Use Git and existing changelogs

Open any existing Markdown changelog, then run Changelog Studio: Open Release Editor. The extension reads the current unsaved document as well as later changes.

Repository selection

The extension reads VS Code's built-in Git extension API. That API handles .git directories, worktree .git files, nested repositories, and multi-root workspaces. The deepest repository containing the document wins. Remote preference is the current branch's upstream remote, then origin, then the first configured remote. Fetch URL is preferred to push URL. SSH GitHub/GitLab remotes are normalized to HTTPS comparison URLs.

For existing files, the Unreleased comparison link supplies the tag prefix and ref. A supported Git remote supplies the repository URL. Outside Git, a complete existing link already supplies all settings. The extension asks for a repository URL only when it needs one outside Git; it never asks for tag prefix or Unreleased ref while opening an existing document.

Git repositories without a remote do not trigger a URL prompt. Existing links remain usable; otherwise generation stays off. If Git is disabled or unavailable, repository discovery is unavailable.

Missing or unsupported links

No branch or tag prefix is guessed for an existing document. Add a supported reference in Markdown, for example:

[Unreleased]: https://github.com/owner/project/compare/v0.1.0...main

Or for GitLab:

[Unreleased]: https://gitlab.example.org/team/project/-/compare/v0.1.0...develop

The form detects it on the next document update. Unsupported hosts keep their URLs without automatic generation. Conflicting links and malformed versions are preserved for correction. For new self-hosted repositories, a host picker distinguishes GitHub from GitLab.

Recover a concurrent edit

If the source changes while a form edit is in flight, run Changelog Studio: Recover Conflicting Draft. It opens the latest conflicting form draft in an unsaved Markdown document. Compare and copy the intended changes into the original; the extension does not overwrite newer source automatically.