A VS Code/Cursor extension that provides seamless GitHub Codespaces connectivity via GitHub CLI. Connect to your Codespaces with a single click, directly from your editor.

• 🚀 One-Click Connection - Connect to any Codespace with a single click
• 📋 Custom Explorer View - Browse all your Codespaces in a dedicated sidebar view
• 🔄 Auto-Start - Automatically starts shutdown Codespaces before connecting
• ⚡ Real-Time Status - See the current state of all your Codespaces (Available, Shutdown, Starting, etc.)
• 🔐 Automatic SSH Config - Manages SSH configuration automatically
• 🎯 Smart Status Bar - Quick access button in the status bar
• 🔄 Auto-Refresh - Always shows the latest Codespace status

• GitHub CLI (gh) - Must be installed and authenticated
  • Install from: https://cli.github.com/
  • Authenticate with: gh auth login
  • Required scope: codespace
• VS Code/Cursor - Version 1.99.0 or higher
• Remote-SSH Extension - Required for connecting to Codespaces
  • VS Code: Install "Remote - SSH" (ms-vscode-remote.remote-ssh) from the marketplace
  • Cursor: Usually built-in, but on some platforms (e.g., Linux) you may need to install it manually
  • The extension will prompt you to install it if it's missing

1. Open VS Code/Cursor
2. Go to Extensions view (Ctrl+Shift+X or Cmd+Shift+X on Windows/Linux, Cmd+Shift+X on Mac)
3. Search for "Cursor Codespaces"
4. Click "Install"
5. The extension will be installed and ready to use

If you want to build from source or contribute:

git clone https://github.com/orbiktech/cursor-codespaces-extension.git
cd cursor-codespaces-extension
npm install
npm run compile
vsce package

Then install the generated .vsix file:

1. Go to Extensions view
2. Click the ... menu and select "Install from VSIX..."
3. Select the generated .vsix file

1. Open the Codespaces Explorer

   • Click the "GitHub Codespaces" icon in the Activity Bar (left sidebar)
   • The icon appears in the sidebar menu (see image below)
   • Or use the Command Palette: Cursor Codespaces: Show Codespaces Explorer

   

   The GitHub Codespaces icon highlighted in the Activity Bar sidebar

2. View Your Codespaces

   • All your Codespaces are listed with their current status
   • Status indicators:
     • 🟢 Green circle = Available
     • 🔴 Red circle = Shutdown
     • 🟡 Yellow spinning = Starting/Other states
   • Note: If GitHub CLI is not installed, you'll see installation instructions with a link to download it

3. Connect to a Codespace

   • Click on any Codespace in the list
   • The extension will:
     • Start the Codespace if it's shutdown (up to 5 minutes wait)
     • Update SSH configuration automatically
     • Open the connection in the current window

4. Refresh the List

   • Click the refresh button (🔄) in the explorer title bar
   • Or use Command Palette: Cursor Codespaces: Refresh Explorer

1. Click the "Connect to Codespace" button in the status bar (bottom right)
2. Select a Codespace from the list
3. The connection process will start automatically

1. Open Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P or Cmd+Shift+P)
2. Type "Connect to Codespace"
3. Select Cursor Codespaces: Connect to Codespace
4. Choose a Codespace from the list

1. Authentication Check - Verifies GitHub CLI is installed and authenticated
2. Codespace Selection - Lists all your Codespaces with current status
3. Auto-Start - If Codespace is shutdown, starts it via GitHub API
4. Status Monitoring - Waits for Codespace to become available (up to 5 minutes)
5. SSH Configuration - Generates and merges SSH config automatically
6. Connection - Opens the Codespace in your current window

Solution:

• The extension will show a prompt to install Remote-SSH when needed
• Click "Install Remote-SSH" to open the extension marketplace
• Or manually install "Remote - SSH" (ms-vscode-remote.remote-ssh) from the marketplace
• After installation, restart Cursor/VS Code and try again

Solution:

• If you open the Codespaces Explorer, you'll see a helpful message with a link to install GitHub CLI
• Or install directly from: https://cli.github.com/
• After installation, refresh the explorer to see your Codespaces

Solution: Run gh auth login in your terminal and complete the authentication flow.

Solution: Run gh auth refresh -h github.com -s codespace to grant the required scope.

Solution: The extension can help you fix this automatically. When prompted:

1. Click "Fix Devcontainer"
2. The extension will add the SSHD feature to your .devcontainer/devcontainer.json
3. Commit and rebuild your Codespace

Possible causes:

• Codespace is taking longer than expected to start
• Network connectivity issues
• GitHub service issues

Solution:

• Wait a bit longer and try again
• Check your Codespace status on GitHub.com
• Try refreshing the explorer and connecting again

Solution:

• The connection might still be establishing
• Wait a few seconds for the workspace to load
• Check the Remote-SSH output panel for any errors
• Try clicking the host in the Remote-SSH explorer manually

This extension currently doesn't expose any configurable settings. All functionality works out of the box with sensible defaults.

The extension requires permission to:

• Modify ~/.ssh/config - To add Codespace SSH configurations (first time only)
• Access GitHub CLI - To list and manage Codespaces
• Execute shell commands - To run gh CLI commands

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Compile TypeScript
npm run compile

# Watch mode for development
npm run watch

# Package extension
vsce package

src/
├── extension.ts          # Main extension entry point
├── ghService.ts          # GitHub CLI interactions
├── sshConfig.ts          # SSH config management
├── codespacePicker.ts    # QuickPick UI for codespace selection
├── codespaceExplorer.ts  # Custom explorer view
├── remoteSsh.ts         # Remote-SSH integration
└── devcontainerFixer.ts  # Devcontainer SSHD fixer

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

• Issues: GitHub Issues
• Documentation: GitHub Wiki

• Built for Cursor
• Uses GitHub CLI for Codespace management
• Integrates with Remote-SSH extension

Made with ❤️ for the developer community