Codex Taskbar Notifier
An unofficial VS Code extension for Windows + Remote SSH. When a Codex CLI turn finishes on the remote host, the extension plays a short sound, requests a taskbar flash, shows a warning badge and red progress bar on the VS Code icon, and displays a VS Code notification. The badge clears when you return to VS Code or after 30 seconds.
Set up
- Install this extension in Local VS Code on Windows. Open a Remote SSH folder where you run Codex CLI.
- Open the Command Palette and run Codex Taskbar: Set Up Remote Notifications. Confirm the remote home directory. The suggested path is usually correct.
- Restart any Codex CLI session that was already running so it loads the new
notify configuration.
- Run Codex Taskbar: Test Taskbar Alert. You have three seconds to switch to another application before the test fires. Windows typically flashes a taskbar button only while its window is in the background.
The extension needs Windows PowerShell on the local machine, VS Code 1.90 or newer, and Python 3 on a Linux or macOS SSH host. It currently targets the standard VS Code and VS Code Insiders processes on Windows. It does not control Codex sessions in the ChatGPT desktop app.
How it works
Setup writes a small Python notification hook to ~/.codex/taskbar-notify.py on the remote host and adds a top-level notify command to the remote user-level ~/.codex/config.toml. Codex runs the hook when it emits agent-turn-complete; the hook writes an event file under ~/.codex/taskbar-events/. The local VS Code extension reads that directory through VS Code's existing Remote SSH filesystem connection. There is no separate port forward, local listener, external service, or telemetry.
Event files contain only the event type, session ID, turn ID, and working directory. They do not contain prompts or assistant replies. Old event files are removed as new events arrive. If an existing notify command is present, setup asks before replacing it; Codex supports one top-level notify command.
You can disable the sound with the codexTaskbar.playSound setting. The status bar completion marker remains until clicked. Windows taskbar flashing depends on Settings → Personalization → Taskbar → Taskbar behaviors → Show flashing on taskbar apps; the badge and progress bar provide an additional visual signal.
Troubleshooting
- No notification: Run the setup command in the Remote SSH window. Restart the Codex CLI session after setup.
- VS Code notification, but no taskbar signal: Run the three-second test while VS Code is in the background. Check Output → Codex Taskbar for
windows, flash, foreground, and taskbar_badge results.
- Sound, but no badge: Check
taskbar_badge_error in the output channel. Windows taskbar policies and other programs that control the VS Code taskbar button can affect the result.
For support, use the extension page's Q&A area. Include the relevant diagnostics from Output → Codex Taskbar.
Remove remote setup
Uninstall the extension, then remove the notify = ["python3", ".../taskbar-notify.py"] line from the remote ~/.codex/config.toml if it still points to this extension. You can then delete ~/.codex/taskbar-notify.py and ~/.codex/taskbar-events/ on the remote host. Restore your previous notify command if setup replaced one.
中文快速开始
这是适用于 Windows 本机 VS Code + Remote SSH + 远端 Codex CLI 的提醒插件。安装到 VS Code 的 Local 后，在远端窗口运行命令面板里的 Codex Taskbar: 设置远端通知，确认远端 HOME 路径，并重新启动已经在运行的 Codex。测试命令会等待三秒，请在此期间切换到其他程序。完成提醒包含声音、任务栏闪烁请求、图标警告标记以及 VS Code 通知。
Development
npm install
npm test
npm run package
The icon can be regenerated with python3 tools/make-icon.py.
