ACP Client for VS Code

A Visual Studio Code extension that provides a client for the Agent Client Protocol (ACP) — connect to any ACP-compatible AI coding agent directly from your editor.

Features

• Multi-Agent Support: Connect to 9 pre-configured ACP agents or add your own
• Single-Agent Focus: One agent active at a time — seamlessly switch between agents
• Interactive Chat: Built-in chat panel with Markdown rendering, inline tool call display, and collapsible tool sections
• Thinking Display: See agent reasoning in a collapsible block with streaming animation and elapsed time
• Slash Commands: Autocomplete popup for agent-provided commands with keyboard navigation
• Mode & Model Picker: Switch agent modes and models directly from the chat toolbar
• File System Integration: Agents can read and write files in your workspace
• Terminal Execution: Agents can run commands with terminal output display
• Permission Management: Configurable auto-approve policies for agent actions
• Protocol Traffic Logging: Inspect all ACP JSON-RPC messages with request/response/notification labels
• Agent Registry: Browse and discover available ACP agents
• Chat Persistence: Conversations are preserved when switching panels

Quick Start

1. Install: Visual Studio Code Marketplace | Open in VS Code | Open VSX Marketplace
2. Open the ACP Client panel from the Activity Bar (ACP icon)
3. Click + to add an agent configuration, or use the defaults
4. Click an agent to connect
5. Start chatting!

Requirements

• Node.js 18+ (for spawning agent processes)
• An ACP-compatible agent installed or available via npx

Pre-configured Agents

The extension comes with default configurations for:

Agent	Command
GitHub Copilot	npx @github/copilot-language-server@latest --acp
Claude Code	npx @zed-industries/claude-code-acp@latest
Gemini CLI	npx @google/gemini-cli@latest --experimental-acp
Qwen Code	npx @qwen-code/qwen-code@latest --acp --experimental-skills
Auggie CLI	npx @augmentcode/auggie@latest --acp
Qoder CLI	npx @qoder-ai/qodercli@latest --acp
Codex CLI	npx @zed-industries/codex-acp@latest
OpenCode	npx opencode-ai@latest acp
OpenClaw	npx openclaw acp

You can add custom agent configurations in settings.

Extension Settings

Setting	Default	Description
acp.agents	(9 agents)	Agent configurations. Each key is the agent name, value has command, args, and env.
acp.autoApprovePermissions	ask	How agent permission requests are handled: ask or allowAll.
acp.defaultWorkingDirectory	""	Default working directory for agent sessions. Empty uses current workspace.
acp.logTraffic	true	Log all ACP protocol traffic to the ACP Traffic output channel.

Commands

All commands are accessible via the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P):

Command	Description
ACP: Connect to Agent	Connect to an agent
ACP: New Conversation	Start a new conversation with the connected agent
ACP: Send Prompt	Send a message to the agent
ACP: Cancel Current Turn	Cancel the current agent turn
ACP: Disconnect Agent	Disconnect from the current agent
ACP: Restart Agent	Restart the current agent process
ACP: Open Chat Panel	Focus the chat webview
ACP: Add Agent Configuration	Add a new agent to settings
ACP: Remove Agent	Remove an agent configuration
ACP: Set Agent Mode	Change the agent's operating mode
ACP: Set Agent Model	Change the agent's model
ACP: Show Log	Open the ACP Client log output channel
ACP: Show Protocol Traffic	Open the ACP Traffic output channel
ACP: Browse Agent Registry	Browse the ACP agent registry

Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
Ctrl+Shift+A (Cmd+Shift+A on Mac)	Open Chat Panel
Escape (when turn in progress)	Cancel Current Turn

Development

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18+
• VS Code 1.85+

Setup

git clone https://github.com/formulahendry/vscode-acp.git
cd vscode-acp
npm install

Build & Run

npm run compile    # One-time build
npm run watch      # Watch mode for development

Press F5 in VS Code to launch the Extension Development Host.

Testing

npm run pretest    # Compile tests + lint
npm test           # Run tests

Packaging

npm run package    # Production build
npx @vscode/vsce package   # Create .vsix

Architecture

The extension follows a modular architecture:

• Core: AgentManager, ConnectionManager, SessionManager, AcpClientImpl
• Handlers: FileSystemHandler, TerminalHandler, PermissionHandler, SessionUpdateHandler
• UI: SessionTreeProvider, ChatWebviewProvider, StatusBarManager
• Config: AgentConfig, RegistryClient
• Utils: Logger, StreamAdapter

Communication with agents uses the ACP protocol (JSON-RPC 2.0 over stdio).

Known Issues

• Agents must be available via the system PATH or npx
• Some agents may require additional authentication setup
• File attachment feature is not yet functional

Links

• ACP Client on Visual Studio Code Marketplace
• Agent Client Protocol
• GitHub Repository

License

MIT — see LICENSE for details.