Summary
On Windows, Codex repeatedly creates large .staging-* runtime folders under AppData\Local\OpenAI\Codex\runtimes\cua_node. Each staging folder is about 272 MB, and many of them can be created within minutes, quickly filling the C: drive.
This appears related to a non-ASCII Windows user profile path. The actual Windows username contains Chinese characters, but the path shown by Codex / Explorer appears as mojibake.
Environment
- OS: Windows
- Codex app: desktop app
- User profile path contains Chinese characters
- Observed date: 2026-06-17
Path
C:\Users\<mojibake username>\AppData\Local\OpenAI\Codex\runtimes\cua_node
In my case, the real username is Chinese, but the folder shown in Explorer appears mojibake, for example:
C:\Users\寮犵...\AppData\Local\OpenAI\Codex\runtimes\cua_node
Observed behavior
Codex created multiple staging directories in a short period:
.staging-789504f803e82e2b-GyDDsT
.staging-789504f803e82e2b-U2UHZe
.staging-789504f803e82e2b-c0PV0t
.staging-789504f803e82e2b-wEMdXj
.staging-789504f803e82e2b-kgZMnC
.staging-789504f803e82e2b-mjtoyD
.staging-789504f803e82e2b-OKm86E
Each folder is approximately 272 MB. In my local check, 7 folders used about 1.9 GB total.
Expected behavior
Codex should either:
- successfully reuse or finalize the downloaded
cua_node runtime, or
- clean up failed
.staging-* directories automatically, or
- avoid repeatedly downloading/extracting the same runtime.
Actual behavior
Codex keeps creating new .staging-* folders and leaves old ones behind. This can fill the C: drive very quickly.
Possible cause
This may be related to Unicode / non-ASCII Windows user profile paths. The real username contains Chinese characters, but the runtime cache path appears under a mojibake username path.
Screenshot
Attached screenshot shows the repeated .staging-* folders in Windows Explorer.
Summary
On Windows, Codex repeatedly creates large
.staging-*runtime folders underAppData\Local\OpenAI\Codex\runtimes\cua_node. Each staging folder is about 272 MB, and many of them can be created within minutes, quickly filling the C: drive.This appears related to a non-ASCII Windows user profile path. The actual Windows username contains Chinese characters, but the path shown by Codex / Explorer appears as mojibake.
Environment
Path
In my case, the real username is Chinese, but the folder shown in Explorer appears mojibake, for example:
Observed behavior
Codex created multiple staging directories in a short period:
Each folder is approximately 272 MB. In my local check, 7 folders used about 1.9 GB total.
Expected behavior
Codex should either:
cua_noderuntime, or.staging-*directories automatically, orActual behavior
Codex keeps creating new
.staging-*folders and leaves old ones behind. This can fill the C: drive very quickly.Possible cause
This may be related to Unicode / non-ASCII Windows user profile paths. The real username contains Chinese characters, but the runtime cache path appears under a mojibake username path.
Screenshot
Attached screenshot shows the repeated
.staging-*folders in Windows Explorer.