YouTip

Currently, there are three mainstream ways to use Codex: | Method | Suitable For | Recommendation Level | | --- | --- | --- | | Web Version | Light usage | ⭐⭐ | | CLI Command Line | Heavy developers | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | | Desktop App | Most people | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | !(#) Codex App is the officially recommended desktop client, providing full functionality and a smooth multi-project parallel experience. !(#) * * * ## Download and Installation Codex App supports macOS (Apple Silicon) and Windows. Download URL: [https://chatgpt.com/codex](https://chatgpt.com/codex) | Platform | Download Method | | --- | --- | | macOS | Official website download or Homebrew | | Windows | Download installer from official website | !(#) * * * ## First Use After installation is complete, follow these steps to get started: 1. Open Codex App 2. Log in using a ChatGPT account or OpenAI API Key !(#) > If you log in using an API Key, some cloud features may be unavailable. > > > !(#) 3. After successful login, the interface looks like this: !(#) For first-time use, you can just focus on conversations and projects. Conversations work just like chatting on the regular ChatGPT web version. We can understand a Project as a combination of: ChatGPT's chat + IDE's project directory + AI Agent's long-term memory. A Project will be bound to a folder on your computer, and Codex will only work within that directory. !(#) Here I select "Add new project" and add codex-tutorial-test: !(#) Once inside, you can see the project name on both the left and right sides. You can select from multiple projects in the list: !(#) 4. Send your first Prompt to start using it !(#) * * * ## Interface Structure Codex App mainly includes the following areas: | Area | Function | | --- | --- | | **Project Sidebar** | Manage multiple projects, quick switching | | **Project List** | Display all sessions, supports filtering and archiving | | **Review Panel** | View file changes made by Codex | | **Terminal Panel** | Independent built-in terminal for each project | | **Skill Selector** | Browse and enable custom skills | !(#) | Area | Location | Function Description | | --- | --- | --- | | Navigation Buttons | Top left back/forward arrows !(#) | Used to switch between historical sessions or pages, similar to a browser's back and forward. | | New Conversation | Top of the left menu | Quickly start a temporary AI conversation without entering a specific project context, suitable for lightweight tasks like direct questions, code explanation, command generation, etc. | | Search | Left menu | Search historical conversations, project content, files, or task records. Very important in large projects, equivalent to the global search entry of an AI IDE. | | Plugins | Left menu | Manage and invoke plugin capabilities, such as GitHub, terminal, database, file system, browser tools, and other extension capabilities. | | Automations | Left menu | Create automatically executed tasks, such as: scheduled daily report generation, periodic repository checks, automatic script execution, task reminders, etc. | | Projects | Middle of the left side | Project workspace management area. Each project is usually bound to a code repository, directory, or workspace. | | New project | Left project area | Create a new project. After creation, it is usually associated with a local folder, Git repository, or remote code environment. | | Chats | Bottom of the left side | Global chat history area, used to manage non-project sessions. | | Filter Button | Funnel icon on the right side of the conversation bar !(#) | Filter chat records, for example by project, time, type, etc. | | New Chat Button | Edit icon on the right side of the conversation bar | Create a new independent chat project. | | Main Workspace | Central black area | Codex's core interaction area. Includes AI conversation, code generation, Agent execution, file modification result display, etc. | | "What should we do?" | Center of the main area | Welcome interface prompt, guiding the user to start a task. | | Input Box | Large input box at the bottom center | Enter natural language instructions to Codex, for example: generate code, fix bugs, analyze projects, refactor architecture, etc. | | @ Plugin Prompt | Input box prompt text | Supports invoking plugins or tools via `@`, such as `@terminal`, `@github`, `@browser`, etc. | | File Mention Feature | Input box prompt text | You can directly drag and drop files or reference project files to let AI analyze specific code. | | "+" Button | Bottom left of the input box | Add attachments, files, images, or additional context. | | Default Permissions | Bottom left of the input box | Control the execution permissions of the AI Agent, for example: read-only, allow file editing, allow command execution, etc. | | Model Selector (in 5.5) | Bottom right of the input box | Area to switch the currently used model version. Usually can switch between models of different capability levels. | | Microphone Button | Bottom right of the input box | Voice input function. | | Send Button | Circular arrow on the far right of the input box | Submit the current task to Codex. | | "Enter project work" | Below the input box | Enter the real project Agent mode. AI will perform context understanding based on the entire code repository, rather than just a normal chat. | | Globe Icon | Top right corner | Network or remote connection related functions, possibly used for online mode, synchronization, or remote environments. | | Top Right Sidebar Button | Rectangle icon in the top right corner | Control the display of the right additional panel, such as logs, terminal, file tree, Agent status, etc. | * * * ## Three Running Modes Each project can choose from three running modes: | Mode | Description | Applicable Scenarios | | --- | --- | --- | | **Local** | Work in the local project directory | Daily development, view results directly | | **Worktree** | Work in an independent Git worktree | Isolate changes, parallel development | | **Cloud** | Run in an isolated cloud environment | Remote delegation, parallel processing | !(#) ### Mode Selection When creating a new project, select the mode below the input box: * **Local**: Work directly in the current directory, changes are immediately visible * **Worktree**: Create an independent branch, which can be merged into Local after completion * **Cloud**: Tasks run in the cloud, results are presented via PR or report !(#) > Worktree mode uses Git worktree technology, allowing you to work on different branches simultaneously. * * * ## Review Mode Review mode lets you view and approve changes made by Codex. ### Review Panel Features | Feature | Description | | --- | --- | | **Diff View** | Show detailed comparison of all file changes | | **Inline Comments** | Add comments on specific code lines | | **Chunk Actions** | Choose to accept or reject by code block | | **Bulk Commit** | Create a Git commit or push changes | ### Switching Review Views The review panel supports two views: * **All Changes**: Shows the project's Git status, including non-Codex changes * **Last