Cannot create a local Work chat inside a ChatGPT Project (Windows Desktop App)

[Paul722]

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

26.715.61943 (released July 21, 2026)

What subscription do you have?

ChatGPT Plus

What platform is your computer?

Microsoft Windows NT 10.0.22631.0 x64

What issue are you seeing?

When I try to create a Work chat inside an existing ChatGPT Project, I immediately receive errors such as:

• "Could not sync ChatGPT project context"
• "Could not use this project for a local chat"

The Work chat is not created.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

Feedback ID: 019f83d4-3c04-78a2-a4ce-3f1ff9273b23

What is the expected behavior?

A Work chat should be created inside the existing ChatGPT Project and retain access to the selected local folder. A Project should be able to contain one or more Work chats with access to local development folders.

Additional information

The problem occurs only when creating a local Work chat inside an existing Project.

Environment:

• Windows Desktop App
• ChatGPT Plus account
• Codex App version 26.715.61943
• Codex extension in VS Code works correctly
• Local folder access works outside Projects

Could you please confirm whether this is a known issue or a bug? Screenshots showing the error can be attached.

[github-actions]

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

• Desktop Created Project not Synchronizing to Account and Desktop UI stop responding properly when in project. #33888

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[Yemvis]

I can reproduce the same issue on the Windows desktop app.

Reproduction:

1. Open an existing ChatGPT Project.
2. Choose New local chat.
3. Select On my computer.
4. Choose a local folder.
5. When prompted to use the Project context locally, click Add project.
6. The operation fails with either:
   • Could not sync ChatGPT project context
   • Could not use this project for a local chat

Restarting the app and repeating the flow does not help. A standalone local chat outside the ChatGPT Project works, so local folder access itself is not the problem.

This is particularly confusing because the UI explicitly offers New local chat inside the Project and walks the user through the Add project flow. The expected result is a chat that keeps the Project instructions/files while executing on the local computer. Instead, the chat is never created, which blocks local tasks such as SSH and terminal work that depend on the Project context.

Please prioritize this regression or provide a supported workaround that preserves the ChatGPT Project context.

[Paul722]

Hi, thanks for your message. I think I found the cause of the issue. The problem does not seem to be the local folder itself, and Codex Work also works in general. The issue seems to happen when a Work/local chat is created from a ChatGPT Project without selecting the local working folder during chat creation. In my case, Work chats without the project worked fine. But Work chats from the project failed with: Could not sync ChatGPT project context Could not use this project for a local chat The fix was not just adding the folder path to the project instructions. That only gives the model textual information; it does not grant technical file access. The important step is: When creating the new Work/local chat, select or attach the local working folder immediately during creation. After doing that, the same folder access test worked. So the practical rule seems to be: When starting a Work/local chat from a ChatGPT Project, attach the local folder right away during chat creation. Do not rely only on project instructions that mention the path. Best, Paul Am Mi., 22. Juli 2026 um 04:17 Uhr schrieb walter_paiva < ***@***.***>:

…

*Yemvis* left a comment (openai/codex#34499) <#34499 (comment)> I can reproduce the same issue on the Windows desktop app. Reproduction: 1. Open an existing ChatGPT Project. 2. Choose *New local chat*. 3. Select *On my computer*. 4. Choose a local folder. 5. When prompted to use the Project context locally, click *Add project*. 6. The operation fails with either: - Could not sync ChatGPT project context - Could not use this project for a local chat Restarting the app and repeating the flow does not help. A standalone local chat outside the ChatGPT Project works, so local folder access itself is not the problem. This is particularly confusing because the UI explicitly offers *New local chat* inside the Project and walks the user through the *Add project* flow. The expected result is a chat that keeps the Project instructions/files while executing on the local computer. Instead, the chat is never created, which blocks local tasks such as SSH and terminal work that depend on the Project context. Please prioritize this regression or provide a supported workaround that preserves the ChatGPT Project context. — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#34499?email_source=notifications&email_token=AMO6HSJ477QR53ABBPG6ZNL5GAP3TA5CNFSNUABFM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2JONZXKZKDN5WW2ZLOOQXTKMBUGEYDMOBUGIYKM4TFMFZW63VGMF2XI2DPOKSWK5TFNZ2KYZTPN52GK4S7MNWGSY3L#issuecomment-5041068420>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AMO6HSMS7WV6D6DNX7FM6I35GAP3TAVCNFSNUABFKJSXA33TNF2G64TZHM4TMNJUGE2TMNBZHNEXG43VMU5TIOJTG4ZDSOJSG43KC5QC> . Triage notifications, keep track of coding agent tasks and review pull requests on the go with GitHub Mobile for iOS <https://github.com/notifications/mobile/ios/AMO6HSKPK2NJ5RI4IGG4QEL5GAP3TA5CNFSNUABFM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2JONZXKZKDN5WW2ZLOOQXTKMBUGEYDMOBUGIYKM4TFMFZW63VGMF2XI2DPOKSWK5TFNZ2KUZTPN52GK4S7NFXXG> and Android <https://github.com/notifications/mobile/android/AMO6HSPRBXJXTWNGMMUIWKD5GAP3TA5CNFSNUABFM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2JONZXKZKDN5WW2ZLOOQXTKMBUGEYDMOBUGIYKM4TFMFZW63VGMF2XI2DPOKSWK5TFNZ2K4ZTPN52GK4S7MFXGI4TPNFSA>. Download it today! You are receiving this because you authored the thread.Message ID: ***@***.***>

[Paul722]

Thanks, this matches my experience exactly. The confusing part is that standalone local chats work, and creating a new local project with a folder selected immediately also works. The failure happens when trying to create a new local chat from an existing ChatGPT Project and then adding the project context locally. I also have older project-related Work/local chats that can still access local files after permission is granted, but I cannot reliably reproduce that setup anymore. This makes it unclear whether the behavior changed in the Desktop app or whether there are now two different project/local-chat flows with different capabilities. A supported workaround that preserves both ChatGPT Project context and local folder access would be very helpful. Am Mi., 22. Juli 2026 um 04:17 Uhr schrieb walter_paiva < ***@***.***>:

…

*Yemvis* left a comment (openai/codex#34499) <#34499 (comment)> I can reproduce the same issue on the Windows desktop app. Reproduction: 1. Open an existing ChatGPT Project. 2. Choose *New local chat*. 3. Select *On my computer*. 4. Choose a local folder. 5. When prompted to use the Project context locally, click *Add project*. 6. The operation fails with either: - Could not sync ChatGPT project context - Could not use this project for a local chat Restarting the app and repeating the flow does not help. A standalone local chat outside the ChatGPT Project works, so local folder access itself is not the problem. This is particularly confusing because the UI explicitly offers *New local chat* inside the Project and walks the user through the *Add project* flow. The expected result is a chat that keeps the Project instructions/files while executing on the local computer. Instead, the chat is never created, which blocks local tasks such as SSH and terminal work that depend on the Project context. Please prioritize this regression or provide a supported workaround that preserves the ChatGPT Project context. — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#34499?email_source=notifications&email_token=AMO6HSJ477QR53ABBPG6ZNL5GAP3TA5CNFSNUABFM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2JONZXKZKDN5WW2ZLOOQXTKMBUGEYDMOBUGIYKM4TFMFZW63VGMF2XI2DPOKSWK5TFNZ2KYZTPN52GK4S7MNWGSY3L#issuecomment-5041068420>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AMO6HSMS7WV6D6DNX7FM6I35GAP3TAVCNFSNUABFKJSXA33TNF2G64TZHM4TMNJUGE2TMNBZHNEXG43VMU5TIOJTG4ZDSOJSG43KC5QC> . Triage notifications, keep track of coding agent tasks and review pull requests on the go with GitHub Mobile for iOS <https://github.com/notifications/mobile/ios/AMO6HSKPK2NJ5RI4IGG4QEL5GAP3TA5CNFSNUABFM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2JONZXKZKDN5WW2ZLOOQXTKMBUGEYDMOBUGIYKM4TFMFZW63VGMF2XI2DPOKSWK5TFNZ2KUZTPN52GK4S7NFXXG> and Android <https://github.com/notifications/mobile/android/AMO6HSPRBXJXTWNGMMUIWKD5GAP3TA5CNFSNUABFM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2JONZXKZKDN5WW2ZLOOQXTKMBUGEYDMOBUGIYKM4TFMFZW63VGMF2XI2DPOKSWK5TFNZ2K4ZTPN52GK4S7MFXGI4TPNFSA>. Download it today! You are receiving this because you authored the thread.Message ID: ***@***.***>

[uooing]

Same issue on a newer build — still reproducing as of 2026-07-23.

Environment:

• App build: 26.715.72359 (released 2026-07-22) — newer than the 26.715.61943 in the original report
• Store package version: 26.715.10079.0
• Platform: Windows, Korean UI
• Plan: ChatGPT Plus

Errors (identical, shown immediately, chat is not created):

• "Could not sync ChatGPT project context"
• "이 프로젝트를 로컬 작업에 사용할 수 없습니다"
  (Korean UI string, equivalent of "Could not use this project for a local chat")

Repro:

1. Open a Project in the Windows desktop app
2. New Task inside the Project
3. Set mode to Work
4. Both errors appear instantly

Scope confirmed:

• Fails ONLY inside a Project. Work mode works normally in a chat outside Projects.
• Same account works correctly on chatgpt.com (web).

Tried with no effect: full reinstall, app reset, sign out/in, Windows Defender exclusion.

Feedback ID: no-active-thread-019f8ed6-2d1c-7180-abe0-ff5c98948fed

[Paul722]

it is really strange. In the same projekt I could create a workchat. But two minutes later it didn't work anymore. But there is a way around. Crate a new project. *By creating it you should click on the folder you want to use. It werks well. But i comes with problem that you can notintroduce context for your project. * Am Do., 23. Juli 2026 um 14:05 Uhr schrieb uooing ***@***.***

…

: *uooing* left a comment (openai/codex#34499) <#34499 (comment)> Same issue on a newer build — still reproducing as of 2026-07-23. Environment: - App build: 26.715.72359 (released 2026-07-22) — newer than the 26.715.61943 in the original report - Store package version: 26.715.10079.0 - Platform: Windows, Korean UI - Plan: ChatGPT Plus Errors (identical, shown immediately, chat is not created): - "Could not sync ChatGPT project context" - "이 프로젝트를 로컬 작업에 사용할 수 없습니다" (Korean UI string, equivalent of "Could not use this project for a local chat") Repro: 1. Open a Project in the Windows desktop app 2. New Task inside the Project 3. Set mode to Work 4. Both errors appear instantly Scope confirmed: - Fails ONLY inside a Project. Work mode works normally in a chat outside Projects. - Same account works correctly on chatgpt.com (web). Tried with no effect: full reinstall, app reset, sign out/in, Windows Defender exclusion. Feedback ID: no-active-thread-019f8ed6-2d1c-7180-abe0-ff5c98948fed — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#34499?email_source=notifications&email_token=AMO6HSJG6F44BPHKRVFWWVL5GH5QLA5CNFSNUABFM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2JONZXKZKDN5WW2ZLOOQXTKMBVHAYTMOJZGQYKM4TFMFZW63VGMF2XI2DPOKSWK5TFNZ2KYZTPN52GK4S7MNWGSY3L#issuecomment-5058169940>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AMO6HSN63N73YAHCJSTSCQL5GH5QLAVCNFSNUABFKJSXA33TNF2G64TZHM4TMNJUGE2TMNBZHNEXG43VMU5TIOJTG4ZDSOJSG43KC5QC> . Triage notifications, keep track of coding agent tasks and review pull requests on the go with GitHub Mobile for iOS <https://github.com/notifications/mobile/ios/AMO6HSP3Z5WCG6DUU7SIM3L5GH5QLA5CNFSNUABFM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2JONZXKZKDN5WW2ZLOOQXTKMBVHAYTMOJZGQYKM4TFMFZW63VGMF2XI2DPOKSWK5TFNZ2KUZTPN52GK4S7NFXXG> and Android <https://github.com/notifications/mobile/android/AMO6HSMU24RKX3ALQKQC3635GH5QLA5CNFSNUABFM5UWIORPF5TWS5BNNB2WEL2JONZXKZKDN5WW2ZLOOQXTKMBVHAYTMOJZGQYKM4TFMFZW63VGMF2XI2DPOKSWK5TFNZ2K4ZTPN52GK4S7MFXGI4TPNFSA>. Download it today! You are receiving this because you authored the thread.Message ID: ***@***.***>

[SilentCogitator]

Same issue.
When I try to create a Work chat inside an existing ChatGPT Project, I immediately receive errors such as:

"Could not sync ChatGPT project context"
"Could not use this project for a local chat"
The Work chat is not created.

Fresh Windows 11 install.

Chat GPT:

Version 26.715.72359

Released 22 Jul 2026