Report · marked 25 Aug 2026
microsoft/vscode
An agent can work here, but it will waste turns finding its footing.
TypeScript · 189,603 stars · 18,207 files · branch main
68
/100
B
Instructions
20/27Whether the repo tells an agent how to behave before it starts guessing. Losing marks on instruction quality and readme as an entry point.Setup
16/20Whether an agent can install the project and get it running without a human. Losing marks on environment config.Verification loop
22/25Whether an agent can check its own work. This is the category that most decides whether agent output is trustworthy. Losing marks on static type checking.Context economy
3/20Whether the repo fits in a context window, or fights it. Losing marks on no committed build output and file sizes fit in context.Navigability
8/10How quickly anything new can orient itself. Losing marks on written documentation.
Higher is better. Accent marks what is costing you most.
Fix these first
01
No committed build output
Add these to .gitignore and `git rm -r --cached` them. Generated files pollute search results, so an agent grepping for a function finds the compiled copy and edits the wrong file.
02
File sizes fit in context
A single file that fills the context window forces an agent to work from fragments, and it will confidently edit code it never saw. Splitting the worst offenders pays for itself immediately.
03
Environment config
Add a .env.example listing every variable with a safe placeholder value. It's the cheapest possible fix and it unblocks the whole first run.
The full marking
Every deduction below names the file or setting it came from.
Instructions 20/27 B+
Whether the repo tells an agent how to behave before it starts guessing.
✓Agent instruction file
12/12
AGENTS.md is present, which is the format the most tools read.
Also found: Copilot instructions
✗Instruction quality
6/12
Real instructions, with gaps.
Worth fixing: it never states a build, test, or run command; has no code blocks.
270 characters, a workable length
uses headings, so an agent can skim it
✗README as an entry point
2/3
README exists but never explains how to get the thing running.
Give the README an Install and a Usage heading with real commands under each. Agents pattern-match on those headings.
Setup 16/20 A-
Whether an agent can install the project and get it running without a human.
✓Deterministic install
6/6
package-lock.json pins the dependency tree.
Found package-lock.json
✓Discoverable commands
6/6
Commands are declared where an agent will look for them.
package.json scripts (test, test-browser, test-browser-no-install, test-node, test-extension, test-build-scripts…)
scripts/ directory
✗Environment config
0/4
Nothing documents the environment this needs. An agent will get a runtime error it can't diagnose.
Add a .env.example listing every variable with a safe placeholder value. It's the cheapest possible fix and it unblocks the whole first run.
✓Pinned runtime version
2/2
The language runtime version is pinned.
Found .nvmrc
✓Reproducible environment
2/2
.devcontainer/devcontainer.json gives a known-good environment.
Verification loop 22/25 A
Whether an agent can check its own work. This is the category that most decides whether agent output is trustworthy.
✓Tests exist
8/8
6103 test files against 13321 source files.
e.g. .eslint-plugin-local/code-ensure-no-disposables-leak-in-test.ts, .eslint-plugin-local/tests/code-no-observable-get-in-reactive-context-test.ts, .eslint-plugin-local/tests/code-no-reader-after-await-test.ts
✓Test command is discoverable
7/7
An agent can find and run `npm run test`.
✓Continuous integration
4/4
15 GitHub Actions workflows define what "passing" means.
✓Lint and format rules
3/3
eslint.config.js encodes the house style.
✗Static type checking
0/3
No static type checking.
A type checker gives an agent an error message instead of a runtime surprise. It's the second-fastest feedback loop after the compiler.
Context economy 3/20 F
Whether the repo fits in a context window, or fights it.
✗No committed build output
0/6
Generated output is committed: node_modules/, coverage/.
Add these to .gitignore and `git rm -r --cached` them. Generated files pollute search results, so an agent grepping for a function finds the compiled copy and edits the wrong file.
✓.gitignore hygiene
3/3
.gitignore covers 52 patterns.
✗File sizes fit in context
0/6
115 source files are over 100KB.
A single file that fills the context window forces an agent to work from fragments, and it will confidently edit code it never saw. Splitting the worst offenders pays for itself immediately.
extensions/vscode-colorize-perf-tests/test/colorize-fixtures/test-checker.ts — 8192KB
src/vs/workbench/api/test/browser/extHostDocumentData.test.perf-data.ts — 1345KB
src/vscode-dts/vscode.d.ts — 725KB
✗Repository weight
0/5
About 1382MB checked out. Large enough that cloning and searching are both slow.
Large binaries and vendored trees slow every operation an agent performs. Git LFS or a separate assets repo keeps the working tree navigable.
Here is your AGENTS.md
Drafted from what is actually in this repository: the install
command from your lockfile, the commands you already declare, your real directory layout. Anything
marked TODO needs a person. Save it at the root as AGENTS.md.
# AGENTS.md Visual Studio Code ## Setup ``` npm ci ``` ## Commands ``` npm run test # run the test suite, must pass before any commit npm run test-browser npm run test-browser-no-install npm run test-node npm run test-extension npm run test-build-scripts npm run test-agent-host-e2e npm run markdown-editor-package-json-check ``` ## Layout - `src/` 8750 source files - `extensions/` 3962 source files - `build/` 238 source files - `test/` 148 source files - `cli/` 84 source files - `scripts/` 39 source files ## Conventions - Tests live alongside the code they cover, following `.eslint-plugin-local/code-ensure-no-disposables-leak-in-test.ts`. - CI defines what passing means. See `.github/workflows/chat-lib-package.yml`, and keep it green. - TODO: add the two or three conventions a newcomer always gets wrong here. ## Gotchas - Generated output is committed (`build/`). Search will return the compiled copy, so edit the source, not that. - `extensions/vscode-colorize-perf-tests/test/colorize-fixtures/test-checker.ts` is 8192KB. It will not fit comfortably in context, so read it in parts. --- Drafted by agentreadme.com from what is in this repository. Everything marked TODO needs a human. Check it in as AGENTS.md at the root.
Open the raw markdown
or
curl -o AGENTS.md agentreadme.com/draft/microsoft/vscode.md
Show the mark
The badge re-checks daily, so it keeps up as the repository changes. Use mark again to force it now.
[](https://agentreadme.com/microsoft/vscode)Other TypeScript repositories, marked
Think this mark is wrong?
Every deduction above names the file it came from, so this can be settled by looking. If a check missed something, that is a rule worth fixing.