A lightweight VSCode extension for Solidity development with semantic highlighting and Cockpit view panels.
This is a trimmed-down version of Solidity Visual Developer focusing on highlighting and workspace navigation features.
This lite version removes the following features from the original extension:
| Removed Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Hover Information | EVM opcode tooltips, built-in function documentation |
| Code Lenses | Function signature annotations, security insights above functions |
| Document Outline | Symbols provider for the outline panel |
| Find All References | Go to references for functions, variables, contracts |
| UML Diagrams | Contract inheritance and class diagram generation |
| Flatten Contracts | Combine contract and imports into single file |
| Report Generation | Markdown and HTML audit report templates |
| Draw.io Export | Export contract structure to Draw.io format |
| PlantUML Export | Export to PlantUML diagrams |
| Etherscan Integration | Fetch verified source code from Etherscan |
| Function Call Trace | Surya-based interactive call graph visualization |
| What's New | Version update notifications |
| Developer Notes | TODO, FIXME, HACK highlighting in comments |
Why use the Lite version?
- Faster load times with fewer dependencies
- Reduced extension footprint
- Focus on visual highlighting without IDE clutter
- Ideal if you use other tools for diagrams, reports, or code navigation
Security-focused syntax highlighting for passive security awareness:
- Access modifiers -
external,public,private,internal,view,pure,payable - Security-relevant globals -
msg.sender,tx.origin,block.timestamp, etc. - Storage keywords -
memory,storage,calldata - Constructors, fallbacks, and modifiers - made visually prominent
Visual decorations to highlight state variables (all rendered in bold):
| Variable Type | Highlight Color |
|---|---|
| Constant variables | Green |
| Regular state variables | Golden |
| Inherited state variables | Blue |
| Shadowed variables | Red warning box |
External calls are marked with gutter icons for quick identification.
Semantic highlighting for function arguments in the function body with:
- Configurable modes: "color and symbol", "color only", "symbol only"
- Customizable suffix symbol (default: ⬆)
Six dedicated panels for workspace navigation and analysis:
- Workspace: Explorer - Browse all
.solfiles in your workspace - Workspace: Top Level Contracts - Identify deployable entry point contracts
- Workspace: /flat_ Files - Quick access to flattened contract files
- Context: Public State-Changing Methods - View public non-view/non-pure functions (updates on cursor position)
- Context: External Calls - Track external calls per function (updates on cursor position)
- Settings - Quick toggle for all extension settings
All settings are available under Preferences → Settings → Solidity Visual Developer Lite:
| Setting | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
solidity-va.mode.active |
true |
Master switch for all features |
solidity-va.deco.statevars |
true |
Enable state variable decorations |
solidity-va.deco.arguments |
true |
Enable function argument highlighting |
solidity-va.deco.argumentsMode |
"color and symbol" |
Highlight mode |
solidity-va.deco.argumentsSuffix |
"⬆" |
Symbol appended to arguments |
solidity-va.deco.warn.reserved |
true |
Warn about reserved keyword overrides |
solidity-va.deco.warn.externalCalls |
true |
Show gutter icons for external calls |
solidity-va.overviewruler.decorations.enable |
true |
Show decorations in overview ruler |
solidity-va.parser.parseImports |
true |
Recursively parse imports |
solidity-va.cockpit.view.topLevelContracts.listStyle |
"flat" |
Top level contracts view style |
solidity-va.debug.parser.showExceptions |
false |
Show parser exceptions in console |
This extension requires:
- Solidity Language Support (
tintinweb.vscode-solidity-language)
Based on Solidity Visual Developer by tintinweb.
GPLv3