diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index ea7296c26..919ad84cd 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@ build*/
 _build*/
 install*/
 _install*/
-.vscode
 .vs
 out
 
diff --git a/.vscode/cmake-vs.cmd b/.vscode/cmake-vs.cmd
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..dd969569e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.vscode/cmake-vs.cmd
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+@REM SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2025 Vector Informatik GmbH
+@REM Wrapper used by VS Code tasks and CMake Tools.
+@REM It discovers a Visual Studio installation, initializes the MSVC dev environment,
+@REM then forwards all arguments to cmake so configure/build use consistent toolchains.
+@echo off
+setlocal
+
+set "VSWHERE=%ProgramFiles(x86)%\Microsoft Visual Studio\Installer\vswhere.exe"
+if not exist "%VSWHERE%" (
+	echo ERROR: Could not find vswhere at "%VSWHERE%".
+	exit /b 1
+)
+
+set "VSINSTALL="
+for /f "usebackq delims=" %%I in (`"%VSWHERE%" -latest -products * -requires Microsoft.VisualStudio.Component.VC.Tools.x86.x64 -property installationPath`) do set "VSINSTALL=%%I"
+
+if "%VSINSTALL%"=="" (
+	for /f "usebackq delims=" %%I in (`"%VSWHERE%" -latest -products * -requires Microsoft.Component.MSBuild -property installationPath`) do set "VSINSTALL=%%I"
+)
+
+if "%VSINSTALL%"=="" (
+	echo ERROR: Could not find a Visual Studio installation with C++ tools.
+	exit /b 1
+)
+
+call "%VSINSTALL%\Common7\Tools\VsDevCmd.bat" -no_logo -arch=x64 -host_arch=x64 >nul
+if errorlevel 1 (
+	echo ERROR: Failed to initialize VS developer environment.
+	exit /b 1
+)
+
+cmake %*
+exit /b %ERRORLEVEL%
diff --git a/.vscode/settings.json b/.vscode/settings.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..985618f24
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.vscode/settings.json
@@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
+// SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2025 Vector Informatik GmbH
+{
+    // Workspace-local tooling settings for Windows/MSVC development.
+    // CMake calls are routed through .vscode/cmake-vs.cmd and terminals default
+    // to a profile that preloads the Visual Studio developer environment.
+    "cmake.useCMakePresets": "always",
+    "cmake.cmakePath": "${workspaceFolder}\\.vscode\\cmake-vs.cmd",
+    "terminal.integrated.profiles.windows": {
+        "VS Dev PowerShell (x64)": {
+            "source": "PowerShell",
+            "args": [
+                "-NoExit",
+                "-ExecutionPolicy",
+                "Bypass",
+                "-File",
+                "${workspaceFolder}\\.vscode\\vs-dev-shell.ps1",
+                "-Arch",
+                "x64"
+            ]
+        }
+    },
+    "terminal.integrated.defaultProfile.windows": "VS Dev PowerShell (x64)"
+}
diff --git a/.vscode/vs-dev-shell.ps1 b/.vscode/vs-dev-shell.ps1
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..df674ffe8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.vscode/vs-dev-shell.ps1
@@ -0,0 +1,89 @@
+# SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2025 Vector Informatik GmbH
+#
+# SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT
+
+# Loads a Visual Studio developer shell into the current PowerShell session.
+# Usage examples:
+#   .\.vscode\vs-dev-shell.ps1
+#   .\.vscode\vs-dev-shell.ps1 -Arch x64
+#   .\.vscode\vs-dev-shell.ps1 -Arch x64 cmake --build --preset debug
+param(
+    [ValidateSet("x64", "x86", "arm64")]
+    [string]$Arch = "x64",
+
+    [Parameter(ValueFromRemainingArguments = $true)]
+    [string[]]$Command
+)
+
+Set-StrictMode -Version Latest
+$ErrorActionPreference = "Stop"
+
+function Get-VsInstallationPath {
+    $vswherePath = Join-Path ${env:ProgramFiles(x86)} "Microsoft Visual Studio\Installer\vswhere.exe"
+    if (-not (Test-Path $vswherePath)) {
+        throw "Could not find vswhere at '$vswherePath'. Install Visual Studio Installer first."
+    }
+
+    $path = & $vswherePath -latest -products * -requires Microsoft.VisualStudio.Component.VC.Tools.x86.x64 -property installationPath
+    if (-not $path) {
+        $path = & $vswherePath -latest -products * -requires Microsoft.Component.MSBuild -property installationPath
+    }
+    if (-not $path) {
+        throw "Could not find a Visual Studio installation with C++ tools."
+    }
+
+    return $path.Trim()
+}
+
+function Import-VsDevEnvironment {
+    param(
+        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)]
+        [string]$VsInstallPath,
+
+        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)]
+        [string]$TargetArch
+    )
+
+    $vsDevCmd = Join-Path $VsInstallPath "Common7\Tools\VsDevCmd.bat"
+    if (-not (Test-Path $vsDevCmd)) {
+        throw "Could not find VsDevCmd.bat at '$vsDevCmd'."
+    }
+
+    $envDump = & cmd.exe /s /c "`"$vsDevCmd`" -no_logo -arch=$TargetArch -host_arch=$TargetArch && set"
+    if ($LASTEXITCODE -ne 0) {
+        throw "VsDevCmd failed with exit code $LASTEXITCODE."
+    }
+
+    foreach ($line in $envDump) {
+        if ($line -match "^([^=]+)=(.*)$") {
+            $name = $matches[1]
+            $value = $matches[2]
+            Set-Item -Path "Env:$name" -Value $value
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+try {
+    $env:VSCMD_SKIP_SENDTELEMETRY = "1"
+    $installPath = Get-VsInstallationPath
+    Import-VsDevEnvironment -VsInstallPath $installPath -TargetArch $Arch
+
+    Write-Host "Loaded Visual Studio dev environment:" -ForegroundColor Green
+    Write-Host "  VS Path: $installPath"
+    Write-Host "  Target:  $Arch"
+
+    if ($null -ne $Command -and $Command.Length -gt 0 -and -not [string]::IsNullOrWhiteSpace($Command[0])) {
+        $exe = $Command[0]
+        $args = @()
+        if ($Command.Length -gt 1) {
+            $args = $Command[1..($Command.Length - 1)]
+        }
+
+        & $exe @args
+        exit $LASTEXITCODE
+    }
+}
+catch {
+    Write-Error $_
+    exit 1
+}
diff --git a/SilKit/ci/check_licenses.sh b/SilKit/ci/check_licenses.sh
index cf20a4e78..ebc7ff41c 100644
--- a/SilKit/ci/check_licenses.sh
+++ b/SilKit/ci/check_licenses.sh
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ assemble_file_string()
 # Yes this is weird that we single out some directories and the include "."
 # But the regex filters only work if more than one path is provided
 result="$(licensecheck --check='\.c.*$|\.h.*$|\.py|CMakeLists.txt|\.sh' \
-    --ignore='ThirdParty|.git|.clang-format' \
+    --ignore='ThirdParty|.git|.clang-format|\.vscode/cmake-vs\.cmd' \
     --recursive -- ./SilKit/* ./Demos/* ./Utilities/* .)"
 
 numfiles=$(echo "$result" | wc -l)