Untangle
Your imports are spaghetti. Untangle them.
See the full import tree and call hierarchy of any file or function, right in the VS Code sidebar.
Why
You open a file, see import { buildReport } from '@/services/report', jump there, find three more imports, jump again… and five tabs later you've forgotten why you started.
Untangle pulls the whole knot into one straight tree, so you can see the full chain at once and expand only what you need.
Languages
|
Import tree |
Call tree |
| JavaScript / TypeScript |
✅ |
✅ |
| Python |
✅ (new in 0.2) |
✅ with a Python language server (e.g. Pylance) |
| Any other language |
— |
✅ if its language server supports call hierarchy (Java, C#, Go, Rust, C/C++…) |
Features
- Import tree. Every local file a module imports, recursively.
- JS/TS: ES
import, export … from, dynamic import() and CommonJS require().
- Python:
import a.b, from . import x, from ..pkg import (…), imports inside functions and if TYPE_CHECKING: blocks. Works without any Python extension installed.
- Call hierarchy. Outgoing calls (what does this function call?) and incoming calls (who calls it?), followed as deep as you want, in any language with a call-hierarchy language server.
- Real module resolution.
- JS/TS: uses the TypeScript compiler's own resolver, so
tsconfig/jsconfig paths aliases (@/…, ~/…), baseUrl, index files and extends all work like they do in tsc. Solution-style configs (Vite, Nx) with references are supported too.
- Python: mirrors how Python finds modules. A real package or module always wins over a plain folder without
__init__.py, which is only used as a fallback, just like sys.path. It handles relative imports, .pyi stubs, the src/ layout and plain scripts next to each other. Standard-library and installed packages are marked as external.
- Circular import detection. Cycles are flagged as ↻ knot detected instead of looping forever. Detection is per branch, so a shared file still shows up everywhere it's imported.
- Jump to the exact line. Clicking a call opens the line where the call happens, not just the function definition.
- Lazy and cached. Only the branch you expand gets analyzed. Results are cached per file and refreshed when you save or when a
tsconfig changes.
- English and Spanish UI.
Usage
- Open a JavaScript, TypeScript or Python file.
- Click the Untangle icon in the Activity Bar.
- Pick what to trace:
| Command |
What it shows |
Shortcut |
| Untangle: Trace Imports |
Import tree of the current file (also in the Explorer right-click menu) |
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+I / Cmd+Alt+Shift+I |
| Untangle: Trace Outgoing Calls |
Everything the function under the cursor calls |
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+H / Cmd+Alt+Shift+H |
| Untangle: Trace Incoming Calls |
Everything that calls the function under the cursor |
— |
The call commands are also in the editor's right-click menu.
Settings
| Setting |
Default |
Description |
untangle.showExternal |
false |
Also show imports and calls into external packages (node_modules, Python standard library and installed packages). |
How it works
| Layer |
Source |
Why |
| JS/TS imports |
TypeScript Compiler API: ts.preProcessFile + ts.resolveModuleName |
Fast lexical scan (no full AST), plus exactly the same resolution rules as tsc |
| Python imports |
Built-in parser and resolver (no Python install or extension needed) |
Tested against Python's own ast on 56,000+ real import statements and against importlib for resolution |
| Calls |
VS Code's built-in call hierarchy (vscode.prepareCallHierarchy, vscode.provideOutgoingCalls, vscode.provideIncomingCalls) |
Reuses the language server, which already understands overloads, this and re-exports, in any language |
Known limitations
- Barrel files (
index.ts that re-exports everything) show up as a single node. Following the specific re-exported symbol is on the roadmap.
- Python: imports built at runtime (
importlib.import_module(name), __import__) and custom sys.path changes aren't followed. Absolute imports are looked up from the package root, the project root and src/.
- Tree depth is capped at 12 levels to keep huge monorepos responsive. Past that point you'll see "Too tangled to go deeper".
Roadmap
- [x] Python import tracing (0.2)
- [ ] Interactive graph view (Webview) of the selected subtree
- [ ] Follow symbols through barrel re-exports
- [ ] Configurable max depth and folder filters
- [ ] Import trees for more languages (Go, Rust, Java, C/C++)
Ideas and PRs welcome. See CONTRIBUTING.md.
License
MIT © Victor Asensio Bermúdez
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