windsurf-upgrade-migration

Upgrade Windsurf IDE, migrate settings from VS Code or Cursor, and handle breaking changes. Use when upgrading Windsurf versions, migrating from another editor, or handling configuration changes after updates. Trigger with phrases like "upgrade windsurf", "windsurf update", "migrate to windsurf", "windsurf from cursor", "windsurf from vscode".

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Repository: jeremylongshore/tons-of-skills-marketplace
Last source activity: August 19, 2026 at 12:13
Detected SKILL.md language: English
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name	windsurf-upgrade-migration
description	Upgrade Windsurf IDE, migrate settings from VS Code or Cursor, and handle breaking changes. Use when upgrading Windsurf versions, migrating from another editor, or handling configuration changes after updates. Trigger with phrases like "upgrade windsurf", "windsurf update", "migrate to windsurf", "windsurf from cursor", "windsurf from vscode".
allowed-tools	Read, Write, Edit, Bash(npm:), Bash(git:)
version	1.11.0
license	MIT
author	Jeremy Longshore <jeremy@intentsolutions.io>
tags	["saas","windsurf","migration","upgrade","vscode"]
compatibility	Designed for Claude Code

Windsurf Upgrade & Migration

Current State

!windsurf --version 2>/dev/null || echo 'Not installed' !code --version 2>/dev/null | head -1 || echo 'VS Code not installed'

Overview

Guide for upgrading Windsurf to new versions and migrating from VS Code or Cursor. Covers settings transfer, extension compatibility, and Windsurf-specific configuration that doesn't exist in other editors.

Prerequisites

Current editor installation accessible
Git for version controlling config files
Backup of existing settings

Instructions

Step 1: Check Current Windsurf Version

# Current version
windsurf --version

# Check for updates
# Windsurf auto-updates by default
# Manual: Help > Check for Updates (or download from windsurf.com)

Step 2: Migrate from VS Code

Windsurf is VS Code-based and supports most VS Code settings and extensions:

# Windsurf imports VS Code settings on first launch
# For manual migration:

# 1. Export VS Code extensions list
code --list-extensions > vscode-extensions.txt

# 2. Install in Windsurf
cat vscode-extensions.txt | xargs -L1 windsurf --install-extension

# 3. Copy settings
# macOS:
cp ~/Library/Application\ Support/Code/User/settings.json \
   ~/Library/Application\ Support/Windsurf/User/settings.json

# Linux:
cp ~/.config/Code/User/settings.json \
   ~/.config/Windsurf/User/settings.json

Key difference: Remove or disable GitHub Copilot -- it conflicts with Windsurf's Supercomplete.

Step 3: Migrate from Cursor

Cursor and Windsurf both extend VS Code but have different AI config files:

# Mapping Cursor concepts to Windsurf:
cursor_to_windsurf:
  .cursorrules:       .windsurfrules     # AI context rules
  .cursorignore:

#!/bin/bash
set -euo pipefail
echo "Migrating Cursor config to Windsurf..."

# Convert .cursorrules to .windsurfrules
[ -f .cursorrules ] && cp .cursorrules .windsurfrules && echo "Copied .cursorrules → .windsurfrules"

# Convert .cursorignore to .codeiumignore
[ -f .cursorignore ] && cp .cursorignore .codeiumignore && echo "Copied .cursorignore → .codeiumignore"

# Migrate workspace rules
if [ -d .cursor/rules ]; then
  mkdir -p .windsurf/rules
  cp .cursor/rules/*.md .windsurf/rules/ 2>/dev/null
  echo "Copied workspace rules to .windsurf/rules/"
  echo "NOTE: Check frontmatter -- Windsurf uses 'trigger:' field, Cursor uses different format"
fi

echo "Migration complete. Review .windsurfrules for Cursor-specific references."

<!-- New Windsurf features not in VS Code or Cursor -->

1. Cascade Workflows (.windsurf/workflows/*.md)
   - Reusable multi-step automation via slash commands
   - No equivalent in VS Code or Cursor

2. Cascade Memories
   - Persistent facts across sessions
   - Partial equivalent: Cursor notepad

3. Turbo Mode
   - Auto-execute terminal commands
   - Cursor has "auto-run" but different config

4. Browser Previews
   - In-IDE preview with element selection
   - Send UI elements to Cascade for editing

5. Workspace Rules with Trigger Modes
   - glob, always_on, manual, model_decision
   - More granular than Cursor's rule system

set -euo pipefail
echo "=== Windsurf Post-Upgrade Check ==="
echo "Version: $(windsurf --version)"
echo "Extensions: $(windsurf --list-extensions | wc -l) installed"
echo "Rules: $([ -f .windsurfrules ] && wc -c < .windsurfrules || echo 'none') bytes"
echo "Ignore: $([ -f .codeiumignore ] && wc -l < .codeiumignore || echo 'none') patterns"

# Test AI features
echo ""
echo "Manual checks:"
echo "1. Open a code file -- Supercomplete should show ghost text"
echo "2. Press Cmd/Ctrl+L -- Cascade should open and respond"
echo "3. Press Cmd/Ctrl+I -- Command mode should activate"

Issue	Cause	Solution
Extensions not loading	Incompatible with Windsurf	Check Windsurf marketplace for alternative
Settings not applied	Wrong config directory	Verify OS-specific settings path
.cursorrules not working	Wrong filename	Rename to `.windsurfrules`
Keyboard shortcuts different	Windsurf overrides some defaults	Check Keyboard Shortcuts editor
Copilot still active	Not disabled	Extensions > search "copilot" > Disable

# Backup current Windsurf config
tar -czf windsurf-config-backup-$(date +%Y%m%d).tar.gz \
  ~/.config/Windsurf/User/ \
  ~/.codeium/ \
  .windsurfrules \
  .codeiumignore \
  .windsurf/ 2>/dev/null

Visit: https://windsurf.com/changelog
Look for: breaking changes, deprecated settings, new features