## Why
`codex-core` already owns too much of the tool stack, and `AGENTS.md`
explicitly pushes us to move shared code out of `codex-core` instead of
letting it keep growing. This PR takes the next incremental step in
moving `core/src/tools` toward `codex-rs/tools` by extracting
low-coupling tool configuration and image-detail gating logic into
`codex-tools`.
That gives later extraction work a cleaner boundary to build on without
trying to move the entire tools subtree in one shot.
## What changed
- moved `ToolsConfig`, `ToolsConfigParams`, shell backend config, and
unified-exec session selection from `core/src/tools/spec.rs` into
`codex-tools`
- moved original image-detail gating and normalization into
`codex-tools`
- updated `codex-core` to consume the new `codex-tools` exports and pass
a rendered agent-type description instead of raw role config
- kept `codex-rs/tools/src/lib.rs` exports-only, with extracted unit
tests living in sibling `*_tests.rs` modules
## Testing
- `cargo test -p codex-tools`
- `cargo test -p codex-core --lib tools::spec::`
## Why
`#16193` moved the pure `tool_search` and `tool_suggest` spec builders
into `codex-tools`, but `codex-core` still owned the shared
discoverable-tool model that those builders and the `tool_suggest`
runtime both depend on. This change continues the migration by moving
that reusable model boundary out of `codex-core` as well, so the
discovery/suggestion stack uses one shared set of types and
`core/src/tools` no longer needs its own `discoverable.rs` module.
## What changed
- Moved `DiscoverableTool`, `DiscoverablePluginInfo`, and
`filter_tool_suggest_discoverable_tools_for_client()` into
`codex-rs/tools/src/tool_discovery.rs` alongside the extracted
discovery/suggestion spec builders.
- Added `codex-app-server-protocol` as a `codex-tools` dependency so the
shared discoverable-tool model can own the connector-side `AppInfo`
variant directly.
- Updated `core/src/tools/handlers/tool_suggest.rs`,
`core/src/tools/spec.rs`, `core/src/tools/router.rs`,
`core/src/connectors.rs`, and `core/src/codex.rs` to consume the shared
`codex-tools` model instead of the old core-local declarations.
- Changed `core/src/plugins/discoverable.rs` to return
`DiscoverablePluginInfo` directly, moved the pure client-filter coverage
into `tool_discovery_tests.rs`, and deleted the old
`core/src/tools/discoverable.rs` module.
- Updated `codex-rs/tools/README.md` so the crate boundary documents
that `codex-tools` now owns the discoverable-tool models in addition to
the discovery/suggestion spec builders.
## Test plan
- `cargo test -p codex-tools`
- `CARGO_TARGET_DIR=/tmp/codex-core-discoverable-model cargo test -p
codex-core --lib tools::handlers::tool_suggest::`
- `CARGO_TARGET_DIR=/tmp/codex-core-discoverable-model cargo test -p
codex-core --lib tools::spec::`
- `CARGO_TARGET_DIR=/tmp/codex-core-discoverable-model cargo test -p
codex-core --lib plugins::discoverable::`
- `just bazel-lock-check`
- `just argument-comment-lint`
## References
- #16193
- #16154
- #15923
- #15928
- #15944
- #15953
- #16031
- #16047
- #16129
- #16132
- #16138
- #16141
## Why
The longer-term `codex-tools` migration is to move pure tool-definition
and tool-spec plumbing out of `codex-core` while leaving session- and
runtime-coupled orchestration behind.
The remaining code-mode adapter layer in
`core/src/tools/code_mode_description.rs` was a good next extraction
seam because it only transformed `ToolSpec` values for code mode and
already delegated the low-level description rendering to
`codex-code-mode`.
## What Changed
- added `codex-rs/tools/src/code_mode.rs` with
`augment_tool_spec_for_code_mode()` and
`tool_spec_to_code_mode_tool_definition()`
- added focused unit coverage in `codex-rs/tools/src/code_mode_tests.rs`
- rewired `core/src/tools/spec.rs` and `core/src/tools/code_mode/mod.rs`
to use the extracted adapters from `codex-tools`
- removed the old `core/src/tools/code_mode_description.rs` shim and its
test file from `codex-core`
- added the `codex-code-mode` dependency to `codex-tools`, updated
`Cargo.lock`, and refreshed the `codex-tools` README to reflect the
expanded boundary
## Test Plan
- `cargo test -p codex-tools`
- `CARGO_TARGET_DIR=/tmp/codex-core-code-mode-adapters cargo test -p
codex-core --lib tools::spec::`
- `CARGO_TARGET_DIR=/tmp/codex-core-code-mode-adapters cargo test -p
codex-core --lib tools::code_mode::`
- `just bazel-lock-update`
- `just bazel-lock-check`
- `just argument-comment-lint`
## References
- #15923
- #15928
- #15944
- #15953
- #16031
- #16047
- #16129
## Why
`codex-tools` already owned the shared JSON schema parser and the MCP
tool schema adapter, but `core/src/tools/spec.rs` still parsed dynamic
tools directly.
That left the tool-schema boundary split in two different ways:
- MCP tools flowed through `codex-tools`, while dynamic tools were still
parsed in `codex-core`
- the extracted dynamic-tool path initially introduced a
dynamic-specific parsed shape even though `codex-tools` already had very
similar MCP adapter output
This change finishes that extraction boundary in one step. `codex-core`
still owns `ResponsesApiTool` assembly, but both MCP tools and dynamic
tools now enter that layer through `codex-tools` using the same parsed
tool-definition shape.
## What changed
- added `tools/src/dynamic_tool.rs` and sibling
`tools/src/dynamic_tool_tests.rs`
- introduced `parse_dynamic_tool()` in `codex-tools` and switched
`core/src/tools/spec.rs` to use it for dynamic tools
- added `tools/src/parsed_tool_definition.rs` so both MCP and dynamic
adapters return the same `ParsedToolDefinition`
- updated `core/src/tools/spec.rs` to build `ResponsesApiTool` through a
shared local adapter helper instead of separate MCP and dynamic assembly
paths
- expanded `core/src/tools/spec_tests.rs` so the dynamic-tool adapter
test asserts the full converted `ResponsesApiTool`, including
`defer_loading`
- updated `codex-rs/tools/README.md` to reflect the shared parsed
tool-definition boundary
## Test plan
- `cargo test -p codex-tools`
- `cargo test -p codex-core --lib tools::spec::`
---
[//]: # (BEGIN SAPLING FOOTER)
Stack created with [Sapling](https://sapling-scm.com). Best reviewed
with [ReviewStack](https://reviewstack.dev/openai/codex/pull/15944).
* #15953
* __->__ #15944
## Why
`codex-tools` already owns the shared tool input schema model and parser
from the first extraction step, but `core/src/tools/spec.rs` still owned
the MCP-specific adapter that normalizes `rmcp::model::Tool` schemas and
wraps `structuredContent` into the call result output schema.
Keeping that adapter in `codex-core` means the reusable MCP schema path
is still split across crates, and the unit tests for that logic stay
anchored in `codex-core` even though the runtime orchestration does not
need to move yet.
This change takes the next small step by moving the reusable MCP schema
adapter into `codex-tools` while leaving `ResponsesApiTool` assembly in
`codex-core`.
## What changed
- added `tools/src/mcp_tool.rs` and sibling
`tools/src/mcp_tool_tests.rs`
- introduced `ParsedMcpTool`, `parse_mcp_tool()`, and
`mcp_call_tool_result_output_schema()` in `codex-tools`
- updated `core/src/tools/spec.rs` to consume parsed MCP tool parts from
`codex-tools`
- removed the now-redundant MCP schema unit tests from
`core/src/tools/spec_tests.rs`
- expanded `codex-rs/tools/README.md` to describe this second migration
step
## Test plan
- `cargo test -p codex-tools`
- `cargo test -p codex-core --lib tools::spec::`
## Why
`parse_tool_input_schema` and the supporting `JsonSchema` model were
living in `core/src/tools/spec.rs`, but they already serve callers
outside `codex-core`.
Keeping that shared schema parsing logic inside `codex-core` makes the
crate boundary harder to reason about and works against the guidance in
`AGENTS.md` to avoid growing `codex-core` when reusable code can live
elsewhere.
This change takes the first extraction step by moving the schema parsing
primitive into its own crate while keeping the rest of the tool-spec
assembly in `codex-core`.
## What changed
- added a new `codex-tools` crate under `codex-rs/tools`
- moved the shared tool input schema model and sanitizer/parser into
`tools/src/json_schema.rs`
- kept `tools/src/lib.rs` exports-only, with the module-level unit tests
split into `json_schema_tests.rs`
- updated `codex-core` to use `codex-tools::JsonSchema` and re-export
`parse_tool_input_schema`
- updated `codex-app-server` dynamic tool validation to depend on
`codex-tools` directly instead of reaching through `codex-core`
- wired the new crate into the Cargo workspace and Bazel build graph
Michael Bolin ·