Custom sidebar sections: new tasks are buried below collapsed items; add recent-first sorting

What variant of Codex are you using?

Codex desktop app on macOS (the unified ChatGPT desktop app), version 26.901.41600.

• macOS: 26.6.2
• Platform: Darwin 25.6.0 arm64 arm
• UI language: Simplified Chinese

What feature would you like to see?

Please add a per-section automatic sorting option for tasks inside custom sidebar sections, especially Last updated — newest first.

Current behavior

In a custom sidebar section containing 16 tasks, older tasks occupy the first visible positions while newly added tasks end up at the bottom. Once the section truncates its visible list, those new tasks are hidden in the collapsed overflow. I have to expand the list and look near the bottom to find work I just started.

The section retains a fixed order instead of bringing recently active tasks to the front. Its context menu offers Edit section, Archive all chats, and Delete section, but I could not find an automatic recent-first sort option for that section.

Workflow that exposes the problem

1. Create a custom sidebar section.
2. Add enough tasks that some entries fall into the section's collapsed overflow (the observed section had 16).
3. Add a new task to that section.
4. Look at the section with its overflow unexpanded: older entries remain visible, while the new task is at the bottom and requires expanding the list to reach it.
5. Continue working in a task already near the bottom: the fixed section order makes recent work difficult to find.

Requested behavior

Offer a sorting control in the section menu or Edit section dialog:

• Last updated — newest first: recently active tasks move to the top automatically.
• Created — newest first: newly created tasks appear first.
• Manual order: preserve the existing fixed-order workflow.

Remember the selected mode per section across app restarts. In an automatic mode, apply sorting before limiting the visible items, so the most recent tasks remain visible without expanding the overflow.

Workaround and impact

A one-time reorder can move current recent tasks to the front, but it does not provide a continuing automatic sort policy. Repeatedly reorganizing a section adds friction whenever new work is added or older work is resumed.

Additional information

Related reports found before filing:

• #29297 requests broader saved sidebar views and custom sort rules.
• #42165 reports persistence problems with manual custom-section reordering.

This request focuses on an explicit automatic recent-first mode for tasks within an existing custom section, and on keeping recent tasks visible when that section truncates its list.

Start by locating the custom sidebar section UI, its context menu or Edit section dialog, and the code that orders tasks before collapsing the visible list. Trace how section preferences are persisted across app restarts. Done means users can choose last-updated, created, or manual order per section, with automatic sorting applied before overflow truncation.