The practical Codex operating model · verified 6 Sep 2026 · static snapshot
The project supplies the territory. A task owns one result. Its worktree isolates the files. GitHub reconciles completed work. Steve—not a conversation—controls approval and promotion.
Context travels through files, not through Steve’s memory.
Each layer has one job. When the layers are mixed, discussions become rules and local outputs disappear.
11 / The transit map · branches as lines
Master is the trunk line. Each worktree is its own line that leaves the depot, runs through its stations, and rejoins the trunk only at the pull-request interchange. The parked lane ends at a buffer stop. The dashed return is the rule that the next task boards from current master.
Map pans sideways on small screens; the stations below are the controls.
Use the local ZTS Workspace project for sustained work. Start a separate, clearly named task for each output. Use Worktree mode whenever that task writes repository files. Batch the local work into one reviewable pull request, approve the result, then merge. Start the next task from current master.
For TNP, the useful local project is the checked-out zts-workspace repository. It lets every new task discover the same GitHub-backed instructions and current-state files.
A task keeps its own conversation. It does not automatically inherit every other task’s transcript. Its durable context comes from the project files it reads.
A worktree is a second checkout of the same Git repository. Use one for each task that will change tracked files, especially when several tasks may run at once.
When the task has a reviewable result, its changes move to a branch and PR. Conflicts are resolved here before anything becomes current.
After Steve approves and the PR merges, new tasks start from the latest master. Old candidate files and chat conclusions do not outrank it. A merged implementation may update current state; it does not make a brainstorm a decision. DECIDED.md changes only after explicit, scoped Steve approval.
Uses the verified V5.6 line; stops before send. Reconciliation: PR A · issue run evidence · review → approval → merge.
Tests the public-to-paid path without changing billing identity. Reconciliation: PR B · checkout evidence · review → approval → merge.
Parked because the Grok/X account is unresolved. No PR; no work performed. The hold remains visible without a workaround.
What each layer means
The official operating recommendation is one distinct outcome per task—not one task per project.
For TNP, the useful local project is the checked-out zts-workspace repository. It lets every new task discover the same GitHub-backed instructions and current-state files. One project can hold TNP, Build, and other rooms because the repository already separates them.
A task keeps its own conversation. It does not automatically inherit every other task’s transcript. Its durable context comes from the project files it reads. Good: “TNP — assemble sample issue.” Bad: “Work on The Next Patient.”
A worktree is a second checkout of the same Git repository. Use one for each task that will change tracked files, especially when several tasks may run at once. It prevents file collisions; it does not create memory or authority.
When the task has a reviewable result, its changes move to a branch and PR. Conflicts are resolved here before anything becomes current. This replaces “close every chat before opening another” with controlled parallelism.
After Steve approves and the PR merges, new tasks start from the latest master. Old candidate files and chat conclusions do not outrank it. Latest means verified master plus live vendor state—not the newest filename.
A merged implementation may update current state. It does not make a brainstorm a decision. DECIDED.md changes only after explicit, scoped Steve approval. Project instructions route the work; they do not invent policy.
A normal TNP day
Local is the foreground for inspection and reconciliation. Worktrees are independent production lanes.
Live setup audit
Checked 6 Sep 2026 in the source page. Recheck before relying on these as future live facts.