← Cheatsheets

Tags: vs-code, editor, cline, mcp, byok, ai, shortcuts Last updated: 2026-06-26

Visual Studio Code Cheatsheet

Quick Reference

Essential Editor Shortcuts

Navigation

• Ctrl+P — Quick-open files by name (fuzzy search).
• Ctrl+Shift+O — Go to symbol in current file.
• Ctrl+T — Go to symbol across workspace.
• Ctrl+G — Go to line number.
• Ctrl+Tab — Cycle open editors (hold Ctrl, tap Tab).
• Ctrl+Alt+Left/Right — Navigate edit history back/forward.
• Ctrl+Shift+\ — Jump to matching bracket.
• Alt+Left/Right — Move by word.

Selection & Editing

• Ctrl+D — Select next occurrence (multi-cursor).
• Ctrl+Shift+L — Select all occurrences.
• Alt+Up/Down — Move line up/down.
• Shift+Alt+Up/Down — Duplicate line up/down.
• Ctrl+Shift+K — Delete line.
• Ctrl+Shift+Enter — Insert blank line above.
• Ctrl+] / Ctrl+[ — Indent / outdent line.
• Ctrl+/ — Toggle line comment.
• F2 — Rename symbol across files.

Multi-Cursor

• Alt+Click — Add cursor.
• Ctrl+Shift+Alt+Up/Down — Column (box) selection.
• Ctrl+U — Undo last cursor action.

Command Palette Power Moves

Press Ctrl+Shift+P then type any of these:

Prefix with > to filter commands, or drop > to search files.

Integrated Terminal

# Toggle: Ctrl+`
# New terminal: Ctrl+Shift+`
# Split terminal: Ctrl+Shift+5
# Switch panels: Alt+Left / Alt+Right
# Scroll: Ctrl+Up / Ctrl+Down
# Find in terminal: Ctrl+F

Terminal Tips

• Use code . to open the current folder in VS Code.
• Use code -r file.txt to reuse the active window.
• Use code --diff file1.txt file2.txt to open a diff view.
• Multiple terminals can run side-by-side (split panes).
• Set "terminal.integrated.defaultProfile.windows" in settings to pick your shell (PowerShell, Git Bash, WSL, cmd).

Cline (BYOK AI Agent)

Cline is a VS Code extension that lets you run AI coding agents with your own API key (BYOK — bring your own key). It supports Anthropic, OpenAI, OpenRouter, Google Gemini, and local models.

Setup

1. Install from the Extensions panel (Ctrl+Shift+X).
2. Search Cline (by saoudrizwan).
3. Open Cline: click its icon in the activity bar (robot face).
4. Choose your API provider and paste your key.
5. Start prompting in natural language.

Provider Settings

# Anthropic (recommended)
Model: claude-sonnet-4-20250514
Base URL: https://api.anthropic.com/v1

# OpenRouter (multi-provider)
Model: openrouter/anthropic/claude-sonnet-4
Base URL: https://openrouter.ai/api/v1

# Google Gemini
Model: gemini-2.5-pro
Base URL: https://generativelanguage.googleapis.com/v1beta

# Local (via Ollama)
Model: codellama or deepseek-coder-v2
Base URL: http://localhost:11434/v1

Cline Keyboard Shortcuts

• Open Cline panel: use the activity bar icon (no default global shortcut — bind one in Ctrl+K Ctrl+S).
• In the chat input, Enter sends. Shift+Enter for newline.

Cline Tips

• Context matters. Cline reads your open tabs and workspace files automatically. Open relevant files before prompting.
• Plan mode first. Use the plan/act toggle to have Cline explore and propose changes before applying them.
• @-mentions. Use @file.ts in your prompt to explicitly include a file, or @folder/ to include a directory.
• Checkpoints. Cline snapshots your workspace before each change. Use Restore checkpoint to roll back.
• MCP tools. Cline can call MCP servers (see below). Connect them in the Cline settings under MCP Servers.

MCP Servers (Model Context Protocol)

MCP servers give Cline (and compatible clients) access to external tools and APIs — databases, file systems, web services, PixelLab, etc.

How MCP Servers Connect to Cline

1. Open Cline settings → MCP Servers tab.
2. Click Configure MCP Servers.
3. Servers are defined in a JSON file (cline_mcp_settings.json or .vscode/mcp.json at the workspace level).

Example: Local Python MCP Server

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "my-tools": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": ["-m", "my_mcp_server"],
      "cwd": "~/projects/my-mcp-server",
      "env": {
        "API_KEY": "${env:MY_API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Example: Node.js MCP Server (stdio)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "filesystem": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem",
        "/path/to/allowed/dir"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Example: Remote MCP Server (SSE / HTTP)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "remote-api": {
      "url": "https://mcp.example.com/sse",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer ${env:REMOTE_TOKEN}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Debugging MCP Servers

• Check the Cline output panel for MCP connection logs.
• Run the server command manually in a terminal first:

  $ python -m my_mcp_server

  If it starts and waits for stdin, it's working.
• Common issues: wrong Python path, missing pip install mcp, permission errors on the working directory.
• Use "env" to pass API keys without hardcoding them in JSON.
• Restart Cline (or reload the window) after adding a new MCP server.

Popular MCP Servers

• @modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem — secure file access.
• @modelcontextprotocol/server-github — GitHub API (issues, PRs).
• @modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres — PostgreSQL queries.
• @modelcontextprotocol/server-fetch — HTTP requests.
• pixellab-mcp — Generate pixel art characters, tiles, and objects.

Settings & Configuration

Key Settings Files

• User settings: %APPDATA%/Code/User/settings.json
• Workspace settings: .vscode/settings.json (project root)
• Keybindings: %APPDATA%/Code/User/keybindings.json

Useful Settings Snippets

{
  "files.autoSave": "onFocusChange",
  "editor.tabSize": 2,
  "editor.insertSpaces": true,
  "editor.minimap.enabled": false,
  "editor.renderWhitespace": "boundary",
  "editor.formatOnSave": true,
  "terminal.integrated.fontSize": 13,
  "files.watcherExclude": {
    "**/node_modules/**": true,
    "**/.git/objects/**": true
  },
  "editor.cursorBlinking": "phase",
  "editor.cursorSmoothCaretAnimation": "on"
}

Workspace & Project Tips

Recommended Extensions

• Prettier — code formatter.
• ESLint — JavaScript/TypeScript linting.
• GitLens — supercharged Git blame and history.
• Error Lens — inline error and warning highlights.
• Live Server — local dev server with live reload.
• Thunder Client — lightweight API client.
• Markdown Preview Enhanced — better .md preview.
• Cline — BYOK AI coding agent.

Workspace File Exclusions

// .vscode/settings.json
{
  "search.exclude": {
    "**/dist/**": true,
    "**/build/**": true,
    "**/.next/**": true
  },
  "files.exclude": {
    "**/.git": true,
    "**/node_modules": true
  }
}

Snippets

• Configure at File → Preferences → Configure User Snippets.
• Snippet variables: $1 first tab stop, $0 final stop, $TM_FILENAME current file name, $CLIPBOARD clipboard contents.

Debugging

• F5 — Start debugging (select config first time).
• F9 — Toggle breakpoint.
• F10 — Step over.
• F11 — Step into.
• Shift+F11 — Step out.
• Ctrl+Shift+F5 — Restart debugging.
• Shift+F5 — Stop debugging.

Launch Config (.vscode/launch.json)

{
  "version": "0.2.0",
  "configurations": [
    {
      "type": "node",
      "request": "launch",
      "name": "Launch Program",
      "program": "${workspaceFolder}/src/index.js"
    }
  ]
}

Tips

• Zen mode (Ctrl+K Z) removes all chrome — ideal for deep focus.
• Open settings.json directly — Ctrl+Shift+P → "Open User Settings (JSON)". Much faster than the GUI for bulk edits.
• Restart extension host — Ctrl+Shift+P → "Developer: Restart Extension Host". Fixes most extension issues without a full reload.
• Portable mode — put all VS Code data in a self-contained folder. Extract the .zip release anywhere, create a data/ folder alongside Code.exe, and everything lives there (settings, extensions, cache).
• Profiles (Ctrl+Shift+P → "Profiles: Create Profile") save different extension + settings sets (e.g. "Python Dev" vs "Web Dev").