OpenAI

An OpenAI connection gives agents the credential they use to run OpenAI models. It is model access, not a set of tools — there are no actions to permit.

Two ways to authenticate: a subscription sign-in through the Codex CLI, or an OpenAI API key.

Before you connect

  • Either a plan that covers Codex CLI sign-in, or an OpenAI API key from the OpenAI dashboard.
  • An agent that runs on Codex: the Codex adapter, or Paperclip Runner with the Codex provider. A standard OpenAI connection is not compatible with a Claude or OpenCode harness.
  • For subscription sign-in only: a sign-in environment — either the Paperclip server host, or a sandbox environment that supports interactive sign-in. See With a subscription.

Choose a sign-in method

Method Use it when Billing
Subscription You want agent runs to draw on a plan that includes Codex Your OpenAI plan's terms and limits apply
API key You want metered usage, separate billing, or no interactive sign-in OpenAI bills the key's organization per token

Warning: These are not interchangeable. The subscription path authenticates the Codex CLI, so it covers Codex-runtime agent runs — it is not a general-purpose OpenAI API credential for other integrations. If you need arbitrary OpenAI API access, use an API key.

Confirm current plan entitlements and limits with OpenAI rather than assuming; they change independently of Paperclip.

Connect OpenAI

  1. Open Connectors and select OpenAI.
  2. Choose the sign-in method.

Setup is a single screen with no separate access step. Once the account is saved, you change which people and agents may use it from the saved connection.

With an API key

Paste the key. Paperclip stores it as a secret and it is not readable afterwards.

With a subscription

Sign-in runs in a sign-in environment, and there are two kinds. Which ones your instance offers is a configuration matter, not a per-connection choice:

Sign-in environment What it needs How you sign in
The Paperclip server host The codex CLI installed on that host, shell access to it, and an active local environment Paperclip shows a command to paste into a terminal on that host (Copy sign-in command)
A sandbox environment A sandbox whose provider supports interactive sign-in, configured by an administrator Sign-in happens in the environment Paperclip provides; no terminal on the server host is required

When both are available Paperclip shows a Sign-in environment selector. The environment used to sign in may differ from where the agent later runs; picking one here does not change agent routing.

On the Paperclip server host:

  1. Select Sign in. Paperclip shows a command that sets CODEX_HOME to a directory for this attempt and runs codex login --device-auth with file-based credential storage.
  2. Run it in a terminal on that host and complete OpenAI's device sign-in. Paperclip checks automatically when you return.
  3. When Paperclip says "Codex CLI is signed in. Click Connect to use this account.", select Connect. The attempt stays open for 30 minutes before it expires.

If you want a different OpenAI account before connecting, select Use a different account. If the attempt expires or fails, select Start sign-in again.

Note: The sign-in uses its own CODEX_HOME, so it neither reads nor disturbs your personal codex login on that machine.

Note: The 30-minute limit is documented for the server-host attempt. We have not established an equivalent figure for sandbox sign-in; complete any sandbox session promptly.

If server-host sign-in is unavailable you will see "Server-host subscription sign-in is unavailable on this hosted instance. Choose a supported sign-in environment or use an API key." That restriction is on signing in on the host, not on subscription authentication generally — a sandbox sign-in environment, where configured, still works. It applies on publicly exposed authenticated deployments unless an administrator has configured a trusted runtime host.

In a supported sandbox:

  1. Select the sandbox in Sign-in environment, if a selector is shown, and choose subscription authentication.
  2. Wait for Paperclip to prepare the sign-in link, then use Sign in to OpenAI to open it.
  3. If Paperclip displays a device code, enter it on the provider's sign-in page. Complete authorization and return to Paperclip.
  4. Wait for Paperclip to finish the connection. If the attempt expires or fails, start a new attempt; an open provider page alone does not establish that the credential was saved.

Assign the credential

Open the saved connection and use Make default under Personal default for your own account. In the agent's AI connection selector, choose Responsible user’s connection to use each responsible person's default, or select a named compatible company-shared account. Save the agent configuration.

  • Set it as your default for the provider, and agents configured to use the responsible user's connection will draw on each person's own account.
  • Bind a specific shared connection to the agent so eligible runs use that account rather than the starter's own default.

A specific binding is not unconditional. Every run through it must satisfy all three of these, or the run is refused:

Requirement Why a run fails without it
The connection is Company shared A specific binding must point at a company-shared account. Personal accounts are reached only through their owner's default; the older "pick someone's personal account" binding is a legacy format the current interface no longer creates
The run has a responsible user who is allowed to use the credential The human sharing audience governs every binding — "This credential is not shared with the responsible user"
The connection is installed for that agent (or company-wide) Otherwise "This connection is not permitted for this agent"

So a binding cannot substitute for a responsible user: with no responsible person there is nobody for the permission check to evaluate, and the run is refused whatever binding is set.

Personal keeps the credential yours; Company shared makes one account available to eligible agents on runs whose responsible person is in its human audience. The model is chosen in the agent's configuration, not here.

Connect from an agent's settings

You can also connect an account without leaving the agent. In the agent's AI connection field:

  • Reconnect account appears when your current personal default needs attention. It signs you in again and repairs that same account, so its default and its agent access stay as they were.
  • Connect another account opens Connect account, which tells you up front that the new account "will become your default for this provider." Your tasks use it; other people keep their own defaults.

When you connect a brand-new account this way, you also see Allow all agents in this company to use this account for my tasks. It starts ticked if you can manage connections. Clear it to keep the account to this agent only. Either way, the account backs only tasks you are responsible for, and a reconnect never widens access an account already has. If sign-in succeeds but the default cannot be saved, Retry default selection tries again without another sign-in.

Reconnect from a task

If a task shows an authentication card, select Fix connection to repair the selected account without leaving the task. The account owner signs in again; the card explains when another owner must do it. After setup completes, the task resumes through normal admission. Reconnecting preserves the account's audience and agent access.

Check your usage limits

Before you hand an agent a long task, you can see how much of the provider's allowance is left. Open the saved account and find Usage, then select Check usage. This works for an OpenAI subscription. An API-key account shows "Unavailable for this sign-in method." instead of the button, because the provider has no single-key allowance to read.

Paperclip reads the limits only when you ask. Opening the account, listing connections, and starting a run never trigger a check. Each limit window shows how much is used and when it resets, and is marked Limit reached or Blocked when the provider says so. Overage shows whether extra paid usage is available. Anything the provider leaves out shows as Not reported, never as zero. After a successful check, the button becomes Refresh.

Checking is read-only. It does not move work to another account, stop runs at a limit, refresh the credential, or buy credit.

Message What it means
"Sign in again to check usage." The stored credential has expired. Reconnect the account
"Usage access denied." The provider refused to share usage for this credential
"Too many checks. Try again later." The provider rate-limited the check itself. Your allowance is not affected
"Reconnect to check usage." The account is not usable right now. Reconnect it first

Board users can run the same check over the API with GET /api/companies/{companyId}/ai-connections/{connectionId}/usage.

Try it

First read the agent's configuration and note which AI connection it is set to use. That setting, not the run output, is where the intended credential is visible. Then:

Reply with the single word: ready

A successful reply proves that some OpenAI credential was accepted, the runtime is compatible, and the checks above passed. Paperclip refuses an ineligible binding outright rather than falling back to another account, so a run that completes under an explicit binding used an authorized credential.

It does not prove which account was billed. Paperclip resolves provider, method, connection and responsible user internally but does not surface them per run. To confirm a specific account, check usage on OpenAI's dashboard for that account afterwards.

Watch the run itself — a connection can look healthy and still fail at run time if the agent is not on a Codex runtime.

Note: Illustrative task, not a recorded test result.

Troubleshooting and limitations

Problem Likely cause Fix
"Select an AI connection compatible with this harness and model" The agent does not run on the Codex runtime Move the agent to a Codex runtime, or use that runtime's provider
"Connect an account and choose your personal default" The agent uses the responsible user's connection and that person has no default Connect an account and mark it as your default
"This run needs a responsible user to select an AI connection" The run has no responsible person, and every credential check is evaluated against that person Give the work an eligible responsible user — assign the issue to one, or start the run as one. Binding a shared connection does not work around this
"This credential is not shared with the responsible user" The connection is shared with named people and the responsible user is not among them Add that person to the connection's audience, or have someone already in it take responsibility for the work
"This connection is not permitted for this agent" The connection is not installed for that agent or company-wide Install it for the agent on the connection's access settings
A subscription connection made during the preview stops working Preview-era subscription credentials are not reusable and must be re-established Reconnect the account
Sign in is unavailable No sign-in environment is offered on this deployment Ask an administrator whether a sandbox sign-in environment can be enabled; otherwise use an API key
The sign-in command does nothing The codex CLI is missing on the host you ran it on, or you ran it on the wrong machine Install the CLI and run the command in a terminal on the Paperclip server host itself
Status expired or needs attention The credential rotated or the key was revoked Reconnect the account
Runs fail with a quota error OpenAI's plan or key limits, not a Paperclip limit On a subscription, select Check usage on the saved account to see which window is exhausted and when it resets. Otherwise check usage with OpenAI

Limitations: one connection is one provider account, and it grants no tool access. The subscription path is tied to the Codex CLI rather than being a general OpenAI API credential.