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[macOS][26.908.31457] cua_repl js tool is available but cua global is undefined after reset #44724

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Description

@jaglogaiyan

What version of the Codex App are you using?

ChatGPT/Codex Desktop 26.908.31457 (build 8690). The running process is /Applications/ChatGPT.app/Contents/MacOS/ChatGPT.

Bundled components observed:

  • Codex CLI: 0.154.0-alpha.6.1
  • unified-computer-use@openai-bundled: 26.908.31457

What subscription do you have?

Signed-in ChatGPT account; the exact subscription tier was not inspected for this reproduction.

What platform is your computer?

macOS 26.6.2 (25G83), Apple Silicon (arm64).

What issue are you seeing?

The cua_repl/js MCP tool is present and accepts JavaScript, but the documented cua global is not defined. Browser control therefore fails before creating or selecting an in-app Browser tab.

Following the tool's first-call instructions exactly:

let tab = await cua.createBrowserTab("iab", "https://example.com", { visible: true });

returns immediately with:

cua is not defined

Resetting the JavaScript kernel succeeds, but does not restore the global:

cua_repl/js_reset -> js kernel reset

The required initialization call after reset:

await cua.getState();

returns the same error:

cua is not defined

The failure reproduced again with https://example.com, so it occurs before target-site access or authentication.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

  1. Launch ChatGPT/Codex Desktop on macOS.
  2. Start a task with the bundled unified computer-use/browser integration enabled.
  3. Ask the task to open https://example.com in the visible in-app Browser.
  4. Let it invoke cua_repl/js with the documented cua.createBrowserTab(...) call.
  5. Observe cua is not defined.
  6. Invoke cua_repl/js_reset.
  7. Invoke cua_repl/js with exactly await cua.getState(); as required after a reset.
  8. Observe cua is not defined again.

What is the expected behavior?

The cua_repl/js runtime should inject the documented cua global. cua.getState() should return the enabled surfaces, and cua.createBrowserTab("iab", ...) should create and return an in-app Browser tab binding.

Additional information

This appears related to the current browser/computer-use initialization and lifecycle reports, but none of them contains this exact symptom: the MCP tool itself is callable while its required global is absent.

Related issues:

No private target URL, page content, credentials, account identifiers, or raw configuration files are included.

Activity

  1. jaglogaiyan commented on Sep 11, 2026

    @jaglogaiyan
    Author

    Additional regression-boundary evidence:

    Browser control was working on this machine until the desktop app was updated, then the cua is not defined failure began on the new release.

    Local Codex desktop logs corroborate the release transition:

    • 2026-09-11T02:40:35Z: desktop release 26.707.72221
    • 2026-09-11T03:03:25Z: desktop release 26.908.31457
    • Current failing installation: 26.908.31457 (build 8690), with unified-computer-use@openai-bundled 26.908.31457

    The exact public-page reproduction in the issue was performed after that transition. This narrows the observed regression boundary to 26.707.72221 -> 26.908.31457 on the same Apple Silicon Mac.

  2. littlePoBoy commented on Sep 18, 2026

    @littlePoBoy

    I’m seeing the same cua global issue on a newer Codex Desktop version.

    Environment

    • Codex Desktop: 26.915.31029
    • macOS: 26
    • Apple Silicon (arm64)

    Reproduction

    The node_repl JS tool is available and executes JavaScript normally, but the cua global is not injected.

    Running:

    typeof cua

    returns:

    "undefined"
    

    And:

    await cua.getState()

    fails with:

    cua is not defined
    

    So the failure occurs before any browser/website interaction.

    I noticed this issue is reported against 26.908.31457, while I’m on 26.915.31029, but the behavior appears to be the same.

    Could you confirm whether this is still a known/unfixed regression in the newer builds? If there is a fixed version or a recommended workaround, I’d appreciate any guidance.

    Thanks!

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