Introduction

If you search for vscode restart typescript server, you are usually trying to recover from stale IntelliSense, wrong diagnostics, broken imports, or a tsserver crash. Restarting the TypeScript server is often the fastest fix, but repeated failures usually mean the workspace TypeScript version, tsconfig setup, or tsserver cache is the real issue.

Symptoms

  • IntelliSense is stale or missing even though the project builds
  • Imports fail to resolve until VS Code is restarted
  • Type errors persist after code changes that should clear them
  • The TypeScript server slows down or crashes in large monorepos

Common Causes

  • tsserver state became stale after big refactors or branch switches
  • VS Code is using a different TypeScript version than the workspace expects
  • tsconfig paths or project references changed without a clean server restart
  • Large workspaces push tsserver into memory pressure or long reindex cycles

Step-by-Step Fix

  1. 1.Restart the TypeScript server explicitly
  2. 2.Open the command palette and run TypeScript: Restart TS Server.
text
Command Palette -> TypeScript: Restart TS Server
Command Palette -> Developer: Reload Window
  1. 1.Check which TypeScript version VS Code is using
  2. 2.Prefer the workspace TypeScript version when the project depends on a specific release.
text
Command Palette -> TypeScript: Select TypeScript Version
  1. 1.Inspect tsserver logs if the issue returns
  2. 2.Enable TypeScript server logging and look for repeated project loading or memory pressure.
json
{
  "typescript.tsserver.log": "verbose"
}
  1. 1.Clear stale workspace state
  2. 2.Reload the window, clear caches, and re-open the folder after major tsconfig or path changes.
bash
rm -rf node_modules/.cache
rm -rf .turbo .next

Prevention

  • Keep the workspace TypeScript version pinned and visible to developers
  • Revisit tsconfig references after large refactors
  • Exclude generated output from search and file watching
  • Watch tsserver memory and log output in large projects