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Devcontainer Export

basectl devcontainer [project] derives a minimal Dev Containers configuration from a Base project manifest. The default mode is a dry-run preview: it reads base_manifest.yaml, prints the generated .devcontainer/devcontainer.json content, and reports which manifest fields were supported, unsupported, or ambiguous.

basectl devcontainer demo
basectl devcontainer demo --format json

Use --workspace <path> when resolving a named project outside the configured workspace. Use --write only after reviewing the preview:

basectl devcontainer demo --format json
basectl devcontainer demo --write

When writing, Base creates .devcontainer/devcontainer.json under the project root and refuses to replace an existing file. There is no force flag; project owned Dev Containers files remain project owned.

Supported Fields

The current export supports:

  • project.name as name
  • ide.vscode.extensions as customizations.vscode.extensions
  • ide.vscode.settings as customizations.vscode.settings

The JSON report includes the generated devcontainer object and the target path. This makes the dry-run output stable enough for review and automation without requiring a container runtime.

Unsupported And Ambiguous Fields

Base deliberately does not guess container behavior for manifest fields that carry host setup, project commands, diagnostics, or runtime policy. The export reports those fields instead of silently dropping them.

Examples include:

  • brewfile, mise, artifacts, test, commands, build, and activation sources as unsupported
  • python.manager and python.requires_python as ambiguous until Base has an explicit image or feature policy
  • non-VS Code IDE customizations as unsupported

This command does not build images, start containers, install packages, execute project hooks, or replace Dev Containers as the owner of containerized development behavior.