SVG files render as images in the Code tab instead of showing XML source

[kjanat]

🏷️ Discussion Type

Bug

Body

Description:

When opening an SVG file on GitHub and selecting the "Code" tab, GitHub still renders the SVG as an image preview instead of showing the raw XML/source syntax.

Expected behavior:

The "Code" tab should show the SVG file as source code/XML text, with syntax highlighting or at least plain text.

Actual behavior:

The "Code" tab displays the SVG visually as an image, making it impossible or unnecessarily difficult to inspect the SVG XML from that view.

Steps to reproduce:

1. Open a repository containing an .svg file.
2. Click the SVG file.
3. Click the "Code" tab.
4. Observe that the SVG is still rendered as an image rather than XML/source code.

Impact:

This breaks the expected distinction between preview/rendered view and source/code view. For SVG specifically this is annoying because SVG is both an image format and XML source code, and the Code tab should let users inspect the underlying markup.

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[sahare-mayur-0071]

This does sound inconsistent with what many users would expect from a "Code" view.

Since SVG files are both image assets and XML documents, it may be helpful to clarify whether GitHub is intentionally treating SVGs differently from other text-based formats or whether this is an unintended regression.

A few questions that could help narrow it down:

• Does this happen for all SVG files or only specific ones?
• Does selecting the Raw button display the XML source correctly?
• Is the behavior the same on different browsers and devices?
• Does the file contain standard SVG/XML markup, or was it generated by a tool that adds unusual content?

As a temporary workaround, users who need to inspect the markup may be able to use Raw, download the file, or append the raw file URL directly.

If this is reproducible across repositories and browsers, it seems reasonable to expect the Code tab to provide access to the underlying XML source rather than only the rendered image preview.