---
title: How to enable Codex remote control with only the Codex CLI and no ChatGPT app
url: https://roboin.io/article/en/2026/08/19/enable-remote-control-using-codex-cli/
description: To use Codex remote control, you usually need to keep the ChatGPT
  app running on your PC. You can use a hidden flag to start remote control with
  the Codex CLI alone, without installing the ChatGPT app.
publishedDate: 2026-08-18T18:56:47.699Z
modifiedDate: 2026-08-18T18:56:47.699Z
thumbnail: https://roboin.io/api/media/file/unsplash-chatgpt-app.jpg
thumbnailAlt: ChatGPTのアプリが表示されたスマートフォンが机の上に置かれている写真
thumbnailCaption: N/A
---

# How to enable Codex remote control with only the Codex CLI and no ChatGPT app

Codex remote control lets you send instructions from your phone to Codex running on your home PC while you're away. To use remote control, you usually need to keep the ChatGPT app running on your PC.

The ChatGPT app has excellent overall quality, but I ran into an issue where my entire PC became much less responsive after I opened the app or launched a project. I ended up uninstalling the ChatGPT app.

You can use a hidden flag to start remote control with the Codex CLI alone, without installing the ChatGPT app.

## Command to start remote control from the Codex CLI

Run the following command to start remote control from the Codex CLI.

```bash
codex app-server --listen off
```

This command keeps running, so leave the terminal where you started it open for as long as you want to use remote control. You can then control Codex from the ChatGPT mobile app without installing the ChatGPT app on your PC.

Some articles say you can start remote control with `codex remote-control`, but this command produced an error on Windows.

```console
$ codex remote-control
Starting app-server daemon with remote control enabled...
Error: codex app-server daemon lifecycle is only supported on Unix platforms
```

## Pairing with only the Codex CLI

Before you can use the remote control command above, you need to pair remote control with the ChatGPT app.

You can pair from the CLI with `codex remote-control pair`, but this command also fails on Windows with the error `Error: codex app-server daemon lifecycle is only supported on Unix platforms`.

To pair on Windows, run the following command:

```bash
codex app-server --listen ws://127.0.0.1:8765
```

Keep that command running, then open another terminal and run the following commands:

```powershell
$ws = [Net.WebSockets.ClientWebSocket]::new()
$ct = [Threading.CancellationToken]::None
$ws.ConnectAsync([Uri]"ws://127.0.0.1:8765", $ct).GetAwaiter().GetResult()

function Send-Json($obj) {
    $bytes = [Text.Encoding]::UTF8.GetBytes(
        ($obj | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 10 -Compress)
    )
    $ws.SendAsync(
        [ArraySegment[byte]]::new($bytes),
        [Net.WebSockets.WebSocketMessageType]::Text,
        $true,
        $ct
    ).GetAwaiter().GetResult()
}

function Receive-Json {
    $buffer = New-Object byte[] 65536
    $ms = [IO.MemoryStream]::new()

    do {
        $r = $ws.ReceiveAsync(
            [ArraySegment[byte]]::new($buffer),
            $ct
        ).GetAwaiter().GetResult()

        if ($r.MessageType -eq [Net.WebSockets.WebSocketMessageType]::Close) {
            throw "WebSocket closed"
        }

        $ms.Write($buffer, 0, $r.Count)
    } until ($r.EndOfMessage)

    [Text.Encoding]::UTF8.GetString($ms.ToArray()) | ConvertFrom-Json
}

function Wait-Response($id) {
    do {
        $r = Receive-Json
    } until ($r.id -eq $id)

    if ($r.error) {
        throw $r.error.message
    }

    $r.result
}

Send-Json @{
    method = "initialize"
    id = 1
    params = @{
        clientInfo = @{
            name = "codex_remote_pair"
            title = "Codex Remote Pair"
            version = "1.0"
        }
        capabilities = @{
            experimentalApi = $true
        }
    }
}

$null = Wait-Response 1

Send-Json @{
    method = "initialized"
    params = @{}
}

# Enable Remote Control persistently
Send-Json @{
    method = "remoteControl/enable"
    id = 2
    params = @{}
}

$null = Wait-Response 2

# Generate a pairing code
Send-Json @{
    method = "remoteControl/pairing/start"
    id = 3
    params = @{
        manualCode = $true
    }
}

(Wait-Response 3).manualPairingCode

$ws.Dispose()
```

The terminal will display a pairing code. On your phone, open the ChatGPT pairing screen, select "Pair manually," and enter the code. Then stop `codex app-server --listen ws://127.0.0.1:8765` and run `codex app-server --listen off`. You can then connect from your phone.

## Verification details and sources

### Verification environment

- OS: Windows 11
- Codex CLI version 0.147.0

### Verification details

On Windows, I confirmed that `codex remote-control` returns an error, while `codex app-server --remote-control --listen off` starts remote control without issues.

### Last verification date

2026-08-18T18:45:00.000Z

### Changelog

- August 19, 2026, 3:56 a.m.: Published the first version
- August 25, 2026, 2:50 a.m.: Replaced the command from the first version with a more stable command