vscli

A CLI/TUI which makes it easy to launch Visual Studio Code (vscode) dev containers. Also supports other editors like Cursor.

Read here about the journey of reverse engineering Microsoft's dev container CLI in order to make this.

Features

• A shorthand for launching vscode projects (to be used like the code command but with dev container support)
• Supports different editors like vscode, vscode-insiders, cursor and other vscode forks
• Detects whether a project is a dev container project, and launches the dev container instead
• Supports multiple dev containers in the same project
• Tracks your projects and allows you to open them using a CLI-based UI
• External devcontainer configs: store reusable configs separately and apply them to any project via --config <name>
• Container management: list, inspect and stop running devcontainers

Installation

Cargo

Install vscli using cargo on Windows or Linux:

cargo install vscli

Homebrew

Install vscli using homebrew on Linux or Mac:

brew install michidk/tools/vscli

Chocolatey

Install vscli using Chocolatey on Windows:

choco install vscli

Winget

Install vscli using winget on Windows:

winget install vscli

Additional steps

You can set a shorthand alias for vscli in your shell's configuration file:

alias vs="vscli open"
alias vsr="vscli recent"

Usage

Commands

After installation, the vscli command will be available:

Usage: vscli [OPTIONS] <COMMAND>

Commands:
  open       Opens a dev container
  recent     Opens an interactive list of recently used workspaces
  config     Manage external devcontainer configurations
  container  Manage running devcontainers
  help       Print this message or the help of the given subcommand(s)

Options:
  -s, --history-path <HISTORY_PATH>  Overwrite the default path to the history file [env: HISTORY_PATH=]
      --config-dir <CONFIG_DIR>      Overwrite the default path to the config directory [env: VSCLI_CONFIG_DIR=]
  -d, --dry-run                      Whether to launch in dry-run mode (not actually open vscode) [env: DRY_RUN=]
  -v, --verbose...                   Increase logging verbosity
  -q, --quiet...                     Decrease logging verbosity
  -h, --help                         Print help
  -V, --version                      Print version

Open Dev Containers

Opens a dev container.

Usage: vscli open [OPTIONS] [PATH] [ARGS]...

Arguments:
  [PATH]     The path of the vscode project to open [default: .]
  [ARGS]...  Additional arguments to pass to the editor [env: ARGS=]

Options:
  -c, --command <COMMAND>            The editor command to use (e.g. "code", "code-insiders", "cursor") [env: COMMAND=]
  -s, --history-path <HISTORY_PATH>  Overwrite the default path to the history file [env: HISTORY_PATH=]
  -b, --behavior <BEHAVIOR>          Launch behavior [possible values: detect, force-container, force-classic]
      --config-dir <CONFIG_DIR>      Overwrite the default path to the config directory [env: VSCLI_CONFIG_DIR=]
      --config <CONFIG>              Overwrites the path to the dev container config file (accepts a path or a config name) [env: CONFIG=]
  -d, --dry-run                      Whether to launch in dry-run mode (not actually open vscode) [env: DRY_RUN=]
  -v, --verbose...                   Increase logging verbosity
  -q, --quiet...                     Decrease logging verbosity
  -h, --help                         Print help (see more with '--help')

Recent UI

Opens an interactive list of recently used workspaces.

Usage: vscli recent [OPTIONS] [ARGS]...

Arguments:
  [ARGS]...  Additional arguments to pass to the editor [env: ARGS=]

Options:
      --hide-instructions            Hide the instruction message in the UI
  -s, --history-path <HISTORY_PATH>  Overwrite the default path to the history file [env: HISTORY_PATH=]
  -d, --dry-run                      Whether to launch in dry-run mode (not actually open vscode) [env: DRY_RUN=]
      --hide-info                    Hide additional information like strategy, command, args and dev container path in the UI
  -c, --command <COMMAND>            The editor command to use (e.g. "code", "code-insiders", "cursor") [env: COMMAND=]
  -v, --verbose...                   Increase logging verbosity
  -b, --behavior <BEHAVIOR>          Launch behavior [possible values: detect, force-container, force-classic]
  -q, --quiet...                     Decrease logging verbosity
      --config <CONFIG>              Overwrites the path to the dev container config file [env: CONFIG=]
  -h, --help                         Print help (see more with '--help')

Both the open and recent commands share the same set of launch arguments:

• --command: Specify which editor command to use (e.g., "code", "code-insiders", "cursor")
• --behavior: Set the launch behavior ("detect", "force-container", "force-classic")
• --config: Override the path to the dev container config file, or pass a config name to resolve from the config directory
• Additional arguments can be passed to the editor executable by specifying them after --

The recent command additionally supports:

• --hide-instructions: Hide the keybinding instructions from the UI
• --hide-info: Hide additional information like strategy, command, args and dev container path

Config Management

Manage external devcontainer configurations stored in ~/.local/share/vscli/configs/ (or $VSCLI_CONFIG_DIR).

Configs are directories containing .devcontainer/devcontainer.json. They can be used with any project via --config <name>, decoupling the dev container configuration from the project repository.

vscli config add python-dev           # create a minimal config
vscli config copy python-dev          # copy a stored config into the current directory
vscli config copy python-dev ~/work   # copy a stored config into another directory
vscli config list                     # list available configs
vscli config list --long              # list with descriptions and paths
vscli config ui                       # interactive picker (opens selected config for editing)
vscli config dir                      # print config directory path
vscli config rm python-dev            # remove a config (with confirmation)

Using a named config to open a project:

vscli open --config python-dev ~/my-project   # open project with external config

Container Management

List, inspect and stop running devcontainers (queries Docker for containers with devcontainer labels).

vscli container list                  # list running devcontainers
vscli container list -a               # include stopped containers
vscli container ui                    # interactive picker (select to reopen in VS Code)
vscli container info <id>             # detailed info (ports, mounts, config)
vscli container stop <id>             # stop a devcontainer

Short aliases are available: cfg for config, ct for container, ls for list.

vscli ct ui                           # same as: vscli container ui
vscli cfg ls -l                       # same as: vscli config list --long

Keybindings

The following keybindings apply to all interactive TUI screens (recent, config ui, container ui, and multi-devcontainer selection):

Key/Key Combination	Action	Description
Esc, Ctrl+Q or Ctrl+C	Quit	Exits the application.
Down or Ctrl+J	Select Next	Moves to the next selectable item.
Up or Ctrl+K	Select Previous	Moves to the previous selectable item.
KeypadBegin or Ctrl+1	Select First	Selects the first item.
End or Ctrl+0	Select Last	Selects the last item.
Enter or Ctrl+O	Open Selected	Opens the currently selected item.
Delete, Ctrl+R, or Ctrl+X	Delete Selected Entry	Deletes the currently selected item.

Note: If an input does not match any of the defined keybindings, it is treated as part of a search input.

Mouse Interactions

Mouse Action	Description
Left Click	Selects an item. Clicking the same item again opens it.
Mouse Wheel	Scrolls through the list, moving selection up/down.

Launch Behavior

There are three launch behaviors:

• force-classic: Launch vscode without a dev container
• force-container: Launch vscode with a dev container, error if no dev container is found
• detect: Detect whether the project is a dev container project, and launch the dev container if it is

Detection Algorithm

The detection algorithm determines which dev container config to launch.

• First, check whether a dev container config was specified via the --config flag -> launch it
• Then loads the first dev container it finds
  • If more than one exists -> show an interactive list of dev containers and let the user select one
  • If one exists -> launch it
  • If none exists -> launch vscode normally without a dev container

Examples

Launching a project

You can launch a project using the default behavior:

vscli open                          # open vscode in the current directory
vscli open .                        # open vscode in the current directory
vscli open /path/to/project         # open vscode in the specified directory

The default behavior tries to detect whether the project is a dev container project. If it is, it will launch the dev container instead - if not it will launch vscode normally.

You can change the launch behavior using the --behavior flag:

vscli open --behavior force-container .  # force open vscode dev container (even if vscli did not detect a dev container)
vscli open --behavior force-classic .    # force open vscode without a dev container (even if vscli did detect a dev container)

When you open a project containing more than one dev container config, you will be prompted to select one:

You can specify which editor command to use with the --command flag:

vscli open --command cursor .        # open using cursor editor
vscli open --command code .          # open using vscode (default)
vscli open --command code-insiders . # open using vscode insiders

Additional arguments can be passed to the editor executable, by specifying them after --:

vscli open . -- --disable-gpu        # open the current directory without GPU hardware acceleration

Read more about the editor flags by executing code --help (or cursor --help, etc).

CLI UI

You can open a CLI-based user interface to display a list of recently opened projects using the recent command:

vscli recent                                    # open the CLI-based UI to select a recently opened project to open
vscli recent --command cursor                   # open the selected project with cursor, ignoring the editor stored in history
vscli recent --behavior force-container         # force open the selected project in a dev container
vscli recent --command cursor --behavior detect # open with cursor and detect if dev container should be used
vscli recent --config .devcontainer/custom.json # open with a specific dev container config
vscli recent -- --disable-gpu                   # pass additional arguments to the editor
vscli recent --hide-instructions                # hide the keybinding instructions from the UI
vscli recent --hide-info                        # hide additional information like strategy, command, args and dev container path

The UI mode provides a convenient way to browse and manage your recent workspaces, with customizable display options and full support for all launch configurations.

External Configs

You can store dev container configurations outside your project repositories and reference them by name:

vscli config add rust-dev                        # create a minimal config named "rust-dev"
# edit ~/.local/share/vscli/configs/rust-dev/.devcontainer/devcontainer.json to your liking
vscli open --config rust-dev ~/projects/my-app   # open any project with the "rust-dev" config
vscli open --config rust-dev ~/projects/other    # reuse the same config for a different project

If you want to start from a stored config and make it project-local, copy it into your repo first:

vscli config copy rust-dev                        # copy into the current directory
vscli config copy rust-dev ~/projects/my-app     # copy into another project directory

Environment Variables

Variable	Description
VSCLI_CONFIG_DIR	Override the config directory (default: ~/.local/share/vscli/configs)
VSCLI_EDITOR	Editor command for config ui and container ui (default: code)
HISTORY_PATH	Override the history file path
DRY_RUN	Enable dry-run mode