Lock — Read-Only Lock for VS Code

Stop accidentally editing files you shouldn't touch.

Lock adds a one-click lock icon to your VS Code status bar. Click it to instantly freeze your editor into read-only mode. Click again to unlock. That's it.

The Problem

You open a config file, a .env, a production schema — just to read it. Five minutes later you've accidentally changed something and don't even know it. VS Code has no quick way to prevent this.

The Solution

Lock puts a lock icon in the bottom-right corner of your editor. One click locks the entire editor into read-only mode — highlighted in yellow so you always know the state you're in.

Features

• One-click toggle — lock and unlock from the status bar
• Visual indicator — status bar turns yellow when locked, so you never forget
• Zero config — works immediately after install, no settings to configure
• Lightweight — runs silently in the background, zero performance impact

How to Use

1. Install Lock from the VS Code Marketplace
2. Look for the unlock icon 🔓 in the bottom-right status bar
3. Click it to lock — the bar turns yellow and shows 🔒 Locked
4. Click again to unlock

You can also run the command manually:

Ctrl+Shift+P → Lock: Toggle Read-Only Mode

Install

From the Marketplace: Search Lock in the VS Code Extensions sidebar (Ctrl+Shift+X) and click Install.

From .vsix (manual):

code --install-extension lock-0.0.1.vsix

Requirements

• VS Code 1.75.0 or newer

Inspiration

This extension is highly inspired by IntelliJ IDEA.

When I switched to IntelliJ IDEA for a new project, I discovered its built-in read-only lock button — a small icon sitting quietly in the status bar that lets you freeze the entire editor with one click. It felt obvious, useful, and something I reached for constantly.

Then I went back to VS Code and realized: it doesn't have this.

There's no quick toggle, no status bar button, no visual indicator. If you want read-only mode in VS Code, you're digging through settings or relying on OS-level file permissions. That's too much friction for something so simple.

So I built Lock — bringing that one feature from IntelliJ IDEA that VS Code was missing.

Why "Lock"?

Simple name, simple purpose — one click to lock your editor.

Contributing

Found a bug or have an idea? Open an issue on GitHub.

Pull requests are welcome.

License

MIT — free to use, modify, and distribute.