About What components should I know about?
The IBM i Development Pack is essentially a curated bundle of extensions designed to give IBM i developers a full-featured, frictionless experience inside Visual Studio Code. Each component plays a specific role in streamlining development, debugging, and workflow management. Here's the breakdown:
Why Multiple Components?
Because IBM i development isn't just one thing it spans multiple languages, tools, and workflows. The pack modularizes these needs, so you get:
Language Support
Syntax highlighting for RPGLE, COBOL, CL, and DDS via the IBMi Languages extension.
Makes your code readable and easier to navigate.
Core Development Tools
Code for IBM i: The backbone extension that connects VS Code to your IBM i system.
BOB (Better Object Builder): A build system that compiles only what’s needed, speeding up development.
Source Orbit: Dependency management and Git integration for RPG/CL/DDS/SQL workflows
Project Navigation & Visualization
Quality-of-Life Enhancements
Error Lens: Highlights issues inline, so you don’t have to hunt through logs.
Walkthroughs: Onboarding guides to help new users get up to speed quickly.
Now, lets look at each of these modules in a little more detail.
Module Content
Code for IBM i - Powerful VSCode Extension
"Code for IBM i" is a set of tools and extensions for Visual Studio Code (VS Code) that enables IBM i developers to create, edit, and manage IBM i applications directly within the VS Code environment.
The IBMi Languages extension is a syntax-highlighting powerhouse tailored for IBM i developers working in Visual Studio Code
The VSCode 'RPGLE Extension' is a must-have tool for RPGLE developers looking to modernize their workflow in VS Code
The COBOL Extension is a powerhouse for COBOL developers working in Visual Studio Code—especially those juggling multiple dialects across IBM i, Micro Focus, ACUCOBOL, and COBOL-IT.
The IBM CLLE extension is a sleek, no-nonsense tool that brings Control Language (CL) editing into the modern age of Visual Studio Code.
The Code for IBM i Walkthroughs extension is like a guided tour for IBM i developers stepping into the VS Code ecosystem. It’s built to onboard new users and reinforce best practices through interactive, markdown-driven walkthroughs.
The Db2 for IBM i extension is your SQL command center inside VS Code—built to make working with Db2 databases on IBM i feel modern, visual, and efficient.
The IBM i Renderer extension is a nifty visual aid for developers working with DDS display and printer files. It’s still in preview, but it’s already a handy tool for bridging green-screen layouts with modern IDE workflows.
The Project Explorer in Visual Studio Code (VS Code) is a feature that allows you to manage and navigate your project's files and folders. It is a tree-like view of your project's directory structure, showing all the files and folders in your project.
Source Orbit is a dependency management system. As IBM i developers start using git for the RPGLE, CL, DDS and SQL, we want to provide them with excellent tools to help them understand their source code. Source Orbit:
scans all applicable source code to build a dependency tree
can show how objects would be affected as developers write code (inside of Visual Studio Code)
can generate JSON, or build scripts, to automatically build your application changes
generates reports for branches being worked on so project owners can see their application in real time.
helps migrate your code to git (See CLI, Cleanup capabilities)
The Error Lens extension is like turning up the contrast knob on your code diagnostics, it makes errors, warnings, and hints pop visually so you can squash bugs faster and with less squinting.
TOBi - The Object Builder for i
Don't confuse TOBi (previously known as BOB) with IBM's Project BOB! These are two completely different things!
Project Bob is IBM’s AI-powered development assistant designed to help software teams ship better code, faster. Think of it as a supercharged teammate embedded right inside your IDE one that understands your repo, your coding standards, and even your security posture.
TOBi, The Object Builder for i, is a free and open-source build system designed for the IBM i platform. It is used to create native "QSYS" objects. Developed by S4i Systems and now hosted on IBM's public GitHub, TOBi leverages GNU Make to compile only the objects that need recompiling, ensuring speed and reliability.
Git - Distributed Version Control System
Git gives us Version control, Branching and merging, Distributed development, and has Seamless integration with IBM i, allowing you to work with IBM i files and databases directly within VS Code.
