Codex Desktop main task timeline stays blank while a long-running Goal remains active

Environment

• Codex Desktop / ChatGPT app: 26.908.40834 (build 8881)
• macOS 26.6.1, Apple Silicon
• Observed: 2026-09-18 (Europe/Amsterdam)

Reproduction context

1. Open a long-running Codex task with substantial conversation history and an active Goal.
2. The Goal status row continues to show Pursuing goal.
3. Open a Side chat.

Actual behavior

• The entire main-task message timeline remains blank indefinitely.
• The main-task composer and Pursuing goal status still render.
• The Side chat renders and works normally.
• Closing the Side chat, switching away and back to the task, and resizing the window do not restore the timeline.
• This has occurred more than once on long-running Goal threads; the exact history-size threshold is unknown.

Expected behavior

The main-task message timeline should remain visible and update while the Goal is running.

Impact

The user cannot inspect progress, messages, approvals, or failures in the main task and can only communicate through the temporary Side chat. Restarting or pausing the app is unsafe while the Goal controls an active local process.

Additional information

• OpenAI Support reported no active outage.
• No project data, logs, email address, task contents, or credentials are included.
• Screenshot is available and can be added once file upload access is enabled.

Start by reproducing the issue in Codex Desktop with a long-running Goal, substantial conversation history, and a Side chat, then compare the main-task timeline with the working Side chat. Done means the main-task messages remain visible and update while the Goal is active, including progress, approvals, and failures.