OpenCode VSCode Extension

Install for VSCode

A VSCode sidebar extension for OpenCode - the AI coding agent. Simple chat interface to interact with OpenCode directly from your sidebar.

Note: This is an independent community project and is not officially affiliated with or maintained by the OpenCode team.

Prerequisites

1. OpenCode CLI must be installed:

   curl -fsSL https://opencode.ai/install | bash
   

2. OpenCode must be configured with API credentials:

   opencode auth login
   

   Select your provider (OpenCode Zen, Anthropic, OpenAI, etc.) and add your API key.

Development Setup

Install Dependencies

bun install

Build the Extension

bun run build

This builds both:

• Extension code → dist/extension.js
• Webview UI → out/main.js and out/main.css

Development Workflow

1. Start watch mode (in a terminal):

   bun run watch
   

2. Launch Extension Development Host:

   • Press F5 in VSCode/Cursor
   • Or open Run and Debug panel (Cmd+Shift+D) and click "Run Extension"

3. Use the extension:

   • Look for the OpenCode icon in the Activity Bar (left side)
   • Click it to open the sidebar
   • Type a message and hit Send or press Enter

Making Changes

• Extension code (src/extension.ts, src/OpenCodeService.ts, src/OpenCodeViewProvider.ts):

  • Save your changes
  • Reload the Extension Development Host window: Cmd+R (Mac) or Ctrl+R (Windows/Linux)

• Webview UI (src/webview/App.tsx, src/webview/App.css, src/webview/hooks/):

  • Changes hot-reload automatically
  • Just save and see updates instantly

How It Works

Architecture

┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│  SolidJS Webview (Chat UI)         │
│  - Input box                        │
│  - Message history                  │
│  - Thinking indicator               │
└──────────┬──────────────────────────┘
           │ postMessage
           ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│  Extension Host (Node.js)           │
│  - OpenCodeService                  │
│    ├─ Manages OpenCode client      │
│    ├─ Creates sessions              │
│    └─ Sends prompts                 │
└──────────┬──────────────────────────┘
           │ @opencode-ai/sdk
           ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│  OpenCode Server (Bun process)      │
│  - Spawned by extension backend     │
│  - Uses workspace opencode.json     │
│  - Handles AI interactions          │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘

Key Components

Extension Side (TypeScript/ESM):

• src/extension.ts: Entry point, initializes OpenCodeService
• src/OpenCodeService.ts: Manages OpenCode client/server, sessions, and prompts
• src/OpenCodeViewProvider.ts: Webview provider, handles message passing

Webview Side (SolidJS):

• src/webview/App.tsx: Chat UI with input, message history, thinking indicator
• src/webview/App.css: Styles using VSCode theme variables

Build System:

• vite.config.extension.ts: Bundles extension (ESM → CJS for VSCode)
• vite.config.ts: Bundles webview (SolidJS)

Configuration

The extension automatically uses:

1. Workspace opencode.json (if present in project root)
2. Global OpenCode config at ~/.config/opencode/opencode.json

Example workspace config:

{
	"model": "anthropic/claude-3-5-sonnet-20241022",
	"mcp": {
		// MCP server configurations
	}
}

Project Structure

opencode-gui/
├── src/
│   ├── extension.ts              # Extension entry point
│   ├── OpenCodeService.ts        # OpenCode client/server manager
│   ├── OpenCodeViewProvider.ts   # Webview provider
│   └── webview/                  # SolidJS UI
│       ├── App.tsx               # Chat component
│       ├── App.css               # Styles
│       ├── hooks/                # SolidJS hooks
│       ├── main.tsx              # SolidJS entry point
│       └── vscode.d.ts           # VSCode API types
├── media/
│   └── icon.svg                  # Activity bar icon
├── dist/                         # Compiled extension (Vite output)
├── out/                          # Compiled webview (Vite output)
├── vite.config.extension.ts      # Extension build config
├── vite.config.ts                # Webview build config
├── tsconfig.json                 # TypeScript config
└── package.json

Tech Stack

• Extension: TypeScript (ESM), VSCode Extension API, OpenCode SDK
• Webview: SolidJS, TypeScript
• Build: Vite for both extension and webview
• Styling: CSS with VSCode theme variables
• Server: Bun (spawned process running OpenCode server)

Features

✅ Simple chat interface ✅ Send prompts and get AI responses ✅ Thinking indicator during processing ✅ Message history (user and assistant) ✅ Workspace configuration support ✅ Full TypeScript type safety ✅ VSCode theme integration

Future Enhancements

• Real-time streaming responses
• File attachments from workspace
• Markdown rendering in responses
• Code syntax highlighting
• Multi-session support
• Session persistence
• Undo/redo functionality

Publishing

To publish a new version:

1. Bump the version in package.json
2. Set environment variable: export OVSX_PAT=your_open_vsx_token
3. Login to VS Code Marketplace: npx vsce login <publisher>
4. Run: bun run publish

This publishes to both VS Code Marketplace and Open VSX Registry.

Note: You'll need:

• A VS Code Marketplace Personal Access Token (PAT) from Azure DevOps with "Marketplace (Manage)" scope
• An Open VSX token set as OVSX_PAT environment variable

Troubleshooting

"Failed to start OpenCode"

• Install OpenCode CLI: https://opencode.ai/install
• Make sure OpenCode CLI is installed and on PATH:
  • macOS/Linux: which opencode
  • Windows: where opencode
• Configure authentication: opencode auth login
• If you installed OpenCode recently, fully restart VS Code so the extension host gets the updated PATH

"No response received"

• Check API credentials are valid
• Verify workspace has internet connection
• Check VSCode Developer Console for errors (Help → Toggle Developer Tools)