The extension supports:
File Templates
Create files from defined templates. Templates can be defined at different levels: Extension, User, Workspace and Folder.
Based on the extension File Templates for VSCode by Venkatesh Boddu.
This extension can be used as a replacement for File Templates for VSCode. It uses the same command names and key bindings.
It fixes a number of problems and adds a few features.
- command
template.newTemplateFromFile is renamed to templates.newTemplateFromFile
Change this if you have a custom key binding.
- no restriction on naming the template
- add a few variables for File Path and Custom Date, User input and Snippets
Features
- Create new files from defined templates.
- Create new File Templates either from an existing file or a blank file.
- Edit User defined Templates.
- Use variables for Author Name, Date, File Path, User input and Snippets.
Usage
If you select an entry in the File Explorer and use the Context menu (Right-click) you will see a menu entry New File from Template.
If the Explorer entry is a directory the new file will be created in this directory.
If the Explorer entry is a file the new file will a sibling.
It shows a menu with existing templates. Select the desired template and enter the new file name without extension. The new file will get the same extension as the selected template.
In the Context menu (Right-click) of the editor you will see menu entries:
New File from Template : Create a new file that is a sibling of the current file.
New Template from File : Use the current active document as a start for a new template.
You are asked in which directory you want this template stored and with which name.
Theme: Light+
Next Snippet in File : the ${snippet} variables needs to be evaluated after creation of the file because the editor needs to be put in Snippet mode. This also resolves the ${cursor} variable as a final snippet.
If there are no ${snippet} or ${cursor} variables nothing happens.
Any ${input} variables still in the file are also processed.
From the Command Palette you can select:
Files: New File from Template (templates.newFileFromTemplate) - to create a new file from a template
Files: New File Template (templates.newTemplate) - to create a new blank file template.
Files: New Template from File (templates.newTemplateFromFile) - to create a new template from the current active file.
Files: Edit File Template (templates.editTemplate) - to edit a template.
Theme: Light+
Files: Next Snippet in File (templates.nextSnippet) - to evaluate the next ${snippet} or ${input} variable.
You can define variables in the templates for Author Name, Date, File Path, User input and Snippets
If you use snippet variables often it might be handy to define a key binding for the command: templates.nextSnippet
Templates Location
The templates can be stored in several locations:
- Extension : The extension has a number of predefined templates that can not be edited or add to. After an update of the extension these edits would be gone.
- User : in a user defined directory from the setting
templates.folder in the User settings (a good location is <homedir>/.vscode/templates, the installed extensions are stored in a sibling directory) (Optional)
- Multiroot Workspace : in a user defined directory from the setting
templates.folder in the Workspace settings (.code-workspace file) (Optional)
- Worksapce/Folder : When one folder is open the templates are stored in the directory
.vscode/templates
Each location is more specific of where the template can be used. Templates with the same name override templates on a more generic level. When you need to select a template to create from it shows the location of the template and the more specific ones are listed first
A directory is only created when store a new template in that directory.
Template variables
In the template you can define a number of variables. They are evaluated at file creation time except for ${snippet}.
A number of variables is identical to the variables that can be used in tasks.json and launch.json:
${relativeFile} - the current opened file relative to workspaceFolder${relativeFileDirname} - the current opened file's dirname relative to workspaceFolder${fileBasename} - the current opened file's basename${fileBasenameNoExtension} - the current opened file's basename with no file extension${fileExtname} - the current opened file's extension
The next variables use settings:
${author} : use the value for setting templates.author${date} : show the current date and time in a fixed format, for historic reasons this variable is still allowed.
The next variables need additional information. This is part of the variable and needs to be specified using separator strings.
${variableName separator properties separator}
All separator's used in a variable need to be the same.
The separator is a string of 1 or more characters that are not part of the a to z alfabet, $ or {}, in regular expression [^a-zA-Z{}$]+. Choose a character string that is not used in the properties part. If you need to use more than 1 character be carefull if you use the same character, you can experience unwanted behavior. The reason is that JavaScript regular expression does not have non-backtrack greedy quantifier. Currently the variable is matched with 1 regular expression. This makes everything easy to implement.
In the description the : is used as the separator, choose a different one if you use this character in the variable property.
${dateTimeFormat} : use the setting templates.dateTimeFormat to construct a date-time.${dateTimeFormat:name:} : use a named format in the setting templates.dateTimeFormat to construct a date-time. The format properties override what is defined in templates.dateTimeFormat.${input:description:} : Ask the user some text and use the properties part as the description for the InputBox
Example: ${input:Title of this page:}${input:description:name=name:find=regex:flags=string:replace=string:} : Ask the user some text and use the text in all named ${input}variables with the same name. If no name given only for this variable the text is used. The text is searched and replaced with a regular expression. All occurrences offindare replaced ifflagshasg. The capture groups in the findregex can be used in thereplacestring with $n (like$1). flags are the regex flags used in the search. If find, flags or replace property are not defined they default to (.*), emptyString and $1 respectively. If the description starts with name= that ${input} variable is considered a named input variable.${snippet:definition:} : you can use the full syntax of the Visual Studio Code snippets.
A snippet is evaluated after the file is created with the command: Next Snippet in File from the Context Menu or Command Palette. The editor needs to be put in Snippet mode. Apply this command for every ${snippet}or${cursor} variable still in the file.
Example: ${snippet##${1|*,**,***|} ${TM_FILENAME/(.*)/${1:/upcase}/} ${1}##}${snippet:definition:noUI:} : Adding the property noUI should only be added to ${snippet} variables that do not need User Interaction (variable transforms). These snippets are resolved at file creation.
For template instantiation the ${input} variables are processed at file creation. If you have some file with ${input} variables they are also processed with the Next Snippet in File command. This can happen if you escape an ${input} variable. This way you can later process them.
A final empty variable to place the cursor:
${cursor} : If you want the cursor to end in a specific location after the file is created or as a last snippet use this variable
This variable ${dateTimeFormat} uses the setting templates.dateTimeFormat. It can use the unnamed format properties or you can use named format properties: ${dateTimeFormat:name:} (example uses separator :)
The setting templates.dateTimeFormat is an object with properties that are used to call Intl.DateTimeFormat to create a language-sensitive format of the current date and time.
The locale and options properties are the arguments for the Intl.DateTimeFormat constructor and are optional.
The locale property can be a single string or an array of strings of language tags. If not specified the browser default locale is used.
The template property is an optional template string that uses the same placeholder syntax as the Javascript template strings. You can add as many literal text as needed.
The only expressions valid are the type values returned by the Intl.DateTimeFormat.prototype.formatToParts() method. See first example.
If there is no template property the value parts of the Intl.DateTimeFormat.prototype.formatToParts() are joined. See second example.
Any other property of templates.dateTimeFormat is a named DateTimeFormat object that can define the properties locale, options and template. These properties override the values defined in templates.dateTimeFormat. See Example 3.
Example 1
"templates.dateTimeFormat": {
"locale": "en-US",
"options": {
"year": "numeric",
"month": "2-digit",
"day": "2-digit",
"hour12": false,
"hour": "2-digit",
"minute": "2-digit",
"second": "2-digit"
},
"template": "${year}/${month}/${day}-${hour}:${minute}:${second}"
}
The result is
2020/03/19-18:01:18
Example 2
You can use a different locale and number system and use the long format:
"templates.dateTimeFormat": {
"locale": "fr-FR-u-nu-deva",
"options": {
"dateStyle": "full",
"timeStyle": "full"
}
}
The result is
jeudi १९ mars २०२० à १७:५९:५७ heure normale d’Europe centrale
"templates.dateTimeFormat": {
"locale": "en-US",
"options": {
"year": "numeric",
"month": "2-digit",
"day": "2-digit",
"hour12": false,
"hour": "2-digit",
"minute": "2-digit",
"second": "2-digit"
},
"template": "${year}/${month}/${day}-${hour}:${minute}:${second}",
"year-only": { "template": "${year}" },
"timeHMS": { "template": "${hour}:${minute}:${second}" }
}
In the template use these variables (example uses : as separator):
${dateTimeFormat}
${dateTimeFormat:year-only:}
${dateTimeFormat:timeHMS:}
Extension Settings
This extension has the following settings:
templates.author : Set the Author name.templates.Author : Set the Author name. Deprecated: Please use templates.author instead.templates.folder : Define a File system path for a directory to save the templates at this level. Can only be defined at User and Multiroot Workspace level.templates.dateTimeFormat : An object describing the properties used by the ${dateTimeFormat} variabletemplates.saveAfterInputVariableOnFileCreation : Save the file after processing ${input} variables when the file is created.
KeyBindings
Save As N Times
If you need a series of files with filenames that have a sequence numbering and start all with the same content you can use the command "Files: Save As N Times" (templates.fileSaveAsNTimes). This command can also be found in the context menu of the editor.
The command asks to enter a file name template with fields. A field is a series of properties enclosed by {{ }}. The properties are comma separated key=value pairs. The type of the field is determined by the property type. Based on the current file name a suggestion is shown in the input box with 1 field added just before the file extension.
A file name template can have 1 or multiple fields. If no field is found a message is shown and no new file is created.
At the moment only a numeric field (type=N) is possible.
If a property has a numeric value this can be entered with prefix 0b and 0x for respective base 2 and 16.
The other properties are:
Numeric field (type=N)
from=number : the starting number of this field (default: 1)to=number : the last number of this field (default: 5)size=number : if size is defined, the number is padded with 0's on the left to get a string of the given size (default: undefined)base=number : the base of the number of this field, allows you to generate numbers with base, 2, 8, 16. Possible values [2, 36] (default: 10)
If from >= to no files will be created.
Using negative values for from and to give unexpected results, the - sign is not the start character of the resulting string of the field.
The file copies are saved in the same folder as the current file. No file will be overwritten. If the files need to be replaced you have to delete them first.
Example with multiple fields
The following file name template:
page-{{type=N,size=2,from=1,to=3}}-{{type=N,size=3,from=1,to=5}}.html
generates the following files:
page-01-001.html
page-01-002.html
page-01-003.html
page-01-004.html
page-01-005.html
page-02-001.html
page-02-002.html
page-02-003.html
page-02-004.html
page-02-005.html
page-03-001.html
page-03-002.html
page-03-003.html
page-03-004.html
page-03-005.html
TODO
- support multiple
${cursor} variables. To get a Multi Cursor after creating a file from a template
Release Notes
1.4.0 noUI property of ${snippet} variable
1.3.0
- named input variable
${input:Enter the title:name=title:}, reuse entered text in input variables with same name
- find/replace text from input variable
- setting:
templates.saveAfterInputVariableOnFileCreation
1.2.0 Save As N Times
1.0.0
Initial release of File Templates
