Setting up the modern Salesforce IDE means preparing Visual Studio Code to work with your orgs. The steps below get you from a plain editor to a working Salesforce project on the desktop. If you prefer zero local setup, open Agentforce Vibes IDE from Setup instead, and these prerequisites are already handled for you.
- Install the prerequisites
Install Visual Studio Code at version 1.90 or later, the Salesforce CLI, and a Java Development Kit at version 11, 17, or 21. Confirm the CLI works by running sf --version in a terminal. The JDK is required because several Apex features depend on it.
- Add the Salesforce Extension Pack
Open the Extensions view in VS Code, search for the Salesforce Extension Pack, and install the bundle rather than picking extensions one by one. The pack stays version-aligned with Salesforce releases and auto-updates on the Salesforce schedule.
- Create or open a project
Use the command palette and run SFDX: Create Project, or open an existing folder that already contains an sfdx-project.json file. The editor recognizes the SFDX source format and enables Salesforce-specific commands and navigation.
- Authorize an org
Run SFDX: Authorize an Org or SFDX: Authorize a Dev Hub from the command palette and complete the browser login. Once authorized, you can deploy, retrieve, run tests, and open scratch orgs from inside the editor.
The org that deploy, retrieve, and test commands target unless you specify another. Set it per project so commands act against the right environment.
The org authorized to create and manage scratch orgs. Required before you can spin up scratch orgs for source-tracked development.
The Java runtime the Apex features use. Point the editor at a supported JDK (11, 17, or 21) if Apex language features fail to load.
The metadata API version stored in sfdx-project.json. Keep it current so newer metadata types deploy and retrieve correctly.
- Installing individual extensions instead of the full pack can leave versions mismatched and break features like the replay debugger.
- Missing or unsupported JDK is the most common reason Apex code completion and the language server fail to start.
- Production orgs are not source-tracked, so push and pull do not apply there; deploy with a manifest through the Metadata API or change sets.
- Agentforce Vibes IDE sources extensions from Open VSX, so some Microsoft Marketplace extensions you use on the desktop are unavailable in the browser.