RunIt

From Code to Running Application — One Command.

RunIt is a VS Code extension that turns any cloned repository into a running application. It analyzes the codebase, detects languages and frameworks, checks your machine for required tools, installs dependencies, launches every service in the correct order, monitors output, and generates an intelligent failure report when something breaks.

Instead of remembering npm run dev, python main.py, mvn spring-boot:run, go run ., cargo run, or docker compose up — you run one command.

Usage

1. Open any project folder in VS Code.
2. Press Ctrl+Shift+P, type Launch Project, and hit Enter — or just click the 🚀 Launch Project button in the status bar.
3. Watch the services come up. A status bar item shows how many are running.

Commands:

Launching from the terminal

Run Install 'launch-project' Terminal Command once from the command palette. It adds a launch-project command (with a shorter runit alias) to your shell profile (PowerShell $PROFILE on Windows, .bashrc/.zshrc elsewhere). Open a new terminal and type:

launch-project

The command sends a vscode://tanishbhandari24.runit/launch deep link to VS Code, which triggers RunIt in the active window. When a service prints its dev-server URL (e.g. http://localhost:5173), RunIt highlights it in the output and shows an Open in Browser notification.

What happens when you launch

1. Project analysis — the workspace root and each top-level folder are scanned for package.json, requirements.txt, pyproject.toml, manage.py, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.toml, and Docker Compose files. Frameworks (React, Next.js, Express, FastAPI, Flask, Django, Streamlit, Spring Boot, …) are identified from dependencies and file layout.
2. Environment detection — RunIt probes the machine for the tools each service needs (Node, Python, Java, Go, Rust, Docker) and refuses to launch with a clear install hint if one is missing.
3. Dependency installation — npm install, pip install -r requirements.txt, mvn install, go mod download, cargo build, as appropriate.
4. Launch planning — services are ordered so dependencies start first: Docker/infra → backend → frontend.
5. Execution and monitoring — each service runs as a managed process with its own output channel. RunIt watches the logs for ready signals (e.g. Uvicorn running, localhost:3000) before starting the next service.
6. Failure intelligence — if an install or launch fails, RunIt writes RunIt_Report.md into the project with the failed component, exit code, a diagnosed reason, a concrete fix, and the captured error log — then opens it automatically.

Supported technologies (Phase 1)

Architecture

                 VS Code
                    |
              RunIt Extension (extension.ts)
                    |
     ------------------------------------
     |                                  |
 Project Intelligence              Run Engine
     |                                  |
 scanner.ts   — file scan,         runner.ts  — process manager,
                language +                      output capture,
                framework                       ready detection,
                detection,                      stop/restart
                command discovery
 planner.ts   — launch ordering    environment.ts — tool checks
                    |
              report.ts — error rules + RunIt_Report.md

Development

npm install
npm run compile     # or: npm run watch

Press F5 in VS Code to launch an Extension Development Host with RunIt loaded, then open any project in that window and run Launch Project (or click the 🚀 status bar button).

Roadmap

• Phase 1 (this repo): detection, dependency install, ordered launch, monitoring, rule-based failure reports.
• Phase 2: health checks against ports/URLs, per-service restart, .runit.json overrides.
• Phase 3: AI-powered error explanations and fix suggestions (Gemini / OpenAI / Claude) for failures the rule engine can't diagnose.
• Phase 4: Marketplace publishing, docs, demo videos.