Install ESP-IDF and Tools

[中文]

After installing Visual Studio Code (VS Code), install the ESP-IDF extension for VS Code.

• Navigate to View > Extensions or the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+X in Windows/Linux or Shift+⌘+X in macOS.

• Search for ESP-IDF in the list of extensions.

1. Install the ESP-IDF extension.

   • Navigate to View > Command Palette.

   • Type ESP-IDF: Configure ESP-IDF Extension and select the command to launch the setup wizard. A loading notification will appear, followed by the setup wizard.

   Note

   For versions of ESP-IDF < 5.0, spaces are not supported in configured paths.

   

2. Choose Express and select the download server:

   • Espressif: Faster speed in China using Espressif download servers.

   • Github: Using GitHub release links.

3. Pick an ESP-IDF version to download or use the Find ESP-IDF in your system option to search for an existing ESP-IDF directory.

   

   Choose the location for ESP-IDF Tools (IDF_TOOLS_PATH), which defaults to %USERPROFILE%\.espressif on Windows and $HOME\.espressif on macOS/Linux.

   Note

   Make sure that IDF_TOOLS_PATH does not contain spaces to avoid build issues. Also, ensure that IDF_TOOLS_PATH is not the same directory as IDF_PATH.

   Note

   For macOS/Linux users, select the Python executable to create the ESP-IDF Python virtual environment.

4. Click Install to begin downloading and installing ESP-IDF and ESP-IDF Tools.

5. A page will appear showing the setup progress status:

   • ESP-IDF download progress

   • ESP-IDF Tools download and installation progress

   • Creation of a Python virtual environment and installation of ESP-IDF Python requirements

   

6. If everything installs correctly, you will see a message indicating that all settings have been configured.

   

   Note

   For Linux users, a message will prompt you to add OpenOCD rules in /etc/udev/rules.d. You need to run this with sudo privileges.

7. The next step is to Create an ESP-IDF Project.

   Warning

   Check the Troubleshooting section if you encounter any issues during installation.

Uninstall ESP-IDF VS Code Extension

To uninstall the ESP-IDF VS Code extension, follow these steps:

1. Open Command Palette (press shortcut F1) and type ESP-IDF: Clear Saved ESP-IDF Setups. Select the command to remove all ESP-IDF settings.

2. Navigate to View > Extensions or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+X in Windows/Linux or Shift+⌘+X in macOS.

3. Search for ESP-IDF and click the Uninstall button.

4. Remove the following folders:

   • Go to your ${VSCODE_EXTENSION_DIR} and delete the ESP-IDF plugin folder.

   • ${VSCODE_EXTENSION_DIR} is the location of the extension:

     • Windows: %USERPROFILE%/.vscode/extensions/espressif.esp-idf-extension-VERSION/

     • macOS/Linux: $HOME/.vscode/extensions/espressif.esp-idf-extension-VERSION/

   Note

   Make sure to replace VERSION with the actual version number of the installed ESP-IDF extension.