Search View Results Reader
Reads the existing results in Visual Studio Code’s Search view.
The skill only reads the current VS Code search results and requests no file writes, external network access, or destructive action, so the apparent permission surface is small. It does not disclose sensitive-data flow, user confirmation, output boundaries, recovery, or why skipCheck=true is safe, so points are deducted.
The procedure is short and names a concrete command, but it only asserts that the command exists and omits argument structure, result handling, empty-result behavior, failure diagnostics, and version differences. Static review provides no skill-specific execution evidence, so the score remains conservative.
The target scenario—retrieving existing Search view results—is clear and does not depend on an overseas service. However, empty searches, environment variations, trigger conditions, non-fit cases, and Chinese-language interaction boundaries are unspecified, warranting deductions.
The name and description broadly match the capability, while repository evidence supplies Microsoft ownership, MIT licensing, versioning, and maintenance signals. The skill itself lacks installation/dependency notes, output examples, limitations, troubleshooting, changelog, and explicit maintenance ownership, so points are deducted.
If the command is available, the steps plausibly complete the core retrieval task. However, they do not specify how results should be returned or presented and do not cover empty or abnormal cases; direct usability and marginal benefit over manual retrieval are therefore only partially evidenced.
The skill provides an auditable command name, but no dedicated tests, sample outputs, or third-party execution evidence. The supplied CI workflows mainly cover other components and do not establish this skill’s key path, so verifiability is low.
- skipCheck=true bypasses command-existence validation; confirm that the target VS Code version and host tool support the command.
- Behavior for empty results, command failure, result formatting, and sensitive search content is unspecified.
- This assessment is based only on static file review; the command was not executed or independently reproduced.
What it does & when to use it
This is a narrowly scoped skill for the Visual Studio Code Search view. It retrieves results that are already present instead of starting a new search. The skill invokes the search.action.getSearchResults command through copilot_runVscodeCommand and requires skipCheck to be true. It fits workflows where a search has already been performed in VS Code and an agent needs to continue from those results.
It obtains the current results from the VS Code Search view by calling search.action.getSearchResults through copilot_runVscodeCommand with skipCheck: true. The SKILL.md does not define a particular result format, and it does not include steps for starting a search, editing files, or writing data.
- A developer has finished a code search in VS Code and wants an agent to read the current results for further analysis.
- A maintainer wants an agent to continue from an existing workspace-wide search without launching the search again.
- A debugger has located relevant files in VS Code and wants to continue investigation from the current Search view results.
- A user working with a VS Code and Copilot integration needs a direct operation for retrieving the current search results.
Pros & cons
- Has a precise scope: retrieving results already present in the VS Code Search view.
- Specifies both the VS Code command and the required skipCheck setting.
- Includes no file-writing, network-request, or external-command steps.
- Depends on the copilot_runVscodeCommand tool rather than a generic model call.
- Requires existing Search view results; it does not initiate a search.
- The SKILL.md does not document the result format, failure handling, test suite, or standalone installation process.
- The source does not establish direct support beyond the specified Copilot and VS Code integration.
How to install
The skill is located at extensions/copilot/assets/prompts/skills/get-search-view-results/SKILL.md. The supplied README does not document an installation command or a standalone installation process for this skill; it only states that the repository bundles 61 skills and provides the repository URL: https://github.com/microsoft/vscode. Before adopting it, verify that the runtime provides copilot_runVscodeCommand.
How to use
First perform a search in the VS Code Search view and leave its results available. Then ask the agent to call copilot_runVscodeCommand with the command search.action.getSearchResults and skipCheck set to true. Example request: "Read the current results from the VS Code Search view." The skill does not specify additional parameters or a detailed result presentation format.