CodeArchitect: Blast Radius (VS Code)
See what a change to the file you are editing can break, without leaving the editor.
- Architecture map:
CodeArchitect: Show architecture map opens the interactive graph beside your code. It selects the file you have open, glows the files that depend on it (amber = direct, lighter = indirect) and dims the rest; click a file for its details and Open in editor. For Python and MATLAB projects it is a data-flow graph with Where it comes from / What it affects traces over the data files.
- Status bar:
N files affected for the active file (direct and indirect dependents), with change-risk and what drives it in the tooltip. Click for the list; pick a file to open it.
- CodeLens:
used by N files above each exported symbol (TypeScript, JavaScript, Python, Go, Java, Kotlin, C#, Ruby, Rust). Click it to see exactly which files, and which of the file's importers do not use the symbol.
- Who uses this symbol? (
CodeArchitect: Who uses this symbol?): a symbol-level blast radius. Importers that do not use the symbol are listed as spared, so you know what a rename really touches.
- Export shareable architecture page: one self-contained
.html file of the whole workspace (diagram, search, reading order, per-file details). It embeds your source code, so share it only where that is fine.
The map is built locally from your workspace files and re-built shortly after you save, create or delete a file. Nothing is uploaded.
License and ownership
Copyright © 2026 Hussain Tak (@imhussain001), who created and owns this extension. Licensed under the Apache License 2.0 (see LICENSE and NOTICE).
Settings
| Setting |
Default |
|
codearchitect.maxFiles |
800 |
Most files to map. Larger workspaces map the most architecturally relevant files; the status-bar tooltip says how many were left out. |
codearchitect.codeLens |
true |
Show the used by N files lens. |
codearchitect.statusBarClick |
list |
What clicking N files affected does: list or map (the architecture map). |
codearchitect.showTitleBarButton |
false |
Add a button to the editor's title bar that opens the architecture map. |
Limits
- The analysis is lexical (no type checker): see
docs/engines.md in the repository for what each language does and does not follow.
- Multi-root workspaces: each folder is mapped separately and what you see comes from the open file's folder; dependencies between folders are not followed.
- MATLAB files have no CodeLens. Python gets CodeLens for names imported from other files.
Build and install
From the repository root (after npm install):
npm run ext:package
code --install-extension extensions/vscode/codearchitect.vsix
Or, in VS Code, open the Extensions view, click the … menu, choose Install from VSIX… and pick extensions/vscode/codearchitect.vsix. Then reload the window and open a source file: the status bar shows N files affected.
ext:package bundles the extension and packs it with @vscode/vsce (fetched on demand). To try it without installing, run npm run ext:build, open extensions/vscode in VS Code and press F5.
Full instructions, update and uninstall commands and troubleshooting: docs/vscode-extension.md.
