CtxCopy

CtxCopy is a lightweight VS Code extension for staging and copying workspace files directly to your clipboard in a structured format designed for LLM prompts and code review assistants (e.g., ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini).

It operates locally within your editor with no telemetry, external network requests, or background daemons.

How It Works

When copying selected files, CtxCopy reads their content as UTF-8 text, verifies they are not binary or unreadable, formats each file with its workspace-relative path, and writes the consolidated payload directly to the system clipboard.

Clipboard Format

Single file:

src/components/TaskRow.tsx

<file contents>

Multiple files:

src/components/TaskRow.tsx

<file contents>

src/components/MissedTasksSheet.tsx

<file contents>

convex/tasks.ts

<file contents>

Usage

1. Multi-File Selection (CtxCopy View)

1. Open the CtxCopy view from the Activity Bar.
2. Add files using any of these methods:
   • Click Add Files... (+) in the CtxCopy view toolbar to search and select files across the workspace.
   • Right-click any file or folder in the VS Code File Explorer and select Add to CtxCopy.
   • With an active file open in the editor, run CtxCopy: Add Current File (Ctrl+Alt+A / Cmd+Alt+A).
3. View your staged files in the CtxCopy sidebar list.
4. Click Copy Selected Files in the view header (Alt+Shift+C / Cmd+Alt+Shift+C) to copy all staged files.
5. Click Clear Selection (Alt+Shift+X / Cmd+Alt+Shift+X) to reset the list.

Files currently staged in CtxCopy are decorated with a green ✓ indicator in the VS Code File Explorer and Workspace Explorer.

2. Quick Single-File Copy

• Explorer Context Menu: Right-click any file in the VS Code Explorer and click Copy with CtxCopy.
• Editor Action / Shortcut: Press Alt+C (Cmd+Alt+C on macOS) while editing any file.

Commands and Shortcuts

Configuration

Settings can be customized under Preferences > Settings > Extensions > CtxCopy:

• ctxcopy.warnOnSecrets (default: true): Prompt for confirmation when attempting to copy sensitive files (e.g. .env, .pem, credentials).
• ctxcopy.maxFileSizeKB (default: 2048): Maximum file size in KB permitted before warning about potential performance issues.
• ctxcopy.includeLineNumbers (default: false): Prefix each line in the copied output with line numbers.

Project Structure

ctxcopy/
├── .vscode/             # Launch and build task configurations
├── media/               # Activity Bar icons
├── src/
│   ├── commands/        # Extension command definitions and registrations
│   ├── formatter/       # Clipboard formatting logic
│   ├── selection/       # Selection state management and Explorer decorations
│   ├── utils/           # UTF-8 file reader, binary detection, secret heuristics
│   ├── views/           # CtxCopy TreeDataProvider and sidebar view
│   ├── test/            # Mocha and @vscode/test-electron test suites
│   └── extension.ts     # Extension activation and lifecycle
├── esbuild.js           # Production & development bundler
├── package.json         # Extension manifest and contributions
└── tsconfig.json        # TypeScript configuration

Installation

From VS Code Marketplace

1. Open VS Code and press Ctrl+Shift+X (Cmd+Shift+X on macOS) to open the Extensions view.
2. Search for CtxCopy (by ArjunAmbavane).
3. Click Install.

Or install from the command line:

code --install-extension ArjunAmbavane.ctxcopy

Development

For instructions on running from source, building, testing, packaging, and publishing updates, refer to DEVELOPMENT.md.

License

MIT