Context Rewind

Restores your mental context when you return to a project after a break.

Features

Session Notes — leave yourself a quick note before stepping away (Cmd+Shift+N / Ctrl+Shift+N). Your note is displayed front-and-center when you return.
Smart Nudge — after 20 minutes of inactivity, a gentle reminder asks if you want to leave a note before you go (configurable, or disable with 0)
File Restoration — reopen all the files you were working on at their exact cursor positions with one click
Branch-aware Sessions — each git branch has its own session context, so switching branches doesn't overwrite your history
Welcome Back Panel — automatically shows a summary of where you left off when you return after being idle (default: 1 hour, configurable)
Session Tracking — silently monitors file edits and cursor positions during your coding session
Git Context — displays current branch, recent commits, and uncommitted changes
TODO Scanner — surfaces TODO comments from your codebase
AI Resume Plan — generates a 3-5 step action plan using OpenAI GPT-4 (optional)
Window Focus Detection — detects when you switch back to VS Code after a break, not just on startup

Installation

From VS Code Marketplace

Open VS Code
Go to Extensions (Ctrl+Shift+X / Cmd+Shift+X)
Search for Context Rewind
Click Install

From VSIX

Download the .vsix file from Releases
In VS Code, open the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P / Cmd+Shift+P)
Run Extensions: Install from VSIX...
Select the downloaded file

Usage

The extension activates automatically when VS Code starts. It silently tracks your editing session in the background.

Leaving a Note

Before stepping away, press Cmd+Shift+N (Mac) / Ctrl+Shift+N (Windows/Linux) or run Context Rewind: Leave a Note from the Command Palette. Type a quick reminder of what you were doing — this is the most valuable context you can capture.

If you forget, don't worry — after 20 minutes of inactivity the extension will gently ask if you'd like to leave a note. This nudge only appears once per idle period and won't nag you.

Coming Back

When you return after being idle for more than the configured threshold (default: 60 minutes), a Welcome Back panel opens automatically showing:

Your note — displayed prominently at the top
The files you were editing and where you left off (click to jump back)
A Reopen All Files button to restore your editor layout
Your current git branch and uncommitted changes
Recent commits
TODO comments found in your codebase
An AI-generated action plan (if configured)

Branch Switching

Sessions are tracked per git branch. When you switch branches, the Welcome Back panel shows context for that branch, not a mix of all your work.

Commands

Command	Keybinding	Description
`Context Rewind: Show Last Session`	—	Manually open the Welcome Back panel
`Context Rewind: Leave a Note`	`Cmd+Shift+N` / `Ctrl+Shift+N`	Leave a note for your future self
`Context Rewind: Restore Files`	—	Reopen all tracked files at their last cursor positions
`Context Rewind: Set API Key`	—	Store your OpenAI API key securely (or clear it by submitting empty)
`Context Rewind: Manage Stored Data`	—	View all stored branch sessions, delete individual entries or clear all
`Context Rewind: Clear History`	—	Clear all stored session data

Extension Settings

Setting	Default	Description
`contextRewind.idleThresholdMinutes`	`60`	Minutes of inactivity before the Welcome Back panel auto-shows on return
`contextRewind.nudgeAfterIdleMinutes`	`20`	Minutes of inactivity before a gentle "leave a note" reminder. Set to `0` to disable.
`contextRewind.sessionRetentionDays`	`30`	Days to keep branch sessions before automatic cleanup
`contextRewind.openai.apiKey`	`""`	(Deprecated) Use the `Set API Key` command instead

Setting Up the AI Resume Plan

The AI feature is entirely optional. To enable it:

Get an API key from platform.openai.com
Run Context Rewind: Set API Key from the Command Palette
Paste your API key — it's stored in VS Code's secure secret storage, not in plain text

The first time the AI feature runs each session, you'll be shown exactly what data will be sent to OpenAI and asked to confirm.

Privacy & Security

API key is stored in VS Code's SecretStorage (OS keychain), never in settings.json
No file contents are sent to OpenAI — only file names, branch name, commit messages, and TODO comments
Secret detection — TODO lines containing patterns like key=, token=, password= are automatically filtered out before being sent
Data consent — a modal prompt asks for your permission before the first AI request each session
All data stays local unless you opt into the AI feature. Without an API key, nothing leaves your machine.

Data Storage

All data is stored outside your project directory — nothing is written to your workspace or tracked by git.

Data	Location	Details
Session data	VS Code's `globalStorage` directory	A single JSON file (~50KB max), auto-cleaned after 30 days
API key	OS keychain via VS Code `SecretStorage`	Never stored in plain text

Storage paths by OS:

OS	Session file path
macOS	`~/Library/Application Support/Code/User/globalStorage/rutvijjoshi.context-rewind/`
Windows	`%APPDATA%\Code\User\globalStorage\rutvijjoshi.context-rewind\`
Linux	`~/.config/Code/User/globalStorage/rutvijjoshi.context-rewind/`

Uninstalling the extension removes the globalStorage folder automatically. You can also run Context Rewind: Manage Stored Data at any time to inspect or delete your data.

Development

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Compile and watch
npm run watch

# Run in VS Code debug mode
# Press F5 or use "Run Extension" launch config

Credits

Built by Rutvij Joshi & Aishwarya Sunil.

Release Notes

0.0.1

Initial release with session tracking, session notes, file restoration, branch-aware sessions, git analysis, TODO scanning, and Welcome Back panel.