Exact error
Match the message before using the fix
App-server queued follow-up no longer existsError creating chat: App-server queued follow-up no longer existsQuick answer
Start here
Copy any unsent text before doing anything else. Do not keep editing or resubmitting the missing queue item. Switch to another conversation to clear the visible error, then wait for the active turn to finish and send the instruction as a new message. This clears the reported UI state, but it does not prove the original queued message was delivered. No permanent fix is confirmed in the open upstream reports.
Diagnosis
Why it happens
- The confirmed reproduction edits and resubmits a follow-up while it is still queued behind an active turn.
- Other reports reproduce the same family of failure after cancelling a queued message or steering a long-running task.
- The reports are consistent with the client referring to a queue item that no longer exists, but they do not establish the backend root cause.
Safest first
Fixes, in order
Preserve the instruction and stop retrying the missing item
Applies when: The error appears immediately after Edit, Cancel, or Resend on a queued message
Repeatedly submitting the same missing queue object can keep the conversation in the failing branch. Preserve the text first because upstream reports do not confirm whether the original message remains queued or was lost.
- Copy the queued instruction into a local text editor.
- Do not click Edit, Cancel, or Resend on that queue item again.
- Record the Codex app version and the exact action that triggered the error.
Expected: You have a safe copy of the instruction and no longer depend on the missing queued item.
Clear the visible error without changing local state
Applies when: Codex Desktop still shows the error banner or dialog
The primary report found that navigating to another conversation clears the visible error. This is a UI recovery step, not proof that the queued message was delivered.
- Switch to a different conversation in the Codex sidebar.
- Return to the affected conversation and check whether the active turn is still running.
- Wait for that turn to finish before sending the preserved instruction as a new message.
Expected: The error is no longer blocking the UI and the instruction can be sent as a fresh message.
Update and report a minimal reproduction if it returns
Applies when: The error repeats on the current Codex Desktop build
The upstream issues remain open and do not document a durable local repair.
- Update Codex Desktop through its official channel and restart it once.
- Reproduce with a harmless active task and a short queued follow-up.
- Report the app version, operating system, action sequence, and whether the message was delivered; omit conversation secrets.
Expected: A current build resolves the queue state or the upstream report receives a small, versioned reproduction.
Verification
Prove the fix worked
- Complete one active turn, then send the preserved instruction as a new message.
- Confirm the new message appears exactly once and is processed.
- Queue a harmless follow-up without editing it and verify normal delivery before relying on the workflow again.
Escalation
If it still fails
- Do not delete Codex databases, conversation state, or the whole `.codex` directory for this UI error.
- Use a fresh conversation for urgent work and keep the affected conversation as evidence.
- Include whether the failure followed Edit, Cancel, Resend, or Steer; these are related but not identical paths.
Scope
Environment and version notes
- The primary Windows report used package 26.903.9818.0 with codex-cli 0.153.4.
- A separate September 2026 report covered the related cancel/edit workflow; neither report confirmed a permanent repair.
- Sources rechecked September 23, 2026.
Evidence
Sources
Source labels describe the evidence available on the checked date. A closed issue is not automatically a shipped fix.
Open issue with the exact Desktop edit-and-resubmit reproduction and the conversation-switch UI recovery.
Related Windows report after cancelling and editing a queued follow-up.
Related macOS report involving cancellation and resubmission during steer.