VS Code Extension

The BitDrip VS Code extension gives developers inline policy feedback before they send code or text to AI coding assistants like GitHub Copilot, Cursor, or Continue.dev.

Installation

VS Code Marketplace (recommended)

1. Open VS Code
2. Press Ctrl+P / Cmd+P and type: ext install bitdrip.bitdrip
3. Or search BitDrip in the Extensions panel

VSIX (air-gapped / enterprise)

Download bitdrip-vscode-{VERSION}.vsix from your BitDrip portal at portal.bitdrip.app, then:

code --install-extension bitdrip-vscode-{VERSION}.vsix

For Cursor or Windsurf: use VSIX only — VS Code Marketplace access is restricted by those forks' terms of service.

Configuration

Open Settings (Ctrl+, / Cmd+,) and search for BitDrip.

Setting	Default	Description
bitdrip.policyEngineUrl	http://localhost:3002	URL of your BitDrip policy engine
bitdrip.apiKey	(empty)	Your bdk_... API key
bitdrip.scanOnSave	true	Scan files automatically when saved
bitdrip.enabledLanguages	["*"]	Language IDs to scan; ["*"] means all

Generate an API key

1. Open the BitDrip Admin Dashboard → Settings → API Keys
2. Click Generate
3. Copy the key (displayed once) and paste it into bitdrip.apiKey

The key must start with bdk_. The extension will show a warning in the status bar if the key is missing or invalid.

On-Demand Scan

Select any text in the editor, then:

• Keyboard: Ctrl+Shift+B / Cmd+Shift+B
• Right-click: Select "Scan with BitDrip" from the context menu

Violations appear in the Problems panel (Ctrl+Shift+M / Cmd+Shift+M) with exact line and column numbers. A green toast confirms when no violations are found.

Use case: Select code you are about to paste into Copilot Chat or a Cursor prompt and scan it first.

File-Save Scan

When bitdrip.scanOnSave is true (the default), the extension automatically scans the file each time you save it. Violations appear as squiggles in the editor and in the Problems panel.

To disable automatic scanning:

"bitdrip.scanOnSave": false

Files larger than 100 KB are silently skipped.

Status Bar

The BitDrip status bar item (bottom-left) shows the current state:

Display	Meaning
$(shield) BitDrip	Connected and no violations
$(shield) BitDrip: 3	Last scan found 3 violations
$(x) BitDrip	Policy engine unreachable
$(warning) BitDrip: Auth failed	Invalid API key

Click the item to open BitDrip settings.

Enterprise Deployment

Intune / Jamf

Configure a VS Code extension policy with the extension ID bitdrip.bitdrip for automatic install on managed devices.

VSIX bootstrap

Copy the VSIX to VS Code's bootstrap extensions folder for first-launch auto-install. Consult your VS Code deployment guide for the platform-specific path.

CLI

code --install-extension bitdrip-vscode-{VERSION}.vsix

code-server / Windsurf / Cursor

Use the VSIX path above — Marketplace access is unavailable on VS Code forks per their terms of service.