To enable Workspace Explorer support for Remote WSL, Remote SSH, and Remote Container extensions/remote development workflows the extensionKind must be specified in the package.json.
When a developer using the desktop version of VSCode opens a WSL, SSH, or Container workspace Workspace Explorer is currently unaware of the local host Workspace Storage Directory. While it is possible to install Workspace Explorer on the remote host (this is how GitHub Codespaces operates), for desktop users this means they only have access to local workspaces when running locally and only the workspaces stored on the remote host when running VSCode remotely.
It is possible to save a WSL, SSH, or container workspace locally and then clicking on it in Workspace Explorer, make a one way trip to the remote workspace. You will then not have the extension to take you to any other workspaces back on the local machine.
The Fix
By first trying to run the extension in the local host, desktop VSCode will continue to give Workspace Explorer have access to the local host's file system and workspaces.
"extensionKind": ["ui", "workspace"]
Reference
If this sounds confusing, you're not alone. Check out the official VSCode docs below for some diagrams and further reference for remote development workflows.
To enable Workspace Explorer support for Remote WSL, Remote SSH, and Remote Container extensions/remote development workflows the
extensionKindmust be specified in thepackage.json.When a developer using the desktop version of VSCode opens a WSL, SSH, or Container workspace Workspace Explorer is currently unaware of the local host Workspace Storage Directory. While it is possible to install Workspace Explorer on the remote host (this is how GitHub Codespaces operates), for desktop users this means they only have access to local workspaces when running locally and only the workspaces stored on the remote host when running VSCode remotely.
It is possible to save a WSL, SSH, or container workspace locally and then clicking on it in Workspace Explorer, make a one way trip to the remote workspace. You will then not have the extension to take you to any other workspaces back on the local machine.
The Fix
By first trying to run the extension in the local host, desktop VSCode will continue to give Workspace Explorer have access to the local host's file system and workspaces.
Reference
If this sounds confusing, you're not alone. Check out the official VSCode docs below for some diagrams and further reference for remote development workflows.