Unlock OpenAI Computer Use with Codex++

A Codex++ tweak that enables Codex Desktop's bundled OpenAI Computer Use MCP server as computer-use.

No clone. No replacement automation engine. No third-party desktop controller.

This tweak wires Codex++ into OpenAI's own bundled SkyComputerUseClient, then gives you a native-style Computer Use settings page inside Codex.

What It Does

OpenAI Computer Use lets Codex click, type, and navigate Mac apps.

This tweak makes that available through Codex++ when the official helper is already bundled inside your Codex Desktop app, even if Codex does not expose the native Computer Use UI for your account or region.

It adds:

• computer-use MCP server registration through Codex++ managed MCP
• Native bundled computer-use@openai-bundled plugin enablement
• Native Computer Use sidebar icon and native-style settings page
• Native desktop feature registration nudge for Codex's own bundled-plugin reconciler
• Plugin status using Codex Desktop's bundled Computer Use metadata
• Always-allowed app management
• Click sound controls
• Startup self-healing when Codex rewrites the temporary bundled marketplace without computer-use
• Troubleshoot section for repair, diagnostics, macOS permission panes, official Codex update/install recovery, runtime marketplace restore, and local plugin cache install
• Support for both Codex.app and Codex (Beta).app

Important

This tweak uses OpenAI's official local Computer Use helper. It does not ship a clone, replacement engine, or third-party desktop controller.

When the helper is missing, Repair and doctor.sh try Codex's official update/install flow and then re-check these locations:

/Applications/Codex.app/Contents/Resources/plugins/openai-bundled/plugins/computer-use
/Applications/Codex (Beta).app/Contents/Resources/plugins/openai-bundled/plugins/computer-use

Once the helper exists, the tweak also installs Codex's local plugin cache from that official bundle:

~/.codex/plugins/cache/openai-bundled/computer-use/<version>

It also enables Codex's native bundled plugin flag:

[plugins."computer-use@openai-bundled"]
enabled = true

Codex may rewrite its temporary bundled marketplace at launch. In unsupported-region states that generated marketplace can omit computer-use. The tweak restores the official bundled Computer Use entry in the runtime marketplace automatically on startup, so you should not need to press Repair after every restart.

Codex also keeps an in-memory desktop feature availability state. In unsupported-region states, that state can tell the native app that Computer Use is unavailable even after the files and config are correct. The tweak sends Codex's own desktop feature-change IPC after startup with only these two fields enabled:

computerUse = true
computerUseNodeRepl = true

That is what lets Codex's native bundled-plugin reconciler see and register the official computer-use plugin instead of hiding it.

If OpenAI's official Codex build still does not contain the helper after the updater/installer runs, the tweak stops. It will not fetch or redistribute OpenAI's signed helper from unofficial sources.

Requirements

• macOS
• Codex Desktop
• Codex++ installed and enabled
• A Codex build that includes the bundled computer-use plugin

Install

Clone this repo into your Codex++ tweaks folder:

cd "$HOME/Library/Application Support/codex-plusplus/tweaks"
git clone https://github.com/TheAndersMadsen/codex-plusplus-computer-use.git
chmod +x codex-plusplus-computer-use/computer-use-mcp.sh
chmod +x codex-plusplus-computer-use/doctor.sh

Then reload Codex++ tweaks or fully quit and reopen Codex.

Setup

Open:

Codex Settings -> Tweaks -> Computer Use

You should see:

• Plugin showing Installed
• Always-allowed apps
• Click sound dropdown
• Troubleshoot

If setup is incomplete, open Troubleshoot and click Repair.

Repair will:

• Check stable and beta Codex app bundles
• Run Codex's official updater if Computer Use is missing
• Open Codex's official app installer flow if the update still does not provide the helper
• Install the local Codex plugin cache from the official bundled helper
• Restore computer-use in Codex's temporary runtime bundled marketplace
• Re-register the bundled openai-bundled marketplace
• Enable the native computer-use@openai-bundled plugin flag
• Nudge Codex's native desktop feature availability so its own plugin reconciler can include Computer Use
• Re-check the computer-use MCP server registration

After repair, fully quit and reopen Codex.

Grant macOS Permissions

Computer Use needs:

• Accessibility
• Screen Recording, sometimes called Screen & System Audio Recording

In Troubleshoot, use the Accessibility and Screen Recording buttons to open the right System Settings panes.

Grant permissions to Codex Computer Use.

If it still does not work, also grant the same permissions to:

/Applications/Codex.app
/Applications/Codex (Beta).app

If Codex Computer Use does not appear in System Settings, open it once:

open "/Applications/Codex.app/Contents/Resources/plugins/openai-bundled/plugins/computer-use/Codex Computer Use.app" 2>/dev/null || \
open "/Applications/Codex (Beta).app/Contents/Resources/plugins/openai-bundled/plugins/computer-use/Codex Computer Use.app"

Then check System Settings again.

Test It

Open a fresh Codex thread and ask:

Use Computer Use to open Calculator and type 2+2.

If Computer Use is loaded correctly, Codex should either start the desktop-control flow or ask for approval/permissions.

App Mentions

If native app mentions are available in your Codex build, apps should appear in the @ menu after:

• Repair has completed
• Codex Desktop has been fully restarted with Cmd+Q
• A fresh thread has been opened

Use the real app name. For example, if your browser is Helium, use @Helium, not @Chrome.

If the @ menu still only shows files, Computer Use can still be loaded through the MCP server. Ask directly:

Use Computer Use with Helium to open example.com.

The app mention picker itself is native Codex UI. This tweak enables the local OpenAI helper and native plugin config, but it does not replace Codex's internal composer/autocomplete implementation.

The tweak now also nudges Codex's native Computer Use feature availability after startup. If the native app still does not show app suggestions after that, the remaining blocker is inside Codex's private composer/autocomplete implementation rather than the Computer Use MCP registration.

Troubleshooting

From the settings page, use:

• Repair to re-register the bundled marketplace and MCP server
• Repair also runs Codex's official update/install flow if the bundled helper is missing
• Details to see which setup checks are passing
• Accessibility and Screen Recording to jump to macOS permissions

You can also run the doctor manually:

cd "$HOME/Library/Application Support/codex-plusplus/tweaks/codex-plusplus-computer-use"
./doctor.sh

The doctor checks:

• Stable and beta Codex app bundles
• The bundled OpenAI computer-use plugin
• OpenAI's signed SkyComputerUseClient
• Codex's official updater/installer if the helper is missing
• The local Codex plugin cache under ~/.codex/plugins/cache/openai-bundled/computer-use
• Codex's temporary bundled marketplace under ~/.codex/.tmp/bundled-marketplaces/openai-bundled
• Codex's local openai-bundled marketplace
• The native computer-use@openai-bundled plugin enable flag
• Codex++ managed MCP registration

Update

cd "$HOME/Library/Application Support/codex-plusplus/tweaks/codex-plusplus-computer-use"
git pull
chmod +x computer-use-mcp.sh doctor.sh

Reload Codex++ tweaks or restart Codex afterward.

Uninstall

rm -rf "$HOME/Library/Application Support/codex-plusplus/tweaks/codex-plusplus-computer-use"
codex mcp remove computer-use

Then reload Codex++ tweaks or restart Codex.

What This Is Not

• Not a Computer Use clone
• Not a replacement desktop automation engine
• Not a server-side account unlock
• Not an unofficial mirror of OpenAI's signed Computer Use helper

It is a Codex++ tweak that exposes OpenAI's local helper bundled with Codex Desktop, can ask Codex's official updater/installer to fetch a build that includes it, and installs Codex's local plugin cache from that official bundle.

Manifest

{
  "id": "co.bennett.computer-use",
  "name": "OpenAI Computer Use",
  "version": "0.4.5",
  "githubRepo": "TheAndersMadsen/codex-plusplus-computer-use",
  "scope": "both",
  "main": "index.js",
  "mcp": {
    "command": "./computer-use-mcp.sh"
  }
}

License

MIT