ChatGPT / Codex Windows desktop client consumes excessive network traffic (~106 GB in 7 days)

Summary

On Windows 11, the ChatGPT / Codex desktop client is being attributed approximately 106 GB of network data usage over a 7-day period in Windows Settings. This is far beyond what I observed during roughly two months of prior normal use and appears to have started only recently.

The application was used normally for ChatGPT/Codex work. The observed amount is too large to be explained by ordinary text/model traffic alone and may indicate repeated background downloads, update retries, caching failures, session synchronization, reconnect loops, or another recent Windows desktop regression.

Environment

• Platform: Windows 11
• Subscription: ChatGPT Pro
• Application: unified ChatGPT / Codex desktop app
• GitHub user: Rabai94
• Date observed: August 27, 2026

Observed behavior

Windows Settings → Network & Internet → Advanced network settings → Data usage shows approximately 106 GB attributed to ChatGPT over the last 7 days.

This is a recent change. I have been using Codex for about two months and did not previously observe data usage remotely close to this level.

I also recently experienced instability with Codex Remote between Android and Windows, including connection/reconnection issues, which may or may not be related.

Expected behavior

Normal ChatGPT/Codex desktop usage should not consume ~106 GB of network data in 7 days without an intentional large transfer. Background traffic should remain bounded, cached resources should not be repeatedly downloaded, failed updates should not retry indefinitely, and reconnect/session recovery should not repeatedly transfer large payloads.

Possibly related reports

• #40513 — ChatGPT / Codex Windows desktop client consumes excessive network traffic (~31 GB in 58 hours)
• #40455 — Windows desktop re-downloads ~400 MB from persistent.oaistatic.com on every cold launch
• #40182 — primary runtime updater re-downloads 501.8 MB hourly after activation failure
• #38014 — unexpected multi-GB upstream traffic from codex.exe
• #33796 — large session resume/reconnect causing high upload bursts

Additional information

I can provide additional screenshots or run Windows process-level/network diagnostics if maintainers need them. The key signal is that this behavior appeared only recently after a long period of normal use.

Start with the Windows desktop client and codex.exe, then review the related reports about persistent.oaistatic.com, the primary runtime updater, and session resume/reconnect. Use Windows process-level and network diagnostics to identify the repeated transfer and reproduce it. Done means the responsible traffic source and regression are confirmed, with bounded background usage or a documented fix path.