CodeAnalysis Cognitive Complexity VSIX

A Visual Studio extension that calculates and displays Cognitive Complexity metrics for C# methods using CodeLens technology.

Features

🎯 Cognitive Complexity Analysis

• Real-time calculation of cognitive complexity for C# methods
• CodeLens integration shows complexity scores directly in the editor
• Visual indicators for complexity levels (good/warning/error states)
• Detailed breakdowns of complexity contributors

⚙️ Configurable Options

• Customizable threshold (default: 12) - Set your own complexity warning level
• Logging control - Enable/disable detailed logging for debugging
• Performance tuning - Adjustable polling interval for change detection

🚀 Performance Optimized

• Batch processing for efficient change detection
• Smart polling with configurable intervals
• Memory efficient with proper resource cleanup
• Low CPU usage with optimized algorithms

🔧 Visual Studio Support

• Visual Studio 2022 (17.x)
• Visual Studio 2025 (18.x)
• Visual Studio 2026 (19.x) - Future-proofed

Installation

1. Download the .vsix file
2. Double-click to install, or use Visual Studio's "Extensions > Manage Extensions > Install from VSIX"
3. Restart Visual Studio

Configuration

Access settings via Tools → Options → C# Code Analysis → Cognitive Complexity:

• Complexity Threshold: Methods above this score show warnings (default: 12)
• Enable Logging: Turn on detailed logging for troubleshooting (default: off)
• Polling Interval: How often to check for code changes in seconds (default: 5)

Usage

1. Open a C# file in Visual Studio
2. Ensure CodeLens is enabled (Tools → Options → Text Editor → All Languages → CodeLens)
3. Hover over method names to see cognitive complexity scores
4. Click the CodeLens indicator for detailed complexity breakdown

Understanding Cognitive Complexity

Cognitive Complexity is a measure of how difficult code is to understand, as defined by Sonar's Cognitive Complexity whitepaper. It considers:

• Control flow structures (loops, conditionals)
• Nesting depth
• Boolean operations
• Method complexity

Lower scores indicate more readable, maintainable code.

Troubleshooting

Extension Not Loading

• Ensure CodeLens is enabled in Visual Studio options
• Check that the extension is properly installed via Extensions Manager
• Restart Visual Studio after installation

Performance Issues

• Increase the polling interval in options
• Disable logging if not needed
• Consider excluding very large files from analysis

Missing Complexity Scores

• Ensure the method has a proper signature
• Check that the file is recognized as C# code
• Verify CodeLens is enabled for the current document

Version History

v0.31 — First public release

• Real-time cognitive complexity calculation for C# methods via CodeLens
• Visual state indicators (good / warning / degraded)
• Configurable complexity threshold, logging, and polling interval
• Support for Visual Studio 2022, 2025 (Community, Professional, Enterprise)
• Support for Visual Studio 2026 (future-proofed)

License

MIT — see license_mit.txt