OpenAI Codex adds Locked computer use on Mac (keep Computer Use running after lock)
Codex can now keep using Mac apps after your screen locks. Locked computer use is a narrow, Codex-only unlock path with a short-lived authorization window and safeguards like relocking on local input.
OpenAI updated Codex’s Computer Use on macOS with Locked computer use, a mode that lets Codex keep driving desktop apps after your Mac locks (for example when you start a task from your phone). The change is small in UI, but meaningful for anyone who wants Codex to keep working while they step away.
What’s new
OpenAI says “Locked computer use lets Codex use Computer Use after your Mac locks, but only after you enable it.” (OpenAI Developers docs)
OpenAI Developers also describes the outcome plainly: “Now your Mac doesn’t have to be unlocked for Codex to use your computer… even when the screen is off and locked.” (OpenAI Developers on X)
How to enable Locked computer use
OpenAI’s documented steps are:
- Open
Codex settings > Computer Use. (OpenAI Developers docs) - Enable Locked computer use. (OpenAI Developers docs)
- Start a task that uses computer use from a connected device after your Mac’s screen has locked. (OpenAI Developers docs)
What OpenAI says about security + limits
OpenAI says enabling Locked computer use installs “an Apple authorization plug-in that participates in the macOS unlock flow.” (OpenAI Developers docs)
OpenAI emphasizes the scope:
- “Locked use is intentionally narrow.” (OpenAI Developers docs)
- It’s “not a general-purpose remote-unlock path for your Mac” and “doesn’t let other apps or local processes unlock the computer.” (OpenAI Developers docs)
OpenAI documents the main safeguards:
- Codex checks whether an unlock attempt is for an “active, trusted computer use turn.” (OpenAI Developers docs)
- Outside that “short-lived window,” Codex denies the unlock and asks you to unlock manually. (OpenAI Developers docs)
- Codex “covers every display” while the desktop is temporarily unlocked. (OpenAI Developers docs)
- If Codex detects local keyboard or pointer input, it relocks the Mac and pauses automatic unlock until you unlock manually. (OpenAI Developers docs)
Availability note
OpenAI’s Codex documentation says Computer Use is available on macOS except in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland at launch. (OpenAI Developers docs)
Why this matters
Computer Use is most useful for the “stuff your CLI can’t do” work — reproducing GUI-only issues, running multi-step flows in a desktop app, and doing “operator” tasks across apps. Locked computer use is the missing piece if you want those tasks to keep running while you’re away from your desk.