Copilot Chat RTL Support
A Visual Studio Code extension that adds Right-to-Left (RTL) support to the GitHub Copilot Chat panel — optimized for Persian (Farsi) and other RTL languages.
Features
- Automatic direction per paragraph — each paragraph, list item, heading and table cell gets its own RTL/LTR direction based on its text, so a mixed Persian/English conversation reads correctly (default)
- Or force RTL/LTR for the whole chat area — switchable anytime, applies instantly, no reload
- Ctrl+Alt+R cycles auto → RTL → LTR
- Custom font family, font size, and line spacing for the chat area — also instant, with a picker listing the fonts installed on your system
- Ships with the Vazirmatn font bundled, used automatically as a fallback if it isn't installed on your system
- Preserves LTR direction for code blocks
- Automatically detects RTL vs. LTR per line in the prompt input box
- Detects Persian, Arabic, Hebrew, Thaana, NKo and Syriac text
- Quick-access menu in the status bar for direction, font, size, and line spacing
- Re-applies itself on startup, and tells you when a VS Code update has reverted the patch
Preview
Here is an example of the result after applying the extension:
Installation
- Install the extension from the VS Code Marketplace (search for "Copilot Chat RTL Support"), or install the
.vsix manually:
code --install-extension vscode-copilot-rtl-X.X.X.vsix
- Reload the window when prompted (or run Developer: Reload Window).
That's it — no console, no manual steps after the first reload. The Vazirmatn font is bundled with the extension, so it looks right even if you don't have it installed system-wide.
Commands
| Command |
Description |
Copilot RTL: Open Menu (direction, font, size…) |
Quick menu — also available by clicking the status bar item |
Copilot RTL: Cycle Direction (auto → RTL → LTR) |
Switch direction without opening the menu — bound to Ctrl+Alt+R (Cmd+Alt+R on macOS) |
Copilot RTL: Enable (requires reload) |
Apply the patch now — also the right thing to run if a VS Code update reverted it |
Copilot RTL: Disable (requires reload; run before uninstalling) |
Remove the patch and restore the original files |
Status bar
A small item (e.g. ⇄ AUTO, ← RTL) sits in the bottom-right status bar. Click it anytime to switch between automatic/RTL/LTR, or to change the font family, size, or line spacing — no need to dig through Settings, and no reload: changes show up within about a second.
Settings
| Setting |
Default |
Description |
copilotRtl.direction |
auto |
auto (detect per paragraph/list item/heading), rtl, or ltr — direction used in the chat area (the prompt input box always auto-detects per line regardless) |
copilotRtl.fontFamily |
Vazirmatn |
Font used in the chat area; falls back to Vazirmatn (bundled) if not installed |
copilotRtl.fontSize |
13 |
Font size in pixels used in the chat area |
copilotRtl.lineHeight |
1.6 |
Line spacing (line height multiplier) used in the chat area |
copilotRtl.autoEnable |
true |
Automatically (re)apply the patch on startup |
copilotRtl.notifyWhenPatchReverted |
true |
When autoEnable is off, warn if a VS Code update reverted the patch and offer to re-apply it |
All of the above can also be changed from the status bar menu instead of the Settings UI. direction, fontFamily, fontSize, and lineHeight all apply live — no reload needed. Only autoEnable, and the Enable/Disable commands, need one (see TECHNICAL.md for why).
⚠️ Uninstalling
Run the Copilot RTL: Disable command before uninstalling this extension — not after.
How and where to run it:
- Open the Command Palette:
- Windows / Linux: Ctrl+Shift+P
- macOS: Cmd+Shift+P
- (or via the menu: View > Command Palette…)
- Type
Copilot RTL: Disable and press Enter when it appears in the list.
- A notification will ask to reload — click Reload Window.
- Only now go to the Extensions view (Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+X) and uninstall the extension.
If you already uninstalled without disabling first, see TECHNICAL.md for how to fix it.
Manual (no-install) usage
If you'd rather not install anything, you can still run the original script by hand:
- Open Help > Toggle Developer Tools > Console.
- Paste the contents of
rtl-fix.js and press Enter. (Edit the DEFAULT_CONFIG object near the top first if you want something other than the defaults — direction accepts auto, rtl or ltr; there's no live settings menu outside the extension.)
- The effect is temporary and resets on reload — repeat whenever needed.
To-Do & Improvements
- [x] Fix issue where LTR blocks sometimes disappear
- [x] Improve RTL support for the question input area
- [x] Package as a VS Code extension
- [x] Add a toggle to switch between RTL and LTR from the status bar
- [x] Bundle the Vazirmatn font as an automatic fallback
- [x] Custom font family and size
- [x] Line spacing control
- [x] Apply settings changes live, without a window reload
- [x] Automatic per-paragraph direction detection in the chat area
- [x] Keyboard shortcut to switch direction
- [x] Font picker listing installed system fonts
- [x] Notify when a VS Code update reverts the patch
For developers
Curious how the patch actually works under the hood, or want to build/publish this extension yourself? See TECHNICAL.md.
License
This project is licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0. See the LICENSE file for details.
Support
If this project has been useful to you and you'd like to support its development:
- ⭐ Give a Star: Show your support with a ⭐ on the GitHub repository.
- 🌟 Rate it: Leave a rating on the Marketplace.
- 💎 Donate:
- USDT (TRC20):
TEHjxGqu5Y2ExKBWzArBJEmrtzz3mgV5Hb
- TON:
nabikaz.ton
- 🐦 Follow / say hi: x.com/NabiKAZ
Thank you for being a part of this journey! 🚀
