Change Logger
Automatically generate and update CHANGELOG.md files from git commit history
Change Logger is a VSCode/Cursor extension that eliminates the pain of manually maintaining changelogs. It scans your git history and intelligently creates professional changelog entries with proper categorization and version detection.
Features
✅ Two Core Commands
- Create Changelog Here - Generate a new CHANGELOG.md file
- Update Changelog - Add new entries or create if doesn't exist
✅ Smart Git Detection
- Automatically finds
.git directory in current folder or parent directories
- Works in monorepos and nested project structures
✅ Intelligent Version Detection
- 🏷️ Git Tags - Auto-increments from latest semantic version tag
- 📦 package.json - Fallback to package.json version
- 💬 User Input - Interactive prompts when needed
- 🔄 Smart Defaults - Sensible fallbacks for any workflow
✅ Automatic Commit Categorization
- Added - Features, new functionality (
feat, feature, add)
- Fixed - Bug fixes and corrections (
fix, bug)
- Changed - Other modifications and improvements
✅ Incremental Updates
- Only includes new commits since last changelog entry
- Tracks dates to prevent duplicates
- Preserves existing changelog content
Installation
Development
- Clone this repository
- Open in VSCode
- Run
npm install
- Press
F5 to launch Extension Development Host
From Package
(Coming soon to VSCode Marketplace)
Usage
Basic Usage
- Right-click any folder in your git repository
- Select "Create Changelog Here" or "Update Changelog"
- Extension will:
- Find your git repository
- Analyze commit history
- Determine appropriate version
- Generate categorized changelog entries
Command Palette
Press Ctrl+Shift+P (Windows/Linux) or Cmd+Shift+P (Mac):
- Type "Change Logger: Create Changelog Here"
- Type "Change Logger: Update Changelog"
Version Detection Logic
The extension follows this priority order:
# If you have tags like v1.2.0, v1.1.0, etc.
git tag v1.2.0
- Finds latest semantic version tag
- Auto-increments based on commit types:
- Major bump:
BREAKING CHANGE or breaking
- Minor bump:
feat, feature
- Patch bump:
fix, bug
2. Package.json
{
"version": "1.2.0"
}
Uses version from package.json if no git tags found.
Interactive prompt when no version source is available:
Enter version for this changelog entry
e.g., 1.2.0, v2.0.0, or leave empty for "Unreleased"
4. Smart Defaults
- Updates:
"Unreleased"
- New changelogs:
"1.0.0"
Example Output
# Changelog
All notable changes to this project will be documented in this file.
## [1.3.0] - 2024-01-15
### Added
- feat: implement smart version detection
- add support for git tag parsing
### Fixed
- fix: resolve path detection issues
- bug: handle missing .git directories
### Changed
- update documentation
- refactor commit categorization logic
Commit Message Conventions
For best results, use conventional commit messages:
# Features (minor version bump)
git commit -m "feat: add new authentication system"
git commit -m "feature: implement dark mode"
# Bug Fixes (patch version bump)
git commit -m "fix: resolve login timeout issue"
git commit -m "bug: fix memory leak in parser"
# Breaking Changes (major version bump)
git commit -m "feat!: redesign API endpoints
BREAKING CHANGE: API endpoints now require authentication"
Configuration
Currently no configuration options. The extension works out-of-the-box with sensible defaults.
Future versions may include:
- Custom commit categorization rules
- Changelog format templates
- Date range selection
- Exclude patterns
Requirements
- Git repository (
.git directory)
- VSCode 1.74.0 or higher
Development
# Install dependencies
npm install
# Compile TypeScript
npm run compile
# Watch for changes
npm run watch
# Package extension
npm run package
Troubleshooting
"No .git directory found"
- Ensure you're in a git repository
- Check that
.git folder exists in current or parent directories
- Initialize git:
git init
"No new commits found"
- All commits since last changelog update are already included
- Make new commits to generate changelog entries
Version detection issues
- Create semantic version git tags:
git tag v1.0.0
- Add version to package.json
- Use manual input when prompted
Contributing
- Fork the repository
- Create feature branch:
git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature
- Commit changes:
git commit -m 'feat: add amazing feature'
- Push to branch:
git push origin feature/amazing-feature
- Open Pull Request
License
MIT License - feel free to use in your projects!
Roadmap
- [ ] VSCode Marketplace publication
- [ ] Custom commit categorization rules
- [ ] Multiple changelog formats (Keep a Changelog, etc.)
- [ ] Configuration options
- [ ] Date range selection
- [ ] Integration with release workflows
- [ ] Support for monorepo changelogs
