Codex code_sign_clone Taking Disk Space On Mac

Codex Desktop can leave large code_sign_clone.* directories under /private/var/folders. Treat them as temporary app clones, but prove they are stale before deleting anything broader like sessions, projects, or app support data.

Read-only confirmation

First measure the clone tree, the largest clone bundles, and whether Codex or helper processes still have files open there.

root=$(find /private/var/folders -path "*/X/com.openai.codex.code_sign_clone" -type d 2>/dev/null | head -1)
echo "clone root: ${root:-not found}"

if [ -n "$root" ]; then
  du -sh "$root" 2>/dev/null
  find "$root" -maxdepth 1 -type d -name "code_sign_clone.*" 2>/dev/null | wc -l
  find "$root" -maxdepth 3 -type d -name "Codex.app.bundle" -print0 2>/dev/null \
    | xargs -0 du -sh 2>/dev/null \
    | sort -h \
    | tail -20
  lsof +D "$root" 2>/dev/null | head -40
fi

Usually safe boundary

The code_sign_clone.* folders are temporary app clone directories, not your project code or Codex conversation history. The safer boundary is narrow:

• Quit Codex first, then check whether lsof still shows open handles inside the clone root.
• If no process is using the clone root, move only code_sign_clone.* directories to Trash.
• If a reboot clears the folder, treat the root cause as stale temporary clone retention and report the measured count/size upstream.

Do not delete first

• ~/.codex, active workspaces, session files, credentials, or project repositories.
• The whole ~/Library/Application Support or Codex app support folder.
• Crash dumps, logs, or session data attached publicly without reviewing for prompts, paths, tokens, or project names.

osascript -e 'quit app "Codex"' 2>/dev/null || true
root=$(find /private/var/folders -path "*/X/com.openai.codex.code_sign_clone" -type d 2>/dev/null | head -1)

if [ -n "$root" ] && ! lsof +D "$root" 2>/dev/null | grep -q .; then
  mkdir -p "$HOME/.Trash/SafeDisk-Codex-code-sign-clone"
  find "$root" -maxdepth 1 -type d -name "code_sign_clone.*" -exec mv {} "$HOME/.Trash/SafeDisk-Codex-code-sign-clone/" \;
  du -sh "$HOME/.Trash/SafeDisk-Codex-code-sign-clone" 2>/dev/null
else
  echo "Codex clone root missing or still in use; do not move it yet."
fi