Install & Setup

The AVC extension brings snapshot management directly into VSCode — sidebar, Source Control panel, inline annotations, and more. Pick the install path that matches how you got AVC.

Prerequisites

• The avc CLI must be on your PATH (run avc --version to confirm) — see Installation
• Your project must be initialized with avc init
• VSCode 1.85+

The extension isn’t on the VSCode Marketplace yet — install from a .vsix or run it in development mode.

Option A — VSIX

Install a packaged build:

1. Download the latest .vsix from GitHub Releases, or run vsce package in the extension/ folder to produce one yourself
2. In VSCode: Ctrl+Shift+P → Extensions: Install from VSIX…
3. Pick the .vsix file

Option B — Development mode

For contributing to the extension itself:

1. Open the extension/ folder in VSCode: code extension/
2. Run npm install && npm run compile
3. Press F5 — a second window opens labeled [Extension Development Host]
4. In that window, open any AVC-initialized folder

Verify the install

You should see all of the following in your project window:

• A camera icon in the activity bar (left edge)
• A status bar item like AVC: 4 snapshots
• A branch indicator next to it: main
• An AVC group in the Source Control panel (Ctrl+Shift+G)

Tip

If the sidebar shows “Loading…” forever, run avc --version in your terminal. If it errors, the extension can’t find the CLI — set avc.cliPath in settings.