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ESP-IDF Extension for VS Code

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Develop, build, flash, monitor, debug and more with Espressif chips using Espressif IoT Development Framework (ESP-IDF).

Latest master installer for Visual Studio Code. You can use this VSIX to test the current github master of the extension by pressing F1 or click menu View -> Command Palette..., type Install from VSIX and then select the previously downloaded .vsix file to install the extension.

Make sure to review our Espressif documentation first to properly use the extension.

How to use

Install

1. Download and install Visual Studio Code.

2. Install ESP-IDF system prerequisites for your operating system:

• Prerequisites for MacOS and Linux. • For Windows there is no additional prerequisites.

3. In Visual Studio Code, Open the Extensions view by clicking on the Extension icon in the Activity Bar on the side of Visual Studio Code or the View: Show Extensions command (shortcut: ⇧ ⌘ X or Ctrl+Shift+X).

4. Search for ESP-IDF Extension.

5. Install the extension. After you install the extension, the should appear in the VS Code Activity bar (left side set of icons). When you click the Espressif icon, you can see a list of basic commands provided by this extension.

6. From the command list, select ESP-IDF: Open ESP-IDF Installation Manager or press F1 and type Open ESP-IDF Installation Manager. After, choose the ESP-IDF: ESP-IDF: Open ESP-IDF Installation Manager option. NOTE: For versions of ESP-IDF Command Palette and type select current esp-idf version and select ESP-IDF: Select Current ESP-IDF Version from the list. The list of available ESP-IDF setups will be shown, select which one you want to use for the current ESP-IDF project. The selected setup will save the selected ESP-IDF path as idf.currentSetup and the extension will configure environment variables for the current project saved as workspace folder state. You can review the setup by navigating to View > Command Palette, typing doctor command, and selecting ESP-IDF: Doctor Command from the list.

10. If everything is installed correctly, you will see a message that all settings have been configured. You can start using the extension.

Check the Troubleshooting section if you have any issues.

Using the ESP-IDF Extension for VS Code

This extension provides a list of icons in the status bar (blue bar in the bottom of VS Code window) for ESP-IDF commands. You can see the command to be executed when you hover the icon.

These icons will be used in the steps below showing common ESP-IDF use cases:

1. Press F1 and type ESP-IDF: New Project to create a new project from ESP-IDF examples. Select ESP-IDF and choose an example to create a new project from.

2. Once the project is created and opened in VS Code, set the serial port of your device by clicking status bar icon . Alternatively, press F1, type ESP-IDF: Select Port to Use, and choose the serial port to which your device is connected.

3. Select an Espressif target (esp32, esp32s2, etc.) by clicking status bar icon . Alternatively, press F1 and type ESP-IDF: Set Espressif Device Target command.

4. Next, configure your ESP-IDF project by clicking status bar icon or press F1 and typing ESP-IDF: SDK Configuration Editor command (CTRL E G keyboard shortcut) where you can modify the ESP-IDF project settings. After all changes are made, click Save and close this window. You can see the output in the menu View -> Output and choose ESP-IDF from the dropdown list.

5. (OPTIONAL) Run ESP-IDF: Run idf.py reconfigure Task to generate the `compile_commands.json file so language support works. Additionally you can configure the .vscode/c_cpp_properties.json` as explained in C/C++ Configuration documentation.

6. At this point, you can modify the code. When the project is completed, build your project by clicking status bar icon or pressing F1 and typing ESP-IDF: Build your Project.

7. Flash to your device by clicking status bar icon , or pressing F1 and typing ESP-IDF: Flash Your Project. From there, select UART, DFU or JTAG depending on your serial connection, and start flashing the application to your device.

8. Change the flash method by clicking status bar icon , or pressing F1 and typing ESP-IDF: Select Flash Method to select from UART, DFU or JTAG. You can alternatively use one of the commands ESP-IDF: Flash (UART) Your Project, ESP-IDF: Flash (with JTAG) or ESP-IDF: Flash (DFU) Your Project.

9. Start a monitor by clicking status bar icon , or pressing F1 and typing ESP-IDF: Monitor Device, which will log the device activity in a Visual Studio Code terminal.

10. Make sure to configure your drivers as mentioned in ESP-IDF Configure JTAG Interface documentation.

11. Before debugging your device, if you are using a connected ESP-IDF development board, the OpenOCD configuration will be automatically selected based on your connected board, including the USB location if available (requires OpenOCD version v0.12.0-esp32-20240821 or higher). Otherwise, you can manually select the device OpenOCD board configuration files by pressing F1 and typing ESP-IDF: Select OpenOCD Board Configuration. You can test the connection by clicking status bar icon or pressing F1 and typing ESP-IDF: OpenOCD Manager. The output is shown in the menu View -> Output and choose ESP-IDF from the dropdown list.

NOTE: You can start or stop the OpenOCD in Visual Studio Code using the ESP-IDF: OpenOCD Manager command or by clicking the OpenOCD Server (Running | Stopped) button in the status bar.

12. If you want to start a debug session, just press F5 (ensure the project is built, flashed, and OpenOCD is properly connected for the debugger to function correctly). The debug session output can be seen in the menu View -> Debug Console.

Check the Troubleshooting section if you have any issues.

Further reading

Check the ESP-IDF Extension for VS Code Documentation for tutorials, commands and features provided.

All Available Commands…

Description from the VS Code Marketplace listing.