Save Pipeline
Run configurable sequences of VS Code commands and shell commands on file save.
Define ordered pipelines in settings.json — no keybindings, no code, no extra extensions needed.
Features
- Execute any VS Code command ID and shell command in sequence on save
- Filter by
languageId and glob exclude patterns
- Built-in placeholders:
${file}, ${workspaceFolder}, ${relativeFile}, ${env.VAR} and more
waitUntil — VS Code waits for all steps to complete before writing to disk- Zero dependencies (pure Node.js + VS Code API)
- Output Channel logging with auto-reveal on errors
- Command validation on startup and config change
Requirements
Configuration
Edit your settings.json:
"savePipeline.sequences": [
{
"languages": ["markdown"],
"label": "Tables → Format → Check",
"steps": [
{ "command": "md-table-buddy.formatAllTables" },
{ "command": "editor.action.formatDocument" },
{ "shell": "npx prettier --check ${file}" }
]
},
{
"languages": ["python"],
"exclude": ["**/archive/**"],
"label": "Organize → Format → Lint",
"steps": [
{ "command": "python.sortImports" },
{ "command": "editor.action.formatDocument" },
{ "shell": "ruff check ${file}" }
]
},
{
"label": "Log every save",
"steps": [
{ "shell": "echo [save] ${relativeFile}" }
]
}
]
Step fields
| Field |
Type |
Required |
Description |
command |
string |
① |
VS Code command ID |
shell |
string |
① |
Shell command (placeholders supported) |
cwd |
string |
× |
Working directory (default: ${workspaceFolder}) |
timeout |
number |
× |
Shell timeout in ms (default: 30000) |
env |
object |
× |
Extra env vars for shell step |
① command / shell must specify exactly one per step.
Sequence fields
| Field |
Type |
Required |
Description |
event |
string |
× |
Trigger event. v0.1: only "onSave" (default) |
languages |
string[] |
× |
Filter by document.languageId. Empty = all files |
label |
string |
× |
Shown in Output Channel logs |
exclude |
string[] |
× |
Glob patterns to exclude files |
steps |
Step[] |
√ |
Ordered steps to execute |
Placeholders (shell steps)
| Placeholder |
Example |
Replaced with |
${file} |
C:\project\docs\guide.md |
Absolute file path |
${fileBasename} |
guide.md |
File name + extension |
${fileBasenameNoExt} |
guide |
File name, no extension |
${fileExtname} |
.md |
File extension |
${fileDirname} |
C:\project\docs |
File directory |
${relativeFile} |
docs\guide.md |
Path relative to workspace |
${workspaceFolder} |
C:\project |
Workspace root |
${cwd} |
— |
VS Code process cwd |
${env.VAR} |
— |
Environment variable |
Notes
- This extension does not disable
editor.formatOnSave. If both are enabled, formatting may run twice. Recommended: disable native format-on-save and add editor.action.formatDocument explicitly in your pipeline.
- Shell commands run with the same privileges as the VS Code process. The security model matches VS Code's built-in tasks.
Known Issues
- No
when clause support yet (v0.2 planned)
- Command steps do not support arguments (
args field planned in v0.3+)
- No data passing between steps
Release
See CHANGELOG.md for version history.
