What is Terminal Flow?

Terminal Flow is a VS Code extension that lets you save, organize, and execute shell commands and multi-step workflows without ever leaving your editor. Commands are stored as simple JSON files inside your project, so you can commit them to Git and share them with your entire team.

✨ Features

📂 Project-Based Storage

Commands and flows are stored in .terminal/commands.json and .terminal/flows.json in your workspace root. Commit them to Git and share with your team.

👤 Personal Storage

Manage your private commands and flows in a global ~/.terminal folder. Toggle between Workspace and Personal views to keep your environment organized.

⚡️ One-Click Execution

Run complex shell commands instantly from the sidebar — no need to remember or retype them.

🔍 Quick Pick Execution

Use the Terminal Flow: Search and Run command from the command palette to instantly find and run your commands or flows without opening the sidebar.

📝 Variable Interpolation

Use variables like $filename or $branch in your commands. Terminal Flow will prompt you to fill in these values before execution, making your commands reusable and dynamic.

🔗 Command Flows

Chain multiple commands together into reproducible workflows (e.g., Build → Test → Deploy). Commands execute sequentially, each waiting for the previous to succeed.

⏱ Built-in Sleep & Echo

Insert sleep (with configurable delay) and echo (with custom messages) steps directly into flows — no need to create separate commands for them.

⚡️ Async Execution

Configure individual commands or entire flows to run in their own dedicated terminal windows, allowing parallel execution alongside your main work.

⏯ Flexible Flows

Start your flows from any step in the sequence using the "Run from here" (⬇) button.

🎨 Modern UI

Clean, React-based sidebar interface that blends seamlessly with your VS Code theme. Categories are collapsible and remember their state.

🔍 Smart Search

Instantly filter your commands and flows. Search works across titles, descriptions, and even the command code itself.

↕️ Easy Organization

Keep your workspace tidy by reordering both categories and individual commands using the up/down controls.

🔄 Live Sync

Edit the JSON files directly or use the UI — both stay in sync instantly via file watchers.

📤 Export & Import

Easily backup or share your commands and flows. Supports exporting individual items or your entire collection, with automatic dependency handling for flows.

📋 Copy to Clipboard

Copy any command's shell text in one click. For flows, copy individual step commands or the entire flow sequence as a single shell script.

🔁 Duplicate

Quickly duplicate existing commands or flows as a starting point for new ones.

🔒 Protected Command Deletion

When attempting to delete a command that is used by one or more flows, the extension warns you and lists the affected flows — preventing accidental breakage.

📦 Installation

From VS Code Marketplace

Install Terminal Flow →

Or manually:

1. Open VS Code.
2. Go to Extensions (Ctrl+Shift+X / Cmd+Shift+X).
3. Search for "Terminal Flow".
4. Click Install.

🚀 Usage

1. Open the Terminal Flow icon in the Activity Bar (terminal icon in the sidebar).

Commands Tab

• Click + Add Command to create a new shell command.
• Enter a Title, Description, Category, and the Command.
• Click ▶ to run it in the integrated terminal.
• Commands are grouped by category with collapsible sections.
• Use the Search Bar at the top to filter commands.
• Use the ▲ ▼ buttons to reorder commands and categories.

Flows Tab

• Click + Add Flow to create a workflow sequence.
• Pick from your existing commands, or add built-in Sleep and Echo steps.
• Reorder steps with ↑↓ arrows.
• Click ▶ on a flow to run the entire sequence, or expand it and ▶ individual steps.

📁 File Structure

Terminal Flow stores everything in a .terminal folder at your workspace root:

.terminal/
├── commands.json          # Your saved commands
├── flows.json             # Your saved workflows
├── commandCategories.json # Order of command categories
└── flowCategories.json    # Order of flow categories

Personal commands are stored in your home directory:

~/.terminal/
├── commands.json
├── flows.json
...

Tip: Commit this folder to Git so your team shares the same commands and workflows.

🛠 Development

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18+
• VS Code 1.80+

Setup

git clone https://github.com/AlexeyKorolev/TerminalFlow.git
cd TerminalFlow
npm install

Build

npm run compile

Watch Mode

npm run watch

Debug

Press F5 in VS Code to launch the Extension Development Host.

📄 License

MIT © Alexey Korolev