In Visual Studio Code, an agent session is the broader unit of work; a chat is an individual conversation within it. A chat can include prompts, responses, tool calls, and accumulated context. For Copilot session history specifically, VS Code documents local SQLite storage and sync to your GitHub account by default. Closing or archiving preserves history; deleting a chat or session is permanent, and deleting a session can also remove related worktrees or containers.
How a session differs from a chat
A session groups the workspace and code changes associated with a task. It can contain one or more chats, depending on the agent workflow. Each chat has its own conversation history and context, while chats in the same session share the session’s workspace and code isolation. VS Code describes a session as the unit of work with an agent (Manage agent sessions in VS Code).
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That distinction matters when you clean up: removing a chat is not the same operation as deleting the session and its associated resources.
What VS Code agent history can contain
Chat content
A chat can record your prompts, the agent’s responses, tool calls, and context accumulated during the conversation. It is therefore more than just the visible back-and-forth text.
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Copilot session tracking data
For Copilot session history, VS Code documents tracking information such as the repository, branch, working directory, timestamps, agent or participant, conversation turns, file paths touched through tool calls, and references such as pull request numbers, issue numbers, and commit SHAs. VS Code says this local tracking data is stored in a SQLite database (Sync and query session history).
This storage description applies to the Copilot session-history feature; it does not establish one storage location for every external agent or harness that can be used with VS Code.
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Where Copilot session history is stored and synced
VS Code says Copilot session history is stored locally and synced to the user’s GitHub account by default. To keep it local, set chat.sessionSync.enabled to false. The documentation also describes a repository-exclusion setting. For Copilot Business and Enterprise, GitHub enterprise policy and VS Code group policy can control sync; if policy disables sync, users cannot override that setting. Synced sessions are private unless explicitly shared (Sync and query session history).
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What each close, archive, and delete action does
| Action | Effect on history | Use it when |
|---|---|---|
| Close a chat tab | Hides the tab without deleting the conversation; it can be reopened. | You want to clear the chat area temporarily. |
| Mark a chat done or archive a session | Removes it from the active list but retains its title and history; it can be restored or unarchived. | You want to organize completed work without removing it. |
| Delete a chat | Permanently removes that chat. The deletion cannot be undone. | You want to remove the conversation itself. |
| Delete a session | Permanently removes the session and, for Copilot sessions, can also remove associated worktrees. | You are sure the session and associated resources are no longer needed. |
| Delete synced session data | Offers deletion from local and cloud storage, or from cloud only while keeping the local copy. | You want to remove synced history and need to choose the deletion scope. |
VS Code documents these session and chat actions in Manage agent sessions in VS Code and the local/cloud deletion choices in Sync and query session history.
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How to delete synced history without choosing the wrong scope
- Open the Command Palette in VS Code.
- Run Delete Session Sync Data.
- Choose whether to delete session data from both the local machine and the cloud, or from the cloud only while retaining the local copy.
- Confirm the choice that matches your intent.
Deleting cloud data is not the same as deleting only the visible chat tab. If you need a copy for reference, preserve the conversation before deleting it: VS Code supports exporting a chat session as JSON, containing its prompts and responses, and copying a whole chat as Markdown. Exporting does not itself delete the original (Manage agent sessions in VS Code).
Check worktrees and containers before deleting a session
Session deletion can have workspace consequences, not just transcript consequences. VS Code warns that removing a worktree can lose uncommitted files that exist only there. For a Dev Container session, deletion removes the container only if no other session or unsent draft is using it. Before deleting, check whether the worktree contains changes that have not been committed or copied elsewhere (Manage agent sessions in VS Code).
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- If you only want to declutter, mark the chat done or archive the session.
- If you want the transcript for later, export it or copy it before deletion.
- If you want the session gone, first preserve any worktree files you still need.
Automatic cleanup is a separate, preview feature
VS Code documents automatic cleanup of eligible merged sessions as a preview. Separate settings govern when an inactive eligible session is marked done and the grace period before permanent deletion; both settings are disabled by default. Eligibility depends on merged pull request conditions, and worktrees are removed only when their Git state meets specified safety conditions. The feature’s status and configuration details can change, so consult the current session cleanup documentation before relying on a particular threshold or setting.
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