SFTP Folder Diff

A VSCode extension that compares an entire local folder against a remote SFTP folder as a single operation — not file by file. Think FreeFileSync or Beyond Compare, but living inside VSCode.

Features

• Recursive directory comparison — local workspace ↔ remote SFTP folder, in one pass
• Three compare modes
  • fast — by size + mtime only (seconds, even on large trees; may flag identical files as modified when mtime drifts)
  • smart (default) — size + mtime first; falls back to SHA-256 only when mtime drifts. Fast for the common case, accurate for the rest
  • content — by SHA-256 hash unconditionally (accurate, slower; downloads remote files for hashing)
• Auto-reconnect — survives idle SFTP disconnects with a keepalive + transparent retry, so long compares and follow-up actions don't fail mid-run
• Two views, sharing the same diff data
  • Sidebar tree view (like Git Source Control)
  • WebView table view with size/mtime side-by-side, color badges, live path filter
• Inline actions per file: Diff / Upload / Download / Delete
• Right-click anywhere for single-file or folder operations
  • File: Diff with Remote / Upload / Download
  • Folder: Compare / Upload Folder / Download Folder
  • Editor tab and editor area menus too
• Friendly progress — byte-level percentage on single-file transfers, animated spinner with elapsed time on directory transfers, phased messages during compare (Scanning local... → Scanning remote... → Comparing... → Hashing 142/1530)
• Cancellable compare — click the ✕ on the progress notification to abort; previous results are kept
• Auto-reveal results — compare jumps straight to the diff sidebar on completion, no extra click
• glob exclude — supports *, **, ?, bare names, exact paths
• Temporary password — if config has no password, you're prompted once per session and it stays in memory only

Quick start

1. Install the .vsix from Releases

   code --install-extension sftp-folder-diff-0.7.1.vsix

2. Open your local project
3. Run command SFTP Diff: Configure Connection, fill in .vscode/sftp-diff.json
4. Click the diff icon in the activity bar → click the refresh button

Configuration

.vscode/sftp-diff.json:

{
  "host": "example.com",
  "port": 22,
  "username": "user",
  "password": "",                  // leave empty → prompted at runtime
  "privateKeyPath": "",            // takes precedence over password
  "remotePath": "/var/www/project",
  "localPath": ".",
  "exclude": [
    "node_modules", ".git", "*.log", "**/temp/*"
  ]
}

See USAGE.md for full docs, all commands, all settings, exclude syntax, security notes, troubleshooting.

Commands

Command	What it does
SFTP Diff: Configure Connection	Create/open .vscode/sftp-diff.json
SFTP Diff: Compare Folders Now	Compare whole localPath ↔ remotePath
SFTP Diff: Compare This Folder	(Right-click) compare a subfolder only
SFTP Diff: Show as Table	Open WebView table view
SFTP Diff: Toggle Compare Mode	Cycle through fast → smart → content
SFTP Diff: Clear Session Password	Wipe the in-memory password
SFTP: Diff This File with Remote	(Right-click file or editor)
SFTP: Upload This File to Remote	Same
SFTP: Download This File from Remote	Same
SFTP: Upload This Folder to Remote	(Right-click folder)
SFTP: Download This Folder from Remote	Same

Build from source

npm install
npm run compile
npx @vscode/vsce package --allow-missing-repository

Press F5 in VSCode to launch an Extension Development Host for debugging.

Project structure

src/
├── extension.ts       # entry point, command handlers, session password
├── sftpService.ts     # ssh2-sftp-client wrapper with progress callbacks
├── diffEngine.ts      # recursive scan + 3-way comparison
├── globMatcher.ts     # minimal glob (zero deps)
├── treeView.ts        # sidebar tree
└── webviewPanel.ts    # main-editor table view

Status & limitations

This is a beta. Working: everything listed above. Known not implemented:

• Symlinks are skipped
• Only the first workspace folder is used
• Recursive directory upload/download don't honor exclude (built-in ssh2-sftp-client limitation; would need a custom walker)
• No file watcher / auto-compare
• No bulk "upload all modified" / "download all"

License

MIT — see LICENSE.