codex-with-chatgpt

### Overview & Architecture Most developers running agentic setups hit a common bottleneck: burning high-cost API or agent tokens on architectural planning, debugging strategy, and code reviews while a paid ChatGPT web subscription sits unused. `codex-with-chatgpt` offloads high-level planning to the official ChatGPT web app while keeping execution local inside Codex. It avoids reverse proxies, direct API keys, or mass file uploads. Instead, it exposes a local, read-only Model Context Protocol (MCP) server over an OAuth-protected tunnel. ``` +-------------------+ OAuth / Read-Only MCP +-------------------+ | ChatGPT Web UI | <-----------------------------> | local workspace | | (Planning Brain) | via cloudflared | (Codex Executes) | +-------------------+ +-------------------+ ``` ### How It Works Under the Hood 1. Read-Only MCP Bridge: The project runs a local Node.js server paired with `cloudflared` to expose a secure tunnel. ChatGPT connects as an MCP client and reads *only* the workspace lines it explicitly requests for context. 2. OAuth Security: The connection between ChatGPT and your local machine requires authentication via a pairing code to ensure no unauthorized access over the tunnel. 3. Skill-Based Handoff: A custom Codex skill installed at `~/.codex/skills/codex-with-chatgpt/SKILL.md` instructs Codex to yield strategic thinking tasks to the ChatGPT Web UI while retaining execution control. --- ### Prerequisites & Dependency Setup Your environment requires: * Git * Node.js ($\ge 20$) * Package Manager: `pnpm` (via Corepack) * Tunneling Tool: `cloudflared` (installed via Homebrew on macOS or `winget` on Windows) --- ### Step-by-Step Installation & Configuration #### 1. Clone the Repository Clone the project locally into your home directory: ```bash git clone https://github.com/XiaoDuoYa/codex-with-chatgpt ~/codex-with-chatgpt ``` #### 2. Install Dependencies & Build Navigate to the directory and build the project artifacts using Corepack: ```bash cd ~/codex-with-chatgpt corepack pnpm install corepack pnpm build ``` #### 3. Register the Codex Skill Copy the provided skill manifest to the Codex skills folder and update the path string within the file to match `~/codex-with-chatgpt`: ```bash mkdir -p ~/.codex/skills/codex-with-chatgpt cp skill/SKILL.md ~/.codex/skills/codex-with-chatgpt/SKILL.md ``` #### 4. Run First-Time Setup & MCP Pairing Initiate the setup routine to pair your local environment with ChatGPT: ```bash c2c setup ``` This command triggers a browser-based workflow to open ChatGPT, configure the custom connector, and enter the OAuth pairing code generated by your local instance. Once verified, ChatGPT will read files on demand, leaving token-heavy execution tasks to Codex. If you encounter issues later, asking Codex to *"Update Codex with ChatGPT"* pulls the latest updates to keep the bridge running smoothly.