Dev Starter

Launch Your Entire Development Workspace With One Click.

Dev Starter intelligently detects your projects, installs missing dependencies, starts the correct development servers, restores previous sessions, and gets your workspace ready — all without leaving VS Code.

⚡ Quick Start

1. Install Dev Starter from the VS Code Marketplace.
2. Open a workspace containing one or more Node.js projects (React, Express, Next.js, etc.).
3. Click the Dev Starter icon (🚀) in the VS Code Activity Bar or Editor Title bar.
4. Select frontend + backend (or your desired configuration) from the Quick Pick menu.

Dev Starter will automatically handle the rest: running npm install if needed, starting the appropriate dev scripts, splitting the terminals, and offering to open your browser once ready.

🛠️ Features

Dev Starter removes repetitive setup tasks so you can focus on writing code instead of managing terminals.

Intelligent Project Detection

No configuration required. Dev Starter analyzes every package.json in your workspace and automatically identifies your applications as frontend or backend based on dependencies. It selects the best script (dev, start, serve, etc.) automatically.

Dedicated Workspace Sidebar

Manage your entire development workspace directly from the VS Code Activity Bar. See live project statuses (running, stopped, installing) and launch applications individually.

Smart Split Terminals

Run your frontend and backend side-by-side automatically. No more switching between multiple terminal tabs.

Workspace Health Checks

Dev Starter detects common setup issues before your applications start, such as:

• Missing .env files (when a .env.example exists)
• Node.js version mismatches (based on the engines field in package.json)

Automatic Browser Launch

When your application is ready, Dev Starter intelligently guesses the port (e.g., Vite on 5173, Next on 3000), pings it in the background until it's responsive, and offers a one-click button to open your browser.

Session Restore

Continue exactly where you left off. Dev Starter remembers your last launched workspace session so you can restart everything with a single click.

⚙️ Commands & Settings

You can access Dev Starter via the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P or Cmd+Shift+P):

Configuration

Customize Dev Starter in your settings.json or VS Code Settings UI:

🏗️ Supported Technologies

Dev Starter works out-of-the-box with the most popular Node.js frameworks and package managers.

Frontend Frameworks: React, Next.js, Vite, Vue.js, Nuxt.js, Astro, Remix, Angular, SvelteKit
Backend Frameworks: Express.js, NestJS, Fastify, Hono, Koa
Package Managers: npm, pnpm, Yarn

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are always welcome! Whether it's fixing a bug, improving documentation, suggesting a feature, or submitting a pull request, every contribution helps make Dev Starter better.

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'feat: add amazing feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request

📄 License

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

Created by Ayush Solanki.