[Windows 10][26.901.5280.0] Chrome install succeeds but native-host manifest points to removed plugin version

What version of the Codex App are you using?

26.901.5280.0

Codex CLI version

0.153.4

Platform

Microsoft Windows 10.0.19045 x64

Summary

The Chrome integration reports successful installation after both a full Codex Desktop reinstall and a Browser/Chrome integration reinstall, but the Windows Native Messaging manifest is never refreshed. Chrome remains unavailable to Browser Use.

This is a newer-version confirmation related to #42582, #42520, and #42783, with an additional repeatable app-log signature: the app reports plugin/installed success while bundled-plugin reconciliation fails.

Component versions

• Codex Desktop: 26.901.5280.0
• Codex CLI: 0.153.4
• Bundled chrome plugin: 26.901.41600, installed and enabled
• Bundled browser plugin: 26.901.41600, installed and enabled
• ChatGPT Chrome extension: 1.26.901.11451_0, installed and enabled

Actual behavior

The manifest remains at:

%LOCALAPPDATA%\OpenAI\extension\com.openai.codexextension.json

Its creation and last-write timestamp are still 2026-07-16 18:43:44, despite the September reinstall.

It still points to this removed executable:

%USERPROFILE%\.codex\plugins\cache\openai-bundled\chrome\26.707.72221\extension-host\windows\x64\extension-host.exe

That executable does not exist.

The current host does exist here:

%USERPROFILE%\.codex\plugins\cache\openai-bundled\chrome\26.901.41600\extension-host\windows\x64\extension-host.exe

The registry entry correctly points to the manifest file, but the manifest content is stale. The manifest also contains only one allowed origin and is missing the second origin expected by the current diagnostics:

chrome-extension://odlomjlbamekndcpllcnffbgeohgkmjh/

Browser discovery consistently fails with:

Browser is not available: chrome

App-log evidence

In one fresh Codex Desktop run:

• Multiple plugin/installed requests return successfully, including after the integration reinstall.
• The same run records 22 bundled_plugins_reconcile_failed events.
• The repeated error is:

marketplace openai-bundled is reserved and cannot be added from this source

This creates a false-success state: the UI/app-server reports the plugin installed while the native host still points to a deleted plugin version.

Steps already tried

1. Completely uninstalled and reinstalled Codex Desktop.
2. Reinstalled the Chrome/Browser integration through the product UI.
3. Reinstalled the bundled chrome and browser plugin packages.
4. Restarted Codex and Chrome.
5. Verified that Chrome is running and that the extension is installed and enabled.
6. Retried browser discovery twice after waiting.

The state is unchanged.

Expected behavior

Installing or reinstalling the Chrome integration should atomically:

1. Provision the current bundled plugin version.
2. Rewrite the Native Messaging manifest to the current existing host executable.
3. Reconcile every expected extension origin.
4. Validate that the host path exists and is usable.
5. Only then report the integration as installed.

A stale manifest pointing to a deleted executable should be detected and repaired automatically during app/plugin upgrade or reinstall.

Additional information

Filesystem ACLs permit the current user to update the manifest, so this is not a local write-permission failure. No endpoint-protection product was detected by codex doctor.

No credentials, cookies, browsing data, API keys, wallet data, Telegram sessions, or full logs are included. I did not manually run the native-host installer or rewrite the manifest.

Start by tracing the bundled-plugin reconciliation path and the Chrome Native Messaging manifest at %LOCALAPPDATA%\OpenAI\extension\com.openai.codexextension.json, using the repeated bundled_plugins_reconcile_failed log as the entry point. Verify how plugin/installed success is reported and how the manifest host path and allowed origins are generated. Done means reinstall or upgrade provisions the current host, rewrites and validates the manifest, reconciles both origins, and reports failure instead of false success.