BasicDeploy for VS Code

Deploy and manage the persistent runtime your agent ships to (a database, object storage, a Kafka broker, and a public URL) without leaving your editor.

A first-class VS Code extension for BasicDeploy. Ship the current workspace in one click, browse your containers, Postgres tables, object storage and Kafka topics, stream logs, open a public URL, and SSH straight into your box. It also exposes native GitHub Copilot tools and an @basicdeploy chat participant, so the agent can build, deploy and debug on BasicDeploy for you, right inside the Chat view. Every container comes with a PostgreSQL database, S3-compatible object storage, a Kafka broker, environment variables, and a public HTTPS URL, all provisioned automatically.

Site: https://basicdeploy.com
Marketplace: https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=akacianl.basicdeploy
Docs: https://basicdeploy.com/docs
MCP server (any agent): https://github.com/AkaciaNL/basicdeploy-mcp

Quick start

Install BasicDeploy from the Marketplace (or Open VSX).
Run BasicDeploy: Sign In from the Command Palette, or open the BasicDeploy view in the activity bar and click sign in.
Paste an API key from https://basicdeploy.com/api-keys (it looks like bd_..., shown once). It is stored in VS Code SecretStorage, never in a file.
Open a project folder and run BasicDeploy: Deploy Current Workspace. The extension packs the folder, ships it, and hands you the public URL.

Features

Sign in with a BasicDeploy API key. A native VS Code account entry, backed by SecretStorage.
One-click deploy. Package the open folder (skipping node_modules, .git, and build output) and deploy it to a new container, or into an existing one.
Containers view. Every container with its status and public URL: create, wake, sleep, delete, open the URL, view logs, deploy into, or SSH in.
Database view. Browse your Postgres tables and page through rows in an in-editor viewer. Copy full connection info in one click.
Storage view. Browse your object-storage bucket and open any object (text, image, or PDF) right in the editor.
Kafka view. See your topics with partitions and usage; create, purge, or delete them.
Domains view. List, add, and remove custom domains per container.
Support view. Create a support ticket (with image attachments), read the thread as a document, reply, open attachments, and close or reopen, all in native editor tabs (no webviews).
Live log streaming. Tail a container's logs in an Output channel that refreshes every couple of seconds.
Remote SSH. Open a container in a Remote-SSH window (or its /workspace folder) for full cloud development.

GitHub Copilot integration

The extension registers native Language Model Tools, so Copilot agent mode (and any model host in VS Code) can operate BasicDeploy directly:

Tool	Arguments	Description
`basicdeploy_list_containers`	(none)	List your containers with status and public URL.
`basicdeploy_deploy_workspace`	`subdomain?`	Package the current workspace and deploy it. Omit `subdomain` to create a new container; pass one to deploy into an existing container. Returns the public URL.
`basicdeploy_logs`	`subdomain`, `tail?`	Read a container's recent logs to diagnose a failing app.

It also contributes an @basicdeploy chat participant. In the Chat view, type @basicdeploy then:

Command	Description
`/deploy [subdomain]`	Deploy the current workspace (to a new container, or the named one).
`/logs <subdomain>`	Show a container's recent logs.
`/new`	Create a new container.
`/list`	List your containers.

Views

View	What it does
Containers	Create, deploy into, wake, sleep, delete, open URL, view/stream logs, SSH.
Database	List Postgres tables; open a table in the paged row browser; copy connection info.
Storage	List bucket objects; open an object in the editor.
Kafka	List topics with usage; create, purge, delete.
Domains	List, add, and remove custom domains.
Support	Create a ticket (with attachments), read/reply to the thread, open attachments, close or reopen.

Remote SSH

BasicDeploy: Open Remote SSH (on any container) writes a per-container key and a managed ~/.ssh/basicdeploy_config Host entry, then hands off to the Remote-SSH extension. Your own ~/.ssh/config is never overwritten: one Include line is added, and everything BasicDeploy owns lives in the managed file (cleaned up when you delete the container). Connections reach the bastion at ssh.basicdeploy.com:2222 with your container's subdomain as the username, landing you in /workspace.

Runtime

Deployed apps must listen on 0.0.0.0:8080, the port the public URL serves. DATABASE_URL, S3_ENDPOINT / S3_ACCESS_KEY / S3_SECRET_KEY / S3_BUCKET, and KAFKA_BOOTSTRAP / KAFKA_USERNAME / KAFKA_PASSWORD / KAFKA_GROUP_PREFIX are preset in the container environment.

Configuration

basicdeploy.apiUrl (default https://basicdeploy.com/api): base URL of the REST API. Point it at a self-hosted instance if needed.

Example prompts

Ask Copilot (with the BasicDeploy tools enabled) or @basicdeploy:

"Deploy this workspace and give me the URL."
"Deploy the current folder into my blue-fox container."
"Show the last 100 log lines of blue-fox."
"List my containers and which ones are asleep."

Building and testing from source

npm install
npm run compile

Run it (F5). Open this folder in VS Code and press F5 (Run Extension). That compiles and launches a second VS Code window, the Extension Development Host, with the extension loaded. Sign in with an API key and try the views, deploy, and chat. npm run watch keeps recompiling while you iterate; use the Reload command in the dev host to pick up changes.

Package a VSIX and install it. To test the packaged build the way a user would install it:

npm install -g @vscode/vsce
vsce package                       # produces basicdeploy-<version>.vsix
code --install-extension basicdeploy-*.vsix

Point at another backend. Set basicdeploy.apiUrl in Settings to test against staging or a local instance instead of https://basicdeploy.com/api.

Roadmap

Message browsing for Kafka topics.
Editing (not just read-only viewing) of rows and objects.
Marketplace and Open VSX listings, plus the MCP server in the GitHub MCP Registry.

License

MIT. BasicDeploy is a product of Akacia (KVK 99629569, Netherlands).

BasicDeploy

AkaciaNL