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Development

This guide covers how to build and publish the Flint extension.

Prerequisites​

  • Node.js 22+
  • npm
  • VS Code
  • vsce (Visual Studio Code Extension manager)

Setup​

  1. Clone the repository:
git clone https://github.com/bw-design-group/flint-vscode-extension.git
cd flint-vscode-extension
  1. Install dependencies:
npm install

Building​

Development Build​

For testing locally:

npm run compile

Watch Mode​

Auto-compile on changes:

npm run watch

Testing​

Run Extension in Debug Mode​

  1. Open the project in VS Code
  2. Press F5 to launch a new VS Code window with the extension loaded
  3. Test your changes in the new window

Run Tests​

npm test

Publishing​

Prerequisites for Publishing​

  1. Install vsce:
npm install -g @vscode/vsce
  1. Get a Personal Access Token from Azure DevOps or use your publisher account

Package the Extension​

Create a .vsix file:

vsce package

Publish to Marketplace​

vsce publish

Or publish a specific version:

vsce publish minor  # Bumps minor version
vsce publish major  # Bumps major version
vsce publish 1.2.3  # Specific version

Publish Pre-release​

vsce publish --pre-release

Project Structure​

flint-vscode-extension/
├── src/
│   ├── extension.ts           # Extension entry point
│   ├── commands/              # Command implementations
│   ├── providers/             # Tree data providers
│   ├── services/              # Core services
│   └── utils/                 # Utility functions
├── package.json               # Extension manifest
├── tsconfig.json              # TypeScript configuration
└── flint.config.json         # Example configuration

Key Files​

  • package.json - Extension manifest with commands, settings, and dependencies
  • src/extension.ts - Main entry point that registers commands and providers
  • flint.config.json - Example configuration for testing

Making Changes​

  1. Make your changes
  2. Run npm run compile to build
  3. Test in debug mode (F5)
  4. Run npm run lint to check code style
  5. Commit and push your changes

Version Management​

The version is managed in package.json. Follow semantic versioning:

  • Major: Breaking changes
  • Minor: New features
  • Patch: Bug fixes

Useful Commands​

# Clean and rebuild
npm run clean && npm run compile

# Run linter
npm run lint

# Package for distribution
vsce package

# Show extension info
vsce show Keith-gamble.ignition-flint

Troubleshooting​

Build Errors​

  1. Delete node_modules and package-lock.json
  2. Run npm install again
  3. Make sure TypeScript version matches tsconfig.json

Publishing Errors​

  1. Ensure you're logged in: vsce login your-publisher-name
  2. Check your Personal Access Token is valid
  3. Verify version number is higher than published version

Contributing​

  1. Fork the repository
  2. Create a feature branch
  3. Make your changes
  4. Submit a pull request

For more details, see the repository.