Codex Panel brings your existing Codex setup into an Obsidian sidebar. It starts `codex app-server` locally, uses the current vault root as the Codex working directory, and leaves Codex in charge of models, reasoning effort, sandbox modes, approval policies, MCP servers, hooks, skills, providers, network access, and thread history.
The plugin is intentionally thin: it is an Obsidian surface for Codex, not a separate AI client with its own runtime policy. If your Codex CLI or Codex.app environment is already configured, Codex Panel uses that same runtime behavior in a persistent Obsidian pane, with note-aware support for links, threads, archives, and editor selections.
Use it when you want Codex beside your notes, not in a separate terminal or app window.
## Why use it
- Keep Codex next to the notes, specs, plans, and project context you are editing in Obsidian.
- Reuse Codex configuration instead of configuring models, sandboxing, approvals, MCP servers, hooks, skills, providers, or credentials again.
- Work with persistent Codex threads in Obsidian panes, including multiple panels side by side.
- Navigate threads from an Obsidian sidebar view, with live status for currently open threads.
- Use vault-aware composing: wikilink suggestions come from Obsidian files, sent wikilinks resolve to Codex file mentions when possible, and rendered vault file links open in Obsidian.
- Archive Codex threads as Markdown notes in your vault.
- Rewrite selected note text with Codex, then review a selection-scoped diff before applying the replacement.
## How it works
Codex Panel runs `codex app-server` as a local child process and talks to it over stdio. Each open chat panel has its own app-server connection, active thread, pending requests, and composer draft. The vault root is passed to Codex as the working directory.
Codex remains the runtime authority:
- Model and reasoning defaults come from Codex configuration.
- Sandbox mode, approval policy, approval reviewer, network policy, MCP servers, hooks, skills, provider settings, and thread history are owned by Codex.
- Codex Panel can display and adjust supported per-thread runtime controls, but it does not replace Codex configuration.
- Codex Panel stores panel preferences only. It does not store API keys or provider credentials.
That boundary is also the privacy and security boundary. Data sent from the panel is handled by the configured Codex CLI according to your Codex configuration.
- Archive threads as Markdown notes with configurable folder, filename template, and tags, archive without saving, then restore or permanently delete archived threads from settings.
The command palette entries are ordered by the workflow they support: opening panels, finding threads, managing the active chat, and editing note text.
| **Codex Panel: Open panel** | Open or focus a Codex panel. |
| **Codex Panel: Open new panel** | Open another Codex panel. |
| **Codex Panel: Open thread...** | Search non-archived threads from a picker. Press `Enter` to open in the current panel, or `Cmd/Ctrl+Enter` to open in a new panel. |
Codex Panel is licensed under the Apache License 2.0. See `LICENSE`.
The generated TypeScript bindings under `src/generated/app-server/` are generated from OpenAI Codex CLI app-server types. See `NOTICE` for upstream attribution.