Microsoft/vscode

Copilot Chat: get_changed_files sourceControlState ignored

Open

#269452 opened on Oct 1, 2025

View on GitHub
 (1 comment) (0 reactions) (1 assignee)TypeScript (74,848 stars) (10,221 forks)batch import
buggithelp wanted

Description

  • Copilot Chat Extension Version: 0.32.2025100101
  • VS Code Version: 1.105.0-insider (Universal)
    • Commit: 6e60e679fc6b6a512edbed9a750d7c581
  • OS Version: Darwin arm64 24.6.0
  • Feature (e.g. agent/edit/ask mode): agent
  • Selected model (e.g. GPT 4.1, Claude 3.7 Sonnet): GPT-5-Codex

The get_changed_files tool doesn't seem to return changes when the model sets the sourceControlState to staged.

get-changed-files.copilot.md

Steps to Reproduce:

  1. Tell Copilot to use the get_changed_files tool and explicitly set the sourceControlState parameter.
* Use the get_changed_files tool to get the staged changes and build a commit message based on the staged git diff.
  * Must set `sourceControlState` to `staged` to build the correct commit message.

Contributor guide

Tech stack
typescriptnodejs
Domain
backenddeveloper experience
Issue type
bug
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
3
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
1-3 hours
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
blocked
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
clear
Prerequisites
TypeScriptVS Code extension APIGit source control concepts
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
45
Research direction
Examine the Copilot Chat extension source code, specifically the get changed files function. The issue reports that setting sourceControlState to 'staged' does not return staged changes. Check how the parameter is passed to the VS Code source control API. The maintainer's response in the single comment may clarify the expected behavior. Look at the related files in the git extension to understand how staged files are retrieved.