Codex not loading in VS Code: find what the spinner is hiding

Is the panel missing, or still loading?

If you cannot find the Codex panel at all, check that the official extension is installed and enabled in the VS Code window you are using. Follow the current IDE setup instructions rather than installing a similarly named extension.

If the panel opens but keeps spinning, save unsent text and note whether you are in a local window, WSL, a container or Remote-SSH. That environment determines which extension and logs matter.

What you see in the log	Next check	What it does not prove
Repeated authentication failures	Follow the login branch	A spinner alone does not mean credentials expired.
Initialization repeats although authentication succeeds	Compare the extension build and UI behavior	A successful network request does not mean the panel is healthy.
The failure occurs only in Remote-SSH	Compare the remote extension environment	A local CLI result does not test the remote extension.
The panel loads but one conversation hangs	Open the session guide	This is no longer simply a panel-loading failure.

Fixes, by branch

If the log reports expired or invalid authentication

A Linux report found repeated token-refresh errors behind an otherwise silent spinner. This gives you a useful discriminator: look for the actual authentication error before changing login state.

Use the sign-in or account recovery flow provided by your installed extension when available. If authorization is already waiting in a browser, complete that flow before starting another. If the extension exposes no usable recovery action, use the login troubleshooting guide to identify the failed stage.

Do not delete credential files because a forum post associates every spinner with authentication. A new login is only a meaningful test when the evidence points to authentication, and successful login still needs to be followed by a working panel and response.

If authentication succeeds but the panel restarts

Record the installed extension version and whether the problem began immediately after an update. Save your editor work, then close and reopen the affected VS Code window once. If the same initialization sequence returns, preserve a short log excerpt instead of repeatedly reloading.

One Linux report describes an initialization loop despite successful authentication. The author’s version comparison helps identify a possible regression, but does not establish a safe downgrade target for every system. Use the current official extension release information when assessing an update; do not install an arbitrary old package from a mirror.

If only one workspace fails, compare an empty local folder without changing the original workspace settings. A successful comparison narrows the scope; it does not identify which setting caused the difference.

If you use Remote-SSH

Record both sides: the local operating system and VS Code version, plus the remote operating system and installed extension version. Inspect the Codex log belonging to the remote extension host when that is where the extension runs.

A Remote-SSH report shows that the CLI can work while the IDE panel remains unusable. Treat these as separate checks. Do not copy local credentials or configuration into a remote home directory merely to make them look the same.

If you already use the remote CLI, note whether it works in the same remote project. Keep that comparison in a bug report. If you do not use it, collecting the extension error is more useful than installing another tool just for comparison.

How to tell it worked

The panel must finish loading, display the composer and accept a small prompt that receives a response. Seeing an icon or an installed-extension badge is not enough. Check the originally affected workspace, not only the empty comparison folder.

If it still fails

Provide the local/remote environment, extension version, first repeated error and failure timestamp. The reports reference Codex.log under the extension-host logs; its absolute location varies by editor, operating system and remote setup. Use your editor’s log views rather than copying another user’s path.

Remove private prompts, tokens and filesystem details that are not needed. No single repair or universal fixed version is established by the reports reviewed here.