CodeAppJS Extension
CodeAppJS Extension is a VS Code wrapper around Power Platform CLI workflows for code-first apps. The extension no longer hosts an agent panel or chat harness. It now exposes PAC-driven setup, authentication, environment switching, data source sync, debugger toggling, and deploy actions directly in the editor chrome.
This extension is built on codeapp.js, which is aimed at developers building Power Apps with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript in a code-first workflow.
What You Get
- A lightweight Activity Bar view with title-bar actions for setup, Dataverse schema, flow schema, debugger, and deploy.
- Status bar items for Power Platform authentication and environment switching.
- Project setup that copies starter files into your workspace and updates
power.config.json through native VS Code input prompts.
- Connection reference syncing against the active environment.
- One-click deploy with the npm
power-apps push CLI, including app URL detection and appId update when available.
Requirements
- VS Code
1.95.0 or newer.
- An open workspace folder.
The extension runs power-apps from its packaged node_modules/.bin copy of @microsoft/power-apps-cli and exposes PAC-compatible auth/environment commands through the bundled codeapp wrapper. No separate PAC installation is required.
Quick Start
- Open the folder that will contain your Power Platform code-first app.
- Click the
Auth status bar item to start pac auth create through the bundled CLI.
- Click the environment status bar item to select the target environment.
- Open the
CodeAppJS Activity Bar view.
- Use the view title actions for
Setup Project, Add Data Sources, Toggle Debugger, and Deploy.
Command Surface
| Command |
What it does |
CodeAppJS: Setup Project |
Copies the bundled template files into the workspace and updates power.config.json. |
CodeAppJS: Authenticate |
Starts pac auth create in a terminal through the bundled CLI so you can sign in to Power Platform. |
CodeAppJS: Change Environment |
Lists environments, switches the active org selection, stores the selection locally, and updates power.config.json when possible. |
CodeAppJS: Add Data Sources |
Reads connectionReferences from power.config.json, inspects available PAC connections, and updates reference details. |
CodeAppJS: Add Dataverse Schema |
Prompts for a Dataverse table logical name and generates the matching schema into the agent folder. |
CodeAppJS: Add Flow Schema |
Lists flows from the installed power-apps list-flows --non-interactive CLI, lets you filter them with Quick Pick search, and runs power-apps add-flow --flow-id ... --non-interactive for the selected flow. |
CodeAppJS: Toggle Debugger |
Adds or removes the codeapp debugger snippet from the current build entry point. |
CodeAppJS: Deploy |
Runs power-apps push, reports progress, and stores the detected appId in power.config.json when available. |
Setup Behavior
When you run project setup, the extension copies files from its bundled template folder into your workspace.
- Existing files are not overwritten.
- If
power.config.json is copied, the extension asks for app metadata and environment information with native input boxes.
- If the configured build entry point exists, the HTML
<title> is updated to match the app display name.
Notes
- PAC authentication must be completed before environment listing, data source sync, or deploy can succeed.
- The extension does not use a system-installed PAC CLI anymore; flow and deploy commands run through the packaged
power-apps binary, and auth/environment commands run through the bundled PAC-compatibility wrapper backed by the same @microsoft/power-apps-cli dependency.
- Flow commands now run in non-interactive mode through the installed
power-apps CLI so they fail instead of opening a browser prompt when required configuration is missing.
- Deploy captures command output, looks for the Power Apps URL, and stores the detected
appId in power.config.json when possible.
- Data source sync reads
connectionReferences, selects the configured environment if one is set, inspects available connections, and updates reference metadata in power.config.json.
Version
- v1.1.2 - launch version using CodeApps-JS v1.1.2
- v2.0.0 - update to CodeApps-JS v2.0.0. Removed PowerPlatform CLI dependency and migrated to power-apps-cli npm version to allow deploying apps that call flows.
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