Run Codex in the Cloud: Spin Up DigitalOcean Droplets with the Codex Plugin

Melvin Vivas · X video post · 2026-06-26 · 1:35 · 214 views · Open on X

Topics: AI Dev Tools & Productivity, AI Agents, Tool Use & MCP, LLMOps, Deployment & Monitoring · Level: beginner

Summary

A short demo of the DigitalOcean plugin for OpenAI Codex. It lets you create a persistent cloud dev environment (a DigitalOcean Droplet VM) with a single prompt. Codex then runs its agent on that VM, so long or complex tasks keep going after you close your laptop. The video walks through installing the plugin, creating a Droplet, connecting, using the built-in terminal and moving tasks between your local machine and the VM.

Key points

• Problem: long or complex Codex tasks are limited when they run on your laptop. Moving them to a cloud VM lets them keep running while you're away.
• Step 1: install the DigitalOcean plugin in the Codex app, then sign in with your DigitalOcean account (or create one).
• Step 2: ask Codex in plain language to spin up a new Droplet. A Droplet is DigitalOcean's name for a VM. Setup can take a few minutes.
• Droplets created by the plugin come with common dev tools like Node.js and Python, and the plugin sets up the SSH credentials for you.
• Step 3: sign in with your ChatGPT account on the Droplet so Codex can connect to the VM automatically.
• Once connected, you can ask Codex to set up an existing project or start a new one on the VM. The creator uses this for overnight tasks that run in Goal mode.
• Codex's built-in terminal connects to the Droplet over SSH automatically, so you can run commands, install dependencies or change the VM's configuration.
• If the same project exists on your local machine and on the VM, you can move a task you're working on from one to the other.

Resources mentioned

• DigitalOcean (@digitalocean) on X · website · x.com · free
  DigitalOcean's official X account, which posts product announcements like the Codex plugin.
• DigitalOcean plugin for Codex · tool · digitalocean.com · paid
  A Codex plugin that creates and manages DigitalOcean Droplets that run the Codex agent as persistent cloud dev environments.
• OpenAI Codex · tool · openai.com · paid
  OpenAI's coding agent. In the diagram it writes code, fixes review findings and drives the build loop. The creator also used it to make this video.
  Also in: An agent bot that installs and drives Codex on its own (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), Asking a Coder bot to install Codex (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), Sign in with ChatGPT: Setting Usage Limits for Each App (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), Codex Cloud Environments Must Be Saved & Published Before Use (Melvin Vivas on X · notes) and 240 more
• DigitalOcean Droplets · tool · digitalocean.com · paid
  DigitalOcean's virtual machines, used here as cloud dev environments for Codex.
• ChatGPT · tool · chatgpt.com · free · recommended by both Bashiri Smith & Melvin Vivas
  OpenAI's AI assistant (web, desktop and mobile apps), used for chat, coding, writing and image generation.
  Also in: Sign in with ChatGPT: Setting Usage Limits for Each App (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), Dots Demo: A Voice AI Agent Handling Travel Booking and Feedback Triage (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), ChatGPT Can Commit Code Directly to Your GitHub Repo (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), OpenAI Dots: Agents Inside ChatGPT That Debug, Fix, and Open PRs (Melvin Vivas on X · notes) and 23 more
• Codex Goal mode · tool · developers.openai.com · paid
  A Codex mode for long-running tasks aimed at a goal, which the creator runs on cloud VMs.
• Node.js · tool · nodejs.org · free · recommended by both Bashiri Smith & Melvin Vivas
  A JavaScript runtime that comes preinstalled on Droplets created by the plugin.
  Also in: Problem Solving Over Keywords: The AI Skill That Never Expires (Bashiri Smith on Facebook · notes)
• Python · tool · python.org · free · recommended by both Bashiri Smith & Melvin Vivas
  A programming language that comes preinstalled on Droplets created by the plugin.
  Also in: Step-by-Step Roadmap to a $200K+ AI Engineering Role (Bashiri Smith on Facebook · notes), Software Engineer to AI Engineer: Job Boards, Stack, Projects and Learning Sites (Bashiri Smith on Facebook · notes)

Try this

• Install the DigitalOcean plugin in the Codex app and sign in with (or create) a DigitalOcean account.
• Ask Codex to spin up a new Droplet, and wait a few minutes for it to be set up.
• Sign in with your ChatGPT account so Codex connects to the VM automatically.
• Ask Codex to set up an existing project on the VM, or start a new one there.
• Use Codex's built-in terminal to run commands, install dependencies or configure the Droplet.
• Move a task from your local machine to the VM once the same project exists on both.
• Give it a try.
• Set up a persistent cloud dev environment on a DigitalOcean Droplet where Codex runs long tasks in Goal mode overnight, without your laptop.