DotPilot
Run, debug and build .NET — and run Node.js, PHP, Python and Docker projects — from one panel in VS Code. Let your AI assistant drive them.
DotPilot detects the runnable projects in your workspace, lets you pick a project and launch profile, and gives you Run, Stop, Restart, build and test with a linked browser that closes with your app. It also exposes the same actions to AI assistants through MCP, always with your permission.
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What it does
- Detects project types automatically and shows what it found: .NET, Node.js (Vite, React, Vue, Angular, Next.js, Nuxt…), PHP/Laravel, Python (Django, FastAPI, Flask) and Docker Compose.
- Run, Stop, Restart for all of them, in a DotPilot terminal. Stop ends the whole process tree.
- Reads the server URL and port from the server's own output, so it follows the server when it moves to another port. The address is a link in the panel.
- Linked browser: Edge or Chrome open with a temporary profile and close the app when you close the window. Choose the browser per project; changing it while the app runs reopens it in the new one.
- .NET extras: debugging with the C# debugger, Hot Reload, build, rebuild, clean, restore, test and analyze, with launch profiles from
launchSettings.json.
- Apache (Laragon) profile for PHP on Windows: runs Laragon's own Apache with its own configuration (virtual hosts,
.htaccess, modules) instead of php -S.
- AI assistants can use it through a local MCP server and VS Code language model tools.
Supported projects
| Type |
Detected from |
Starts with |
| .NET / ASP.NET Core |
.csproj, .sln, launchSettings.json |
dotnet run, C# debugger, dotnet watch |
| Node.js · React · Vue · Angular · Vite |
package.json scripts dev, start, serve, develop |
npm, pnpm, yarn or bun run <script> (from the lockfile) |
| PHP · Laravel |
artisan, composer.json, index.php |
Laragon's Apache, php artisan serve or php -S |
| Python · Django · FastAPI · Flask |
manage.py, requirements.txt, pyproject.toml |
the framework's dev server, using .venv/venv/env if present |
| Docker |
compose.yaml, docker-compose.yml |
docker compose up (all services or one); Stop runs docker compose down |
Debugging, Hot Reload, build and tests are .NET-only; they are disabled for the other types.
Getting started
- Open a folder with a project in a trusted workspace.
- Open the DotPilot view in the Explorer (or the blue DotPilot menu in the editor toolbar).
- Pick the startup project and profile, then Run (
Ctrl+Alt+F5), or Debug (Ctrl+Alt+F6) for .NET.
| Shortcut |
Action |
Ctrl+Alt+F5 |
Run without debugging |
Ctrl+Alt+F6 |
Start debugging (.NET) |
Ctrl+Alt+B |
Build (.NET) |
Use Cmd instead of Ctrl on macOS.
Apache and Laragon for PHP (Windows)
php -S does not reproduce a real site: no virtual hosts, no .htaccess, no Apache modules. When a PHP project is served by Laragon — inside its www folder, or with a virtual host in etc\apache2\sites-enabled — DotPilot adds an Apache (Laragon) profile and makes it the default; php -S stays available.
- Run starts Laragon's Apache with Laragon's own
httpd.conf, opens the site's URL (for example http://myapp.test/) and shows Apache's error log live, PHP errors included.
- If Apache is already running on its port, DotPilot reuses it, follows its log and does not close it on Stop. Otherwise Stop closes only the Apache DotPilot started.
- MySQL is not started. DotPilot only warns when its port does not answer: start it from Laragon.
- No administrator rights are needed and the
hosts file is not touched. Set dotpilot.laragonPath for a non-standard install.
- Not covered: XAMPP/WAMP, nginx, HTTPS virtual hosts, Linux and macOS.
AI assistants
Run DotPilot: Connect AI assistants. DotPilot detects the assistants installed in the editor and configures each one:
| Assistant |
How it connects |
Written to |
| Claude Code |
MCP server |
.mcp.json in the project (do not commit it: it holds a path from your computer) |
| Codex |
MCP server |
~/.codex/config.toml |
| Gemini |
MCP server |
.gemini/settings.json in the project |
| GitHub Copilot |
VS Code language model tools (agent mode) |
no file |
Verification status — please read. Tested against the real CLIs, non-interactive, driving a Node.js and a .NET project through DotPilot:
| Assistant |
Result |
| Claude Code 2.1 |
Full session verified (list, select, run, read output, stop), also loading the generated .mcp.json |
| Codex CLI 0.149 |
Full session verified; Codex also reads the generated config.toml. It loads the tools as deferred tools, so the model has to search for them |
| Gemini CLI 0.46 |
Reads the generated .gemini/settings.json and connects to the server. A model session could not be tested: the account's Gemini tier is no longer supported by that CLI |
| GitHub Copilot CLI 1.0 |
Reads the generated .mcp.json as a workspace server. A model session could not be tested: not signed in |
| Copilot in VS Code |
Tool registration and invocation verified; chat confirmation is handled by VS Code and was not exercised |
Interactive sessions inside VS Code (any assistant) have not been verified.
Tools are named dotpilot_*: list projects, select a project or profile, run, debug (.NET), Hot Reload (.NET), stop, restart, build/test (.NET), open the browser, read the app's output and the Problems panel, and read the status with the server URL. They cannot run arbitrary commands, only the projects and profiles DotPilot detected.
Permission and safety
- Off until you connect an assistant, and only you can turn it on: the setting lives in your user settings, so a repository cannot enable it.
- Actions that start work (run, debug, restart, build, open browser) ask in VS Code every time: Allow / Allow for this session / Deny. Set
dotpilot.assistantsPermission to allow to stop asking.
- The bridge listens only on
127.0.0.1, requires a random token that changes on every start, and rejects requests that come from a web page.
- The MCP server needs
node in your PATH, and the VS Code window with the folder must be open.
Settings
| Setting |
Use |
dotpilot.language |
auto, en or es for the panel and messages |
dotpilot.browser |
edge, chrome (linked window) or external (system default, not linked) |
dotpilot.openBrowser |
Open the browser automatically when the profile asks for it |
dotpilot.dotnetPath / pythonPath / phpPath / laragonPath |
Executables or install folder, when not on PATH |
dotpilot.buildScope |
Build the solution or only the startup project |
dotpilot.showEditorToolbar / showStatusBar |
Show the DotPilot menu and run buttons / status bar controls |
dotpilot.assistantsEnabled / assistantsPermission |
AI assistants bridge and its permission mode (user settings only) |
Menus and the command palette follow VS Code's display language; the panel and messages follow dotpilot.language.
What DotPilot does on your machine
- No telemetry and no network calls. Everything is local.
- Processes: only the projects and profiles it detected, started on your request. Stop ends them.
- Ports: the ones your apps use. With AI assistants enabled, one random port on
127.0.0.1 for the bridge.
- Files: a temporary browser profile while a linked window is open (deleted afterwards); with AI assistants enabled,
~/.dotpilot (a copy of the MCP server and a discovery file with the bridge's token); on Windows with Laragon, a console log in the temp folder. It never edits your projects, launch.json or tasks.json. Connect AI assistants writes only the files listed above, after you choose them.
- PowerShell: the Laragon profile runs a script shipped with the extension (
assets/laragon.ps1, readable) with -ExecutionPolicy Bypass for that process only. It starts or reuses Apache, tails its log and closes what it started.
Requirements and limitations
- VS Code 1.85 or later (1.95 or later for the language model tools used by Copilot). Debugging needs Microsoft's C# extension; .NET SDK 8 or later.
- Needs a trusted workspace; virtual workspaces are not supported.
- Tested on: Windows 11 with VS Code 1.141 and 1.85.2 (the declared minimum), .NET SDK 10 (net8.0 target), Node.js 24, PHP 8.3, Python 3.14. On 1.85 the language model tools do not exist (Copilot integration needs 1.95) and C# debugging was not exercised. Not tested: Linux, macOS, WSL, SSH and dev containers. CI runs the unit tests on Windows, Linux and macOS.
- Only .NET
Project launch profiles are supported (no IIS Express or Docker profiles).
- Run output of a debug session goes to VS Code's Debug Console and is not available to assistants.
Troubleshooting
- The project does not appear: it needs a
.csproj, a package.json with a dev/start/serve/develop script, artisan/composer.json/index.php, manage.py/requirements.txt/pyproject.toml or a Compose file. Use Refresh.
- The browser does not open: check
dotpilot.openBrowser and that the profile requests it; HTTPS needs a valid development certificate.
- Output channel: DotPilot: Show output has the extension's own diagnostics.
License
MIT © Camilo Ruiz · acrocode.dev · GitHub
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