MSDN Documentation

Visual Studio Code on Windows

This section provides comprehensive documentation, tutorials, and best practices for using Visual Studio Code (VS Code) effectively within the Windows development ecosystem. VS Code is a free, powerful, and versatile source-code editor that runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux. It comes with built-in JavaScript, TypeScript, and Node.js support and has a rich ecosystem of extensions for other languages (such as C++, C#, Java, Python, PHP, and Go) and runtimes (such as .NET and Unity).

Getting Started with VS Code on Windows

Learn how to download, install, and configure VS Code for Windows. We cover essential setup steps, including adding VS Code to your PATH environment variable for easy command-line access.

Key Features and Workflows

• IntelliSense: Smart code completion, parameter info, quick info, and member lists.
• Debugging: Integrated debugger that supports breakpoints, call stacks, and an interactive console.
• Version Control: Built-in Git support for managing your code repositories.
• Extensions: Discover and install extensions from the VS Code Marketplace to enhance functionality for specific languages and tasks.
• Terminal Integration: Access your command line directly within VS Code.

Developing for Windows with VS Code

Explore how VS Code can be leveraged for various Windows development scenarios:

• .NET Development: Configure VS Code for C#, .NET Core, and .NET Framework development with powerful extensions.
• Windows App Development (UWP): While Visual Studio is the primary IDE, VS Code can assist with certain aspects of UWP development, especially for web-based components.
• PowerShell Scripting: Utilize VS Code's excellent PowerShell extension for writing, debugging, and running scripts.
• C++ Development: Set up VS Code for C++ projects, including integration with MinGW or MSVC compilers.

Code Examples and Snippets

Here's a simple example of a launch configuration for debugging a Node.js application in VS Code on Windows:

{
    "version": "0.2.0",
    "configurations": [
        {
            "type": "node",
            "request": "launch",
            "name": "Launch Program",
            "program": "${workspaceFolder}/app.js",
            "console": "integratedTerminal",
            "windows": {
                "program": "${workspaceFolder}/app.js"
            }
        }
    ]
}
            

Troubleshooting and Support

Find solutions to common issues and access resources for further help. The VS Code community and official documentation are excellent places to start.