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https://github.com/srl-labs/vscode-containerlab

Containerlab VS Code extension
https://github.com/srl-labs/vscode-containerlab

containerlab vscode-extension

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Containerlab VS Code extension

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README 

        
# vscode-containerlab



A Visual Studio Code extension that integrates [containerlab](https://containerlab.dev/) directly into your editor, providing a convenient tree view for managing labs and their containers.



---

## Features



- **Auto-discovery** of local `*.clab.yml` or `*.clab.yaml` files in your workspace.  

- **Tree view** showing labs (green/red/gray/yellow icons) based on container states:

  - **Green**: all containers in the lab are running  

  - **Gray**: undeployed (no containers found)  

  - **Red**: all containers are stopped  

  - **Yellow**: partially running (some containers running, others stopped)

- **Right-click context menus** on labs:

  - **Deploy**, **Destroy**, **Redeploy** (with or without cleanup)

  - **Open Lab File**, **Copy Lab File Path**

  - **Graph** topologies (local Web or draw.io modes)

  - **Inspect** single lab

  - **Add Lab to Workspace**

  - **Open Folder in New Window**

- **Right-click context menus** on containers:

  - **Start**, **Stop**  

  - **Attach shell** (with user-defined exec commands per node kind)  

  - **SSH**  

  - **View logs**  

  - **Copy** submenu for container properties:

    - Name, ID, IPv4, IPv6, Kind, Image

- **Right-click context menus** on interfaces:

  - **Capture interface**: starts packet capture using tcpdump/Wireshark

  - **Capture interface (Edgeshark)**: uses Edgeshark/packetflix

  - **Set delay**: configure link delay

  - **Set jitter**: configure link jitter

  - **Set packet loss**: configure packet loss percentage

  - **Set rate-limit**: configure egress rate-limit

  - **Set corruption**: configure packet corruption percentage

  - **Copy MAC address**: copy interface MAC address

- **Inspect** commands:

  - **Inspect (All Labs)**: shows a webview with **all** labs in a grouped table

  - **Inspect Lab**: show only the selected lab’s containers in a webview

- **Graph**:

  - **Graph Lab (Web)**: runs `containerlab graph` in a Terminal

  - **Graph Lab (draw.io)**: runs `containerlab graph --drawio` , then opens the `.drawio` file

  - **Graph Lab (draw.io, Interactive)**: runs in Terminal with in interactive mode

  - **Graph Lab (Topoviewer)**: interactive, web-based interface for visualizing Containerlab topologies



---



## Requirements



- **containerlab** must be installed and accessible in your system `PATH`. The extension will offer to install it if not found.

- (Optional) **Edgeshark** for packet capture features - can be installed directly from the extension using the "Install Edgeshark" command.



Note: The extension will automatically prompt to add your user to the `clab_admins` group during setup to enable running containerlab commands without sudo.



---



## Getting Started



1. **Install** the extension.

2. **Open** a folder or workspace in VS Code containing `.clab.yml` or `.clab.yaml` files.

3. **Click** on the _Containerlab_ icon in the Activity Bar to view your labs.

4. **Right-click** on a lab or container to see context menu commands (Deploy, Destroy, Redeploy, etc.).



---



## Commands



These are some key commands contributed by the extension:



### Lab Management

- **Deploy / Deploy (cleanup)**  

- **Redeploy / Redeploy (cleanup)**  

- **Destroy / Destroy (cleanup)**

- **Deploy lab file** (choose a `.clab.yml/.yaml` from a file picker)



### Lab Inspection

- **Inspect (All Labs)**: Summaries all labs in one webview  

- **Inspect Lab**: Summaries the containers for a single lab



### Graph

- **Graph Lab (Web)**: runs in Terminal  

- **Graph Lab (draw.io)**: uses a spinner and opens the `.drawio` file  

- **Graph Lab (draw.io, Interactive)**: same but with additional `--drawio-args "-I"`.

- **Graph Lab (Topoviewer)**: interactive, web-based visualization



### Node / Container Management

- **Start node**, **Stop node**  

- **Attach shell** (exec into container—respects `containerlab.node.execCommandMapping` in settings)  

- **SSH**  

- **View logs** (tails `docker logs -f ...`)  

- **Copy** menu (Name, ID, IPv4, IPv6, Kind, Image)



### Interface Management

- **Capture interface**: starts packet capture on an interface using tcpdump/Wireshark

- **Capture interface (Edgeshark)**: uses Edgeshark/packetflix for packet capture

- **Set delay**: configure link delay for an interface

- **Set jitter**: configure link jitter for an interface

- **Set packet loss**: configure packet loss percentage for an interface

- **Set rate-limit**: configure egress rate-limit for an interface

- **Set corruption**: configure packet corruption percentage for an interface

- **Copy MAC address**: copy interface MAC address to clipboard



### Edgeshark Integration

- **Install Edgeshark**: installs Edgeshark using docker compose

- **Uninstall Edgeshark**: removes Edgeshark containers

- **Configure session hostname**: set hostname for remote connections (packet capture)



### Other

- **Add Lab to Workspace**: adds the lab’s folder to the current VS Code workspace  

- **Open Folder in New Window**: opens a separate VS Code window rooted at the lab’s folder  



All these commands are accessible via:

- **Context menus** on labs/containers (in the _Containerlab Explorer_)

- **Editor title** (top-right) when editing a `.clab.(yml|yaml)`

- **Command Palette** (`Ctrl+Shift+P` or `Cmd+Shift+P`, then type “Containerlab:”)



## Extension Settings



You can customize the following settings under `containerlab.*`:



- **`containerlab.defaultSshUser`** (string)  

  Default SSH user for the **SSH** command (e.g. `"admin"`).



- **`containerlab.sudoEnabledByDefault`** (boolean)  

  Whether to prepend `sudo` to containerlab commands. Default: `true`.



- **`containerlab.refreshInterval`** (number)  

  How often (in ms) the Containerlab Explorer refreshes. Default: `10000`.



- **`containerlab.node.execCommandMapping`** (object)  

  Mapping of node `kind` to the exec command used by **Attach shell**.  

  For example, if you have `"nokia_srlinux": "sr_cli"`, then `docker exec -it  sr_cli` is used.



- **`containerlab.wsl.wiresharkPath`** (string)  

  The path to Wireshark executable on Windows from inside WSL.  

  Default: `/mnt/c/Program Files/Wireshark/wireshark.exe`



- **`containerlab.remote.hostname`** (string)  

  The hostname to use for connections to/from this host. Can be either DNS resolvable hostname, or an IPv4/6 address.  

  Used for packet capture features.  

  Note: A configured hostname for *this session of VS Code* takes precedence.



- **`containerlab.drawioDefaultTheme`** (string)  

  Default theme to use when generating DrawIO graphs.  

  Options: `nokia_modern`, `nokia`, `grafana`  

  Default: `nokia_modern`



---



## Monitor Deployment Progress

When deploying labs, you can monitor the detailed progress in the Output window:

1. Open the Output panel (`Ctrl+Shift+U` or `View -> Output`)

2. Select "Containerlab" from the dropdown menu

3. Watch the deployment logs in real-time



## Auto-refresh Behavior

- The Containerlab Explorer automatically refreshes based on the `containerlab.refreshInterval` setting

- Labs are consistently sorted:

  - Deployed labs appear before undeployed labs

  - Within each group (deployed/undeployed), labs are sorted by their absolute path



---



## Known Issues



### "Unable to detect containerlab version" Error



If you see this error message despite having containerlab correctly installed, there are two common causes:



1. **GitHub API Rate Limiting**

   - The version check makes API calls to GitHub to compare versions

   - Without authentication, these calls are subject to rate limiting

   - Solution: Set your GitHub token as an environment variable:



```

export GITHUB_TOKEN=your_github_token_here

```



2. **Sudo Permission Configuration**

   - The extension tries to run 'sudo containerlab version check'

   - This requires passwordless sudo access for the containerlab command

   - Solution: Configure passwordless sudo specifically for containerlab:



```

# Replace  with your actual username, e.g., john

sudo visudo -f /etc/sudoers.d/

```



Add this line in the editor (replace  with your username):



```

 ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD: /usr/bin/containerlab

```



Note: Future versions of the extension will improve handling of these scenarios to provide a better user experience.



---



### "I do not see any interfaces on my deployed lab" 

Labs which are deployed with containerlab < 0.64.0 , needing a redeploy.



---



## Feedback and Contributions



If you’d like to request features or report issues:

- Open an issue on our GitHub repository.

- PRs are welcome! Let us know how we can improve the extension.



- **GitHub Issues:** [Create an issue](https://github.com/srl-labs/vscode-containerlab/issues) on GitHub.

- **Discord:** Join our [Discord community](https://discord.gg/vAyddtaEV9)



**Enjoy managing your containerlab topologies directly from VS Code!**