auto-perf-optimize

Name: auto-perf-optimize
Author: microsoft

Automate VS Code performance and memory investigations with repeatable evidence capture.

Stars

★ 187,441

Source

GitHub

Updated

2026-07-11

// securityLow risk

Prompt only, no code
Open source
Community-trusted· 187.4k

Running security audit…

Credentials
Network egress
Code execution
Data access
Supply chain

// install

Copy the install command and let the AI configure it · recommended for beginners

Please install the "auto-perf-optimize" skill from askskill:
1. Download https://raw.githubusercontent.com/microsoft/vscode/main/.github/skills/auto-perf-optimize/SKILL.md
2. Save it as ~/.claude/skills/auto-perf-optimize/SKILL.md
3. Reload skills and tell me it's ready

// download

Download SKILL.mdInstall manifest ↗

// examples

Reproduce editor memory issues

Prompt

Launch Code OSS, automate the VS Code workflow I describe, record key steps, and capture a renderer heap snapshot at the end to analyze memory growth sources.

Expected

A repeatable workflow run, execution log, and heap snapshot file for memory analysis.

Compare two performance runs

Prompt

Run the same VS Code scenario twice, summarize each run, and compare performance metrics, screenshots, and anomalies to identify possible regression points.

Expected

A comparison summary of both runs with metric differences, key screenshots, and likely performance regressions.

Run Chat memory smoke test

Prompt

Run the Chat memory smoke runner, complete the specified test flow, save workflow screenshots, and report whether there are signs of memory issues or leaks.

Expected

Smoke test results, workflow screenshots, and a brief assessment of memory issue risk.

// docs

VS Code Performance Workflow

Drive a repeatable VS Code scenario, collect memory/performance artifacts, verify that the scenario actually happened, then hand the resulting heap snapshots to the generic heap-snapshot-analysis skill when object-level investigation is needed.

When to Use

User describes a VS Code workflow and asks whether it leaks or grows memory
User asks the agent to launch VS Code, drive a scenario, and capture heap snapshots
User asks to run the Chat memory smoke runner bundled with this skill
User wants screenshots, summary.json, renderer heap samples, and targeted .heapsnapshot files for one scenario
User wants a new automation runner for a non-Chat VS Code scenario

Do not use this skill when snapshots already exist and the user only wants heap object/retainer analysis. Use heap-snapshot-analysis directly.

The Story

Define the scenario. Write down one warmup action, one repeatable iteration, and one quiescent point where it is fair to force GC and sample memory.
Develop the automation. Start with a tiny no-snapshot run. If it fails or the UI state is uncertain, keep the Code window open, connect @playwright/cli to the same CDP port, take workspace-local screenshots, inspect snapshots, and update the runner's selectors/waits.
Run a fast smoke. Disable heap snapshots first. Prove the scenario completes and the artifact summary says what you think it says.
Capture targeted snapshots. Snapshot a warmed-up baseline and a later iteration. Do not snapshot every sample unless necessary; snapshots are huge and slow.
Verify the run. Inspect summary.json and screenshots. Do not analyze a failed login, trust prompt, stuck progress row, or wrong UI state.
Analyze snapshots. Switch to heap-snapshot-analysis for compare scripts, object grouping, and retainer paths.
Fix and verify. After identifying leaks, make product-code fixes. Then rerun the same scenario with the same snapshot labels and compare like-for-like. Do not stop at analysis — the goal is to ship a fix, not just a report.
Document. Save a summary of findings, fixes, and before/after measurements to session memory so the work is preserved.

Checked-in Runners

The scripts/ folder contains stable, generic runners. Use them directly or as templates for scratchpad scripts:

chat-memory-smoke.mts — Multi-turn chat smoke runner. Sends prompts, waits for responses, samples heap, takes optional snapshots. The most versatile runner.
chat-session-switch-smoke.mts — Creates multiple chat sessions with different content types, then repeatedly switches between them via the sessions sidebar.
userDataProfile.mts — Utility for managing user-data profiles in smoke test runs.

Chat Workflow: Chat Memory Smoke Runner

Use the bundled Chat memory smoke runner when the scenario is Chat-specific or can be expressed as repeated Chat prompts. It launches Code OSS, opens Chat, sends prompts, waits for responses, writes screenshots and summary.json, samples renderer heap, and can take selected heap snapshots.

Fast health check:

node .github/skills/auto-perf-optimize/scripts/chat-memory-smoke.mts --iterations 3 --no-heap-snapshots

Targeted post-warmup snapshots:

node .github/skills/auto-perf-optimize/scripts/chat-memory-smoke.mts --iterations 8 --heap-snapshot-label 03-iteration-01 --heap-snapshot-label 03-iteration-08

User-described Chat scenario:

node .github/skills/auto-perf-optimize/scripts/chat-memory-smoke.mts --iterations 8 --message 'For memory investigation iteration {iteration}, summarize the active workspace in one paragraph.' --heap-snapshot-label 03-iteration-01 --heap-snapshot-label 03-iteration-08

Important runner behavior:

…

View full docs ↗