[Windows] System-wide stutter while Codex is idle; fully exiting app immediately restores OS responsiveness

What version of the Codex App are you using?

26.810.50856 — Powered by Codex & OWL, released 2026-08-14.

What issue are you seeing?

Codex Desktop causes severe system-wide stuttering on Windows even when there are no active Codex tasks running.

While the app is open, Windows interaction becomes choppy/jerky. Fully closing Codex immediately restores normal OS responsiveness.

This appears closely related to current reports #38716, #38551, #38698, #38710, and #33074. In particular, #38698 reports the same 26.810.50856 build and the same system-wide stuttering/recovery after exiting Codex. This report additionally documents an idle-state reproduction: no Codex task needs to be executing for the system-wide lag to occur.

Observed resource usage

A Task Manager capture during the affected state showed approximately:

• Total system CPU: 13%
• Memory: 59%
• Disk: 0%
• Codex process: ~8.5% CPU and ~540 MB RAM
• Additional Codex/codex.exe processes were present

The machine was therefore not under general CPU, RAM, or disk saturation.

Steps to reproduce

1. Launch Codex Desktop 26.810.50856 on Windows.
2. Do not run any Codex task / leave Codex idle.
3. Use Windows normally and observe system-wide stuttering/jerky responsiveness.
4. Fully exit Codex.
5. Windows responsiveness immediately returns to normal.

Expected behavior

When Codex has no active tasks, background resource usage should remain bounded and the app should not affect mouse/input/UI responsiveness across the operating system.

Actual behavior

The entire OS becomes noticeably jerky while Codex is open, despite low overall system utilization. Fully exiting Codex reliably resolves the problem.

Additional information

A screenshot of Task Manager was captured showing the affected state. It is not attached here to avoid exposing unrelated local process information, but the relevant measurements are summarized above.

The issue was observed on 2026-08-15, one day after the reported release date of build 26.810.50856. Exact Windows build is not yet captured.

Start by reproducing the idle-state stutter on Windows with Codex Desktop 26.810.50856, using Task Manager to inspect the Codex and codex.exe processes and the reported system responsiveness. Capture the exact Windows build and compare behavior before and after fully exiting Codex. Done means Codex can remain open and idle without causing system-wide stuttering or unbounded background resource usage.