codex - 💡(How to fix) Fix Windows Codex Desktop sidebar hides valid local project threads while SQLite and rollout files are intact [2 comments, 2 participants]

What version of the Codex App are you using (From "About Codex" dialog)?

26.422.8496.0

Local executable diagnostics also show codex.exe version 0.126.0.0.

What subscription do you have?

Paid OpenAI account.

What platform is your computer?

Microsoft Windows NT 10.0.26200.0 x64

What issue are you seeing?

Codex Desktop on Windows is not showing all local, unarchived project threads in the left sidebar. The underlying local data still exists in the Codex store, but the sidebar appears to render only a limited window of threads per project. When older threads are made recent or cloned/restored, they appear near the top, but other previously visible threads are pushed out of the visible sidebar list.

This looks like a sidebar enumeration/rendering bug rather than local data loss.

Local diagnostics:

%USERPROFILE%\.codex\state_5.sqlite
threads_total=111
threads_unarchived=110

%USERPROFILE%\.codex\session_index.jsonl
session_index_lines=139
session_index_unique_ids=111

%USERPROFILE%\.codex\sessions
session_rollout_files=110

%USERPROFILE%\.codex\archived_sessions
archived_rollout_files=1

Observed sidebar/project counts after a restart:

Project A: 3 unarchived threads in SQLite, 2 visible in sidebar, 1 hidden
Project B: 13 unarchived threads in SQLite, 5 visible in sidebar, 8 hidden
Project C: 33 unarchived threads in SQLite, 20 visible in sidebar, 13 hidden
Project D: 19 unarchived threads in SQLite, 4 visible in sidebar, 15 hidden
Project E: 2 unarchived threads in SQLite, 1 visible in sidebar, 1 hidden
Project F: 38 unarchived threads in SQLite, 15 visible in sidebar, 23 hidden

The hidden threads are not archived. Their thread rows exist in state_5.sqlite; corresponding entries exist in session_index.jsonl; and their rollout JSONL files still exist under %USERPROFILE%\.codex\sessions.

The behavior is especially visible in Project F:

SQLite has 38 active threads for the project.
The sidebar shows about 15 project threads.
Threads ranked below the visible window are not shown in the left sidebar.
After restoring/cloning older threads so that they become recent, those restored threads appear near the top, but other previously visible threads move below the visible window and disappear from the sidebar.

I also observed a path normalization signal similar to other reports:

Some threads.cwd values use plain C:\...
Some threads.cwd values use \\?\C:\...

Normalizing or updating local metadata is not a reliable repair. Direct edits to state_5.sqlite and session_index.jsonl can change ordering/names temporarily, but the app may rewrite state after startup. Creating fresh cloned threads makes those threads appear, which suggests the stored conversations are valid; however, this only shifts which subset is visible.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

I do not have a minimal clean repro from a fresh installation, but the observed repro on this machine is:

1. Use Codex Desktop on Windows across several local project roots.
2. Accumulate many local threads in project-organized sidebar mode.
3. Fully exit and restart Codex Desktop.
4. Open the left sidebar in project mode.
5. Observe that each project shows only a subset of its unarchived local threads.
6. Inspect local state:
   • state_5.sqlite contains more unarchived threads than the sidebar shows.
   • session_index.jsonl contains the missing thread IDs/names.
   • rollout JSONL files exist under %USERPROFILE%\.codex\sessions.
7. Make one hidden thread recent by cloning/restoring it as a fresh local thread.
8. Observe that the restored/recent thread appears near the top, but another thread is pushed below the visible project window and becomes inaccessible from the sidebar.

This makes the sidebar look like it is showing a capped or filtered subset rather than enumerating all local unarchived threads.

What is the expected behavior?

Codex Desktop should surface all unarchived local threads for each project, or provide a reliable way to load/show the full project thread list.

Specifically:

• all unarchived local threads present in state_5.sqlite and backed by rollout files should remain visible or searchable;
• project sidebar sections should not silently cap the visible list without a way to access older threads;
• Show more / Show less should not leave valid project threads inaccessible;
• restarting the app should not change which valid local threads are reachable;
• path normalization differences such as C:\... vs \\?\C:\... should not cause local threads to disappear from the project list.

Additional information

This appears closely related to several existing issues:

• https://github.com/openai/codex/issues/17540

  • Windows app: older local threads disappear from sidebar and sidebar search after restart while still present on disk.
  • Very similar local evidence: state_5.sqlite, session_index.jsonl, rollout files still present; \\?\C:\... path normalization signal.

• https://github.com/openai/codex/issues/13713

  • Local Codex Desktop sessions disappear from sidebar after restart on Windows.

• https://github.com/openai/codex/issues/16095

  • Mac app stops showing local threads even though local thread data still exists.

• https://github.com/openai/codex/issues/16624

  • VS Code Codex list drops valid sessions even though they exist in session_index.jsonl and state_5.sqlite.

• https://github.com/openai/codex/issues/16280

  • Resume picker/name behavior appears to depend on session_index.jsonl thread_name rather than only state_5.sqlite title.

Compared with #17540, this report adds one concrete signal: making/cloning older hidden threads recent causes them to appear, but other valid threads are pushed out of the visible project section. That makes the failure look like a project sidebar list cap/window/filtering issue rather than corrupted individual sessions.

No local chat data appears to be deleted on this machine; the problem is that many valid local threads are not reachable through the Codex Desktop sidebar.