A high-performance VS Code extension for automatically managing header file includes in C/C++ projects with intelligent detection and comprehensive file management capabilities.
Features
- Automatically add corresponding header files to C/C++ source files
- Quick access through the context menu
- Status bar button for easy access
- Keyboard shortcut support with
Ctrl+K Ctrl+H
- Switch between header and source files with
F4 key
- Ability to create non-existent header files automatically
- Smart include statement management and sorting
- Preserves comments at the top of the file when adding include statements
- Highly customizable with various configuration options
- Fast operation with optimized caching mechanisms
- Intelligent header file detection using multiple search strategies
Usage
When editing a C/C++ source file, you can add the corresponding header file in several ways:
- Press the keyboard shortcut
Ctrl+K Ctrl+H
- Click the "Add Header" button in the status bar
- Right-click in the editor and select "Include Header File"
- Open the command palette (Ctrl+Shift+P) and type "Include Header File"
The extension will automatically find the header file with the same name as the current source file and add an appropriate #include statement at the top of the file.
Creating and Adding Header Files
If the header file doesn't exist, you can:
- Right-click in the editor and select "Create and Include Header File"
- Open the command palette (Ctrl+Shift+P) and type "Create and Include Header File"
The extension will create a new header file and automatically add basic header guards and structure.
Switching Between Header and Source Files
You can quickly switch between a header (.h, .hpp, .hxx) file and its corresponding source file (.c, .cpp, .cc, .cxx) using:
- Press the
F4 key when editing either a header or source file
- Right-click and select "Switch Between Header and Source"
- Open the command palette (Ctrl+Shift+P) and type "Switch Between Header and Source"
If the corresponding file doesn't exist, the extension will ask if you want to create it automatically.
Sorting Include Statements
You can sort include statements in your file by:
- Right-click and select "Sort Include Statements"
- Open the command palette (Ctrl+Shift+P) and type "Sort Include Statements"
This will organize includes with system headers (<>) first, followed by user headers (""), all sorted alphabetically.
The extension uses multiple strategies to find the corresponding header file:
- Same directory as the source file
- "include" directory adjacent to source
- "include" subdirectory within source directory
- Parent directory's "include" folder
- "headers" directory adjacent to source
This makes the extension work well with various C/C++ project structures without additional configuration.
Configuration Options
You can customize the following options in settings:
| Setting |
Description |
Default Value |
autoHeader.supportedExtensions |
Supported C/C++ source file extensions |
[".c", ".cpp", ".cc", ".cxx"] |
autoHeader.headerExtensions |
Header file extensions to search for, ordered by priority |
[".h", ".hpp", ".hxx"] |
autoHeader.insertEmptyLineAfter |
Add an empty line after the inserted include statement |
true |
autoHeader.includeFormat |
Include format for header files, quotes uses "", brackets uses <> |
"quotes" |
autoHeader.headerTemplate |
Template for new header files, use ${filename} as a placeholder for the file name |
"#pragma once\n\n// Header file for ${filename}\n\n" |
autoHeader.askBeforeCreating |
Ask user before creating a new header file |
true |
autoHeader.sortIncludes |
Automatically sort include statements after adding a new header |
false |
autoHeader.cacheDuration |
Duration in milliseconds to cache file existence information (set to 0 to disable caching) |
5000 |
autoHeader.groupIncludesByType |
When sorting, group system includes (<>) first, followed by project includes ("") |
true |
This extension is designed for high performance with:
- Smart caching of file system operations to minimize disk access
- Efficient include statement management
- Optimized build process for fast loading
- Modular code structure for better maintainability
Example
For a source file named example.cpp, the extension will:
- Look for an
example.h file using multiple search strategies
- Add
#include "example.h" at the top of the file
- Sort the include statements if enabled
- If the header file doesn't exist and the user chooses to create it, generate a new header file with a basic structure
When pressing F4 while in example.cpp, the extension will open example.h (or offer to create it if it doesn't exist).
Version History
0.0.3 (May 2025)
- Complete code restructuring with modular architecture
- Significantly improved performance through optimized caching
- Enhanced build process with better tree-shaking and minification
- Better error handling and user feedback
- Fixed memory usage and edge case issues
0.0.2
- Added F4 key functionality to switch between header and source files
- Added include statement sorting capability
- Improved header detection with multiple search strategies
- Fixed performance issues with configuration caching
0.0.1
- Initial release
- Support for adding header files to C/C++ source files
- Support for creating non-existent header files
- Custom configuration options
