Codex Grey background tab

What version of the IDE extension are you using?

26.818.31338

What subscription do you have?

Pro

Which IDE are you using?

VS Code

What platform is your computer?

Microsoft Windows NT 10.0.26200.0 x64

What issue are you seeing?

During an active Codex session in VS Code, the Codex extension panel intermittently turns into a blank grey screen (UI content disappears). The agent/task continues running in the background (I can hear/see signs of ongoing work, e.g., logs/terminal activity or eventual output), but the Codex UI becomes non-interactive and does not render any conversation or controls.

Impact
• Cannot view ongoing progress, messages, or intermediate steps in the Codex panel
• Cannot interact with the session (send instructions / stop / navigate) via the UI
• Work continues “blind,” which is risky for long-running or multi-step tasks

What steps can reproduce the bug?

Steps to Reproduce

1. Open VS Code.
2. Start a new session in the Codex extension.
3. Let the session run for a while (mid-session / longer runs seem more likely).
4. In the Codex UI, open the thinking/process view (server-side reasoning / detailed steps).
5. Click into a detail/expand control (e.g., expand a reasoning step, open a nested detail, or navigate between detailed items).
6. Observed: the Codex panel suddenly becomes a blank grey screen, while the session continues running in the background.

What is the expected behavior?

Codex panel continues rendering and remains interactive.

Additional information

No response

Start by reproducing the failure in the VS Code Codex extension panel using the thinking/process view and its detail or expand controls during a longer session. Check whether the panel stays rendered and interactive while the session continues, and use that behavior as the completion criterion.