Files
codex/codex-rs/core/README.md
Michael Bolin 26f355b67b linux-sandbox: use standalone bundled bwrap (#21255)
**Summary**
- Add `codex-bwrap`, a standalone `bwrap` binary built from the existing
vendored bubblewrap sources.
- Remove the linked vendored bwrap path from `codex-linux-sandbox`;
runtime now prefers system `bwrap` and falls back to bundled
`codex-resources/bwrap`.
- Add bundled SHA-256 verification with missing/all-zero digest as the
dev-mode skip value, then exec the verified file through
`/proc/self/fd`.
- Keep `launcher.rs` focused on choosing and dispatching the preferred
launcher. Bundled lookup, digest verification, and bundled exec now live
in `linux-sandbox/src/bundled_bwrap.rs`; Bazel runfiles lookup lives in
`linux-sandbox/src/bazel_bwrap.rs`; shared argv/fd exec helpers live in
`linux-sandbox/src/exec_util.rs`.
- Teach Bazel tests to surface the Bazel-built `//codex-rs/bwrap:bwrap`
through `CARGO_BIN_EXE_bwrap`; `codex-linux-sandbox` only honors that
fallback in debug Bazel runfiles environments so release/user runtime
lookup stays tied to `codex-resources/bwrap`.
- Allow `codex-exec-server` filesystem helpers to preserve just the
Bazel bwrap/runfiles variables they need in debug Bazel builds, since
those helpers intentionally rebuild a small environment before spawning
`codex-linux-sandbox`.
- Verify the Bazel bwrap target in Linux release CI with a build-only
check. Running `bwrap --version` is too strong for GitHub runners
because bubblewrap still attempts namespace setup there.

**Verification**
- Latest update: `cargo test -p codex-linux-sandbox`
- Latest update: `just fix -p codex-linux-sandbox`
- `cargo check --target x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu -p codex-linux-sandbox`
could not run locally because this macOS machine does not have
`x86_64-linux-gnu-gcc`; GitHub Linux Bazel CI is expected to cover the
Linux-only modules.
- Earlier in this PR: `cargo test -p codex-bwrap`
- Earlier in this PR: `cargo test -p codex-exec-server`
- Earlier in this PR: `cargo check --release -p codex-exec-server`
- Earlier in this PR: `just fix -p codex-linux-sandbox -p
codex-exec-server`
- Earlier in this PR: `bazel test --nobuild
//codex-rs/linux-sandbox:linux-sandbox-all-test
//codex-rs/core:core-all-test
//codex-rs/exec-server:exec-server-file_system-test
//codex-rs/app-server:app-server-all-test` (analysis completed; Bazel
then refuses to run tests under `--nobuild`)
- Earlier in this PR: `bazel build --nobuild //codex-rs/bwrap:bwrap`
- Prior to this update: `just bazel-lock-update`, `just
bazel-lock-check`, and YAML parse check for
`.github/workflows/bazel.yml`


---
[//]: # (BEGIN SAPLING FOOTER)
Stack created with [Sapling](https://sapling-scm.com). Best reviewed
with [ReviewStack](https://reviewstack.dev/openai/codex/pull/21255).
* #21257
* #21256
* __->__ #21255
2026-05-05 17:14:29 -07:00

4.2 KiB

codex-core

This crate implements the business logic for Codex. It is designed to be used by the various Codex UIs written in Rust.

Dependencies

Note that codex-core makes some assumptions about certain helper utilities being available in the environment. Currently, this support matrix is:

macOS

Expects /usr/bin/sandbox-exec to be present.

When using the workspace-write sandbox policy, the Seatbelt profile allows writes under the configured writable roots while keeping .git (directory or pointer file), the resolved gitdir: target, and .codex read-only.

Network access and filesystem read/write roots are controlled by SandboxPolicy. Seatbelt consumes the resolved policy and enforces it.

Seatbelt also keeps the legacy default preferences read access (user-preference-read) needed for cfprefs-backed macOS behavior.

Linux

Expects the binary containing codex-core to run the equivalent of codex sandbox linux (legacy alias: codex debug landlock) when arg0 is codex-linux-sandbox. See the codex-arg0 crate for details.

Legacy SandboxPolicy / sandbox_mode configs are still supported on Linux. They can continue to use the legacy Landlock path when the split filesystem policy is sandbox-equivalent to the legacy model after cwd resolution. Split filesystem policies that need direct FileSystemSandboxPolicy enforcement, such as read-only or denied carveouts under a broader writable root, automatically route through bubblewrap. The legacy Landlock path is used only when the split filesystem policy round-trips through the legacy SandboxPolicy model without changing semantics. That includes overlapping cases like /repo = write, /repo/a = none, /repo/a/b = write, where the more specific writable child must reopen under a denied parent.

The Linux sandbox helper prefers the first bwrap found on PATH outside the current working directory whenever it is available. If bwrap is present but too old to support --argv0, the helper keeps using system bubblewrap and switches to a no---argv0 compatibility path for the inner re-exec. If bwrap is missing, it falls back to the bundled codex-resources/bwrap binary shipped with Codex and Codex surfaces a startup warning through its normal notification path instead of printing directly from the sandbox helper. Codex also surfaces a startup warning when bubblewrap cannot create user namespaces. WSL2 uses the normal Linux bubblewrap path. WSL1 is not supported for bubblewrap sandboxing because it cannot create the required user namespaces, so Codex rejects sandboxed shell commands that would enter the bubblewrap path before invoking bwrap.

Windows

Legacy SandboxPolicy / sandbox_mode configs are still supported on Windows. Legacy read-only and workspace-write policies imply full filesystem read access; exact readable roots are represented by split filesystem policies instead.

The elevated Windows sandbox also supports:

  • legacy ReadOnly and WorkspaceWrite behavior
  • split filesystem policies that need exact readable roots, exact writable roots, or extra read-only carveouts under writable roots
  • backend-managed system read roots required for basic execution, such as C:\Windows, C:\Program Files, C:\Program Files (x86), and C:\ProgramData, when a split filesystem policy requests platform defaults

The unelevated restricted-token backend still supports the legacy full-read Windows model for legacy ReadOnly and WorkspaceWrite behavior. It also supports a narrow split-filesystem subset: full-read split policies whose writable roots still match the legacy WorkspaceWrite root set, but add extra read-only carveouts under those writable roots.

New [permissions] / split filesystem policies remain supported on Windows only when they can be enforced directly by the selected Windows backend or round-trip through the legacy SandboxPolicy model without changing semantics. Policies that would require direct explicit unreadable carveouts (none) or reopened writable descendants under read-only carveouts still fail closed instead of running with weaker enforcement.

All Platforms

Expects the binary containing codex-core to simulate the virtual apply_patch CLI when arg1 is --codex-run-as-apply-patch. See the codex-arg0 crate for details.