--- title: "Navigate and control Codex" description: "You open a Codex project, locate the controls needed to supervise work, and inspect the evidence of what the agent read, created, changed, or ran before accepting the result." reviewedOn: 2026-09-08 sourceRefs: [evidence-lab-methodology] --- ## Result You open a Codex project, locate the controls needed to supervise work, and inspect the evidence of what the agent read, created, changed, or ran before accepting the result. ## Selection guidance ### Include when Use this module when you can open Codex but cannot locate the project, environment, permissions, progress, preview, terminal, or review controls needed for a task. ### Skip when Skip it when you can independently open a Codex project, explain the controls available in the current setup, and review a completed task before accepting it. ## Prerequisites You understand how Codex differs from Work and have a non-sensitive practice folder. A Git repository is optional; review and Git controls appear only when the project supports them. ## Explanation Codex combines conversation with a working project. The visible controls vary with the project and enabled features, but the core orientation questions stay the same: - **Where am I working?** Identify the project, primary folder, and current chat. - **Where is the task running?** Identify Local, Worktree, or Cloud. - **What can the agent do?** Check the permission control and available tools. - **What is happening?** Follow progress, messages, commands, and generated files. - **How will I review it?** Use the file preview, terminal output, or review pane that matches the artifact. The integrated terminal is scoped to the current project or worktree. It can run commands and exposes output that ChatGPT can read. In a Git project, the review pane shows repository changes, supports line-specific feedback, and can expose stage, revert, commit, push, or pull-request actions. A document preview and a Git diff answer different questions: the preview shows the rendered result, while the diff shows exact file changes. ## Actions 1. Select **Codex** and create or open a focused local project. 2. Confirm the project name, primary folder, and current chat. Note any secondary folders separately. 3. Locate the environment selector and identify the current environment without changing it yet. 4. Locate the permission control beneath the composer. Record the visible profile or approval behavior; do not broaden access for this exercise. 5. Submit a bounded task that creates one Markdown file from two practice sources. Require Codex to report the output path and its checks. 6. Follow the task messages and progress. Ask which files were read, created, or changed if that is not clear. 7. Open the generated file in the preview or source view and compare it with the requirements. 8. Open the integrated terminal and identify its project scope. You do not need to run a command to complete the orientation. 9. If the project is a Git repository, open the review pane and inspect the changed file. Do not stage, revert, commit, or push during this basic exercise. 10. Record the project, environment, permission state, source files, generated files, visible commands, and completed review checks. ## Practice Repeat the task in a new Codex chat within the same project. Before starting, predict which project context will remain available and which information belongs only to the previous chat. Compare the prediction with the interface. ## Deliverables - An annotated Codex interface map that contains no sensitive information. - A completed supervision checklist for one Codex task. ## Check - You can locate the project and chat list, composer, environment selector, permissions control, progress information, generated files, and available review surfaces. - You distinguish a rendered preview, source view, terminal output, and Git diff. - You can account for what Codex read, created, changed, or ran, or explicitly mark missing evidence. - You review consequential actions and the final artifact before using, sharing, staging, committing, or pushing it. ## If it fails - **The review pane is absent.** Confirm that the project is a Git repository. Non-Git knowledge-work projects can still use file previews and source inspection. - **The terminal shows an unexpected directory.** Recheck the selected project, primary folder, and environment before running commands. - **A control described here is not visible.** Record the current platform, plan, workspace, and project type; controls can be conditional. - **The result looks finished but actions are unclear.** Ask Codex to list files read and changed, commands run, checks completed, and unresolved gaps. ## Sources and verification Sources: `openai.chatgpt.projects`, `openai.chatgpt.files`, `openai.codex.integrated-terminal`, `openai.codex.code-review`, `openai.codex.sandbox`. The project, preview, terminal, review, and permission concepts were checked against official OpenAI documentation on 8 September 2026. Conditional controls were deliberately described as availability-dependent. The exercise has not yet been field-validated with a learner. **Next:** [Choose Local, Worktree, or Cloud](/en/onboarding/choose-local-worktree-or-cloud/).