TraceLight

A lightweight, context-first Git insight extension for VS Code — fast inline blame, smart hovers, block history, file evolution, and commit graph.

Features

Search

Search recent commits across all branches by summary, SHA, author, or touched file path. Open matching files, copy commit SHAs, or jump to the commit on your remote.

Inline Trace

See who changed the current line and when — directly in the editor. Toggle with Alt+B.

Smart Hover

Hover over any line to see a rich commit card with author, message, date, and diff preview.

Block History Lens

CodeLens annotations on functions and classes showing recent change history at a glance.

File Evolution

Visual timeline view showing how a file evolved over time — commits, contributors, and change density.

Commit Graph

Interactive commit graph visualization with cherry-pick, revert, and branch creation from any commit.

Branch Explorer

Full branch management — create, rename, delete, checkout, and merge branches with a context menu.

Git Changes

Track working tree changes, stage/unstage files, commit with messages, stash, and generate AI commit messages via GitHub Copilot.

Git Changes
Search
File Evolution
Branch Explorer

Configuration

Setting	Default	Description
`tracelight.inlineTrace.enabled`	`true`	Enable inline blame annotations
`tracelight.inlineTrace.format`	`${author}, ${timeAgo} · ${summary}`	Format string for inline annotation
`tracelight.smartHover.enabled`	`true`	Enable rich hover cards
`tracelight.smartHover.showDiffPreview`	`true`	Show diff preview in hover
`tracelight.blockHistoryLens.enabled`	`true`	Enable Block History Lens
`tracelight.blockHistoryLens.recentCount`	`3`	Number of recent changes to show
`tracelight.fileEvolution.timelineGranularity`	`week`	Timeline granularity (day/week/month)
`tracelight.commitGraph.compactMode`	`false`	Use compact layout for commit graph
`tracelight.cache.enabled`	`true`	Enable blame caching
`tracelight.cache.maxAge`	`300`	Cache max age in seconds

Keybindings

Command	Keybinding
Toggle Inline Trace	`Alt+B`

Requirements

VS Code 1.85.0 or later
Git installed and available in PATH

License

MIT

TraceLight: Git Explorer

seanlab