Tomcat for VSCode

Advanced Apache Tomcat management. Full server control, smart deployment, browser integration and debugging support.

Features

Real-Time HTTP Request Monitoring
Monitor Tomcat access logs dynamically with built-in syntax highlighting for HTTP traffic analysis
Customizable Deployment Strategies
Three build strategies with memory-optimized fast deployment (4× faster than Maven)
On-Save Deployment
Automatically deploy your project every time you save a file — no manual steps needed.
Built-in Debugging
Java-specific syntax coloring in output channel with organized error messages
Smart Resource Management
Automatic process cleanup and EBUSY error recovery during deployments
Cross-Browser Automation
Automate browser testing across multiple browsers seamlessly.

Installation

Open VS Code
Launch Extensions View (Ctrl+Shift+X)
Search for Al-rimi.tomcat
Click Install

Command line:

code --install-extension Al-rimi.tomcat

Usage

ℹ️ The Editor Button and Status Bar are only visible when the current project is detected as a Java EE project, following VScode Editor Actions and Status Bar Guidelines.

When is a project considered a Java EE project? click to expand

public static isJavaEEProject(): boolean {
    const workspaceFolders = vscode.workspace.workspaceFolders;

    // Check 0: Workspace must be open
    if (!workspaceFolders) {
        return false;
    }

    const rootPath = workspaceFolders[0].uri.fsPath;
    const webInfPath = path.join(rootPath, 'src', 'main', 'webapp', 'WEB-INF');

    // Check 1: Look for WEB-INF directory in the standard structure
    if (fs.existsSync(webInfPath)) {
        return true;
    }

    // Check 2: Check for presence of deployment descriptor (web.xml)
    if (fs.existsSync(path.join(webInfPath, 'web.xml'))) {
        return true;
    }

    const pomPath = path.join(rootPath, 'pom.xml');

    // Check 3: Look for WAR packaging in Maven project
    if (
        fs.existsSync(pomPath) &&
        fs.readFileSync(pomPath, 'utf-8').includes('<packaging>war</packaging>')
    ) {
        return true;
    }

    const gradlePath = path.join(rootPath, 'build.gradle');

    // Check 4: Look for Java EE-related keywords in Gradle config
    if (
        fs.existsSync(gradlePath) &&
        fs.readFileSync(gradlePath, 'utf-8').match(/(tomcat|jakarta|javax\.ee)/i)
    ) {
        return true;
    }

    const targetPath = path.join(rootPath, 'target');

    // Check 5: Look for compiled artifacts (.war or .ear) in target folder
    if (
        fs.existsSync(targetPath) &&
        fs.readdirSync(targetPath).some(file => file.endsWith('.war') || file.endsWith('.ear'))
    ) {
        return true;
    }

    // If none match, project is not considered a Java EE project
    return false;
}

Method location, If you notice any false positives/negatives or have better ideas for detection logic, you are more than welcome to contribute:

Editor Button

Click the Tomcat icon in the editor title bar to deploy your project.

Status Bar

Click the Tomcat status in the bottom bar to toggle auto-deploy modes.

Command Palette

Use the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P) to quickly access core commands:

Command	Description
`Tomcat: Start`	Launch the Tomcat server
`Tomcat: Stop`	Stop the running server
`Tomcat: Clean`	Clean Tomcat `webapps`, `temp`, and `work` folders
`Tomcat: Deploy`	Deploy the current Java EE project
`Tomcat: Help`	Show the help documentation

Configuration

Access via Ctrl+, → Search "Tomcat"

Setting	Default	Description
`tomcat.autoDeployBuildType`	`Fast`	Default build strategy for deployments (`Fast`, `Maven`, `Gradle`)
`tomcat.autoDeployMode`	`Disabled`	Auto-deploy triggers (`Disabled`, `On Save`, `On Shortcut`)
`tomcat.browser`	`Google Chrome`	Browser for app launch & debug (`Google Chrome`, `Microsoft Edge`, `Firefox`, `Safari`, `Brave`, `Opera`)
`tomcat.port`	`8080`	Tomcat server listen port (valid range: `1024`-`65535`)
`tomcat.protectedWebApps`	`["ROOT", "docs", "examples", "manager", "host-manager"]`	List of protected web apps during cleanup operations
`tomcat.autoScrollOutput`	`true`	Automatically reveal and scroll output channel when new logs are added

ℹ️ tomcat.home and tomcat.javaHome are now auto-detected and hidden from user settings.

Requirements

Runtime:
- JDK 11+
- Apache Tomcat 9+
Build Tools (optional):
- Maven 3.6+ or Gradle 6.8+ (if using Maven or Gradle build types)

Developer Documentation

For technical implementation details and contribution guidelines, see:

Known Issues

Firefox and Safari will always open a new tab instead of reusing the existing one due to browser limitations.

What's New in 2.4.0

HTTP Traffic Insights
New real-time access log monitoring with dynamic file watching capabilities
Enhanced Debugging Experience
Added tomcat.autoScrollOutput setting to automatically scroll output channel logs disable if it interferes with your workflow
Enhanced Deployment Reliability
Added automatic retry mechanism for busy resource errors with process cleanup
Diagnostics Improvements
Syntax highlighting support for Tomcat HTTP logs and admin operations
Optimized Build Process
Refactored fast deployment strategy with improved directory management and JAR skiping logic

View Full Changelog

License: MIT • 💖 Support: Star our GitHub Repo • VScode Marketplace