VS Code extension injects DEBUG=release into Codex child processes

What version of the Codex App are you using (From “About Codex” dialog)?

26.901.22334

What subscription do you have?

chatgpt pro

What platform is your computer?

Windows

What issue are you seeing?

The Codex VS Code extension sets the generic environment variable:

DEBUG=release

The value is added to the VS Code Extension Host environment. Codex and processes launched through Codex inherit it.

This can break unrelated applications. For example, my Python application expects DEBUG to be a Boolean and fails during startup because release is not a valid Boolean value.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

1. Install and enable the Codex VS Code extension.

2. Open the Codex panel and start a session.

3. Ask Codex to run:

   $env:DEBUG
   

4. The result is:

   release
   

5. Verify that it is not a persistent Windows variable:

   [Environment]::GetEnvironmentVariable('DEBUG', 'User')
   [Environment]::GetEnvironmentVariable('DEBUG', 'Machine')
   

   Both return no value.

What is the expected behavior?

The extension should not modify the generic DEBUG environment variable of the shared VS Code Extension Host or processes launched through Codex.

Additional information

Environment:

• Windows
• Visual Studio Code
• Extension ID: openai.chatgpt
• Extension version: 26.901.22334

The bundled file:

openai.chatgpt-26.901.22334-win32-x64/out/extension.js

contains logic that effectively performs:

load() → "release"
enable("release") → save("release")
process.env.DEBUG = "release"

Observed process chain:

VS Code Extension Host
→ Codex
→ PowerShell
→ launched application

The main VS Code process does not contain the variable. It appears in the Extension Host and is then inherited by Codex.

Current workaround:

Remove-Item Env:DEBUG

Start with openai.chatgpt-26.901.22334-win32-x64/out/extension.js and inspect the load/enable/save path described in the issue, especially the process.env.DEBUG assignment. Reproduce the Extension Host → Codex → PowerShell chain and verify that the generic DEBUG variable is absent from child processes while Codex still runs.