Flutter Quick Runner (FQR)

Run and debug Flutter apps from any file in your project — no need to navigate to main.dart first. Includes a Command Hub, multi-device runner, customizable title bar buttons, custom commands, and a settings webview.

Tip: Type "FQR" in the Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P / Ctrl+Shift+P) to quickly filter all Flutter Quick Runner commands — VS Code's fuzzy search matches Flutter Quick Runner.

Requires the Dart extension (Dart-Code.dart-code).

Highlights

Features

Run From Any File

Open any .dart file (or even README.md) inside a Flutter project and hit the ▶ Run button in the editor title bar. The extension automatically detects the project root and resolves the entry point.

• Walks up to find pubspec.yaml with a flutter: key
• Uses lib/main.dart by default
• If multiple entry points exist (lib/main_dev.dart, lib/main_prod.dart), shows a QuickPick with "use once" or "remember" options
• Remembered entry points are stored per-project in workspace state

Without the extension — run button only works when the entry point file is open:

With Flutter Quick Runner — run from any file in your project:

Active Project Indicator

A status bar item shows the currently active Flutter project name. Click it to switch between multiple Flutter projects in a monorepo.

Hot-Reload Skip Warning

When a debug session is active and Dart files have errors, a warning appears in the status bar: ⚠ Hot reload skipped — fix errors first. Click it to open the Problems panel.

Pub Get on pubspec.yaml

When editing pubspec.yaml in a Flutter project, a $(package) button appears in the editor title bar to run pub get with one click.

Command Hub

Run "Flutter Quick Runner: Open Command Hub" to see a categorized QuickPick with all available commands:

Custom Commands

Create custom shell commands via the "Create Custom Command" wizard or the Settings webview. Each command supports:

• 4 output modes: Terminal, Panel (Output Channel with spinner), Notification (toast), Silent
• Variable substitution: ${projectRoot}, ${workspaceRoot}, ${activeFile}, ${activeFileDir}
• Concurrency guard: Panel-mode commands won't run twice simultaneously
• Categorization: Assign to a group for organization in the Command Hub

Multi-Device Runner

Launch Flutter on multiple devices simultaneously with a single command. Supports all run modes — Run, Debug, Profile, and Release.

• Mode picker — choose Run, Debug, Profile, or Release before launching
• Device picker — multi-select from all connected devices
• Remember configuration — save your device + mode selection per-project for one-click launches
• Edit saved configuration — re-open pickers with previously saved devices pre-checked
• Smart reconnection — if some saved devices are disconnected, choose to launch on available ones or edit the config
• Stop All Devices — terminate all running debug sessions at once
• Progress indicator — notification shown while fetching connected devices
• Available in the Command Hub under the "Multi-Device" group

Dynamic Title Bar Buttons

Add up to 4 extra buttons to the editor title bar alongside the Run button. Configure them in settings or the Settings webview. Any built-in or custom command can be assigned to a slot.

Custom commands and title bar buttons in action:

Settings Webview

Run "Flutter Quick Runner: Open Settings" for a visual settings editor with four tabs:

1. Title Bar — Drag-and-drop builder for title bar buttons
2. Custom Commands — Manage your custom commands
3. Keyboard Shortcuts — View all commands and open the VS Code keybindings editor
4. Multi-Device — View and manage saved multi-device run configurations

Commands

All commands are prefixed with "Flutter Quick Runner" — or just type "FQR" in the palette for quick access.

Settings

Requirements

• VS Code ^1.80.0
• Dart extension (installed automatically if missing)
• Flutter SDK on PATH (for Flutter commands)

FAQ

Q: Does typing "FQR" work in the Command Palette? A: Yes! VS Code uses fuzzy matching, so typing "FQR" matches Flutter Quick Runner and filters to all commands instantly.

Q: Does this work with monorepos / multiple Flutter projects? A: Yes. The extension detects the active project from the open file. Use "Switch Active Project" to change the target project. Pub Get All and Flutter Clean All run across all projects.

Q: Can I run on Android and iOS at the same time? A: Yes — use "Run on Multiple Devices" to select any combination of connected devices and launch simultaneously.

Q: Does this extension work with Dart-only (non-Flutter) projects? A: The extension is designed for Flutter projects (it looks for the flutter: key in pubspec.yaml). Pure Dart projects are not supported.

Q: Where are saved configurations stored? A: Entry points and multi-device configs are stored in VS Code's workspace state — no files are created in your project.

Privacy

This extension collects no telemetry and sends no data to any server.

Author & Publisher

Author: Chinmay Nagar — Industrial Embedded & Connected Systems Engineer

Publisher: ChipNexa — Intelligent Connected Systems. Production-grade software from firmware to cloud.

• GitHub: @NagarChinmay
• LinkedIn: chinmay-nagar
• Website: chipnexa.in
• Email: hello@chipnexa.in

License

MIT