aisuko/rufus repository overview

⁠VS Code Remote Development / Codespaces Container Definitions

A development container is a running Docker⁠ container with a well-defined tool/runtime stack and its prerequisites. The VS Code Remote - Containers⁠ extension allows you to clone a repository or open any folder mounted into (or already inside) a dev container and take advantage of VS Code's full development feature set. Visual Studio Codespaces⁠ and Codespaces in GitHub⁠ both use this same concept to quickly create customized, cloud-based development environments accessible from VS Code⁠ or the web.

This repository contains a set of dev container definitions to help get you up and running with a containerized environment. The definitions describe the appropriate container image, runtime arguments for starting the container, and VS Code extensions that should be installed. Each provides a container configuration file (devcontainer.json) and other needed files that you can drop into any existing folder as a starting point for containerizing your project.

The vscode-remote-try-*⁠ repositories may also be of interest if you are looking for complete sample projects.

⁠Adding a definition to a local project

To add a dev container definition in your project, you can either:

Manually add it to your project folder:

1. Clone this repository.
2. Copy the contents of the .devcontainer folder from of one of the definitions in the containers folder⁠ to your project folder.
3. See the definition's README for configuration details and options.
4. Open the folder locally with the Remote - Containers extension⁠ or commit the file to source control to use it with Codespaces⁠.

... or ...

Add it using VS Code Remote - Containers:

1. Set up your machine⁠ and then start VS Code and open your project folder.
2. Press F1, select the Remote-Containers: Add Development Container Configuration Files... command, and pick one of definitions from the list. (You may need to choose the From a predefined container configuration definition... option if your project has an existing Dockerfile or Docker Compose file.)
3. See the definition's README for configuration options. A link is available in the .devcontainer/devcontainer.json file added to your folder.
4. Run Remote-Containers: Reopen in Container to use it locally, or commit the file to source control to use it with Codespaces⁠.

⁠Adding a definition to a repository

You can share a customized dev container definition for your project by adding the files under .devcontainer to source control.

Anyone who then opens a local copy of your repo in VS Code will be prompted to reopen the folder in a container, provided they have the Remote - Containers⁠ extension installed.

Additionally, if you reference your Git repository when creating a Codespace in Visual Studio Codespaces⁠ or Codespaces in GitHub⁠, the container definition will be used.

Your team now has a consistent environment and tool-chain and new contributors or team members can be productive quickly. First-time contributors will require less guidance and there will be fewer issues related to environment setup.

⁠Sample projects

If you want to try a sample project which already has a dev container, check out one of the following repositories:

• Node Sample⁠
• Python Sample⁠
• Go Sample⁠
• Java Sample⁠
• .NET Core Sample⁠
• Rust Sample⁠
• C++ Sample⁠
• PHP Sample⁠

⁠Contents

• containers - Contains reusable dev container definitions.
• container-templates - Contains templates for creating your own container definitions or to contribute back⁠.
• repository-containers - Dev container definitions for working public source code repositories.

⁠Common Questions

⁠Can I just reuse an existing container image or Docker / Docker Compose configuration?

Yes, if you want to use an existing Dockerfile as a starting point, use the Remote - Containers extension⁠, open a folder, and then run Remote-Containers: Add Development Container Configuration Files... from the Command Palette (F1). You'll be prompted to select a Dockerfile or Docker Compose file and customize from there. If you then commit these files to a Git repository, you can use it with VS Codespaces⁠ or Codespaces in GitHub⁠ as well. If you prefer, you can also start up the container manually and attach to it⁠.

⁠What is the goal of devcontainer.json?

A devcontainer.json file is similar to launch.json for debugging, but designed to launch (or attach to) a development container instead. At its simplest, all you need is a .devcontainer/devcontainer.json file in your project that references an image, Dockerfile, or docker-compose.yml, and a few properties. You can adapt it for use⁠ in a wide variety of situations.

⁠Why do Dockerfiles in this repo use RUN statements with commands separated by &&?

Each RUN statement creates a Docker image "layer". If one RUN statement adds temporary contents, these contents remain in this layer in the image even if they are deleted in a subsequent RUN. This means the image takes more storage locally and results in slower image download times if you publish the image to a registry. You can resolve this problem by using a RUN statement that includes any clean up steps (separated by &&) after a given operation. See CONTRIBUTING.md⁠ for more tips.

⁠Contributing and feedback

Have a question or feedback?

• Contribute or provide feedback for the VS Code Remote Development extensions⁠.
• Search existing issues⁠ with dev container definitions or report a problem⁠.
• Contribute a development container definition⁠ to the repository.

This project has adopted the Microsoft Open Source Code of Conduct⁠. For more information see the Code of Conduct FAQ⁠ or contact [email protected]⁠ with any additional questions or comments.

⁠License

Copyright (c) Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
Licensed under the MIT License. See LICENSE⁠.