Settings editor and other webview-based panels cannot be detached into a real, independent OS window
- Dominant language
- TypeScript
- Stars
- 193k
- Forks
- 42.4k
- PR merge metrics
- PR metrics pending
Description
Does this issue occur when all extensions are disabled?: Yes
- VS Code Version: 1.137.0
- OS Version: 10.0.19045.6456
### Description
VS Code renders UI surfaces like the Settings editor, and several panels, as webview/iframe-based overlays confined to the single main workbench window, rather than as **real, independently movable OS windows**.
Regular file editor tabs can already be dragged out via "Move Editor into New Window" into a genuine separate OS window. However, the Settings editor (and other iframe/webview-based editors) cannot be detached the same way — it always stays locked inside the main window.
On Windows specifically, this breaks a core piece of the platform's UX convention: windows **are meant to be independently movable and positionable** (e.g. across multiple monitors). Older, natively-built applications such as the classic Visual Studio (WinForms/WPF based) supported fully detachable tool windows for decades. In VS Code's current Electron/webview-based architecture, this capability was lost for iframe-based editors like Settings.
### Requested fix
Allow iframe/webview-based editors (including the Settings editor) to be detached into their own real, independently movable OS window — the same "Move into New Window" capability that already exists for regular text editor tabs.
### Impact
Users cannot view Settings side by side with other windows/monitors without constantly switching tabs inside the same main window. **This is a significant usability regression compared to native desktop applications.**
### Related issues
- #193267 (Aux window: allow detaching views and panels)
- #195715 (Support iframe based editors to reparent into floating windows)
Contributor guide
Assessment
This issue has not been assessed yet.