diff --git a/src/ccs.ts b/src/ccs.ts
index 6b412371..9ae26160 100644
--- a/src/ccs.ts
+++ b/src/ccs.ts
@@ -95,6 +95,7 @@ interface RuntimeReasoningResolution {
 }
 
 const CODEX_RUNTIME_REASONING_LEVELS = new Set(['minimal', 'low', 'medium', 'high', 'xhigh']);
+const CODEX_NATIVE_PASSTHROUGH_FLAGS = new Set(['--help', '-h', '--version', '-v']);
 
 /**
  * Smart profile detection
@@ -239,6 +240,47 @@ function resolveNativeClaudeLaunchArgs(
   return buildOfficialChannelsArgs(args, plan.appliedChannels, plan.wantsPermissionBypass);
 }
 
+function shouldPassthroughNativeCodexFlagCommand(args: string[]): boolean {
+  const targetArgs = stripTargetFlag(args);
+  if (targetArgs.length === 0) {
+    return false;
+  }
+
+  return (
+    resolveTargetType(args) === 'codex' && CODEX_NATIVE_PASSTHROUGH_FLAGS.has(targetArgs[0] || '')
+  );
+}
+
+function execNativeCodexFlagCommand(args: string[]): void {
+  const adapter = getTarget('codex');
+  if (!adapter) {
+    console.error(fail('Target adapter not found for "codex"'));
+    process.exit(1);
+  }
+
+  const binaryInfo = adapter.detectBinary();
+  if (!binaryInfo) {
+    console.error(fail('Codex CLI not found.'));
+    console.error(info('Install a recent @openai/codex build, then retry.'));
+    process.exit(1);
+  }
+
+  const targetArgs = stripTargetFlag(args);
+  const creds: TargetCredentials = {
+    profile: 'default',
+    baseUrl: '',
+    apiKey: '',
+  };
+
+  const builtArgs = adapter.buildArgs('default', targetArgs, {
+    creds,
+    profileType: 'default',
+    binaryInfo,
+  });
+  const targetEnv = adapter.buildEnv(creds, 'default');
+  adapter.exec(builtArgs, targetEnv, { binaryInfo });
+}
+
 async function main(): Promise<void> {
   // Register target adapters
   registerTarget(new ClaudeAdapter());
@@ -315,6 +357,11 @@ async function main(): Promise<void> {
     }
   }
 
+  if (shouldPassthroughNativeCodexFlagCommand(args)) {
+    execNativeCodexFlagCommand(args);
+    return;
+  }
+
   const firstArg = args[0];
 
   // Trigger update check early for ALL commands except version/help/update
diff --git a/src/targets/codex-adapter.ts b/src/targets/codex-adapter.ts
index 859ec7d3..d4491288 100644
--- a/src/targets/codex-adapter.ts
+++ b/src/targets/codex-adapter.ts
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ import * as fs from 'fs';
 import type { ProfileType } from '../types/profile';
 import { runCleanup } from '../errors';
 import { wireChildProcessSignals } from '../utils/signal-forwarder';
-import { escapeShellArg, stripAnthropicEnv } from '../utils/shell-executor';
+import { escapeShellArg, stripAnthropicEnv, stripCodexSessionEnv } from '../utils/shell-executor';
 import type {
   TargetAdapter,
   TargetBinaryInfo,
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ import {
   codexBinarySupportsConfigOverrides,
   detectCodexCli,
   getCodexBinaryInfo,
+  readCodexVersion,
 } from './codex-detector';
 
 const CODEX_RUNTIME_PROVIDER_ID = 'ccs_runtime';
@@ -35,6 +36,17 @@ function buildConfigOverrideSupportError(binaryInfo?: TargetBinaryInfo): Error {
   );
 }
 
+function hydrateCodexBinaryVersion(binaryInfo?: TargetBinaryInfo): TargetBinaryInfo | undefined {
+  if (!binaryInfo || binaryInfo.version || !binaryInfo.path) {
+    return binaryInfo;
+  }
+
+  return {
+    ...binaryInfo,
+    version: readCodexVersion(binaryInfo.path),
+  };
+}
+
 function findDisallowedCodexManagedFlags(args: string[]): string[] {
   const disallowed = new Set<string>();
 
@@ -76,7 +88,7 @@ export class CodexAdapter implements TargetAdapter {
   readonly displayName = 'Codex CLI';
 
   detectBinary(): TargetBinaryInfo | null {
-    return getCodexBinaryInfo();
+    return getCodexBinaryInfo({ includeVersion: false, includeFeatures: false });
   }
 
   async prepareCredentials(_creds: TargetCredentials): Promise<void> {
@@ -99,7 +111,7 @@ export class CodexAdapter implements TargetAdapter {
     if (profileType === 'default') {
       if (reasoningOverride) {
         if (!codexBinarySupportsConfigOverrides(options?.binaryInfo)) {
-          throw buildConfigOverrideSupportError(options?.binaryInfo);
+          throw buildConfigOverrideSupportError(hydrateCodexBinaryVersion(options?.binaryInfo));
         }
         return [
           ...buildConfigOverrideArgs([
@@ -112,7 +124,7 @@ export class CodexAdapter implements TargetAdapter {
     }
 
     if (!codexBinarySupportsConfigOverrides(options?.binaryInfo)) {
-      throw buildConfigOverrideSupportError(options?.binaryInfo);
+      throw buildConfigOverrideSupportError(hydrateCodexBinaryVersion(options?.binaryInfo));
     }
 
     if (!creds?.baseUrl?.trim() || !creds.apiKey?.trim()) {
@@ -148,7 +160,9 @@ export class CodexAdapter implements TargetAdapter {
   }
 
   buildEnv(creds: TargetCredentials, profileType: ProfileType): NodeJS.ProcessEnv {
-    const env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv = { ...stripAnthropicEnv(process.env) };
+    const env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv = {
+      ...stripCodexSessionEnv(stripAnthropicEnv(process.env)),
+    };
     delete env[CODEX_RUNTIME_ENV_KEY];
     if (profileType !== 'default') {
       if (!creds.apiKey?.trim()) {
diff --git a/src/targets/codex-detector.ts b/src/targets/codex-detector.ts
index 07b1a7a5..faf52a35 100644
--- a/src/targets/codex-detector.ts
+++ b/src/targets/codex-detector.ts
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ function runCodexProbe(codexPath: string, args: string[]): string | undefined {
   }
 }
 
-function readCodexVersion(codexPath: string): string | undefined {
+export function readCodexVersion(codexPath: string): string | undefined {
   return runCodexProbe(codexPath, ['--version'])?.trim();
 }
 
@@ -118,7 +118,10 @@ export function detectCodexCli(): string | null {
   return null;
 }
 
-export function getCodexBinaryInfo(): TargetBinaryInfo | null {
+export function getCodexBinaryInfo(options?: {
+  includeVersion?: boolean;
+  includeFeatures?: boolean;
+}): TargetBinaryInfo | null {
   const codexPath = detectCodexCli();
   if (!codexPath) return null;
 
@@ -126,13 +129,21 @@ export function getCodexBinaryInfo(): TargetBinaryInfo | null {
   return {
     path: codexPath,
     needsShell: isWindows && /\.(cmd|bat|ps1)$/i.test(codexPath),
-    version: readCodexVersion(codexPath),
-    features: detectCodexFeatures(codexPath),
+    version: options?.includeVersion === false ? undefined : readCodexVersion(codexPath),
+    features: options?.includeFeatures === false ? undefined : detectCodexFeatures(codexPath),
   };
 }
 
 export function codexBinarySupportsConfigOverrides(
   binaryInfo: TargetBinaryInfo | null | undefined
 ): boolean {
-  return Boolean(binaryInfo?.features?.includes(CODEX_CONFIG_OVERRIDE_FEATURE));
+  if (!binaryInfo) {
+    return false;
+  }
+
+  if (binaryInfo.features) {
+    return binaryInfo.features.includes(CODEX_CONFIG_OVERRIDE_FEATURE);
+  }
+
+  return detectCodexFeatures(binaryInfo.path).includes(CODEX_CONFIG_OVERRIDE_FEATURE);
 }
diff --git a/src/utils/shell-executor.ts b/src/utils/shell-executor.ts
index ff96458e..6d90c428 100644
--- a/src/utils/shell-executor.ts
+++ b/src/utils/shell-executor.ts
@@ -42,6 +42,25 @@ export function stripClaudeCodeEnv(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv): NodeJS.ProcessEnv {
   return result;
 }
 
+/**
+ * Strip Codex session-scoped env vars before launching a nested Codex process.
+ *
+ * Keep real user config such as CODEX_HOME intact. Only remove the known
+ * session/runtime metadata exported by the current Codex host process.
+ */
+export function stripCodexSessionEnv(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv): NodeJS.ProcessEnv {
+  const sessionKeys = new Set(['CODEX_CI', 'CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN', 'CODEX_THREAD_ID']);
+  const result: NodeJS.ProcessEnv = {};
+  for (const key of Object.keys(env)) {
+    const upperKey = key.toUpperCase();
+    if (sessionKeys.has(upperKey)) {
+      continue;
+    }
+    result[key] = env[key];
+  }
+  return result;
+}
+
 /**
  * Resolve CCS-managed environment overrides for Claude launch.
  * - preferences.auto_update: false -> DISABLE_AUTOUPDATER=1
diff --git a/tests/unit/targets/codex-adapter.test.ts b/tests/unit/targets/codex-adapter.test.ts
index 57214f77..063a8744 100644
--- a/tests/unit/targets/codex-adapter.test.ts
+++ b/tests/unit/targets/codex-adapter.test.ts
@@ -165,24 +165,74 @@ describe('CodexAdapter', () => {
   });
 
   test('injects CCS_CODEX_API_KEY for CCS-backed launches only', () => {
-    const settingsEnv = adapter.buildEnv(
-      {
-        profile: 'codex',
-        baseUrl: 'http://127.0.0.1:8317/api/provider/codex',
-        apiKey: 'cliproxy-token',
-      },
-      'cliproxy'
-    );
-    expect(settingsEnv.CCS_CODEX_API_KEY).toBe('cliproxy-token');
+    const originalCodeXHome = process.env.CODEX_HOME;
+    const originalCodeXCi = process.env.CODEX_CI;
+    const originalCodeXManagedByBun = process.env.CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN;
+    const originalCodeXThreadId = process.env.CODEX_THREAD_ID;
+    const originalAnthropicBaseUrl = process.env.ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL;
 
-    const defaultEnv = adapter.buildEnv(
-      {
-        profile: 'default',
-        baseUrl: '',
-        apiKey: '',
-      },
-      'default'
-    );
-    expect(defaultEnv.CCS_CODEX_API_KEY).toBeUndefined();
+    try {
+      process.env.CODEX_HOME = '/tmp/codex-home';
+      process.env.CODEX_CI = '1';
+      process.env.CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN = '1';
+      process.env.CODEX_THREAD_ID = 'thread-123';
+      process.env.ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL = 'https://stale-proxy.invalid';
+
+      const settingsEnv = adapter.buildEnv(
+        {
+          profile: 'codex',
+          baseUrl: 'http://127.0.0.1:8317/api/provider/codex',
+          apiKey: 'cliproxy-token',
+        },
+        'cliproxy'
+      );
+      expect(settingsEnv.CCS_CODEX_API_KEY).toBe('cliproxy-token');
+      expect(settingsEnv.CODEX_HOME).toBe('/tmp/codex-home');
+      expect(settingsEnv.CODEX_CI).toBeUndefined();
+      expect(settingsEnv.CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN).toBeUndefined();
+      expect(settingsEnv.CODEX_THREAD_ID).toBeUndefined();
+      expect(settingsEnv.ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL).toBeUndefined();
+
+      const defaultEnv = adapter.buildEnv(
+        {
+          profile: 'default',
+          baseUrl: '',
+          apiKey: '',
+        },
+        'default'
+      );
+      expect(defaultEnv.CCS_CODEX_API_KEY).toBeUndefined();
+      expect(defaultEnv.CODEX_HOME).toBe('/tmp/codex-home');
+      expect(defaultEnv.CODEX_CI).toBeUndefined();
+      expect(defaultEnv.CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN).toBeUndefined();
+      expect(defaultEnv.CODEX_THREAD_ID).toBeUndefined();
+      expect(defaultEnv.ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL).toBeUndefined();
+    } finally {
+      if (originalCodeXHome === undefined) {
+        delete process.env.CODEX_HOME;
+      } else {
+        process.env.CODEX_HOME = originalCodeXHome;
+      }
+      if (originalCodeXCi === undefined) {
+        delete process.env.CODEX_CI;
+      } else {
+        process.env.CODEX_CI = originalCodeXCi;
+      }
+      if (originalCodeXManagedByBun === undefined) {
+        delete process.env.CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN;
+      } else {
+        process.env.CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN = originalCodeXManagedByBun;
+      }
+      if (originalCodeXThreadId === undefined) {
+        delete process.env.CODEX_THREAD_ID;
+      } else {
+        process.env.CODEX_THREAD_ID = originalCodeXThreadId;
+      }
+      if (originalAnthropicBaseUrl === undefined) {
+        delete process.env.ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL;
+      } else {
+        process.env.ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL = originalAnthropicBaseUrl;
+      }
+    }
   });
 });
diff --git a/tests/unit/targets/codex-runtime-integration.test.ts b/tests/unit/targets/codex-runtime-integration.test.ts
index f7e0e2c0..161348fd 100644
--- a/tests/unit/targets/codex-runtime-integration.test.ts
+++ b/tests/unit/targets/codex-runtime-integration.test.ts
@@ -25,6 +25,21 @@ function runCcs(args: string[], env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv): RunResult {
   };
 }
 
+function runCodexAlias(args: string[], env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv): RunResult {
+  const codexEntry = path.join(process.cwd(), 'src', 'bin', 'codex-runtime.ts');
+  const result = spawnSync(process.execPath, [codexEntry, ...args], {
+    encoding: 'utf8',
+    env,
+    timeout: 20000,
+  });
+
+  return {
+    status: result.status,
+    stdout: result.stdout || '',
+    stderr: result.stderr || '',
+  };
+}
+
 function readLoggedCodexCalls(logPath: string): string[][] {
   if (!fs.existsSync(logPath)) {
     return [];
@@ -38,11 +53,25 @@ function readLoggedCodexCalls(logPath: string): string[][] {
     .map((line) => JSON.parse(line) as string[]);
 }
 
+function readLoggedCodexEnv(logPath: string): Record<string, string | undefined>[] {
+  if (!fs.existsSync(logPath)) {
+    return [];
+  }
+
+  return fs
+    .readFileSync(logPath, 'utf8')
+    .trim()
+    .split('\n')
+    .filter(Boolean)
+    .map((line) => JSON.parse(line) as Record<string, string | undefined>);
+}
+
 describe('codex runtime integration', () => {
   let tmpHome: string;
   let ccsDir: string;
   let fakeCodexPath: string;
   let codexArgsLogPath: string;
+  let codexEnvLogPath: string;
   let emptyPathDir: string;
 
   beforeEach(() => {
@@ -54,6 +83,7 @@ describe('codex runtime integration', () => {
     ccsDir = path.join(tmpHome, '.ccs');
     fakeCodexPath = path.join(tmpHome, 'fake-codex.js');
     codexArgsLogPath = path.join(tmpHome, 'codex-args.log');
+    codexEnvLogPath = path.join(tmpHome, 'codex-env.log');
     emptyPathDir = path.join(tmpHome, 'empty-bin');
 
     fs.mkdirSync(ccsDir, { recursive: true });
@@ -67,11 +97,24 @@ const out = process.env.CCS_TEST_CODEX_ARGS_OUT;
 if (out) {
   fs.appendFileSync(out, JSON.stringify(process.argv.slice(2)) + '\\n');
 }
-if (process.argv[2] === '--version') {
+const envOut = process.env.CCS_TEST_CODEX_ENV_OUT;
+if (envOut) {
+  fs.appendFileSync(
+    envOut,
+    JSON.stringify({
+      CODEX_HOME: process.env.CODEX_HOME,
+      CODEX_CI: process.env.CODEX_CI,
+      CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN: process.env.CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN,
+      CODEX_THREAD_ID: process.env.CODEX_THREAD_ID,
+      ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL: process.env.ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL,
+    }) + '\\n'
+  );
+}
+if (process.argv[2] === '--version' || process.argv[2] === '-v') {
   process.stdout.write(process.env.CCS_TEST_CODEX_VERSION || 'codex-cli 0.118.0-alpha.3');
   process.exit(0);
 }
-if (process.argv[2] === '--help') {
+if (process.argv[2] === '--help' || process.argv[2] === '-h') {
   process.stdout.write(
     process.env.CCS_TEST_CODEX_HELP ||
       '  -c, --config <key=value>\\n  -p, --profile <CONFIG_PROFILE>\\n'
@@ -93,7 +136,7 @@ process.exit(0);
     fs.rmSync(tmpHome, { recursive: true, force: true });
   });
 
-  it('ignores numeric CCS_THINKING env overrides for native Codex default mode', () => {
+  it('does not preflight native Codex default launches when no runtime overrides are needed', () => {
     if (process.platform === 'win32') return;
 
     const result = runCcs(['default', '--target', 'codex', 'fix failing tests'], {
@@ -108,7 +151,7 @@ process.exit(0);
 
     expect(result.status).toBe(0);
     const calls = readLoggedCodexCalls(codexArgsLogPath);
-    expect(calls.at(-1)).toEqual(['fix failing tests']);
+    expect(calls).toEqual([['fix failing tests']]);
   });
 
   it('ignores off-style CCS_THINKING env overrides for native Codex default mode', () => {
@@ -126,7 +169,79 @@ process.exit(0);
 
     expect(result.status).toBe(0);
     const calls = readLoggedCodexCalls(codexArgsLogPath);
-    expect(calls.at(-1)).toEqual(['fix failing tests']);
+    expect(calls).toEqual([['fix failing tests']]);
+  });
+
+  for (const versionFlag of ['--version', '-v']) {
+    it(`passes ccsx ${versionFlag} straight through to the native Codex binary`, () => {
+      if (process.platform === 'win32') return;
+
+      const result = runCodexAlias([versionFlag], {
+        ...process.env,
+        CI: '1',
+        NO_COLOR: '1',
+        CCS_HOME: tmpHome,
+        CCS_CODEX_PATH: fakeCodexPath,
+        CCS_TEST_CODEX_ARGS_OUT: codexArgsLogPath,
+        CCS_TEST_CODEX_VERSION: 'codex-cli 9.9.9-test',
+      });
+
+      expect(result.status).toBe(0);
+      expect(result.stdout).toContain('codex-cli 9.9.9-test');
+      expect(readLoggedCodexCalls(codexArgsLogPath)).toEqual([[versionFlag]]);
+    });
+  }
+
+  for (const helpFlag of ['--help', '-h']) {
+    it(`passes ccsx ${helpFlag} straight through to the native Codex binary`, () => {
+      if (process.platform === 'win32') return;
+
+      const result = runCodexAlias([helpFlag], {
+        ...process.env,
+        CI: '1',
+        NO_COLOR: '1',
+        CCS_HOME: tmpHome,
+        CCS_CODEX_PATH: fakeCodexPath,
+        CCS_TEST_CODEX_ARGS_OUT: codexArgsLogPath,
+        CCS_TEST_CODEX_HELP: 'codex native help text',
+      });
+
+      expect(result.status).toBe(0);
+      expect(result.stdout).toContain('codex native help text');
+      expect(readLoggedCodexCalls(codexArgsLogPath)).toEqual([[helpFlag]]);
+    });
+  }
+
+  it('strips nested Codex session env from passthrough launches while keeping CODEX_HOME', () => {
+    if (process.platform === 'win32') return;
+
+    const result = runCodexAlias(['--version'], {
+      ...process.env,
+      CI: '1',
+      NO_COLOR: '1',
+      CCS_HOME: tmpHome,
+      CCS_CODEX_PATH: fakeCodexPath,
+      CCS_TEST_CODEX_ARGS_OUT: codexArgsLogPath,
+      CCS_TEST_CODEX_ENV_OUT: codexEnvLogPath,
+      CCS_TEST_CODEX_VERSION: 'codex-cli 9.9.9-test',
+      CODEX_HOME: '/tmp/codex-home',
+      CODEX_CI: '1',
+      CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN: '1',
+      CODEX_THREAD_ID: 'thread-123',
+      ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL: 'https://stale-proxy.invalid',
+    });
+
+    expect(result.status).toBe(0);
+    expect(readLoggedCodexCalls(codexArgsLogPath)).toEqual([['--version']]);
+    expect(readLoggedCodexEnv(codexEnvLogPath)).toEqual([
+      {
+        CODEX_HOME: '/tmp/codex-home',
+        CODEX_CI: undefined,
+        CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN: undefined,
+        CODEX_THREAD_ID: undefined,
+        ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL: undefined,
+      },
+    ]);
   });
 
   it('fails fast when native Codex reasoning overrides need unsupported --config support', () => {
@@ -139,13 +254,15 @@ process.exit(0);
       CCS_HOME: tmpHome,
       CCS_CODEX_PATH: fakeCodexPath,
       CCS_TEST_CODEX_ARGS_OUT: codexArgsLogPath,
+      CCS_TEST_CODEX_VERSION: 'codex-cli 9.9.9-test',
       CCS_TEST_CODEX_HELP: '  -p, --profile <CONFIG_PROFILE>\\n',
     });
 
     expect(result.status).toBe(1);
+    expect(result.stderr).toContain('Codex CLI (codex-cli 9.9.9-test)');
     expect(result.stderr).toContain('does not advertise --config overrides');
     const calls = readLoggedCodexCalls(codexArgsLogPath);
-    expect(calls).toEqual([['--version'], ['--help']]);
+    expect(calls).toEqual([['--help'], ['--version']]);
   });
 
   it('reports unsupported generic settings profiles before Codex install guidance', () => {