If you've ever scrolled forever trying to find something you typed ten minutes ago in a long chat session... VS Code 1.134 just heard your pain. 😅
Released on August 19, 2026, this update is one of those rare releases that feels like the team was watching over your shoulder while you worked. It fixes small but real annoyances, adds tools for managing complex agent sessions, and makes the whole editor feel a bit more like a smart workspace and less like a blank canvas you have to fight every day.
So what exactly changed? Let's break it down in plain English.
What Is VS Code 1.134?
Visual Studio Code is the most popular free code editor in the world. Millions of developers use it daily — from students writing their first Python script to professionals building large-scale apps.
Every month or so, the VS Code team ships a new version packed with bug fixes, performance improvements, and new features. Version 1.134 is the latest of those updates, focused on three main areas:
- Agents — how VS Code handles AI-powered sessions and multi-window workflows
- Chat — organizing and navigating your conversations with AI
- Editor Experience — small quality-of-life improvements that make daily work smoother
Think of it like a phone software update — except instead of fixing battery drain, it fixes the things that slow you down while writing code.
Why This Update Matters
AI-powered coding tools have become a normal part of most developers' workflows. But as those tools get more powerful, the conversations get longer, the sessions get more complex, and managing everything becomes its own challenge.
VS Code 1.134 addresses that challenge head-on.
If you've used GitHub Copilot inside VS Code for any extended session, you know the feeling:
- You're mid-task and can't remember what you asked earlier
- You want to compare two different agent responses
- You made a bunch of file changes but can't trace which prompt caused them
- You need to find a specific line from your conversation but scrolling takes forever
This release tackles all of those problems — not with flashy features, but with practical, focused solutions.
Key Features in VS Code 1.134 — With Real-Life Examples
1. 🗂️ Side-by-Side Chats (Grid Layout)
Imagine you're comparing two approaches for the same problem. You ask the agent one way, then another. But switching between those conversations constantly is frustrating — like flipping between two browser tabs when you wish you could just split the screen.
VS Code 1.134 lets you do exactly that. You can now arrange chats in horizontal or vertical groups inside a session. Drag a chat — or a subagent chat — into a group and view them side by side.
You can also:
- Hold
Altand click a chat in the Chats picker to open it directly to the side - Create a "side chat" to start a fresh conversation beside your current one
- Restore the exact same layout when you reload the window or return to the session
This is genuinely useful when you're running parallel tasks or comparing results from different agent prompts without losing context.
2. ⏱️ Prompt Timeline
Long agent sessions are powerful — but they also produce a wall of conversation that's hard to navigate. Which prompt caused those file changes? Where did you start exploring that feature? Which earlier idea should you revisit?
The Prompt Timeline solves this with a clean timeline in the transcript gutter of the Agents window. Each dot represents one of your prompts. The highlighted dot shows where you are right now.
Hover over the timeline to see a list of your prompts. Click one to jump to it instantly. And if a prompt changed any files, the timeline shows you exactly how many lines were added or removed — and lets you open the diff right there.
You can control how the timeline appears using the sessions.chatTimeline.display setting:
-
ruler— shows the timeline beside the scrollbar -
off— hides it completely
Think of it like a chapter list for your agent session. You can finally stop scrolling through everything just to find where you were.
3. 🔍 Find in Chat
This one is simple but long overdue.
You can now use workbench.action.chat.find to search your entire conversation — including content that's not currently visible on screen. It works in the Chat view, chat editors, and the Agents window.
It supports:
- Case-sensitive matching
- Whole-word matching
- Regular expressions
When you jump to a match, VS Code scrolls it into view and even expands collapsed work summaries if the match is inside them.
If you've ever said "I know I typed this somewhere earlier..." — this feature is for you.
4. 🌐 Open HTML Files in the Integrated Browser by Default
Frontend developers, this one's for you.
If your workflow involves frequently previewing local HTML files rather than editing them, you can now set the integrated browser as the default editor for HTML files. Configure it through workbench.editorAssociations or directly from the editor header.
The integrated browser works just like a standalone browser tab — but it stays connected to your HTML file. Any links inside the file open in new tabs so the association is preserved.
No more switching to Chrome just to check if your layout looks right. 💡
5. 🏠 Agent Host — Connect Multiple Windows to One Session
This is a more advanced feature, but worth knowing about.
The Agent Host lets you connect to the same agent session from multiple VS Code windows. It runs agent processes in a dedicated environment using the Agent Host Protocol (AHP), and the Copilot agent inside it is powered by the Copilot SDK — so its behavior is consistent with the CLI, the standalone Copilot app, and other Copilot tools.
If you work across multiple monitors or windows, this means your agent session doesn't have to be isolated to one window. You can attach to it from wherever you're working.
The feature is still actively being developed, and the team is welcoming feedback through GitHub issues.
6. 🪟 Improved Side Pane Layout
The single-pane layout now follows your workbench.editor.showTabs setting more naturally:
- With multiple tabs visible, the layout stays familiar
- With single or none settings, a compact single-title header takes over — much cleaner for minimal setups
Text file editors in this mode now use file breadcrumbs in the header, just like the Changes editor — so you always know exactly what you're looking at.
The side pane also holds its size and visibility when you switch between sessions. No more unexpected layout jumps.
7. ✖️ Close Other Editors with Alt+Click
Small feature, real time-saver.
You know how you sometimes end up with eight tabs open and you just want to keep one? Normally you'd right-click a tab and dig through a context menu.
Now you can just hold Alt and the close button on any tab transforms into "Close Other Editors". Click it, and every other tab closes except the one you clicked on.
That's it. Clean and fast.
Before vs. After — What Actually Changed for Daily Work
| Situation | Before 1.134 | After 1.134 |
|---|---|---|
| Comparing two agent responses | Open one, close it, open the other | Drag both into a side-by-side group |
| Finding an earlier prompt | Scroll through the whole session | Jump directly using the Prompt Timeline |
| Searching conversation history | Manual scrolling | Ctrl+F style search with regex support |
| Previewing HTML files | Switch to an external browser | Use the integrated browser as default |
| Keeping one tab, closing the rest | Right-click → context menu | Alt+click the close button |
None of these changes are dramatic on their own. But together they remove a surprising amount of friction from the daily workflow.
Tips and Do's & Don'ts
✅ Do:
- Enable the Prompt Timeline (
sessions.chatTimeline.display: ruler) if you run long agent sessions — it pays off immediately - Use
Alt+clickon chat items in the Chats picker to open them to the side instead of navigating away - Set
workbench.editorAssociationsfor HTML if you're a frontend developer previewing files regularly - Check for updates manually if you want 1.134 now — VS Code rolls out updates gradually, so use Help → Check for Updates
❌ Don't:
- Ignore the Agent Host documentation if you work with multiple windows — it's worth a quick read
- Forget that the Find in Chat tool supports regex — it's more powerful than a plain text search
- Close the side pane between sessions if you're actively comparing chats — 1.134 now preserves its size and position
Common Mistakes to Avoid
1. Waiting for the update to appear automatically
VS Code uses a gradual rollout, so not everyone gets the update on day one. If you want 1.134 right now, go to Help → Check for Updates and grab it manually. Waiting and wondering why you don't see the new features is a common time-waster.
2. Overlooking the Prompt Timeline setting
The Prompt Timeline defaults to showing beside the scrollbar. If you don't see it, check sessions.chatTimeline.display in your settings. Some users enable the single-pane layout without realizing the timeline is available — don't miss it.
3. Not using Find in Chat for long conversations
It's natural to scroll when looking for something — because that's how we've always done it. But the new Find in Chat works across the entire conversation, including collapsed summaries. Make it a habit early so you stop wasting time scrolling.
4. Forgetting that the Agent Host is still in development
The Agent Host is genuinely useful, but it's early stage. If something doesn't work as expected, file an issue rather than assuming it's a permanent limitation. The team is actively improving it.
Conclusion
VS Code 1.134 is not a "wow, everything changed" release. But it is a well-thought-out, practical improvement to how you work with AI-powered sessions, long conversations, and everyday editor tasks.
Side-by-side chats, the Prompt Timeline, Find in Chat, HTML preview by default, the Alt+click tab shortcut — each of these is small on its own. But if you spend hours every day in VS Code, these are exactly the kinds of improvements that add up.
The team is clearly paying attention to how developers actually use the editor — not just adding features, but fixing the rough edges. 🚀
If you want to try the latest features before the next stable release, grab the Insiders build — it gets updates as soon as they're ready.
👉 Want more posts like this? I cover the latest in VS Code, frontend development, and developer tools at hamidrazadev.com. Come check it out, and if this post saved you some time, share it with a developer friend who might find it useful. ✌️
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