Azure DevOps Code Companion - Work Items & Time Tracking for VS Code

🚀 Supercharge your Azure DevOps workflow! Manage work items, track time, create branches, and submit pull requests without leaving VS Code. Built for developers who value productivity.

✨ All-in-one Azure DevOps integration that brings your entire workflow into VS Code. Join thousands of developers who ship faster with integrated work item management.

Love this extension? If Azure DevOps Code Companion saves you time and streamlines your workflow, consider buying me a coffee ☕ Your support helps me add new features and keep the extension updated!

🎯 Why Azure DevOps Code Companion?

Stop context switching! This extension brings your complete Azure DevOps workflow directly into VS Code, saving you hours every week.

Before vs After

❌ Without this extension:

1. Switch to browser → Navigate to Azure DevOps
2. Find work items → Copy ID → Switch back to VS Code
3. Manually track time → Update work items later
4. Create branches manually → Link to work items manually
5. Time wasted: 15-30 minutes per day

✅ With Azure DevOps Code Companion:

1. View all work items in VS Code sidebar
2. Start timer with one click → Auto-save time entries
3. Create linked branches instantly
4. Submit PRs with work item links automatically
5. Time saved: 2+ hours per week!

✨ Features

Core Features (Free)

• 📋 Enhanced Work Items Sidebar:
  • View and manage work items with List/Kanban views
  • Status overview badges with click-to-filter functionality
  • Quick status change button on each work item
  • Sprint selection and filtering directly in sidebar
• ⏱️ Smart Time Tracking:
  • Built-in timer with auto-pause on inactivity
  • Auto-start timer when creating branches (configurable)
  • Auto-resume on activity detection (configurable)
• 🍅 Pomodoro Timer: Optional 25-min work cycles for focused productivity
• 🌿 Git Integration: Create branches with automatic work item linking

🎯 Pro Features (Premium)

Upgrade to Azure DevOps Companion Pro for AI-powered features:

• 🤖 AI Commit Messages: Generate conventional commit messages from your staged changes
• 📝 AI PR Descriptions: Create comprehensive pull request descriptions automatically
• 🔍 AI Code Review (Coming Soon): Get AI suggestions before submitting PRs
• 📊 Advanced Analytics (Coming Soon): Track productivity metrics and insights
• 💼 Team Features (Coming Soon): Share templates and settings across teams

Get Pro License | Use command Azure DevOps: Manage Pro License

More Features

• 🔄 Pull Requests: Submit PRs with work item associations
• 🏗️ Build Monitoring: Real-time build status in status bar
• 🔍 Advanced Filtering:
  • Filter by status, type, assignee, and sprint
  • Exclude specific states (e.g., "Exclude Done")
  • Quick search across all work items
• 📊 Time Reports: Track your productivity with detailed analytics
• 🎨 Theme Support: Matches your VS Code theme automatically
• ⚡ Zero Config: Works instantly after authentication

Advanced Features (v1.1.0)

• 🚀 Comprehensive Pull Request Management
  • Review and approve PRs directly from VS Code
  • Complete/merge PRs with branch cleanup options
  • View PR comments and linked work items
• 🏭 Pipeline & Build Management
  • Run pipelines with branch selection
  • View build and pipeline logs in VS Code
  • Monitor pipeline runs with detailed status
• 🧪 Test Management
  • Browse test plans, suites, and test cases
  • Navigate test hierarchy
• 📚 Wiki Integration
  • Browse and read wiki pages in VS Code
  • Create new wiki pages
  • View wiki content in markdown preview
• 👥 Team Capacity Planning
  • View current sprint team capacity
  • Monitor capacity vs remaining work
  • Track team member availability
• 📝 Work Item Templates
  • Create work items from predefined templates
  • Quick task and quick bug creation
  • Manage custom templates
• ✏️ Advanced Work Item Editing
  • Edit all work item fields in VS Code
  • Update title, description, tags, priority
  • Change iteration and area paths
  • Edit effort/story points

📥 Installation

Quick Install

1. Open VS Code
2. Press Cmd+P (or Ctrl+P)
3. Type: ext install YonasValentinMougaardKristensen.azure-devops-code-companion
4. Press Enter and click Install

Alternative Methods

• Install from VS Code Marketplace
• Install from Extensions View: Search "Azure DevOps Code Companion"
• Install via Command Line: code --install-extension YonasValentinMougaardKristensen.azure-devops-code-companion

🚀 Getting Started

1. Setup Connection

1. Run command: "Azure DevOps: Setup Connection"
2. Enter your organization name (e.g., "mycompany")
3. Enter your project name (e.g., "myproject")
4. Enter your Personal Access Token (PAT)

2. Create a Personal Access Token

1. Go to Azure DevOps
2. Click your profile picture → Security → Personal Access Tokens
3. Click "New Token" with these scopes:
   • ✅ Work Items (Read & Write)
   • ✅ Code (Read & Write)
   • ✅ Build (Read)
   • ✅ Pull Request (Read & Write)

3. Start Working!

• Click the Azure DevOps icon in the Activity Bar
• Your work items appear in the sidebar
• Click any work item to start tracking time

🎮 Usage

Time Tracking

1. Select a work item from the sidebar
2. Click "Start Timer" or use command palette
3. Timer auto-pauses after 5 minutes of inactivity
4. Stop timer to save time entry to work item

Creating Branches

1. Select a work item
2. Click "Create Branch" button
3. Branch is created with format: AB#12345-work-item-title
4. Automatically linked to work item

Kanban Board View

Toggle between List and Kanban views to see work items organized by state:

• To Do → In Progress → Done
• Drag & drop to update work item states
• Color-coded by work item type

⌨️ Commands

⚙️ Configuration

Configure in VS Code settings (Cmd+, or Ctrl+,):

{
  "azureDevOps.organization": "mycompany",
  "azureDevOps.project": "myproject",
  "azureDevOps.defaultWorkItemType": "Task",
  "azureDevOps.defaultQuery": "My Work Items",
  "azureDevOps.timerInactivityTimeout": 300,
  "azureDevOps.pomodoroEnabled": true,
  "azureDevOps.showBuildNotifications": true,
  "azureDevOps.workItemRefreshInterval": 300
}

Available Queries

• My Work Items: Items assigned to you
• Current Sprint: Active sprint items
• All Active: All active work items
• Recently Updated: Items changed in last 7 days
• Custom: Use your own WIQL query

🎯 Perfect For

• 👨‍💻 Developers using Azure DevOps daily
• ⏰ Teams that track time against work items
• 🏃 Agile teams using Scrum or Kanban
• 📊 Freelancers who need time reports
• 🚀 Anyone tired of switching between VS Code and browser

💡 Tips & Tricks

Productivity Tips

1. Keyboard Shortcuts: Assign custom shortcuts to timer commands
2. Status Bar: Click timer to see current work item
3. Quick Create: Use default work item type for faster creation
4. Auto-refresh: Set interval to keep work items updated

Time Tracking Best Practices

• Use Pomodoro mode for focused work sessions
• Review time reports weekly to improve estimates
• Let auto-pause handle interruptions automatically
• Add descriptions when stopping timer for context

🐛 Troubleshooting

Connection Issues

• Verify PAT has required permissions
• Check organization and project names are correct
• Ensure PAT hasn't expired

Timer Not Working

• Check if a work item is selected
• Verify timer commands in command palette
• Look for timer in status bar

Work Items Not Loading

• Check internet connection
• Verify Azure DevOps service status
• Try refreshing with toolbar button

Requirements

• VS Code 1.102.0 or higher
• Azure DevOps account with project access
• Personal Access Token with required permissions

Release Notes

1.2.1

• Fixed timer pause/stop buttons in sidebar
• Added active work item highlighting with visual indicators
• Replaced state filter dropdown with intuitive checkboxes
• Added sidebar state persistence for filters and view preferences
• Improved timer display with dynamic pause/resume button
• Enhanced visual feedback for timer states

1.2.0

• Enhanced sidebar with status overview badges
• Quick status change button on work item cards
• Click-to-filter status badges
• Improved sprint selection in sidebar
• Advanced state filtering with exclusion options
• Auto-start timer on branch creation
• Auto-resume timer on activity detection
• Contextual status updates based on work item type

1.1.0

• Comprehensive pull request management
• Pipeline and build management with logs
• Test plan and test case browsing
• Wiki integration
• Team capacity and sprint planning
• Work item templates and quick actions
• Advanced work item editing
• Sprint filtering

1.0.0

Initial release of Azure DevOps Code Companion

• Work items sidebar with List/Kanban views
• Integrated time tracking with auto-save
• Git branch creation with work item linking
• Pull request creation with associations
• Build status monitoring
• Pomodoro timer support
• Theme-aware UI

🤝 Contributing

Found a bug or have a feature request? Please open an issue on GitHub!

Support the Developer

If Azure DevOps Code Companion improves your workflow and saves you time, consider supporting its development! Your support helps me:

• 🚀 Add new features (advanced queries, bulk operations, integrations)
• 🐛 Fix bugs faster
• 📚 Improve documentation
• ⚡ Keep the extension updated with latest Azure DevOps APIs

Every coffee counts and motivates me to make this extension even better! Thank you for being an awesome user! 🙏

Support on Buy Me a Coffee

📄 License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details

Made with ❤️ for the Azure DevOps community
Happy Coding! 🚀