@vscode/extension-telemetry

This module provides a consistent way for extensions to report telemetry over Application Insights. The module respects the user’s decision about whether or not to send telemetry data. See telemetry extension guidelines for more information on using telemetry in your extension.

Follow guide to set up Application Insights in Azure and get your connection string. Don’t worry about hardcoding it, it is not sensitive.

Install

With npm: npm install @vscode/extension-telemetry

With yarn: yarn add @vscode/extension-telemetry

Usage

Setup

import * as vscode from 'vscode';
import TelemetryReporter from '@vscode/extension-telemetry';

// the connection string
const connectionString = '<your connection string>';

// telemetry reporter
let reporter;

function activate(context: vscode.ExtensionContext) {
   // create telemetry reporter on extension activation
   reporter = new TelemetryReporter(connectionString);
   // ensure it gets properly disposed. Upon disposal the events will be flushed
   context.subscriptions.push(reporter);
}

Sending Events

Use this method for sending general events to App Insights.

// send event any time after activation
reporter.sendTelemetryEvent('sampleEvent', { 'stringProp': 'some string' }, { 'numericMeasure': 123 });

Sending Errors as Events

Use this method for sending error telemetry as traditional events to App Insights.

Note: To filter out sensitive properties (e.g., stack traces), use replacementOptions in the constructor rather than passing properties to drop as a parameter.

// Configure property filtering in the constructor
import TelemetryReporter from '@vscode/extension-telemetry';

const reporter = new TelemetryReporter(
   connectionString,
   [
      // Remove or redact sensitive properties
      { lookup: /stackProp/, replacementString: '[REDACTED]' },
      { lookup: /sensitiveData/ }  // Remove entirely if no replacementString
   ]
);

// Send error event (properties are automatically filtered based on replacementOptions)
reporter.sendTelemetryErrorEvent(
   'sampleErrorEvent',
   { 'stringProp': 'some string', 'stackProp': 'some user stack trace' },
   { 'numericMeasure': 123 }
);

Advanced Features (v1.5.0+)

Custom Endpoints and Configuration

Route telemetry to non-Azure endpoints (e.g., GitHub telemetry) and configure common properties and static tags:

import TelemetryReporter from '@vscode/extension-telemetry';
import * as os from 'os';
import * as vscode from 'vscode';

const reporter = new TelemetryReporter(
   connectionString,
   undefined,  // replacementOptions
   undefined,  // initializationOptions
   undefined,  // customFetch
   {
      // Custom endpoint URL - route to GitHub, Azure, or other services
      endpointUrl: 'https://<somename>-telemetry.githubusercontent.com/telemetry',
      
      // Common properties - automatically added to all events
      commonProperties: {
         'common_os': os.platform(),
         'common_arch': os.arch(),
         'custom_property': 'value'
      },
      
      // Static tag overrides - applied to all events (RECOMMENDED for static tags)
      tagOverrides: {
         'ai.cloud.roleInstance': 'REDACTED',
         'ai.session.id': vscode.env.sessionId,
         'ai.cloud.role': 'my-service'
      }
   }
);

When to use constructor options:

✅ All values are known at reporter construction time
✅ Values don’t change during the reporter’s lifetime
✅ This is the recommended approach for most use cases

Per-Event Tag Overrides

For dynamic tags that change per event (e.g., user tracking IDs from authentication tokens):

// Get dynamic tracking ID that changes per event
const trackingId = getTrackingIdFromToken();

// Send event with per-event tag override using the 4th parameter
reporter.sendTelemetryEvent(
   'userAction',
   { 'action': 'click' },
   { 'duration': 123 },
   { 'ai.user.id': trackingId }  // Overrides user ID for this event only
);

// Error events also support per-event tag overrides
reporter.sendTelemetryErrorEvent(
   'errorEvent',
   { 'error': error.message },
   { 'errorCount': 1 },
   { 'ai.user.id': trackingId }  // Per-event tag override (4th parameter)
);

Tag Merging Priority (lowest to highest):

Constructor tagOverrides (static, set at initialization)
Context tags via setContextTag() (can be set after construction)
Per-event tagOverrides (highest priority, dynamic per event)

Runtime Tag Management (Advanced)

For edge cases where tags are not available at construction or need to change at runtime:

const reporter = new TelemetryReporter(connectionString);

// Set context tag after construction (e.g., after async initialization)
authService.getSession().then(session => {
   reporter.setContextTag('ai.session.id', session.id);
});

// Update tag at runtime (e.g., user switches accounts)
reporter.setContextTag('ai.user.id', 'user1');
// ... later ...
reporter.setContextTag('ai.user.id', 'user2');

// Read back a context tag value
const sessionId = reporter.getContextTag('ai.session.id');

When to use setContextTag():

⚠️ Tags are not available when the reporter is constructed
⚠️ Tags need to change at runtime (e.g., user account switching)
⚠️ You need to read tag values back later

Note: For most use cases, prefer constructor tagOverrides over setContextTag() for better immutability and clarity.

Dangerous Methods (Bypass Telemetry Settings)

These methods send telemetry without checking the user’s telemetry settings. Only use them in controlled environments such as CI pipelines or during development testing.

// Send event without checking telemetry setting
reporter.sendDangerousTelemetryEvent(
   'ciPipelineEvent',
   { 'build': 'success' },
   { 'duration': 1234 },
   { 'ai.user.id': trackingId }  // Optional tag overrides
);

// Send error event without checking telemetry setting
reporter.sendDangerousTelemetryErrorEvent(
   'ciErrorEvent',
   { 'error': 'build failed' },
   { 'errorCount': 1 },
   { 'ai.user.id': trackingId }  // Optional tag overrides
);

// Send exception directly to Application Insights exceptions table
// without checking telemetry setting
try {
   riskyOperation();
} catch (error) {
   reporter.sendDangerousTelemetryException(
      error,
      { 'context': 'ci-pipeline' },
      { 'retryCount': 3 },
      { 'ai.user.id': trackingId }  // Optional tag overrides
   );
}

⚠️ Warning: These methods bypass the user’s telemetry opt-in preference. Only use them when you have explicit consent or in non-user-facing scenarios (e.g., automated testing, CI/CD pipelines).

Common Properties

Extension Name common.extname - The extension name
Extension Version common.extversion - The extension version
Machine Identifier common.vscodemachineid - A common machine identifier generated by VS Code
Session Identifier common.vscodesessionid - A session identifier generated by VS Code
VS Code Commit common.vscodecommithash - A VS Code commit hash
VS Code Version common.vscodeversion - The version of VS Code running the extension
OS common.os - The OS running VS Code
Platform Version common.platformversion - The version of the OS/Platform
Product common.product - What Vs code is hosted in, i.e. desktop, github.dev, codespaces.
UI Kind common.uikind - Web or Desktop indicating where VS Code is running
Remote Name common.remotename - A name to identify the type of remote connection. other indicates a remote connection not from the 3 main extensions (ssh, docker, wsl).
Architecture common.nodeArch - What architecture of node is running. i.e. arm or x86. On the web it will just say web.

License

MIT