Hand Codex work to your Dot

Use your dot to keep a small Codex job moving while you step away. This walkthrough continues an existing local Codex task, then shows you how to inspect the changes and stop the right work if something goes wrong.

Before you start

• An account with dots enabled. Rollout is gradual: eligible personal Pro users must be over 18 and outside the EEA, United Kingdom, and Switzerland; Business Premium and Enterprise access have separate rollout and workspace requirements.
• The ChatGPT desktop app on the computer holding your project, with an existing local Codex chat you can identify by its title and project folder.
• A saved copy or Git checkpoint of the project, a reproducible problem, and one small change to request. Keep that computer online with the ChatGPT app open.

Want to do it yourself?

Difficulty

6 out of 10

Estimated completion time

30–60 minutes

Skills you’ll need: Follow the guide’s handoff controls, define a small task, and verify the receiving agent has the right context and result.

I’ll do it myselfI’d rather get help

How this helps your brand

A bounded handoff can keep a website repair moving while you step away. Naming the existing task and checking its result helps preserve continuity without treating delegated work as automatically ready to release.

1. 1

   Step 1: Choose one existing Codex task

   Open the local Codex chat you want to continue. Write down its title, project folder, what already works, and the next result you want. For example: in the café website task, fix the mobile menu so tapping Contact closes the menu and reaches the contact section.

   Give the job a clear boundary. Ask for that repair and a test report; leave unrelated redesigns for later. Your dot needs a specific task to find, rather than a request to finish everything on your computer.

2. 2

   Step 2: Connect the computer to your dot

   In the ChatGPT app on that computer, open your dot’s profile. Under Computers, find Your computer and select Allow access. Review the confirmation and select Allow access again.

   This permission is separate from connecting a computer to Codex or enabling Work Sync. Your dot can connect to one personal computer at a time. Check that it is available before assigning local work.

   Tip: Cloud work can continue while your computer is off. Work that needs this local project still needs the connected computer online with the app open.

3. 3

   Step 3: Describe the handoff and ask it to confirm the task

   Message your dot using the prompt below. Include the Codex chat title, folder, expected behavior, and the check that will prove the job worked. Ask it to continue the existing task and confirm which task and computer it selected.

   A delegated task has its own conversation and receives the context your dot supplies. Include the important error details again instead of assuming every earlier conversation is available.

   Illustrated exampleMatch the handoff to one local task

   01Send the task’s identity

   Codex chat

   Café website

   Project folder

   /Users/sam/Projects/cafe

   Small job

   Close the mobile menu when Contact is tapped.

   Prove it works

   Contact opens; the menu closes. Reopen it and test another link.

   Keep the change limited to this repair.

   02Check the confirmation

   Example reply from your dot

   “I’ll continue Café website in /Users/sam/Projects/cafe on Sam’s MacBook.”

   Chat + folder + computer all match.

4. 4

   Step 4: Inspect the task while it runs

   In the desktop app, open your dot’s profile, select Activity, and open the task. Check that it is working on the intended project. You can inspect progress, files, results, and requests for input there.

   If it needs an app connection, sign-in, or approval, open that request and respond. Give corrections directly in the task or tell your dot what changed. Ask for a summary of the final changes and any checks it could not run.

5. 5

   Step 5: Recover from an offline computer or wrong task

   If the computer shows Offline, bring that computer online and reopen ChatGPT, then ask your dot to check the connection and continue the named task. Changing the selected computer does not move an existing task or its project files.

   If the wrong task starts, open it in Activity and stop that delegated task. Then give your dot the correct title and folder. Pause stops your dot’s main task; it does not stop every delegated task or cancel schedules. Review any changes already made before restarting.

   Illustrated exampleTake the recovery route that fits the problem

   Computer is Offline

   1. 1Bring that computer online and reopen ChatGPT.
   2. 2Ask your dot to check the connection and continue Café website.

   Selecting another computer does not move the project.

   The wrong task starts

   Dot profileActivityWrong task

   1. 1Open and stop that delegated task. Review its changes.
   2. 2Give your dot the correct chat title and full folder path.

   Pausing your dot’s main task does not stop every delegated task or cancel schedules.

6. 6

   Step 6: Test the result before accepting it

   Open the project and repeat the original problem yourself. For the menu example, use a narrow screen, open the menu, tap Contact, and confirm the menu closes and the contact section appears. Then test another menu item and reopening the menu.

   Read the changed files or Git diff and compare them with the requested scope. A completed task is a result to inspect, not proof that the repair works. Save a working checkpoint after the checks pass.

Continue my existing local Codex task through my dot.

Codex chat title: [exact title]
Project folder: [full folder path]
Current state: [what is already done and what still fails]
Next small job: [one concrete change]
Expected behavior: [what should happen]
Reproduction steps: [click-by-click steps]
Completion checks: [the original case and one nearby case]

Confirm which existing task and computer you will use. Continue that task with this context. Keep the change limited to this job. Do not deploy, merge, push, or send messages to other people. Bring back the changed files, test results, anything you could not check, and decisions that need me. Tell me if the computer or task is unavailable.