## Why
The patched zsh artifacts rarely change, but
`.github/workflows/rust-release-zsh.yml` currently runs as part of every
Rust release. Rebuilding the same four binaries for each Codex version
wastes release capacity and ties an independently versioned runtime
dependency to the main release cadence.
This establishes the producer side of a build-once flow. The existing
Rust release workflow remains unchanged until the first standalone
artifact release has been published and the checked-in DotSlash
manifests can be updated with its URLs and checksums.
## What changed
- Run the zsh release workflow for protected `codex-zsh-vX.Y.Z` tags
instead of as a reusable workflow.
- Validate the semantic release tag before starting the platform builds.
- Publish the four zsh archives to a GitHub prerelease so the release
never becomes the repository latest release.
- Publish the generated `codex-zsh` DotSlash manifest alongside the
archives.
- Document how to publish the next artifact version after changing the
pinned zsh commit or patch.
## Tag protection
An active repository tag ruleset named `codex-zsh-v*.*.*` targets
`refs/tags/codex-zsh-v*.*.*`. It restricts tag creation, updates,
deletion, and non-fast-forward changes; requires linear history; and
limits bypass to the configured repository role.
This was verified with:
```shell
gh api repos/openai/codex/rulesets/18140982
```
The response reported `"enforcement":"active"`, the expected tag
condition, and the `creation`, `update`, `deletion`, `non_fast_forward`,
and `required_linear_history` rules.
## Rollout
After this lands, publish the first `codex-zsh-vX.Y.Z` release. A
follow-up can then update the checked-in DotSlash manifests and remove
the zsh rebuild from `.github/workflows/rust-release.yml`.
---
[//]: # (BEGIN SAPLING FOOTER)
Stack created with [Sapling](https://sapling-scm.com). Best reviewed
with [ReviewStack](https://reviewstack.dev/openai/codex/pull/30114).
* #30116
* __->__ #30114
## Why
`shell-tool-mcp` and the Bash fork are no longer needed, but the patched
zsh fork is still relevant for shell escalation and for the
DotSlash-backed zsh-fork integration tests.
Deleting the old `shell-tool-mcp` workflow also deleted the only
pipeline that rebuilt those patched zsh binaries. This keeps the package
removal, while preserving a small release path that can be reused
whenever `codex-rs/shell-escalation/patches/zsh-exec-wrapper.patch`
changes.
## What changed
- removed the `shell-tool-mcp` workspace package, its npm
packaging/release jobs, the Bash test fixture, and the remaining
Bash-specific compatibility wiring
- deleted the old `.github/workflows/shell-tool-mcp.yml` and
`.github/workflows/shell-tool-mcp-ci.yml` workflows now that their
responsibilities have been replaced or removed
- kept the zsh patch under
`codex-rs/shell-escalation/patches/zsh-exec-wrapper.patch` and updated
the `codex-rs/shell-escalation` docs/code to describe the zsh-based flow
directly
- added `.github/workflows/rust-release-zsh.yml` to build only the three
zsh binaries that `codex-rs/app-server/tests/suite/zsh` needs today:
- `aarch64-apple-darwin` on `macos-15`
- `x86_64-unknown-linux-musl` on `ubuntu-24.04`
- `aarch64-unknown-linux-musl` on `ubuntu-24.04`
- extracted the shared zsh build/smoke-test/stage logic into
`.github/scripts/build-zsh-release-artifact.sh`, made that helper
directly executable, and now invoke it directly from the workflow so the
Linux and macOS jobs only keep the OS-specific setup in YAML
- wired those standalone `codex-zsh-*.tar.gz` assets into
`rust-release.yml` and added `.github/dotslash-zsh-config.json` so
releases also publish a `codex-zsh` DotSlash file
- updated the checked-in `codex-rs/app-server/tests/suite/zsh` fixture
comments to explain that new releases come from the standalone zsh
assets, while the checked-in fixture remains pinned to the latest
historical release until a newer zsh artifact is published
- tightened a couple of follow-on cleanups in
`codex-rs/shell-escalation`: the `ExecParams::command` comment now
describes the shell `-c`/`-lc` string more clearly, and the README now
points at the same `git.code.sf.net` zsh source URL that the workflow
uses
## Testing
- `cargo test -p codex-shell-escalation`
- `just argument-comment-lint`
- `bash -n .github/scripts/build-zsh-release-artifact.sh`
- attempted `cargo test -p codex-core`; unrelated existing failures
remain, but the touched `tools::runtimes::shell::unix_escalation::*`
coverage passed during that run
Historically, we cloned the Bash repo from
https://github.com/bminor/bash, but for whatever reason, it was removed
at some point.
I had a local clone of it, so I pushed it to
https://github.com/bolinfest/bash so that we could continue running our
CI job. I did this in https://github.com/openai/codex/pull/9563, and as
you can see, I did not tamper with the commit hash we used as the basis
of this build.
Using a personal fork is not great, so this PR changes the CI job to use
what appears to be considered the source of truth for Bash, which is
https://git.savannah.gnu.org/git/bash.git.
Though in testing this out, it appears this Git server does not support
the combination of `git clone --depth 1
https://git.savannah.gnu.org/git/bash` and `git fetch --depth 1 origin
a8a1c2fac029404d3f42cd39f5a20f24b6e4fe4b`, as it fails with the
following error:
```
error: Server does not allow request for unadvertised object a8a1c2fac029404d3f42cd39f5a20f24b6e4fe4b
```
so unfortunately this means that we have to do a full clone instead of a
shallow clone in our CI jobs, which will be a bit slower.
Also updated `codex-rs/shell-escalation/README.md` to reflect this
change.
## Why
We already plan to remove the shell-tool MCP path, and doing that
cleanup first makes the follow-on `shell-escalation` work much simpler.
This change removes the last remaining reason to keep
`codex-rs/exec-server` around by moving the `codex-execve-wrapper`
binary and shared shell test fixtures to the crates/tests that now own
that functionality.
## What Changed
### Delete `codex-rs/exec-server`
- Remove the `exec-server` crate, including the MCP server binary,
MCP-specific modules, and its test support/test suite
- Remove `exec-server` from the `codex-rs` workspace and update
`Cargo.lock`
### Move `codex-execve-wrapper` into `codex-rs/shell-escalation`
- Move the wrapper implementation into `shell-escalation`
(`src/unix/execve_wrapper.rs`)
- Add the `codex-execve-wrapper` binary entrypoint under
`shell-escalation/src/bin/`
- Update `shell-escalation` exports/module layout so the wrapper
entrypoint is hosted there
- Move the wrapper README content from `exec-server` to
`shell-escalation/README.md`
### Move shared shell test fixtures to `app-server`
- Move the DotSlash `bash`/`zsh` test fixtures from
`exec-server/tests/suite/` to `app-server/tests/suite/`
- Update `app-server` zsh-fork tests to reference the new fixture paths
### Keep `shell-tool-mcp` as a shell-assets package
- Update `.github/workflows/shell-tool-mcp.yml` packaging so the npm
artifact contains only patched Bash/Zsh payloads (no Rust binaries)
- Update `shell-tool-mcp/package.json`, `shell-tool-mcp/src/index.ts`,
and docs to reflect the shell-assets-only package shape
- `shell-tool-mcp-ci.yml` does not need changes because it is already
JS-only
## Verification
- `cargo shear`
- `cargo clippy -p codex-shell-escalation --tests`
- `just clippy`
Michael Bolin ·