VS Code extension

The Minerva extension puts the agent in your editor. It talks to the same Minerva engine and profile as the CLI, the desktop app and the dashboard, so your sign-in, model provider, MCP servers and chats are shared between all of them.

Install

1. Install the Minerva engine first (see Installation).
2. Download the .vsix from Minerva downloads and install it: Extensions → ⋯ → Install from VSIX…, or code --install-extension minerva-vscode-<version>.vsix.
3. Reload the window. The extension finds minerva on your PATH or in the default install location. If it lives elsewhere, set minerva.path.

After that, minerva update keeps the extension at the same version as the engine.

Two panels

Where	What it is for
Activity bar (left) → Minerva	A monitor: your account, plan and usage, the engine, the model, the Bittensor research connection, updates, and this folder's chats.
Secondary side bar (right) → Minerva, or an editor tab	The chat itself.

The left panel never shows a second copy of the chat. On VS Code versions without a secondary side bar, the chat appears under the status panel instead.

Status

Row	Shows	Click to
Account	The signed-in email, or Sign in	Open your account page, or sign in
Plan	Your research plan and whether it is active	Manage the plan
Usage	Research calls today and in the last 30 days (hover for errors and average latency)	—
Engine	Connected, starting, or what went wrong	Choose another engine
Model	The current model and reasoning effort	Open the chat
Context	How much of the model's context the current chat uses	—
Research	Whether Bittensor MCP is connected	Connect it in one step
Updates	Up to date or Update available	Update every Minerva component

The panel refreshes when you open it and every minute while it is visible. Use the refresh button in its title bar to refresh now.

Chats

The Chats list shows this folder's earlier chats, newest first. Click one to reopen it in the chat panel; the next message continues it. Use + in the title bar for a new chat.

Signing in

The engine runs Minerva as your Minerva account. If the profile is not signed in yet, the chat panel shows a code and opens the approval page in your browser; the status panel shows Sign in. Signing in here is the same as running minerva login in a terminal: one session for the profile, used by every client. See Your Minerva account.

Settings

Setting	Default	Meaning
minerva.path	empty	Path to the minerva command, when it is not on PATH.
minerva.openOnStartup	off	Focus the chat whenever a window opens.
minerva.initialMode	—	Edit permissions for new chats.
minerva.sendShortcut	Enter	The key that sends a message.
minerva.followUpBehavior	queue	Whether a message sent mid-answer waits or steers the current turn.
minerva.collapseSteps	on	Fold a finished turn's thinking and tool calls behind one line.
minerva.includeActiveFile	on	Tell Minerva which file and lines are open with each message.

Commands

Open the Command Palette and type Minerva: Open Chat, New Chat, Chat History, Add Selection to Chat, Connect Bittensor MCP, Open Account Page, Open Dashboard, Versions and Updates, Choose Engine, Show Logs and Refresh Status, plus Sign In to Minerva and Sign Out of Minerva.

Troubleshooting

• Engine: Not installed — install the engine, or point minerva.path at it.
• Engine: Connection failed — run Minerva: Show Logs for the reason, then the refresh button. minerva doctor in a terminal checks the installation.
• Updates: Update available but nothing happens — VS Code needs its code command on PATH for minerva update to install the extension. Reopen VS Code, or install the .vsix from Downloads once.