Visual Studio Code - multiple keyboard shortcuts? - visual-studio-code

Is there any way to set two keyboard shortcuts for one action in VS code? For example, I want to move the cursor to the left by pressing left arrow key or Alt+A.
Is it possible to add multiple keybindings to a shortcut?

Edit: Starting from 1.52 it's possible from keybindings GUI:
What stops you from editing keybindings.json?
{
"key": "left",
"command": "cursorLeft",
"when": "textInputFocus"
},
{
"key": "alt+a",
"command": "cursorLeft"
}
It can be opened from Command Palette Preferences: Open Keyboard Shortcuts (JSON)
Or by clicking the file icon from keybindings GUI page:

Updating the previous answer and adding tiny more details, atleast in the current 2020 version it seems like after changing the keybindings (atleasy cursor up & down), VSCode creates an entry in the JSON file that can be accessed from Alex's answer. The JSON will contain the new entry you made but also the changed entry with a '-' negative sign on the key instruction. Just remove the '-' negative sign and both your keybindings should work like a charm! Obviously don't forget to save!

Related

VS Code Each time when I select another file and start to type, I will type in the side bar, not on a page. How to fix it? [duplicate]

I realize that Microsoft had some sort of reason for adding the new "Find" tool in the folder EXPLORER section of VSC.. but... I'm a creature of habit. When I click on a file and then press Ctrl+F, I immediately start typing the value I'm looking for. The results used to look like this in the file editor pane...
But with my last update, when I click on the file in the EXPLORER and press Ctrl+F, I am now getting this NEW small tool in the EXPLORER pane, and the cursor goes THERE. I type away and nothing happens in the file editor until I swear a few near-curse-words and have to click over in the file editor and then press Ctrl+F again and start all over to type the search string. It's bugging me because its old habit.
How can I go back to the old way of how it worked? Is there a simple configuration buried somewhere I can change?
Thanks.
I don't say see a setting to set the old filter-search method as the default in the Explorer. You can disable the list.find command on which the new find widget in the Explorer depends in your keybindings.json which has the effect you want:
{
"key": "ctrl+f",
"command": "-list.find",
// "when": "listFocus && listSupportsFind"
}
Now Ctrl+F with focus in the Explorer will open the editor Find Widget with focus.
But you lose the ability to filter other lists with the Ctrl+F, such as TreeViews (see https://stackoverflow.com/a/73039598/836330 forexample).
The better solution, IMO, is to set up a macro which works when you have explorerFocus and use the Ctrl+F keybinding. You will need a macro extension, like multi-command. Use this keybinding in your keybindings.json:
{
"key": "ctrl+f",
"command": "extension.multiCommand.execute",
"args": {
"sequence": [
"workbench.action.focusActiveEditorGroup",
"actions.find",
],
"when": "explorerFocus"
},
}
which will switch focus to your current editor and then open the Find Widget therein.
I will provide three steps to achieve this without editing keybindings.json
Step 1: Open keyboard shortcuts
Step 2: Find list.find using the search bar.
Step 3: Change key-binding to f3. If there are multiple bindings f3 and ctrl+f like it was for me, remove ctrl+f key-binding.
Done.
You can open keyboard shortcuts by:
ctrl + k ctrl + s
Open palette ctrl + shift + p, type open keyboard shortcuts.

How do I shut off the new Explorer Ctrl+F Find tool in VSC?

I realize that Microsoft had some sort of reason for adding the new "Find" tool in the folder EXPLORER section of VSC.. but... I'm a creature of habit. When I click on a file and then press Ctrl+F, I immediately start typing the value I'm looking for. The results used to look like this in the file editor pane...
But with my last update, when I click on the file in the EXPLORER and press Ctrl+F, I am now getting this NEW small tool in the EXPLORER pane, and the cursor goes THERE. I type away and nothing happens in the file editor until I swear a few near-curse-words and have to click over in the file editor and then press Ctrl+F again and start all over to type the search string. It's bugging me because its old habit.
How can I go back to the old way of how it worked? Is there a simple configuration buried somewhere I can change?
Thanks.
I don't say see a setting to set the old filter-search method as the default in the Explorer. You can disable the list.find command on which the new find widget in the Explorer depends in your keybindings.json which has the effect you want:
{
"key": "ctrl+f",
"command": "-list.find",
// "when": "listFocus && listSupportsFind"
}
Now Ctrl+F with focus in the Explorer will open the editor Find Widget with focus.
But you lose the ability to filter other lists with the Ctrl+F, such as TreeViews (see https://stackoverflow.com/a/73039598/836330 forexample).
The better solution, IMO, is to set up a macro which works when you have explorerFocus and use the Ctrl+F keybinding. You will need a macro extension, like multi-command. Use this keybinding in your keybindings.json:
{
"key": "ctrl+f",
"command": "extension.multiCommand.execute",
"args": {
"sequence": [
"workbench.action.focusActiveEditorGroup",
"actions.find",
],
"when": "explorerFocus"
},
}
which will switch focus to your current editor and then open the Find Widget therein.
I will provide three steps to achieve this without editing keybindings.json
Step 1: Open keyboard shortcuts
Step 2: Find list.find using the search bar.
Step 3: Change key-binding to f3. If there are multiple bindings f3 and ctrl+f like it was for me, remove ctrl+f key-binding.
Done.
You can open keyboard shortcuts by:
ctrl + k ctrl + s
Open palette ctrl + shift + p, type open keyboard shortcuts.

Is it possible to make an editor split full-screen in VSCode?

I'd like to have the ability to make one of multiple split editor windows full screen.
I usually have two vertically splitted windows with code and it would be useful to make sort of full-screen-zoom without explorer terminal and all other bars, just code.
Initally I have the following:
but I would like to configure a shortcut to make an active window full-screen like this:
It is like F11, closing the explorer, and merging the split. It is messy to do it by hand all the time...
I would like to configure a shortcut to make an active window full-screen.
You need to edit keybindings. Press Ctrl+K and then Ctrl+S to open keyboard shortcuts.
If you're on a mac, use Command key instead of Ctrl.
Search full screen in search bar. You will see something like this:
Click on the result. Press Ctrl+K and Ctrl+K (again!) or click pencil icon to edit the shortcut. Press desired key combination. That's it.
And here are some more shortcuts to learn:
Press Ctrl+K and then Z to open editor in full screen without explorer and terminal, etc. And you can use Ctrl+B to show/hide side bar and Ctrl+J to show terminal and console panel.
Download keyboard shortcuts file here for your favourite OS.
To make these hotkeys work in vim-mode:
Actually VSCodeVim will take over your control keys. This behaviour can be adjusted with the useCtrlKeys and handleKeys settings. Go to File>>Preferences>>Keyboard Shortcuts. Search for Ctrl+k in search bar. You will see extension.vim_ctrl+k as below:
Change this hotkey. Now it should work.
The closest you can get to maximize ONE EDITOR GROUP out of two open editor groups,
(capitalizing because nobody read the actual question properly!)
is to set this command as a shortcut:
View: Toggle Editor Group Sizes
workbench.action.toggleEditorWidths
which will toggle the active editor group to 90% of the screen
If you have the side bar open that will take up another 10%,
to close that automatically use:
View: maximize Editor Group and Hide Sidebar
workbench.action.maximizeEditor
(this command doesn't toggle so you still need the previous shortcut)
(and also now your sidebar is closed when you toggle back)
To achieve maximum fullscreen vibe, use Ctrl-k z to enter zen mode, the sidebar, terminal, menus and clutter disappear,
leaving just the editor groups, which you can toggle their size with the previously mentioned shortcut.
Don't get lost in zen mode! It happens, remember the shortcut Ctrl-k z
Not ideal,
I think we'd all prefer to have dedicated toggles for zen-moding the active group editor or file 100%,
but it's close enough for now.
Here's a screenshot of it in action:
VS Code Editor Full Screen Without Explorer and Terminal - Press Ctrl + K then Z (Zen Mode)
To exit from the full screen mode, press Esc two times.
I use this on OSX, hope it will be helpful. Just replace command code with codef.
#!bin/sh
codef() {
code $* && sleep 0.5 && /usr/bin/osascript -e \
'tell application "Visual Studio Code"
activate
tell application "System Events"
keystroke "f" using {control down, command down}
end tell
end tell'
}
In windows to exit vscode full screen mode, press key
F11
To go back again into full screen mode, press key
F11
the upate June 2021 from VS Code can move the terminal inside the editor area
Step 1
The new terminal.integrated.defaultLocation setting can be set to editor to direct newly created terminals to the editor area by default.
Step 2
With the Zen-Mode -> Strg + K + Z you get the full window terminal experience.
This solution is close to what was originally asked. I edited some vscode settings and now I can switch between 2 states quickly:
State 1: have multiple (equal sized) editor splits open, maybe a terminal and the sidebar
State 2: have the current editor split bigger and the terminal and sidebar removed, at the same time vscode maximized to fullscreen
To toggle I use Ctrl+Alt+Z and then Ctrl+Alt+B. To go back I type it in reverse order.
To make it work I inserted the following into my ~/.config/Code/User/keybindings.json:
{
"key": "ctrl+alt+b",
"command": "workbench.action.toggleEditorWidths"
},
{
"key": "ctrl+alt+z",
"command": "workbench.action.toggleZenMode"
},
{
"key": "ctrl+k z",
"command": "-workbench.action.toggleZenMode"
},
It works for me in VSCode version 1.61 on Linux. On a Mac it would probably need some adjustments. On Windows it should be the same.
There is still a minor problem: After returning from zen mode, the cursor focus has moved to the terminal window, which is annoying and probably a VSCode bug. To solve it and return to where you were, using only the keyboard. if you have two splits, type:
Ctrl+1 for the first split or Ctrl+2 for the second
We can improve on #bevo099's answer by adding keybindings.
This will cause F11 (the fullscreen key by default) to instead zoom-in on the active editor or terminal panel. Zen mode is already full screen, so it replaces well.
I used the multi-command extension to allow multiple actions on one binding.
In keybindings.json:
[
{
"key": "f11",
"command": "extension.multiCommand.execute",
"args": {
"sequence": [
"workbench.action.toggleEditorWidths",
"workbench.action.toggleZenMode",
]
},
"when": "editorTextFocus && !inZenMode"
},
{
"key": "f11",
"command": "extension.multiCommand.execute",
"args": {
"sequence": [
"workbench.action.toggleZenMode",
"workbench.action.toggleEditorWidths",
]
},
"when": "editorTextFocus && inZenMode"
},
{
"key": "f11",
"command": "workbench.action.toggleMaximizedPanel",
"when": "terminalFocus"
}
]

How to reset Visual Studio Code key bindings?

I have been experimenting with my vs-code key bindings.
I would like to reset the key-bindings to the original settings.
How do I do that?
I am on Linux Mint 18.
I tried removing all the records from the keybindings.json
Version 1.34.0 seems to have the settings at a slightly different location:
Click File > Preferences > Keyboard Shortcuts
There is a triple-dot (...) at the top-right hand corner. Click on that and select "Show User Keybindings"
Delete your listed keybindings
Here are the steps to reset the keybindings in VS code.
Click File > Preferences > Keyboard Shortcuts or Press Ctrl+K Ctrl+S
Then, click on keybindings.json
From keybindings.json remove the custom bindings you want to reset.
It seems newer versions of VSCode (>1.33 for Mac) doesn't have a direct link to keybindings.json anymore, as this answer shows. However, there is an option to reset user defined keybindings without mess with files.
Go to the Keyboard shortcuts settings:
There, find the setting tagged as "User". If you click on it with the right mouse button, a context menu will show the option "Reset Keybinding":
This action is gonna reset the selected keybinding and tag it with "Default" again.
first go file > preferences > keyboard shortcuts
you can see all key that you change whit click on triple-dot
or put ( #source:user ) in search bar
now you can right click on which one that you want to reset and select ( reset keybinding )
If you had installed the Keybinding as an Extension e.g Sublime or IntelliJ IDEA Keybindings, simple go to Extension and disable or uninstall it and you would have your default keybinding.
Do we need another answer? Maybe not, but every year or so I find myself sifting through the information on this page, so to make it quicker next time, here are some notes:
To find the location of the settings, you can look for a button/link to the json file located somewhere in Preferences. However, I have found it easier to find the json files on my hard drive than to locate that button/link inside the app (some users report that the button/link is missing in some versions of the app). If your OS does not allow you to search through system files, open a terminal session and type $ locate keybindings.json.
If you can memorize shortcuts, a typical default shortcut that can take you to the button/link is CMD+SHIFT+P. This shortcut opens a box below the main toolbar and you can type "json" in that box to find a button/link to the json file.
General settings are in settings.json
Keyboard settings are in keybindings.json
MacOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Code/User/
Example of keybindings.json
// Place your key bindings in this file to override the defaultsauto[]
[
{
"key": "cmd+r cmd+r",
"command": "workbench.action.reloadWindow",
"when": "isDevelopment"
},
{
"key": "cmd+r",
"command": "-workbench.action.reloadWindow",
"when": "isDevelopment"
},
{
"key": "shift+cmd+c shift+cmd+c",
"command": "workbench.action.terminal.openNativeConsole",
"when": "!terminalFocus"
},
{
"key": "shift+cmd+c",
"command": "-workbench.action.terminal.openNativeConsole",
"when": "!terminalFocus"
},
{
"key": "ctrl+cmd+c",
"command": "editor.action.commentLine",
"when": "editorTextFocus && !editorReadonly"
},
{
"key": "ctrl+shift+alt+cmd+[Minus]",
"command": "-editor.action.commentLine",
"when": "editorTextFocus && !editorReadonly"
},
{
"key": "shift+cmd+c",
"command": "editor.action.blockComment",
"when": "editorTextFocus && !editorReadonly"
},
{
"key": "shift+alt+a",
"command": "-editor.action.blockComment",
"when": "editorTextFocus && !editorReadonly"
}
]
Note that mapping a key combination that is already in use may result in conflicts. So the best approach is to first remap that default binding to something else. In the above, for instance, the "-" that prefixes "-editor.action.blockComment" serves to suppress the default binding. Thus, you may find that your key bindings are best set in pairs (unless your preferred combinations are sufficiently rare).
Example of settings.json
{
"workbench.colorTheme": "Solarized Light",
"window.zoomLevel": 4,
"workbench.activityBar.visible": false,
"workbench.statusBar.visible": false,
"editor.quickSuggestions": false,
"editor.suggest.snippetsPreventQuickSuggestions": false,
"editor.acceptSuggestionOnCommitCharacter": false
}
Try this documentation page about key binding in VSCode:
https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/getstarted/keybindings
Open a directory that contains user settings (https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/getstarted/settings) and try to remove user key bindings file.
On VS Code version 1.42.1 on Mac you can find a button that opens the Keyboard shortcuts JSON file on the top right corner of the keyboard shortcuts screen which you can open from Code -> Preferences -> Keyboard Shortcuts
For the newer version of VSCode (Version: 1.43.1), you can open the keybindings.json file from the Command Palette (⇧⌘P OR Ctrl+Shift+P) with the Preferences: Open Keyboard Shortcuts (JSON) command.
Once you delete all the data in the keybindings.json file you should get rid of any changes you made to keyboard shortcuts for your installation. Everything would be set back to default.
Reason: The first line in keybindings.json file is a comment // Place your key bindings in this file to override the defaultsauto[], which means if you delete all what is there you'll get the VSCode defaults. (Ref https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/getstarted/keybindings#_advanced-customization)
You can find all information on keybindings here.
For future searchers, since this question refers to Linux, even if the keybindings.json file is moved again one can always just use locate to find it:
$ locate keybindings.json.
Chances are, you will only have one, and if you have more, it will be clear where it is, as it is somewhere inside Code folder.
For example, as of today, mine is here: /home/auser/.config/Code/User/keybindings.json
Going directly to the file, will give you the opportunity to keep what you want and remove what you think might be the problematic setting.
For VSCode Version 1.35.1, which I'm using, one can directly open the keybindings.json file using the button that looks like {} on top-right corner of "Keyboard Shortcuts" Tab's title bar:
Picture showing {} button in top-right corner
Cleaning content of this file cleans all user defined key bindings.
In the latest version, the setting json file is with highlighted button.
I deleted everything in there and it seems to reset all keys.
User setting file
If you are on a Mac, press and hold command while hitting the k and s keys. Then click the icon on the top right with the three circles and press "Show User Keybindings". Then, hit command + delete while highlighting over the keybinding you want to delete.

Toggle between fullscreen editor and terminal in VS Code

As a Windows systems admin, I use PowerShell quite a lot. With the release of PS Core, and the implication that the ISE is dead, I've started to try to use VS Code as my day to day tool. One feature I'm missing from ISE is the ability to swap between the editor and the terminal in fullscreen. I usually kept ISE open and maximized, and used Ctrl+R to swap between editor and terminal as needed. I haven't found a way to maximize the terminal, and swap easily between terminal and editor. I know I can make the terminal take up most of the screen, but a) this still leaves about 2 lines of editor open at the top, and b) there doesn't seem to be an easy way to then maximize the editor. Is there a way to minic the ISE behaviour that I haven't found yet?
To toggle between a full screen editor and a nearly full screen terminal you can use:
{
"key": "ctrl+alt+m",
"command": "workbench.action.toggleMaximizedPanel"
}
with your keybinding of choice to replace the Ctrl-Alt-m : that is mine. You just need to "maximize" the terminal first - pull it up as far as it goes. It will remember that between sessions.
Revisiting this :
As of v1.38 this is now pretty simple. There are two commands that will toggle the panel/editors to full screen.
Pick some keybinding to use for the toggle trigger:
{
"key": "ctrl+alt+q",
"command": "workbench.action.toggleMaximizedPanel",
// "command": "workbench.action.toggleEditorVisibility" either one
"when": "!terminalFocus"
},
The above will expand the panel or editor to full height, but toggling back will return the panel to its original size but not to nothing. If you want the terminal to bounce between full open and full closed try both of these keybindings:
{
"key": "ctrl+alt+t", // you could use "key": "ctrl+`", if you wish
"command": "workbench.action.closePanel",
// "when": "terminalFocus"
},
{
"key": "ctrl+alt+t",
"command": "workbench.action.toggleMaximizedPanel",
"when": "!terminalFocus"
},
The order of the above 2 keybindings is important.
v1.50 is adding the setting panel.opensMaximized - I tried its different options but couldn't get a simpler result than the two keybindings ctrl+alt+t version I showed above. In any case, start with the panel closed for it to work well.
The below outlines my solution after reading #Mark 's answer, as it's slightly different. I use ctrl-alt-m to switch between a full-sized terminal and full-sized editor.
note: this includes the mentioned integrated terminal and vscode application menu bars.
For posterity's sake, I'm on vscode version 1.40.1.
Implementation
You'll need to add to your keybindings within vscode and execute a manual step.
keybindings.json
Add this to your keybindings.json file, accessible via the Keyboard Shortcuts editor:
{
"key": "ctrl+alt+m",
"command": "workbench.action.toggleMaximizedPanel",
"when": "!terminalFocus"
},
{
"key": "ctrl+`",
"command": "-workbench.action.terminal.toggleTerminal",
"when": "!terminalFocus"
},
{
"key": "ctrl+alt+m",
"command": "workbench.action.terminal.toggleTerminal",
"when": "terminalFocus"
}
Slide down the integrated terminal
Once you've done this and saved your keybindings.json file you need to manually slide down the integrated terminal all the way off the screen on the bottom, after opening from your editor with ctrl+`.
Afterwards, you should be able to use ctrl+alt+m in your editor and your terminal to get a full-screen-ish experience moving between them.
I've tested this on Ubuntu and Fedora locally as hosts and using remote-ssh to an Ubuntu remote from a Windows 10 host. This has the added benefit of allowing you to get the by-default smaller terminal from within your editor using ctrl+` but use a single command, ctrl+alt+m, for switching between editor/terminal. YMMV!
Solution 1: Create Terminal in new Tab and Switch Between Tabs
Ctrl+Shift+P > Terminal: Create New Terminal in Editor Area create a terminal as a new Tab (A.k.a. Editor). It looks like:
Now you can toggle between Tabs (A.k.a. Editors) and Terminal (Which is in a new Tab) using View: Quick Open Previous Recently Used Editor in Group
Solution 2: Create Terminal in new Editor Group and Switch Between Editor Groups
Ctrl+Shift+P > Terminal: Create New Terminal in Editor Area to the Side create a terminal in new Editor Groups. It looks like:
Now you can toggle between window and terminal using View: Navigate Between Editor Groups
NOTE:
You can add keybinding to the commands as per your convenience. For example, in case of Solution 1:
{
"key": "ctrl+`",
"command": "workbench.action.createTerminalEditor"
},
{
"key": "ctrl+tab",
"command": "workbench.action.quickOpenPreviousRecentlyUsedEditorInGroup",
"when": "!activeEditorGroupEmpty"
},
{
"key": "ctrl+w",
"command": "workbench.action.terminal.killEditor",
"when": "terminalEditorFocus && terminalFocus && terminalHasBeenCreated && resourceScheme == 'vscode-terminal' || terminalEditorFocus && terminalFocus && terminalProcessSupported && resourceScheme == 'vscode-terminal'"
}
Here, Ctrl+W & Ctrl+Tab are set by default. I just modified Ctrl+`.
The above keybinding will
Create terminal when you press Ctrl+`
Close terminal when you press Ctrl+W
Toggle between fullscreen editor and terminal when you press Ctrl+Tab
Opening the terminal in VS Code in full screen
This solution will replace the standard keybindings in VS Code so the terminal toggles in full screen.
Implementation
Open command palette ctrl+shift+p and search for Preferences: Open Keyboard Shortcuts (JSON) and paste this between the square brackets.
{ "key":"ctrl+j", "command":"workbench.action.toggleMaximizedPanel","when":"!terminalFocus" },
{ "key": "ctrl+oem_3", "command":"workbench.action.toggleMaximizedPanel", "when":"!terminalFocus" }
There is now an extension for exactly this. It is the "maximizeterminal" extension by Samuel T Scott. It redefines ctrl+` for opening terminal full-screen. The above keybinding methods, are also great, but in my experience they tend to not work properly once you start opening files by using cli like "code app.js". While using the extension such problems do not occur.
For macOS users, you can set the shortcut in the same keybindings.json file.
You can access the file using the shortcut cmd+shift+p, then write/select Preferences: Open Keyboard Shortcuts (JSON).
In keybindings.json, paste the following code between the square brackets:
{ "key": "cmd+alt+m",
"command": "workbench.action.toggleMaximizedPanel",
"when": "!terminalFocus" }
You can change the shortcut to whatever suits you (mind rewriting any of the default ones!), but I set mine to the same as others suggested (cmd+option+m) to keep a "standard".
Right click on the terminal instance name at the top as seen below and then select "move terminal into editor area". This will allow you to have a full workspace view within VS Code.
Image of process
I love this question, I believe I figured out something or at least got the behavior I was looking for.
Using the workspace setting here: https://github.com/microsoft/vscode/issues/107624
(enter ctrl+, and search "openmaximized" and set the dropdown to "always")
From there I set the keyboard shortcut for "Toggle Terminal" to ctrl+j (or whatever you may prefer) and now when I toggle my terminal it goes from full screen to toggled off
For MacOS I found useful cmd+option+m