Chat with octo — the open-source, MIT-licensed, self-hosted AI coding agent — right inside VS Code.
This extension is a thin client: it connects to a local octo serve process over WebSocket and REST. All the actual agent work (LLM calls, tool execution, session state) happens in octo serve; the extension just gives you a chat panel and session list in your editor.
Features
- Session list in the Activity Bar — every octo session for the current workspace, with the active one marked.
- Chat panel beside your editor — opens to the side (like a normal editor tab), not squeezed into the sidebar.
- Automatic context — the file you currently have open (or your selection, plus any diagnostics on it) is attached to your next message automatically. Attach additional files with the
@ filebutton. - Native diff view — file edits the agent makes open in VS Code's own diff viewer, not a text dump in the chat.
- Permission and question prompts — confirmations and clarifying questions from the agent show up as native-feeling modals in the panel.
- Auto-starts
octo serve— if nothing is listening on the configured host/port, the extension spawnsocto serve -dfor you.
Requirements
- The
octobinary installed and on yourPATH(or pointocto.binaryPathat it). - If you'd rather manage the server yourself, start
octo servebefore opening VS Code and the extension will attach to it instead of spawning a new one.
Getting started
- Install the extension and install
octoif you haven't already. - Click the octo icon in the Activity Bar.
- Click New Session (or open an existing session from the list).
- Type a message. Whatever file you have open is sent along as context automatically.
Settings
| Setting | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
octo.host |
127.0.0.1 |
Host octo serve binds to. |
octo.port |
8088 |
Port octo serve listens on. |
octo.accessKey |
(empty) | Access key for a non-loopback octo serve. Not needed for the default local connection. |
octo.autoStart |
true |
Spawn octo serve -d automatically when no server is found at octo.host:octo.port. |
octo.binaryPath |
octo |
Path to the octo binary, or a bare name resolved from PATH and common install locations. |
License
MIT — see LICENSE.txt.