VS Code IDE

Connect VS Code Remote SSH to a Buda Agent workspace and work from your local IDE.

VS Code IDE is for editing Agent workspace code from your local machine. After setup, you can use Open in VSCode in Buda to connect directly to the workspace.

When to use VS Code IDE

Use VS Code IDE when you want the full local IDE experience:

  • Edit multi-file projects
  • Use VS Code extensions
  • Review Git changes
  • Debug frontend or backend code
  • Let an Agent and a human developer work in the same workspace

If you only need to preview a web page, WebPreview is usually faster.

Basic flow

  1. Install VS Code locally, then install the VS Code Remote SSH extension.
  2. Install websocat locally and make sure it is available in your terminal.
  3. Paste your local SSH public key into the Buda dialog.
  4. Copy the SSH config from the dialog and append it to ~/.ssh/config on this computer.
  5. Click Open VS Code, or select the Host from VS Code Remote SSH.

Install websocat

On macOS, use Homebrew:

brew install websocat

On Windows and Linux, you can use Cargo:

cargo install websocat

You can also download the matching binary from websocat Releases and add it to your local PATH.

After installation, run this locally:

websocat --version

If the command is not found, websocat is not on your PATH.

Find your SSH public key

Common public key files are:

~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub
~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub

View the public key locally:

cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub

Copy the full output line and paste it into Add your SSH public key in the Buda dialog.

If you do not have an SSH key yet, create one:

ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "your-email@example.com"

Then open the generated .pub file.

Configure VS Code Remote SSH

The Buda dialog generates an SSH config block that starts with Host buda-agent-.... Append it to:

~/.ssh/config

Then run this command in VS Code:

Remote-SSH: Connect to Host

Select the Host shown in the Buda dialog.

Q&A

VS Code says websocat cannot be found. What should I do?

Run websocat --version locally. If the command does not exist, reinstall websocat or add the websocat directory to PATH.

The connection shows Permission denied. What should I do?

Make sure you pasted the content of the public key file, the .pub file, into Buda. Do not paste the private key. Public keys usually start with ssh-ed25519 or ssh-rsa.

I have multiple SSH keys. Do I need IdentityFile?

Usually no. The SSH config generated by Buda does not force an IdentityFile; VS Code can use your local SSH agent or default key.

If you have multiple SSH keys and VS Code picks the wrong one, append these lines to the Host config generated by the dialog:

Host buda-agent-xxxx
  IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_ed25519
  IdentitiesOnly yes

Replace buda-agent-xxxx with the Host generated by the dialog, and replace ~/.ssh/id_ed25519 with your private key path.

VS Code keeps connecting. What should I check?

Check these items first:

  • The SSH config from Buda is saved in local ~/.ssh/config
  • websocat --version works in your local terminal
  • The VS Code Remote SSH extension is installed
  • The Buda workspace is still running

If it still fails, reopen the Buda VS Code dialog and copy the latest config again.

WebPreview

Preview web apps from an Agent sandbox by turning localhost links into external Buda preview URLs.

Git Tab

View commit history, inspect diffs, and manage branches for your Agent's code directly from the workspace.

On this page

When to use VS Code IDEBasic flowInstall websocatFind your SSH public keyConfigure VS Code Remote SSHQ&AVS Code says websocat cannot be found. What should I do?The connection shows Permission denied. What should I do?I have multiple SSH keys. Do I need IdentityFile?VS Code keeps connecting. What should I check?Related pages