[BUG] v2.1.140 VS Code extension on Windows: project skills missing from slash-command autocomplete (#9710 / #32331 cluster unfixed)

[hanowell]

Preflight Checklist

• I have searched existing issues and this hasn't been reported yet
• This is a single bug report (please file separate reports for different bugs)
• I am using the latest version of Claude Code

What's Wrong?

Summary

Project-level skills defined in <workspace>/.claude/skills/<name>/SKILL.md are not surfaced in the slash-command autocomplete picker in the VS Code extension. The skill is registered (appears in the agent's available-skills system reminder; invokable programmatically via the Skill tool) but the picker does not expose it, and submitting the typed slug does not forward a slash-command invocation. Same failure mode as #9710 and #32331, both closed-as-duplicate without a shipped fix; reproducible on today's 2.1.140 release with a freshly cleared plugin cache.

Environment

• Claude Code version: 2.1.140 (verified via claude --version immediately before filing)
• Interface: VS Code extension (native)
• OS: Windows 11, build 10.0.26200
• VS Code window reloaded after install
• ~/.claude/plugins/cache/ cleared via rm -rf before testing
• No user-global ~/.claude/skills/ directory (no name-collision possible)
• Project skill count: 5 (well below the [BUG] Built-in slash commands hidden from autocomplete when too many skills are installed #22020 dropdown-cap threshold)
• SKILL.md frontmatter valid: name field matches directory, user-invokable: true

Steps to reproduce

1. In any VS Code workspace, create .claude/skills/hello/SKILL.md with:

   ---
   name: hello
   description: A minimal test skill.
   user-invokable: true
   ---
   
   # Hello
   
   Respond with: "hello world".

2. Open the workspace in VS Code with the Claude Code extension installed.

3. In the Claude Code chat input, type /hello.

4. Observe the picker.

5. Press Enter to submit.

Expected behavior

• The picker surfaces /hello as a match when /h or /hello is typed.
• Pressing Enter (or Tab to complete, then Enter) invokes the skill and the model responds "hello world".

Actual behavior

• The picker does not surface /hello.
• Pressing Enter does not forward a slash-command invocation; the model's transcript contains no user message with /hello at the submission point.

Parallel symptom on a documented built-in command:

> /bug
/bug isn't available in this environment.

While /bug was being typed, the picker substring-matched /debug and /claude-api and highlighted /debug by default — meaning a default-Enter would have submitted /debug instead of the literal typed text.

Programmatic invocation works

The model successfully invokes the skill via the Skill tool with skill: "hello" once the user asks for it in plain prose, confirming the skill is registered on the back end but unreachable from the front-end picker. Matches the diagnosis in #32331: "Slash commands work programmatically (via claude -p or agent invocation) but are not discoverable in the UI."

Workaround

User asks the model in plain prose to invoke the skill; the model dispatches the Skill tool from its side. Unacceptable as a steady state for a documented core feature on a paid plan.

Recent releases that did not fix this

• 2.1.132 (May 6): dropdown height cap only
• 2.1.136 (May 8): mid-input slash autocomplete and picker jitter only
• 2.1.137 (May 9): Windows extension activation (unrelated)
• 2.1.138 (May 9): "internal fixes" (opaque)
• 2.1.139 (May 11): added /goal and /scroll-speed; no picker discovery fix
• 2.1.140 (May 12, today): no relevant changes

Related issues

• [Bug] Skill autocomplete not displaying user skills when typing slash command #9710 — Skill autocomplete not displaying user skills when typing slash command (closed-as-duplicate, no shipped fix)
• [BUG] Slash commands (skills) not appearing in editor autocomplete #32331 — Slash commands (skills) not appearing in editor autocomplete (closed-as-duplicate, no shipped fix)
• [BUG] Built-in slash commands hidden from autocomplete when too many skills are installed #22020 — Built-in commands hidden from autocomplete (closed; only dropdown-height half patched)
• Plugin skills not appearing in slash command autocomplete #21125 — Plugin skills not appearing in slash command autocomplete

Asks

1. Confirm the discovery half of the [Bug] Skill autocomplete not displaying user skills when typing slash command #9710 / [BUG] Slash commands (skills) not appearing in editor autocomplete #32331 cluster is tracked as an open, prioritized issue rather than closed-as-duplicate again.
2. Ship a fix that surfaces project-local .claude/skills/ entries in the VS Code extension picker on 2.1.140+.
3. Change the picker's default-highlight behavior so ambiguous substring matches do not get auto-selected over the user's literal typed text — Enter on a typed string without an exact match should submit the literal, not the highlighted unrelated entry.
4. Document the plain-prose-to-Skill-tool workaround in the troubleshooting docs while the fix is in flight.

What Should Happen?

Expected behavior

• The picker surfaces /hello as a match when /h or /hello is typed.
• Pressing Enter (or Tab to complete, then Enter) invokes the skill and the model responds "hello world".

Actual behavior

• The picker does not surface /hello.
• Pressing Enter does not forward a slash-command invocation; the model's transcript contains no user message with /hello at the submission point.

Error Messages/Logs

Steps to Reproduce

Steps to reproduce

1. In any VS Code workspace, create .claude/skills/hello/SKILL.md with:

   ---
   name: hello
   description: A minimal test skill.
   user-invokable: true
   ---
   
   # Hello
   
   Respond with: "hello world".

2. Open the workspace in VS Code with the Claude Code extension installed.

3. In the Claude Code chat input, type /hello.

4. Observe the picker.

5. Press Enter to submit.

Claude Model

None

Is this a regression?

Yes, this worked in a previous version

Last Working Version

No response

Claude Code Version

2.1.140 (Claude Code)

Platform

Other

Operating System

Windows

Terminal/Shell

VS Code integrated terminal

Additional Information

No response

[github-actions]

Closing for now — inactive for too long. Please open a new issue if this is still relevant.

[payals]

Still reproducible on v2.1.200 (CLI, macOS / Darwin 25.3.0) — adding a data point since this is closed as not_planned but remains broken.

Setup:

• Personal skills at ~/.claude/skills/<name>/SKILL.md (~40 skills, all with valid name + description frontmatter)
• No settings.json flags affecting skills; default permission mode

Behavior:

• Typing / (or / + partial skill name) does not list any personal skills in the autocomplete menu
• The skills are otherwise fully registered: they appear in the model's available-skills list, are invocable via the Skill tool, and typing the full /skill-name args executes them correctly (including the stacked /skill-a /skill-b form added in 2.1.199)

So registration and invocation work; only the slash-menu discovery/autocomplete layer fails to surface them. This makes skills effectively undiscoverable from the UI — you have to already know the exact name.

Would appreciate this being reopened or tracked in a fresh issue if this one stays closed — happy to provide more diagnostics (claude doctor output, directory listing) if useful.