Bug: Unexpected Pane Movement with `<C-W>l` from Sidebar & Request for Proper `<C-W>jkhl` Mapping Strategy
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Description
Hello,
vscode version: 1.104.3
vscodevim version: 1.31.0
I have encountered an issue when attempting to use Vim-like pane navigation to move focus back to the editor area from the sidebar.
1. Configuration Context
I have added the following entry to my keybindings.json file to allow VSCodeVim to intercept the <C-W> prefix key:
[
{
"key": "ctrl+w",
"command": "extension.vim_ctrl+w",
"when": "vim.active && vim.use<C-w> && !inDebugRepl"
}
]
2. Bug Report
When the sidebar (e.g., Explorer or Search panel) has focus, pressing the sequence <C-W> followed by l unexpectedly moves the focus past the main editor area and into the editor group to the right (if one exists). The action behaves as if I pressed the sequence twice.
Is this a known bug in VSCodeVim's handling of non-editor focus, or am I missing a crucial configuration step for focus movement from side panels?
3. General Mapping Strategy Request
What is the recommended and most robust way to map the full sequence of <C-W> + j/k/h/l to reliably move focus between all VS Code areas (Sidebar $\leftrightarrow$ Editor $\leftrightarrow$ Terminal $\leftrightarrow$ Editor Groups) without conflicts?
4. Feature Request: Move Editor to Right Split
Separately, is there a way to map a Vim sequence (e.g., <C-W> L) to the VS Code command that moves the current active editor to the editor group on the right (workbench.action.moveEditorToNextGroup)?
Thank you for your time and assistance.
Contributor guide
First steps
- Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
- Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
- Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
- Open a pull request that references the issue number.
Research direction
Start by reproducing the then j/k/h/l sequences from the sidebar using the keybindings.json entry for extension.vim_ctrl+w. Compare the observed focus movement with the requested workbench.action.moveEditorToNextGroup mapping; done means the mappings work reliably across the named VS Code areas without the sequence being applied twice.
Written by the indexing model from the issue text.
Assessment
- Tech stack
- typescript, vscode
- Domain
- developer-experience, tooling
- Issue type
- Bug
- Difficulty
- 4/5
- Estimated time
- 3-5 days
- Activity status
- Stale
- Clarity
- Mostly clear
- Newbie friendliness
- 35/100