| name | codex-review |
| description | Use this skill when users ask for code review, review pending changes, or inspect the latest commit with Codex-based review workflows. It prepares context, runs project linting, and reviews the result. |
| license | MIT |
| compatibility | Designed for Claude Code; requires git and codex CLI; may also need project-specific lint or format tools available in PATH. |
| metadata | {"author":"BenedictKing","version":"2.5.0","user-invocable":"true"} |
| allowed-tools | Bash Read Glob Write Edit |
Codex Code Review Skill
Trigger Conditions
Triggered when user input contains:
- "代码审核", "代码审查", "审查代码", "审核代码"
- "review", "code review", "review code", "codex 审核"
- "帮我审核", "检查代码", "审一下", "看看代码"
Core Concept: Intention vs Implementation
Running codex review --uncommitted alone only shows AI "what was done (Implementation)".
Recording intention first tells AI "what you wanted to do (Intention)".
"Code changes + intention description" as combined input is the most effective way to improve AI code review quality.
Skill Architecture
This skill operates in two phases:
- Preparation Phase (current context): Check working directory, update CHANGELOG
- Review Phase (isolated context): Invoke Task tool to execute Lint + codex review (using context: fork to reduce context waste)
Execution Steps
0. [First] Check Working Directory Status
git diff --name-only && git status --short
Decide review mode based on output:
- Has uncommitted changes → Continue with steps 1-4 (normal flow)
- Clean working directory → Assess
HEAD with the same difficulty criteria, then invoke codex review --commit HEAD with the matching model configuration
1. [Mandatory] Check if CHANGELOG is Updated
Before any review, must check if CHANGELOG.md contains description of current changes.
git diff --name-only | grep -E "(CHANGELOG|changelog)"
If CHANGELOG is not updated, you must automatically perform the following (don't ask user to do it manually):
- Analyze changes: Run
git diff --stat and git diff to get complete changes
- Auto-generate CHANGELOG entry: Generate compliant entry based on code changes
- Write to CHANGELOG.md: Use Edit tool to insert entry at top of
[Unreleased] section
- Continue review flow: Immediately proceed to next steps after CHANGELOG update
Auto-generated CHANGELOG entry format:
## [Unreleased]
### Added / Changed / Fixed
- Feature description: what problem was solved or what functionality was implemented
- Affected files: main modified files/modules
Example - Auto-generation Flow:
1. Detected CHANGELOG not updated
2. Run git diff --stat, found handlers/responses.go modified (+88 lines)
3. Run git diff to analyze details: added CompactHandler function
4. Auto-generate entry:
### Added
- Added `/v1/responses/compact` endpoint for conversation context compression
- Supports multi-channel failover and request body size limits
5. Use Edit tool to write to CHANGELOG.md
6. Continue with lint and codex review
2. [Critical] Stage All New Files
Before invoking codex review, must add all new files (untracked files) to git staging area, otherwise codex will report P1 error.
git status --short | grep "^??"
If there are new files, automatically execute:
git ls-files --others --exclude-standard -z | while IFS= read -r -d '' f; do git add -- "$f"; done
Explanation:
-z uses null character to separate filenames, correctly handles filenames with spaces/newlines
while IFS= read -r -d '' reads filenames one by one
git add -- "$f" uses -- separator, correctly handles filenames starting with -
- When no new files exist, loop body doesn't execute, safely skipped
- This won't stage modified files, only handles new files
- codex needs files to be tracked by git for proper review
3. Evaluate Task Difficulty and Invoke codex-runner
Count change scale:
git diff --stat HEAD | tail -1
For a clean working directory, assess the latest commit instead:
git show --stat --format= HEAD | tail -1
Why use git diff --stat HEAD:
git diff --stat only shows unstaged changes
git diff --cached --stat only shows staged changes
git diff --stat HEAD shows BOTH staged and unstaged changes combined
- The last line (
tail -1) is the summary line with total file count and line changes
Difficulty Assessment Criteria:
Model + Reasoning Effort Combinations:
选型由 scripts/select-review-model.mjs 根据实时 codexradar 智商/成本/耗时数据驱动决定:
- 先判定难度等级(Normal / Difficult / Critical)
- 调用脚本获取该难度下的推荐 model + effort(以及按实测耗时推导的 timeout)
脚本指标与 codexradar 站点「综合成本 × 智力」图表同量纲:
iq = p / n * 150(0-150 刻度)
price = mean(actual_cost_usd);minutes = mean(duration_sec) / 60
选型主约束是实测平均耗时(时间预算),每档一个目标函数,在全部 model × effort 组合上全局比较:
- 普通 = 平均耗时 ≤ 25min 且 IQ ≥ 80 的组合里最便宜者(日常审查省钱优先,但保证 IQ > 80)
- 困难 = 平均耗时 ≤ 28min 的组合里 IQ 最高者;IQ 并列容差(<1.5)内取更便宜者
- 关键 = 同困难,但时间预算放宽到 45min
两条规则合起来天然落在成本-智力 Pareto 前沿上:
- 时间预算排除慢档(避免选到平均耗时远超预期的"高 effort 慢档")。
- IQ 并列容差避免为噪声级 IQ 差付数倍成本,也让"贵而不智"的档(如
sol max 比 sol xhigh 贵还弱)不会中选。
超时不再写死:timeout = ceil(实测平均分钟 × 2),随选中档位走,由脚本输出的 timeoutMinutes / timeoutMs 给出。fallback 候选也各带自己的 timeout,重试时用它自己的时限。
脚本内置 1 小时 TTL 缓存(~/.cache/codex-review/radar.json),网络与缓存都不可用时回退到保守默认值:
| Difficulty | Built-in Default | 推导 Timeout |
|---|
| Normal | model=gpt-5.6-luna effort=xhigh | 47 min |
| Difficult | model=gpt-5.6-sol effort=xhigh | 53 min |
| Critical | model=gpt-5.6-sol effort=xhigh | 53 min |
时间预算与 IQ 下限可用 --max-minutes / --iq-floor 覆盖(分钟 / 0-150 刻度)。若时间预算内无组合达标,脚本退化为取全局最高 IQ,不会无解。
Model Fallback Policy:
- Determine availability from the actual
codex review result. Do not use codex debug models as a preflight gate.
- Treat only explicit model or reasoning-effort availability failures as a fallback trigger, such as a model not found, unavailable model access, or an unsupported reasoning effort.
- Do not fall back for review findings, lint failures, authentication or network failures, timeouts, or a model-metadata warning when the review has started.
- Dynamic fallback chain: use the
fallback array returned by select-review-model.mjs, ordered by descending IQ. Each entry is from a different model family than the primary, because a same-family effort swap cannot work around a model-unavailable failure. Retry each candidate in order after an explicit availability failure.
- Per-candidate timeout: each fallback entry includes its own
timeoutMs (derived from that candidate's measured minutes). Use it when retrying, not the primary's timeout.
- If the script itself fails or returns no fallback, use the built-in defaults as the final fallback.
- Run lint only once. On an availability failure, retry only
codex review with the next candidate. Stop after exhausting the fallback chain and report the error.
Critical Tasks (meets any condition, use data-driven selection):
- Modified files ≥ 30
- Total code changes (insertions + deletions) ≥ 2000 lines
- Involves core architecture/algorithm changes (user explicitly mentioned)
- Config: Run
node <skill-dir>/scripts/select-review-model.mjs --difficulty critical; use the returned primary model/effort and the returned timeoutMs as the Task timeout
- If the script is unavailable, fallback to built-in default:
model=gpt-5.6-sol effort=xhigh, timeout 53 minutes
Difficult Tasks (meets any condition):
- Modified files ≥ 10
- Total code changes (insertions + deletions) ≥ 500 lines
- Single metric: insertions ≥ 300 lines OR deletions ≥ 300 lines
- Cross-module refactoring
- Config: Run
node <skill-dir>/scripts/select-review-model.mjs --difficulty difficult; use the returned primary model/effort and timeoutMs
- If the script is unavailable, fallback to built-in default:
model=gpt-5.6-sol effort=xhigh, timeout 53 minutes
Normal Tasks (other cases):
- Config: Run
node <skill-dir>/scripts/select-review-model.mjs --difficulty normal; use the returned primary model/effort and timeoutMs
- If the script is unavailable, fallback to built-in default:
model=gpt-5.6-luna effort=xhigh, timeout 47 minutes
Evaluation Method:
You MUST parse the git diff --stat HEAD output correctly to determine difficulty:
git diff --stat HEAD | tail -1
Critical: Why the summary line matters:
- Each file shows individual stats:
file.go | 171 ++++++++++++++++++++-
- Only the LAST line has the total:
6 files changed, 1341 insertions(+), 18 deletions(-)
- You must extract the last line with
tail -1 to get accurate totals
Parsing Rules:
- Extract file count from "X file(s) changed" (handle both "1 file" and "N files")
- Extract insertions from "Y insertion(s)(+)" if present (handle both "1 insertion" and "N insertions"), otherwise 0
- Extract deletions from "Z deletion(s)(-)" if present (handle both "1 deletion" and "N deletions"), otherwise 0
- Calculate total changes = insertions + deletions
Important Edge Cases:
- Single file:
"1 file changed" (singular form)
- No insertions: Git omits
"insertions(+)" entirely → treat as 0
- No deletions: Git omits
"deletions(-)" entirely → treat as 0
- Pure rename: May show
"0 insertions(+), 0 deletions(-)" or omit both
Decision Logic (check in order, first match wins):
- IF file_count >= 30 OR total_changes >= 2000 → Critical (run script
--difficulty critical)
- IF file_count >= 10 → Difficult (run script
--difficulty difficult)
- IF total_changes >= 500 → Difficult (run script
--difficulty difficult)
- IF insertions >= 300 OR deletions >= 300 → Difficult (run script
--difficulty difficult)
- ELSE → Normal (run script
--difficulty normal)
Example Cases:
- ⭐ "50 files changed, 2000 insertions(+), 1500 deletions(-)" → Critical task, run script
--difficulty critical → use returned primary (currently gpt-5.6-sol effort=xhigh), use returned timeoutMs
- ✅ "20 files changed, 342 insertions(+), 985 deletions(-)" → Difficult task, run script
--difficulty difficult → use returned primary (currently gpt-5.6-sol effort=xhigh), use returned timeoutMs
- ✅ "5 files changed, 600 insertions(+), 50 deletions(-)" → Difficult task, run script
--difficulty difficult → use returned primary (currently gpt-5.6-sol effort=xhigh), use returned timeoutMs
- ❌ "3 files changed, 150 insertions(+), 80 deletions(-)" → Normal task, run script
--difficulty normal → use returned primary (currently gpt-5.6-luna effort=xhigh), use returned timeoutMs
- ❌ "1 file changed, 50 insertions(+)" → Normal task, run script
--difficulty normal → use returned primary (currently gpt-5.6-luna effort=xhigh), use returned timeoutMs
普通任务落在 gpt-5.6-luna effort=xhigh 是符合预期的:它是"耗时 ≤ 25min 且 IQ ≥ 80"里最便宜的(约 $0.31 / 23.5min / IQ 87.1)。在 Pareto 前沿上再往上,terra max 仅多 2.7 IQ 却要近 8 倍成本,sol max 比 sol xhigh 贵还弱——这类坏拐点都被选型规则跳过。困难/关键档当前都落在 sol xhigh:它是高价区性价比拐点(IQ 103.6 / $6.26 / 26min),比顶点 sol ultra(106.7 / $20.95 / 54min)只低 3 IQ,成本却只有 1/3。
Dynamic Model Selection Flow:
After determining the difficulty level, obtain the recommended model and effort dynamically:
SKILL_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "$0")" && pwd)/scripts" 2>/dev/null || SKILL_DIR="$HOME/.claude/skills/codex-review/scripts"
MODEL_JSON=$(node "$SKILL_DIR/select-review-model.mjs" --difficulty <normal|difficult|critical>)
PRIMARY_MODEL=$(echo "$MODEL_JSON" | jq -r '.primary.model')
PRIMARY_EFFORT=$(echo "$MODEL_JSON" | jq -r '.primary.effort')
PRIMARY_TIMEOUT_MS=$(echo "$MODEL_JSON" | jq -r '.primary.timeoutMs')
Use the extracted PRIMARY_MODEL and PRIMARY_EFFORT to build the review command, and PRIMARY_TIMEOUT_MS as the Task timeout.
Invoke codex-runner Subtask:
Use Task tool to invoke codex-runner, passing complete command (including Lint + codex review):
Task parameters:
- subagent_type: Bash
- description: "Execute Lint and codex review"
- timeout: <timeoutMs from the selection script> (derived from the chosen model's measured minutes)
- prompt: Choose corresponding command based on project type and difficulty
Build the prompt as:
<lint command> && codex review <mode> --config model=<primary-model> --config model_reasoning_effort=<primary-effort>
Pass exactly these flags and nothing else. Do not add --full-auto, -s/--sandbox, or any
--dangerously-* flag: `codex review` does not accept them (see "CLI Compatibility and Flag
Discipline"), and adding one is an unrequested safety-gate bypass.
After lint succeeds, apply the dynamic fallback policy. Retry only `codex review <mode>` with the next candidate from the fallback array after an explicit model or reasoning-effort availability failure. Use that candidate's own timeoutMs for the retry.
Lint command (by project type):
Go: go fmt ./... && go vet ./...
Node: npm run lint:fix
Python: black . && ruff check --fix .
Model + timeout (by difficulty, both from the selection script):
Critical: run script --difficulty critical → use returned primary model/effort/timeoutMs
Difficult: run script --difficulty difficult → use returned primary model/effort/timeoutMs
Normal: run script --difficulty normal → use returned primary model/effort/timeoutMs
Example (Go, Normal, after script returns luna+xhigh):
go fmt ./... && go vet ./... && codex review --uncommitted --config model=gpt-5.6-luna --config model_reasoning_effort=xhigh
Clean working directory (review last commit, no lint):
codex review --commit HEAD --config model=<primary-model> --config model_reasoning_effort=<primary-effort>
(model/effort/timeout obtained from select-review-model.mjs)
4. Self-Correction and Severity-Driven Fixes
If Codex finds Changelog description inconsistent with code logic:
- Code error → Fix code
- Description inaccurate → Update Changelog
If Codex reports P0 / P1 / P2 issues, you must proactively fix them immediately instead of stopping at reporting.
Required behavior:
- P0 / P1 / P2 present → directly modify code or related files to fix the issue
- After fixing → rerun the necessary lint / validation / review command to confirm the issue is resolved
- If rerun still reports any P0 / P1 / P2 → continue fixing and rerunning review in a loop
- Only report completion after the rerun review reports no P0 / P1 / P2 issues
- Clearly state what was fixed and what verification passed
- P3 or lower / suggestion only → may report without automatic modification unless the user explicitly asks for further cleanup
Review loop rule:
- The workflow is not successful while any P0 / P1 / P2 issue remains
- After each round of fixes, rerun the appropriate lint / validation / codex review steps
- Repeat until Codex no longer reports P0 / P1 / P2 issues
- Only then treat the review as passed and return the final result
Final pass reporting rule:
- After the final rerun passes, explicitly report that the final review is complete and passed
- The final result should include:
- Codex final conclusion (for example: no functional errors, obvious regressions, or merge-blocking defects found)
- Test results that actually ran in this round
- Lint / formatting / validation results that actually ran in this round
- Do not claim checks that were not actually executed
- Prefer a concise final format similar to:
⏺ Final review complete. Passed.
Result:
- Codex final conclusion: No defects were found that would cause functional errors, obvious regressions, or block merge
- Tests passed: <actual test command(s) executed>
- Lint / validation passed: <actual lint, fmt, vet, or other validation command(s) executed>
Fix priority:
- P0: Blocker, security, data loss, correctness failure → must fix first
- P1: High-impact functional or logic bug → must fix
- P2: Important maintainability / correctness issue with clear fix → should proactively fix in the same run
Constraints:
- Keep fixes minimal and directly related to the reported issue
- Do not expand scope into unrelated refactors
- Preserve existing style and architecture unless the issue requires structural adjustment
Complete Review Protocol
- [GATE] Check CHANGELOG - Auto-generate and write if not updated (leverage current context to understand change intention)
- [PREPARE] Stage Untracked Files - Add all new files to git staging area (avoid codex P1 error)
- [EXEC] Task → Lint + codex review - Invoke Task tool to execute Lint and codex (isolated context, reduce waste)
- [FIX LOOP] Severity-Driven Self-Correction - Fix code or update description when intention ≠ implementation; if any P0/P1/P2 appears, keep fixing and rerunning checks until none remain
Codex Review Command Reference
Basic Syntax
codex review [OPTIONS] [PROMPT]
Note: [PROMPT] parameter cannot be used with --uncommitted, --base, or --commit.
Common Options
| Option | Description | Example |
|---|
--uncommitted | Review all uncommitted changes in working directory (staged + unstaged + untracked) | codex review --uncommitted |
--base <BRANCH> | Review changes relative to specified base branch | codex review --base main |
--commit <SHA> | Review changes introduced by specified commit | codex review --commit HEAD |
--title <TITLE> | Optional commit title, displayed in review summary | codex review --uncommitted --title "feat: add JSON parser" |
-c, --config <key=value> | Override configuration values | codex review --uncommitted -c model="gpt-5.6-terra" |
Usage Examples
codex review --uncommitted
codex review --commit HEAD
codex review --commit abc1234
codex review --base main
codex review --base develop
codex review --uncommitted --title "fix: resolve JSON parsing errors"
codex review --uncommitted -c model="<primary-model>" -c model_reasoning_effort="<primary-effort>"
Important Limitations
--uncommitted, --base, --commit are mutually exclusive, cannot be used together
[PROMPT] parameter is mutually exclusive with the above three options
- Must be executed in a git repository directory
CLI Compatibility and Flag Discipline
Check the CLI version first when a flag is rejected:
codex --version
codex review -h
codex review accepts only these options (verified on codex-cli 0.145.0):
-c/--config, --strict-config, --enable, --disable, --uncommitted, --base, --commit, --title, -h/--help
Never add approval or sandbox flags to codex review. The following belong to codex exec, not codex review, and passing them makes the command fail with error: unexpected argument:
--full-auto
-s / --sandbox <read-only|workspace-write|danger-full-access>
--dangerously-bypass-approvals-and-sandbox
--dangerously-bypass-hook-trust
codex review is already non-interactive and read-only; it needs no approval bypass. Beyond breaking the command, adding such a flag is an unrequested safety-gate bypass that a host permission layer (for example the Claude Code auto mode classifier) will deny.
Rules when a codex invocation fails:
error: unexpected argument '--x' → the flag does not exist on this subcommand. Run codex review -h, remove the flag, retry. Do not substitute a different bypass flag.
- A denied command is a decision, not a transient error. Do not re-run it verbatim and do not reach for a stronger flag to get past it. Report the blocker instead.
- Only ever add flags from the verified list above. Model and effort go through
-c/--config, never through invented CLI flags.
Important Notes
- Ensure execution in git repository directory
- Verify CLI surface before improvising flags: run
codex --version and codex review -h. Only the flags that -h lists are valid on this version. Never add --full-auto, -s/--sandbox, or --dangerously-* to codex review.
- Timeout derived from the chosen model: the script returns
timeoutMs = ceil(measuredMinutes × 2) per candidate (roughly 47 / 53 min under current data). Use the selected candidate's timeoutMs as the Task timeout, not a fixed per-difficulty constant.
- codex command must be properly configured and logged in
- codex automatically processes in batches for large changes
- CHANGELOG.md must be in uncommitted changes, otherwise Codex cannot see intention description
Design Rationale
Why separate contexts?
- CHANGELOG update needs current context: Understanding user's previous conversation and task intention to generate accurate change description
- Codex review doesn't need conversation history: Only needs code changes and CHANGELOG, more efficient to run independently
- Reduce token consumption: codex review as independent subtask, doesn't carry irrelevant conversation context