Visual Studio Code For C#

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Start Visual Studio Code and you see a Welcome page. Click on Open folder. Link under Start section or click on Explorer present in the left panel and click on Open Folder button. Visual Studio Code – Create C# Project – Open Folder.
Open Visual Studio 2019. If the start window is not open, choose File Start Window. On the start window, choose Create a new project. On the Create a new project window, enter or type console in the search box. Next, choose C# from the Language list, and then choose Windows from the Platform list. After you apply the language and platform filters, choose the Console App template for.NET.
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In this tutorial for C# development with ASP.NET Core using Visual Studio, you'll create a C# ASP.NET Core web app, make changes to it, explore some features of the IDE, and then run the app.

Before you begin

Install Visual Studio

If you haven't already installed Visual Studio, go to the Visual Studio downloads page to install it for free.

Update Visual Studio

If you've already installed Visual Studio, make sure that you're running the most recent release. For more information about how to update your installation, see the Update Visual Studio to the most recent release page.

Choose your theme (optional)

This tutorial includes screenshots that use the dark theme. If you aren't using the dark theme but would like to, see the Personalize the Visual Studio IDE and Editor page to learn how.

Create a project

First, you'll create a ASP.NET Core project. The project type comes with all the template files you'll need for a fully functional website, before you've even added anything!

Open Visual Studio 2017.
From the top menu bar, choose File > New > Project.
In the New Project dialog box in the left pane, expand Visual C#, expand Web, and then choose .NET Core. In the middle pane, choose ASP.NET Core Web Application. Then, name the file MyCoreApp and choose OK.

Add a workload (optional)

If you don't see the ASP.NET Core Web Application project template, you can get it by adding the ASP.NET and web development workload. You can add this workload in one of the two following ways, depending on which Visual Studio 2017 updates are installed on your machine.

Option 1: Use the New Project dialog box

Select the Open Visual Studio Installer link in the left pane of the New Project dialog box. (Depending on your display settings, you might have to scroll to see it.)
The Visual Studio Installer launches. Choose the ASP.NET and web development workload, and then choose Modify.
(You might have to close Visual Studio before you can continue installing the new workload.)

Option 2: Use the Tools menu bar

Cancel out of the New Project dialog box. Then, from the top menu bar, choose Tools > Get Tools and Features.
The Visual Studio Installer launches. Choose the ASP.NET and web development workload, and then choose Modify.
(You might have to close Visual Studio before you can continue installing the new workload.)

Add a project template

In the New ASP.NET Core Web Application dialog box, choose the Web Application project template.
Verify that ASP.NET Core 2.1 appears in the top drop-down menu. Then, choose OK.
Note
If you don't see ASP.NET Core 2.1 from the top drop-down menu, make sure that you are running the most recent release of Visual Studio. For more information about how to update your installation, see the Update Visual Studio to the most recent release page.

In the start window, choose Create a new project.
In the Create a new project window, choose C# from the Language list. Next, choose Windows from the Platform list, and Web from the project types list.
After you apply the language, platform, and project type filters, choose the ASP.NET Core Web App template, and then choose Next.
Note
If you don't see the ASP.NET Core Web App template, you can install it from the Create a new project window. In the Not finding what you're looking for? message, choose the Install more tools and features link.
Then, in the Visual Studio Installer, choose the ASP.NET and web development workload.
After that, choose the Modify button in the Visual Studio Installer. If you're prompted to save your work, do so. Next, choose Continue to install the workload. Then, return to step 2 in this 'Create a project' procedure.
In the Configure your new project window, type or enter MyCoreApp in the Project name box. Then, choose Next.
In the Additional information window, verify that .NET Core 3.1 appears in the top drop-down menu. Note that you can choose to enable Docker support by checking the box. You can also add authentication support by clicking the change Authentication button. From there you can choose from:
- None: no authentication.
- Individual accounts: these are stored in a local or Azure-based database.
- Microsoft identity platform: this option uses Active Directory, Azure AD, or Microsoft 365 for authentication.
- Windows: suitable for intranet applications.
Leave the Enable Docker box unchecked, and select None for Authentication Type. Then, select Create.
Visual Studio will open up your new project.

About your solution

This solution follows the Razor Page design pattern. It's different than the Model-View-Controller (MVC) design pattern in that it's streamlined to include the model and controller code within the Razor Page itself.

Tour your solution

The project template creates a solution with a single ASP.NET Core project that is named MyCoreApp. Choose the Solution Explorer tab to view its contents.
Expand the Pages folder, and then expand About.cshtml.
View the About.cshtml file in the code editor.
Choose the About.cshtml.cs file.
View the About.cshtml.cs file in the code editor.
The project contains a wwwroot folder that is the root for your website. Expand the folder to view its contents.
You can put static site content—such as CSS, images, and JavaScript libraries—directly in the paths where you want them.
The project also contains configuration files that manage the web app at run time. The default application configuration is stored in appsettings.json. However, you can override these settings by using appsettings.Development.json. Expand the appsettings.json file to view the appsettings.Development.json file.

Run, debug, and make changes

Choose the IIS Express button in the IDE to build and run the app in Debug mode. (Alternatively, press F5, or choose Debug > Start Debugging from the menu bar.)
Note
If you get an error message that says Unable to connect to web server 'IIS Express', close Visual Studio and then open it by using the Run as administrator option from the right-click or context menu. Then, run the application again.
You might also get a message that asks if you want to accept an IIS SSL Express certificate. To view the code in a web browser, choose Yes, and then choose Yes if you receive a follow-up security warning message.
Visual Studio launches a browser window. You should then see Home, About, and Contact pages in the menu bar. (If you don't, choose the 'hamburger' menu item to view them.)
Choose About from the menu bar.
Among other things, the About page in the browser renders the text that is set in the About.cshtml file.
Return to Visual Studio, and then press Shift+F5 to stop Debug mode. This also closes the project in the browser window.
In Visual Studio, choose About.cshtml. Then, delete the word additional and in its place, add the words file and directory.
Choose About.cshtml.cs. Then, clean up the using directives at the top of the file by using the following shortcut:
Choose any of the grayed-out using directives and a Quick Actions light bulb will appear just below the caret or in the left margin. Choose the light bulb, and then choose Remove Unnecessary Usings.
Visual Studio deletes the unnecessary using directives from the file.
Next, in the OnGet() method, change the body to the following code:
Notice that two wavy underlines appear under Environment and String. The wavy underlines appear because these types aren't in scope.
Open the Error List toolbar to see the same errors listed there. (If you don't see the Error List toolbar, choose View > Error List from the top menu bar.)
Let's fix this. In the code editor, place your cursor on either line that contains the error, and then choose the Quick Actions light bulb in the left margin. Then, from the drop-down menu, choose using System; to add this directive to the top of your file and resolve the errors.
Press Ctrl+S to save your changes, and then press F5 to open your project in the web browser.
At the top of the web site, choose About to view your changes.
Close the web browser, press Shift+F5 to stop Debug mode, and then close Visual Studio.

Tour your solution

The project template creates a solution with a single ASP.NET Core project that is named MyCoreApp. Choose the Solution Explorer tab to view its contents.
Expand the Pages folder.
View the Index.cshtml file in the code editor.
Each .cshtml file has an associated code file. To open the code file in the editor, expand the Index.cshtml node in Solution Explorer, and choose the Index.cshtml.cs file.
View the Index.cshtml.cs file in the code editor.
The project contains a wwwroot folder that is the root for your website. Expand the folder to view its contents.
You can put static site content—such as CSS, images, and JavaScript libraries—directly in the paths where you want them.
The project also contains configuration files that manage the web app at run time. The default application configuration is stored in appsettings.json. However, you can override these settings by using appsettings.Development.json. Expand the appsettings.json file to view the appsettings.Development.json file.

Run, debug, and make changes

Choose the IIS Express button in the IDE to build and run the app in Debug mode. (Alternatively, press F5, or choose Debug > Start Debugging from the menu bar.)
Note
If you get an error message that says Unable to connect to web server 'IIS Express', close Visual Studio and then open it by using the Run as administrator option from the right-click or context menu. Then, run the application again.
You might also get a message that asks if you want to accept an IIS SSL Express certificate. To view the code in a web browser, choose Yes, and then choose Yes if you receive a follow-up security warning message.
Visual Studio launches a browser window. You should then see Home, and Privacy pages in the menu bar.
Choose Privacy from the menu bar.
The Privacy page in the browser renders the text that is set in the Privacy.cshtml file.
Return to Visual Studio, and then press Shift+F5 to stop Debug mode. This also closes the project in the browser window.
In Visual Studio, open Privacy.cshtml for editing. Then, delete the words Use this page to detail your site's privacy policy and in its place, add the words This page is under construction as of @ViewData['TimeStamp'].
Now, let's make a code change. Choose Privacy.cshtml.cs. Then, clean up the using directives at the top of the file by using the following shortcut:
Choose any of the grayed-out using directives and a Quick Actions light bulb will appear just below the caret or in the left margin. Choose the light bulb, and then hover over Remove unnecessary usings.
Now choose Preview changes to see what will change.
Choose Apply. Visual Studio deletes the unnecessary using directives from the file.
Next, in the OnGet() method, change the body to the following code:
Notice that two wavy underlines appear under DateTime. The wavy underlines appear because these type isn't in scope.
Open the Error List toolbar to see the same errors listed there. (If you don't see the Error List toolbar, choose View > Error List from the top menu bar.)
Let's fix this. In the code editor, place your cursor on either line that contains the error, and then choose the Quick Actions light bulb in the left margin. Then, from the drop-down menu, choose using System; to add this directive to the top of your file and resolve the errors.
Press F5 to open your project in the web browser.
At the top of the web site, choose Privacy to view your changes.
Close the web browser, press Shift+F5 to stop Debug mode, and then close Visual Studio.

Quick answers FAQ

Here's a quick FAQ to highlight some key concepts.

What is C#?

C# is a type-safe and object-oriented programming language that's designed to be both robust and easy to learn.

What is ASP.NET Core?

ASP.NET Core is an open-source and cross-platform framework for building internet-connected applications, such as web apps and services. ASP.NET Core apps can run on either .NET Core or the .NET Framework. You can develop and run your ASP.NET Core apps cross-platform on Windows, Mac, and Linux. ASP.NET Core is open source at GitHub.

What is Visual Studio?

Visual Studio is an integrated development suite of productivity tools for developers. Think of it as a program you can use to create programs and applications.

Next steps

Congratulations on completing this tutorial! We hope you learned a little bit about C#, ASP.NET Core, and the Visual Studio IDE. To learn more about creating a web app or website with C# and ASP.NET, continue with the following tutorials:

Install the extension

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

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.

Run the installer, which should be named mingw-w64-install.exe in your Download folder.
For Architecture select x86_64 and then select Next.
On the Installation Folder page, use the default location for the Destination folder. Copy the location as you will need it later.
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:

In the Windows search bar, type 'settings' to open your Windows Settings.
Search for Edit environment variables for your account.
Choose the Path variable and then select Edit.
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.
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:

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'.

C In Visual Studio

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:

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

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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.

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