File Markers

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Open VSX:

Track file and folder status directly in VSCode's Explorer. Right-click to add visual markers like Done, In Progress, or Pending—no config files to edit, no separate sidebar to manage.

Perfect for migrations, refactoring projects, and code reviews.

Features

Right-Click to Mark

Add markers to any file or folder directly from the Explorer context menu.

Visual Badges

See file status at a glance with colored badges in the Explorer panel.

Note: Badges are limited to 2 characters maximum (VSCode FileDecoration API limitation).

Folder Markers with Inheritance

Mark entire folders! With inheritance enabled, unmarked files inside a marked folder automatically display a dimmed version of the parent's marker.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Quickly toggle markers and highlights:

• Toggle file marker: Ctrl+Shift+M (Cmd+Shift+M on macOS)
• Toggle line highlight: Ctrl+Shift+H (Cmd+Shift+H on macOS)

Line Highlighting

Highlight specific lines or ranges in your editor with color-coded backgrounds. Right-click selected text or use the keyboard shortcut to apply highlights.

• Set highlight: Select lines → right-click → File Markers: Set Line Highlight...
• Toggle highlight: Press Ctrl+Shift+H (Cmd+Shift+H on macOS) to cycle through highlight colors on the current line
• Remove highlight: Select the highlighted lines → right-click → File Markers: Remove Line Highlight

Files with line highlights display a ≡ badge in the Explorer panel.

Status Bar Summary

See marker counts at a glance in the status bar. Click to view detailed statistics, toggle the extension, or open configuration.

Bulk Operations

• Multi-select files and apply markers to all at once
• Remove all markers in a folder
• Remove all markers in workspace via Command Palette

Persistent & Shareable

Markers are stored in .vscode/file-markers.json. Commit this file to share markers with your team, or add it to .gitignore for personal use.

Custom Marker Types

You can define custom marker types by editing .vscode/file-markers.json directly. The file supports both marker assignments and custom marker type definitions:

{
  "markerTypes": [
    {
      "id": "done",
      "badge": "✅",
      "color": "gitDecoration.addedResourceForeground",
      "label": "Done"
    },
    {
      "id": "blocked",
      "badge": "🚫",
      "color": "errorForeground",
      "label": "Blocked"
    },
    {
      "id": "needs-discussion",
      "badge": "⚠️",
      "color": "editorWarning.foreground",
      "label": "Needs Discussion"
    }
  ],
  "markers": {
    "src/old-api.ts": "done",
    "src/utils": "blocked"
  },
  "lineHighlightTypes": [
    {
      "id": "highlight-yellow",
      "color": "rgba(255, 235, 59, 0.3)",
      "label": "Yellow Highlight"
    }
  ],
  "lineHighlights": {
    "src/old-api.ts": [
      { "startLine": 10, "endLine": 15, "typeId": "highlight-yellow" }
    ]
  }
}

Marker Type Properties:

Line Highlight Type Properties:

Tip: Use File Markers: Open Configuration command to quickly open the config file. Changes are detected automatically—no need to reload VSCode.

Installation

1. Open VSCode
2. Go to Extensions (Ctrl+Shift+X / Cmd+Shift+X)
3. Search for "File Markers"
4. Click Install

Or install via command line:

code --install-extension joneldominic-dev.file-markers

Usage

Setting a Marker

1. Right-click any file or folder in the Explorer
2. Select File Markers: Set Marker...
3. Choose a marker type from the QuickPick menu

Removing a Marker

• Right-click a marked item → File Markers: Remove Marker
• Or use the Command Palette → File Markers: Remove All Markers

Keyboard Toggle

Press Ctrl+Shift+M (Windows/Linux) or Cmd+Shift+M (macOS) to cycle through markers on the active file.

Highlighting Lines

1. Select one or more lines in the editor
2. Right-click → File Markers: Set Line Highlight...
3. Choose a highlight color from the QuickPick menu

To remove: select the highlighted lines → right-click → File Markers: Remove Line Highlight

Viewing Statistics

Click the marker summary in the status bar to see a breakdown of all markers in your workspace.

Extension Settings

Use Cases

• Migrations — Track which files have been migrated to a new framework
• Refactoring — Mark files as you work through a large refactor
• Code Reviews — Flag files that need attention
• Onboarding — Mark files you've reviewed while learning a codebase
• Tech Debt — Highlight files that need improvement
• Task Tracking — Visual progress on file-by-file tasks

Commands

Requirements

• VSCode 1.74.0 or higher

Known Issues

None yet! Report an issue

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please open an issue or submit a pull request on GitHub.

Release Notes

See CHANGELOG.md for detailed release history.

License

MIT