[FR] Option to open the `settings.json` to the side when opening the settings UI editor

Quote from Rob Lourens:

I know this isn’t much, but I was wondering whether it would help with the search to be able to open a settings UI editor to the side. Then you’d be able to search there on the side while still keeping your focus on the setting.json text editor.

Since @roblourens gutted the settings split JSON editor, at least give us an option to open the settings.json at the right side of the UI editor automatically.

Requirements:

• An option to automatically open the settings.json at the right side of the UI editor.
• When the settings.json is opened, the focus should remain in the UI editor’s search bar.
• When switching to workspace settings, switch the settings.json to the workspace one as well.
• When triggering the workbench.action.openSettings action multiple times, the right side settings.json should be replaced if needed instead of opening multiple settings.json.
• The UI editor and settings.json should remain two editors instead of combining them into one so that we could navigate between these two files using navigation shortcuts.
• The UI editor’s table of contents should be allowed to hide at all times even when not searching.
• Closing either the UI editor or settings.json should close them both.

If there’re any missing features, please comment below.

Demo:

[vscodebot[bot]]

(Experimental duplicate detection) Thanks for submitting this issue. Please also check if it is already covered by an existing one, like:

• Split JSON settings editor discussion issue (#68386)

[wenfangdu]

@codestothestars

Thanks for stopping by, there’re many cases this can be useful, for example, when configuring editor.renderWhitespace, I want to see the behavior of each option immediately, this can’t be done only through the UI editor, we have to experiment in an ordinary text editor, in this case, we can do that in settings.json.

The same goes for the other direction as well, if I see editor.renderWhitespace has been configured to trailing in settings.json, and I want to know what the other options are, then I can search in the UI editor and see the description of each option.

And when configure other settings like workbench.colorCustomizations, we’d have to edit settings.json since the UI editor doesn’t support editing them, it’s convenient if settings.json is already at the side.

On the other hand, it’s just helpful to know the existing settings in a single file while configuring settings in general.