EnvGuard: Secure Environment Variable Masking for VS Code

EnvGuard is a professional development tool that automatically masks sensitive environment variables in VS Code, ensuring your secrets remain secure during screen sharing, live coding and pair programming sessions. Trusted by developers worldwide, EnvGuard provides robust protection without modifying your files.

EnvGuard is a professional-grade VS Code extension designed to protect sensitive environment variables during live streaming, screen sharing, or pair programming sessions. It automatically detects and masks sensitive values in .env files without affecting the actual file content.

Website: envguard

Suggest a feature: Submit feedback or ideas →

Key Features

Automatic Protection

Auto-detection: Instantly recognizes .env, .env.local, .env.production and other environment files
Smart masking: Only the values are hidden—keys remain visible for easy identification
Real-time updates: Masking applies as you type with zero performance impact

Customizable Masking Styles

Dots (••••••••): Clean and professional
Asterisks (********): Classic masking style
Blur effect: Semi-transparent overlay for modern aesthetics

Selective Protection

Pattern-based: Mask only values matching patterns like SECRET, KEY, TOKEN, PASSWORD
Whitelist support: Exclude harmless variables like PORT, DEBUG, NODE_ENV
Regex patterns: Advanced users can define custom regex patterns
Mask everything: Option to hide all values regardless of patterns

Easy Controls

Command Palette: EnvGuard: Toggle Masking (F1 → search "EnvGuard")
Keyboard shortcut: Ctrl+Shift+M (customizable)
Status bar: Quick toggle button appears when editing .env files
Sidebar panel: Dedicated EnvGuard sidebar for full control

Streaming Mode

One-click activation: Instantly mask ALL environment values across all open files
Extra protection: Disables hover reveals and clipboard access
Visual indicator: Status bar shows streaming mode is active
Perfect for: Live coding, tutorials and screen recordings

Advanced Security

Clipboard protection: Prevents copying masked values to clipboard
Auto-lock timer: Automatically re-enable masking after period of inactivity
Hover reveal: Temporarily show values on hover (configurable duration)
No file modification: Masking is purely visual—your files remain unchanged

Installation

Prerequisites

Visual Studio Code 1.74.0 or higher
Node.js 16.0.0 or higher (for development)

Installation Methods

Via VS Code Marketplace

Open VS Code
Go to Extensions (Ctrl+Shift+X)
Search for "judeotine.envguard"
Click Install

Via Command Line

code --install-extension judeotine.envguard

Manual Installation

Download the .vsix file from Releases
Run code --install-extension envguard-1.0.0.vsix

Quick Start

Install EnvGuard from the VS Code Marketplace
Open any .env file in VS Code
View sensitive values automatically masked
Toggle masking with Ctrl+Shift+M (Windows/Linux) or Cmd+Shift+M (Mac)

Configuration

Recommended Settings

Add these settings to your VS Code settings (File > Preferences > Settings > Extensions > EnvGuard) for optimal security:

{
  "envguard.enabled": true,
  "envguard.maskStyle": "dots",
  "envguard.patterns": [
    "SECRET",
    "KEY",
    "TOKEN",
    "PASSWORD",
    "API_KEY",
    "AUTH_TOKEN",
    "CREDENTIALS",
    "PRIVATE_KEY"
  ],
  "envguard.whitelist": [
    "PORT",
    "DEBUG",
    "NODE_ENV",
    "ENVIRONMENT",
    "APP_NAME",
    "LOG_LEVEL"
  ],
  "envguard.maskAllValues": false,
  "envguard.autoMaskOnOpen": true,
  "envguard.clipboardProtection": true,
  "envguard.hoverRevealDuration": 3,
  "envguard.autoLockTimer": 300,
  "envguard.supportedFileExtensions": [
    ".env",
    ".env.local",
    ".env.development",
    ".env.production",
    ".env.staging",
    ".env.test",
    ".env.example"
  ]
}

Advanced Configuration

Customize EnvGuard behavior through VS Code settings. Access via File > Preferences > Settings and search for "EnvGuard":

{
  "envguard.enabled": true,
  "envguard.maskStyle": "dots",
  "envguard.patterns": ["SECRET", "KEY", "TOKEN", "PASSWORD", "API_KEY"],
  "envguard.whitelist": ["PORT", "DEBUG", "NODE_ENV", "ENVIRONMENT"],
  "envguard.maskAllValues": false,
  "envguard.autoMaskOnOpen": true,
  "envguard.clipboardProtection": true,
  "envguard.hoverRevealDuration": 3,
  "envguard.autoLockTimer": 5,
  "envguard.supportedFileExtensions": [
    ".env",
    ".env.local",
    ".env.development",
    ".env.production",
    ".env.staging",
    ".env.test"
  ]
}

Per-Project Configuration

Create a .vscode/settings.json file in your project:

{
  "envguard.patterns": ["CUSTOM_SECRET", "PROJECT_KEY"],
  "envguard.maskStyle": "blur",
  "envguard.streamingMode": false
}

Commands

Command	Shortcut	Description
`EnvGuard: Toggle Masking`	`Ctrl+Shift+M`/`Cmd+Shift+M`	Toggle masking for current session
`EnvGuard: Toggle Streaming Mode`	`Ctrl+Alt+S`/`Cmd+Alt+S`	Toggle maximum protection for streaming
`EnvGuard: Refresh Patterns`	-	Reload masking patterns
`EnvGuard: Open Settings`	-	Open EnvGuard settings

Screenshots

Main Interface

Masking Styles

Sidebar Panel

Streaming Mode

Settings Configuration

Getting Help

Documentation

For detailed documentation, including API reference and advanced usage, please visit our official documentation.

Support

Community Support: GitHub Discussions
Bug Reports: GitHub Issues
Security Issues: Please email [email protected] (PGP: public key)

Enterprise Support

For enterprise support, custom integrations, or volume licensing, please contact [email protected].

Use Cases

Live streaming: Keep API keys hidden during coding streams
Screen sharing: Safe to share screen during meetings
Pair programming: Protect secrets when working with others
Code reviews: Screenshot code without exposing credentials
Tutorials: Create educational content without security risks
Enterprise: Maintain security standards in collaborative environments

Advanced Configuration

Pattern Matching

EnvGuard supports multiple pattern types:

{
  "envguard.patterns": [
    "SECRET",           // Simple substring matching
    "API_*",           // Wildcard patterns
    "/^PRIVATE_/",     // Regex patterns 
    "TOKEN"
  ]
}

Supported File Types

By default, EnvGuard works with:

.env
.env.local
.env.development
.env.production
.env.staging
.env.test

Customize the list in settings to match your project structure.

Development

Prerequisites

Node.js 18+ (LTS)
VS Code 1.80.0+
pnpm 8.x

Setup

Clone the repository
Install dependencies: pnpm install
Build the extension: pnpm run compile
Press F5 to launch the extension in development mode

Scripts

pnpm run compile: Compile TypeScript
pnpm run watch: Watch for changes
pnpm run test: Run tests
pnpm run package: Create VSIX package

Roadmap

Contributing

We welcome contributions! Please see our Contributing Guide for details.

Quick Start for Contributors

Fork the repository
Create a feature branch: git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature
Make your changes and add tests
Commit your changes: git commit -m 'Add amazing feature'
Push to the branch: git push origin feature/amazing-feature
Open a Pull Request

Development Guidelines

Follow TypeScript best practices
Add tests for new features
Update documentation
Ensure backward compatibility

Issues & Support

Bug Reports: GitHub Issues
Feature Requests: canny
Documentation: Wiki

License

EnvGuard is licensed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for the full license text.

Security

Security is our top priority. If you discover any security issues, please review our Security Policy for reporting vulnerabilities.

Trademarks

VS Code is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation. EnvGuard is not affiliated with or endorsed by Microsoft Corporation.

Acknowledgments

VS Code Extension API team for excellent documentation
The open-source community for inspiration and feedback
Beta testers who helped refine the user experience

Author

jude otine

GitHub: @judeotine
Website: judeotine

Star this repo if EnvGuard helps keep your secrets safe!

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Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 39 Commits
assets/logo		assets/logo
scripts		scripts
src		src
.gitignore		.gitignore
.vscodeignore		.vscodeignore
CHANGELOG.md		CHANGELOG.md
CONTRIBUTING.md		CONTRIBUTING.md
LICENSE		LICENSE
README.md		README.md
SECURITY.md		SECURITY.md
index.js		index.js
package-lock.json		package-lock.json
package.json		package.json
tsconfig.json		tsconfig.json

License

judeotine/EnvGuard

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EnvGuard: Secure Environment Variable Masking for VS Code

Key Features

Automatic Protection

Customizable Masking Styles

Selective Protection

Easy Controls

Streaming Mode

Advanced Security

Installation

Prerequisites

Installation Methods

Via VS Code Marketplace

Via Command Line

Manual Installation

Quick Start

Configuration

Recommended Settings

Advanced Configuration

Per-Project Configuration

Commands

Screenshots

Main Interface

Masking Styles

Sidebar Panel

Streaming Mode

Settings Configuration

Getting Help

Documentation

Support

Enterprise Support

Use Cases

Advanced Configuration

Pattern Matching

Supported File Types

Development

Prerequisites

Setup

Scripts

Roadmap

Contributing

Quick Start for Contributors

Development Guidelines

Issues & Support

License

Security

Trademarks

Acknowledgments

Author

About

Resources

License

Contributing

Security policy

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