auth.md Codex Docs, 2026-03-04 18:18 UTC → 2026-05-07 17:08 UTC

26 26 

27OpenAI bills API key usage through your OpenAI Platform account at standard API rates. See the [API pricing page](https://openai.com/api/pricing/).27OpenAI bills API key usage through your OpenAI Platform account at standard API rates. See the [API pricing page](https://openai.com/api/pricing/).

28 28 

29Recommendation is to use API key authentication for programmatic Codex CLI workflows (for example CI/CD jobs). Do not expose Codex execution in untrusted or publicly triggerable environments.29Features that rely on ChatGPT credits, such as [fast mode](https://developers.openai.com/codex/speed), are

30available only when you sign in with ChatGPT. If you sign in with an API key,

31Codex uses standard API pricing instead.

32 

33Recommendation is to use API key authentication for programmatic Codex CLI workflows (for example CI/CD jobs). Don't expose Codex execution in untrusted or public environments.

30 34 

31## Secure your Codex cloud account35## Secure your Codex cloud account

32 36 

85 89 

86If the active credentials don't match the configured restrictions, Codex logs the user out and exits.90If the active credentials don't match the configured restrictions, Codex logs the user out and exits.

87 91 

88These settings are commonly applied via managed configuration rather than per-user setup. See [Managed configuration](https://developers.openai.com/codex/security#managed-configuration).92These settings are commonly applied via managed configuration rather than per-user setup. See [Managed configuration](https://developers.openai.com/codex/enterprise/managed-configuration).

93 

94## Login diagnostics

95 

96Direct `codex login` runs write a dedicated `codex-login.log` file under

97your configured log directory. Use it when you need to debug browser-login or

98device-code failures, or when support asks for login-specific logs.

99 

100## Custom CA bundles

101 

102If your network uses a corporate TLS proxy or private root CA, set

103`CODEX_CA_CERTIFICATE` to a PEM bundle before logging in. When

104`CODEX_CA_CERTIFICATE` is unset, Codex falls back to `SSL_CERT_FILE`. The same

105custom CA settings apply to login, normal HTTPS requests, and secure websocket

106connections.

107 

108```shell

109export CODEX_CA_CERTIFICATE=/path/to/corporate-root-ca.pem

110codex login

111```

89 112 

90## Login on headless devices113## Login on headless devices

91 114 

141docker cp ~/.codex/auth.json MY_CONTAINER:"$CONTAINER_HOME/.codex/auth.json"164docker cp ~/.codex/auth.json MY_CONTAINER:"$CONTAINER_HOME/.codex/auth.json"

142```165```

143 166 

167For a more advanced version of this same pattern on trusted CI/CD runners, see

168[Maintain Codex account auth in CI/CD (advanced)](https://developers.openai.com/codex/auth/ci-cd-auth).

169That guide explains how to let Codex refresh `auth.json` during normal runs and

170then keep the updated file for the next job. API keys are still the recommended

171default for automation.

172 

144### Fallback: Forward the localhost callback over SSH173### Fallback: Forward the localhost callback over SSH

145 174 

146If you can forward ports between your local machine and the remote host, you can use the standard browser-based flow by tunneling Codex's local callback server (default `localhost:1455`).175If you can forward ports between your local machine and the remote host, you can use the standard browser-based flow by tunneling Codex's local callback server (default `localhost:1455`).