Codex download and setup: choose the official entry point

Pick the right Codex surface first

When people search for a Codex download, they usually need one of three official entry points:

• Codex app for complete agent task threads.
• Codex CLI for terminal-based project work.
• Codex IDE extension for editor-based assistance.

Use OpenAI's official pages as the source of truth. Avoid unknown third-party installers.

Before you start

Check the basics first:

• You are in the correct repository.
• Git status is understandable before Codex changes files.
• Your local package manager and test commands work.
• You know whether the task is local-only, committed, pushed or deployed.

First prompt after setup

A safe first prompt is:

Read this project first. Tell me how to run it, how to test it, where the main modules are, and what deployment boundaries I should be careful about.

That gives you a quick check that Codex is looking at the right context before you ask it to modify code.