VS-Code Server - Docker Setup & Config

Official VS Code Server in Docker with WebSocket support, full extension compatibility (including GitHub Copilot), based on Debian.

Quick Start

# Pull and run
docker pull ghcr.io/nerasse/my-code-server:main
docker run -d -p 8585:8585 -e TOKEN=yourtoken ghcr.io/nerasse/my-code-server:main

# Or with docker-compose
docker compose up -d

Access: http://localhost:8585?tkn=yourtoken

Installation

Prerequisites

• Docker
• Docker Compose (optional)
• Reverse Proxy (optional, for production)

Option 1: Using Pre-built Image

docker pull ghcr.io/nerasse/my-code-server:main

Option 2: Build Locally

# Using buildx (recommended)
docker buildx build -t my-code-server:main .

# Or using legacy builder
docker build -t my-code-server:main .

Usage

Docker Compose (Recommended)

Basic usage:

docker compose up -d

With custom configuration (.env file):

HOST_PORT=9090
CONTAINER_PORT=8585
TOKEN=mysecuretoken
PUID=1000
PGID=1000

With volumes (for persistence): Uncomment in docker-compose.yml:

volumes:
  - /path/to/your/data:/home/vscodeuser

Docker Run

Basic:

docker run -d -p 8585:8585 \
  -e PORT=8585 \
  -e TOKEN=sometoken \
  my-code-server:main

With volumes and custom UID/GID:

docker run -d -p 8585:8585 \
  -e PORT=8585 \
  -e TOKEN=sometoken \
  -e PUID=$(id -u) \
  -e PGID=$(id -g) \
  -v /path/to/your/data:/home/vscodeuser \
  my-code-server:main

Configuration

Environment Variables

Variable	Description	Default
PORT	VS Code Server listening port	8585
HOST	Host interface to listen on	0.0.0.0
TOKEN	Connection token for authentication	None
TOKEN_FILE	Path to file containing token	-
PUID	User ID (for volume permissions)	1000
PGID	Group ID (for volume permissions)	1000
SERVER_DATA_DIR	Server data storage directory	-
SERVER_BASE_PATH	Base path for web UI	-
SOCKET_PATH	Socket path for server	-
VERBOSE	Enable verbose output	false
LOG_LEVEL	Log level (trace, debug, info, warn, error, critical, off)	-
CLI_DATA_DIR	CLI metadata directory	-

Docker Compose Variables

Use environment variables or .env file:

Variable	Description	Default
HOST_PORT	Host port mapping	8585
CONTAINER_PORT	Container port	8585
TOKEN	Authentication token	sometoken
PUID	User ID	1000
PGID	Group ID	1000

Custom UID/GID

To avoid permission issues with mounted volumes, the container supports dynamic UID/GID:

With docker-compose: Set PUID and PGID environment variables With docker run: Use -e PUID=$(id -u) -e PGID=$(id -g)

The container will automatically adjust user permissions at startup.

Nginx Reverse Proxy Setup

Network Configuration

• Container name: my-code-server
• Network: vscode-server-network

HTTP Configuration

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name my-code-server.domain.com;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://my-code-server.vscode-server-network:8585;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;

        # WebSocket support (required)
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";
    }
}

HTTPS/SSL Configuration

server {
    listen 443 ssl;
    server_name my-code-server.domain.com;

    ssl_certificate /ssl/.domain.com.cer;
    ssl_certificate_key /ssl/.domain.com.key;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://my-code-server.vscode-server-network:8585;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;

        # WebSocket support (required)
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";
    }
}

Access: https://my-code-server.domain.com?tkn=yourtoken

Architecture Support

• amd64 (x86_64) - ✅ Fully supported
• arm64 (aarch64) - ❓ Should work (not tested yet)
• armv7 - ❌ Not supported

Security

⚠️ Important: Replace default tokens with secure values. Never use published credentials in production.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome!