Work with multiple projects in one workspace

Work with multiple project folders in the same workspace by using the multi-root workspace feature. This is useful when you are working on several related projects at once, such as product documentation and product code repositories.

By default, workspaces open in multi-root mode. After a workspace starts, the /projects/.code-workspace workspace file is generated. The workspace file contains all the projects described in the devfile.

{
	"folders": [
		{
			"name": "project-1",
			"path": "/projects/project-1"
		},
		{
			"name": "project-2",
			"path": "/projects/project-2"
		}
	]
}

If the workspace file already exists, it is updated and all missing projects are taken from the devfile. If you remove a project from the devfile, it remains in the workspace file.

You can change the default behavior and provide your own workspace file or switch to a single-root workspace.

Prerequisites

An active kubectl session with administrative permissions to the Kubernetes cluster. See Overview of kubectl.

Procedure

Add a workspace file with the name .code-workspace to the root of your repository. After workspace creation, the Visual Studio Code - Open Source ("Code - OSS") uses the workspace file as it is.

{
	"folders": [
		{
			"name": "project-name",
			"path": "."
		}
	]
}

Be careful when creating a workspace file. In case of errors, an empty Visual Studio Code - Open Source ("Code - OSS") opens instead. If you have several projects, the workspace file is taken from the first project. If the workspace file does not exist in the first project, a new one is created and placed in the /projects directory.

Define the VSCODE_DEFAULT_WORKSPACE environment variable in your devfile with the path to an alternative workspace file.
```
   env:
     - name: VSCODE_DEFAULT_WORKSPACE
       value: "/projects/project-name/workspace-file"
```
Define the VSCODE_DEFAULT_WORKSPACE environment variable and set it to / to open a workspace in single-root mode.
```
   env:
     - name: VSCODE_DEFAULT_WORKSPACE
       value: "/"
```

Verification

Start or restart the workspace and verify that Code - OSS opens with the expected workspace mode (single-root or multi-root).

Additional resources