## Summary
This PR removes the synthetic `HashMap<String, ToolInfo>` keys from MCP
tool discovery. `McpConnectionManager::list_all_tools()` now returns
normalized `Vec<ToolInfo>`, and downstream code derives identity from
`ToolInfo::canonical_tool_name()`.
The motivation is to keep model-visible tool identity on
`ToolName`/`ToolInfo` instead of parallel string map keys, so future
namespace changes do not have to preserve otherwise-unused lookup keys.
## Changes
- Rename the MCP normalization path from `qualify_tools` to
`normalize_tools_for_model` and return tool values directly.
- Flow MCP tool lists through connectors, plugin injection, router/spec
building, code mode, and tool search as vectors/slices.
- Keep direct/deferred subtraction local to `mcp_tool_exposure`, using
`ToolName` values.
- Update tests to compare `ToolName` instances where MCP identity
matters.
## Validation
- `cargo test -p codex-mcp test_normalize_tools`
- `cargo test -p codex-core mcp_tool_exposure`
- `cargo test -p codex-core
direct_mcp_tools_register_namespaced_handlers`
- `cargo test -p codex-core
search_tool_registers_namespaced_mcp_tool_aliases`
- `just fix -p codex-mcp`
- `just fix -p codex-core`
## DISCLAIMER
This is experimental and no production service must rely on this
## Why
Built-in MCPs are product-owned runtime capabilities, but they were
previously flattened into the same config-backed stdio path as
user-configured servers. That made them depend on a hidden `codex
builtin-mcp` re-exec path, exposed them through config-oriented CLI
flows, and erased distinctions the runtime needs to preserve—most
notably whether an MCP call should count as external context for
memory-mode pollution.
## What changed
- Model product-owned built-ins separately from config-backed MCP
servers via `BuiltinMcpServer` and `EffectiveMcpServer`.
- Launch built-ins in process through a reusable async transport instead
of the hidden `builtin-mcp` stdio subcommand.
- Keep config-oriented CLI operations such as `codex mcp
list/get/login/logout` scoped to configured servers, while merging
built-ins only into the effective runtime server set.
- Retain server metadata after launch so parallel-tool support and
context classification come from the live server set; built-in
`memories` is now classified as local Codex state rather than external
context.
## Test plan
- `cargo test -p codex-mcp`
- `cargo test -p codex-core --test suite
builtin_memories_mcp_call_does_not_mark_thread_memory_mode_polluted_when_configured`
---------
Co-authored-by: Codex <noreply@openai.com>
# Motivation
Browser Use origin-access prompts are MCP elicitations, not direct
tool-call approval prompts, so they were bypassing the Guardian approval
path. We need a generic opt-in that lets eligible MCP elicitations use
Guardian when the current turn already routes approvals there.
# Description
Add a generic elicitation reviewer hook in codex-mcp and wire codex-core
to pass a Guardian reviewer callback when creating the MCP connection
manager. The reviewer validates explicit mcp_tool_call opt-in metadata,
builds a Guardian MCP tool-call review request from
server/tool/connector metadata and tool params, and maps Guardian
approval, denial, timeout, and cancellation decisions back to MCP
elicitation responses.
The new option to trigger this in the `_meta` object is:
```
"codex_request_type": "approval_request",
```
# Testing
- RUST_MIN_STACK=8388608 NEXTEST_STATUS_LEVEL=leak cargo nextest run
--no-fail-fast --cargo-profile ci-test --test-threads 2
- cargo clippy --tests -- -D warnings
- cargo fmt -- --config imports_granularity=Item --check
- cargo shear
- pnpm run format
- python3 .github/scripts/verify_cargo_workspace_manifests.py
- python3 .github/scripts/verify_tui_core_boundary.py
- python3 .github/scripts/verify_bazel_clippy_lints.py
- git diff --check
## Why
MCP servers can provide `instructions` that explain what their tools are
for. Directly exposed MCP namespaces already use those instructions when
a connector description is not available, but deferred `tool_search`
results did not preserve that fallback. The direct path falls back from
connector metadata to server instructions, while the deferred path only
carried `connector_description` and otherwise fell back to generic
namespace text.
That meant a plain MCP server could provide useful model-facing guidance
and still appear as `Tools in the X namespace.` whenever it was
discovered lazily through `tool_search`.
## What changed
- Store one model-facing `namespace_description` on `ToolInfo`, using
connector descriptions for connector-backed tools and server
instructions for plain MCP servers.
- Thread that namespace description through the `tool_search` source
list, search indexing, and returned namespace metadata.
- Add an end-to-end regression test for deferred non-app MCP search
results exposing server instructions as the namespace description.
## Verification
- `cargo test -p codex-tools
search_tool_description_lists_each_mcp_source_once --lib`
- `cargo test -p codex-core --test all
tool_search_uses_non_app_mcp_server_instructions_as_namespace_description`
# Why
Codex currently negotiates MCP `2025-06-18`, where the client
elicitation capability is represented as an empty object. We were still
serializing `capabilities.elicitation.form`, which belongs to the later
capability shape and can cause strict `2025-06-18` servers to reject
`initialize` with an unrecognized-field error.
This keeps the handshake aligned with the protocol version Codex
actually negotiates and fixes the compatibility regression tracked in
#17492.
# What
- Serialize the client elicitation capability as `elicitation: {}` for
`2025-06-18`.
- Keep elicitation advertised for both Codex Apps and custom MCP
servers.
- Tighten regression coverage so the unit test asserts both the Rust
value and the serialized wire shape.
- Add an app-server integration test that round-trips a form elicitation
from a custom MCP server; the existing connector round-trip continues to
cover the connector path.
# Verification
- `cargo test -p codex-mcp`
- `cargo test -p codex-app-server mcp_server_elicitation_round_trip`
- `cargo test -p codex-app-server
mcp_server_tool_call_round_trips_elicitation`
# Next steps
- Decide whether `tool_call_mcp_elicitation=false` should also suppress
capability advertisement during `initialize`.
- Revisit `form` / `url` capability advertisement when Codex is ready to
negotiate MCP `2025-11-25`, which defines that newer shape.
## Why
Several bug reports describe thread shutdown (including subagent
threads) leaving stdio MCP server processes behind. These reports all
point at the same lifecycle gap: Codex launches stdio MCP servers, but
the session-level shutdown path does not explicitly close MCP clients or
terminate the server process tree.
Fixes#12491Fixes#12976Fixes#18881Fixes#19469
## History
This is best understood as a regression/coverage gap in MCP session
lifecycle management, not as stdio MCP cleanup being absent all along.
#10710 added process-group cleanup for stdio MCP servers, but that
cleanup only runs when the `RmcpClient`/transport is dropped. The older
reports (#12491 and #12976) came after that cleanup existed, which
suggests the remaining problem was that some higher-level shutdown paths
kept the MCP manager alive or replaced it without explicitly draining
clients. The newer reports (#18881 and #19469) exposed the same family
around manager replacement and shutdown.
## What changed
- Added an explicit stdio MCP process handle in `codex-rmcp-client` so
local MCP servers terminate their process group and executor-backed MCP
servers call the executor process terminator.
- Added `RmcpClient::shutdown()` and manager-level MCP shutdown draining
so session shutdown, channel-close fallback, MCP refresh, and connector
probing stop owned MCP clients.
- Added regression coverage that starts a stdio MCP server, begins an
in-flight blocking tool call, shuts down the client, and asserts the
server process exits.
## Verification
- `cargo test -p codex-rmcp-client`
- `cargo test -p codex-mcp`
- `just fix -p codex-rmcp-client`
- `just fix -p codex-mcp`
- `just fix -p codex-core`
- Manual before/after validation with a temporary repro script:
- Pre-fix binary from `HEAD^` (`fed0a8f4fa`): reproduced the leak with
surviving MCP server and child PIDs, `survivors=[77583, 77592]`,
`leaked=true`.
- Post-fix binary from this branch (`67e318148b`): verified both MCP
processes were gone after interrupting `codex exec`, `survivors=[]`,
`leaked=false`.