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[Windows][Desktop 26.825.6671.0] Deleted conversations persist in Recents after reset, re-login, and canonical-list removal #41693

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[Windows][Desktop 26.825.6671.0] Deleted conversations persist in Recents after reset, re-login, and canonical-list removal#41693
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appIssues related to the Codex desktop appbugSomething isn't workingsessionIssues involving session (thread) management, resuming, forking, naming, archivingwindows-osIssues related to Codex on Windows systems

Description

@jillvalentine1202-source
jillvalentine1202-source
opened on Aug 30, 2026

What version of the Codex App are you using?

Microsoft Store package OpenAI.Codex 26.825.6671.0 x64.

The problem was also reproduced on 26.825.5331.0 before updating.

What platform are you using?

Windows desktop app (ChatGPT / Codex unified app), Japanese locale.

Summary

Deleted conversations continue to appear under the Windows desktop app's Recents section even though they no longer exist in the canonical ChatGPT/Codex thread lists.

Only the currently active thread should remain:

  • Fix recent items deletion bug

The following deleted entries still appear:

  • めざしの冷凍保存確認
  • 土田部長の気分推測
  • Codex App Server活用 horosuke
  • 海鮮焼き方案内

Actual behavior

The four deleted entries remain visible under 最近の項目 / Recents.

Attempts to pin, archive, open, or remove the stale entries fail or have no durable effect. One known deleted ChatGPT conversation ID returned:

No Codex thread found for threadId: <deleted-id>. Hosts without a readable match: local

Evidence

Read-only diagnostics showed:

  1. The four deleted titles are absent from the supported unified list_threads result.
  2. The canonical task section contains only the current Codex thread.
  3. The titles and the known deleted ChatGPT conversation ID are absent from %USERPROFILE%\.codex\.codex-global-state.json.
  4. ChatGPT Web does not show these four conversations in its chat history.
  5. Therefore, the stale rows appear to come from a Windows-desktop-specific Recents projection/catalog that disagrees with both ChatGPT Web and the supported thread list.

A screenshot showing the stale Recents rows is available and can be provided privately if maintainers identify a suitable diagnostic channel.

Troubleshooting already performed

  • Deleted the affected conversations through the UI.
  • Fully quit and restarted the app.
  • Restarted Windows.
  • Signed out and signed back in.
  • Used Windows Repair for the app.
  • Used Windows Reset for the app.
  • Reauthenticated after reset.
  • Updated the Store app from 26.825.5331.0 to 26.825.6671.0.
  • Cleared display/cache data.
  • Verified the supported thread list.
  • Backed up and removed only orphaned IDs without rollout/session files from .codex-global-state.json -> projectless-thread-ids.

The orphaned-ID cleanup reduced projectless-thread-ids from 16 to 2 while preserving the current thread and one legitimate archived session, but it did not remove the four stale Windows Recents rows. This indicates the visible rows are owned by another catalog/projection.

Reproduction

  1. Delete conversations shown in the Windows desktop Recents list.
  2. Confirm they disappear or become inaccessible.
  3. Fully quit/restart the desktop app, reset it, or sign out and sign back in.
  4. Observe that the deleted titles reappear under Recents.
  5. Check ChatGPT Web and the supported unified thread list.
  6. Observe that the same deleted conversations are absent there.

Expected behavior

  • A deleted conversation must not reappear in any active sidebar or Recents view.
  • The Windows desktop Recents projection should reconcile against deletion tombstones and the canonical thread list.
  • Orphaned/stale rows should have a supported "remove stale reference" operation even when the backing thread no longer exists.

Related reports

Privacy

The four visible titles are included with the user's explicit permission. No project files, prompts, account identifiers, local paths beyond generic locations, or private logs are attached.

Activity

  1. github-actions
    added
    bugSomething isn't working
    appIssues related to the Codex desktop app
    windows-osIssues related to Codex on Windows systems
    sessionIssues involving session (thread) management, resuming, forking, naming, archiving
    on Aug 30, 2026

  2. github-actions commented on Aug 30, 2026

    @github-actions
    github-actionsbot
    on Aug 30, 2026 – with GitHub Actions
    Contributor

    Potential duplicates detected. Please review them and close your issue if it is a duplicate.

    Powered by Codex Action

  3. gaemgaem010 commented on Sep 3, 2026

    @gaemgaem010
    gaemgaem010
    on Sep 3, 2026 – with ChatGPT Codex Connector

    Additional independent reproduction on Windows, with local-store diagnostics.

    Environment:

    • Windows desktop ChatGPT/Codex app
    • Microsoft Store package: OpenAI.Codex 26.825.6671.0 x64
    • Affected stale Recents title: 엔진 개발 기초안

    Observed behavior:

    • The conversation was deleted from ChatGPT on web/mobile and no longer appears there.
    • The Windows desktop app still shows the deleted title in Recents.
    • The stale entry cannot be reconciled away by normal app restart / full process termination.

    Read-only diagnostics performed while the desktop app was fully stopped:

    1. Recursively scanned SQLite/DB files under %USERPROFILE%\.codex and %APPDATA%\Codex for the exact title 엔진 개발 기초안: 0 matches.
    2. Recursively searched files under %APPDATA%\Codex, %LOCALAPPDATA%\OpenAI\Codex, and %USERPROFILE%\.codex for the exact title: 0 matches.
    3. The conversation remains absent from ChatGPT web/mobile while continuing to appear in the Windows desktop Recents UI.

    This makes a simple stale local SQLite/cache-row explanation unlikely. The behavior is consistent with a stale desktop Recents/sidebar projection or account-bound synchronization metadata that is not being reconciled against the authoritative conversation list after deletion.

    A newer report, #42236, reproduces the same behavior on app version 26.831.21537, so the issue appears to persist beyond 26.825.6671.0.

    Expected behavior:
    When a ChatGPT conversation has been deleted and is absent from the authoritative conversation list, the desktop Recents projection should remove the stale row automatically (including on relaunch/re-auth) rather than retaining an undeletable ghost entry.

  4. jillvalentine1202-source commented on Sep 5, 2026

    @jillvalentine1202-source
    jillvalentine1202-source
    on Sep 5, 2026 – with ChatGPT Codex Connector
    Author

    Update from 2026-09-05: the problem still reproduces on Microsoft Store package OpenAI.Codex 26.901.5003.0 x64.

    New cross-device evidence:

    • The same account was checked on two Windows PCs.
    • On the company PC, approximately five stale Recents rows disappeared.
    • On the home laptop, multiple deleted rows still remain.
    • The supported unified thread list currently contains only one additional non-project ChatGPT conversation besides the active Codex task, while the laptop Recents UI shows several more deleted rows.
    • Attempting to archive that listed ChatGPT conversation through the supported thread operation returned: No Codex thread found for threadId: <conversation-id>. Hosts without a readable match: local.
    • .codex-global-state.json still contains only two projectless thread IDs and none of the stale visible titles.

    This suggests that the stale Recents projection is device-dependent (or that reconciliation state differs per device) even for the same account. It also persists after a substantially newer desktop build. Projects were not modified during this diagnostic.

  5. renatmakes commented on Sep 6, 2026

    @renatmakes
    renatmakes
    on Sep 6, 2026

    I’m seeing the same issue on Windows 11.

    Chats that were deleted in the ChatGPT web app are gone from the web history, but their titles still remain in the Windows app under Recents. They cannot be opened, archived, or deleted.

    I tried the following with no change:

    • Restarting the app
    • Signing out and back in
    • Windows “Repair”
    • Windows “Reset”
    • Clearing/renaming the app’s LocalCache profile

    The stale entries still remain. Other chats and local Codex sessions continue to work normally.

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