Working with the Toolkit in a Dev Environments - AWS Toolkit for VS Code
Configuring your Dev Environment with devfilesAuthenticating and connecting to AWS from your Dev EnvironmentWorking with the Toolkit for VS Code in Dev Environments

Working with the Toolkit in a Dev Environments

Dev Environments are virtual computing environments for Amazon CodeCatalyst. The following sections describe how to create, launch, and work from Dev Environments using the AWS Toolkit for Visual Studio Code.

For detailed information about Dev Environments, see the Dev Environments topic in the Amazon CodeCatalyst User Guide.

Configuring your Dev Environment with devfiles

The devfile specification is an open-standard format for YAML that can be used to define configurations for Dev Environments. Every Dev Environment has a devfile. If you create a Dev Environment without a repository or from a repository that doesn't contain a devfile, a default is applied to the source automatically. Devfiles can be updated from CodeCatalyst or your IDE. The processes to update a devfile in a local or remote instance of VS Code are identical, but if you update a devfile locally, you must push the updates to your source repository before the updates take effect.

For detailed information about configuring Dev Environments with devfiles, see the Configuring your Dev Environment topic in the Amazon CodeCatalyst User Guide.

The following procedure describes how to edit your devfile from a remote instance of the Toolkit while it's running in a Dev Environment.

Important

If you edit the Devfile from VS Code, be aware of the following:

  • Changing the name of the devfile or the devfile component name replaces the contents of your root directory. All previous content is lost and unrecoverable.

  • If you create a Dev Environment without a devfile in the root folder or a Dev Environment that's not associated with a source repository, a devfile with default configuration settings is generated for your Dev Environment when you create it.

  • For instructions on how to define and configure your Devfile, see the Adding Commands documentation on the devfile.io website.

  1. From the Toolkit for VS Code, expand the DEVELOPER TOOLS explorer.

  2. Expand CodeCatalyst and choose Open Devfile to open devfile.yaml in a new editor window, within your current Dev Environment.

  3. From the VS Code editor, update your devfile, then save your changes.

  4. The next time you launch your Dev Environment, the configuration is updated to match the specifications that are defined in your Devfile.

Authenticating and connecting to AWS from your Dev Environment

To access all of your AWS resources from your Dev Environment, you must authenticate and connect your remote instance of the Toolkit with your AWS account. The remote instance of the Toolkit automatically authenticates with the credentials inherited from your local instance of the Toolkit when your Dev Environment is launched.

The procedures to update your credentials for a remote instance of the Toolkit are identical to the authentication experience in your local instance of the Toolkit. For detailed instructions on how to update credentials, authenticate, and connect to AWS from the Toolkit, see the Connecting to AWS section in the Getting started topic of this User Guide.

For additional information about each of the AWS authentication methods compatible with the AWS Toolkit for Visual Studio Code, see the Authentication and access topic in this User Guide.

Working with the Toolkit for VS Code in Dev Environments

After you open or create a Dev Environment in VS Code, you can work from the Toolkit for VS Code, similar to how you can from a local instance of VS Code. Dev Environments running VS Code are configured to automatically install the AWS Toolkit and connect with your AWS Builder ID.

Stopping a Dev Environment

To stop your current Dev Environment:

  1. From the Toolkit for VS Code, expand the DEVELOPER TOOLS explorer.

  2. Expand CodeCatalyst and choose Stop Dev Environment.

  3. When prompted by VS Code, confirm that you want to stop your Dev Environment.

  4. Your Dev Environment has successfully stopped when VS Code closes the remote connection and returns to a local development instance.

Opening Dev Environment settings

To open the settings for your current Dev Environment, complete the following steps:

Note

You can't change the amount of storage space assigned to your Dev Environment after it has been created.

  1. From the Toolkit for VS Code, expand the DEVELOPER TOOLS explorer.

  2. Expand CodeCatalyst and choose Open Settings to open the Dev Environment Settings view, for your current Dev Environment.

  3. From the Dev Environment Settings view, the following sections contain options for your Dev Environment:

    • Alias: View and change the Alias assigned to your Dev Environment.

    • Status: View your current Dev Environment status, the project it's assigned to, and stop your environment.

    • Devfile: View the name and location of the Devfile for your Dev Environment. Open your Devfile by choosing the Open in Editor button.

    • Compute Settings: Change the size and default Timeout Length for your Dev Environment.