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Short answer: VS Code documents how it stores and syncs its own agent-session history, and how to archive or delete sessions and clean up associated Git worktrees. It can also discover sessions created by Copilot CLI, the GitHub Copilot app, Claude Code, and Codex. That discovery does not establish that VS Code stores, syncs, or deletes those other products’ original session data.

What a VS Code agent session contains

In VS Code, a session is a unit of work that brings together a workspace and code changes. It can contain multiple chats; each chat has its own conversation history and context. The distinction matters: separate chats do not necessarily mean separate files. As the Visual Studio Code documentation puts it, “Separate conversations don’t guarantee separate files.” Chats that use the same folder or worktree can affect the same files; use worktree isolation when edits need to remain separate. Understand sessions and chats

Where VS Code keeps session history, and what sync changes

VS Code distinguishes local history from account sync. The documented local session tracking setting is github.copilot.chat.localIndex.enabled, listed as enabled by default. The separate chat.sessionSync.enabled setting is also listed as enabled by default. Turning sync off keeps session data local, but does not remove sessions already synced to the cloud. Manage agent sessions in VS Code

The documented local history store is a SQLite database. Tracked details can include repository, branch, working directory, timestamps, agent or participant, conversation turns, touched files, and external references such as pull request or issue numbers and commit SHAs. This describes VS Code’s documented Copilot session history, not every coding agent’s storage.

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Control sync and repository exclusions

  • Set chat.sessionSync.enabled to false to keep session data on the machine.
  • Use chat.sessionSync.excludeRepositories to keep matching repositories local. It accepts exact repository names or glob patterns.
  • Enterprise owners can govern sync through GitHub.com enterprise policy; the VS Code CopilotSessionSync group policy can force sync off.

Synced sessions are tied to the user’s personal account and private unless explicitly shared. VS Code documentation says secrets such as tokens, API keys, and credentials are stripped before data leaves the machine. Manage agent sessions in VS Code

Delete synced data

Run the github.copilot.sessionSync.deleteSessions command to choose whether to delete cloud-only session data or both local and cloud data. Local-and-cloud deletion cannot be undone. Switching sync off is not a substitute for deleting sessions that are already in the cloud. Manage agent sessions in VS Code

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Hide, archive, or permanently delete a session

These actions have different effects; hiding or archiving is not the same as removing a session and its associated worktree.

Action Effect
Close a chat tab Hides the chat tab without deleting its conversation.
Mark a session done Removes completed work from the active list while retaining its title and history.
Archive a session Retains the session while hiding it from the active list.
Delete a chat or session Permanently deletes it. The VS Code documentation warns: “Deleting a session is irreversible.”

Deleting a Copilot session also removes its associated worktree if no other linked session still uses it. A shared worktree remains until the last linked session is deleted or archived. Before deleting, integrate or commit changes you need: files that exist only in a removed worktree can be lost. Manage agent sessions in VS Code

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Clean up inactive worktrees manually

Use the Chat: Open Worktree Cleanup editor to review inactive worktrees before confirming removal. The editor offers inactivity thresholds of 7, 15, 30, 60, or 90 days, shows estimated worktree size, and lets you select items for cleanup. Selected sessions are marked done and their worktrees are scheduled for removal. Before removal, VS Code attempts to commit uncommitted changes to the session branch. If it cannot preserve the changes or worktree removal fails, the worktree remains. Session and branch history are preserved; restoring a session recreates its worktree. Manage agent sessions in VS Code

The cleanup editor excludes sessions that are active, running, waiting for input, pinned, done, archived, untitled, in an error state, or newer than the chosen inactivity period. It also excludes worktrees whose size cannot be measured.

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Optional cleanup suggestions

The experimental setting chat.agentSessions.sessionStorageCleanupSuggestion.enabled is disabled by default. When enabled, VS Code can suggest opening the cleanup editor if inactive worktrees use at least 5 GiB or if 20 worktrees qualify. Those are suggestion triggers, not automatic deletion limits. Manage agent sessions in VS Code VS Code settings reference

Automatic cleanup of merged sessions

A separate preview feature can mark eligible sessions done and delete them after a grace period. Both settings for those actions are disabled by default; the documented recommended grace period is 15 days. Eligibility requires an inactive session with a merged pull request and no related open pull requests. External sessions are excluded.

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For this lifecycle, VS Code removes a worktree only when its branch tracks an upstream and has no outgoing commits or uncommitted changes. If Git state is unknown or a condition is unmet, the worktree is retained. Cleanup does not force-remove a worktree. Manage agent sessions in VS Code

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What changes with standalone AI coding agents?

VS Code can discover supported local sessions created by Copilot CLI, the GitHub Copilot app, Claude Code, and Codex. For Copilot sessions, discovery includes repository-associated sessions updated within the last seven days. External sessions are hidden by default; available filters include recent sessions, the last 24 hours, the last seven days, or all discovered sessions. Manage agent sessions in VS Code Understand sessions and chats

Discovery is an interoperability feature, not proof of ownership. The reviewed VS Code documentation does not establish each standalone product’s authoritative local file location, account-sync and retention rules, or deletion behavior. Nor does it document that deleting an external session from VS Code erases the source session in that standalone application. Treat cleanup in VS Code as applying to the VS Code-managed items and worktrees it documents; manage an external agent’s original session through that product unless its own documentation confirms otherwise.

Practical decision guide

  • Want to keep VS Code history local? Disable chat.sessionSync.enabled; use repository exclusions if only some repositories should stay local.
  • Want to remove already synced VS Code sessions? Use github.copilot.sessionSync.deleteSessions and choose cloud-only or local-and-cloud deletion.
  • Want a session out of the active list but retained? Mark it done or archive it rather than deleting it.
  • Want disk space back from inactive VS Code worktrees? Review candidates in Chat: Open Worktree Cleanup, check the estimated size, and confirm only worktrees you no longer need.
  • Want to clean up a session made by another agent? Do not assume VS Code deletion removes the original. Verify the standalone product’s own storage and deletion controls.

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