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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.

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Install Visual Studio Code

Visual Studio Code
1

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)
2

Install VS Code

macOS:
  1. Open the downloaded .dmg file
  2. Drag VS Code to the Applications folder
  3. Launch VS Code from Applications
Windows:
  1. Run the downloaded installer
  2. Follow the installation wizard
  3. Check “Add to PATH” during installation (important!)
  4. 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
3

Verify Installation

Open a terminal and run:
code --version
You should see the VS Code version number.

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Claude Code Setup

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

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Troubleshooting Claude Code

Common with WSL users:
  1. Navigate to your project inside WSL:
cd /path/to/your/project
  1. Open VS Code from WSL:
code .
  1. Run Claude Code in the integrated terminal
Permission issues:
  1. Download the .vsix file from VS Code Marketplace
  2. In VS Code: View → Extensions
  3. Click ... menu → “Install from VSIX…”
  4. Select the downloaded file
Make sure it’s official:
  • Publisher must be “Anthropic”
  • Avoid knock-off extensions
  • Uninstall unofficial versions first

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Codex Setup

OpenAI Codex 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

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Install Codex Extension

1

Open Extensions Marketplace

  1. Open VS Code
  2. Click Extensions icon (or Cmd+Shift+X / Ctrl+Shift+X)
  3. Search for “Codex – OpenAI’s coding agent”
2

Install Extension

  1. Find the extension published by OpenAI (official)
  2. Click Install
  3. A new Codex icon will appear in the top-right activity bar
3

Sign In with ChatGPT

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

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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

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Quick Start

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

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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

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Troubleshooting Codex

Use WSL for best experience:
  1. Install WSL:
# PowerShell as Administrator
wsl --install
  1. Restart computer
  2. Open Ubuntu/WSL terminal
  3. Install Codex in WSL: 
npm install -g @openai/codex
  1. Run from WSL terminal or VS Code WSL remote
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
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

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Quick Comparison

FeatureClaude CodeCodex
PublisherAnthropicOpenAI
ModelsClaude Sonnet 4, Opus 4GPT-5-Codex
VS Code Extension✅ Yes✅ Yes
CLI✅ Yes✅ Yes
Subscription RequiredClaude Pro/Max/Team/EnterpriseChatGPT 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 ForFast iterations, pair programmingLong-running tasks, agentic coding
1

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
2

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
3

Integrate with Your Stack

Both tools work seamlessly with:
  • Next.js, React, Vue
  • TypeScript, JavaScript
  • Python, Go, Rust
  • Supabase, Firebase
  • Any modern web framework

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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!