ChatGPT App Ref Refresh

Workflow

Use this skill from the repository root that should receive ./ref.

1. Verify the current working directory is the intended workspace.
2. Run the bundled script:

node .agents/skills/codex-app-ref-refresh/scripts/refresh-codex-ref.mjs

The script runs three steps in order:

1. Sync — deletes only <cwd>/ref, then extracts /Applications/ChatGPT.app/Contents/Resources/app.asar into a fresh ref directory.
2. Format — runs Prettier (--write --ignore-path /dev/null) over every extracted .js and .css file, skipping any node_modules directory under ref. This intentionally bypasses .gitignore and .prettierignore so an ignored ref/ directory is still formatted. After writing, the script verifies JavaScript files with --list-different --ignore-path /dev/null and reruns Prettier on any remaining JS files. CSS is formatted but not used as a hard verification gate because bundled Tailwind CSS can be non-idempotent under Prettier. This step is always on by default; do not skip it unless the user explicitly asks.
3. Report — prints the count of formatted files and a completion line.

Formatting the synced JS and CSS with Prettier is a required part of the refresh, not an optional extra. The minified asar output is unreadable until formatted, so always let the Prettier step run. Only pass --skip-format when the user explicitly wants raw, unformatted extraction.

Verify

After the run, confirm formatting actually completed before reporting success:

• The script logs Formatting N JS/CSS file(s) with Prettier, ignoring git/prettier ignore files..., Prettier verification complete., and then ChatGPT app ref refresh complete.
• If the script logs Prettier verification found N file(s) needing another pass; reformatting..., that is acceptable only when it is followed by Prettier verification complete.
• If formatting was skipped, the script logs Skipping Prettier formatting. instead — treat that as an incomplete refresh unless --skip-format was intentional.
• Spot-check that a known JS or CSS file under ref is multi-line (Prettier-formatted), not a single minified line.
• If running a manual Prettier verification against ref, include --ignore-path /dev/null; otherwise Prettier may skip files because ref/ is git-ignored. Prefer strict manual checks for JS files only.

Options

• Set CHATGPTAPPASAR=/path/to/app.asar before running when the ChatGPT app bundle lives somewhere else. The legacy CODEXAPPASAR variable remains supported for compatibility.
• Pass --skip-format only when the user explicitly wants extraction without Prettier formatting.
• Pass --dry-run to inspect the resolved paths without deleting or extracting anything.

Safety

• Do not run the script from the wrong directory; it intentionally replaces ./ref.
• Prefer the script over manually chaining rm, npx @electron/asar, and prettier, because the script guards the target path and consistently excludes ref/node_modules.
• After running, report the extracted ref path and whether formatting completed.