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OpenAI Codex Desktop Setup Guide

Using Bootspring with OpenAI's Codex Desktop application.

Overview#

OpenAI's Codex Desktop is a desktop coding assistant. Bootspring enhances Codex by providing:

  • Structured Context - CLAUDE.md provides project understanding
  • Expert Guidance - Specialized development patterns
  • Production Patterns - Copy-paste ready code snippets
  • Workflow Management - Multi-phase development orchestration

Prerequisites#

  • Codex Desktop installed (openai.com)
  • Bootspring CLI installed (npm install -g bootspring)
  • Node.js 18+ installed
  • OpenAI API key (for Codex Desktop)

Installing Codex Desktop#

macOS#

# Download from OpenAI or use Homebrew brew install --cask openai-codex

Windows#

Download from OpenAI's website and run the installer.

Linux#

# AppImage wget https://openai.com/download/codex-desktop-linux.AppImage chmod +x codex-desktop-*.AppImage ./codex-desktop-*.AppImage

Bootspring Integration#

Step 1: Initialize Bootspring#

cd your-project bootspring init bootspring generate

This creates:

  • CLAUDE.md - Context file (Codex can read this)
  • bootspring.config.js - Configuration
  • .bootspring/ - Local data

Step 2: Configure Codex Settings#

Codex Desktop reads files in your project. Add CLAUDE.md to indexed files:

  1. Open Codex Desktop Settings
  2. Navigate to "Context Files"
  3. Add CLAUDE.md to the list
  4. Enable "Auto-index on change"

Step 3: Create Custom Instructions#

In Codex Desktop, set custom instructions:

Refer to CLAUDE.md for complete project context, architecture, and coding standards. When generating code: 1. Follow patterns defined in project context 2. Use the tech stack specified 3. Match existing code style 4. Consider security best practices

Using Bootspring with Codex#

Project Context#

Codex reads your CLAUDE.md for context:

1# Project Context 2 3## Overview 4E-commerce platform built with Next.js... 5 6## Tech Stack 7- Next.js 14 (App Router) 8- TypeScript (strict mode) 9- Prisma (PostgreSQL) 10- Tailwind CSS 11 12## Patterns 13- API routes in app/api/ 14- Server Components by default 15- Zod for validation

Referencing Context#

In Codex prompts:

Looking at the project context in CLAUDE.md, create a new API endpoint for user preferences following our established patterns.

Using Bootspring Patterns#

Ask Codex to follow Bootspring patterns:

Generate a REST API endpoint following the patterns in my project context. Include: - Zod validation - Error handling - TypeScript types

Terminal Integration#

Using Codex Terminal#

Codex Desktop includes a terminal. Use Bootspring directly:

1# Generate context 2bootspring generate 3 4# Run quality checks 5bootspring quality pre-commit 6 7# Invoke agents 8bootspring agent invoke security-expert "Review this implementation"

Agent Consultations#

Use Bootspring agents for specialized guidance:

1# Get security review 2bootspring agent invoke security-expert "Review authentication flow" 3 4# Get database advice 5bootspring agent invoke database-expert "Optimize user queries" 6 7# Get frontend guidance 8bootspring agent invoke frontend-expert "Best form patterns"

Skill Patterns#

Apply production patterns:

1# List available patterns 2bootspring skill list 3 4# Search for specific patterns 5bootspring skill search "authentication" 6 7# View pattern details 8bootspring skill show auth/jwt

Workflow Examples#

Feature Development#

  1. Plan with Bootspring

    bootspring workflow start feature-development

  2. Design Phase - Bootspring provides architecture guidance

  3. Implement in Codex - Use Codex for code generation

  4. Apply Patterns

    bootspring skill apply patterns/api-endpoint

  5. Quality Check

    bootspring quality pre-commit

Code Review#

1# Generate analysis 2bootspring analyze 3 4# Run security audit 5bootspring audit --phase=security 6 7# In Codex 8"Review these findings and suggest improvements"

Debugging#

1# Check project health 2bootspring health 3 4# View recent learnings 5bootspring memory search "error" 6 7# In Codex 8"Help me debug this issue considering the project context"

Configuration#

Bootspring Config#

1// bootspring.config.js 2module.exports = { 3 project: { 4 name: 'my-app', 5 type: 'nextjs', 6 language: 'typescript' 7 }, 8 context: { 9 include: ['src/**/*.ts', 'src/**/*.tsx'], 10 exclude: ['node_modules/**', '**/*.test.ts'] 11 } 12};

Codex Settings#

Configure Codex to work well with Bootspring:

  1. Context Files: Add CLAUDE.md, bootspring.config.js
  2. Excluded Files: node_modules/, .bootspring/
  3. Custom Instructions: Reference project context

Keeping Context Updated#

Manual Update#

bootspring generate

Git Hook#

#!/bin/sh # .git/hooks/post-commit bootspring generate --quiet

Watch Mode#

# In separate terminal bootspring generate --watch

Best Practices#

Start Conversations with Context#

I'm working on [project from CLAUDE.md]. Help me implement [feature] following our patterns.

Reference Specific Sections#

According to our Tech Stack (from project context), we use Prisma for the database. Help me create a migration.

Validate Codex Output#

Always validate generated code:

1# Run quality checks 2bootspring quality pre-commit 3 4# Run tests 5npm test 6 7# Security review 8bootspring agent invoke security-expert "Review recent changes"

Troubleshooting#

Context Not Loading#

1# Verify CLAUDE.md exists 2ls -la CLAUDE.md 3 4# Regenerate 5bootspring generate --verbose 6 7# Check for errors in output

Codex Not Following Patterns#

  1. Verify custom instructions include context reference
  2. Explicitly mention patterns in prompts
  3. Provide specific examples from your codebase

Terminal Commands Failing#

1# Check Bootspring installation 2bootspring --version 3 4# Run diagnostics 5bootspring doctor 6 7# Reinstall if needed 8npm install -g bootspring

Comparison with Other Tools#

FeatureCodex DesktopClaude CodeCursor
Context via file✓✓✓
MCP integration-✓-
Inline editing✓✓✓
Terminal access✓✓✓
Custom instructions✓✓✓

Next Steps#