VS Code Session Management and Native MCP Dialog
Claude CodeClaude Code v2.1.70 brings three focused enhancements to the VS Code extension: a spark icon in the activity bar that surfaces all active sessions as full editor tabs, a rich markdown document view for plan mode with inline comment support, and a native MCP server management dialog accessible via /mcp in the chat panel.
Sources & Mentions
5 external resources covering this update
claude-code CHANGELOG.md · anthropics/claude-code
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Releases · anthropics/claude-code
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Claude Code by Anthropic - Release Notes - March 2026 Latest Updates
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Claude Code 2.1.70: The Most Boring Changelog Is the Most Bullish Signal
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Claude Code Changelog: Complete Version History
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VS Code Integration Deepens with Sessions, Plans, and MCP
Claude Code v2.1.70 delivers three additions to the VS Code extension that collectively move session and MCP management out of the terminal and into the IDE itself.
Session List in the Activity Bar
A new spark icon appears in the VS Code activity bar, providing a persistent list of all Claude Code sessions. Each session can be opened directly as a full editor tab rather than requiring users to navigate through terminal panes. This makes it significantly easier to manage parallel or sequential sessions without losing context, particularly for developers working across multiple projects or agent threads simultaneously.
Plan Mode Markdown Document View
Claude Code's plan mode gains a full markdown document rendering in VS Code, replacing the previous plain-text representation. The document view also supports adding inline comments to provide feedback on the plan before execution begins. This gives VS Code users a more structured and readable view of what Claude intends to do, and a natural point to review and annotate plans before committing to execution.
Native MCP Server Management Dialog
Perhaps the most practically impactful addition: the /mcp command in the VS Code chat panel now opens a native MCP server management dialog. From this dialog, users can enable or disable individual MCP servers, trigger reconnections, and manage OAuth authentication flows — all without leaving VS Code or opening a terminal.
RTL Text Fix
A regression introduced in v2.1.63 that caused RTL text (Arabic, Hebrew, Persian) to render reversed in the VS Code chat panel has been corrected in this release.