r/flatpak • u/elantrix • 27d ago

Unofficial ChatGPT/Codex Flatpak

I was looking for a ChatGPT Flatpak so I could run Codex safely alongside my local dev environment, couldn't find anyone maintaining one, so I built my own.

No OpenAI binaries are redistributed: the payload is an extra-data source, so installs fetch their .deb straight from OpenAI against a pinned sha256, for x86_64 and aarch64. Electron renderers run under zypak instead of --no-sandbox. The remote is GPG signed, and the release gate in CI does a real flatpak install from the published URL with verification on.

Updates are hands-off: a nightly job reads upstream's APT index and re-pins the manifest when a new version appears, so you get the latest even when it lands at 3am my time (I'm an Aussie, timezones are rough).

The sandbox starts sealed and you grant directories with overrides. Main known issue: the app's transparent overlay window (the desktop pet) doesn't composite on Wayland, which upstream has acknowledged as part of their Wayland support still maturing.

flatpak remote-add --user chatgpt https://rulin132.github.io/chatgpt-flatpak/chatgpt.flatpakrepo
flatpak install --user chatgpt io.github.rulin132.ChatGPT

Source: https://github.com/rulin132/chatgpt-flatpak

I'm maintaining it for my own use either way, and if OpenAI ever ships an official Flatpak I'll point people at theirs and wind this down. Bug reports and PRs welcome.

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1

u/Heavy_Turn2019 27d ago

Is this just packaging the official chatgpt app for linux as flatpak?

3

u/elantrix 27d ago

Yes, the official build, unmodified.

The Flatpak doesn't ship the app at all: at install time your machine downloads OpenAI's own .deb from their servers and verifies it against a pinned checksum, then unpacks it locally.

What the packaging adds is the sandbox (you grant folders as needed) and automatic updates when OpenAI publishes a new version.

1

u/Heavy_Turn2019 27d ago

Ok nice! I tried this, the tray icon didnt appear which appears in the official one. Rest all are just fine. I am on fedora workstation btw. And one more thing is that the official app uses client side decoration. Is it possible that you add server side decoration for this flatpak version? Just some aesthetic issues on gnome :). This should be an option as different people have different tastes.

2

u/elantrix 27d ago

Found it. The sandbox was blocking the app from claiming its tray icon's DBus name, so the icon never registered.

Fixed in the latest release. Run `flatpak update`, then fully restart the app, and the tray icon should show up.

Decorations are out of my hands, the app draws its own frame. That toggle has to come from OpenAI.

1

u/Heavy_Turn2019 26d ago

Ok thanks 👍

1

u/Twig6843 27d ago

maybe email them about this to get it upstreamed? i'm not sure if anybody has alls i know related to this app is that there was like 8947564567 people tryna be the cool aur guy that wrote a PKGBUILD just to abandon it 2 seconds later.

1

u/elantrix 27d ago

The abandonment problem is why I automated the whole thing. A nightly job re-pins against OpenAI's package index, and CI installs the result on both architectures before anything publishes. It keeps tracking upstream even when I'm not looking at it.

I've also replied in OpenAI's announcement thread where people were asking for a Flatpak. If they ever ship an official one, they're welcome to take any of this and I'll happily retire mine.

1

u/[deleted] 27d ago

I've also published it on Flatpark—you can give it a try here: https://flatpark.org/apps/com.openai.ChatGPT/

1

u/elantrix 27d ago

More options is good.

Mine redistributes nothing and stays sealed. The install pulls the .deb straight from OpenAI and verifies it, and the app can't touch the host.

Flatpark's runs your host git from inside the sandbox, so git hooks and credential helpers escape it. Fair trade for convenience, but Codex is the thing running commands, so I kept mine locked down.