SDS — Start Dev Server 🚀
Start your development server and auto-open the local URL in your browser with a single click or keyboard shortcut. Run or stop your project's dev server without manually typing commands or hunting for localhost links.
✨ Features
- ⚡ One-Click Start & Stop: Toggle your dev server directly from the bottom status bar.
- ⌨️ Keyboard Shortcut: Start/Stop instantly using
Ctrl+Shift+S (Windows/Linux) or Cmd+Shift+S (macOS).
- 🌐 Automatic Browser Launch: Reads the terminal stream using Shell Integration and immediately opens
http://localhost:<port> or http://127.0.0.1:<port> in your default browser.
- 📦 Smart Package Manager Detection: Automatically detects and uses Bun, pnpm, Yarn, or npm based on project
- 🎨 Dynamic Status Bar States:
- Ready to start:
$(play) SDS (Warning accent)
- Starting & listening:
$(loading~spin) SDS (Animated spinner)
- Running with URL tooltip:
$(debug-pause) SDS (Active accent with hover preview Dev Server: http://localhost:...)
- ⚙️ Configurable Timeout: Customize URL detection wait time via VS Code Settings.
- 🛡️ Safe & Silent: Clean background execution without annoying toast notification spam or terminal focus stealing.
🚀 How to Use SDS
1. Install Extension
Install SDS - Start Dev Server from the Extensions marketplace in VS Code, Cursor, or Antigravity.
2. Open Your Project
Open any web project containing a package.json with a dev script (e.g. Next.js, Vite, React, Vue, Svelte, Nuxt, Astro).
3. Start Dev Server
Trigger the server via either:
- Clicking the
$(play) SDS button in the bottom status bar.
- Pressing
Ctrl+Shift+S (Cmd+Shift+S on macOS).
- Running
SDS - Start Dev Server from the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P / Cmd+Shift+P).
SDS will start your server in a dedicated terminal, capture the local port, update the status bar, and open your app in the browser automatically!
⌨️ Keybindings
| Command |
Windows / Linux |
macOS |
| Start / Stop Dev Server |
Ctrl + Shift + S |
Cmd + Shift + S |
⚙️ Configuration Settings
Customize SDS behavior through VS Code Settings (Ctrl+, / Cmd+,) under SDS - Settings:
| Setting |
Type |
Default |
Description |
sds.timeout |
number |
20000 |
Timeout in milliseconds (10,000 – 60,000 ms) to wait for the dev server URL before giving up. |
🧩 Compatibility
SDS is built on the VS Code Extension API & Terminal Shell Integration, designed for:
- Visual Studio Code
- Cursor
- Antigravity
- Windsurf and other VS Code-compatible IDEs
👤 Author
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Shani Tiwari. All rights reserved.