code, browser checks, and conversation.
• It causes the user to lose confidence in the desktop app even when the underlying machine is fine.

Expected behavior

Codex Desktop should stay responsive during normal coding-agent workflows on Windows. If a workspace, thread, extension, browser integration, or background process is causing slowness, the app should surface that clearly and avoid degrading the whole UI.

Related issues found before filing

These may be related but do not fully replace this report:

• #20967 Codex App on Windows WSL responding very slow compared to CLI
• #20214 Codex App frequently freezes/stutters on Windows 11 Pro despite sufficient system resources
• #13764 Windows App: WSL agent causes severe lag when running threads

Notes

This report is intentionally user-facing and symptom-first: Windows Codex app performance is bad enough to block real work, and it appears app-specific rather than machine-specific.