CleanView
Hide files matching .gitignore patterns from VS Code Explorer for a cleaner workspace
CleanView automatically hides files and folders that match patterns in your .gitignore files, giving you a cleaner, more focused view of your project in the VS Code Explorer.
Features
- 🔍 Smart Gitignore Parsing: Uses spec-compliant gitignore pattern matching
- 👁️ Toggle Visibility: Easily show/hide gitignored files with commands or status bar
- 📁 Nested Support: Handles nested
.gitignore files throughout your project
- ⚡ Auto-Updates: Automatically refreshes when
.gitignore files change
- 🎛️ Configurable: Customize behavior with extension settings
- 📊 Status Indicator: Visual status bar showing active state and pattern count
Quick Start
- Install the extension
- Open a project with a
.gitignore file
- Use
Ctrl+Shift+P → "CleanView: Toggle Hide Gitignored Files"
- Or click the eye icon in the status bar
Commands
| Command |
Description |
CleanView: Toggle Hide Gitignored Files |
Show/hide gitignored files |
CleanView: Refresh Gitignore Patterns |
Manually refresh patterns |
CleanView: Disable CleanView |
Completely disable hiding |
Settings
| Setting |
Description |
Default |
cleanview.autoHide |
Automatically hide files on activation |
true |
cleanview.includeNestedGitignore |
Include nested .gitignore files |
true |
cleanview.showStatusBar |
Show status bar indicator |
true |
cleanview.customPatterns |
Additional custom ignore patterns |
[] |
Status Bar
The status bar indicator shows:
👁️ CleanView - Inactive (files visible)👁️🗨️ CleanView (12) - Active (files hidden, 12 patterns applied)
Click the indicator to toggle visibility.
How It Works
CleanView reads your .gitignore files and converts the patterns into VS Code's files.exclude setting temporarily. When you disable CleanView, it restores your original exclude settings.
Supported Patterns
- Standard gitignore patterns (
*.log, node_modules/, /build)
- Nested
.gitignore files in subdirectories
- Custom patterns from extension settings
- Negation patterns (
!important.log) are handled correctly
Examples
Basic Usage
# .gitignore
node_modules/
*.log
.DS_Store
/build
CleanView will hide:
- All
node_modules folders
- Any
.log files
.DS_Store files- The
build folder in the root
Custom Patterns
Add custom patterns in VS Code settings:
{
"cleanview.customPatterns": [
"*.tmp",
"cache/",
".vscode/settings.json"
]
}
Requirements
- VS Code 1.74.0 or higher
- A workspace with
.gitignore files (recommended)
Known Issues
- Large projects may take a moment to process complex gitignore patterns
- Pattern changes require manual refresh in some edge cases
Release Notes
1.0.0
- Initial release
- Core gitignore parsing and file hiding
- Status bar integration
- Configuration options
- File system watchers
Contributing
Found a bug or have a suggestion? Please open an issue.
License
MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.
Enjoy a cleaner workspace with CleanView! ✨
