Pi Agent for VS Code

A VS Code auxiliary-sidebar client for pi, built on pi's RPC protocol. It keeps the agent process in the extension host and renders the conversation in a theme-aware Webview.

Source: https://github.com/dairycode/pi-agent-sidebar

Preview

Pi Agent Sidebar running in the VS Code auxiliary sidebar

Features

Streams assistant text, reasoning, and tool execution in the auxiliary sidebar
Supports persistent sessions, history, new sessions, and reload restoration
Switches configured models and supported thinking levels
Queues steering prompts while pi is working and can abort the active run
Attaches project files by path and sends supported image formats to models
Inserts selected editor code as an inline @path#line composer reference
Handles pi extension dialogs with native VS Code UI
Uses Workspace Trust, strict JSONL, sanitized Markdown, and a restrictive CSP

Editor Selection Shortcut

Select code in the editor, then press Cmd+Esc on macOS or Ctrl+Esc on Windows and Linux. Pi Agent opens, focuses the composer, and inserts an accent-colored inline reference such as @src/file.ts#10-14 at the caret while retaining the exact selected text as code context. Delete the reference text to detach it. To reopen the source, Cmd/Ctrl-click the marker or place the caret inside it and press F12. With no editor selection, the shortcut only focuses the composer.

Other AI extensions may use the same shortcut. Reassign Pi Agent: Focus Input with Selection in VS Code's Keyboard Shortcuts editor when needed.

Requirements

VS Code 1.129 or newer
pi 0.81.0 or newer installed and authenticated
A trusted workspace folder

Install pi if needed:

npm install -g --ignore-scripts @earendil-works/pi-coding-agent
pi
/login

If VS Code cannot find pi, set piAgentSidebar.binaryPath to an absolute path such as /opt/homebrew/bin/pi.

piAgentSidebar.sessionDirectory accepts an absolute path or a path relative to the active workspace folder; the same resolved directory is used for pi's session storage and the sidebar's history and deletion.

Development

npm install
npm run verify
npm run build

npm test runs the type check and the hermetic unit suite; it does not require an installed pi. npm run verify additionally rebuilds the tracked-free bundles and checks them for drift. Run npm run test:rpc:live to exercise a real installed pi runtime. Generated bundles (dist/, media/main.js, media/codicons/) are produced by npm run build and are not committed.

Press F5 in VS Code to launch an Extension Development Host. The view is contributed directly to the Secondary Side Bar.

Build a VSIX:

npm run package

Security Model

Pi's default coding tools can read, edit, and execute files with the extension host user's permissions. This extension does not sandbox pi. It remains disabled in untrusted workspaces, runs the configured binary without a shell, and only passes --approve for project-local pi resources after VS Code has established workspace trust.

Session files are managed by pi under ~/.pi/agent/sessions. They can contain source code, tool output, and other sensitive conversation data.