If MCP server is missing

If MCP tools fail or no OpenAI docs resources are available:

1. Run the install command yourself: codex mcp add openaiDeveloperDocs --url https://developers.openai.com/mcp
2. If it fails due to permissions/sandboxing, immediately retry the same command with escalated permissions and include a 1-sentence justification for approval. Do not ask the user to run it yet.
3. Only if the escalated attempt fails, ask the user to run the install command.
4. Ask the user to restart Codex.
5. Re-run the doc search/fetch after restart.

Workflow

1. Clarify the product scope and whether the request is general docs lookup, model selection, a GPT-5.4 upgrade, or a GPT-5.4 prompt upgrade.
2. If it is a model-selection request, load references/latest-model.md.
3. If it is an explicit GPT-5.4 upgrade request, load references/upgrading-to-gpt-5p4.md.
4. If the upgrade may require prompt changes, or the workflow is research-heavy, tool-heavy, coding-oriented, multi-agent, or long-running, also load references/gpt-5p4-prompting-guide.md.
5. Search docs with a precise query.
6. Fetch the best page and the exact section needed (use anchor when possible).
7. For GPT-5.4 upgrade reviews, always make the per-usage-site output explicit: target model, starting reasoning recommendation, phase assessment when relevant, prompt blocks, and compatibility status.
8. Answer with concise guidance and cite the doc source, using the reference files only as helper context.

Reference map

Read only what you need:

• references/latest-model.md -> model-selection and "best/latest/current model" questions; verify every recommendation against current OpenAI docs before answering.
• references/upgrading-to-gpt-5p4.md -> only for explicit GPT-5.4 upgrade and upgrade-planning requests; verify the checklist and compatibility guidance against current OpenAI docs before answering.
• references/gpt-5p4-prompting-guide.md -> prompt rewrites and prompt-behavior upgrades for GPT-5.4; verify prompting guidance against current OpenAI docs before answering.

Quality rules

• Treat OpenAI docs as the source of truth; avoid speculation.
• Keep quotes short and within policy limits; prefer paraphrase with citations.
• If multiple pages differ, call out the difference and cite both.
• Reference files are convenience guides only; for volatile guidance such as recommended models, upgrade instructions, or prompting advice, current OpenAI docs always win.
• If docs do not cover the user’s need, say so and offer next steps.

Tooling notes

• Always use MCP doc tools before any web search for OpenAI-related questions.
• If the MCP server is installed but returns no meaningful results, then use web search as a fallback.
• When falling back to web search, restrict to official OpenAI domains (developers.openai.com, platform.openai.com) and cite sources.