Renaming a codespace

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You can change the codespace display name to one of your choice through GitHub.com or the GitHub CLI.

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About renaming a codespace

When you create a codespace it's assigned an auto-generated display name. If you have multiple codespaces, the display name helps you to differentiate between codespaces. For example: literate space parakeet. You can change the display name for your codespace.

To find the display name of a codespace:

  • On GitHub, view your list of codespaces at https://github.com/codespaces.

    Screenshot of a list of three codespaces on the https://github.com/codespaces page."

  • In the Visual Studio Code desktop application, or the VS Code web client, click the Remote Explorer. The display name is the second item in the list. For example: psychic chainsaw in the screenshot below.

    Screenshot of the "Remote Explorer" in VS Code. The codespace display name, "psychic chainsaw," is highlighted with a dark orange outline.

    Note: If the Remote Explorer is not displayed in the Activity Bar:

    1. Access the Command Palette. For example, by pressing Shift+Command+P (Mac) / Ctrl+Shift+P (Windows/Linux).
    2. Type: details.
    3. Click Codespaces: Details.

  • In a terminal window on your local machine, use this GitHub CLI command: gh codespace list.

Permanent codespace names

In addition to the display name, when you create a codespace, a permanent name is also assigned to the codespace. The name is a combination of your GitHub handle, and the auto-generated display name. For example: octocat-literate-space-parakeet-mld5. You can't change the permanent name.

To find the permanent name of a codespace:

  • On GitHub, the permanent name is shown in a pop-up when you hover over the display name of a codespace on https://github.com/codespaces.

    Screenshot of the mouse pointer positioned over a display name, with the corresponding codespace name shown at the bottom of the browser page.

  • In a codespace, use this command in the terminal: echo $CODESPACE_NAME.

  • In a terminal window on your local machine, use this GitHub CLI command: gh codespace list.

Renaming a codespace

Changing the display name of a codespace can be useful if you have multiple codespaces that you will be using for an extended period. An appropriate name helps you identify a codespace that you use for a particular purpose.

If you have installed GitHub CLI, you can use it to work with GitHub Codespaces. For installation instructions for GitHub CLI, see the GitHub CLI repository.

To change the display name of a codespace, use the gh codespace edit subcommand:

gh codespace edit -c PERMANENT-CODESPACE-NAME -d NEW-DISPLAY-NAME

In this example, replace PERMANENT-CODESPACE-NAME with the permanent name of the codespace whose display name you want to change. Replace NEW-DISPLAY-NAME with the display name you want to use for this codespace.

For more information, see "Using GitHub Codespaces with GitHub CLI."

You can change the display name for your codespace on GitHub.com.

  1. Navigate to the "Your codespaces" page at github.com/codespaces.

    The current display name for each of your codespaces is displayed.

  2. Click the ellipsis (...) to the right of the codespace you want to modify.

  3. Click Rename.

  4. In the prompt, under "Change display name to..." type your desired display name and click OK.