Vscode: Code Helper running at 100% CPU

[gtb104]

Issue Type: Performance Issue

My Macbook Pro turned into a space heater after the CPU was pegged out. The process that was running over 100% was Code Helper. This happened while VS Code did not have focus (I was using Chrome at the moment).

Here's some process Info

cwd
/
txt
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/Code Helper.app/Contents/MacOS/Code Helper
txt
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/Electron Framework.framework/Versions/A/Electron Framework
txt
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/Squirrel.framework/Versions/A/Squirrel
txt
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/ReactiveCocoa.framework/Versions/A/ReactiveCocoa
txt
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/Mantle.framework/Versions/A/Mantle
txt
/usr/lib/libSystem.B.dylib
txt
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/Electron Framework.framework/Versions/A/Libraries/libnode.dylib
txt
/System/Library/Frameworks/IOKit.framework/Versions/A/IOKit
txt
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/Electron Framework.framework/Versions/A/Libraries/libffmpeg.dylib
txt
/System/Library/Frameworks/AVFoundation.framework/Versions/A/AVFoundation
txt
/System/Library/Frameworks/CoreMIDI.framework/Versions/A/CoreMIDI
txt
/usr/lib/libsandbox.1.dylib
txt
/System/Library/Frameworks/CFNetwork.framework/Versions/A/CFNetwork
txt
/usr/lib/system/libdyld.dylib
txt
/usr/lib/system/libsystem_kernel.dylib
txt
/usr/lib/system/libsystem_sandbox.dylib
txt
/usr/lib/system/libkxld.dylib
txt
/usr/lib/libexpat.1.dylib
txt
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/Electron Framework.framework/Versions/A/Resources/icudtl.dat
txt
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/Electron Framework.framework/Versions/A/Resources/snapshot_blob.bin
txt
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/Electron Framework.framework/Versions/A/Resources/natives_blob.bin
txt
/usr/lib/dyld
txt
/usr/share/icu/icudt57l.dat
txt
/private/var/db/dyld/dyld_shared_cache_x86_64h
0
->0x85804365c3c335e9
1
->0x85804365c3c33e81
2
->0x85804365c3c34651
3
->0x85804365c3c32c89
4
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/Electron Framework.framework/Versions/A/Resources/icudtl.dat
5
->0x85804365be2f4589
6
->0x85804365be2f29c9
7
count=3, state=0x8
8
->0x85804365be2f4649
9
->0x85804365be2f2909
10
->0x85804365be2f4889
11
->0x85804365be2f2fc9
12
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/Electron Framework.framework/Versions/A/Resources/snapshot_blob.bin
13
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/Electron Framework.framework/Versions/A/Resources/natives_blob.bin
14
/dev/urandom
15
/dev/null
16
->0x85804365b2e34e19
17
->0x858043659a67e4b9
18
->0x85804365beba7589
19
/var/folders/vw/b6mdptss0rn3q6h3p4247g_ngjctjp/T/vscode-d6b7e6916e601fcfe937153579a61f3c91b36f61.sock
24
->0x85804365ba38ab61
25
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Resources/electron.asar
26
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Resources/app/node_modules.asar
27
/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Resources/app/node_modules.asar

VS Code version: Code 1.24.0 (6a6e02cef0f2122ee1469765b704faf5d0e0d859, 2018-06-06T17:30:30.113Z)
OS version: Darwin x64 16.7.0

System Info

|Item|Value|
|---|---|
|CPUs|Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-4770HQ CPU @ 2.20GHz (8 x 2200)|
|GPU Status|2d_canvas: enabled
flash_3d: enabled
flash_stage3d: enabled
flash_stage3d_baseline: enabled
gpu_compositing: enabled
multiple_raster_threads: enabled_on
native_gpu_memory_buffers: enabled
rasterization: enabled
video_decode: enabled
video_encode: enabled
vpx_decode: enabled
webgl: enabled
webgl2: enabled|
|Load (avg)|3, 3, 2|
|Memory (System)|16.00GB (2.56GB free)|
|Process Argv|/Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/MacOS/Electron|
|Screen Reader|no|
|VM|0%|

Process Info

CPU %   Mem MB     PID  Process
   12       98   31071  code main
    0      115   31072     gpu-process
    0      246   31073     window (component.js — sa-ui)
    0       98   31248       extensionHost
    0       49   31272         electron_node jsonServerMain.js 
  100      246   34066         electron_node electronForkStart.js tsserver.js 
    0       66   34071           electron_node typingsInstaller.js tsserver.js typesMap.js 
    0       82   34067         electron_node eslintServer.js 
    0      115   31249       watcherService
    0       66   34068       searchService
    0       82   31074     shared-process
    0       98   37380     shared-process
    0        0   37382     /bin/ps -ax -o pid=,ppid=,pcpu=,pmem=,command=

Workspace Info

|  Window (component.js — sa-ui)
|    Folder (sa-ui): more than 51748 files
|      File types: js(36435) scss(3430) css(2393) json(1038) png(1029) md(831)
|                  hbs(688) gitkeep(677) map(628) html(515)
|      Conf files: package.json(573) gulp.js(13) jsconfig.json(12)
|                  launch.json(2) makefile(1) settings.json(1);

Extensions (11)

Extension|Author (truncated)|Version
---|---|---
ember-module-snippets|can|1.1.0
vscode-eslint|dba|1.4.12
vscode-babel-coloring|dza|0.0.4
emberjs|emb|1.0.1
vscode-ember|emb|0.2.0
json-tools|eri|1.0.2
vsc-ember-cli|fel|0.3.3
vscode-ember-snow|gtb|0.0.1
ember-related-files|jos|1.3.0
EmberES6Snippets|pha|2.3.3
ayu|tea|0.14.0

[velozmontero]

What is the deal with these crazy code helpers since the last update. My Macbook Pro's CPU is going over 100%. So frustrating ...

[RMacfarlane]

CPU %   Mem MB     PID  Process
   12       98   31071  code main
    0      115   31072     gpu-process
    0      246   31073     window (component.js — sa-ui)
    0       98   31248       extensionHost
    0       49   31272         electron_node jsonServerMain.js 
  100      246   34066         electron_node electronForkStart.js tsserver.js 
    0       66   34071           electron_node typingsInstaller.js tsserver.js typesMap.js 
    0       82   34067         electron_node eslintServer.js 
    0      115   31249       watcherService
    0       66   34068       searchService
    0       82   31074     shared-process
    0       98   37380     shared-process
    0        0   37382     /bin/ps -ax -o pid=,ppid=,pcpu=,pmem=,command=

From the process info, it looks like the typescript server is causing the problem

[vesper8]

I'm tempted to open a new issue but I'll just add to this one. Last time I opened an issue about the crazy Code Helper.. which btw doesn't even quit after you quit VSCode!!!!!!!!!!

The only unhelpful reply I got was to use the 'Open Process Explorer' from the help menu to try and debug the problem

Well yet again my Code Helper in Activity Monitor was going at 99% CPU.. and I did use the Open Process Explorer and it was not helpful at all! See below screenshots! These were taken at the same time!

[mjbvz]

@gtb104 Please test in the latest vscode insiders build with all extensions disabled. If you still see the issue, try upgrading your workspace to typescript@next by following these instructions

[farfromrefug]

@mjbvz It happens to me a lot on mac with all versions including the very last insider build.
It mostly happens with projects with very big .d.ts files.
I can almost always reproduce it after working for a while with nativescript projects. They use an android.d.ts which is really big.

[farfromrefug]

@mjbvz is there any way to get a tsserver log file? I am having the issue right now. If i could enable a log and get it for you i think it would greatly help

[mjbvz]

To collect the TS Server log:

1. Set "typescript.tsserver.log": "verbose",
2. Restart VS Code and reproduce the problem
3. In VS Code, run the TypeScript: Open TS Server log command
4. This should open a folder with a tsserver.log file in it

Look though that log file for errors or stack traces. If you can share the log, I can also take a look to see if anything stands out

⚠️Warning: The TypeScript log may include information from your workspace, including file paths and source code. If you have any concerns about posting this publicly on Github, just let me know and we can arrange something else. On our side, we only use these logs to investigate issues like this

[farfromrefug]

@mjbvz just facing it right now. CPU to 100%, vscode stuck searching after trying to click on a reference to open it.

Here is my log file. I hope you will find something
tsserver.log

EDIT: @mjbvz here is another one i am having right now (different project). This is one is quite big but might have more info
tsserver.log.zip

[tomastech]

I am experiencing this issue too on my macbook and imac, both running macOS HS 10.13.5. The process continues even when VSCode is closed.

[bailitugesu]

so how to fix

[mjbvz]

@farfromrefug Thanks. I don't see anything suspicion in the TS server log. Can you check the full process arguments of the process that has the high cpu usage. Is it the tsserver one?

Also test in VS Code insiders to make sure this is still happening with the latest changes

[farfromrefug]

@mjbvz always using the latest insider !
here is the ps aux result:

mguillon         20445 100.0  1.3  5813140 213952   ??  R    11:24AM  70:04.45 /Applications/Visual Studio Code - Insiders.app/Contents/Frameworks/Code - Insiders Helper.app/Contents/MacOS/Code - Insiders Helper /Applications/Visual Studio Code - Insiders.app/Contents/Resources/app/extensions/typescript-language-features/out/utils/electronForkStart.js /Applications/Visual Studio Code - Insiders.app/Contents/Resources/app/extensions/node_modules/typescript/lib/tsserver.js --useInferredProjectPerProjectRoot --enableTelemetry --cancellationPipeName /var/folders/0v/_p69syd96plgy916gb3rcqxm0000gn/T/vscode-tscancellation-e0c55c1261ef6b5976d3.sock* --locale en --noGetErrOnBackgroundUpdate

[leonardorb]

This is happening specially when I have multiple instances of VSCode open. With 3 projects I got at least 12 different Code Helper processes, all of them running at 100% (or more).

Update:
Also happening with Workspaces.

The screenshot above is for one instance of VSCode open with 3 folders within the Workspace.

[farfromrefug]

@mjbvz any news on this?
I think you should try to reproduce this. And I think it is doable:

• clone https://github.com/Akylas/nativescript-bluetooth
• open in vscode
• run npm install within the plugin folder
• go into plugin/src/android.
• now the thing is just to play with it, asking for definition, waiting for pop over, and things like that.
• what will put is the big android def file. You can go into it by going to definition for any android.*
  That should bring you to android.17.d.ts. That's the big one.

Now I am not sure how fast this will happen but it should. Also as @LeonardoBraga I don't know for sure if it is related to multiple windows. I mostly always have a few opened.

[bitsmakerde]

Here the same

Version 1.25.1 (1.25.1)
Mac OS X 10.13.6

no TS only JavaScript

[jayflaherty75]

Version: 1.25.1
Debian GNU/Linux buster/sid

Happens with all plug-ins disabled, POJS. Started with the installation of 1.25.0. Code base is quite large, several million lines.

[MastaCoder]

Version: 1.25.1
Mac OS X 10.13.6

On any type of file, after working for a while it takes a few seconds to save a single file. (This also excludes the fact my laptop turns into a space heater once it starts doing this.) A restart fixes it, but it comes back after a while again.

[id0Sch]

Mac OSX 10.13.3 (17D47)
Version: 1.26.0-insider (1.26.0-insider) - but its happening for about 8 months...

File 200+ lines in a medium+- TS project - any change / autocomplete /save causes 99% CPU FOREVER.
tried debugging it for 8 hours it seems like many props on an item in a big file cause it to slow down until eventually, it fails.

I can now reproduce it on a whim, but can't do my job and write new code AT ALL.
for the time being, I'm going back to IntelliJ but I'm looking forward for a fix.

I'd be happy to assist if anyone wants to fix it...

[maxkomarychev]

This one seems to be related https://github.com/Microsoft/vscode/issues/55070

[pxwee5]

For those who are not using TS. It could be Import Cost plugin.
Here's the issue https://github.com/wix/import-cost/issues/35

Disabling Import Cost completely reduced Code Helper %CPU from 100 to 5.
Until that issue is fixed I would be disabling Import Cost.

[MastaCoder]

Don't have Import Cost installed and still experiencing the issue.

[id0Sch]

Same.
I managed to reproduce this without any plugin enabled / installed.
On Fri, Aug 17, 2018 at 11:56 AM Makan Dey [e-mail] wrote:

Don't have Import Cost installed and still experiencing the issue.

—
You are receiving this because you commented.
Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub
https://github.com/Microsoft/vscode/issues/51776#issuecomment-413802275,
or mute the thread
https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AFl9RGP6lBVSyGz338JJhmMf_H0QzZKuks5uRoVOgaJpZM4UmbvI
.

[atomdmac]

I'm not sure if it's 100% related to this bug, but I can reproduce this by running npm install on my Node projects while I have the project folder open in VS Code. I suspect that the Code Helper goes crazy trying to index all of the new files that npm is creating.

[nrk]

I don't use TypeScript and I don't have the Import Cost plugin, but sometimes I have the same issue with Code Helper going wild on one of the CPU cores and the culprit is electron_node index.js judging by the process explorer. When this happens to me, I notice there's a progress bar under the _explorer_ label (the one on top of the side bar) running continuously even when there's no file or folder open in the editor. As soon as I kill electron_node index.js from the process explorer, Code Helper stops and the progress bar disappears. Last time happened yesterday, with vscode version 1.26.0 running on macOS 10.12.6.

[rwschmitz]

@MastaCoder Thanks. My issue went away when I uninstalled Import Cost.

[datvong-wm]

Probably a TS Server hard bug they can't fix, or maybe a fix that hasn't been released yet.

To temporarily get around this until they have a fix, I turned on logging like the @mjbvz said, figure out which file it is croaking on, add that file or set of files to my "files.exclude", "files.watcherExclude" lists.

[waka992]

i try to set the 'file.excludes' items but it does not work, then i uninstall the tslint extension, seems the problem fixed now.

[marlonmleite]

My vscode does not have an extension installed and is consuming 100% CPU in MacBook Pro

[ghost]

Same here. I constantly have to force quite "Code Helper" which is using 100% CPU on my MacBook using the latest (1.26.1) version.

Edit: Had Import Cost enabled. Will disable and see if this fixes it.

[yourfavorite]

I'm experiencing this issue is well. My installed extensions are:
Auto Close Tag
Babel ES6/ES7
Document This
ESLint
Flow Language Support
HTML CSS Support
Prettier
Settings Sync
stylus
TODO Highlight
WakaTime

[nathan-dunn]

I've been having the same issue. My _hunch_ is ESLint and Prettier but I'm not sure.

[jayflaherty75]

[UPDATE] This has helped immensely (though it does still run around 20-30% after running for a while):

    "eslint.autoFixOnSave": true,
    "eslint.run": "onSave",
    "eslint.provideLintTask": false,
    "[javascript]": {
        "editor.formatOnSave": true,
    },
    "typescript.validate.enable": false,
    "javascript.validate.enable": false,
    "files.watcherExclude": {
        "**": true
    },
    "files.useExperimentalFileWatcher": false,
    "git.ignoreLimitWarning": true

The most effective changes were disabling continuous validation, limiting the watcher and disabling files.useExperimentalFileWatcher.

[datvong-wm]

Doesn't seem to work. I have node_modules in my exclude and watcherExclude list, but still scanning that directory.

   "**/node_modules/**": true

useExperimentalFileWatcher is false by default.

I'm going back to Vim until the next VSCode release comes out.

[maxkomarychev]

This message is probably useless for those who will be debugging the issue. But anyways here's "workaround" I made to keep using vscode.
I removed vscode as well as all it's settings and all plugins.
I installed it from scratch and added some most important plugins I use. I see no CPU consumption unless I really do something.
Below is current config I use:

{
  "workbench.colorTheme": "One Dark Pro",
  "editor.fontSize": 14,
  "workbench.editor.enablePreview": false,
  "editor.rulers": [80],
  "workbench.iconTheme": "vscode-icons",
  "prettier.eslintIntegration": true,
  "editor.formatOnPaste": false,
  "editor.formatOnSave": true,
  "editor.formatOnType": false,
  "flow.useNPMPackagedFlow": true,
  "javascript.validate.enable": false,
  "jest.showCoverageOnLoad": true,
  "[yaml]": {
    "editor.formatOnPaste": false,
    "editor.formatOnType": false,
    "editor.formatOnSave": false
  },
  "window.zoomLevel": 0
}

and extensions I installed again

dbaeumer.vscode-eslint
eamodio.gitlens
esbenp.prettier-vscode
flowtype.flow-for-vscode
ms-vsliveshare.vsliveshare
Orta.vscode-jest
robertohuertasm.vscode-icons
vscodevim.vim
zhuangtongfa.Material-theme

here is what my original config looked like and list of original extensions:

{
  "gitlens.advanced.messages": {
    "suppressShowKeyBindingsNotice": true
  },
  "workbench.colorTheme": "One Dark Pro",
  "editor.rulers": [80],
  "editor.formatOnPaste": true,
  "editor.formatOnSave": true,
  "editor.formatOnType": true,
  "prettier.eslintIntegration": true,
  "workbench.iconTheme": "vscode-icons",
  "window.zoomLevel": 0,
  "editor.fontSize": 14,
  "workbench.editor.enablePreviewFromQuickOpen": false,
  "workbench.editor.enablePreview": false,
  "editor.formatOnSaveTimeout": 5000,
  "gitlens.blame.ignoreWhitespace": true,
  "todo-tree.showInExplorer": false,
  "docker.showExplorer": false,
  "[xml]": {
    "editor.formatOnPaste": false,
    "editor.formatOnSave": false,
    "editor.formatOnType": false
  },
  "workbench.sideBar.location": "left",
  "editor.largeFileOptimizations": true,
  "flow.enabled": true,
  "flow.useNPMPackagedFlow": true,
  "eslint.autoFixOnSave": true,
  "javascript.validate.enable": false,
  "editor.minimap.enabled": false,
  "eslint.enable": true,
  "liveshare.guestApprovalRequired": true,
  "flow.showUncovered": false
}

RoscoP.ActiveFileInStatusBar
alexkrechik.cucumberautocomplete
dbaeumer.vscode-eslint
DotJoshJohnson.xml
eamodio.gitlens
emilast.LogFileHighlighter
esbenp.prettier-vscode
flowtype.flow-for-vscode
formulahendry.auto-close-tag
formulahendry.auto-rename-tag
Gruntfuggly.todo-tree
ionutvmi.path-autocomplete
jdforsythe.add-new-line-to-files
jpoissonnier.vscode-styled-components
mikestead.dotenv
ms-python.python
ms-vscode.cpptools
ms-vscode.Go
ms-vscode.node-debug2
ms-vsliveshare.vsliveshare
msjsdiag.debugger-for-chrome
Orta.vscode-jest
patrys.vscode-code-outline
PeterJausovec.vscode-docker
redhat.java
robertohuertasm.vscode-icons
sadesyllas.explorer-excluded-files
shd101wyy.markdown-preview-enhanced
sleistner.vscode-fileutils
tomphilbin.lodash-snippets
vscjava.vscode-java-debug
vscjava.vscode-java-pack
vscjava.vscode-java-test
vscjava.vscode-maven
vscodevim.vim
vsmobile.vscode-react-native
wayou.vscode-todo-highlight
yaruson.ascii-unicode-escape
yzhang.markdown-all-in-one
zhuangtongfa.Material-theme

[mjbvz]

Closing this issue as it has become a catch-all for many unrelated performance problems and we never heard back from @gtb104

If you are still seeing performance issues, please open a new issue so we can investigate your problem individually

[gtb104]

@mjbvz, sorry, I seem to have missed the notification for this issue. I just upgraded to 1.27.2. If I see any issues I'll open a new issue.

[jcrben]

I had this issue a couple days ago. It went away when I uncommented "typescript.validate.enable": true in my global settings, altho I wasn't even working in a typescript project - no tsconfig / jsconfig.

[peterzimon]

I had the same issue: Code Helper using 100+% CPU when large projects are open, even when all extensions were disabled. The problem is completely gone now that I turned _on_ "Use Experimental File Watcher" which excludes node_modules from the watch list... (in files.watcherExclude property)

[krazyjakee]

I think it's safe to presume the latest update has caused this.

[feralventures]

Disabling extensions is not enough. I solved it by uninstalling ms-vscode.csharp en then reinstalling. Plays nice at around 0.4% now.

[antonio-rodrigues]

I think Code Helper is kind of a shared lib that get's instantiated several times, once per each installed extension that requires/uses it (or not, and i can be totally wrong!).
That's why several users reported the problem got solved when they disabled extension X or Y.

In my case: after several hours facing 99% CPU loading and fiddling with a minimum set of extensions, and even enabling/disabling some extensions settings, I found out that the culprit was the Settings Sync extension.

When I set sync.autoUpload=false all other extensions run nicely and Code Helper started to behave and not stressing out CPU anymore.
Reporting this to extension authors.

[mjbvz]

I'm locking this issue because it is not the correct place to report these problems. If you are seeing a bug with high cpu usage, please open a new issue and we will continue to investigate.

High cpu usage usage is a symptom with a very large number of potential root causes, so it usually must be investigated on a case-by-case basis. We will mark your issue as a duplicate if needed