Better RISC-V Support

A focused VS Code extension for GNU-style RISC-V assembly: syntax-aware highlighting, alignment-aware formatting, navigation, completion, and useful snippets in one lightweight package.

Highlights

Install

From the Marketplace

1. Open the Extensions view in VS Code.
2. Search for Better RISC-V Support.
3. Select Install.

Or install from the command line:

code --install-extension Esing.better-riscv-support

From a VSIX file

code --install-extension better-riscv-support-<version>.vsix

The extension requires VS Code 1.85 or later.

Quick start

1. Open a .s, .S, .asm, or .riscv file. If another extension selected a different language mode, use Change Language Mode and choose RISC-V Assembly.
2. Run Format Document (Shift+Alt+F on Windows/Linux) or invoke Better RISC-V Support: Format Document from the Command Palette.
3. Use F12 for definitions, Shift+F12 for references, and the Explorer's Outline view to navigate symbols.
4. Type a snippet prefix such as r3, rfunc, rmacro, rdefine, load, or branch, then accept the completion.

Formatting

Input:

#define SHORT 1
#define A_LONGER_NAME 42

  .macro SAVE reg
addi x1,x0,1
add x10,x2,x3
  .endm

Output:

#define SHORT                   1
#define A_LONGER_NAME           42

.macro SAVE reg
    addi x1 , x0, 1
    add  x10, x2, x3
.endm

Formatting is section-aware rather than file-global:

• #define names and values align within a define section. Comment-only lines and up to betterRiscvSupport.maxBlankLinesWithoutBreak blank lines remain in the same section.
• Ordinary assembly lines in one section share mnemonic, operand, and inline comment columns. Comma placement is configurable.
• Labels and structural directives such as .macro, .endm, .option, .norvc, and .novnc start in column zero.
• The formatter preserves the document's original line-ending style and final newline convention.

Choose the comma style with betterRiscvSupport.commaAlignment:

• "aligned" (default) pads before commas, so comma columns align.
• "afterOperand" keeps each comma adjacent to its operand and puts any additional padding after the comma, so subsequent operand columns still align. For example: addi a0, a0, 1.

Settings

All settings are available in Settings UI under Better RISC-V Support.

Example:

{
  "betterRiscvSupport.indentSize": 4,
  "betterRiscvSupport.defineNameFieldWidth": 24,
  "betterRiscvSupport.maxBlankLinesWithoutBreak": 2,
  "betterRiscvSupport.commaAlignment": "afterOperand",
  "betterRiscvSupport.instructionOperandSpacing": 1,
  "betterRiscvSupport.commaOperandSpacing": 1,
  "betterRiscvSupport.commentSpacing": 2
}

#define colors

The #define highlight uses extension-owned editor decorations, not the global editor.tokenColorCustomizations array. This lets it coexist with other language extensions that also use TextMate color rules.

Override the three colors through workbench.colorCustomizations:

{
  "workbench.colorCustomizations": {
    "betterRiscvSupport.define.directiveForeground": "#E53935",
    "betterRiscvSupport.define.nameForeground": "#00897B",
    "betterRiscvSupport.define.valueForeground": "#7E57C2"
  }
}

Language support and limitations

• The extension targets GNU-style RISC-V assembly; it is not an assembler, linter, debugger, or complete preprocessor implementation.
• Whole-document formatting is supported. Range formatting is not currently provided.
• Backslash-continued preprocessor macros are highlighted, but their layout is intentionally preserved by the formatter.
• Reference search and document highlighting are identifier-based text matching, not full semantic or include-aware analysis. Numeric local labels are supported by Go to Definition.
• If another extension owns the same file suffix or formatting provider, select RISC-V Assembly as the language mode and choose Better RISC-V Support in Format Document With....

Contributing and support

Bug reports and feature requests are welcome in the issue tracker. For local development, run:

npm install
npm test

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

License

MIT