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HTTP client

Open a .http or .rest file and click the green ▶ next to a request to send it. It uses the JDK’s built-in HTTP client, so there’s no external tool to install. The HTTP client is on by default; its switch is the HTTP Client section of Settings → Languages & Tools → Web (or view.toggleHttpClient).

Writing requests

Separate requests with a ### line. A request is a method and URL followed by headers and an optional body:

### Get a user
GET https://api.example.com/users/42
Accept: application/json

### Create one
POST https://api.example.com/users
Content-Type: application/json

{ "name": "Ada" }

Variables and environments

Substitute {{var}} and file-local @var = value declarations, plus dynamic variables: {{$random.*}}, {{$datetime}} (with date math), {{$dotenv.X}}, and more. Define named environments in http-client.env.json alongside the file (with a $shared section for common values) and pick one from the environment dropdown in the response preview (http.selectEnvironment takes you to it); the choice is remembered per workspace.

Chaining, bodies, and auth

The client is close to IntelliJ’s HTTP Client:

Request chaining references an earlier request’s response, so a login can feed a token into the next call.
Multipart and external-file bodies are supported, with automatic URL encoding. Body files and >> response targets stay inside the request’s folder; a symlink that leads out of it is refused.
Basic / Digest auth shorthand, per-request directives, and response-to-file redirects.

Running and the response

Action	Command	Default key
Run the request at the caret	`http.runRequest`	(gutter ▶)
Run every request in the file	`http.runFile`	(palette)
Cancel the running request	`http.cancelRequest`	(Cancel button)
Select environment	`http.selectEnvironment`	(palette)

The response appears as the .http file’s own preview, in the same Editor / Split / Preview view every other rich file type uses, so the response sits beside the request that produced it. Running a request from the gutter ▶ opens the split automatically, and the view mode is remembered per file. Switch views with view.togglePreview and view.toggleSplitPreview, or the floating 3-mode toggle at the top right.

The response shows the status line, headers, timing, size, and a content-type-highlighted, pretty-printed body. You can Copy as cURL, Import cURL from the clipboard (http.importCurl), open a response in its own editor tab (http.openResponseInTab), and save the response to a file.