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The safest audit is simple: open the complete installed list, decide what each extension still does for you, disable uncertain entries as a reversible trial, then uninstall only extensions that remain unnecessary. Use VS Code’s Extensions view for a visual review or record IDs and versions with code --list-extensions --show-versions before making changes.
Remember that an extension can be disabled yet still installed, can exist in another profile or remote environment, and can be subject to organizational policy. A careful audit therefore covers inventory, actual need, reversibility, security, profiles, synchronization and policy—not just the extensions currently enabled.
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Start with the complete installed inventory
Open the Extensions view with Ctrl+Shift+X on Windows or Linux, or ⇧⌘X on macOS. Select the installed-extensions view, or enter @installed in the Extensions search box. This is the right starting point because the installed list includes disabled extensions; looking only at enabled items can leave old code on your machine unnoticed.
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Filters can be combined, so a query such as @installed @disabled lets you focus on disabled entries, while @installed @deprecated highlights installed packages that may need replacement. Work through the list one item at a time rather than deleting everything that looks unfamiliar.
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Decide what each extension is doing for you
Open an extension’s detail page and read its Marketplace description, publisher information, supported languages and stated features. Then answer practical questions about your own setup:
- Which language, framework, repository or recurring task requires it?
- Have you worked on that kind of project recently, and do you expect to do so again?
- Does current VS Code functionality or another extension already provide the same feature?
- Is the extension maintained, compatible with your current VS Code version and still available from the publisher?
- Would removing it affect a team workflow, a build task or a project-specific configuration?
Marketplace install counts and ratings are useful listing context, but they do not prove that an extension is safe, maintained or useful for your particular projects. Your own usage and the publisher’s current documentation are more relevant to a keep-or-remove decision.
Use a decision record instead of guessing
For a large inventory, make a short note for each item. Record its ID, version, purpose, projects that depend on it and your proposed action. The following framework keeps the action proportional to your confidence.
| Situation | Preferred action | Scope to consider | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| You use the feature regularly and the publisher is trusted | Keep and update when appropriate | Current profile and relevant workspaces | Removing an active dependency creates avoidable disruption. |
| You are unsure whether a project needs it | Disable temporarily | Current workspace first, or globally if the feature is broadly optional | Disabling is reversible and provides a low-risk observation period. |
| You have not used the feature and no project depends on it | Uninstall | The installation or profile where it is installed | There is no reason to retain its files, activation and update burden. |
| The extension is deprecated or duplicated by a built-in feature | Disable, verify affected projects, then uninstall | Workspace or profile that used it | A short verification avoids breaking an old project unexpectedly. |
| Publisher, signature or policy status is unclear | Pause and investigate before enabling or reinstalling | Every profile and environment where it appears | Security and organizational rules take priority over convenience. |
Disable first when the decision is uncertain
Disabling is the safest experiment because it leaves the extension installed and can be reversed immediately. On an extension’s detail page, open the gear-shaped Manage menu and choose the disable command. VS Code provides a global option and a workspace-specific option; choose the workspace scope when you want to test one repository without changing your other projects.
A practical disable trial
- Open
@installedand select the extension. - Open its Manage menu and choose the workspace-specific disable option if only the current project is relevant; otherwise choose the global disable option.
- Reload the window or restart the extension host if VS Code prompts you.
- Use the projects, languages and commands that normally rely on the extension. Watch for missing commands, diagnostics, formatting changes, task failures or altered debugging behavior.
- Repeat the check in every project where you believed the extension was needed.
- If nothing important is affected, leave it disabled briefly and then uninstall it. If something breaks, re-enable it from the same Manage menu and note the dependency.
A disable trial is an editorially cautious workflow, not a guarantee that every side effect will appear immediately. Some extensions activate only for a particular language, file type, command or workspace setting, so test the situations that matter to you.
Uninstall from the Extensions view
When an extension has proved unnecessary, select it in the Extensions view, open Manage and choose Uninstall. Confirm the prompt and allow VS Code to restart the extension host or reload the window if requested. Uninstalling removes the extension from the installation or profile context in which you performed the action; it does not automatically remove a separate copy installed in another profile, remote window or machine.
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Check project settings after removal
After uninstalling, open the projects that used the extension and look for settings, tasks or recommendations that refer to it. Remove obsolete workspace settings only when you understand what they control. If a repository recommends the extension, VS Code may continue to show that recommendation even though you removed the package; that is a project-level recommendation, not proof that the uninstall failed.
Create an inventory with the command line
The VS Code command-line interface is useful when you want a durable record, compare profiles or remove several known entries. In a terminal, run:
code --list-extensions --show-versionsThe output lists extension identifiers together with installed versions. Save the output to a text file if you need an audit record or want to compare machines later. The identifier has the form publisher.extension, which is the value required for removal.
Remove a specific extension
Use the exact identifier shown by the inventory command:
code --uninstall-extension publisher.extensionReplace publisher.extension with the real ID; do not substitute the display name shown in the Marketplace title. Run the list command again afterward to verify that the identifier is no longer present in that context.
Account for profiles on the command line
VS Code supports the --profile option for profile-specific listing or removal. Include the profile name when you are auditing a non-default profile, for example:
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code --profile "Work" --list-extensions --show-versionsUse the same profile qualifier with --uninstall-extension when the extension belongs only to that profile. If a graphical audit and a command-line audit appear to disagree, check the active profile before assuming that an uninstall failed.
Treat security as part of the audit
Microsoft’s Marketplace guidance states: “Extensions have the same permissions as VS Code itself.” An extension can therefore read or modify files that VS Code can access and can participate in development workflows with substantial authority. Keep only extensions whose publisher, purpose and source you can explain.
Publisher trust and package signatures
Beginning with VS Code 1.97, the first installation from a third-party publisher prompts you to confirm publisher trust. Treat that prompt as a decision point: verify that the publisher is the one you intended to install and that the extension’s purpose matches your work.
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Marketplace packages are signed, and VS Code verifies their signatures at installation time. An unverifiable signature is a reason to stop and investigate the package, publisher and installation source. Routine auditing should not involve disabling signature checks; bypassing a protection removes information you need when evaluating an extension.
Signals that merit removal or investigation
- An extension is deprecated, abandoned or replaced by a maintained alternative that your projects already support.
- The publisher identity or ownership is not what you expected.
- The extension requests behavior unrelated to its stated function.
- A package appears outside the normal Marketplace installation path or fails signature verification.
- Your organization’s policy does not allow the publisher, ID, version or platform.
These signals do not prove malicious behavior individually. They do justify disabling the extension, preserving the identifier and version for your records, and checking with your security or platform team before reinstalling it.
Do not mistake Workspace Trust for malware protection
Workspace Trust can place a folder in Restricted Mode and can disable or limit extensions that have not declared support for untrusted workspaces. That is useful when opening code from an unfamiliar source, but it is not a reason to keep an unnecessary extension installed.
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Microsoft’s Workspace Trust documentation is explicit: “Workspace Trust can’t prevent a malicious extension from executing code and ignoring Restricted Mode.” Keep this distinction clear:
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- A malicious extension can execute code and ignore those restrictions.
- Removing an extension you do not need reduces the code that can run in your VS Code installation.
Audit profiles, synchronization and remote environments
Profiles let you maintain different extension sets for different kinds of work, such as web development, documentation or a restricted client project. Audit each profile separately. An extension you remove from one profile may still be installed and enabled in another.
Settings Sync considerations
Settings Sync synchronizes extensions across supported machines. If an extension you remove returns on another computer, check whether synchronization is restoring it. You can exclude an extension from synchronization through its Extensions view actions or by adding it to settingsSync.ignoredExtensions.
Synchronization does not copy extensions to or from remote windows such as SSH sessions, development containers or WSL environments. Audit those environments where you actually install extensions; a local inventory is not a complete inventory of your remote development setup.
A reliable multi-environment sequence
- Identify the active profile and whether the current window is local or remote.
- Run
@installedin that context and save a CLI inventory when you need an exact record. - Disable and test the extension in the context where it runs, not only on your local machine.
- Uninstall it from each profile or environment where it is no longer required.
- Check synchronization settings if the package reappears on a supported machine.
Check organization policy before changing a managed installation
On an organization-managed computer, ask the administrator or policy owner before changing an extension that supports a team workflow. The enterprise extensions.allowed application setting can constrain publishers, extension IDs, versions and platforms. VS Code documentation identifies support for this setting beginning in version 1.96.
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Users can still remove preinstalled extensions, but policy determines what is permitted and what may be reinstalled or blocked later. If an extension disappears after a policy refresh, or a permitted extension cannot be installed, record the extension ID and version and send that information to the policy owner rather than repeatedly forcing a local change.
Common audit problems and fixes
The extension is not in the list
Confirm that you searched @installed, not only @enabled. Then check the active profile and whether the window is connected to SSH, a development container or WSL. Each context can have a different extension set.
Disabling appears to do nothing
Some extensions activate only for particular languages, commands or workspace settings. Reproduce the workflow that originally justified the extension, and accept any prompt to reload the window or restart the extension host. If the feature still works, check whether VS Code’s built-in support or another extension is providing it.
The extension comes back after removal
Inspect Settings Sync and its ignored-extension list, then check whether you removed the package from the profile that is currently active. On managed machines, an administrator may also be deploying it.
Uninstalling breaks formatting, commands or diagnostics
Re-enable or reinstall the extension only in the affected profile or workspace, then identify the project setting, task or language feature that depends on it. Once you know the dependency, decide whether to keep the extension, replace the workflow with built-in functionality or scope the extension to a dedicated profile.
A publisher or signature cannot be verified
Do not bypass signature verification. Leave the extension disabled or uninstall it, preserve its identifier and version, and consult your organization’s security guidance or the publisher’s official information before taking further action.
Quick Recap
A repeatable maintenance checklist
- Open the installed inventory with
@installed. - Include disabled entries and review
@deprecatedand@updates. - Record each extension’s ID, version, purpose and affected projects.
- Read the current Marketplace description and publisher information.
- Disable uncertain extensions at workspace scope before making a global change.
- Exercise the real language, command and task workflows during the trial.
- Uninstall extensions that remain unnecessary and reload when prompted.
- Use
code --list-extensions --show-versionswhen you need an auditable record. - Use the exact
publisher.extensionID withcode --uninstall-extension. - Repeat the review for every profile and local or remote environment.
- Check Settings Sync and
settingsSync.ignoredExtensionsif removals do not persist. - Review publisher trust, signature status and organizational policy before installing or retaining questionable packages.
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