VS Code & AI Tools Setup - Weventures Developer Docs

This guide will walk you through setting up your development environment with Visual Studio Code and our primary AI coding assistants: Claude Code and Codex.

Install Visual Studio Code

Download VS Code

Visit code.visualstudio.com/Download and download the appropriate version for your operating system:

macOS: Download .dmg for Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3) or Intel
Windows: Download User or System installer
Linux: Choose .deb (Debian/Ubuntu) or .rpm (Fedora/RHEL)

Install VS Code

macOS:

Open the downloaded .dmg file
Drag VS Code to the Applications folder
Launch VS Code from Applications

Windows:

Run the downloaded installer
Follow the installation wizard
Check “Add to PATH” during installation (important!)
Launch VS Code from Start menu

Linux:

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo dpkg -i code_*.deb
sudo apt-get install -f

# Fedora/RHEL
sudo rpm -i code-*.rpm

Verify Installation

Open a terminal and run:

code --version

You should see the VS Code version number.

Claude Code Setup

Claude Code is Anthropic’s AI coding assistant that works in your terminal and VS Code, helping you build faster with natural language.

VS Code Extension (Recommended)
Terminal/CLI Installation

Install Claude Code Extension

Open Extensions

Open VS Code
Click the Extensions icon in the sidebar (or press Cmd+Shift+X / Ctrl+Shift+X)
Search for “Claude Code”

Install Extension

Find the extension published by Anthropic (official)
Click Install
Wait for installation to complete
A new ⚡ (Spark) icon will appear in your sidebar

Click the ⚡ Spark icon to open Claude Code panel
Click “Sign in with Claude”
Your browser will open for authentication
Sign in with your Claude account (Pro, Max, Team, or Enterprise)
Return to VS Code - you’re ready to code!

Requirements

Prerequisites:

VS Code version 1.98.0 or newer
Claude Pro, Max, Team, or Enterprise subscription
Internet connection for authentication

Quick Start

Once installed:

Open any project folder in VS Code
Click the ⚡ Spark icon in the sidebar
Type your coding request in natural language
Watch Claude Code edit your files in real-time
Press Esc twice to rewind changes if needed

Key Features

Real-time change visualization - See edits inline with diffs
Checkpoint system - Auto-saves state before changes
Natural language coding - Describe what you want, Claude builds it
Git integration - Handles commits, branches, and workflows

Install Claude Code CLI

Install via npm

npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code

Alternative (if npm fails):

# Using pnpm
pnpm add -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code

# Using yarn
yarn global add @anthropic-ai/claude-code

Verify Installation

claude --version

You should see the Claude Code version number.

Initial Setup

Navigate to your project and run:

cd your-project
claude

A setup wizard will guide you through:

Sign-in method selection - Choose “Claude app” (Max subscription) or “Anthropic console” (API billing)
Browser authentication - Sign in with your Claude credentials
Model selection - Choose Claude Sonnet 4 or Opus 4

IDE Integration

For VS Code integration from terminal:

# Navigate to your project
cd your-awesome-project

# Start Claude Code with VS Code integration
claude

Claude will detect VS Code and offer enhanced features like inline diffs.

Usage Examples

# Start Claude Code
claude

# Specific task
claude "add user authentication to my app"

# Git workflow
claude "review my changes and create a PR"

Configuration

Claude Code stores preferences in ~/.claude/config.toml:

# Example configuration
[preferences]
model = "claude-sonnet-4"
auto_commit = false
diff_style = "unified"

[mcp_servers]
# Add MCP servers here

Troubleshooting Claude Code

"No available IDEs detected" Error

Common with WSL users:

Navigate to your project inside WSL:

cd /path/to/your/project

Open VS Code from WSL:

code .

Run Claude Code in the integrated terminal

Extension Installation Fails

Permission issues:

Download the .vsix file from VS Code Marketplace
In VS Code: View → Extensions
Click ... menu → “Install from VSIX…”
Select the downloaded file

Wrong Extension Installed

Make sure it’s official:

Publisher must be “Anthropic”
Avoid knock-off extensions
Uninstall unofficial versions first

Codex Setup

OpenAI Codex is an AI coding agent powered by GPT-5, designed for agentic coding and complex software engineering tasks.

VS Code Extension
Terminal/CLI Installation
IDE Compatibility

Install Codex Extension

Open Extensions Marketplace

Open VS Code
Click Extensions icon (or Cmd+Shift+X / Ctrl+Shift+X)
Search for “Codex – OpenAI’s coding agent”

Install Extension

Find the extension published by OpenAI (official)
Click Install
A new Codex icon will appear in the top-right activity bar

Click the Codex icon to open the panel
Click “Sign in with ChatGPT”
Your browser will open for authentication
Log in to your OpenAI account
Return to VS Code - you’re authenticated!

Requirements

Prerequisites:

VS Code (latest version recommended)
ChatGPT Plus, Pro, Team, or Enterprise subscription
Internet connection

Platform Support:

✅ macOS - Fully supported
✅ Linux - Fully supported
⚠️ Windows - Use WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux) for best experience

Quick Start

Click the Codex icon in the activity bar
Type your coding request or question
Codex can:
- Read and understand your codebase
- Modify code across multiple files
- Run commands and tests
- Explain complex code
- Debug issues

Key Features (2025)

GPT-5-Codex - Optimized for agentic coding
Read, modify, and run code - Full development lifecycle
Long-running tasks - Handles complex, multi-step work
Real-world engineering focus - Trained on production workflows

Install Codex CLI

Install via Package Manager

Using npm (recommended):

npm install -g @openai/codex

Using Homebrew (macOS/Linux):

brew install codex

Using pnpm:

pnpm add -g @openai/codex

Verify Installation

codex --version

You should see the Codex CLI version.

Initial Authentication

Run Codex for the first time:

codex

Select “Sign in with ChatGPT”
Browser opens for authentication
Sign in with OpenAI account (Plus/Pro/Team/Enterprise)
Return to terminal - you’re ready!

Basic Usage

# Start interactive session
codex

# Run specific task
codex "add user authentication"

# Analyze code
codex "explain the auth flow in this project"

# Debug
codex "why is the login page crashing?"

Configuration

Codex stores config in ~/.codex/config.toml:

# Example configuration
[preferences]
model = "gpt-5-codex"
auto_run = false
verbose = true

[mcp_servers]
# MCP server configuration
# Add your MCP servers here

Edit config:

# Open config file
codex config edit

# View current config
codex config show

# Reset to defaults
codex config reset

Advanced Usage

# Review changes
codex "review my git diff"

# Create commit
codex "write a commit message for my changes"

# Create PR
codex "create a pull request with description"

Supported IDEs

Codex works with:

✅ VS Code - Native extension
✅ Cursor - Full support
✅ Windsurf - Full support
✅ JetBrains IDEs - Enhanced terminal integration
✅ Any IDE terminal - Basic CLI functionality

Platform-Specific Notes

macOS:

Stable and fully supported
Install via Homebrew or npm
Works natively without issues

Linux:

Stable and fully supported
Install via package manager
No known issues

Windows:

Experimental support
Recommended: Use Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)

WSL Setup:

# Install WSL (PowerShell as Admin)
wsl --install

# Inside WSL, install Codex
npm install -g @openai/codex

# Run in WSL terminal
codex

Troubleshooting Codex

Windows: Codex Not Working

Use WSL for best experience:

Install WSL:

# PowerShell as Administrator
wsl --install

Restart computer
Open Ubuntu/WSL terminal
Install Codex in WSL:

npm install -g @openai/codex

Run from WSL terminal or VS Code WSL remote

Authentication Fails

Clear auth and retry:

# Clear stored credentials
codex auth logout

# Sign in again
codex auth login

Check subscription:

Requires ChatGPT Plus, Pro, Team, or Enterprise
Free tier does NOT work with Codex
Verify at platform.openai.com

Config Issues

Reset configuration:

# View current config
codex config show

# Reset to defaults
codex config reset

# Edit manually
codex config edit

Config location:

macOS/Linux: ~/.codex/config.toml
Windows (WSL): ~/.codex/config.toml
Windows (native): %USERPROFILE%\.codex\config.toml

Quick Comparison

Feature	Claude Code	Codex
Publisher	Anthropic	OpenAI
Models	Claude Sonnet 4, Opus 4	GPT-5-Codex
VS Code Extension	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
CLI	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Subscription Required	Claude Pro/Max/Team/Enterprise	ChatGPT Plus/Pro/Team/Enterprise
Windows Support	⚠️ Limited (WSL recommended)	⚠️ Experimental (WSL recommended)
Real-time Diffs	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Git Integration	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
MCP Servers	✅ Supported	✅ Supported
Best For	Fast iterations, pair programming	Long-running tasks, agentic coding

Recommended Workflow

Install Both Tools

Install both Claude Code and Codex to get the best of both worlds:

Claude Code for quick iterations and pair programming
Codex for complex, long-running tasks

Choose Based on Task

Use Claude Code when:

Quick feature additions
Real-time collaboration
Explaining code
Simple refactoring

Use Codex when:

Complex architecture changes
Multi-file refactoring
Debugging hard issues
CI/CD integration

Integrate with Your Stack

Both tools work seamlessly with:

Next.js, React, Vue
TypeScript, JavaScript
Python, Go, Rust
Supabase, Firebase
Any modern web framework

Next Steps

Master AI Workflows

Learn advanced AI development workflows

Start with Expand AI

Apply your setup to your first project

Prompting Guide

Write better prompts for AI coding

Tech Stack

Explore our tech stack documentation

Pro Tip: Use Claude Code for rapid prototyping and Codex for production-ready code. They complement each other perfectly!

Welcome

Quick Start

​Install Visual Studio Code

​Claude Code Setup

​Install Claude Code Extension

​Requirements

​Quick Start

​Key Features

​Install Claude Code CLI

​Usage Examples

​Configuration

​Troubleshooting Claude Code

​Codex Setup

​Install Codex Extension

​Requirements

​Quick Start

​Key Features (2025)

​Install Codex CLI

​Configuration

​Advanced Usage

​Supported IDEs

​Platform-Specific Notes

​Troubleshooting Codex

​Quick Comparison

​Recommended Workflow

​Next Steps

Master AI Workflows

Start with Expand AI

Prompting Guide

Tech Stack

Install Visual Studio Code

Claude Code Setup

Install Claude Code Extension

Requirements

Quick Start

Key Features

Install Claude Code CLI

Usage Examples

Configuration

Troubleshooting Claude Code

Codex Setup

Install Codex Extension

Requirements

Quick Start

Key Features (2025)

Install Codex CLI

Configuration

Advanced Usage

Supported IDEs

Platform-Specific Notes

Troubleshooting Codex

Quick Comparison

Recommended Workflow

Next Steps