Behind the scenes, this is actually creating a container running Debian 10, so you get a full Linux distribution to play with! Your Chromebook will then download the tools to create the Linux environment and configure it for you. From there, turn on Linux support.įollow the instructions on screen to configure the Linux environment (for most people, accepting the default values should be enough). Despite the modest specs, VS Code runs just fine on this machine! Enable Linux on your Chromebookīefore we can install VS Code on Chrome OS, we need to enable support for native Linux apps, using Crostini.įirst, open your system's Settings, then look for Linux (Beta) on the sidebar. In addition, VS Code is now available for Linux on ARMv7 and ARM64, which means that you can run it on Chromebooks powered by an ARM chip as well!įor this tutorial, I'll be using an entry-level Chromebook, with an ARM64 CPU, 4 GB of RAM, and a 32 GB-disk. Visual Studio Code is a lightweight editor, so you will be able to run it on low-powered Chromebooks, with a minimum of 1 GB of RAM.

VS Code runs on any recent Chromebook, as long as you are able to enable Linux applications via Crostini, which we'll look at how to do in just a moment. In a later post, we'll also look at how to leverage the Remote Development extensions for VS Code to connect to more powerful development environments. In this article, the first of two, we'll look at how to install Visual Studio Code on a Chromebook and how to set up an environment to start coding in Python or JavaScript/Node.js.

This includes languages such as Python, JavaScript and Node.js, Java, and C#, among many more! With VS Code running on your Chromebook, you can start coding easily and quickly in a variety of languages and frameworks. While Chromebooks and Chrome OS are typically centered around the web browser, you can also enable a Linux environment that allows installing native desktop applications, including Visual Studio Code! Thanks to lots of choices, from very affordable models to high-end ones, Chromebooks are especially popular among students, who can use them for learning, completing assignments, and attending classes virtually. Node.js Development with Visual Studio Code and Azureĭecemby Alessandro Segala, the last few years, Chromebooks running Google Chrome OS have been providing an alternative to 'traditional' laptops.Moving from Local to Remote Development.

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