XTasks

XTasks adds clickable status bar buttons for commands you define in .vscode/xtasks.json.

Each visible task becomes a button. Clicking a button sends the configured command to a shared terminal named XTasks.

Features

• Creates status bar buttons from your task config.
• Supports custom icons per task.
• Runs each task command in a reusable terminal.
• Auto-refreshes when xtasks.json changes.

Quick Start

1. Open a workspace in VS Code.
2. Create .vscode/xtasks.json in the workspace root.
3. Add tasks using the format below.

Example:

{
	"Build": {
		"show": true,
		"icon": "$(tools)",
		"command": "npm run build"
	},
	"Test": {
		"show": true,
		"icon": "$(beaker)",
		"command": "npm test"
	},
	"Hidden Task": {
		"show": false,
		"command": "echo not shown"
	}
}

Task Format

Each top-level key is the button label.

• show (boolean): If true, the button appears.
• icon (string, optional): A text/icon prefix shown before the label. Default is ▶.
• command (string): Command sent to the terminal when clicked.

Notes

• Tasks are loaded from the first workspace folder.
• If .vscode/xtasks.json is missing or invalid JSON, no buttons are shown.

Release Notes

1.0.0

Initial version of XTasks.