DeltaForge for VS Code
Most lakehouse jobs don't need a cluster. They need a native engine.
DeltaForge brings that engine into VS Code. Query the lake you already have with live-catalog IntelliSense, results and plans next to code, native property graphs on the same Delta tables, SQL pipelines, data APIs, and typed MCP access for AI assistants.
New to DeltaForge? Start at deltaforge.org. The engine installs in one command: see the install guide, or run DeltaForge: Install and Start DeltaForge from the command palette and let the extension bootstrap it for you.
Run it on your own infrastructure. No second warehouse. No copy pipeline. No cluster tax.
Why teams install it
Native Delta and Iceberg SQL, not a detached console
Time travel, MERGE, deletion vectors, change data feed, OPTIMIZE, VACUUM, and restore workflows stay in plain SQL. The extension is a front end to the same native DeltaForge engine you run outside the editor, so the queries you write here are the ones you run for real.
DeltaForge is built to be checked, not just claimed. The engine behind this extension ships with downloadable use cases and a public conformance matrix verified against Apache Spark in both directions.
More on the engine: deltaforge.org/sql-engine, deltaforge.org/table-format, deltaforge.org/iceberg, deltaforge.org/conformance
One workspace for catalog, query, graph, pipeline, and API
The sidebar is your live catalog: workspaces, schemas, tables, columns, lineage, governance, and table metadata. Completions come from that catalog, not a toy SQL dictionary. Results land in a grid beside the query with sorting, search, export, query plans, and execution timing built in.
Project existing Delta tables into native property graphs, traverse them with Cypher, manage SQL pipelines and schedules, and turn queries into HTTP endpoints without leaving VS Code. No sidecar graph store, no DAG sprawl, no handoff to another console.
More on graphs: deltaforge.org/graph
More on pipelines: deltaforge.org/pipeline-workflow
Typed access for AI assistants
DeltaForge: Set Up MCP Server for AI Assistants exposes typed actions across catalog, lineage, SQL, pipelines, and docs. Claude, Codex, Cursor, and GitHub Copilot work against the real parser and live schema, under the same RBAC and audit logging as human users.
More on MCP: deltaforge.org/mcp-server
DeltaForge: Open Query Designer (Ctrl+Alt+D) builds queries visually, and DeltaForge: Open Data Transform shapes data before you hand-write SQL. Read-only panels also carry deep links into the full DeltaForge web GUI when you want the broader surface.
Getting Started
- Install the extension and open the DeltaForge icon in the activity bar
- Sign in with email and password, or set an access token in settings
- Browse the live catalog: workspaces, schemas, tables, and columns
- Open a
.sql or .dsql file, write a query, and press Ctrl+Enter
Commands
| Command |
Shortcut |
DeltaForge: Run Query |
Ctrl+Enter / F5 |
DeltaForge: Run Selection |
Ctrl+Shift+Enter / Shift+F5 |
DeltaForge: Cancel Query |
Esc |
DeltaForge: Save Query |
Ctrl+Alt+S |
DeltaForge: Open Saved Queries |
|
DeltaForge: Open Query Designer |
Ctrl+Alt+D |
DeltaForge: Open Data Transform |
|
DeltaForge: Export Results |
|
DeltaForge: Refresh Catalog |
|
DeltaForge: Scan Repository for Pipelines |
|
DeltaForge: Create Schedule |
|
DeltaForge: Create API Endpoint |
|
DeltaForge: Browse Template Library |
|
DeltaForge: Set Up MCP Server for AI Assistants |
|
DeltaForge: Install and Start DeltaForge |
|
DeltaForge: Sign In / Sign Out |
|
On macOS, use Cmd in place of Ctrl.
Configuration
| Setting |
Description |
Default |
deltaForge.controlPlaneUrl |
Control plane URL |
http://localhost:3000 |
deltaForge.defaultComputeNodeUrl |
Default compute node URL |
http://localhost:3031 |
deltaForge.accessToken |
Access token (df_pat_… PAT or df_… session token) that bypasses interactive sign-in |
(empty) |
deltaForge.queryResultLimit |
Max rows in results |
1000 |
deltaForge.autoRefreshCatalog |
Auto-refresh the catalog when metadata changes |
true |
deltaForge.showExecutionTime |
Show execution time |
true |
deltaForge.resultPanel.fontSize |
Results grid font size |
13 |
deltaForge.graphMaxNodes |
Max graph nodes rendered in the Graph tab |
1500 |
deltaForge.autoSelectComputeNode |
Auto-select a healthy compute node |
true |
deltaForge.lspBinaryPath |
Override path to the delta-forge-lsp binary |
(empty) |
deltaForge.mcpBinaryPath |
Pin a local deltaforge-mcp binary instead of npx |
(empty) |
deltaForge.guiDeepLinks.enabled |
Show "Open in DeltaForge" links into the web GUI |
true |
deltaForge.webGuiUrl |
Override the web GUI base URL for deep links |
(empty) |
File types
The extension activates for .sql (standard SQL) and .dsql (Delta SQL with extended syntax).
Requirements
- VS Code 1.85.0 or later
- A running DeltaForge install. Get one in one command from the install guide, or run
DeltaForge: Install and Start DeltaForge from the command palette
- Windows: the extension's bundled helpers (
delta-forge-lsp and the MCP server) are self-contained and need nothing extra. If you separately install the DeltaForge engine (desktop or CLI) and it fails to start with a missing-DLL error (STATUS_DLL_NOT_FOUND / vcruntime140.dll), install the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable (2015-2022, x64) from aka.ms/vs/17/release/vc_redist.x64.exe and reload. macOS and Linux need nothing extra.
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