EdgeTX Dev Kit

A VS Code extension for writing EdgeTX Lua scripts with IntelliSense, diagnostics, script generation, and SD card deployment — built for the RC community.

EdgeTX Dev Kit brings a proper development environment to EdgeTX Lua scripting. If you've ever written a widget or telemetry script in a plain text editor, copy-pasted it to an SD card, flashed it to your radio, and stared at a blank screen wondering what went wrong, then this extension is for you.

It connects to auto-generated stubs from the EdgeTX source, gives you real IntelliSense for every API, catches mistakes before you ever touch your radio, and deploys directly to your SD card on save.

Requirements

• VS Code 1.85 or later
• Lua Language Server (sumneko.lua) — installed automatically as a dependency
• EdgeTX Companion (optional, recommended for simulation)

Getting Started

1. Install the extension from the VS Code Marketplace
2. Open a Lua file (or create a new one)
3. Run EdgeTX: Toggle EdgeTX Mode from the command palette (Ctrl+Shift+P)
4. Set your radio profile when prompted — select your EdgeTX version and display type
5. Start writing

The extension activates automatically on any .lua file. EdgeTX mode (IntelliSense, diagnostics, API search) activates on top of that once you toggle it on or enable edgetx.autoActivateOnStart in settings.

Features

IntelliSense & Type Checking

The extension syncs versioned .d.lua stub files from the edgetx-lua-gen pipeline — a GitHub Actions workflow that parses EdgeTX C++ source and generates LuaLS-compatible definitions.

Once stubs are loaded, the Lua Language Server provides:

• Autocomplete for all EdgeTX globals (lcd, model, system, getValue, etc.)
• Parameter hints and type signatures on hover
• Go-to-definition on any EdgeTX API
• Version-aware types — APIs that changed between versions reflect the correct signature for your profile

Annotate your script with the correct type and LuaLS handles the rest:

---@type WidgetScript
local script = {
    name = "MyWidget",
    options = { { "Toggle", BOOL, 1 } },
    create = function(zone, options) return {} end,
    refresh = function(widget, event, touchState) end,
}
return script

Script Generation

Wizard

Run EdgeTX: New Script (Wizard) to open a guided webview that walks you through selecting a script type, EdgeTX version, and display type. The wizard generates a complete, annotated script template in the active editor.

Inline Shortcuts

In any .lua file with EdgeTX mode active, type ! at the start of a line to open the script picker, then select a script type and press Tab or Enter:

The trigger text is replaced with a fully annotated script template. A formatter runs automatically if you have a Lua formatter (e.g. prettier) installed.

Diagnostics

The extension runs two layers of diagnostics on every save:

Structural checks

• Missing return statement — warns if the file doesn't end with a return statement
• Missing required fields — informs if the returned table is missing non-optional fields for the detected script type and version
• Wrong field types — errors if a field is assigned the wrong type (e.g. a string where a function is expected)

These checks read the actual returned table via an AST parse (using luaparse). The extension understands all common script structures and not just table literals:

-- Inline table
return { name = "X", create = function() end }

-- Variable-initialized table
local script = { name = "X", create = function() end }
return script

-- Sequential assignment
local script = {}
script.name = "X"
script.create = function() end
return script

Widget-specific checks

• name must be 10 characters or less
• options maximum: 5 entries on EdgeTX ≤ 2.10, 10 entries from 2.11
• Each option name (first table value) must be 10 characters or less with no spaces
• Widget scripts are only available on color displays

Lint checks

• Display-specific APIs — errors if you use color-only apis: lcd.setColor(), RGB(), COLOR_THEME_*, TINSIZE etc. on a B&W profile and vice-versa
• Version-gated APIs — errors if you use an API that requires a newer version than your profile (e.g. touchState requires 2.6+)
• Unsupported standard libraries — errors for os, coroutine, package, debug usage; table flagged on B&W profiles
• Unsupported io functions — errors for any io.* call outside the five supported functions: io.open, io.close, io.read, io.write, io.seek
• lcd unavailable in function scripts - errors when lcd is used in a function script

API Search

Click the EdgeTX icon in the activity bar to open the API Search sidebar. Search across all functions and constants for your active EdgeTX version.

Clicking a result (functions only) inserts a snippet directly into the active editor at the cursor position.

You can also open API Search as a floating panel beside your editor via EdgeTX: Search API from the command palette or right-click context menu.

SD Card Deployment

Configure your SD card path once:

"edgetx.sdCardPath": "/Volumes/EdgeTX"

From that point, the extension knows where to deploy each script type based on the ---@type annotation:

Widget scripts are deployed into a subfolder named after the name field in the returned table. If the name field can't be resolved, the filename is used as a fallback.

Auto-deploy on save:

"edgetx.autoDeployOnSave": true

When enabled, every save to a recognized EdgeTX Lua file copies it to the correct SD card location automatically. The status bar shows deploy status briefly after each deploy.

Manual deploy:

Run EdgeTX: Deploy Script to SD Card from the command palette or right-click menu to deploy the active file on demand.

Deploy guards:

Before deploying, the extension checks for errors in the current file. If blocking errors exist, you'll be prompted to confirm before proceeding.

If the SD card path doesn't exist or the card is ejected, you will be notified.

Radio Profile

Run EdgeTX: Set Radio Profile to configure:

• EdgeTX version — determines which stubs and API docs are loaded, and which version-gated diagnostics apply
• Display type — color or bw or monochrome, used to flag display-specific API misuse
• Radio name — shown in the status bar for quick reference

The active profile is shown in the status bar:

EdgeTX: Jumper T20 2.10

Stub Sync

Stubs are fetched from a remote pipeline that tracks EdgeTX releases. On activation, the extension checks for stub updates silently in the background.

Run EdgeTX: Check for API Updates and Sync to force a manual sync.

The base URL is configurable if you host your own stubs: PLEASE BE CAREFUL HERE.

"edgetx.stubsRawBaseUrl": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/JeffreyChix/edgetx-stubs/main"

Commands

All commands are available via Ctrl+Shift+P and prefixed with EdgeTX:.

Extension Settings

Script Types

EdgeTX Dev Kit supports all five EdgeTX Lua script types:

Widget Script

Displayed in a zone on color LCD radios. Requires name, create, and refresh. Optional: options, update, background.

Telemetry Script

Displayed on a telemetry screen page. Has full LCD access. Requires run. Optional: init, background.

Function Script

Activated by a switch. Runs in the background. No LCD access. Requires run. Optional: init, background (from 2.4).

Mix Script

Custom mix that reads inputs and produces outputs. Requires run. Optional: input, output, init. Do not use for anything safety-critical.

One-Time Script

Runs once when activated. Useful for setup or configuration. Requires run. Optional: init.

Release Notes

1.0.0

Initial release.

• LuaLS IntelliSense via versioned auto-generated stubs
• Version-aware diagnostics (structural, lint, widget constraints)
• Script generation wizard and inline !w, !t, !f, !m, !o shortcuts
• API Search sidebar and panel
• Radio profile management
• SD card auto-deploy
• Stub sync pipeline integration

Contributing

Found a bug or have a feature request? Open an issue with as much context as you can provide.

Pull requests are welcome. If you're planning something substantial, open an issue first to discuss the approach.

The stub pipeline lives in a separate repository — edgetx-lua-gen. If you spot missing or incorrect API definitions, contributions there improve the IntelliSense and diagnostics for everyone.