feat(code-server): skip extension if installed

[michaelbrewer]

To aid faster restarts of workspace with extensions already cached, this change will skip if an extension was already installed.

Before change, extensions would be try to be installed, but this operation can be slow, also extensions are not upgraded

After change with use_cached_extensions set, extensions that are already installed are skipped

module "code-server" {
  source                  = "registry.coder.com/modules/code-server/coder"
  version                 = "1.0.15"
  agent_id                = coder_agent.main.id
  order                   = 1
  folder                  = "/home/${local.username}/modules"
  install_prefix          = "/home/${local.username}/.code-server"
  use_cached              = true
  auto_install_extensions = true
  extensions              = [
    "dracula-theme.theme-dracula"
  ]
  use_cached_extensions   = true
  extensions_dir          = "/home/${local.username}/.code-server/extensions"
}

This change only impacts when use_cached_extensions and extensions_dir are set.

---

Otherwise on restarts, --force is used to ensure existing extensions are upgraded.

[michaelbrewer]

@code-asher turns out locally it is fast, it is actually slower when doing an install if it already exists.

[matifali]

How about using --install-extension --force? This should auto update the extensions to latest versions too.

Skipping altogether will stuck the extensions to the initially installed version and code-server will then prompt to update them after the workspace starts.

[michaelbrewer]

How about using --install-extension --force? This should auto update the extensions to latest versions too.

Skipping altogether will stuck the extensions to the initially installed version and code-server will then prompt to update them after the workspace starts.

Currently, i have set a very short lifecycle for workspace, so there are more restarts, so i am looking at all things to speed up start time.

Our problem is slow starts of coder workspaces. I am trying to allow for caching of extensions and skipping over those already installed.

--force would make startups even slower, once you have code-server open, it may still have an update, but at least you can be coding already.

[michaelbrewer]

(so far terraform init, terraform plan is also a very slow like 16 secs, so i am looking for time anywhere i can find it)

[michaelbrewer]

@matifali if installing extensions was non-blocking (or at least upgrading them) then we get a win win situation :)

See related issue for running some tasks in the background : coder/coder#12448

[code-asher]

Weird that it is so slow. I suppose it must be the query to the marketplace that is taking so long?

Any idea if it is faster to install them all at once? code-server --install-extension $ext1 --install-extension $ext2 etc? Maybe it will make a single query to the marketplace and be faster.

If we do proceed with this, should there be another flag to control it? CACHE_EXTENSIONS or something? And then add --force so by default it updates the version.

[michaelbrewer]

Weird that it is so slow. I suppose it must be the query to the marketplace that is taking so long?

Any idea if it is faster to install them all at once? code-server --install-extension $ext1 --install-extension $ex2 etc? Maybe it will make a single query to the marketplace and be faster.

If we do proceed with this, should there be another flag to control it? CACHE_EXTENSIONS or something? And then add --force so by default it updates the version.

Oh. I did not know that could be done. Will add that for sure.

[michaelbrewer]

Will look at the "CACHE_EXTENSIONS" option (false by default), then use that when skipping. And the "-force" would be the default

[michaelbrewer]

@code-asher have a look. @matifali it seems like the tests are failing again

(never mind restarting the CI fixed it..)

[code-asher]

Awesome thank you!

[michaelbrewer]

@code-asher - see example of why I need to escape the $

[code-asher]

Awesome!