-->![Visual Visual](https://www.ihack.biz/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/wp_editor_md_767795b25d4a49a0625cb4ed3d30cf9b.jpg)
Using Visual Studio Code for PowerShell Development.; 9 minutes to read; s; In this article. Visual Studio Code is a cross-platform script editor by Microsoft. Together with the PowerShell extension, it provides a rich and interactive script editing experience, making it easier to write reliable PowerShell scripts.Visual Studio Code with the PowerShell extension is the recommended. One place for all extensions for Visual Studio, Azure DevOps Services, Azure DevOps Server and Visual Studio Code. Discover and install extensions and subscriptions to create the dev environment you need. Visual Studio Code is free and available on your favorite platform - Linux, macOS, and Windows. Download Visual Studio Code to experience a redefined code editor, optimized for building and debugging modern web and cloud applications. Visual Studio Online will be available for free for a while. You can use VS Code Cloud on any device convenient for you (ipad, mac, android, chromebook). And we will be interested to know your impressions about it! After 7 days, the demo mode will be over.
Visual Studio Code is a code editor redefined and optimized for building and debugging modern web and cloud applications. Visual Studio Code is free and available on your favorite platform.
Visual Studio Code is a cross-platform script editor by Microsoft. Together with thePowerShell extension, it provides a rich and interactive script editing experience, makingit easier to write reliable PowerShell scripts. Visual Studio Code with the PowerShell extension isthe recommended editor for writing PowerShell scripts.
It supports the following PowerShell versions:
- PowerShell 7 and up (Windows, macOS, and Linux)
- PowerShell Core 6 (Windows, macOS, and Linux)
- Windows PowerShell 5.1 (Windows-only)
Note
Visual Studio Code is not the same as Visual Studio.
Getting started
Before you begin, make sure PowerShell exists on your system. For modern workloads on Windows,macOS, and Linux, see the following links:
For traditional Windows PowerShell workloads, see Installing Windows PowerShell.
Important
The Windows PowerShell ISE is still available for Windows. However, it is no longer inactive feature development. The ISE does not work with PowerShell 6 and higher. As a component ofWindows, it continues to be officially supported for security and high-priority servicing fixes.We have no plans to remove the ISE from Windows.
Editing with Visual Studio Code
- Install Visual Studio Code. For more information, see the overviewSetting up Visual Studio Code.There are installation instructions for each platform:
- Windows: follow the installation instructions on theRunning Visual Studio Code on Windows page.
- macOS: follow the installation instructions on theRunning Visual Studio Code on macOS page.
- Linux: follow the installation instructions on theRunning Visual Studio Code on Linux page.
- Install the PowerShell Extension.
- Launch the Visual Studio Code app by typing
code
in a console orcode-insiders
if you installed Visual Studio Code Insiders. - Launch Quick Open on Windows or Linux by pressing Ctrl+P. On macOS,press Cmd+P.
- In Quick Open, type
ext install powershell
and press Enter. - The Extensions view opens on the Side Bar. Select the PowerShell extension from Microsoft.You should see a Visual Studio Code screen similar to the following image:
- Click the Install button on the PowerShell extension from Microsoft.
- After the install, if you see the Install button turn into Reload, Click on Reload.
- After Visual Studio Code has reloaded, you're ready for editing.
For example, to create a new file, click File > New. To save it, click File > Save and thenprovide a file name, such as
HelloWorld.ps1
. To close the file, click the X
next to the filename. To exit Visual Studio Code, File > Exit.Installing the PowerShell Extension on Restricted Systems
Some systems are set up to require validation of all code signatures. You may receive the followingerror:
This problem can occur when PowerShell's execution policy is set by Windows Group Policy. Tomanually approve PowerShell Editor Services and the PowerShell extension for Visual Studio Code,open a PowerShell prompt and run the following command:
You're prompted with Do you want to run software from this untrusted publisher? Type
A
to runthe file. Then, open Visual Studio Code and check that the PowerShell extension is functioningproperly. If you still have problems getting started, let us know on GitHub issues.Note
The PowerShell extension for Visual Studio Code does not support running in constrained languagemode. For more information, see GitHub issue #606.
Choosing a version of PowerShell to use with the extension
With PowerShell Core installing side-by-side with Windows PowerShell, it's now possible to use aspecific version of PowerShell with the PowerShell extension. This feature looks at a few well-knownpaths on different operating systems to discover installations of PowerShell.
Use the following steps to choose the version:
- Open the Command Palette on Windows or Linux withCtrl+Shift+P. On macOS, useCmd+Shift+P.
- Search for Session.
- Click on PowerShell: Show Session Menu.
- Choose the version of PowerShell you want to use from the list, for example: PowerShell Core.
If you installed PowerShell to a non-typical location, it might not show up initially in the SessionMenu. You can extend the session menu by adding your own custom pathsas described below.
Note
The PowerShell session menu can also be accessed from the green version number in the bottom rightcorner of status bar. Clicking this version number opens the session menu.
Configuration settings for Visual Studio Code
First, if you're not familiar with how to change settings in Visual Studio Code, we recommendreading Visual Studio Code's settings documentation.
After reading the documentation, you can add configuration settings in
settings.json
.If you don't want these settings to affect all files types, Visual Studio Code also allowsper-language configurations. Create a language-specific setting by putting settings in a
[<language-name>]
field. For example:Tip
For more information about file encoding in Visual Studio Code, see Understanding file encoding.
Also, check out How to replicate the ISE experience in Visual Studio Code for othertips on how to configure Visual Studio Code for PowerShell editing.
Adding your own PowerShell paths to the session menu
You can add other PowerShell executable paths to the session menu through theVisual Studio Code setting:
powershell.powerShellAdditionalExePaths
.Add an item to the list
powershell.powerShellAdditionalExePaths
or create the list if it doesn'texist in your settings.json
:Each item must have:
exePath
: The path to thepwsh
orpowershell
executable.versionName
: The text that will show up in the session menu.
To set the default PowerShell version, set the value
powershell.powerShellDefaultVersion
to thetext displayed in the session menu (also known as the versionName
):After you've configured this setting, restart Visual Studio Code or to reload the current VisualStudio Code window from the Command Palette, type Developer: Reload Window.
If you open the session menu, you now see your additional PowerShell versions!
Note
If you build PowerShell from source, this is a great way to test out your local build ofPowerShell.
Using an older version of the PowerShell Extension for Windows PowerShell v3 and v4
The current PowerShell extension doesn't support PowerShell v3 and v4. However, you canuse the last version of the extension that supports PowerShell v3 and v4.
Caution
There will be no additional fixes to this older version of the extension. It's provided 'AS IS'but is available for you if you are still using Windows PowerShell v3 and Windows PowerShell v4.
First, open the Extension pane and search for
PowerShell
. Then click the gear and selectInstall another version...Then select the 2020.1.0 version. This version of the extension was the last version tosupport v3 and v4. Be sure to add the following setting so that your extension version doesn'tupdate automatically:
Version 2020.1.0 will work for the foreseeable future. Anydesk for samsung tv. However, Visual Studio Code couldimplement a change that breaks this version of the extension. Because of this, and lack of support,we recommend:
Vscode Visual Basic 2020
- Upgrading to Windows PowerShell 5.1
- Install PowerShell 7, which is a side-by-side install to Windows PowerShell and works thebest with the PowerShell extension
Debugging with Visual Studio Code
No-workspace debugging
In Visual Studio Code version 1.9 (or higher), you can debug PowerShell scripts without opening thefolder that contains the PowerShell script.
- Open the PowerShell script file with File > Open File..
- Set a breakpoint - select a line then press F9
- Press F5 to start debugging
You should see the Debug actions pane appear which allows you to break into the debugger,step, resume, and stop debugging.
Workspace debugging
Workspace debugging refers to debugging in the context of a folder that you've opened from theFile menu using Open Folder... The folder you open is typically your PowerShell projectfolder or the root of your Git repository. Workspace debugging allows you to define multiple debugconfigurations other than just debugging the currently open file.
Follow these steps to create a debug configuration file:
- Open the Debug view on Windows or Linux by pressingCtrl+Shift+D. On macOS, pressCmd+Shift+D.
- Click the create a launch.json file link.
- From the Select Environment prompt, choose PowerShell.
- Choose the type of debugging you'd like to use:
- Launch Current File - Launch and debug the file in the currently active editor window
- Launch Script - Launch and debug the specified file or command
- Interactive Session - Debug commands executed from the Integrated Console
- Attach - Attach the debugger to a running PowerShell Host Process
Visual Studio Code creates a directory and a file
.vscodelaunch.json
in the root of yourworkspace folder to store the debug configuration. If your files are in a Git repository, youtypically want to commit the launch.json
file. The contents of the launch.json
file are:This file represents the common debug scenarios. When you open this file in the editor, you see anAdd Configuration.. button. You can click this button to add more PowerShell debugconfigurations. One useful configuration to add is PowerShell: Launch Script. With thisconfiguration, you can specify a file containing optional arguments that are used whenever youpress F5 no matter which file is active in the editor.
After the debug configuration is established, you can select which configuration you want to useduring a debug session. Select a configuration from the debug configuration drop-down in theDebug view's toolbar.
Troubleshooting the PowerShell extension for Visual Studio Code
If you experience any issues using Visual Studio Code for PowerShell script development, see thetroubleshooting guide on GitHub.
Useful resources
There are a few videos and blog posts that may be helpful to get you started using the PowerShellextension for Visual Studio Code:
Videos
Blog posts
PowerShell extension project source code
The PowerShell extension's source code can be found on GitHub.
If you're interested in contributing, Pull Requests are greatly appreciated. Follow along with thedeveloper documentation on GitHub to get started.
-->In this tutorial for Visual Basic (VB), you'll use Visual Studio to create and run a few different console apps and explore some features of the Visual Studio integrated development environment (IDE) while you do so.
If you haven't already installed Visual Studio, go to the Visual Studio downloads page to install it for free.
If you haven't already installed Visual Studio, go to the Visual Studio downloads page to install it for free.
Create a project
First, we'll create a Visual Basic application project. The project type comes with all the template files you'll need, before you've even added anything!
![Visual Visual](https://www.ihack.biz/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/wp_editor_md_767795b25d4a49a0625cb4ed3d30cf9b.jpg)
- Open Visual Studio 2017.
- From the top menu bar, choose File > New > Project.
- In the New Project dialog box in the left pane, expand Visual Basic, and then choose .NET Core. In the middle pane, choose Console App (.NET Core). Then name the project WhatIsYourName.
Visual Studio Code Basic
Add a workload (optional)
If you don't see the Console App (.NET Core) project template, you can get it by adding the .NET Core cross-platform development workload. You can add this workload in one of the two following ways, depending on which Visual Studio 2017 updates are installed on your machine.
Option 1: Use the New Project dialog box
- Click the Open Visual Studio Installer link in the left pane of the New Project dialog box.
- The Visual Studio Installer launches. Choose the .NET Core cross-platform development workload, and then choose Modify.
Option 2: Use the Tools menu bar
- Cancel out of the New Project dialog box and from the top menu bar, choose Tools > Get Tools and Features.
- The Visual Studio Installer launches. Choose the .NET Core cross-platform development workload, and then choose Modify.
Note
Some of the screenshots in this tutorial use the dark theme. If you aren't using the dark theme but would like to, see the Personalize the Visual Studio IDE and Editor page to learn how.
- Open Visual Studio 2019.
- On the start window, choose Create a new project.
- In the Create a new project window, choose Visual Basic from the Language list. Next, choose Windows from the Platform list and Console from the project types list.After you apply the language, platform, and project type filters, choose the Console Application template, and then choose Next.NoteIf you do not see the Console Application template, you can install it from the Create a new project window. In the Not finding what you're looking for? message, choose the Install more tools and features link.Then, in the Visual Studio Installer, choose the .NET Core cross-platform development workload.After that, choose the Modify button in the Visual Studio Installer. You might be prompted to save your work; if so, do so. Next, choose Continue to install the workload. Then, return to step 2 in this 'Create a project' procedure.
- In the Configure your new project window, type or enter WhatIsYourName in the Project name box. Then, choose Next.
- In the Additional information window, .NET Core 3.1 should already be selected for your target framework. If not, select .NET Core 3.1. Then, choose Create.Visual Studio opens your new project.
Create a 'What Is Your Name' application
Let's create an app that prompts you for your name and then displays it along with the date and time. Here's how:
Help With Visual Basic Coding
- If it is not already open, then open your WhatIsYourName project.
- Enter the following Visual Basic code immediately after the opening bracket that follows the
Sub Main(args As String())
line and before theEnd Sub
line:This code replaces the existing WriteLine, Write, and ReadKey statements. - Use the green Start button, or press F5 to build and run your first app.
- When the console window opens, enter your name. Your console window should look similar to the following screenshot:
- Press any key to close the console window.
- In the WhatIsYourName project, enter the following Visual Basic code immediately after the opening bracket that follows the
Sub Main(args As String())
line and before theEnd Sub
line:This code replaces the existing WriteLine, Write, and ReadKey statements. - Use the green Start button, or press F5 to build and run your first app.
- When the console window opens, enter your name. Your console window should look similar to the following screenshot:
- Press any key to close the console window.
Create a 'Calculate This' application
- Open Visual Studio 2017, and then from the top menu bar, choose File > New > Project.
- In the New Project dialog box in the left pane, expand Visual Basic, and then choose .NET Core. In the middle pane, choose Console App (.NET Core). Then name the file CalculateThis.
- Enter the following code between the
Module Program
line andEnd Module
line:Your code window should look like the following screenshot: - Click CalculateThis to run your program. Your console window should look similar to the following screenshot:
- On the start window, choose Create a new project.
- In the Create a new project window, choose Visual Basic from the Language list. Min in python. Next, choose Windows from the Platform list and Console from the project types list.
- After you apply the language, platform, and project type filters, choose the Console Application template, and then choose Next.Then, in the Configure your new project window, type or enter CalculateThis in the Project name box. Then, choose Next.
- In the Additional information window, .NET Core 3.1 should already be selected for your target framework. If not, select .NET Core 3.1. Then, choose Create.
- Enter the following code between the
Module Program
line andEnd Module
line:Your code window should look like the following screenshot: - Click CalculateThis to run your program. Your console window should look similar to the following screenshot:
Quick answers FAQ
Here's a quick FAQ to highlight some key concepts.
What is Visual Basic?
Visual Basic is a type-safe programming language that's designed to be easy to learn. It is derived from BASIC, which means 'Beginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code'.
What is Visual Studio?
Visual Studio is an integrated development suite of productivity tools for developers. Think of it as a program you can use to create programs and applications.
What is a console app?
A console app takes input and displays output in a command-line window, also known as a console.
What is .NET Core?
.NET Core is the evolutionary next step of the .NET Framework. Where the .NET Framework allowed you to share code across programming languages, .NET Core adds the ability to share code across platforms. Even better, it's open source. (Both the .NET Framework and .NET Core include libraries of prebuilt functionality as well as a common language runtime (CLR), which acts as a virtual machine in which to run your code.)
Next steps
Congratulations on completing this tutorial! To learn even more, see the following tutorial.