is now available! Read about the new features and fixes from December.

January 2026 Insiders (version 1.109)

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Last updated: January 18, 2026

These release notes cover the Insiders build of VS Code and continue to evolve as new features are added. To try the latest updates, download Insiders. To read these release notes online, go to code.visualstudio.com/updates.

You can still track our progress in the Commit log and our list of Closed issues.

These release notes were generated using GitHub Copilot and might contain inaccuracies.

Happy Coding!

January 18, 2026

  • Chat sessions now support multi-select for batch operations like marking read or archiving. #288448

  • Terminal command sandboxing is now available for macOS and Linux. #277286

January 17, 2026

  • The terminal tool now presents Python, Node.js, and Ruby commands with syntax highlighting in the confirmation dialog. #287772, #287773, #288360

  • Added dir to the list of commands that are automatically approved for execution in PowerShell. #288431

  • The sed -i command is now automatically approved when editing files within the workspace. #288318

  • Increased the number of locally persisted chat sessions. #283123

  • Dependent build tasks can now run in parallel, improving build performance for projects with multiple independent compilation steps. #288439

  • Added a new "Git: Delete File" command that performs a git rm on the current file. #111767

  • Added a new "New Session" button in the sessions sidebar when shown side by side. #288001

  • Extensions can now contribute skills via the extension manifest or via a proposed API that enables dynamic skills. #288483, #288486

  • Skills are enabled by default for all users. #288480

  • Skills can now be loaded from additional folders using the chat.agentSkillsLocations setting. #282738

January 16, 2026

  • The terminal tool now extracts cd directory prefixes from commands and presents them separately, making commands easier to read when external CLIs prepend directory changes. #277507

  • Added "Mark All Read", "Archive All", and "Unarchive All" actions to the context menu of session section headers in the Chat view, making it easier to manage multiple chat sessions at once. #288147

  • Subagents can now run in parallel when the tasks are independent, significantly speeding up research and code review operations. #274630

January 15, 2026

  • The Claude Code integration now supports extended thinking, allowing the model to show its chain-of-thought reasoning process in a collapsible section. #287658

  • Added model picker support for the Claude Code agent, enabling you to select different Claude models for your coding sessions. #287933

January 14, 2026

  • Terminal command output in the Chat view now automatically expands for long-running commands and collapses on successful completion. #287664

  • Updated default location for output from the terminal tool (chat.tools.terminal.outputLocation). #275584

  • You can now resize the sessions sidebar in the Chat view by dragging the separator, similar to how terminal tabs work. #281258

  • Added od, xxd, and safe docker commands to the list of commands that are automatically approved for execution in the terminal tool. #287652

  • Fixed scrollbar flashing when terminal tool output is added or initially expanded in the Chat view. #287775

  • The chat welcome view is now only shown when GitHub Copilot is not installed. #286379

January 13, 2026

  • Instruction files prompt now includes non-coding tasks like code exploration, ensuring instruction files are read for all codebase-related work, not just code modification. #287152

  • The Focus Terminal action now correctly scrolls to and highlights commands that are still running in chat terminals. #275420

  • Fixed an issue where a horizontal scrollbar was visible in the terminal tool output even when the content didn't require scrolling. #275074

  • Added a new setting terminal.integrated.allowInUntrustedWorkspace to allow users to bypass workspace trust checks when creating terminals. #146862

  • Fixed Visual Basic auto-indentation issues with block structures like If...End If and While...End While. #118932

  • Added the editorBracketMatch.foreground theme color to enable customization of the text color for matched brackets. #85775

  • Double-clicking immediately after a curly brace or bracket now selects the content inside it, making it easier to select and manipulate code blocks. #9123

January 12, 2026

  • Terminal command output now streams inline inside the Chat view. The terminal output auto-expands on command execution and collapses on success. #257468

  • Added a trash icon to the Hidden Terminals menu item that deletes all hidden chat terminals at once. #275235

  • Added a new "Match File Path Case" toggle to the Search view's "files to include" input, allowing users to control whether file paths and glob patterns should be matched case-sensitively. #10633

January 11, 2026

  • The terminal now supports the kitty keyboard protocol (CSI u), enabling more sophisticated keyboard input handling and providing access to previously unavailable key combinations. #286809

  • The terminal now supports win32-input-mode, improving keyboard handling compatibility with Windows console applications. #286896

  • The terminal now supports SGR 221 and 222 escape sequences, allowing independent control of bold and faint text attributes for more granular formatting control. #286810

  • Improved discoverability of archived chat sessions in the Chat view, making it easier to locate and access previously archived conversations. #286815

January 8, 2026

  • The terminal tool now supports a timeout parameter to control how long terminal commands run before timing out, preventing unnecessary polling commands. #286598

  • Updated the list of npm commands that are safe for automatic execution. #286463

  • The terminal suggest toolbar no longer shows the selection mode option when quick suggestions are disabled, reducing confusion. #286440

  • The terminal.integrated.suggest.quickSuggestions setting can now be configured in the Settings editor instead of requiring manual JSON editing. #286075

  • Added a workbench.mcp.startServer command to start a specific or all MCP servers to discover their tools. #283959

  • Exploration work on rich integrated web browser using WebContentsView or controlledframe to overcome limitations of the current iframe-based Simple Browser. #277298

  • A new proposed API enables extensions to show buttons inline after the input box in quick inputs, in addition to the title bar location. #221397

January 7, 2026

  • You can now import a chat session into the Chat view instead of only opening it in a new editor tab. #283954

  • Fixed an issue where auto approval information for the fetch tool was not visible when hovering over the tool call. #282238

  • Added built-in support for MCP Apps, enabling servers to provide custom UI for tool invocation. #260218

December 28, 2025

  • The quick input now supports overflow buttons, enabling secondary actions to be placed in an overflow menu. #285213

We really appreciate people trying our new features as soon as they are ready, so check back here often and learn what's new.