architecture.md

Architecture

This document explains how vscode-dotenv-diff is structured, how the modules relate to each other, and the reasoning behind key design decisions.

---

Project structure

src/
├── core/                 # Pure logic – no VS Code dependency
├── test/                 # Pure logic tests – no VS Code dependency
├── completionProvider.ts # .env autocomplete provider for missing keys
├── diagnostics.ts        # Warning logic across open documents
├── extension.ts          # Entry point – activates the extension and registers listeners

The key architectural split is between core/ and the rest. Everything inside core/ is plain TypeScript with no dependency on VS Code — it can be tested in isolation without a VS Code runtime. Everything outside core/ is responsible for wiring the logic into VS Code.

---

Design principles

Everything in core/ is plain TypeScript that works in any environment — making it easy to test, reuse, and reason about independently.

No configuration. The extension works out of the box. Decisions like "find the nearest .env" are made automatically so the user never has to think about setup.