Codex remote access from your phone
Continue the Codex conversation that is already running on your computer, inspect what it changed and try the result in the app preview. The host does the work.
Reviewed against Lyre's public guides. Check current device support and plan limits before you rely on them.
The short answer
Codex keeps running on the computer; the phone controls the session. Lyre connects an authorized client to the host that owns the workspace. Codex, project commands and the app process stay there, under that machine's account and permissions.
Prepare the host and the phone
- Lyre installed on the computer with the project. Check downloads and device support first.
- Codex connected and ready. Confirm sign-in, account and model in Settings, AI & agents, Connections, following the provider setup guide.
- A paired client with the right scope. Pairing does not grant Developer access. Approve the project for a Developer connection, or share a single app for App-only access. See roles.
- Keep the host awake and online, with Lyre running. Configure the project start command if you want a live preview.
Provider costs are separate. Your OpenAI account and usage are billed by OpenAI. Lyre is not included in that subscription, and off-network previews use the host account's relay allowance.
Select the host and project
Connect through the saved connection, then pick the project in Library. Confirm the computer name before you send anything.Open the Codex conversation
Continue the existing conversation, or create one with Codex selected. Read the latest messages and task status first: a dropped connection does not mean the previous turn stopped.Review the current diff before adding work
Open Changes and ask Codex to explain anything unclear. Keep unrelated edits intact, and answer provider approvals only for the scope you intend.Send one bounded request
Name the file or screen, the expected result and what must not change. Ask for the smallest existing check and for the actual command output.Verify in the app, not in the summary
Read the diff, open the preview and repeat the original scenario. Then check the test output yourself.
Example: change one line of copy
A small copy edit gives you a concrete result to inspect from a phone. This is a demonstration prompt for a sample restaurant site; use your own project's headline.
| Step | What to send |
|---|---|
| Inspect | Find the home page hero headline and show me its current text and file. Do not change files. Identify the existing checks for this page. |
| Change | Change only the hero headline to: A little coastal comfort. Preserve the layout, menu behavior and unrelated edits. Run the smallest relevant existing checks, and tell me what changed, what ran and anything you could not verify. |
The reply should name the file, the exact edit and the commands it ran. If it cannot verify something, that limit should be visible rather than smoothed over.
Check the copy edit and the connection
| Check | Where | Pass condition |
|---|---|---|
| Exact diff | Changes | Only the intended headline changed. Read the diff and Git guide before staging or committing. |
| Live website | Open app | The headline renders, wraps correctly and navigation still works. See open a preview. |
| Test output | Conversation and terminal | The named checks produced real output. A green completion message alone is not a passing test. |
| Off-network path | Mobile data | Reconnect and confirm the same host, conversation and preview. See remote connection checks. |
Recover without duplicating work
- Host unreachable. Check power, sleep, network and the Lyre process. The phone cannot run the task for you.
- Codex unavailable. Check installation, sign-in, quota and model readiness on the host. Reconnecting does not restore provider usage.
- Approval pending. Read the command, files and scope. Developer operations are limited to approved projects, but allowed commands still run under the host account.
- Preview or connection lost. Inspect the start command and terminal output, then read the existing conversation before sending the task again. Do not start a second copy of the work.
Use Stop in the conversation and inspect the resulting state. Closing the pane or disconnecting the phone does not prove the agent or the app stopped.
To remove the phone's authority, the host owner revokes the device in Pair device and checks that the project no longer opens. Uninstalling the client is not a revocation. See remove a device.
Codex remote access questions
Does Codex run on the phone?
No. Codex and project commands run on the host computer. The phone sends requests and views the conversation, changes and preview.
Can I review a diff before approving more work?
Yes. Open Changes for the selected workspace. Ask Codex to explain the current diff if its purpose is unclear, then decide what to send next.
Why does the phone say the host is offline?
The computer is asleep, disconnected or no longer running Lyre. Reconnect after restoring the host; a new phone connection cannot replace it.
Is the phone preview the same as a deployed site?
No. The preview runs from your project on the host. Publishing and deployment are separate workflows with their own checks.
Sources for Lyre claims
- Public guide: use Codex from your phone
- Public guide: provider setup
- Public guide: files and changes
- Public guide: pairing and revocation
- Lyre documentation
Competitor descriptions link to each vendor's public documentation. This page is published by Lyre and is not a hands-on benchmark.