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Identify what is reformatting the file
Make a small change, save, and inspect the diff. If the extra edits appear only after saving, temporarily turn off the relevant save-formatting action and repeat. If they appear as soon as the assistant applies its edit, the assistant may have included them in its change. Formatting can also be triggered by an extension, a language-specific action, or a commit action, so do not assume the model is responsible just because it was the last tool you used.
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Check the diff after each step that might trigger formatting. This helps separate the assistant’s edit from changes made by the editor or formatter. If more than one mechanism is active, adjust each one independently: an AI instruction cannot switch off an IDE formatter, and a formatter setting cannot prevent unrelated semantic edits by an assistant.
Turn off or narrow automatic formatting
VS Code
VS Code distinguishes formatting the entire active file with Format Document from formatting selected text with Format Selection. Automatic formatting may also run on save, while typing, or when pasting, through editor.formatOnSave, editor.formatOnType, and editor.formatOnPaste. The VS Code Basic Editing documentation says these gesture-triggered behaviors are off by default; if formatting is happening unexpectedly, check user and workspace settings as well as extensions and language-specific actions. See VS Code: Basic Editing.
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To disable all three triggers in user or workspace settings, use:
{
"editor.formatOnSave": false,
"editor.formatOnType": false,
"editor.formatOnPaste": false
}Only change the settings that match the trigger you observed. Turning them all off may remove useful formatting behavior. Format-on-paste is not supported by every formatter because it requires range-formatting support. The cited VS Code overview does not establish a universal changed-lines setting across language formatters, so these settings alone cannot promise that every extension will limit formatting to changed lines.
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IntelliJ IDEA
In IntelliJ IDEA, open Settings | Tools | Actions on Save | Reformat code. JetBrains documents options to exclude filename or folder patterns and, when the project is under version control, choose between Whole file and Changed lines. Reformat-on-commit is also available for Git and Mercurial and targets added or modified code. See JetBrains: Reformat and rearrange code.
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Use the narrowest scope that meets your needs: exclude a file or directory that must retain its formatting, or choose changed lines instead of the whole file when that option is available. These controls affect IntelliJ’s formatting actions; they do not constrain what an AI assistant edits.
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Give the assistant a persistent scope rule
For GitHub Copilot, repository-wide instructions belong in .github/copilot-instructions.md. Path-specific instruction files can live under .github/instructions. GitHub documents these as natural-language Markdown guidance for the assistant; see GitHub: Adding repository custom instructions for GitHub Copilot.
A useful repository-wide rule is:
- Preserve the existing style and formatting of files you edit.
- Make only changes needed for the requested task; do not reformat unrelated files or lines.
- Do not run a whole-file formatter unless the task explicitly asks for it.
- Before finishing, inspect the diff and call out any formatting-only changes outside the requested code.Keep the instruction concrete and consistent with the repository’s actual conventions. For file-specific exceptions, use a path-specific instruction rather than applying an unnecessary rule to every file.
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Instructions steer the assistant but do not enforce its behavior. GitHub cautions that, because AI is non-deterministic, Copilot may not always follow custom instructions exactly the same way each time; see GitHub: Customizing Copilot responses. Pair repository guidance with formatter settings and diff review rather than relying on prompt text alone.
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Exclude files or protected sections from formatting
When a file or code fragment must keep its current layout, configure the formatter itself. JetBrains documents filename and directory glob exclusions, as well as comment markers that leave the code between configured off/on markers untouched during reformatting. See JetBrains: Reformat and rearrange code.
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Use comment markers only when they are valid and appropriate in that language, and confirm the active formatter recognizes them. They are controls for JetBrains formatter behavior, not universal markers understood by every formatter or instructions to the AI. Where comments are unsuitable, prefer file or directory exclusions or the formatter’s own documented configuration.
Review and stage a focused diff
After the assistant’s edit and again after staging, check whether the changed files and hunks match the task. VS Code’s Source Control view can compare the original and changed files and marks additions, modifications, and deletions; see VS Code: Source Control.
Look for files the task did not require, broad hunks with only small semantic changes, whitespace-only movement, line-ending changes, import reordering, quote or semicolon churn, and generated or lock files. These are review clues, not proof that a change is harmless. If a noisy hunk may contain a behavior change, do not discard it blindly: separate the intended code from formatting churn first, then revert or stage only what you can safely identify. Stage focused files or hunks and inspect the staged diff before committing.
Choose the control that matches the problem
| Where the change comes from | Control to adjust | What it does not control |
|---|---|---|
| Editor formats on save, typing, or paste | Disable the matching trigger or configure its scope | The assistant’s own edits |
| Formatter rewrites a file or section | Use supported changed-lines behavior, file/path exclusions, or formatter markers | Other formatters or the assistant |
| Assistant edits unrelated code | Add a clear repository or path-specific instruction | Automatic IDE or commit formatting; exact model compliance |
| Changes are already present in the diff | Review, selectively revert, and stage focused hunks | Preventing the same trigger next time |
These examples cover VS Code, IntelliJ IDEA, and GitHub Copilot. They do not establish equivalent settings for every editor or coding assistant. If you use another tool, identify whether the change happens during the assistant’s edit, on save, or at commit, then check that tool’s official documentation for the corresponding control.
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