Where Does VS Code Insiders Store Settings?
VS Code Insiders duplicates stable paths with Code minus Insiders names, keeping settings and extensions fully separate.
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Insiders is a second editor, not a skin. Settings, profiles, workspace storage, and extensions all live under Code minus Insiders where stable uses Code. CLI spells it code-insiders. That split lets daily driver and nightly configs diverge safely.
Profiles add another layer inside User profiles for per task setups. Workspace disabled extension states hide in workspaceStorage SQLite files. Copy the User tree across machines for matching Insiders rigs, leaving stable untouched.
Where VS Code Insiders stores this, by platform
%APPDATA%\Code - Insiders\User\settings.json
Profiles in User\profiles, extensions in %USERPROFILE%\.vscode-insiders\extensions, workspace state in User\workspaceStorage. Stable keeps parallel Code trees.
~/Library/Application Support/Code - Insiders/User/settings.json
Same interior as Windows. Remote hosts use ~/.vscode-insiders server paths. Temporary profiles skip disk persistence for throwaway sessions.
~/.config/Code - Insiders/User/settings.json
Respects XDG config home like stable. Extensions per workspace enable states sit in workspaceStorage state databases viewable with SQLite browsers.
Frequently asked questions
Do VS Code and Insiders share extensions?
No. Each uses its own extensions folder (.vscode versus .vscode-insiders) and settings tree. Install favorites twice or sync settings to mirror them.
How do I back up Insiders settings?
Copy the Code minus Insiders User folder with the editor closed. That carries settings.json, profiles, snippets, and workspace storage in one move.
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