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Contributing to VSCode Extension

Thanks for your interest in contributing to the Claude Context VSCode extension!

📖 First time contributing? Please read the main contributing guide first for general setup and workflow.

VSCode Extension Development

This guide covers development specific to the VSCode extension.

Requirements

  • VSCode Version: 1.74.0 or higher

Quick Commands

# Build VSCode extension
pnpm build:vscode

# Watch mode for development
pnpm dev:vscode

# Package extension
pnpm package

Development Setup

Press F5 to launch Extension Development Host

Making Changes

  1. Create a new branch for your feature/fix
  2. Make changes in the src/ directory
  3. Run in the Extension Development Host
  4. Follow commit guidelines in the main guide

Project Structure

  • src/extension.ts - Main extension entry point
  • src/ - Extension source code
  • resources/ - Icons and assets
  • package.json - Extension manifest and commands
  • webpack.config.js - Build configuration

Development Workflow

  1. Press F5 in VSCode to open Extension Development Host
  2. Try all commands and features
  3. Check the Output panel for errors
  4. Try with different project types

Guidelines

  • Follow VSCode extension best practices
  • Use TypeScript for all code
  • Keep UI responsive and non-blocking
  • Provide user feedback for long operations
  • Handle errors gracefully with user-friendly messages

Extension Features

  • Semantic code search within VSCode
  • Integration with Claude Context core
  • Progress indicators for indexing
  • Search results in sidebar

Working in VSCode

Extension Development Host

  • Press F5 to open a new VSCode window with your extension loaded
  • Try the extension in the new window with real codebases
  • Check the Developer Console (Help > Toggle Developer Tools) for errors

Manual Verification Checklist

  • Index a sample codebase successfully
  • Search returns relevant results
  • UI components display correctly
  • Configuration settings work properly
  • Commands execute without errors

Testing with .vsix Package

For a more robust pre-production test (safer than F5 development mode), you can package and install the extension locally:

# Navigate to extension directory
cd packages/vscode-extension

# Package the extension (remove existing .vsix file if present)
pnpm run package

# Uninstall any existing version
code --uninstall-extension semanticcodesearch-xxx.vsix

# Install the packaged extension
code --install-extension semanticcodesearch-xxx.vsix

After installation, the extension will be available in VSCode just like any marketplace extension. This method:

  • Tests the actual packaged version
  • Simulates real user installation experience
  • Provides better isolation from development environment
  • Recommended for final testing before production release

Publishing

Note: Only maintainers can publish to VS Code Marketplace

Questions?