What is claude-codex?

Claude Codex Adapter is a tool that lets you use the Codex desktop app's interface to actually run Claude Code, Anthropic's coding agent, instead of the real Codex backend. It works by intercepting the connection Codex App makes to a remote host over SSH: normally the app talks to a program called codex on that host, but this adapter installs a small stand in script, called a shim, that takes codex's place and quietly routes those calls into Claude Code instead. The setup is meant for a remote server that you SSH into. Codex App still does its usual checks, such as asking for a version number and starting what it calls an app server, but instead of reaching the real Codex program, it reaches this adapter. The adapter itself is written in TypeScript and runs on Node.js version 24 or newer, because it depends on a newer, more stable version of Node's built in SQLite support. It uses the official Claude Agent SDK to talk to Claude directly inside the same process, rather than needing a separate helper program written in another language, which an earlier version of the project used and has since been removed. Setting it up involves installing Node.js and the Claude Code command line tool on the remote machine, building the adapter from source, copying its shim script into a folder on your system path, and setting a handful of environment variables so the shim knows where to find the adapter and which Claude model to use by default. Once configured, opening a session in Codex App and sending a prompt actually runs Claude Code behind the scenes: its responses stream into the Codex conversation window, and actions like running shell commands or editing files show up as the same approval prompts and diffs you would normally see in Codex App. The project also supports several configuration options, including choosing which Claude models are available, mapping custom model names to Claude's real ones, connecting additional tool integrations, and pre-approving certain tools so they do not require manual approval each time. It is aimed at developers already comfortable with SSH, command line tools, and running both Codex App and Claude Code, who want to combine the two rather than choose between them.