API Pilot

中文文档

A powerful API debugging tool built right into VS Code — no browser, no separate app.

Features

HTTP Request

• Methods: GET, POST, PUT, DELETE, PATCH, OPTIONS, HEAD
• Custom Methods: Add additional HTTP methods (e.g. PROPFIND, MKCOL) via the api-pilot.customHttpMethods VS Code setting — they appear in the method dropdown alongside the standard methods
• Custom Headers: Add any request header as key-value pairs; toggle individual headers on/off without deleting them
• Query Parameters: Dedicated key-value editor for URL query params with per-row enable/disable toggles
• Request Body: Supports multiple body types:
  • JSON — syntax-highlighted editor
  • Form Data (multipart) — key-value fields with file upload support
  • URL Encoded (x-www-form-urlencoded)
  • Raw — free text with custom Content-Type
  • Binary — upload a local file as body
  • GraphQL — query + variables editor
• Authentication: Bearer Token, Basic Auth, API Key (header or query param)
• SSL Verification: Toggle SSL certificate verification per request
• Scripts: Write JavaScript pre-request and post-response scripts using a Postman-compatible pm API — modify the request, set variables, or assert response values

WebSocket (WS) Request

• The extension detects ws:// and wss:// URLs and switches the request UI into WebSocket mode.
• Connect / Disconnect: enter a WebSocket URL in the request bar and click Connect to open a live session; click Disconnect to close it.
• Conversation panel: send and receive messages (text shown as UTF‑8, binary shown as base64), with per-message copy and truncate/expand controls.

Server-Sent Events (SSE)

• Select SSE from the protocol dropdown in the URL bar to switch into SSE mode.
• Connect / Disconnect: enter an SSE endpoint URL and click Connect; click Disconnect to close the stream.
• Event stream panel: real-time list of received SSE events showing timestamp, event type (if non-default), event ID, and data content with copy and expand controls.
• Supports the full SSE spec: id:, event:, data:, and retry: fields; multi-line data blocks are joined with \n.
• Custom Headers, Params, and Auth are all supported (Body and Scripts tabs are hidden in SSE mode).
• Sessions are automatically saved to Request History with the event count and duration on disconnect.

MQTT

• Select MQTT from the protocol dropdown in the URL bar to switch into MQTT mode.
• Connect / Disconnect: enter a broker URL (e.g. mqtt://localhost:1883 or mqtts://) and click Connect; click Disconnect to close the session.
• Connection Options tab: configure Client ID, Keep Alive, Clean Session, Username/Password, and Last Will (topic, payload, QoS, Retain).
• Subscriptions: add topic filters (wildcards + and # supported) with per-subscription QoS; active subscriptions shown as removable badges.
• Message log: real-time scrolling list of published (↑) and received (↓) messages, each showing topic, QoS, retain flag, timestamp, payload size, and a copy button. Long payloads can be expanded.
• Publish panel: compose and send messages with topic, payload, QoS (0/1/2), and Retain controls; Ctrl+Enter sends.
• Sessions are automatically saved to Request History with publish/receive counts, subscribed topics, and duration on disconnect.

gRPC

• Select gRPC from the protocol dropdown in the URL bar to switch into gRPC mode.
• Service Discovery: use Server Reflection (auto-discover services from the server, no proto file needed) or Upload .proto to load a proto definition manually.
• Service & Method selector: once services are discovered, pick the service and method from dropdowns in the Options tab.
• All call types supported: Unary, Server Streaming, Client Streaming, and Bidirectional Streaming.
• Message panel: shows all sent (↑ REQ) and received (↓ RES) messages in a scrolling log; click any message to expand its JSON payload.
• Client / Bidi streaming: after invoking, a Send panel appears at the bottom to send additional messages; Ctrl+Enter sends. An End Stream button closes the write side.
• TLS / Security: supports Plaintext, TLS (CA certificate), and mTLS (client certificate + key).
• Metadata: key-value pairs sent as gRPC headers with per-row enable/disable.
• URL format: grpc://host:port (plaintext) or grpcs://host:port (TLS), or bare host:port.
• Sessions are automatically saved to Request History with method name and gRPC status code.

Response Viewer

• Status & Timing: HTTP status code, status text, response time (ms), and body size — each labeled for clarity
• Timing Breakdown: Dedicated Timing tab shows a horizontal bar chart with three phases:
  • DNS + Connect — DNS resolution + TCP/TLS handshake time
  • Wait (TTFB) — server processing time until first byte received
  • Download — response body download time
  • Each phase displays milliseconds and percentage of total time
• Body Rendering:
  • JSON — pretty-printed with collapsible tree
  • XML, Markdown, HTML — rendered view
  • Images — inline preview
  • Raw text — plain output
• Response Headers: Full header list in a dedicated tab
• Body Search: Search within the response body
• SSL Info: For HTTPS requests — shows protocol (TLS version), cipher suite, certificate subject/issuer, validity dates, fingerprint, and full certificate chain
• Test Results: Pass/fail results from pm.test() assertions in the post-response script — shows test name, status (pass/fail), and error message on failure
• Script Console: Captured console.log / warn / error output from pre/post scripts, with source (pre/post) and log level indicated

Collections

• Organize requests into collections with nested folders
• Full CRUD: create, rename, delete collections and folders
• Save the current request directly into any collection
• Search / Filter: Real-time search box filters requests by name or URL across all collections and folders; matching sections auto-expand

Environment Variables

• Create multiple environments (e.g. dev, staging, prod) with key-value variable sets
• Use {{variable_name}} anywhere: URL, headers, params, body, auth fields
• Variables are resolved recursively (up to 5 levels) at send time and during cURL/code export
• Switch the active environment from the status bar; active environment persists across restarts
• A Default environment is always guaranteed to exist

Request History

• Every sent request is automatically recorded, grouped by date (up to 1000 entries total), with one-click replay
• Search / Filter: Real-time search box filters history entries by URL, method, or request name; matching date groups auto-expand

cURL / Fetch Import & Export

• Paste a cURL command (bash) or a fetch() snippet (Chrome DevTools / Node.js) to instantly import it as a request
• Export any request to cURL — environment variables are resolved in the output

Code Snippets

• Generate ready-to-use code snippets for the current request (variables resolved)

Editor Convenience

• Header Autocomplete: Intelligent suggestions for 58+ common HTTP header names and values
• Multi-Tab Interface: Work on multiple requests simultaneously; unsaved changes show a dirty-state marker
• i18n: Full English and Chinese (Simplified) UI
• Theme Adaptation: Integrates with your VS Code color theme

Quick Start

1. Open VS Code and click the API Pilot icon in the Activity Bar.
2. Click + to create a new request.
3. Enter a URL (http(s) or ws(s)) or select the SSE, MQTT, or gRPC protocol to connect to a Server-Sent Events endpoint, MQTT broker, or gRPC server. For HTTP requests choose a method and click Send; for WebSocket/SSE/MQTT click Connect; for gRPC click Invoke.
4. View the formatted response, live WebSocket conversation, or real-time SSE event stream below.

Scripts

Pre-request and post-response scripts run in a sandboxed Node.js VM with a Postman-compatible pm object:

// Pre-request: modify headers or set variables
pm.request.headers.add({ key: 'X-Timestamp', value: Date.now().toString() });
pm.environment.set('token', 'my-value');

// Post-response: run assertions
pm.test('Status is 200', () => pm.response.to.have.status(200));
pm.test('Body has id', () => pm.expect(pm.response.json().id).to.exist);

// Console output is captured and shown in the Script Console tab
console.log('response time:', pm.response.responseTime);
console.warn('large body detected');

Test results are shown per-test with pass ✓ / fail ✗ and error details. All console.log/warn/error calls are captured and displayed in the Script Console tab, labeled by source (pre/post) and log level.

Data Storage

All data is stored locally in the workspace under .api-pilot/:

.api-pilot/
├── collections/     # Saved requests and folders
├── environments/    # Environment variable sets
└── history/         # Request history by date

Add .api-pilot/history/ to .gitignore to exclude history from version control.

VS Code Settings

Open Settings (Ctrl+,) and search for API Pilot, or add to your settings.json:

License

MIT