Introduction

DeepSeek Harness (DSH) uses a plugin-based architecture. When debugging agents or performing long-running coding tasks, developers usually need to observe the AI’s actions in real time or have a fully featured code editor in the browser. The dsh-vsceditor plugin is designed to solve this problem by embedding code-server in the DSH Web UI, providing a complete VS Code environment.

Basic Information

  • Plugin Name: dsh-vsceditor
  • Maintainer: k-ying
  • License: MIT
  • Category: Client
  • GitHub: k-ying/dsh-vsceditor

Core Features

The plugin mainly addresses the limitations of browser-side editors, the inability to monitor AI code changes in real time, and process management issues.

  • Three mutually exclusive backend modes

    • Embedded: The default mode, which embeds code-server inside the DSH interface.
    • Local: Syncs AI changes to a local desktop VS Code instance.
    • Off: Disconnects all editor connections.

  • An authentic VS Code environment

    • Uses code-server 4.x with the full kernel.
    • Supports extensions, themes, keyboard shortcuts, and the Git panel.

  • Follow mode and change view

    • When the agent calls the write or edit tool, the editor displays a red/green diff view and scrolls to the first changed line.
    • DSH renders its own read-only Diff tab, making it easy to view from either side.
    • Diffs accumulate until the next conversation turn begins editing, when they are cleared.

  • File locking mechanism

    • While the agent is writing a file, the file becomes read-only in the editor to prevent conflicts between manual and AI overwrites.
    • It is automatically unlocked after writing completes.

  • No orphan processes

    • code-server runs under a Watchdog process that periodically sends heartbeats to the DSH host.
    • If the DSH host crashes, is force-quit, or upgraded, the Watchdog terminates the entire editor process tree to ensure no residual processes remain.

  • Workspace follows session

    • When the workspace of the current session changes, the editor automatically switches to the corresponding directory and restarts code-server.

  • Persistent Iframe

    • The editor page remains attached to <body>; switching tabs only hides/shows it and does not recreate the session.

  • Settings page integration

    • A configuration card is provided under Settings → Plugins → Plugin Configuration, allowing control of the Follow toggle, auto-start, port, and code-server path.

  • Zero dependencies

    • Both the host and client are hand-written in native JavaScript, without relying on npm packages.

Installation and Enablement

  1. Install the plugin
    Install it via the command line:
    dsh plugin --profile web add github:k-ying/dsh-vsceditor

  1. Configure embedded mode (required)
    The plugin does not bundle the code-server runtime (about 100MB). To use the default Embedded mode, you need to install code-server.

    • Option 1: One-click installation
      Open the Editor tab and click the Install code-server in one click button in the toolbar. Follow the prompts in the dialog to download and install it.
    • Option 2: Global CLI installation
        sh ~/.dsh/profiles/web/node_modules/dsh-vsceditor/scripts/install-code-server.sh ~/.dsh-editor

    If you want to use it separately in the current workspace, run the script directly (without parameters) to install it into the `.dsh-editor` directory.

Typical Usage

  • Monitor AI work: During a conversation, whenever the AI modifies a file, the editor immediately displays a Diff view, allowing you to intuitively see which lines were modified.
  • Switch to local editor: Click the toggle in the editor toolbar to switch the sync mode to Local. The Follow/Diff/locking features then transfer to your local desktop VS Code.
  • Disconnect: If you do not need editor features, click the toggle to set it to Off. The system will release the related resources.

Notes

  • System limitations: Currently, only macOS or Linux is supported. Windows has not been tested (code-server officially does not have a Windows build).
  • Runtime location: The editor’s runtime data (user data, configuration, logs) is not stored in the workspace directory, but in the global directory ~/.dsh-editor/workspaces/<hash>-<workspace-name>/.
  • Process guarding: Because the Watchdog is used, if the DSH host process terminates unexpectedly, the editor processes are also automatically cleaned up.

Summary

dsh-vsceditor provides DeepSeek Harness with the ability to perform professional-level code editing without leaving the Web interface. Combined with Follow mode and the Diff view, it can effectively improve controllability when collaborating with AI for development.