AOH - Solution Explorer

A project-centric Solution Explorer for Visual Studio Code.

AOH - Solution Explorer provides a familiar solution and project view for .NET development without trying to replace VS Code's built-in File Explorer.

It focuses on the structure of your solution: projects, dependencies, folders, files, and the relationship between them.

Features

Solution and Project View

Displays your .NET solution as a structured tree instead of a plain filesystem hierarchy.

Supports:

• .sln solutions
• .slnx solutions
• Multiple projects per solution
• Solution folders
• Project folders and files
• Solution items
• Project dependencies
• Project properties

Project-Centric Navigation

The Solution Explorer represents the logical structure of your .NET solution rather than simply mirroring the filesystem.

This makes it easier to navigate larger solutions where the project structure matters more than the directory structure on disk.

Adjust Namespaces

Right-click a project, C# file, folder, Solution Folder, or Solution and choose Adjust Namespaces. Multiple selections are supported. Projects and solutions process all included C# source files, including files hidden by explorer filters.

C# Dev Kit's Roslyn language server performs the semantic refactoring: it adjusts namespace declarations and their affected references throughout the loaded solution, including using directives, aliases and qualified type names. References outside the selected project or folder are updated too. Successive adjustments use the updated solution so edits to shared callers are preserved.

The namespace is the evaluated project RootNamespace followed by the physical folders below the project directory. For example, Models/Orders/Order.cs with <RootNamespace>Company.App</RootNamespace> becomes Company.App.Models.Orders. When omitted, MSBuild supplies the project's default namespace. Logical Solution Folders do not contribute namespace segments.

Requires a trusted workspace, C# Dev Kit with its Roslyn-based C# extension, and .NET SDK 8 or newer for project evaluation. Both extensions are declared dependencies. Let C# Dev Kit finish loading the solution, and save project/props/targets changes first. Existing unsaved C# edits are preserved; refactoring changes remain unsaved and undoable.

Only refactorings offered by Roslyn are applied. Unsupported cases (for example, partial types spanning files or nested namespaces), generated sources, invalid namespace paths and conflicting shared-file targets are reported in Output > AOH Solution Explorer. No declaration-only fallback is used. If cancelled or interrupted, already completed semantic refactorings remain applied.

File Nesting

Related files can be displayed below their parent file.

Typical examples include:

MainWindow.xaml
└── MainWindow.xaml.cs

Example.cs
├── Example.Designer.cs
└── Example.resx

AOH - Solution Explorer respects VS Code's file nesting configuration.

For example:

{
    "explorer.fileNesting.enabled": true,
    "explorer.fileNesting.expand": true,
    "explorer.fileNesting.patterns": {
        "*.xaml": "${capture}.xaml.cs",
        "*.cs": "${capture}.Designer.cs, ${capture}.resx"
    }
}

Select Current File

Use Select Current File to locate the file currently open in the editor.

The Solution Explorer automatically expands the required project and folders and selects the corresponding file.

Follow Editor File

Enable Follow Editor File to keep the Solution Explorer synchronized with the active editor.

Whenever you switch to another file, the corresponding item is automatically revealed and selected in the Solution Explorer without moving keyboard focus away from the editor.

The setting is remembered per workspace.

Multi-Select

The Solution Explorer supports native VS Code multi-selection. Actions that naturally work on multiple items, such as Copy/Cut, Duplicate, path copying, Git Stage/Unstage/Rollback and deleting files/folders, operate on the current selection. Paste and Duplicate never silently overwrite an existing item; name collisions ask for the desired new name.

Native VS Code Integration

AOH - Solution Explorer uses VS Code's native Tree View API.

This means it integrates naturally with:

• VS Code themes
• Product icon themes
• Keyboard navigation
• Context menus
• Workspace state
• Editor navigation

No custom WebView is used for the Solution Explorer.

Settings

The extension exposes focused settings for behavior that is useful to tune without turning the Solution Explorer into a configuration project of its own:

• aoh.solutionExplorer.exclude - glob patterns hidden from the tree.
• aoh.solutionExplorer.colorMode - Git colors, error colors, both, or none.
• aoh.solutionExplorer.git.autoRefresh - refresh Git colors when repository state changes.
• aoh.solutionExplorer.git.refreshDelay - debounce Git-state refreshes.
• aoh.solutionExplorer.dragAndDrop.confirm - confirm moves performed with drag & drop.
• aoh.solutionExplorer.delete.confirm - confirm file/folder deletion.
• aoh.solutionExplorer.delete.useTrash - use the OS trash/recycle bin when deleting.

Git colors use VS Code's gitDecoration.*ResourceForeground theme colors, so active theme settings and workbench.colorCustomizations are respected. Deleted Git items are intentionally not colored.

Requirements

AOH - Solution Explorer requires C# Dev Kit and the C# extension running its Roslyn language server. Both are installed as extension dependencies.

The C# Dev Kit provides the underlying .NET solution and project information used by the extension.

Why AOH - Solution Explorer?

VS Code already has an excellent File Explorer, but filesystem navigation and solution navigation solve different problems.

For larger .NET solutions, developers often want to think in terms of:

Solution
├── Application
├── Domain
├── Infrastructure
├── Tests
└── Tools

rather than:

src/
tests/
tools/
Directory.Build.props
global.json
...

AOH - Solution Explorer adds that project-centric view while leaving the normal VS Code File Explorer untouched.

Use whichever view makes sense for the task at hand.

Philosophy

AOH - Solution Explorer follows a few simple principles:

• Integrate with VS Code instead of fighting it.
• Prefer native VS Code APIs over custom UI.
• Add missing IDE functionality without replacing functionality that already works well.
• Keep the extension focused on solution and project navigation.
• Avoid unnecessary configuration and complexity.

Part of AOH

AOH - Solution Explorer is part of AOH - Abyzz's Overhaul, a collection of extensions aimed at turning VS Code into a more complete and coherent development environment.

The goal is not to imitate another IDE.

The goal is to build on what VS Code already does well and fill the gaps that become apparent in larger, professional development workflows.

Making VS Code grow up.

License

MIT

Extension API

AOH Solution Explorer 1.9.0 exposes a small optional API for other AOH extensions. Consumers should activate Abyzz.aoh-solution-explorer and use the returned API object.

API v1 provides:

• getState() - current solution and active project.
• onDidChangeState(listener) - solution/project context changes.
• getActiveProject() - project containing the active editor file.
• getProjectForFile(uri) - project containing a file.

The API is intentionally independent of the TreeView UI.

Development

npm install
npm test

Repository documentation:

• AOH-RULES.md - rules shared by AOH extension repositories.
• AGENT.md - coding-agent instructions for this extension.
• EXTENSION-DESIGN.md - architecture, decisions, constraints, and planned work.
• CONTRIBUTING.md - contribution workflow.
• CHANGELOG.md - release history and current unreleased changes.