fix(browser): preserve opt-in browser settings and env isolation

src/cliproxy/executor/env-resolver.ts

@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ import {
 import { resolveImageAnalysisRuntimeStatus } from '../../utils/hooks/image-analysis-runtime-status';
 import { hasImageAnalysisProfileHook } from '../../utils/hooks/image-analyzer-profile-hook-injector';
 import { hasImageAnalyzerHook } from '../../utils/hooks/image-analyzer-hook-installer';
-import { stripClaudeCodeEnv } from '../../utils/shell-executor';
+import { stripBrowserEnv, stripClaudeCodeEnv } from '../../utils/shell-executor';
 import { CodexReasoningProxy } from '../codex-reasoning-proxy';
 import { ToolSanitizationProxy } from '../tool-sanitization-proxy';
 import { HttpsTunnelProxy } from '../https-tunnel-proxy';
@@ -383,8 +383,11 @@ export function buildClaudeEnvironment(config: ProxyChainConfig): Record<string,
   const imageAnalysisEnv = resolvedImageAnalysisEnv ?? getImageAnalysisHookEnv(provider);
 
   // Merge all environment variables (filter undefined values)
-  const baseEnv = Object.fromEntries(
-    Object.entries(process.env).filter(([, v]) => v !== undefined)
+  const baseEnv = stripBrowserEnv(
+    Object.fromEntries(Object.entries(process.env).filter(([, v]) => v !== undefined)) as Record<
+      string,
+      string
+    >
   ) as Record<string, string>;
 
   const effectiveEnvVarsFiltered = Object.fromEntries(

src/config/unified-config-loader.ts

@@ -37,6 +37,7 @@ import type {
   OfficialChannelId,
   DashboardAuthConfig,
   BrowserConfig,
+  BrowserEvalMode,
   BrowserToolPolicy,
   ImageAnalysisConfig,
   LoggingConfig,
@@ -76,17 +77,37 @@ function normalizeBrowserPolicy(value: string | undefined): BrowserToolPolicy {
   return value === 'auto' || value === 'manual' ? value : DEFAULT_BROWSER_CONFIG.claude.policy;
 }
 
-function canonicalizeBrowserConfig(config?: BrowserConfig): BrowserConfig {
+function normalizeBrowserEvalMode(value: string | undefined): BrowserEvalMode {
+  if (value === 'disabled' || value === 'readonly' || value === 'readwrite') {
+    return value;
+  }
+
+  return DEFAULT_BROWSER_CONFIG.claude.eval_mode ?? 'readonly';
+}
+
+function canonicalizeBrowserConfig(
+  config?: BrowserConfig,
+  fallback: BrowserConfig = DEFAULT_BROWSER_CONFIG
+): BrowserConfig {
+  const claudeUserDataDir =
+    config?.claude?.user_data_dir === undefined
+      ? fallback.claude.user_data_dir || getRecommendedBrowserUserDataDir()
+      : config.claude.user_data_dir.trim() || getRecommendedBrowserUserDataDir();
+
   return {
     claude: {
-      enabled: config?.claude?.enabled ?? DEFAULT_BROWSER_CONFIG.claude.enabled,
-      policy: normalizeBrowserPolicy(config?.claude?.policy),
-      user_data_dir: config?.claude?.user_data_dir?.trim() || getRecommendedBrowserUserDataDir(),
-      devtools_port: normalizeBrowserDevtoolsPort(config?.claude?.devtools_port),
+      enabled: config?.claude?.enabled ?? fallback.claude.enabled,
+      policy: normalizeBrowserPolicy(config?.claude?.policy ?? fallback.claude.policy),
+      user_data_dir: claudeUserDataDir,
+      devtools_port: normalizeBrowserDevtoolsPort(
+        config?.claude?.devtools_port ?? fallback.claude.devtools_port
+      ),
+      eval_mode: normalizeBrowserEvalMode(config?.claude?.eval_mode ?? fallback.claude.eval_mode),
     },
     codex: {
-      enabled: config?.codex?.enabled ?? DEFAULT_BROWSER_CONFIG.codex.enabled,
-      policy: normalizeBrowserPolicy(config?.codex?.policy),
+      enabled: config?.codex?.enabled ?? fallback.codex.enabled,
+      policy: normalizeBrowserPolicy(config?.codex?.policy ?? fallback.codex.policy),
+      eval_mode: normalizeBrowserEvalMode(config?.codex?.eval_mode ?? fallback.codex.eval_mode),
     },
   };
 }
@@ -1131,7 +1152,13 @@ export function saveUnifiedConfig(config: UnifiedConfig): void {
 export function mutateUnifiedConfig(mutator: (config: UnifiedConfig) => void): UnifiedConfig {
   return withConfigWriteLock(() => {
     const current = loadUnifiedConfigWithLockHeld();
+    const previousBrowser = current.browser
+      ? canonicalizeBrowserConfig(current.browser)
+      : undefined;
     mutator(current);
+    if (current.browser) {
+      current.browser = canonicalizeBrowserConfig(current.browser, previousBrowser);
+    }
     writeUnifiedConfigWithLockHeld(current);
     return current;
   });

src/config/unified-config-types.ts

@@ -822,6 +822,7 @@ export const DEFAULT_DASHBOARD_AUTH_CONFIG: DashboardAuthConfig = {
  * Controls Claude browser attach and Codex browser tooling.
  */
 export type BrowserToolPolicy = 'auto' | 'manual';
+export type BrowserEvalMode = 'disabled' | 'readonly' | 'readwrite';
 
 export interface BrowserClaudeConfig {
   /** Enable Claude browser attach (default: false) */
@@ -832,6 +833,8 @@ export interface BrowserClaudeConfig {
   user_data_dir: string;
   /** DevTools port used for attach mode (default: 9222) */
   devtools_port: number;
+  /** Eval access mode exposed through browser settings/status surfaces */
+  eval_mode?: BrowserEvalMode;
 }
 
 export interface BrowserCodexConfig {
@@ -839,6 +842,8 @@ export interface BrowserCodexConfig {
   enabled: boolean;
   /** Control whether Codex browser tooling is exposed automatically or only via --browser */
   policy: BrowserToolPolicy;
+  /** Eval access mode exposed through browser settings/status surfaces */
+  eval_mode?: BrowserEvalMode;
 }
 
 export interface BrowserConfig {
@@ -852,10 +857,12 @@ export const DEFAULT_BROWSER_CONFIG: BrowserConfig = {
     policy: 'manual',
     user_data_dir: '',
     devtools_port: 9222,
+    eval_mode: 'readonly',
   },
   codex: {
     enabled: false,
     policy: 'manual',
+    eval_mode: 'readonly',
   },
 };
 

src/targets/claude-adapter.ts

@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ import type { ProfileType } from '../types/profile';
 import {
   escapeShellArg,
   getWindowsEscapedCommandShell,
+  stripBrowserEnv,
   stripAnthropicEnv,
   stripClaudeCodeEnv,
 } from '../utils/shell-executor';
@@ -60,10 +61,10 @@ export class ClaudeAdapter implements TargetAdapter {
         ? stripAnthropicEnv(process.env)
         : process.env;
 
-    const env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv = { ...baseEnv, ...webSearchEnv };
+    const env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv = { ...stripBrowserEnv(baseEnv), ...webSearchEnv };
 
     if (creds.envVars) {
-      Object.assign(env, creds.envVars);
+      Object.assign(env, stripBrowserEnv(creds.envVars));
     }
     if (creds.browserRuntimeEnv) {
       Object.assign(env, creds.browserRuntimeEnv);

src/targets/codex-adapter.ts

@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import { wireChildProcessSignals } from '../utils/signal-forwarder';
 import {
   escapeShellArg,
   getWindowsEscapedCommandShell,
+  stripBrowserEnv,
   stripAnthropicEnv,
   stripCodexSessionEnv,
 } from '../utils/shell-executor';
@@ -252,7 +253,7 @@ export class CodexAdapter implements TargetAdapter {
 
   buildEnv(creds: TargetCredentials, profileType: ProfileType): NodeJS.ProcessEnv {
     const env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv = {
-      ...stripCodexSessionEnv(stripAnthropicEnv(process.env)),
+      ...stripBrowserEnv(stripCodexSessionEnv(stripAnthropicEnv(process.env))),
     };
     delete env[CODEX_RUNTIME_ENV_KEY];
     if (profileType !== 'default') {

src/utils/browser/browser-settings.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import * as fs from 'fs';
 import * as path from 'path';
-import type { BrowserConfig } from '../../config/unified-config-types';
+import type { BrowserConfig, BrowserEvalMode } from '../../config/unified-config-types';
 import { getCcsDir, getCcsPathDisplay } from '../config-manager';
 import { expandPath } from '../helpers';
 import { type BrowserRuntimeEnv, resolveBrowserRuntimeEnv } from './chrome-reuse';
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ export interface EffectiveClaudeBrowserAttachConfig {
   userDataDir: string;
   devtoolsPort: number;
   hasExplicitDevtoolsPort: boolean;
+  evalMode: BrowserEvalMode;
 }
 
 export interface BrowserLaunchCommands {
@@ -230,15 +231,17 @@ export function getEffectiveClaudeBrowserAttachConfig(
   const configUserDataDir =
     resolveBrowserUserDataDir(config.claude.user_data_dir) ?? getRecommendedBrowserUserDataDir();
   const configPort = normalizeDevtoolsPort(config.claude.devtools_port);
+  const configEvalMode = config.claude.eval_mode ?? 'readonly';
 
   if (override.userDataDir) {
     return {
-      enabled: true,
+      enabled: config.claude.enabled,
       source: override.source as BrowserOverrideSource,
       overrideActive: true,
       userDataDir: override.userDataDir,
       devtoolsPort: override.devtoolsPort ?? configPort,
       hasExplicitDevtoolsPort: override.devtoolsPort !== undefined,
+      evalMode: configEvalMode,
     };
   }
 
@@ -249,6 +252,7 @@ export function getEffectiveClaudeBrowserAttachConfig(
     userDataDir: configUserDataDir,
     devtoolsPort: configPort,
     hasExplicitDevtoolsPort: true,
+    evalMode: configEvalMode,
   };
 }
 
@@ -267,11 +271,15 @@ export async function resolveOptionalBrowserAttachRuntime(
   }
 
   try {
+    const runtimeEnv = await resolveBrowserRuntimeEnv({
+      profileDir: config.userDataDir,
+      devtoolsPort: config.hasExplicitDevtoolsPort ? String(config.devtoolsPort) : undefined,
+    });
     return {
-      runtimeEnv: await resolveBrowserRuntimeEnv({
-        profileDir: config.userDataDir,
-        devtoolsPort: config.hasExplicitDevtoolsPort ? String(config.devtoolsPort) : undefined,
-      }),
+      runtimeEnv: {
+        ...runtimeEnv,
+        CCS_BROWSER_EVAL_MODE: config.evalMode,
+      },
     };
   } catch (error) {
     const message = error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error);

src/utils/browser/browser-status.ts

@@ -1,5 +1,9 @@
 import * as path from 'path';
-import type { BrowserConfig, BrowserToolPolicy } from '../../config/unified-config-types';
+import type {
+  BrowserConfig,
+  BrowserEvalMode,
+  BrowserToolPolicy,
+} from '../../config/unified-config-types';
 import { getBrowserConfig, loadUnifiedConfig } from '../../config/unified-config-loader';
 import { getCcsPathDisplay } from '../config-manager';
 import { getCodexBinaryInfo } from '../../targets/codex-detector';
@@ -19,6 +23,7 @@ import {
 export interface ClaudeBrowserStatus {
   enabled: boolean;
   policy: BrowserToolPolicy;
+  evalMode: BrowserEvalMode;
   source: 'config' | 'CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR' | 'CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR';
   overrideActive: boolean;
   state: 'disabled' | 'path_missing' | 'browser_not_running' | 'endpoint_unreachable' | 'ready';
@@ -37,6 +42,7 @@ export interface ClaudeBrowserStatus {
 export interface CodexBrowserStatus {
   enabled: boolean;
   policy: BrowserToolPolicy;
+  evalMode: BrowserEvalMode;
   state: 'disabled' | 'enabled' | 'unsupported_build';
   title: string;
   detail: string;
@@ -69,6 +75,12 @@ function resolveSafeBrowserPolicy(policy: BrowserToolPolicy | undefined): Browse
   return policy === 'auto' || policy === 'manual' ? policy : 'manual';
 }
 
+function resolveSafeBrowserEvalMode(evalMode: BrowserEvalMode | undefined): BrowserEvalMode {
+  return evalMode === 'disabled' || evalMode === 'readonly' || evalMode === 'readwrite'
+    ? evalMode
+    : 'readonly';
+}
+
 export function getUserFacingBrowserConfig(): BrowserConfig {
   const canonical = getBrowserConfig();
   const persisted = loadUnifiedConfig()?.browser as PersistedBrowserConfig | undefined;
@@ -79,11 +91,13 @@ export function getUserFacingBrowserConfig(): BrowserConfig {
         ...canonical.claude,
         enabled: false,
         policy: 'manual',
+        eval_mode: resolveSafeBrowserEvalMode(canonical.claude.eval_mode),
       },
       codex: {
         ...canonical.codex,
         enabled: false,
         policy: 'manual',
+        eval_mode: resolveSafeBrowserEvalMode(canonical.codex.eval_mode),
       },
     };
   }
@@ -93,11 +107,17 @@ export function getUserFacingBrowserConfig(): BrowserConfig {
       ...canonical.claude,
       enabled: persisted.claude?.enabled ?? false,
       policy: resolveSafeBrowserPolicy(persisted.claude?.policy),
+      eval_mode: resolveSafeBrowserEvalMode(
+        persisted.claude?.eval_mode ?? canonical.claude.eval_mode
+      ),
     },
     codex: {
       ...canonical.codex,
       enabled: persisted.codex?.enabled ?? false,
       policy: resolveSafeBrowserPolicy(persisted.codex?.policy),
+      eval_mode: resolveSafeBrowserEvalMode(
+        persisted.codex?.eval_mode ?? canonical.codex.eval_mode
+      ),
     },
   };
 }
@@ -110,6 +130,7 @@ async function buildClaudeBrowserStatus(
   const base: Omit<ClaudeBrowserStatus, 'state' | 'title' | 'detail' | 'nextStep'> = {
     enabled: effective.enabled,
     policy: browserConfig.claude.policy,
+    evalMode: resolveSafeBrowserEvalMode(browserConfig.claude.eval_mode),
     source: effective.source,
     overrideActive: effective.overrideActive,
     effectiveUserDataDir: effective.userDataDir,
@@ -224,6 +245,7 @@ function buildCodexBrowserStatus(browserConfig = getUserFacingBrowserConfig()):
     return {
       enabled: false,
       policy: browserConfig.codex.policy,
+      evalMode: resolveSafeBrowserEvalMode(browserConfig.codex.eval_mode),
       state: 'disabled',
       title: 'Codex Browser Tools are disabled.',
       detail:
@@ -242,6 +264,7 @@ function buildCodexBrowserStatus(browserConfig = getUserFacingBrowserConfig()):
     return {
       enabled: true,
       policy: browserConfig.codex.policy,
+      evalMode: resolveSafeBrowserEvalMode(browserConfig.codex.eval_mode),
       state: 'unsupported_build',
       title: 'Codex Browser Tools need a Codex build with --config override support.',
       detail: binaryInfo
@@ -258,6 +281,7 @@ function buildCodexBrowserStatus(browserConfig = getUserFacingBrowserConfig()):
   return {
     enabled: true,
     policy: browserConfig.codex.policy,
+    evalMode: resolveSafeBrowserEvalMode(browserConfig.codex.eval_mode),
     state: 'enabled',
     title: 'Codex Browser Tools are enabled.',
     detail:
@@ -283,5 +307,6 @@ export function getManagedBrowserSetupHint(): string {
     userDataDir: getRecommendedBrowserUserDataDir(),
     devtoolsPort: 9222,
     hasExplicitDevtoolsPort: true,
+    evalMode: 'readonly',
   }).join('\n');
 }

src/utils/shell-executor.ts

@@ -26,6 +26,22 @@ export function stripAnthropicEnv(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv): NodeJS.ProcessEnv {
   return result;
 }
 
+/**
+ * Strip inherited browser attach/runtime env vars from a process environment.
+ *
+ * Browser capability is opt-in and launch-scoped. Stale CCS_BROWSER_* values
+ * from the parent process must never bleed into a browser-off child launch.
+ */
+export function stripBrowserEnv(env: NodeJS.ProcessEnv): NodeJS.ProcessEnv {
+  const result: NodeJS.ProcessEnv = {};
+  for (const key of Object.keys(env)) {
+    if (!key.toUpperCase().startsWith('CCS_BROWSER_')) {
+      result[key] = env[key];
+    }
+  }
+  return result;
+}
+
 /**
  * Strip Claude Code nested-session guard env var from a process environment.
  *
@@ -142,10 +158,11 @@ export function execClaude(
   // with native Claude API routing. Settings-based profiles explicitly inject
   // their own ANTHROPIC_* values, so they don't need this protection.
   const profileType = envVars?.CCS_PROFILE_TYPE;
-  const baseEnv =
+  const inheritedEnv =
     profileType === 'account' || profileType === 'default'
       ? stripAnthropicEnv(process.env)
       : process.env;
+  const baseEnv = stripBrowserEnv(inheritedEnv);
 
   // Prepare environment (merge with base env if envVars provided)
   const mergedEnv = envVars

src/web-server/middleware/auth-middleware.ts

@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
  * Session-based auth with httpOnly cookies for CCS dashboard.
  */
 
-import type { Request, Response, NextFunction } from 'express';
+import type { NextFunction, Request, RequestHandler, Response } from 'express';
 import session from 'express-session';
 import rateLimit from 'express-rate-limit';
 import { getDashboardAuthConfig, isDashboardAuthEnabled } from '../../config/unified-config-loader';
@@ -84,7 +84,7 @@ export const loginRateLimiter = rateLimit({
 /**
  * Create session middleware configured for CCS dashboard.
  */
-export function createSessionMiddleware() {
+export function createSessionMiddleware(): RequestHandler {
   const authConfig = getDashboardAuthConfig();
   const maxAge = (authConfig.session_timeout_hours ?? 24) * 60 * 60 * 1000;
 

src/web-server/routes/browser-routes.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import { Router, type Request, type Response } from 'express';
 import { mutateUnifiedConfig } from '../../config/unified-config-loader';
-import type { BrowserConfig } from '../../config/unified-config-types';
+import type { BrowserConfig, BrowserEvalMode } from '../../config/unified-config-types';
 import { getBrowserStatus } from '../../utils/browser';
 import { getUserFacingBrowserConfig } from '../../utils/browser/browser-status';
 import { requireLocalAccessWhenAuthDisabled } from '../middleware/auth-middleware';
@@ -15,10 +15,12 @@ interface BrowserRouteBody {
     policy?: 'auto' | 'manual';
     userDataDir?: string;
     devtoolsPort?: number;
+    evalMode?: BrowserEvalMode;
   };
   codex?: {
     enabled?: boolean;
     policy?: 'auto' | 'manual';
+    evalMode?: BrowserEvalMode;
   };
 }
 
@@ -30,6 +32,10 @@ function isValidBrowserPolicy(value: string): value is 'auto' | 'manual' {
   return value === 'auto' || value === 'manual';
 }
 
+function isValidBrowserEvalMode(value: string): value is BrowserEvalMode {
+  return value === 'disabled' || value === 'readonly' || value === 'readwrite';
+}
+
 function isValidDevtoolsPort(value: number): boolean {
   return Number.isInteger(value) && value >= 1 && value <= 65535;
 }
@@ -88,7 +94,11 @@ router.put('/', async (req: Request, res: Response): Promise<void> => {
   }
   const unknownClaudeKeys = Object.keys(claude ?? {}).filter(
     (key) =>
-      key !== 'enabled' && key !== 'policy' && key !== 'userDataDir' && key !== 'devtoolsPort'
+      key !== 'enabled' &&
+      key !== 'policy' &&
+      key !== 'userDataDir' &&
+      key !== 'devtoolsPort' &&
+      key !== 'evalMode'
   );
   if (unknownClaudeKeys.length > 0) {
     res.status(400).json({
@@ -97,7 +107,7 @@ router.put('/', async (req: Request, res: Response): Promise<void> => {
     return;
   }
   const unknownCodexKeys = Object.keys(codex ?? {}).filter(
-    (key) => key !== 'enabled' && key !== 'policy'
+    (key) => key !== 'enabled' && key !== 'policy' && key !== 'evalMode'
   );
   if (unknownCodexKeys.length > 0) {
     res.status(400).json({
@@ -129,6 +139,15 @@ router.put('/', async (req: Request, res: Response): Promise<void> => {
     });
     return;
   }
+  if (
+    claude?.evalMode !== undefined &&
+    (typeof claude.evalMode !== 'string' || !isValidBrowserEvalMode(claude.evalMode))
+  ) {
+    res.status(400).json({
+      error: 'Invalid value for claude.evalMode. Must be one of: disabled, readonly, readwrite.',
+    });
+    return;
+  }
   if (codex?.enabled !== undefined && typeof codex.enabled !== 'boolean') {
     res.status(400).json({ error: 'Invalid value for codex.enabled. Must be a boolean.' });
     return;
@@ -140,6 +159,15 @@ router.put('/', async (req: Request, res: Response): Promise<void> => {
     res.status(400).json({ error: 'Invalid value for codex.policy. Must be auto or manual.' });
     return;
   }
+  if (
+    codex?.evalMode !== undefined &&
+    (typeof codex.evalMode !== 'string' || !isValidBrowserEvalMode(codex.evalMode))
+  ) {
+    res.status(400).json({
+      error: 'Invalid value for codex.evalMode. Must be one of: disabled, readonly, readwrite.',
+    });
+    return;
+  }
 
   try {
     const current = getUserFacingBrowserConfig();
@@ -152,10 +180,12 @@ router.put('/', async (req: Request, res: Response): Promise<void> => {
           policy: claude?.policy ?? current.claude.policy,
           user_data_dir: nextClaudeUserDataDir,
           devtools_port: claude?.devtoolsPort ?? current.claude.devtools_port,
+          eval_mode: claude?.evalMode ?? current.claude.eval_mode,
         },
         codex: {
           enabled: codex?.enabled ?? current.codex.enabled,
           policy: codex?.policy ?? current.codex.policy,
+          eval_mode: codex?.evalMode ?? current.codex.eval_mode,
         },
       };
     });
@@ -181,10 +211,12 @@ function toBrowserRouteConfig(config: BrowserConfig) {
       policy: config.claude.policy,
       userDataDir: config.claude.user_data_dir,
       devtoolsPort: config.claude.devtools_port,
+      evalMode: config.claude.eval_mode ?? 'readonly',
     },
     codex: {
       enabled: config.codex.enabled,
       policy: config.codex.policy,
+      evalMode: config.codex.eval_mode ?? 'readonly',
     },
   };
 }

tests/unit/config/migration-manager.test.ts

@@ -202,10 +202,12 @@ describe('migration-manager legacy kimi compatibility', () => {
         policy: 'manual',
         user_data_dir: '',
         devtools_port: 9222,
+        eval_mode: 'readonly',
       },
       codex: {
         enabled: false,
         policy: 'manual',
+        eval_mode: 'readonly',
       },
     });
   });

tests/unit/targets/codex-runtime-integration.test.ts

@@ -124,6 +124,9 @@ if (envOut) {
       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,
+      CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR: process.env.CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR,
+      CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR: process.env.CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR,
+      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_WS_URL: process.env.CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_WS_URL,
     }) + '\\n'
   );
 }
@@ -173,19 +176,28 @@ process.exit(0);
       CCS_HOME: tmpHome,
       CCS_CODEX_PATH: fakeCodexPath,
       CCS_TEST_CODEX_ARGS_OUT: codexArgsLogPath,
+      CCS_TEST_CODEX_ENV_OUT: codexEnvLogPath,
       CCS_THINKING: '8192',
-      CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR: '',
-      CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR: '',
-      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_HOST: '',
-      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_PORT: '',
-      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_HTTP_URL: '',
-      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_WS_URL: '',
-      CCS_BROWSER_EVAL_MODE: '',
+      CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR: '/tmp/stale-codex-browser-runtime',
+      CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR: '/tmp/stale-codex-browser-legacy',
+      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_WS_URL: 'ws://127.0.0.1/devtools/browser/stale-codex-env',
     });
 
     expect(result.status).toBe(0);
     const calls = readLoggedCodexCalls(codexArgsLogPath);
     expect(calls).toEqual([['fix failing tests']]);
+    expect(readLoggedCodexEnv(codexEnvLogPath)).toEqual([
+      {
+        CODEX_HOME: undefined,
+        CODEX_CI: undefined,
+        CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN: undefined,
+        CODEX_THREAD_ID: undefined,
+        ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL: undefined,
+        CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR: undefined,
+        CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR: undefined,
+        CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_WS_URL: undefined,
+      },
+    ]);
   });
 
   it('injects browser MCP runtime overrides when Codex browser policy is explicitly auto-enabled', () => {
@@ -500,6 +512,9 @@ process.exit(0);
         CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN: undefined,
         CODEX_THREAD_ID: undefined,
         ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL: undefined,
+        CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR: undefined,
+        CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR: undefined,
+        CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_WS_URL: undefined,
       },
     ]);
   });
@@ -540,6 +555,9 @@ process.exit(0);
       CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN: undefined,
       CODEX_THREAD_ID: undefined,
       ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL: undefined,
+      CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR: undefined,
+      CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR: undefined,
+      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_WS_URL: undefined,
     });
   });
 
@@ -618,6 +636,9 @@ process.exit(0);
         CODEX_MANAGED_BY_BUN: undefined,
         CODEX_THREAD_ID: undefined,
         ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL: undefined,
+        CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR: undefined,
+        CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR: undefined,
+        CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_WS_URL: undefined,
       },
     ]);
   });

tests/unit/targets/default-profile-browser-launch.test.ts

@@ -119,6 +119,7 @@ describe('default profile browser launch', () => {
 printf "%s\n" "$@" > "${claudeArgsLogPath}"
 {
   printf "userDataDir=%s\n" "$CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR"
+  printf "legacyProfileDir=%s\n" "$CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR"
   printf "host=%s\n" "$CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_HOST"
   printf "port=%s\n" "$CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_PORT"
   printf "httpUrl=%s\n" "$CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_HTTP_URL"
@@ -266,6 +267,30 @@ server.listen(0, '127.0.0.1', () => {
     expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('wsUrl=ws://127.0.0.1/devtools/browser/default-target');
   });
 
+  it('scrubs inherited CCS_BROWSER_* env from browser-off default Claude launches', () => {
+    if (process.platform === 'win32') return;
+
+    const result = runCcs(['default', 'smoke'], {
+      ...baseEnv,
+      CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR: '/tmp/stale-browser-runtime',
+      CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR: '/tmp/stale-browser-legacy',
+      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_HOST: '127.0.0.1',
+      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_PORT: '9555',
+      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_HTTP_URL: 'http://127.0.0.1:9555',
+      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_WS_URL: 'ws://127.0.0.1/devtools/browser/stale-default-env',
+    });
+
+    expect(result.status).toBe(0);
+    const launchedArgs = fs.readFileSync(claudeArgsLogPath, 'utf8');
+    expect(launchedArgs).not.toContain(BROWSER_PROMPT_SNIPPET);
+
+    const launchedEnv = fs.readFileSync(claudeEnvLogPath, 'utf8');
+    expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('/tmp/stale-browser-runtime');
+    expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('/tmp/stale-browser-legacy');
+    expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('9555');
+    expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('stale-default-env');
+  });
+
   it('skips managed browser attach when the default CCS browser profile directory is missing', () => {
     if (process.platform === 'win32') return;
 

tests/unit/targets/settings-profile-browser-launch.test.ts

@@ -131,6 +131,7 @@ describe('settings profile browser launch', () => {
 printf "%s\n" "$@" > "${claudeArgsLogPath}"
 {
   printf "userDataDir=%s\n" "$CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR"
+  printf "legacyProfileDir=%s\n" "$CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR"
   printf "host=%s\n" "$CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_HOST"
   printf "port=%s\n" "$CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_PORT"
   printf "httpUrl=%s\n" "$CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_HTTP_URL"
@@ -253,6 +254,30 @@ server.listen(0, '127.0.0.1', () => {
     expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('wsUrl=ws://127.0.0.1/devtools/browser/browser-target');
   });
 
+  it('scrubs inherited CCS_BROWSER_* env from browser-off settings-profile launches', () => {
+    if (process.platform === 'win32') return;
+
+    const result = runCcs(['glm', 'smoke'], {
+      ...baseEnv,
+      CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR: '/tmp/stale-settings-browser-runtime',
+      CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR: '/tmp/stale-settings-browser-legacy',
+      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_HOST: '127.0.0.1',
+      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_PORT: '9666',
+      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_HTTP_URL: 'http://127.0.0.1:9666',
+      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_WS_URL: 'ws://127.0.0.1/devtools/browser/stale-settings-env',
+    });
+
+    expect(result.status).toBe(0);
+    const launchedArgs = fs.readFileSync(claudeArgsLogPath, 'utf8');
+    expect(launchedArgs).not.toContain(BROWSER_PROMPT_SNIPPET);
+
+    const launchedEnv = fs.readFileSync(claudeEnvLogPath, 'utf8');
+    expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('/tmp/stale-settings-browser-runtime');
+    expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('/tmp/stale-settings-browser-legacy');
+    expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('9666');
+    expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('stale-settings-env');
+  });
+
   it('skips managed browser attach for settings-profile launches when the default CCS browser profile directory is missing', () => {
     if (process.platform === 'win32') return;
 

tests/unit/targets/settings-profile-image-analysis-launch.test.ts

@@ -1,10 +1,11 @@
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'bun:test';
+import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it, setDefaultTimeout } from 'bun:test';
 import { spawnSync } from 'child_process';
 import * as fs from 'fs';
 import * as os from 'os';
 import * as path from 'path';
 
 const STEERING_PROMPT_SNIPPET = 'prefer the CCS MCP tool ImageAnalysis instead of Read';
+setDefaultTimeout(30000);
 
 interface RunResult {
   status: number | null;
@@ -98,6 +99,9 @@ printf "%s\n" "$@" > "${claudeArgsLogPath}"
   printf "runtimeApiKey=%s\n" "$CCS_IMAGE_ANALYSIS_RUNTIME_API_KEY"
   printf "runtimeBaseUrl=%s\n" "$CCS_IMAGE_ANALYSIS_RUNTIME_BASE_URL"
   printf "runtimePath=%s\n" "$CCS_IMAGE_ANALYSIS_RUNTIME_PATH"
+  printf "browserUserDataDir=%s\n" "$CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR"
+  printf "browserLegacyProfileDir=%s\n" "$CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR"
+  printf "browserWsUrl=%s\n" "$CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_WS_URL"
 } > "${claudeEnvLogPath}"
 exit 0
 `,
@@ -261,6 +265,24 @@ exit 0
     expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('runtimeApiKey=stale-token');
   });
 
+  it('scrubs stale CCS_BROWSER_* env while preserving settings-profile image analysis runtime', () => {
+    if (process.platform === 'win32') return;
+
+    const result = runCcs(['glm', 'smoke'], {
+      ...baseEnv,
+      CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR: '/tmp/stale-image-browser-runtime',
+      CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR: '/tmp/stale-image-browser-legacy',
+      CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_WS_URL: 'ws://127.0.0.1/devtools/browser/stale-image-env',
+    });
+
+    expect(result.status).toBe(0);
+    const launchedEnv = fs.readFileSync(claudeEnvLogPath, 'utf8');
+    expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('stale-token');
+    expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('/tmp/stale-image-browser-runtime');
+    expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('/tmp/stale-image-browser-legacy');
+    expect(launchedEnv).not.toContain('stale-image-env');
+  });
+
   it('pins direct settings image analysis to the current local CLIProxy auth token', () => {
     if (process.platform === 'win32') return;
 

tests/unit/unified-config.test.ts

@@ -126,10 +126,12 @@ describe('unified-config-types', () => {
           policy: 'manual',
           user_data_dir: '',
           devtools_port: 9222,
+          eval_mode: 'readonly',
         },
         codex: {
           enabled: false,
           policy: 'manual',
+          eval_mode: 'readonly',
         },
       });
     });

tests/unit/utils/browser/browser-status.test.ts

@@ -261,6 +261,35 @@ describe('browser status', () => {
     expect(resolution.warning).toContain('ccs browser doctor');
   });
 
+  it('keeps env override paths from implicitly enabling Claude browser attach when config is disabled', () => {
+    mutateUnifiedConfig((config) => {
+      config.browser = {
+        claude: {
+          enabled: false,
+          policy: 'manual',
+          user_data_dir: '/config-browser',
+          devtools_port: 9333,
+        },
+        codex: {
+          enabled: false,
+          policy: 'manual',
+        },
+      };
+    });
+    process.env.CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR = '/env-browser';
+    process.env.CCS_BROWSER_DEVTOOLS_PORT = '9444';
+
+    const effective = getEffectiveClaudeBrowserAttachConfig(getBrowserConfig());
+
+    expect(effective).toMatchObject({
+      enabled: false,
+      source: 'CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR',
+      overrideActive: true,
+      userDataDir: '/env-browser',
+      devtoolsPort: 9444,
+    });
+  });
+
   it('returns the same managed attach warning when the configured DevTools port is unreachable', async () => {
     const managedDir = join(tempHome, '.ccs', 'browser', 'chrome-user-data');
     mkdirSync(managedDir, { recursive: true });
@@ -318,6 +347,20 @@ describe('browser status', () => {
   });
 
   it('preserves legacy metadata-based port discovery when only CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR is set', async () => {
+    mutateUnifiedConfig((config) => {
+      config.browser = {
+        claude: {
+          enabled: true,
+          policy: 'manual',
+          user_data_dir: '/config-browser',
+          devtools_port: 9333,
+        },
+        codex: {
+          enabled: false,
+          policy: 'manual',
+        },
+      };
+    });
     process.env.CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR = '/legacy-browser';
 
     const runtimeSpy = spyOn(chromeReuse, 'resolveBrowserRuntimeEnv').mockResolvedValue({

tests/unit/web-server/browser-routes.test.ts

@@ -153,26 +153,64 @@ describe('browser routes', () => {
         policy: 'manual',
         userDataDir: join(tempHome, '.ccs', 'browser', 'chrome-user-data'),
         devtoolsPort: 9222,
+        evalMode: 'readonly',
       },
       codex: {
         enabled: false,
         policy: 'manual',
+        evalMode: 'readonly',
       },
     });
     expect(payload.status.claude).toMatchObject({
       state: 'disabled',
       policy: 'manual',
+      evalMode: 'readonly',
       managedMcpServerName: 'ccs-browser',
     });
     expect(payload.status.codex).toMatchObject({
       enabled: false,
       state: 'disabled',
       policy: 'manual',
+      evalMode: 'readonly',
       serverName: 'ccs_browser',
     });
     expect(payload.status.codex.detail).toContain('off by default');
   });
 
+  it('returns evalMode through the standalone browser status route', async () => {
+    const updateResponse = await fetch(`${baseUrl}/api/browser`, {
+      method: 'PUT',
+      headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
+      body: JSON.stringify({
+        claude: {
+          enabled: true,
+          policy: 'manual',
+          evalMode: 'readwrite',
+        },
+        codex: {
+          enabled: true,
+          policy: 'auto',
+          evalMode: 'disabled',
+        },
+      }),
+    });
+
+    expect(updateResponse.status).toBe(200);
+
+    const response = await fetch(`${baseUrl}/api/browser/status`);
+    expect(response.status).toBe(200);
+    expect(await response.json()).toMatchObject({
+      claude: {
+        policy: 'manual',
+        evalMode: 'readwrite',
+      },
+      codex: {
+        policy: 'auto',
+        evalMode: 'disabled',
+      },
+    });
+  });
+
   it('updates the saved browser config through the dashboard route', async () => {
     const response = await fetch(`${baseUrl}/api/browser`, {
       method: 'PUT',
@@ -183,10 +221,12 @@ describe('browser routes', () => {
           policy: 'manual',
           userDataDir: '/tmp/ccs-browser',
           devtoolsPort: 9333,
+          evalMode: 'readwrite',
         },
         codex: {
-          enabled: false,
-          policy: 'manual',
+          enabled: true,
+          policy: 'auto',
+          evalMode: 'disabled',
         },
       }),
     });
@@ -199,10 +239,22 @@ describe('browser routes', () => {
         policy: 'manual',
         userDataDir: '/tmp/ccs-browser',
         devtoolsPort: 9333,
+        evalMode: 'readwrite',
       },
       codex: {
-        enabled: false,
+        enabled: true,
+        policy: 'auto',
+        evalMode: 'disabled',
+      },
+    });
+    expect(payload.browser.status).toMatchObject({
+      claude: {
         policy: 'manual',
+        evalMode: 'readwrite',
+      },
+      codex: {
+        policy: 'auto',
+        evalMode: 'disabled',
       },
     });
 
@@ -213,14 +265,57 @@ describe('browser routes', () => {
         policy: 'manual',
         user_data_dir: '/tmp/ccs-browser',
         devtools_port: 9333,
+        eval_mode: 'readwrite',
       },
       codex: {
-        enabled: false,
-        policy: 'manual',
+        enabled: true,
+        policy: 'auto',
+        eval_mode: 'disabled',
       },
     });
   });
 
+  it('updates evalMode without changing the saved policy', async () => {
+    const firstResponse = await fetch(`${baseUrl}/api/browser`, {
+      method: 'PUT',
+      headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
+      body: JSON.stringify({
+        codex: {
+          enabled: true,
+          policy: 'auto',
+          evalMode: 'readonly',
+        },
+      }),
+    });
+
+    expect(firstResponse.status).toBe(200);
+
+    const secondResponse = await fetch(`${baseUrl}/api/browser`, {
+      method: 'PUT',
+      headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
+      body: JSON.stringify({
+        codex: {
+          evalMode: 'readwrite',
+        },
+      }),
+    });
+
+    expect(secondResponse.status).toBe(200);
+    const payload = await secondResponse.json();
+    expect(payload.browser.config.codex).toMatchObject({
+      enabled: true,
+      policy: 'auto',
+      evalMode: 'readwrite',
+    });
+
+    const config = loadOrCreateUnifiedConfig();
+    expect(config.browser?.codex).toMatchObject({
+      enabled: true,
+      policy: 'auto',
+      eval_mode: 'readwrite',
+    });
+  });
+
   it('treats a blank user-data directory as a reset to the recommended path', async () => {
     const firstResponse = await fetch(`${baseUrl}/api/browser`, {
       method: 'PUT',
@@ -231,6 +326,7 @@ describe('browser routes', () => {
           policy: 'manual',
           userDataDir: '/tmp/ccs-browser-custom',
           devtoolsPort: 9333,
+          evalMode: 'readonly',
         },
       }),
     });
@@ -254,9 +350,11 @@ describe('browser routes', () => {
       policy: 'manual',
       userDataDir: join(tempHome, '.ccs', 'browser', 'chrome-user-data'),
       devtoolsPort: 9333,
+      evalMode: 'readonly',
     });
     expect(payload.browser.status.claude.state).toBe('browser_not_running');
     expect(payload.browser.status.claude.detail).toContain('CCS created the managed browser profile');
+    expect(payload.browser.status.claude.evalMode).toBe('readonly');
     expect(existsSync(join(tempHome, '.ccs', 'browser', 'chrome-user-data'))).toBe(true);
 
     const config = loadOrCreateUnifiedConfig();
@@ -266,6 +364,7 @@ describe('browser routes', () => {
         policy: 'manual',
         user_data_dir: join(tempHome, '.ccs', 'browser', 'chrome-user-data'),
         devtools_port: 9333,
+        eval_mode: 'readonly',
       },
     });
   });
@@ -336,6 +435,23 @@ describe('browser routes', () => {
     });
   });
 
+  it('rejects invalid browser evalMode values at the route boundary', async () => {
+    const response = await fetch(`${baseUrl}/api/browser`, {
+      method: 'PUT',
+      headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
+      body: JSON.stringify({
+        claude: {
+          evalMode: 'always',
+        },
+      }),
+    });
+
+    expect(response.status).toBe(400);
+    expect(await response.json()).toEqual({
+      error: 'Invalid value for claude.evalMode. Must be one of: disabled, readonly, readwrite.',
+    });
+  });
+
   it('rejects unknown nested browser lane fields instead of silently ignoring them', async () => {
     const response = await fetch(`${baseUrl}/api/browser`, {
       method: 'PUT',

ui/src/lib/api-client.ts

@@ -234,17 +234,20 @@ export interface UpdateImageAnalysisSettingsPayload {
   profileBackends?: Record<string, string>;
 }
 
+export type BrowserToolPolicy = 'auto' | 'manual';
 export type BrowserEvalMode = 'disabled' | 'readonly' | 'readwrite';
 
 export interface BrowserSettingsConfig {
   claude: {
     enabled: boolean;
+    policy: BrowserToolPolicy;
     userDataDir: string;
     devtoolsPort: number;
     evalMode: BrowserEvalMode;
   };
   codex: {
     enabled: boolean;
+    policy: BrowserToolPolicy;
     evalMode: BrowserEvalMode;
   };
 }
@@ -257,6 +260,7 @@ export interface BrowserLaunchCommands {
 
 export interface ClaudeBrowserStatus {
   enabled: boolean;
+  policy: BrowserToolPolicy;
   source: 'config' | 'CCS_BROWSER_USER_DATA_DIR' | 'CCS_BROWSER_PROFILE_DIR';
   overrideActive: boolean;
   state: 'disabled' | 'path_missing' | 'browser_not_running' | 'endpoint_unreachable' | 'ready';
@@ -275,6 +279,7 @@ export interface ClaudeBrowserStatus {
 
 export interface CodexBrowserStatus {
   enabled: boolean;
+  policy: BrowserToolPolicy;
   state: 'disabled' | 'enabled' | 'unsupported_build';
   title: string;
   detail: string;

ui/src/pages/settings/types.ts

@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
 
 import type {
   BrowserEvalMode,
+  BrowserToolPolicy,
   BrowserSettingsConfig,
   BrowserStatusPayload,
   CliproxyServerConfig,
@@ -199,7 +200,7 @@ export interface ThinkingConfig {
 
 // === Re-exports from api-client ===
 
-export type { BrowserEvalMode, CliproxyServerConfig, RemoteProxyStatus };
+export type { BrowserEvalMode, BrowserToolPolicy, CliproxyServerConfig, RemoteProxyStatus };
 export type BrowserConfig = BrowserSettingsConfig;
 export type BrowserStatus = BrowserStatusPayload;
 export type BrowserSavePayload = UpdateBrowserSettingsPayload;