CLI Commit

A VS Code extension that adds a ✨ sparkle next to the Git commit message box. Click it to generate a commit message from your staged diff using the Claude CLI or Codex CLI you already have installed — no extra API keys.

• Sparkle on the Source Control commit field
• Claude or Codex, with any model the CLI accepts — no fixed list to go stale
• Recent commits included so the model can match this repository's style
• Optional workspace instructions in the system prompt for repo-specific conventions
• Tools, MCP servers, and skills disabled so the call stays cheap and non-interactive
• Falls back to the other CLI if the selected one hits a rate, session, or usage limit

Requirements

• VS Code 1.90 or later
• A Git repository
• Either:
  • Claude Code CLI (claude) authenticated, or
  • Codex CLI (codex) authenticated

Use

1. Open this folder in VS Code, run npm install, then npm run compile.
2. Press F5 (Run Extension) to launch an Extension Development Host.
3. Stage some changes, open Source Control, and click the ✨ next to the commit message box.
4. Review the generated message and commit as usual.

You can also run CLI Commit: Generate Commit Message from the Command Palette.

Choosing a model

Both model settings are free text passed straight to the CLI, so a new model never needs an extension update. Run CLI Commit: Select Model from the Command Palette to pick one for the active provider; it writes your choice to user settings and always offers a custom-id entry.

For Claude, prefer the aliases haiku, sonnet, opus, and fable: the CLI resolves each to the latest model of that tier, so they never go stale. Full names like claude-fable-5 work too.

For Codex, the picker reads models_cache.json from $CODEX_HOME (or ~/.codex), the registry the Codex CLI itself refreshes from the server — so new models appear without an extension release. If that file is missing the picker falls back to a short built-in list.

cliCommit.codexModel takes a full id such as gpt-5.6-terra. Left empty (the default) the extension reads the top-level model key from config.toml, and if that is unset omits -m entirely so the CLI picks its own default. The old sol / terra / luna shorthands still resolve, for settings written before 0.2.0.

For repo-specific style, set cliCommit.instructions in that workspace's .vscode/settings.json. It is appended to the system prompt and wins over matching recent-commit style when they conflict:

{
  "cliCommit.instructions": "Use Conventional Commits. Prefix with JIRA-123 style tickets when the branch name has one. Imperative mood. No trailers."
}

Settings

How the CLIs are invoked

Claude

claude -p --output-format json [--model <alias>] --effort <level>
  --tools "" --restricted --strict-mcp-config --mcp-config '{"mcpServers":{}}'
  --setting-sources "" --disable-slash-commands --no-session-persistence
  --no-chrome --permission-mode dontAsk --system-prompt "<commit-message writer>"

The user prompt (diff, files, recent commits) is passed on stdin. Tools and MCP servers are disabled so Claude does not load skills or spend tokens on an agent session. --bare is not used, because that mode refuses Claude Code OAuth.

The parser reads the commit text from Claude's JSON result field, including when the CLI emits a stream-event array, JSONL, or assistant message.content[].text.

Codex

codex exec --sandbox read-only --ephemeral --ignore-user-config
  --ignore-rules --skip-git-repo-check --color never
  [-m <model>] -C <repo>
  -c model_reasoning_effort="<level>" -c mcp_servers={}
  -o <tempfile> -

--ignore-user-config skips MCP servers from ~/.codex/config.toml while still using stored auth. Because that also discards your default model, the extension reads the model key back out of that file when cliCommit.codexModel is empty. The sandbox is read-only. The last agent message is read from -o.

If the selected provider fails — rate limits, session or usage caps, timeouts, a missing binary — the extension automatically tries the other CLI. Cancel stays cancel. Turn this off with cliCommit.fallbackToOtherProvider.

Troubleshooting

• Sparkle does nothing / CLI not found. VS Code.app often has a thinner PATH than your terminal. Set cliCommit.claudePath or cliCommit.codexPath to the output of command -v claude / command -v codex.
• Empty or garbage message. Enable cliCommit.debug, then check View → Output → CLI Commit.
• Authentication. Run claude -p "hello" or codex exec "hello" in a terminal first.

Credits

The initial Claudesona fan art was by thebes.

This project is unofficial and is not affiliated with Anthropic, OpenAI, or Google.

Licence

MIT