"Editable install" during extension development?

[bhrutledge]

Hi there! I'm completely new to VS Code extension development, so apologies in advance if this isn't the appropriate place for this question.

While working on #17898, I wanted to install the extension in a way that's similar to the "editable installs" provided via pip and setuptools. I.E., I'd like VS Code to always use the latest changes in my local clone, regardless of the folder/workspace that I have open.

The only relevant documentation I found was:

https://github.com/microsoft/vscode-python/wiki/Coding#building
https://github.com/microsoft/vscode-python/wiki/Releasing#local-build

That eventually led me to npm run package:

vscode-python/.github/actions/build-vsix/action.yml

Lines 77 to 79 in 9a1f6ee

	- name: Build VSIX
	run: npm run package
	shell: bash

vscode-python/package.json

Line 1880 in 9a1f6ee

"package": "gulp clean && gulp prePublishBundle && vsce package -o ms-python-insiders.vsix",

after which I manually installed the .vsix. But this feels cumbersome when making incremental changes.

[brettcannon]

What you want to do is press F5 to launch a new Extension Development Host window which will have the code directly loaded into the editor. VS Code is smart enough to realize you're developing an extension and takes care of loading from your workspace for you.

https://code.visualstudio.com/api/get-started/your-first-extension

[bhrutledge]

Thanks! I think I got it working; I was able to make a change in the vscode-python window, then reload the Extension Development Host window, and see the change in behavior. I was hoping for something a little lighter-weight, but this is definitely an improvement.

One note: it seems this doesn't work well with setting "window.openFoldersInNewWindow": "on", because if I open a different folder from the Extension Development Host window, it opens in a normal window.

[ariana02880]

Hi @brettcannon, do you know how to manually generate the vsix package? This is my question details: #19587 Do we have any runbook or readme for building a vsix?

[brettcannon]

@ariana02880 yep, we keep a wiki page outlining how to do a build from a checkout https://github.com/microsoft/vscode-python/wiki/Coding#building