MarkdStage for VS Code

This extension is a thin workspace-host wrapper over the independently installed MarkdStage CLI. It does not bundle the CLI, parser, renderer, validator, or generated Agent Skill content.

The extension and CLI share one product version. Version 4.4.0 of this extension recommends MarkdStage CLI 4.4.0 and accepts any CLI from the markdstage.minimumCliVersion declared in package.json up to the same major version. An older but compatible CLI shows an update recommendation; a CLI below the minimum or with a newer major version is rejected with installation guidance.

Commands

• MarkdStage: Refresh / Detect CLI
• MarkdStage: Preview Current Markdown
• MarkdStage: Present Current Markdown
• MarkdStage: Validate Current Markdown
• MarkdStage: Install GitHub Copilot Skill
• MarkdStage: Check GitHub Copilot Skill
• MarkdStage: Stop Preview Sessions

Preview and presentation run the CLI with live watching, wait for its bounded --json-lines ready event, validate that the returned URL is loopback-only, and open it in VS Code Simple Browser. If Simple Browser is unavailable, the URL is opened in the external browser. Sessions are owned by the extension and stopped when requested or when the extension deactivates.

Validation runs markdstage validate --json and publishes the best available CLI ranges to a DiagnosticCollection.

Skill commands use:

markdstage skill <install|check> --target copilot --root <workspace> --json

Locally modified generated files are not overwritten unless the user explicitly confirms a force overwrite.

CLI discovery and installation

Set markdstage.executablePath to a preferred executable in the extension-host environment. Discovery tries that path first and then markdstage from PATH. Candidates must successfully return a semantic product version from --version that is within the compatible range.

The extension never installs the CLI automatically. On local Windows it links to the Microsoft Store first. On other platforms and remote extension hosts it links to the npm package and installation documentation. Remote workspaces need the CLI installed in the remote extension-host environment.

Workspace Trust and support

CLI detection, other process execution, and workspace writes are disabled until the workspace is trusted. Virtual workspaces and VS Code Web are not supported.

Development

npm install
npm test
npm run build
npm run package

npm run check:version compares this package version with ../markdstage-cli/package.json and verifies that markdstage.minimumCliVersion is a stable version no newer than the extension. Packaging creates markdstage-vscode.vsix and then verifies that the VSIX contains the manifest, README, license, and bundled extension entry point while excluding source, tests, scripts, lockfile, and node_modules.

To try the extension against the in-repo CLI, run node scripts\dev-vscode.mjs [--cli node|native] [workspace-folder] from the repository root. It builds the extension and the selected CLI (node: packages/markdstage-cli, the default; native: the Windows MarkdStageCli.exe from apps/MarkdStage.Desktop), puts a markdstage launcher for it first on PATH, and opens an isolated VS Code instance (.dev/vscode/<cli>/) with this extension loaded and Workspace Trust disabled, so an installed release CLI is never picked up. Set MARKDSTAGE_VSCODE to use a different VS Code launcher. To exercise Restricted Mode, launch VS Code manually without --disable-workspace-trust.