# Codex Auth Account Manager > CLI tool to switch and manage multiple Codex accounts seamlessly - Skill: `aradotso/codex-auth-account-manager` (Agent Skill) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add aradotso/codex-auth-account-manager` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/aradotso/codex-auth-account-manager/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Coding & Dev Tools - Author: aradotso (https://skillmd.com/u/aradotso) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/aradotso/codex-auth-account-manager --- # Codex Auth Account Manager > Skill by [ara.so](https://ara.so) — Codex Skills collection. `codex-auth` is a command-line tool for switching between multiple Codex accounts. It works with Codex CLI, VS Code extension, and Codex App. This skill covers installation, account management, import/export workflows, and API vs local-only modes. ## What It Does - **Account switching**: Seamlessly switch between multiple Codex accounts stored locally - **Usage tracking**: View token usage and limits for each account (API-backed or local-only) - **Import/Export**: Batch import auth files or export for backup - **Multi-client support**: Works with Codex CLI, VS Code extension, and Codex App **Important**: After switching accounts with Codex CLI or Codex App, you must restart the client for changes to take effect. For seamless switching without restarts, use the forked [`codext`](https://github.com/Loongphy/codext) CLI. ## Installation Install globally via npm: ```bash npm install -g @loongphy/codex-auth ``` Or run without installing: ```bash npx @loongphy/codex-auth list ``` Supported platforms: Linux (x64, arm64), macOS (x64, arm64), Windows (x64, arm64). ### Uninstall ```bash npm uninstall -g @loongphy/codex-auth ``` ## Account Management Commands ### List Accounts View all stored accounts with usage information: ```bash # List accounts with API-backed usage refresh (default) codex-auth list # List with live TUI auto-refresh codex-auth list --live # Show only the active account codex-auth list --active # Skip API calls, use local rollout files only codex-auth list --skip-api ``` **Usage Data Modes**: - **Default (API)**: Makes HTTPS requests to OpenAI endpoints using access tokens for accurate usage/limit data - **Local-only (`--skip-api`)**: Reads `~/.codex/sessions/**/rollout-*.jsonl` files; may show stale data (hours old) due to `rate_limits: null` in recent Codex builds ### Add Accounts Login and add a new account: ```bash # Interactive browser login codex-auth login # Device-code authentication codex-auth login --device-auth ``` This runs `codex login` internally, then stores the account in `codex-auth`'s registry. ### Switch Accounts Interactive account picker: ```bash # Interactive selection with API-backed usage codex-auth switch # Interactive with live TUI refresh codex-auth switch --live # Interactive, skip API calls codex-auth switch --skip-api ``` Direct selection by row number or query: ```bash # Switch to account at row 02 codex-auth switch 02 # Switch by email/alias substring codex-auth switch work codex-auth switch personal@example.com ``` ### Remove Accounts Interactive removal: ```bash # Interactive multi-select with API-backed data codex-auth remove # Interactive with local-only data codex-auth remove --skip-api ``` Direct removal by query: ```bash # Remove specific accounts by selector codex-auth remove work personal@example.com 03 # Remove all stored accounts codex-auth remove --all ``` ## Import and Export ### Import Accounts Import a single auth file: ```bash # Import with auto-generated alias codex-auth import /path/to/auth.json # Import with custom alias codex-auth import /path/to/auth.json --alias work-account ``` Batch import from a folder: ```bash # Import all auth.json files in a directory codex-auth import /path/to/auth-folder ``` Import CLIProxyAPI token JSON: ```bash # Import from default ./token.json codex-auth import --cpa # Import from custom path codex-auth import --cpa /path/to/token.json ``` Rebuild registry from existing auth files: ```bash # Purge and rebuild registry.json from managed auth files codex-auth import --purge # Rebuild from custom auth directory codex-auth import --purge /custom/auth/dir ``` ### Export Accounts Export all managed auth files: ```bash # Export to current directory codex-auth export # Export to specific directory codex-auth export /backup/codex-auth # Export as CLIProxyAPI token.json format codex-auth export --cpa codex-auth export --cpa /backup/tokens ``` ## Maintenance ### Clean Stale Files Remove managed backup and stale account files: ```bash codex-auth clean ``` This deletes: - Managed backup files created during account switches - Stale account auth files no longer in the registry ## Configuration ### Live TUI Refresh Interval Configure auto-refresh interval for `--live` mode: ```bash # Set refresh interval to 10 seconds codex-auth config live --interval 10 # Set refresh interval to 30 seconds codex-auth config live --interval 30 ``` ## Common Workflows ### Daily Account Switching ```bash # Morning: check all accounts and switch to work codex-auth list codex-auth switch work # Evening: switch back to personal codex-auth switch personal # Restart Codex CLI or App for changes to take effect ``` ### Batch Account Setup ```bash # Import multiple auth files from a backup folder codex-auth import ~/codex-backups/auth-files # Verify imports codex-auth list # Switch to preferred account codex-auth switch 01 ``` ### Usage Monitoring ```bash # Quick active account check codex-auth list --active # Monitor all accounts with live refresh codex-auth list --live # Check usage without API calls (faster but possibly stale) codex-auth list --skip-api ``` ### Cleanup and Backup ```bash # Export all accounts before cleanup codex-auth export ~/codex-backup-$(date +%Y%m%d) # Remove unused accounts codex-auth remove old-work abandoned-test # Clean stale files codex-auth clean ``` ## Troubleshooting ### Usage Limits Not Refreshing **Symptom**: Usage data appears hours out of date. **Cause**: When using `--skip-api`, local `rollout-*.jsonl` files may contain `rate_limits: null` (Codex issue [#14880](https://github.com/openai/codex/issues/14880)). **Solution**: Use API-backed refresh (default): ```bash # Use API for accurate data codex-auth list # Verify with actual usage codex exec "say hello" ``` ### Account Switch Not Taking Effect **Symptom**: After switching accounts, Codex still uses old account. **Solution**: Restart Codex CLI or Codex App after switching. Or use `codext` for seamless switching: ```bash npm install -g @loongphy/codext codext # Enhanced CLI with auto account switching ``` ### Import Fails **Symptom**: `codex-auth import` doesn't find auth files. **Solution**: Ensure you're importing valid `auth.json` files from `~/.codex/` or exported backups: ```bash # Verify file exists and is valid JSON cat /path/to/auth.json | jq . # Try absolute path codex-auth import /absolute/path/to/auth.json ``` ### API Calls vs Privacy **Concern**: Don't want to send tokens to OpenAI endpoints. **Solution**: Use `--skip-api` for all commands: ```bash codex-auth list --skip-api codex-auth switch --skip-api codex-auth remove --skip-api ``` Note: Team names won't refresh and usage data may be stale, but no API calls are made. ## Security Notes - **API Mode**: Sends access tokens to `chatgpt.com/backend-api/wham/usage` and `chatgpt.com/backend-api/accounts/check/v4-2023-04-27`. May violate OpenAI ToS. - **Local Mode**: Reads local files only, safer but less accurate. - **Auth Storage**: All auth files stored in `~/.codex-auth/` (platform-specific). Keep this directory secure. ## Platform-Specific Paths Auth files are stored in: - **Linux/macOS**: `~/.codex-auth/` - **Windows**: `%USERPROFILE%\.codex-auth\` Original Codex auth: - **All platforms**: `~/.codex/auth.json` Session rollout files: - **All platforms**: `~/.codex/sessions/**/rollout-*.jsonl`