[BUG] VS Code extension: slash-command and `/goal` messages never collapse, so long /command arguments fill the chat panel

Status Open
Reported on v2.1.283
Maintainer reply None cached
Activity 8 comments · opened Sep 26, 2026

Preflight Checklist

  • [x] I have searched existing issues and this hasn't been reported yet. The closest is #61675 (same symptom, reported for /goal), which was auto-closed as stale on 2026-09-24 with a request to open a new issue if still relevant.
  • [x] This is a single bug report
  • [x] I am using the latest version of Claude Code

What's Wrong?

In the VS Code extension, a user message that starts with / is always rendered at full height. This covers built-in and custom slash commands with arguments. Plain user messages fold to 60 px with a "Show more" button, but slash-command messages never fold. A custom command whose argument is a pasted code block fills the whole chat panel, and Claude's reply is pushed out of view.

Root cause, from the shipped bundle (webview/index.js, 2.1.283): in the user-message renderer's case "text" branch, slash-command messages return a plain div:

case "text":
  if (g.isSlashCommand)
    return F("div", { className: `${h0.userMessage} ${h0.slashCommandMessage}`, children: g.text }, i);

Every other user message goes through the collapsible component:

F(qH0, { content: M[i] ?? a, context: Y, maxHeight: 60 })

isSlashCommand is text.startsWith("/"), computed after <command-name> and <command-args> are joined. That means the bug affects every command that takes arguments, not only /goal.

What Should Happen?

Slash-command messages should fold like other long user messages: capped at the same max height, with Show more / Show less.

Suggested fix (untested): in that branch, wrap the text in the same component and keep the monospace class on the outer div:

children: F(qH0, { content: g.text, context: Y, maxHeight: 60 })

Error Messages/Logs

None. This is a rendering issue.

Steps to Reproduce

  1. Create .claude/commands/echo.md containing the single line Input: $ARGUMENTS.
  2. In the VS Code extension chat, send /echo followed by about 30 lines of text (for example, a pasted function).
  3. The message renders at full height with no Show more control.
  4. Send the same 30 lines without the leading /. It folds to about 3 lines, with Show more on hover.

Claude Model

Opus

Is this a regression?

I don't know

Claude Code Version

2.1.283 (Claude Code); VS Code extension anthropic.claude-code 2.1.283

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

Ubuntu/Debian Linux (Ubuntu 24.04.5 LTS)

Terminal/Shell

Other: the VS Code extension's native chat panel (VS Code 1.139.0), not a terminal

Additional Information

  • Related: #61675. Comments there report the same thing for other long prompts in the VS Code extension.
  • No claudeCode.* setting controls this.
  • The minified names (qH0, h0, F) come from the 2.1.283 bundle and will differ in other builds.

View original on GitHub ↗

3 Comments

anarchitectcodes · 16 days ago

Confirming this on 2.1.282 (macOS, arm64), and adding the second half of the symptom,
which is what actually hides the reply.

Two things combine:

  1. As described above, a message starting with "/" is rendered as a plain div

(isSlashCommand)return F("div",{className:...slashCommandMessage...})), so it never
gets the 60px "Show more" fold that other user messages get.

  1. User messages are sticky, with no height limit. From webview/index.css:

.stickyHeader_… { position: sticky; top: 0; z-index: 2; … }
So when a non-collapsing slash-command message is taller than the panel, it stays
pinned over the entire assistant reply below it, and scrolling cannot reveal the
reply. This was reported as #49114 (closed as stale and now locked); a comment there
noted the trigger is exactly a slash command whose arguments are taller than the
viewport. #93827 reports the non-collapsing half.

Either fix alone would help: route slash-command messages through the same collapsible
component as other user messages, and/or cap the sticky header (e.g. a max-height with
its own scroll) so it can never cover the reply.

dpaceoffice · 15 days ago

Running the latest version of the extension as of writing this comment. It does NOT need to be a / command for this issue to occur. There is no 'show less' option even on regular input, it hides the feedback. This issue does seem related to the window size. This is very annoying and a frequent occurrence.

devhindo · 15 days ago

@dpaceoffice this behavior happens with /goal as well

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