Bundled Browser/Chrome/Computer Use plugins disappear after Windows app updates due to stale bundled marketplace path

Environment

• Codex Desktop version: <paste current app version>
• Windows version / build: <paste Windows version and OS build>
• Install type: Microsoft Store / WindowsApps packaged app
• Affected bundled plugins/skills:
  • Browser
  • Chrome
  • Computer Use

Summary

After some Codex Desktop updates on Windows, bundled plugins/skills become unavailable until local repair. This has happened repeatedly across multiple app updates.

The recurring pattern is that Codex updates into a new versioned WindowsApps directory, but the local Codex config continues to point the bundled marketplace source at an older versioned app directory. After that, the bundled marketplace temp/cache state becomes incomplete, commonly leaving only the chrome plugin available while browser and computer-use disappear.

This appears to be an app update / marketplace registration regression, not a confirmed security issue.

Expected Behavior

After Codex Desktop updates, bundled plugins should remain registered and available.

Specifically:

• [marketplaces.openai-bundled].source should point to the current app version's bundled marketplace source.
• The bundled marketplace temp/cache should be refreshed from the current app source.
• Bundled plugins browser, chrome, and computer-use should remain available after restart/update.

Actual Behavior

After an update:

• Bundled plugins/skills disappear or become unavailable.
• Local config may still reference an older versioned WindowsApps app path.
• The bundled marketplace temp/cache can become incomplete.
• In observed cases, .tmp/bundled-marketplaces/openai-bundled/plugins commonly contained only chrome.
• The current app's bundled source manifests still existed and parsed correctly for browser, chrome, and computer-use.
• Repairing the marketplace source path and rebuilding/restoring temp/cache from the current bundled source restored all three plugins.

Reproduction Pattern

This is intermittent but has recurred after multiple Windows app updates.

1. Install / run Codex Desktop on Windows.
2. Confirm bundled plugins are available.
3. Let Codex Desktop update to a newer packaged app version.
4. Restart Codex.
5. Check bundled plugin availability.
6. Inspect local bundled marketplace config/state:
   • %USERPROFILE%\.codex\config.toml
   • %USERPROFILE%\.codex\.tmp\bundled-marketplaces\openai-bundled\plugins
   • Codex cache directories, if relevant
7. Observe whether [marketplaces.openai-bundled].source still points to an older OpenAI.Codex_<version> directory instead of the currently running app directory.

Evidence / Diagnostics

Most recent observed instance:

• Running app package: OpenAI.Codex_26.623.4041.0
• Stale configured bundled source before repair: OpenAI.Codex_26.616.10790.0
• Current bundled source plugin manifest versions: 26.623.31921
• Initial temp bundled marketplace plugins directory contained only:
  • chrome
• Current bundled source under the active app root still contained valid manifests for:
  • browser
  • chrome
  • computer-use
• After correcting the bundled marketplace source and restoring/rebuilding temp/cache from the current app source, all three plugins validated and became available again.

Prior local occurrences involved these app package versions:

• OpenAI.Codex_26.616.6631.0
• OpenAI.Codex_26.616.9593.0
• OpenAI.Codex_26.616.10790.0
• OpenAI.Codex_26.623.4041.0

Suggested diagnostics to attach:

# Redacted excerpt from %USERPROFILE%\.codex\config.toml
[marketplaces.openai-bundled]
source = "<redacted path showing old OpenAI.Codex_<version> vs current OpenAI.Codex_<version>>"

# Redacted directory listing
%USERPROFILE%\.codex\.tmp\bundled-marketplaces\openai-bundled\plugins
<show which plugin folders are present>

# Current app bundled source listing
<redacted WindowsApps path>\OpenAI.Codex_<current version>\...
<show browser/chrome/computer-use manifests exist and parse>

Workaround

A local repair restores functionality:

1. Update [marketplaces.openai-bundled].source in %USERPROFILE%\.codex\config.toml to point at the current OpenAI.Codex_<version> bundled marketplace source.
2. Restore/rebuild the bundled marketplace temp/cache from the current app source.
3. Restart Codex.
4. Validate that browser, chrome, and computer-use are available again.

Requested Fix

Please make Codex Desktop resilient to Windows packaged app updates by ensuring the bundled marketplace registration is refreshed when the app version/path changes.

Possible fixes:

• Avoid persisting an absolute versioned WindowsApps path for the bundled marketplace source.
• On startup, detect when [marketplaces.openai-bundled].source points to an older/non-current app package path.
• Re-register or migrate the bundled marketplace source to the current app root automatically.
• Rebuild bundled marketplace temp/cache atomically when the bundled source version changes.
• Validate that all expected bundled plugins are present after update and repair automatically if not.

Privacy / Security Note

This report intentionally excludes private documents, credentials, full local state dumps, and old conversation text. Based on current evidence, this appears to be an update/registration regression affecting bundled plugin availability, not a confirmed security vulnerability.