IntelliSense in the editor causes modules to be loaded

While I’m writing PowerShell code in Visual Studio Code on Mac, I notice that messages are randomly printed to the Integrated Terminal. Those messages typically indicate that a module is being imported, and sometimes my environment will change as a result (eg. posh-git changes my prompt) against my will.

While the rich Intellisense metadata is useful for development, we should investigate a method of providing this metadata while simultaneously preventing unwanted changes to the development environment. Ideas proposed by @daviwil and myself include:

• Add a setting that prevents automatic import of modules (or perhaps opts into it)
• Parse tooltips from CompletionResult objects, instead of importing module
• Run metadata gathering in separate PowerShell Runspace or process

Cheers, Trevor Sullivan

[MartinGC94]

I’m sorry for commenting on such an old issue, I can open a new one if requested but I disagree with the conclusion here.

This is not a Powershell issue, if you open up ISE or a PS console with/without PSReadline it won’t auto import modules when you invoke command completion. This only happens in VS code, specifically when you are hovering over a command in the intellisense menu.

It’s pretty easy to demonstrate:

• Open up a normal PS console and VS code
• Check imported modules with Get-Module
• Tab complete a command from an unimported module like Get-NetIPAddress
• Check imported modules again with Get-Module
• Note how only VS code will have imported the unwanted NetTCPIP module

I think the problem is that VS code runs some additional code when you are hovering over an item in the intellisense menu to display command help. Powershell already provides the parameter sets as a tooltip if a module has been imported so the only thing VS code adds is the short synopsis for what the command does.
This feature needs to either be removed or made smarter so it only shows that help info if the module has already been imported, otherwise I don’t see how intellisense is ever going to feel good in VS code for Powershell.

[daviwil]

Did some work on this but I think I want to polish it a bit more before I ship it.