Deleted ChatGPT conversation remains in desktop sidebar; archive and delete return errors #44657

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

ChatGPT desktop app 26.903.71938 (build 8576)

What subscription do you have?

Plus

What platform is your computer?

Darwin 27.0.0 arm64 arm macOS 27.0 (build 26A428), Apple Silicon

What issue are you seeing?

A deleted ChatGPT conversation remains visible in the desktop app’s Recents sidebar. I cannot open, archive, or delete the leftover entry.

Actual behavior:

• Opening the conversation displays “Could not load this ChatGPT conversation.”
• Selecting Archive displays “Failed to archive conversation.”
• Selecting Delete displays “Failed to delete chat.”
• The entry remains in the sidebar after each attempt.
• The conversation does not appear when searching ChatGPT on the website using the same account.

Expected behavior:
A conversation that the server reports as deleted should be removed from the desktop sidebar. Attempting to delete an already-deleted conversation should clear the stale entry rather than leave it stuck.

Troubleshooting already attempted:

• Fully quit the app with Command-Q and reopened it.
• Signed out and signed back into the same account.
• Signed out, uninstalled the app, reinstalled it, and signed back in.

None of these steps removed the entry.

Log evidence:
At 2026-09-10 21:53:10 UTC, the desktop app’s delete request returned HTTP 404 with:

• error code: conversation_deleted
• message: “Conversation has been deleted. Start a new chat.”
• can_retry: false

Loading the same conversation also returned HTTP 404 with conversation_deleted. Some initialization requests returned conversation_inaccessible.

The deleted status is confirmed by the server responses recorded in the local app logs. It is unclear whether the stale sidebar entry is retained locally or restored through synchronization.

Please provide a way to remove this stale sidebar entry without resetting unrelated tasks, settings, or automations.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

Feedback ID: 01a08d4d-7dc9-7b91-80ba-500e68533273

What is the expected behavior?

A conversation that the server reports as deleted should disappear from the desktop sidebar after synchronization. If a stale entry remains, choosing Delete should remove that entry rather than display an error and leave it stuck.

Additional information

The “What steps can reproduce the bug?” field repeatedly resets to the Feedback ID when I try to edit it, so I am providing the reproduction steps here instead.

Reproduction steps:

1. Open the desktop app.
2. Select the stale conversation in the Recents sidebar.
3. The app displays “Could not load this ChatGPT conversation.”
4. Open the conversation’s sidebar menu and select Archive.
5. The app displays “Failed to archive conversation,” and the entry remains.
6. Select Delete from the same menu.
7. The app displays “Failed to delete chat,” and the entry remains.

The conversation does not appear in ChatGPT web search using the same account.

The issue persists after fully quitting and reopening the app, signing out and back in, and uninstalling/reinstalling the app before signing back in.

Local logs show HTTP 404 with error code conversation_deleted and the message “Conversation has been deleted. Start a new chat.” The delete request at 2026-09-10 21:53:10 UTC returned this error, and loading the conversation returned the same deleted status.