Codex Audit Report Is Too Broad to Act On
Asked Codex to audit your project and got a 50-bullet report mixing typos with architecture? Re-scope to one dimension, cap output, force file:line, use /review's custom-instructions preset.
#Coding agent
Articles tagged with #Coding agent
Codex Cannot Finish a Patch Cleanly
Codex says "done" but leaves broken imports, half-converted types, and untouched call sites. Bind "done" to a verifier in AGENTS.md, then check the exit code yourself.
Codex Duplicates Files Instead of Editing Existing Ones
Codex creates `utils.v2.ts` next to `utils.ts` instead of editing in place. The real cause is an apply_patch Update→Add fallback. Force in-place edits with AGENTS.md rules, git, and the right sandbox mode.
Codex Fails to Run or Interpret Build Results
Codex skips the build, misreads it, or trusts a truncated tail. Fix it with exit-code checks, machine-readable verifiers, and a Stop hook gate — not prose summaries.
Codex Fixes One Bug But Breaks Nearby Logic
The reported bug is gone, two adjacent features regressed. Cap blast radius, enumerate call sites, prefer caller-side guards over shared-util changes.
Codex Ignores Your Project Structure: The AGENTS.md Fix
New files land in /src/ when your repo uses /app/; deps go to the root package.json in a monorepo; tests use a framework you don't have. Fix it with a root AGENTS.md, nested overrides, and canonical-example pointers — verified against Codex behavior, June 2026.
Codex Makes Unsafe Assumptions
Codex uses a column, env var, or function signature it never read. Force a quote-before-write rule and run Codex read-only so it grounds every line in your real files.
Codex Misses Project-Specific Conventions: Fix With AGENTS.md
Codex writes `getUserById` when your codebase uses `findUserById`. Codify each convention as rule + a canonical example file in AGENTS.md, then verify it loaded.
Codex Patch Conflicts With Existing Code
Codex fails with "Invalid Context" or "No such file or directory" when applying a patch. Tell the two apart, then refresh state or restart the session.
Codex Code Review Feels Too Shallow? Fix It
Codex review returns generic bullets like "consider error handling." Fix it with the built-in /review command, AGENTS.md review guidelines, and file:line-anchored prompts.
Codex Code Does Not Match Your Codebase Style: The Fix
Functionally correct but reads like a stranger wrote it: async/await mixed with .then(), wrong import order, off comment style. Anchor Codex to a canonical file in AGENTS.md, then enforce the rest with lint.
Codex Test Suggestions Are Too Generic
"Test the happy path and error path" is useless filler. Force Codex to bind tests to the real function signature, the actual types, edge cases, and bug history.