Markdown Helpers

Markdown Helpers is a VS Code extension for treating markdown as working source material instead of only static prose.

It combines workspace discovery, a dedicated preview panel, editor-side path intelligence, fenced code block extraction, and readable wrapping defaults into one workflow. The extension is designed for markdown-heavy repos where documents contain file references, runnable snippets, diagrams, and operational notes that need to stay connected to the rest of the workspace.

Out of the box it provides:

live discovery of markdown files across the workspace, including markdown-like extensions you configure
a dedicated preview panel with a file picker, outline, bounded reading width, and richer interactions than the built-in preview
clickable local file and folder references in markdown source and preview, including line, column, and range targets
hover previews for resolved file and folder links in the editor and preview
fenced code block actions that open snippets into untitled editors for inspection or execution
preview enhancements for code blocks, tables, Mermaid diagrams, front matter, and local path tokens inside rendered content
default bounded wrapping for markdown editors at 96 columns without rewriting file contents

Source-side helpers apply to markdown-like files by configured suffix as well, so files such as .prompt.md and .instructions.md are supported even when VS Code does not assign them the markdown language mode.

Features

1) Workspace discovery and recent markdown browser

Indexes markdown files in the open workspace using the configured markdown extensions.
Watches for create, change, and delete events so the file list stays current without manual rescans.
Excludes common heavy or generated directories such as node_modules, .git, .venv, and out.
Adds a dedicated activity bar container with a Recent Markdown tree.
Sorts recent files by modification time and shows metadata such as heading count, word count, size, and last update time.
Supports inline tree actions to open a markdown file or copy its full filesystem path.
Supports a refresh action from the tree title bar.
Can filter the recent-files tree to either all discovered markdown files or only markdown files changed relative to a configured git base ref.
The changed-files mode includes branch diff results plus local staged, unstaged, and untracked markdown changes.
When a pull request context is available, the comparison target can follow that PR base automatically.

2) Dedicated markdown preview panel

Opens rendered markdown in a dedicated extension panel instead of replacing the source editor.
Includes a workspace file picker inside the panel with client-side filtering by name or path.
Includes a refresh action in the panel and an Open text file action to jump back to the source document.
Keeps preview content constrained to a readable width using the markdownHelpers.previewMaxWidth setting.
Builds a live outline from headings and keeps the active section synchronized as you scroll.
Renders YAML front matter into a collapsible summary card instead of leaving it as raw fence content.
Preserves standard markdown rendering while classifying local workspace links separately from external URLs.
Resolves local markdown links, file links, and folder links relative to the current document before opening them.
Opens markdown targets back inside the dedicated preview when appropriate, while still allowing jumps into the text editor for precise locations.
Reveals folder targets in the Explorer when a link resolves to a directory.
Requests host-side hover previews for local links, so preview interactions stay consistent with editor hovers.
Detects raw path tokens in rendered text and turns them into interactive local links even when they were not written as markdown links.

3) Rich preview treatment for code blocks, tables, and diagrams

Adds syntax highlighting to rendered code blocks.
Wraps code blocks in a preview card with language and line-count metadata.
Collapses long code blocks by default and lets you expand or collapse them in place.
Adds actions to copy a code block, open a larger modal view, or open the block into an untitled editor.
Treats Mermaid fences as rendered diagrams rather than plain source code.
Supports Mermaid source toggling, copy actions, and opening Mermaid source into an untitled editor.
Opens Mermaid diagrams into an immersive modal with pan and zoom controls for large diagrams.
Wraps rendered tables in a scrollable frame with a table tools action.
Table tools support row filtering, sortable columns, show-all and hide-all column controls, fit-columns behavior, and manual column resizing.

4) Clickable path references in markdown source

Detects local targets from inline markdown links, reference-style link definitions, and raw path tokens written directly in the document.
Supports workspace-relative paths, document-relative paths, absolute filesystem paths, home-directory paths such as ~/notes.md, and file:/// URIs.
Supports line, column, and range suffixes such as docs/spec.md:14, src/file.ts:10:5, and README.md#L12-L18.
Supports anchor-style markdown targets and resolves common markdown-friendly forms such as extensionless paths and README fallbacks where possible.
Opens files at the best matching line, column, or line range.
Reveals directories in the Explorer when the target is a folder.
Adds hover previews for resolved file targets, including bounded content previews and referenced line ranges when available.
Adds hover previews for directories with clickable child entries.

5) Fenced code block extraction in the editor

Adds code lenses above fenced code blocks in markdown-like documents.
Provides the Markdown Helpers: Open Code Block At Cursor command for the fenced block under the active cursor.
Opens the extracted block into a dedicated untitled editor.
Applies a best-effort language mode from the fence info string, with sensible alias normalization before falling back to plaintext.
Works consistently across editor commands, code lenses, and preview-side Open code block actions.

6) Markdown-like file support and editor defaults

Applies document links, hovers, and code lenses to configured markdown extensions rather than only documents already in markdown language mode.
Defaults markdown editors to bounded wrapping with editor.wordWrap = bounded and editor.wordWrapColumn = 96.
Keeps wrap-width behavior non-destructive by using editor configuration and preview layout instead of mutating document text.

Commands

Markdown Helpers: Refresh (markdownHelpers.refresh)
Markdown Helpers: Open Markdown Preview (markdownHelpers.openMarkdown)
Markdown Helpers: Open Markdown File (markdownHelpers.openMarkdownFile)
Markdown Helpers: Copy Markdown Full Path (markdownHelpers.copyMarkdownPath)
Markdown Helpers: Reveal Preview (markdownHelpers.revealPreview)
Markdown Helpers: Open Code Block At Cursor (markdownHelpers.openCodeBlockAtCursor)
Markdown Helpers: Show Output (markdownHelpers.showOutput)

Additional inline actions are exposed through the Recent Markdown tree, editor code lenses, editor title button, and preview UI. The recent-files filter toggle is available from the tree title area.

Settings