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VSCode Extension Features

The X-Fidelity VSCode extension provides a comprehensive suite of features that transform the command-line analysis tool into a fully-integrated development experience.

Core Features​

1. Real-time Analysis​

  • Auto-analysis on Save: Automatic code analysis when files are saved
  • Progress Tracking: Real-time progress indicators during analysis
  • Background Processing: Non-blocking analysis execution
  • Cancellation Support: Ability to cancel long-running analyses

2. Professional User Interface​

Activity Bar Integration​

  • Dedicated Sidebar: X-Fidelity icon in the VSCode activity bar
  • Organized Views: Multiple tree views for different aspects of analysis
  • Quick Actions: Common operations accessible with one click
  • Status Indicators: Real-time status updates and notifications

Issues Tree View​

Issues are displayed in an organized tree structure with multiple grouping options:

  • By Severity: Critical, High, Medium, Low
  • By Rule: Group issues by the rule that triggered them
  • By File: Organize issues by file location
  • By Category: Group by analysis category or plugin

Control Center​

Centralized access to all X-Fidelity functionality:

  • Analysis Controls: Start, stop, and configure analysis
  • Settings Access: Quick access to extension configuration
  • Report Management: View and manage analysis reports
  • Performance Monitoring: Access to performance metrics and statistics

3. Native VSCode Integration​

Diagnostics Integration​

  • Problems Panel: Issues appear in VSCode's native Problems panel
  • Inline Decorations: Issues highlighted directly in code editors
  • Severity Mapping: Proper mapping of X-Fidelity severities to VSCode diagnostic levels
  • Quick Fixes: Where applicable, suggested fixes for issues

Command Palette​

Commands accessible through VSCode's command palette:

Core Analysis:

  • X-Fidelity: Run Analysis Now - Standard analysis
  • X-Fidelity: Cancel Analysis - Stop running analysis
  • X-Fidelity: Detect Archetype - Auto-detect project type

UI & Management:

  • X-Fidelity: Control Center - Open main control panel
  • X-Fidelity: Dashboard - Open issues dashboard
  • X-Fidelity: Open Settings - Configure extension settings
  • X-Fidelity: Show Output Channel - View debug logs

Periodic Analysis:

  • X-Fidelity: Start Periodic Analysis - Enable background analysis
  • X-Fidelity: Stop Periodic Analysis - Disable background analysis

Performance & Debug:

  • X-Fidelity: Show Performance Metrics - View performance data
  • X-Fidelity: Debug Diagnostics - Extension diagnostic information
  • X-Fidelity: Show Test Results - Display test analysis results

Reports & Export:

  • X-Fidelity: Export Report - Copy results to clipboard
  • X-Fidelity: Report History - View analysis history
  • X-Fidelity: Share Report - Share analysis results
  • X-Fidelity: Compare Reports - Compare analysis results (preview)
  • X-Fidelity: View Trends - View analysis trends (coming soon)

4. Advanced Configuration​

Settings Integration​

Commonly used VSCode settings:

{
  "xfidelity.archetype": "node-fullstack",
  "xfidelity.autoAnalyzeOnSave": false,
  "xfidelity.enableTreeSitterWasm": true,
  "xfidelity.analysisTimeout": 60000,
  "xfidelity.configServer": "http://localhost:8888",
  "xfidelity.openaiEnabled": false,
  "xfidelity.maxFileSize": 524288,
  "xfidelity.cacheTTL": 30,
  
  
  "xfidelity.statusBarVisibility": true,
  "xfidelity.showInlineDecorations": true,
  "xfidelity.excludePatterns": ["**/node_modules/**", "**/dist/**"],
  "xfidelity.reportOutputDir": ".xfiResults"
}

Workspace Support​

  • Workspace-aware: Operates on the current workspace folder
  • Monorepo Aware: Works well in monorepos; commands operate on the active folder
  • Project-specific Config: Support for .xfi-config.json files
  • Workspace Settings: Workspace-level configuration overrides

5. Performance & Monitoring​

Built-in Performance Monitoring​

  • Operation Timing: Track timing of all analysis operations
  • Memory Usage: Monitor memory consumption during analysis
  • WASM Performance: Specialized monitoring for WASM Tree-sitter operations
  • Worker Thread Stats: Statistics for background processing

Performance Reports​

Detailed performance insights accessible through commands:

  • Analysis Duration: Time taken for complete analysis cycles
  • Plugin Performance: Individual plugin execution times
  • File Processing: Per-file analysis metrics
  • Memory Tracking: Memory usage patterns and optimization opportunities

6. Enhanced Debugging​

Comprehensive Logging​

  • Multiple Log Levels: Trace, Debug, Info, Warn, Error, Fatal
  • Structured Logging: JSON-formatted logs with context
  • Performance Logs: Detailed timing and performance data
  • Error Tracking: Comprehensive error reporting and stack traces

Debug Output Channels​

  • X-Fidelity Debug: Main debug output channel
  • Performance Metrics: Dedicated channel for performance data
  • WASM Diagnostics: WASM Tree-sitter specific debugging information

7. Advanced Analysis Features​

AST Analysis​

  • Tree-sitter Integration: Advanced AST parsing capabilities
  • Multi-language Support: JavaScript, TypeScript, and extensible to other languages
  • Pattern Matching: Sophisticated code pattern detection
  • WASM Default: WASM Tree-sitter is the default in VSCode (fallback to native if needed)

Plugin System Integration​

Full access to all 9 X-Fidelity plugins with universal logging:

  • AST Plugin (xfiPluginAst): Advanced syntax tree analysis with Tree-sitter
  • Dependency Plugin (xfiPluginDependency): Package dependency version validation
  • Filesystem Plugin (xfiPluginFilesystem): File structure and content analysis
  • OpenAI Plugin (xfiPluginOpenAI): AI-powered code analysis and suggestions
  • Patterns Plugin (xfiPluginPatterns): Regular expression and pattern matching
  • React Patterns Plugin (xfiPluginReactPatterns): React-specific pattern detection
  • Remote Validator Plugin (xfiPluginRemoteStringValidator): External API validation
  • Required Files Plugin (xfiPluginRequiredFiles): File existence verification
  • Simple Example Plugin (xfiPluginSimpleExample): Template for custom plugins

8. Command Delegation System​

Extensible Command Architecture​

X-Fidelity features a powerful command delegation system that allows other VSCode extensions to provide enhanced implementations for issue explanation, fixing, and batch operations:

  • Issue Explanation: Other extensions can provide AI-powered or specialized explanations
  • Issue Fixing: Extensions can offer automated fixes tailored to specific rule types
  • Batch Operations: Support for fixing multiple issues simultaneously
  • Discovery: Automatic detection of compatible extensions in your VSCode environment

Extension Points​

Other extensions can integrate with X-Fidelity by declaring extension points:

{
  "contributes": {
    "xfidelity.issueExplainer": [{
      "id": "ai-explainer",
      "displayName": "AI Code Explainer", 
      "command": "myExtension.explainXFidelityIssue"
    }],
    "xfidelity.issueFixer": [{
      "id": "auto-fixer",
      "displayName": "Auto Code Fixer",
      "command": "myExtension.fixXFidelityIssue",
      "supportsBatch": true
    }]
  }
}

User Configuration​

Users can easily configure which extensions handle different command types:

  • Command Palette: X-Fidelity: Configure Command Providers
  • Settings: Direct configuration through VSCode settings
  • Built-in Fallbacks: Default implementations when no external extension is configured

For detailed information, see the Command Delegation Guide.

9. Report Management​

Analysis Reports​

  • JSON Reports: Machine-readable analysis results
  • Markdown Reports: Human-readable summaries
  • Historical Data: Track analysis results over time
  • Export Capabilities: Export reports in various formats

Result Storage​

  • Dedicated Directory: Results stored in .xfiResults/ directory
  • Latest File: XFI_RESULT.json is maintained and never deleted
  • Timestamped Files: Automatic timestamping of reports (JSON/Markdown)
  • Cleanup Management: Automatic cleanup of old timestamped reports
  • Workspace Isolation: Results isolated per workspace

Usage Examples​

Basic Workflow​

  1. Open Project: Open your project in VSCode
  2. Find Extension: Click the X-Fidelity icon in the activity bar
  3. Configure: Set your archetype and configuration server in settings
  4. Run Analysis: Use Ctrl+Shift+P → X-Fidelity: Run Analysis Now
  5. Review Results: Check the Issues tree view and Problems panel
  6. Navigate: Click on issues to jump to relevant code locations

Advanced Workflows​

Continuous Monitoring​

Enable auto-analysis for continuous code quality monitoring:

{
  "xfidelity.autoAnalyzeOnSave": true,
  "xfidelity.analysisTimeout": 30000
}

Performance Optimization​

Monitor and optimize analysis performance:

  1. Run X-Fidelity: Show Performance Report
  2. Identify slow operations or high memory usage
  3. Adjust timeout settings or exclude patterns as needed
  4. Monitor WASM status for AST analysis optimization

Custom Configurations​

Set up project-specific configurations:

  1. Create .xfi-config.json in project root
  2. Configure exemptions and additional plugins
  3. Set workspace-specific VSCode settings
  4. Use remote configuration servers for team consistency

Troubleshooting Features​

Performance Issues​

  • Timeout Settings: Adjust analysis timeout for large codebases
  • Exclude Patterns: Skip irrelevant files and directories
  • Memory Monitoring: Track memory usage and optimize accordingly

Analysis Failures​

  • Fallback Mechanisms: Graceful degradation when components fail
  • Error Reporting: Detailed error messages and stack traces
  • Debug Channels: Multiple output channels for different types of information

Configuration Problems​

  • Settings Validation: Real-time validation of configuration settings
  • Config Server Testing: Built-in testing of remote configuration connections
  • Plugin Loading: Detailed logging of plugin loading and initialization

Next Steps​