Visualize your code with syntax colorization, guidelines, code tooltips, Class View, or Call Hierarchy. Navigate to any code symbol by reference, definition, declaration, and more. Autocomplete your code as you type, quickly repair problems, and refactor your code to. This example introduces you to the basic functionality of VS Code by demonstrating how to write a 'hello world' program in C. Before continuing, make sure you have the 'ms-vscode.cpptools' extension installed. Initialize the Project. The first step is to create a new project. To do this, load the VS Code.

1. Visual Studio Code is free and available on your favorite platform - Linux, macOS, and Windows. Download Visual Studio Code to experience a redefined code editor, optimized for building and debugging modern web and cloud applications.
2. The C/C extension does not include a C compiler or debugger. You will need to install these tools or use those already installed on your computer. Popular C compilers are: 1. GCC via Mingw-w64on Windows 3.

C/C++ support for Visual Studio Code is provided by a Microsoft C/C++ extension to enable cross-platform C and C++ development on Windows, Linux, and macOS.

Install the extension

1. Open VS Code.
2. Select the Extensions view icon on the Activity bar or use the keyboard shortcut (⇧⌘X (Windows, Linux Ctrl+Shift+X)).
3. Search for 'C++'.
4. Select Install.

After you install the extension, when you open or create a *.cpp file, you will have syntax highlighting (colorization), smart completions and hovers (IntelliSense), and error checking.

Install a compiler

C++ is a compiled language meaning your program's source code must be translated (compiled) before it can be run on your computer. VS Code is first and foremost an editor, and relies on command-line tools to do much of the development workflow. The C/C++ extension does not include a C++ compiler or debugger. You will need to install these tools or use those already installed on your computer.

There may already be a C++ compiler and debugger provided by your academic or work development environment. Check with your instructors or colleagues for guidance on installing the recommended C++ toolset (compiler, debugger, project system, linter).

Some platforms, such as Linux or macOS, have a C++ compiler already installed. Most Linux distributions have the GNU Compiler Collection (GCC) installed and macOS users can get the Clang tools with XCode.

Check if you have a compiler installed

Make sure your compiler executable is in your platform path (%PATH on Windows, $PATH on Linux and macOS) so that the C/C++ extension can find it. You can check availability of your C++ tools by opening the Integrated Terminal (⌃` (Windows, Linux Ctrl+`)) in VS Code and trying to directly run the compiler.

Checking for the GCC compiler g++:

Checking for the Clang compiler clang:

Note: If you would prefer a full Integrated Development Environment (IDE), with built-in compilation, debugging, and project templates (File > New Project), there are many options available, such as the Visual Studio Community edition.

If you don't have a compiler installed, in the example below, we describe how to install the Minimalist GNU for Windows (MinGW) C++ tools (compiler and debugger). MinGW is a popular, free toolset for Windows. If you are running VS Code on another platform, you can read the C++ tutorials, which cover C++ configurations for Linux and macOS.

C++ Visual Studio Code Vs Visual Studio

Example: Install MinGW-x64

We will install Mingw-w64 via the SourceForge website. You can use this Mingw-w64 link to download the Windows Mingw-w64 installer.

1. Run the installer, which should be named mingw-w64-install.exe in your Download folder.

2. For Architecture select x86_64 and then select Next.

3. On the Installation Folder page, use the default location for the Destination folder. Copy the location as you will need it later.

4. Select Next to start the installation.

Add the MinGW compiler to your path

Add the path to your Mingw-w64 bin folder to the Windows PATH environment variable by using the following steps:

1. In the Windows search bar, type 'settings' to open your Windows Settings.
2. Search for Edit environment variables for your account.
3. Choose the Path variable and then select Edit.
4. Select New and add the Mingw-w64 destination folder path, with mingw64bin appended, to the system path. The exact path depends on which version of Mingw-w64 you have installed and where you installed it. If you used the settings above to install Mingw-w64, then add this to the path: C:Program Filesmingw-w64x86_64-8.1.0-posix-seh-rt_v6-rev0mingw64bin.
5. Select OK to save the updated PATH. You will need to reopen any console windows for the new PATH location to be available.

Check your MinGW installation

To check that your Mingw-w64 tools are correctly installed and available, open a new Command Prompt and type:

C++ Visual Studio Code Macos

If you don't see the expected output or g++ or gdb is not a recognized command, check your installation (Windows Control Panel > Programs > Programs and Features) and make sure your PATH entry matches the Mingw-w64 binary location where the compiler tools are located.

Hello World

To make sure the compiler is installed and configured correctly, we'll create the simplest Hello World C++ program.

Create a folder called 'HelloWorld' and open VS Code in that folder (code . opens VS Code in the current folder):

Now create a new file called helloworld.cpp with the New File button in the File Explorer or File > New File command.

Add Hello World source code

Now paste in this source code:

Now press ⌘S (Windows, Linux Ctrl+S) to save the file. You can also enable Auto Save to automatically save your file changes, by checking Auto Save in the main File menu.

Build Hello World

Now that we have a simple C++ program, let's build it. Select the Terminal > Run Build Task command (⇧⌘B (Windows, Linux Ctrl+Shift+B)) from the main menu.

This will display a dropdown with various compiler task options. If you are using a GCC toolset like MinGW, you would choose C/C++: g++.exe build active file.

This will compile helloworld.cpp and create an executable file called helloworld.exe, which will appear in the File Explorer.

Run Hello World

From a command prompt or a new VS Code Integrated Terminal, you can now run your program by typing '.helloworld'.

If everything is set up correctly, you should see the output 'Hello World'.

This has been a very simple example to help you get started with C++ development in VS Code. The next step is to try one of the tutorials listed below on your platform (Windows, Linux, or macOS) with your preferred toolset (GCC, Clang, Microsoft C++) and learn more about the Microsoft C/C++ extension's language features such as IntelliSense, code navigation, build configuration, and debugging.

Tutorials

Get started with C++ and VS Code with tutorials for your environment:

Documentation

You can find more documentation on using the Microsoft C/C++ extension under the C++ section of the VS Code website, where you'll find topics on:

Remote Development

VS Code and the C++ extension support Remote Development allowing you to work over SSH on a remote machine or VM, inside a Docker container, or in the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL).

To install support for Remote Development:

1. Install the VS Code Remote Development Extension Pack.
2. If the remote source files are hosted in WSL, use the Remote - WSL extension.
3. If you are connecting to a remote machine with SSH, use the Remote - SSH extension.
4. If the remote source files are hosted in a container (for example, Docker), use the Remote - Containers extension.

Feedback

If you run into any issues or have suggestions for the Microsoft C/C++ extension, please file issues and suggestions on GitHub. If you haven't already provided feedback, please take this quick survey to help shape this extension for your needs.

• Related Questions & Answers

• Selected Reading

This guide will help you become familiar with many of the tools and dialog boxes that you can use when you develop applications in C++ with Visual Studio. We'll create a 'Hello, World' - style console application to help you learn more about working in this IDE.

Prerequisites

To follow along, you need a copy of Visual Studio 2017 version 15.3 or later, with the Desktop development with C++ workload installed. For a fast guide to installation, see Install C++ support in Visual Studio(https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/cpp/build/vscpp-step-0-installation).

Create a console app

• Start Visual Studio
• To create a console app project, choose File > New > Project to open the New Project dialog box.
• In the New Project dialog, select Installed > Visual C++ if it isn't selected already. In the center pane, select the Windows Console Application template. In the Name edit box, enter MyFirstApp. Note: If you don't see Visual C++ project templates, you need to run the Visual Studio installer again and install the Desktop development with C++ workload. You can do this directly from the New Project dialog.
• Choose the OK button to create your app project and solution.
• The MyFirstApp.cpp file will open in the code editor. They'll also appear in the solution explorer on the left.

Add your code

• The MyFirstApp.cpp file opened in the code editor will have some amount of code in it already.
• Before the return 0; line, add: std::cout << 'Hellon';
• Save the changes to this file and project using Ctrl + S.

Build Your Application

It's easy to build your code. On the menu bar, choose Build > Build Solution. Visual Studio builds the MyFirstApp solution, and reports progress in the Output window at the bottom.

Debug and test your Application

Once your solution is built(or in C++ speak, compiled), you can debug it to see whether Hello appears in the output console.

• To start the debugger, choose Debug > Start Debugging on the menu bar.
• The debugger starts and runs the code. The console window (a separate window that looks like a command prompt) appears for a few seconds but closes quickly when the debugger stops running. To see the text, you need to set a breakpoint to stop program execution.
• To add a breakpoint in your program, click in the left margin to set a breakpoint on the return 0; line.
• Debug the app again using F5(shortcut). You'll see the output of your code. To stop debugging, press Shift + F5.

You can find a detailed version of this guide at https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/visualstudio/ide/getting-started-with-cpp-in-visual-studio