A modern project planning and management canvas built right into your editor. Organize tasks, track progress, and collaborate with your team without ever leaving your editor.
Installation
Launch VS Code Quick Open (Ctrl+P), paste the following command, and press enter.
A streamlined project management canvas inside your editor Stay in flow. Ship faster. Never leave your editor.
About
Open Canvas is a lean, offline-first project canvas for your editor. It lets you manage tasks, monitor progress, and organize your workflow right where you code.
No extra tools. No accounts. No cloud dependency. It all lives locally.
What It Does
Classic canvas layout — To Do, In Progress, Done
Canvases split into lanes so every project reads at a glance
Detailed task cards with priority labels, tags, assignees, checklists, and notes
Multiple canvases to keep separate projects organized
Join codes for easy canvas sharing with your team
Everything saved locally as plain JSON files
Clean, minimal interface designed for focus
Optional live sync when a canvas server is configured
Input sanitization and validation built in
Setup
From the Marketplace
Open the Extensions panel (Ctrl+Shift+X / Cmd+Shift+X)
Search for Open Canvas
Click Install
You can also install manually from a .vsix file via the Extensions menu.
First Use
Open the canvas from the command palette:
Windows/Linux:Ctrl+Shift+P → Open: Canvas
macOS:Cmd+Shift+P → Open: Canvas
Canvases
Creating one
Run Open Canvas: Create Canvas from the command palette
Give it a name
Start adding lanes and cards
Joining one
Press Join in the canvas header
Paste a canvas code shared by a teammate
The canvas appears with its lanes and cards ready
Managing Tasks
Hit + Card to create a new task
Click any card to open the full editor
Drag cards between lanes as work progresses
Add tags, set priority, write checklists, and attach notes
Delete cards from the detail view
Available Commands
Action
How
Open the canvas
Command palette (Open: Canvas) — also pinned top-right of the editor
Create canvas
Command palette → Open Canvas: Create Canvas
Join canvas
Join button or Open Canvas: Join Canvas with Code
Share canvas
Share button or Open Canvas: Create Canvas Code
Leave canvas
Leave button or Open Canvas: Leave Canvas
Toggle visibility
Open Canvas: Toggle Canvas Visibility
Add card
+ Card button on a canvas
Edit card
Click the card
Delete card
Inside the card editor
Close overlay
Press Esc or click outside
Common Issues
Problem
Solution
Canvas doesn't open
Reload your editor (Developer: Reload Window)
Icon not showing
Reinstall the extension
Join code rejected
Double-check O vs 0 and other lookalike characters
