MSBuild Binlog Analyzer for VS Code
Analyze MSBuild binary logs (.binlog) with GitHub Copilot Chat and MCP tools — right from VS Code.
Preview — This extension is under active development. Feedback welcome!
Quick Start
- Install this extension (requires VS Code 1.99+ with GitHub Copilot and .NET SDK)
- Open a
.binlog — via Binlog: Load File (Ctrl+Shift+P), Build & Collect Binlog, or from Structured Log Viewer → Open in VS Code
- Use
@binlog in Copilot Chat:
@binlog why did the build fail?
@binlog what are the slowest targets?
@binlog /perf
The BinlogInsights.Mcp server (28 analysis tools) is auto-installed on first use.
What You Get
| Feature |
Description |
| @binlog Chat |
Ask Copilot about errors, performance, targets, imports, NuGet issues — with slash commands like /errors, /perf, /timeline, /compare, /summary, /incremental, /buildcheck, /search, /targets, /properties, /items, /propertyhistory |
| Build & Collect |
Build a project and capture a .binlog in one step |
| Binlog Explorer |
Sidebar tree with project → target → task hierarchy, errors, warnings, performance |
| Build Timeline |
Visual bar charts of target/task durations with click-to-analyze in Copilot |
| Fix All Issues |
Copilot fixes all build errors/warnings, rebuilds, and loads before/after for comparison |
| Auto-fix Diagnostic |
Right-click any error/warning in the tree → "Auto-fix with Copilot" to fix it directly |
| Optimize Build |
Pick optimizations, Copilot applies changes, verify with A/B comparison |
| Build Analysis Mode |
Chat mode pre-configured with BinlogInsights MCP tools — works with any agent |
| Language Model Tools |
binlog_lm_overview, binlog_lm_errors, binlog_lm_search, binlog_lm_perf, binlog_lm_compare — available to @workspace, agent mode, and custom chat modes |
| CI/CD Integration |
Download binlogs from Azure DevOps Pipelines and GitHub Actions — filter by branch or PR |
| Problems Panel |
Build diagnostics as native VS Code errors/warnings with per-project CodeLens and "Ask @binlog" CodeActions |
| Search |
Search across all build events — targets, tasks, messages, properties |
Configuration
| Setting |
Default |
Description |
binlogAnalyzer.mcpServerPath |
"" |
Custom path to the MCP server executable |
binlogAnalyzer.mcpServerArgs |
"--binlog ${binlog}" |
Argument template for the MCP server. ${binlog} is replaced with each binlog path |
binlogAnalyzer.autoLoad |
true |
Auto-load binlog diagnostics on activation |
binlogAnalyzer.diagnosticsSeverityFilter |
"Warning" |
Min severity for Problems panel |
binlogAnalyzer.inlineDecorations |
true |
Show build errors as inline decorations in source files |
binlogAnalyzer.chat.includeAllTools |
false |
Expose all available tools (file editing, terminal, other MCPs) to the @binlog chat participant |
binlogAnalyzer.chat.additionalToolPatterns |
[] |
Additional tool name patterns to include alongside binlog tools (e.g. ["copilot_codebase", "terminal"]) |
Troubleshooting: MCP Server Installation
The extension auto-installs BinlogInsights.Mcp via dotnet tool install -g. In corporate environments with restricted NuGet feeds, this may fail. Here are the workarounds:
1. Install with explicit NuGet source
dotnet tool install -g BinlogInsights.Mcp --add-source https://api.nuget.org/v3/index.json
2. Manual download fallback
If all dotnet tool install attempts fail (e.g., nuget.org is blocked):
- Download the
.nupkg directly from nuget.org
- Install from the local file:
# Download (replace {version} with latest, e.g. 0.2.0)
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://www.nuget.org/api/v2/package/BinlogInsights.Mcp/{version}" -OutFile "BinlogInsights.Mcp.nupkg"
# Install from local file
dotnet tool install -g BinlogInsights.Mcp --add-source .
3. Diagnose NuGet issues
dotnet nuget list source
Common problems:
- nuget.org not listed or disabled — the tool is published on nuget.org
- Authenticated feed requires credentials — may block fallthrough to nuget.org
- Package source mapping excludes nuget.org for this package
4. Verify installation
dotnet tool list -g | Select-String BinlogInsights
binlog-insights-mcp --help
For the full troubleshooting guide, see BinlogInsights repo setup instructions.
License
MIT
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