VS Code and Cursor Workspace Management

Jumpshell ships utilities for editor/profile detection, workspace storage lookup, and layout export/apply.

Implementation lives in src/pwsh/vscode.

Load Module 

Import-Module .\Jumpshell.psd1 -Force

Editor Context Functions

Get-VSCodeVariant

Returns current editor variant when detectable:

  • Code
  • Code - Insiders
  • Cursor
  • Claude
  • VSCodium

Resolve-VscodeProfile

Resolves active profile path for the current editor installation.

Resolve-VscodeProfile
Resolve-VscodeProfile -ProfileName "Work"

Resolve-EditorPath

Resolves editor-specific paths by mode:

  • Name
  • Profile
  • User
  • Rules
  • Workspace
Resolve-EditorPath -Mode Name
Resolve-EditorPath -Mode Profile
Resolve-EditorPath -Mode Workspace

Get-VSCodeUserPath

Compatibility wrapper over Resolve-VscodeProfile.

Workspace Storage Functions

Get-VSCodeWorkspaceStorage

Find workspace storage folder(s) for local paths or URIs.

Get-VSCodeWorkspaceStorage -Path .
Get-VSCodeWorkspaceStorage -Path . -All
Get-VSCodeWorkspaceStorage -Uri "vscode-remote://..."

Get-VSCodeWorkspaceStorageFromGlobal

Enumerate workspace storage entries from global storage metadata.

Get-VSCodeWorkspaceStorageFromGlobal | Select-Object Name, WorkspaceUri

Layout Functions

Layout helpers are implemented in src/pwsh/vscode/WorkspaceLayout.ps1.

Export-WorkspaceLayout

Export current workspace layout to JSON under module-managed layout directory.

Export-WorkspaceLayout -Name "my-layout" -WorkspacePath .

Apply-WorkspaceLayout

Apply a saved layout to a workspace database.

Apply-WorkspaceLayout -WorkspacePath . -LayoutJsonPath .\src\pwsh\vscode-workspaces\default.json -WhatIf
Apply-WorkspaceLayout -WorkspacePath . -LayoutJsonPath .\src\pwsh\vscode-workspaces\default.json

Storage Structure

Editor profile roots vary by installation and profile.

Common pattern:

  • %APPDATA%\<Editor>\User\workspaceStorage\{hash}\state.vscdb
  • %APPDATA%\<Editor>\User\workspaceStorage\{hash}\workspace.json

Use function-based resolution instead of hardcoding paths:

$profile = Resolve-VscodeProfile
$storage = Get-VSCodeWorkspaceStorage -Path .
$dbPath = Join-Path $storage.FullName "state.vscdb"

Requirements

  • PowerShell 7+
  • sqlite3 CLI for layout export/apply

Install SQLite on Windows:

winget install SQLite.SQLite

Troubleshooting

  1. Workspace storage not found
    • Open the workspace in the target editor at least once.
    • Retry with -All.
    • Confirm you are resolving against the expected profile via Resolve-VscodeProfile.
  2. Layout changes not visible
    • Reload editor window after apply.
    • Close editor before applying to avoid state overwrite.
  3. Multiple storage folders for same workspace
    • This is normal after recreates/moves.
    • Use Get-VSCodeWorkspaceStorage -Path . -All and choose the active folder by recency.