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wta.exe launch fails with 0x80070002 — misplaced quote in path breaks at "Program Files" (Windows, codex agent) #4540
Description
Environment
- OS: Windows 11 (build 26100)
- Copilot CLI: 1.0.80 (npm
@github/copilot@1.0.80, platform packagecopilot-win32-x64) - Intelligent Terminal:
Microsoft.IntelligentTerminal0.2.2192.0 (installed via MS Store, package status Ok,wta.exepresent and intact — 24,870 KB)
Bug
When spawning a delegated codex agent (--delegate-agent codex), the terminal launch fails with:
error 2147942402 (0x80070002) when launching `C:\Program "Files\WindowsApps\Microsoft.IntelligentTerminal_0.2.2192.0_x64__8wekyb3d8bbwe\wta.exe --connect-master \\.\pipe\wta-master-<GUID> --owner-tab-id {<GUID>} --owner-window-id 1 --agent npx" -y "@agentclientprotocol/codex-acp@1.1.4 --agent-id codex --agent-source host --follows-global-acp-model --allowed-agent-ids copilot,claude,codex,gemini,opencode --delegate-agent codex --language en-US --start-stashed"
The system cannot find the file specified.
Root cause
The command line is assembled with a misplaced quote: C:\Program "Files\WindowsApps\... — the quote opens after Program instead of before C:\. Windows then treats C:\Program as the executable path, which does not exist → 0x80070002 (ERROR_FILE_NOT_FOUND).
The closing quote appears after --agent npx, so the intended quoting was presumably:
"C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\...\wta.exe" --connect-master ... --agent "npx" -y "..." ...
Reproducibility
- Reproduces 100% on every codex agent spawn, including after a full reboot
- Survives: forced reinstall of Microsoft.IntelligentTerminal from the Store, and npm update of @github/copilot (1.0.79 → 1.0.80)
wta.exelaunches fine when run directly from PowerShell — the exe and package are healthy; only the command construction is broken
Workaround
Use non-codex agents (copilot/claude/gemini work), since the faulty quoting appears specific to the codex delegate path.
Activity
MilkyWay008 commentedon Aug 20, 2026
yeah that 0x80070002 is just file-not-found, and you already found it, the quote lands after
Programso Windows tries to runC:\Programas the exe. your wta.exe is fine, it's the spawn line in the codex delegate path being assembled wrong. I'd lean on copilot/claude/gemini delegates till that gets patched upstream. oh, btw, in case it might help that, I built a portable Hermes OTG repo, check it, imo it may be able to help you diagnose and figure out the fix in no time. https://github.com/MilkyWay008/Hermes-OTGpatniko commentedon Oct 26, 2026
Thanks for the detailed report! The launch command shown here (including the misplaced quote) is generated by the terminal application that starts the agent (
wta.exe), not by Copilot CLI, so it can't be fixed in this repo. Please report it through that application's feedback channel. Closing as off-topic for this repository.Triaged as part of a Copilot SDK backlog review, with help from GitHub Copilot.