Minimal Agent Workspace

A VS Code extension that sets up a minimal two-column layout for working with Claude Code — perfect for non-technical users.

What it Does

On startup, the extension automatically:

1. Sets Up Editor Layout

• Creates a two-column layout (2/3 left, 1/3 right)
• Opens the Welcome page on the left
• Launches Claude Code in a terminal on the right
• Expands the Explorer sidebar

┌──────────────┬────────────────────────┬──────────────┐
│   Explorer   │     Welcome Page       │    Claude    │
│              │        (2/3)           │    (1/3)     │
│   files/     │                        │              │
│   folders    │                        │   $ claude   │
│              │                        │              │
└──────────────┴────────────────────────┴──────────────┘

2. Installs Claude Code (if needed)

If Claude Code is not already installed, the extension automatically runs the official installer:

• macOS/Linux: curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash
• Windows: irm https://claude.ai/install.ps1 | iex

No Node.js or npm required — the installer downloads a standalone binary.

3. Bootstraps Claude Code Configuration

When a workspace folder is open, the extension creates the following files if they don't already exist (never overwrites):

Generated settings.local.json includes:

• Permissions: Safe read-only tools (Read, WebSearch, Grep, etc.) + all cloned skills
• Marketplace: Lawvable marketplace registered for skill discovery
• Enabled Plugins: All skills from the cloned repo auto-enabled
• Always Thinking: Extended thinking mode enabled by default

Settings

Commands

• Minimal Agent Workspace: Open Layout — Manually trigger the workspace layout

Privacy & Transparency

This extension:

• Installs Claude Code using the official installer from Anthropic (if not already installed)
• Creates files in your workspace (.claude/ folder with CLAUDE.md, settings.local.json, and skills/)
• Clones a public GitHub repo (lawvable/awesome-legal-skills) to a temp folder, copies only the skills/ directory, then deletes the temp folder
• Never overwrites existing files
• Does not collect any data or telemetry

License

MIT