Bicep for Open VSX

Open VSX compatible Bicep language support for VS Code (Unofficial).

Note: Bicep is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation. This extension is an unofficial community project and is not affiliated with Microsoft.

Features

This extension provides language support for Bicep files (.bicep) and Bicep parameter files (.bicepparam), including:

• Syntax Highlighting: Colorization for Bicep keywords, strings, comments, and more.
• Language Server Features:
  • Validation (Error/Warning diagnostics)
  • IntelliSense (Code completion)
  • Hover information
  • Formatting
• Configuration Support: JSON schema validation for bicepconfig.json files

How It Works

This extension uses the Bicep Language Server (Bicep.LangServer.dll):

• Bundled with the extension (~100MB)
• Depends on .NET Runtime 10.0
  • Automatically installed via the Microsoft official extension .NET Install Tool
• Currently using Bicep v0.40.2
• Runs via the .NET Install Tool extension

Roadmap

This project aims to provide essential language support for Bicep in Open VSX compatible environments.

Current Status

✅ Implemented:

• Bicep syntax highlighting (.bicep and .bicepparam files)
• Language Server integration (diagnostics, IntelliSense, hover, formatting)
• .bicepparam file support
• bicepconfig.json JSON schema validation
• Configurable language server path

Planned Features

• Editor default settings (tab size, etc.)
• Bicep syntax highlighting in Markdown code blocks
• Snippets for common patterns

Not Planned

Build and Compile Commands

Build and decompile commands will not be implemented in this extension. Users should use the Bicep CLI directly for these operations:

• bicep build - Build ARM Template
• bicep decompile - Decompile JSON to Bicep
• bicep generate-params - Generate parameters file

Rationale: The Bicep CLI already provides excellent command-line tools for these operations. This extension focuses on editor integration rather than duplicating CLI functionality.

Advanced Features (Not Currently Planned)

• Bicep Visualizer
• Azure deployment features
• Resource insertion
• Module restore functionality

Note: Azure integration features are out of scope for this project.

Philosophy

This extension follows a lightweight, focused approach:

• Provide excellent language support and editor integration
• Defer to the Bicep CLI for build/compile operations
• Avoid duplicating functionality available in other tools
• Keep the extension small and fast

Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md for development setup, build instructions, and testing guidelines.

License

This extension is MIT licensed. It includes components from the Bicep project (MIT, Microsoft Corporation); see THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.