setup-environment

$npx mdskill add microsoft/vscode/setup-environment

You are my setup automation assistant. Your task is to follow the steps below to help me get set up with the necessary tools and environment for development. Your task is completed when I've successfully built and run the repository. Use a TODO to track progress.

SKILL.md

.github/skills/setup-environmentView on GitHub ↗
---
name: setup-environment
description: First Time Setup
disable-model-invocation: true
---
# Role
You are my setup automation assistant. Your task is to follow the steps below to help me get set up with the necessary tools and environment for development. Your task is completed when I've successfully built and run the repository. Use a TODO to track progress.

# Steps
1. Find setup instructions in README.md and CONTRIBUTING.md at the root of the repository. Fetch any other documentation they recommend.

2. Show me a list of all required tools and dependencies in the <example> markdown format. If a dependency has linked documentation, fetch those docs to find the exact version number required. Remember that link and that version for step 4. Do not display system requirements.
<example>
## 🛠️ Required Tools
- **Node.js** (version 14 or higher)
- **Git** (latest version)
- Extra component if necessary.
</example>

3. Verify all required tools and dependencies are installed by following these rules:
  1. For all tools that should exist on the PATH, check their versions. <example> `toolA --version; toolB --version; [...] toolZ --version` </example>
  2. For tools not traditionally on the PATH: 1. Attempt to find the installation by searching the expected install location 2. If the tool is not found, adjust your search parameters or locations and try once more. Consider if the tool is installed with a package manager. 3. If the second location fails, mark it as missing.

4. Display a summary of what I have and what I need to install. In the <example> markdown format. If a section is empty, omit it.

<example>
## Installation Summary

### ✅ Already Installed
- Node.js (version 16.13.0) ⚠️ Note: You have X version but this project specifies Y.

### ❌ Not Installed
- ❌ Git (need version 2.30 or higher)
  - [Link to downloads page]

### ❓ Unable to Verify
- ToolName - [Reason why it couldn't be verified]
  - [Manual verification instructions steps]
</example>

5. For each missing tool:
   - Use the appropriate installation method for my operating system:
     - **Windows:** Try installing it directly using `winget`.
       - Example: `winget install --id Git.Git -e --source winget`
     - **macOS:** Try installing it using `brew` if Homebrew is installed.
       - Example: `brew install git`
     - **Linux:** Try installing it using the system's package manager:
       - For Debian/Ubuntu: `sudo apt-get install git`
       - For Fedora: `sudo dnf install git`
       - For CentOS/RHEL: `sudo yum install git`
       - For Arch: `sudo pacman -S git`
       - If the distribution is unknown, suggest manual installation.
   - You MUST install the required versions found in step 2.
   - For tools that may be managed by version managers (like `Node.js`), try installing them using the version manager if installed.
   - If any installation fails, provide an install link and suggest manual installation.
   - When updating PATH, follow these guidelines:
    - First, do it only for the current session.
    - Once installation is verified, add it permanently to the PATH.
    - Warn the user that this step may need to be performed manually, and should be verified manually. Provide simple steps to do so.
    - If a restart may be required, remind the user.

6. If any tools were installed, show an installation summary. Otherwise, skip this step.
7. Provide steps on building the repository, and then perform those steps.
8. If the repository is an application:
  - Provide steps on running the application
  - Try to run the application via a launch configuration if it exists, otherwise try running it yourself.
9. Show me a recap of what was newly installed.
10. Finally, update the README.md or CONTRIBUTING.md with any new information you discovered during this process that would help future users.

# Guidelines

- Instead of displaying commands to run, execute them directly.
- Output in markdown for human readability.
- Skip optional tooling.
- Keep all responses specific to my operating system.
- IMPORTANT: Documentation may be out of date. Always cross-check versions and instructions across multiple sources before proceeding. Update relevant files to the latest information as needed.
- IMPORTANT: If ANY step fails repeatedly, provide optional manual instructions for me to follow before trying again.
- If any command typically requires user interaction, notify me before running it by including an emoji like ⚠️ in your message.

More from microsoft/vscode

SkillDescription
accessibilityPrimary accessibility skill for VS Code. REQUIRED for new feature and contribution work, and also applies to updates of existing UI. Covers accessibility help dialogs, accessible views, verbosity settings, signals, ARIA announcements, keyboard navigation, and ARIA labels/roles.
act-on-feedbackAct on user feedback attached to the current session. Use when the user submits feedback on the session's changes via the Submit Feedback button.
agent-customization**WORKFLOW SKILL** — Create, update, review, fix, or debug VS Code agent customization files (.instructions.md, .prompt.md, .agent.md, SKILL.md, copilot-instructions.md, AGENTS.md). USE FOR: saving coding preferences; troubleshooting why instructions/skills/agents are ignored or not invoked; configuring applyTo patterns; defining tool restrictions; creating custom agent modes or specialized workflows; packaging domain knowledge; fixing YAML frontmatter syntax. DO NOT USE FOR: general coding questions (use default agent); runtime debugging or error diagnosis; MCP server configuration (use MCP docs directly); VS Code extension development. INVOKES: file system tools (read/write customization files), ask-questions tool (interview user for requirements), subagents for codebase exploration. FOR SINGLE OPERATIONS: For quick YAML frontmatter fixes or creating a single file from a known pattern, edit the file directly — no skill needed.
agent-host-chat-contributionsBuild and review cross-cutting agent-host chat behavior through lifecycle contributions. Use when adding turn lifecycle side effects, prompt or context injection, restored-history transformation, protocol-action observation, or when reviewing changes that add code to AgentSideEffects or AgentService.
agent-host-e2e-testsUse when writing, recording, updating, validating, or troubleshooting Agent Host end-to-end and real-provider integration tests under src/vs/platform/agentHost/test/node/e2e and providerIntegration. Covers adding a cross-provider test, re-recording fixtures after an SDK bump, required cross-platform Azure validation, gating non-deterministic or platform-specific tests, and diagnosing replay cache misses.
agent-host-logsAnalyze Agent Host debug log exports. Use when given an ah-logs or ahp-logs zip/folder, an Export Agent Host Debug Logs bundle, events.jsonl, AHP JSONL transport logs, Agent Host.log, remote-agenthost.log, or copilot-logs.
author-contributionsIdentify all files a specific author contributed to on a branch vs its upstream, tracing code through renames. Use when asked who edited what, what code an author contributed, or to audit authorship before a merge. This skill should be run as a subagent — it performs many git operations and returns a concise table.
auto-perf-optimizeRun agent-driven VS Code performance or memory investigations. Use when asked to launch Code OSS, automate a VS Code scenario, run the Chat memory smoke runner, capture renderer heap snapshots, take workflow screenshots, compare run summaries, or drive a repeatable scenario before heap-snapshot analysis.
azure-pipelinesUse when validating Azure DevOps pipeline changes for the VS Code build. Covers queueing builds, checking build status, viewing logs, and iterating on pipeline YAML changes without waiting for full CI runs.
build-champ-triageFind out why a build has failed