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OpenAI Codex CLI Cheat Sheet

Installation

brew install --cask codex
# or
curl -fsSL https://chatgpt.com/codex/install.sh | sh
# or (Node 22+)
npm install -g @openai/codex
codex

Auth: browser sign-in (Plus/Pro/Business/Enterprise) or OPENAI_API_KEY. Headless: codex login --device-auth.

Approval & Sandbox

Two orthogonal controls, not one mode flag:

Flag Values
-a / --ask-for-approval untrusted · on-request · never
-s / --sandbox read-only · workspace-write · danger-full-access

--full-auto = -a on-request -s workspace-write (network off). --dangerously-bypass-approvals-and-sandbox (alias --yolo).

CLI Commands

Command Description
codex Start interactive session
codex "prompt" Direct prompt
codex exec "prompt" Non-interactive run (alias e)
codex resume Resume a session
codex apply Apply a cloud-task diff (alias a)
codex login / logout Manage auth
codex doctor Diagnose setup
codex -m gpt-5-codex "task" Specify model

Flags: -p profile, -c KEY=VALUE config override, -C cd, -i image, --search web search, --oss local Ollama.

Slash Commands

Change behavior mid-session: /model, /approvals, /permissions.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Key Action
Enter Send message
Ctrl+C Cancel operation
Esc Exit/cancel
y / n Approve/reject

Configuration

Config: ~/.codex/config.toml (also .codex/config.toml per project).

model = "gpt-5-codex"
approval_policy = "on-request"
sandbox_mode = "workspace-write"

[sandbox_workspace_write]
network_access = false

Precedence: CLI args > --profile > config.toml > defaults. Project memory: AGENTS.md.

Models

GPT-5 / Codex family. Names change often — run /model for current options.

  • gpt-5-codex family — agentic coding
  • General GPT-5 tiers for reasoning/speed

OPENAI_API_KEY unlocks models deprecated for ChatGPT sign-in.

MCP

Codex as an MCP server (stdio JSON-RPC):

codex mcp-server

Manage servers Codex connects to:

codex mcp add | list | get | remove | login

Or [mcp_servers.<name>] tables in config.toml.

Scripting Example

codex exec "Run tests and fix failures" \
  --full-auto

Git Safety

  • Commit before running Codex
  • Use -a untrusted or -s read-only for caution
  • Review diffs before accepting
  • Create feature branches

Tips

  • Start read-only (-s read-only) to learn
  • Use specific file paths in prompts
  • Let Codex iterate on test failures
  • Use codex exec for CI/automation
Tessl · Codex CLI Cheat Sheet · __VERSION__